In this paper we describe some of the key technologies of a mobile manipulator that are used for package transportation in a pharmaceutical warehouse. The paper presents, beyond the functional aspects of the system, the main modules of the software that controls the mobile manipulator. The robot is a demonstrator of technologies for transporting safely and efficiently goods in partially structured, dynamic and public environments. Several issues are discussed such as the design and integration of mechanical elements, the development of non invasive localization and guidance procedures, the design and control of grasping devices for specific box/storage combinations, and the development of testing, verification and validation procedures satisfying strict pharmaceutical regulations. Results of the laboratory tests demonstrate the capability of the prototype.

This paper proposes a new geometrical structure for stereoscopic vision using omnidirectional cameras. The motivation of this work comes from the desire to equip a small hopping robot with an efficient and robust vision system to perform self localization during exploration missions. Because of size and weight constraints, we selected the Panoramic Annular Lens, for which no geometric model of stereo configuration was available. The paper describes the geometrical optical properties of the single lens and proposes a configuration for doing stereo vision with this lens. The analytical properties as well as the requirements of the complete system are discussed in the paper.

This paper describes our efforts and plans to develop a Virtual Laboratory for the education in Robotics and Automation. These efforts are characterized by the need of blending R&A subjects into a traditional Computer Science curriculum, thus forcing a specific selection of development topics. In this context, the Robotics Laboratory must provide the basic as well as advanced experiments, to address the needs of students at different education levels. In this paper, we present the development of three main applications, to support Control Systems and Robotics classes, as well as the thesis and dissertation research. Of particular interest is the effort in the area of teleoperation, preliminary to the opening (next year) of a new curriculum on Medical Informatics, in which Computer Assisted Surgery will play an important role.