Intelligent Robots and Systems Group

Click here for a video highlighting some of our past research.

People

Active PhD members of the lab:

• Maria Isabel Ribeiro
• Pedro Lima
• Carlos Pinto-Ferreira
• João Sequeira
• Carlos Bispo
• Luis Custódio
• Rodrigo Ventura
• Pedro Miraldo
• José Acevedo

Projects

The IRS group has been involved in several financed projects, both European and national.

Current projects

• INSIDE: Intelligent Networked Robot Systems for Symbiotic Interaction with Children with Impaired Development (CMU-Portugal ERI, 2014-2018)
• MOnarCH – Multi-Robot Cognitive Systems Operating in Hospitals (EU FP7, 2013-2015)
• RoCKIn: Robot Competitions Kick Innovation in Cognitive Systems and Robotics (EU FP7, 2013-2015)
• SocRob: Society of Robots (ISR internal) - Home, Rescue and Soccer Networked Robot Systems

Past projects

• AuReRo: Augmented Reality Robotics (FCT, 2010-2013)
• BioInstBots From Bio-Inspired to Institutional-Inspired Collective Robotics (FCT, 2010-2013)
• DARE (FCT)
• DecPUCS: Decentralized Planning Under Uncertainty for Cooperative Systems (FCT, 2007-2010)
• FEMDS: Formation Estimation Methodologies for Distributed Spacecraft (ESA)
• HROSS: High Resolution Optical Satellite Sensor (EUCLID RTP9.9)
• ITER-RH Activities Related to the Development of an Air Transfer System Prototype and Cask Transfer System Virtual Mock-up (EURATOM Fusion for Energy / ITER)
• LABELEC Laser range systems to measure live power installations
• MAIS-S: Multiagent Intelligent Surveillance System (CMU-Portugal, 2010-2013)
• MS-AGENCY (FCT)
• MVFLAU: Feasibility Study of In-Flight Model validation and Performance Analysis of Launchers GNC (ESA, 2013-2015)
• PCMMC: Perception-Driven Coordinated Multi-Robot Motion Control (FCT, 2010-2012)
• RAPOSA (AdI)
• RESCUE (FCT, internal)
• RIOL: Robotic inspection over power lines (FCT)
• SocRob2004/FCT
• URUS: Ubiquitous Networking Robotics in Urban Settings (EU FP7 Leonardo da Vinci)
• USORA: Unified Solution of Remote Access in Practical Vocational Engineering Education (EU FP6)

• projects of the former Intelligent Control Lab

Other research

Current research is being conducted by IRS group members in these core areas:

• Institutional Robotics
• Field Robotics
• Formation State Estimation and Control
• Discrete Event Systems Based Robotic Task Modeling
• Planning under Uncertainty
• Cooperative Active Perception
• Cognitive Architectures
• Context-based Thermodynamic Modeling of Buildings Spaces

PhD Theses

An overview of PhD theses (co-)supervised by IRS group members.

• Information Gain and Value Function Approximation in Task Planning Using POMDPs, Tiago Veiga, 2015.
• Multi-Robot 3D Target Estimation Under Uncertainty, André Dias, 2015.
• Audio-based Swarming Micro Aerial Vehicles, Meysam Basiri, 2015.
• Decision-Making under Uncertainty for Real Robot Teams, João Messias, 2014.
• Advancing Social Interactions Among Robots: An Institutional Economics-based Approach to Distributed Robotic Systems, José Nuno Pereira, 2014.
• Supervision of Discrete Event Systems Based on Temporal Logic Specifications, Bruno Lacerda, 2013.
• An Integrated Bayesian Approach to Multi-Robot Cooperative Perception, Aamir Ahmad, 2013.
• Active Cooperative Perception in Networked Robot Systems, Abdolkarim Pahliani, 2012.
• Planning, Learning and Control Under Uncertainty Based on Discrete Event Systems and Reinforcement Learning, Gonçalo Neto, 2010.
• Robotic Tasks Modelling and Analysis Based on Discrete Event Systems, Hugo Costelha, 2010.
• Decentralized Low Communication 6DoF Full State Formation Navigation, Sónia Marques, 2009.
• Extração de Preferências por Meio de Avaliações de Comportamentos Observados, Valdinei Silva, 2009.
• Emotion-based Mechanisms for Decision Making in Autonomous Agents, Rodrigo Ventura, 2008.
• Reinforcement Learning in Cooperative Navigation Tasks, Francisco Melo, 2007.
• Mobile Robot Navigation in Outdoor Environments: A Topological Approach, Alberto Vale, 2005.
• Stochastic Model of Micro-Agent Populations, Dejan Milutinovic, 2004.
• Hierarchies and Compositional Abstractions of Hybrid Systems, Paulo Tabuada, 2002.
• Cooperation Among Robots: a Behavioural Approach Supported on Group Theory, João Sequeira, 1999.

Workshops

The following workshops had IRS group members on their organizing comitees.

• CLAWAR Workshops on Robot Ethics and on Designing for Interaction in Social Robotics (September 2016)
• IROS 2015 Workshop on Robot Competitions: What Did We Learn? (October 2015)
• ERF 2015 4th Workshop on on Robot Competitions, Challenges and Benchmarking - European Initiatives (March 2015)
• ERF 2014 3rd Workshop on on Robot Competitions, Challenges and Benchmarking - exploring the synergies (March 2014)
• ERF 2013 2nd Workshop on Robot Competitions: Benchmarking, Technology Transfer and Education (March 2013)
• IROS 2012 Workshop on Robot Competitions: Benchmarking, Technology Transfer and Education (October 2012)
• ECAI 2010 Workshop on Benchmarking Intelligent (Multi-)Robot Systems (BIMRS) (August 2010)
• AAMAS'10 Workshop on Multi-agent Sequential Decision-Making in Uncertain Domains (MSDM 2010)
• ICAPS'10 POMDP Practitioners Workshop: solving real-world POMDP problems
• AAMAS'09 Workshop on Multi-agent Sequential Decision-Making in Uncertain Domains (MSDM 2009)
• Lisbon Workshop on New Challenges for Cooperative Robotics (October 2008)
• ICAPS'08 Multiagent Planning Workshop (September 2008)
• AAMAS'08 Workshop on Formal Models and Methods for Multi-Robot Systems (May 2008)
• Workshop on Cooperative Robotics at ICRA'2005 (April 2005)

Robots

We have developed several robots all over the years at the IRS group. Here's some of the most recent ones:

• MBot aka Gasparzinho or MORDOMO
• RAPOSA
• ISR-CoBot
• Soccer Robots

Repository

Find here the IRS group repository of logos, presentation templates, photos of past events, conference proceedings, etc.

LARSyS Associate Laboratory

The Intelligent Robots and Systems group is part of the Institute for Systems and Robotics research unit of the Laboratory for Robotics and Engineering Systems (LARSyS), and has actively participated in its research activities.

Institutional Links

The scientific community organizes itself on interest groups and associations. The leading organizations on the scientific areas of IRS group, and with which IRS group members play an active role, in various degrees, are listed here:

• http://www.eurobotics-project.eu/eurobotics-aisbl/about-eurobotics-aisbl.html — eu-Robotics aisbl
• http://www.aass.oru.se/Agora/EuronCoop/ — CR SIG: EURON Special Interest Group on Cooperative Robotics
• http://www.ieee.org — IEEE: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
• http://www.aaai.org — AAAI: Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence
• http://www.robocup.org — RoboCup: Robot World Cup Initiative
• http://www.spr.ua.pt — SPR: Sociedade Portuguesa de Robótica
• http://www.appia.pt — APPIA: Associação Portuguesa Para a Inteligência Artificial

Other Links

• http://masplan.org/doku.php?id=start — MASPlan: Multiagent Sequential Decision Making Under Uncertainty

Software

Public domain software developed at IRS group, in the context of research activities.

• Markov Decision Making package for ROS
• Multiagent decision process toolbox
• Dec-POMDP problem domains
• Matlab functions for FSA
• Open-source implementation of Sony's OPEN-R Development Kit
• SocRob Multicast library, to connect multiple masters using ROS

Educational open source software developed by IRS group staff for IST courses (mostly Python).

• Bayes filtering in 1-D, including Discrete Bayes, Kalman filter, Particle filtering (Monte-Carlo), and occupancy grid mapping (inverse sensor model): demo_bayes-1.3.py
• Solving Sudoku using plain backtrack search: sudoku.py
• Pioneer DX3 robot interface software for MATLAB: matlab_pioneer.zip

Hardware

• Bioloid Extension Project

Datasets

• Simulation Files (EnergyPlus and BCVTB) for Context-based Thermodynamic Modeling of Buildings Spaces
• RoboCupSoccer MSL datasets for Cooperative Perception and ROS package to read them

Scientific Activities for Youngsters

The IRS group has a long tradition on the dissemination of science and technology to youngsters, as the researchers of tomorrow are now among them.

• Pioneer project of S&T Education through Robotics: RODITAS
• Scientific Activities for Youngsters on Holidays