Special Issue on Agricultural Robotics

Agriculture faces a number of unique social, economic and environmental challenges. Global population is expected to reach 9 billion by 2050, requiring agricultural production to double in order to meet food demands. Farm enterprises require new and innovative technology to address these challenges. Robotics is one of these technologies that promises to provide a solution.

The Journal of Field Robotics (JFR) announces its second special issue on agricultural robotics. We invite papers that exhibit theory and methods applied to robotic systems in agriculture including, but not limited to:

1. • Aerial and ground robotic platforms for soil/crop monitoring, prediction, and decision making;
   

2. • Manipulators and platforms for soil preparation, seeding, weeding, crop protection, and harvesting;
   

3. • Arable farming, livestock farming, protected cultivation, and forestry;
   

4. • Automation of vertical farming, greenhouse cultivation, and phenotyping;
   

5. • Novel perception for agricultural robots including passive and active methods;
   

6. • Approaches to low-cost sensing for day/night continuous operation;
   

7. • Long-term autonomy and navigation in unstructured environments;
   

8. • Perception for appearance and geometric change for long-term autonomy;
   

9. • Adaptive sampling and informative data collection;
   

10. • Deployment strategies and user interfaces for end-users;
    

11. • Standardized benchmarks and long-term datasets in changing agricultural environments.
    

We encourage contributions that focus on agriculture, covering different fields of robotics, computer vision, autonomous vehicles, manipulation, control, path planning, human computer interaction, and machine learning. We also encourage field reports from end users and Original Equipment Manufacturers regarding technology integration in the agricultural workplace.

Papers for this special issue must provide technical descriptions of systems, analysis, and results of experimentation. Lessons learned in development and operation are pertinent to the discussion. JFR encourages multimedia content and this issue seeks inclusion of media illustrating system concepts and field experiments.

 

Submission Instructions:

The submissions must conform to the JFR guidelines. This special issue will follow a rolling schedule. The papers can be submitted anytime within the submission window of October 15 to January 31. The papers will be reviewed and a decision made, as and when they are received.

Papers that are accepted will appear online within two weeks of decision. All the accepted papers will then appear in the special print issue of JFR.

Deadlines:

1. • October 15, 2015 - January 31, 2016 - Submit manuscripts
   

2. • March 31, 2016 - Initial reviews completed
   

3. • May 15, 2016 - Decisions and author notification
   

4. • June 15, 2016 - Final manuscripts for publication
   

Special issue guest editors:

Pratap Tokekar (Virginia Tech), tokekar@vt.edu, Jnaneshwar Das (University of Pennsylvania), djnan@seas.upenn.edu Ben Upcroft (Queensland University of Technology), ben.upcroft@qut.edu.au David Ball (Queensland University of Technology), david.ball@qut.edu.au, Anton van den Hengel (University of Adelaide), anton.vandenhengel@adelaide.edu.au, Eldert J. van Henten (Wageningen UR), eldert.vanhenten@wur.nl

 

Authors interested can discuss submissions with the special issue guest editors.

Special Issue on DARPA Robotics Challenge Finals

The DARPA Robotics Challenge (DRC) was a world-wide contest focused on the design and semi-autonomous control of highly dexterous humanoid robots operating in unstructured environments.  The competition aimed to spark significant growth in the technical capabilities of humanoids, particularly for application to humanitarian, disaster relief, and related operations.  More information, including a list of competitors, is located at www.theroboticschallenge.org.  

The DRC is similar in spirit to the previous DARPA Grand and Urban Challenge autonomous vehicle races, which received world-wide attention and initiated major R&D investment in the area of “self-driving cars,” a topic with broad commercial and societal implications.

The DRC was structured in three stages: an initial simulation-based “virtual challenge,” which was held in June, 2013, followed by the DARPA Robotics Challenge Trials in December, 2013, and concluding with the DARPA Robotics Challenge Finals in June, 2015.

This special issue aims to serve as a scientific repository of developments by DRC competitors, describing their innovative advances in hardware and software design and development.  Contributors are highly encouraged to emphasize the unique aspect(s) of their systems while focusing on the robot’s experimental performance and an analysis of lessons learned.  While treatment of detailed topics is also welcome (e.g. design of a novel mechanism or control algorithm), all contributions MUST include experimental results derived from practical implementations.

Note that this special issue will focus on reports from the DRC Finals held in June 2015.  A previous special issue focused on results from the DRC Trials held December 2013.  Also note that due to the large number of competitors, submissions will be limited to one per team.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

1. • System architectures (both hardware and software)
   

2. • Detailed hardware design solutions
   

3. • Supervisory control architectures and algorithms for guiding high-DOF systems
   

4. • Feedback control methods for mobility over uneven terrain, grasping, and manipulation
   

5. • Low-bandwidth communication methods
   

6. • Novel robotic sensory approaches, and methods for providing sensory feedback to the human operator
   

7. • Human factors considerations, and operator interface design approaches
   

8. • Ethical considerations and implications of robotics for disaster relief
   

9. • Experimental testing methodologies, and analysis of results from field trials
   

IMPORTANT DATES

1. • June 5 & 6, 2015 -- DARPA Robotics Challenge Finals
   

2. • June 13, 2015 -- Paper submission opening
   

3. • October 1, 2015 -- Paper submission deadline
   

4. • January 4, 2016 -- Notification of review results
   

5. • March 1, 2016 -- Final manuscript deadline
   

6. • May 1, 2016 -- Target publication date
   

7. SPECIAL ISSUE CO-EDITORS
   

8. •Matthew Spenko, Illinois Institute of Technology, USA (corresponding co-editor)
   

9. •Karl Iagnemma, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
   

10. •Steve Buerger, Sandia National Labs, USA
    

Special Issue on Field and Service Robotics (FSR)

 

Special Issue Guest Editors: François Pomerleau, Jonathan Kelly

 

This special issue on Field and Service Robotics (FSR) is dedicated to reporting on the development of robots for field and service applications. Field and service robots are typically mobile and function outside of the traditional factory setting, in challenging, dynamic environments. Common field robotics applications include mining, agriculture, construction, forestry, cargo handling, and so on. Field robots may operate on the ground (i.e., on Earth or other planetary bodies), underground, underwater, in the air, or in space. Service robots work closely with humans, such as the elderly and the sick, to help them with their lives.

This special issue will be composed of invited papers from the FSR 2105 conference in May 2015.

 

Deadlines:

1. • November 20, 2015 – Submit manuscripts
   

2. • January 22, 2016 – Initial reviews completed
   

3. • February 12, 2016 – Decisions and author notification
   

4. • March 11, 2016 – Final manuscripts for publication
   

 

For comments, suggestions or requests, please send email to François Pomerleau or Jonathan Kelly.

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Special Issue on Safety, Security, and Rescue Robotics (SSRR)

Special Issue Guest Editors: Alexander Kleiner, Fredrik Heintz, and Satoshi Tadokoro

This special issue on Safety, Security, and Rescue Robotics (SSRR) is dedicated to identifying and solving the key issues necessary to field capable, robust, and dependable robots in safety, security, and rescue missions. We welcome cutting-edge papers in the theory and practice of robots for all types of safety, security, and rescue applications such as disaster response, mitigation and recovery;; rapid and secure inspection of critical infrastructure;; detection of chemical, biological and radiological risks, and operations in these dangerous sites. The scope of this special issue on SSRR covers the overall design of unmanned ground, aerial, and marine robots, as well as crucial components, e.g., for advanced locomotion, and intelligent onboard functionalities up to robot team collaboration and full autonomy.

We explicitly welcome contributions from the following three areas: 1) robotic systems, i.e., complete marine, aerial, or ground robots as well as their components, 2) intelligent functionalities, e.g., mapping, robot team collaboration, advanced user interfaces, software components for autonomy, and 3) applications, e.g., field reports and end user studies. Related topics include but are not limited to:

1. •Biologically inspired solutions
   

2. •Computer vision
   

3. •GPS-denied navigation and mapping
   

4. •Humanoid robots
   

5. •Humanitarian demining
   

6. •Advanced Human-robot interaction, especially to improve remote situational awareness
   

7. •Sensing and perception to aid navigation and motion control, to detect and recognize
   hazards, and to detect victims
   

8. •Locomotion for ground, aerial, marine systems in unstructured environments
   

9. •Manipulation
   

10. •Multi-agent/Multi-robot team coordination and mixed human-robot teams
    

11. •SLAM in extreme environments, e.g., mapping of unstructured environments including 2D & 3D approaches, the integration of GIS, and the handling of dynamic and semantic information
    

12. •Methods for autonomous search, exploration, and surveillance
    

13. •Intelligent behaviors to improve robot performance, survivability, and usability, e.g.,
    handling radio-drop-outs, driving assistance, and the detection of hazardous areas
    

14. •Scenario identification and specification, e.g. for application areas like urban search and rescue, explosive ordinance disposal, CBRN hazard detection/mitigation, or surveillance
    

Submissions must follow the spirit of the Journal of Field Robotics, i.e., they must describe implemented systems that have been tested under realistic conditions or even deployed in regular operations. Papers originating from the SSRR’12 and SSRR’13 symposia are particularly welcome. Papers need to be significantly extended, for example by new results, compared to what has already been published. Authors are encouraged to submit multimedia attachments, i.e., data sets, videos, etc.

Deadlines:

1. •June 14, 2014, 2014 – Submit manuscripts
   

2. •August 31, 2014 – Decisions and author notification
   

3. •October 31, 2014 – Final manuscripts for publication
   

For comments, suggestions or requests, please send email to Alexander Kleiner (alexander.kleiner@liu.se).

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Special Issue on the DARPA Robotics Challenge

Special Issue Editors: Karl Iagnemma, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, James Overholt, U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, USA, Yoshihiko Nakamura, University of Tokyo, Japan

The DARPA Robotics Challenge (DRC) is a world-wide contest focused on the design and semi-autonomous control of highly dexterous humanoid robots operating in austere, unstructured environments. The DRC tasks teams with designing robotic hardware and/or control software to enable robots to complete challenging, practical tasks such as walking on uneven terrain, entering and driving a passenger vehicle, climbing a ladder, opening doors, breaking through barriers, and more. The DRC aims to spark a significant growth in the technical capabilities of humanoids, particularly for application to humanitarian, disaster relief and related operations. More information about the DRC, including a list of current competitors, is located at http://www.theroboticschallenge.org/ .

The DRC is similar in spirit to the previous DARPA Grand and Urban Challenge autonomous vehicle races, which received world-wide attention and sparked major R&D investment in the area of “self-driving cars,” a topic with broad commercial and societal implications.

The DRC is structured in three stages: an initial simulation-based “virtual challenge,” held in June, 2013, followed by the DARPA Robotics Challenge Trials in December, 2013, and concluding with the DARPA Robotics Challenge Finals in December, 2014.

This special issue aims to serve as a scientific repository of developments by DRC competitors, describing their innovative developments in hardware and software design and development. Contributors are encouraged to broadly describe their approaches to competing in the DRC, including description of field testing and contest results, and analysis of lessons learned. While treatment of detailed topics is also welcome (e.g. design of a novel mechanism, or control algorithm), all contributions should include experimental results derived from practical implementations.

* Note that this special issue will focus on reports from the DRC Trials (to be held in December, 2013). A future special issue will focus on results from the DRC Finals (to be held in December, 2014). *

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

- System architectures (both hardware and software)

- Detailed hardware design solutions

- Supervisory control architectures and algorithms for guiding high-DOF systems

- Feedback control methods for mobility over uneven terrain, grasping, and manipulation

- Low-bandwidth communication methods

- Novel robotic sensory approaches, and methods for providing sensory feedback to the human operator

- Human factors considerations, and operator interface design approaches

- Ethical considerations and implications of robotics for disaster relief

1. -Experimental testing methodologies, and analysis of results from field trials
   

2. -
   

IMPORTANT DATES

* December, 2013 -- Paper submission opening

1. *March 9, 2014 -- Paper submission deadline
   

2. *May 1, 2014 -- Notification of review results
   

3. *July 1, 2014 -- Final manuscript deadline
   

4. *September 1, 2014 -- Target publication date
   

Special Issue on Calibration for Field Robotics

Special Issue Guest Editors: Tim Barfoot (tim.barfoot@utoronto.ca), University of Toronto, Paul Furgale (paul.furgale@mavt.ethz.ch), ETH Zurich, Cédric Pradalier (cedric.pradalier@georgiatech-metz.fr), GeorgiaTech Lorraine

Every robotic system has some set of calibration parameters -- scale factors, sensor locations, link lengths, etc. -- that are needed for state estimation, planning, and control.  Some parameters are difficult to measure by hand (e.g., due to the presence of sensor enclosures).  Other parameters, despite best efforts during construction, will change over the lifetime of a robot due to normal wear and tear. It is often thought that autonomous systems will require many complementary sensors operating in concert, but this also means more calibration parameters to determine and manage.  In the best case, incorrect parameter values degrade performance. In the worst case, they cause critical safety issues.

Currently we are seeing a push by researchers to tackle questions of long-term autonomy with the goal of widely deploying robotic systems into the service of non-experts, as driver assistance systems, as personal assistants, and in a host of other roles. To achieve these goals, calibration parameters will have to be determined efficiently and maintained over the lifetime of a robot.  Moreover, for the sake of safety and security, robots will require a certain degree of introspection in order to know when calibration parameters are no longer viable or correct.

This special issue aims to publish outstanding results focusing on the calibration challenge in robotics, from the design of calibration tools and systems to the long-term deployment of robotic systems with lifelong calibration and parameter learning, for one or many sensors, from theoretic foundations of calibration techniques to field reports on their application. Submissions should include significant field testing on robotic systems in real-world environments. Papers with only simulation or laboratory results will not be considered.

Topics of interest include:

-multi-sensor calibration

-online calibration and system identification

-power-on-and-go systems

-fault detection

-observability of calibration methods

-field reports of long-term calibration

-uncertainty-aware calibration

-time synchronization

JFR encourages multimedia attachments to submissions, including media and datasets.

Important Dates:

-initial submission deadline:  1 December 2013

-reviews due:  1 March 2014

-author notification:  1 April 2014

-final manuscripts for publication:  1 June 2014

Special Issue on Ground Robots Operating in dynamic, unstructured and large-scale outdoor environments

Special Issue Guest Editors: Frank Schneider, University of Bonn, Simon Lacroix, LAAS/CNRS, Alan Winfield, University of the West of England, Bristol,

Applications in real environments demand many different capabilities of robotic systems: from autonomy, decision making and sensing to robustness, reliability and limitations on communication and power. Outdoor robotic contests like the European Land Robot Trial (ELROB) or the newly created Eurathlon competition present challenges in which participants compete on real world scenarios under realistic conditions and in real terrains, not specifically prepared neither known beforehand. Examples are several kilometers autonomous navigation, camp surveillance or mule missions in terrains with dense forests, hilly landscapes with scattered and varied vegetation and water ponds.

We encourage submissions that present system(s) deployed on the field in such robotic contests or similar realistic challenges. Papers can focus on any particular aspect of robotic systems, from vehicle design to the overall system architecture and control, via terrain mapping, localization, mission planning and execution. Our emphasis is on systems that fulfill a specific real world task.

All the presented developments must be assessed by extensive field results, obtained either in the scope of a robotic contest or in other contexts. However, field tests must be under realistic and challenging conditions with respect to the terrain type, the scenario to be achieved, and/or the conditions within which the scenarios must be achieved. Additional multimedia contents will also be considered: datasets, videos of the system trials or during the challenge.

Schedule:

- June 1, 2013: Submission deadline

- July 31, 2013: Author notification

1. -October 15, 2013: Final manuscripts for publication
   

Authors interested in submitting to this issue can contact Simon LaCroix

Special Issue on Alternative Sensing Techniques for Robot Perception

Special Issue Guest Editors: Thierry Peynot, University of Sydney, Sildomar Monteiro, University of Sydney, Alonzo Kelly, Carnegie Mellon University, Michel Devy, LAAS-CNRS

The ability to operate in challenging environments and conditions, e.g. limited visibility due to dust or fog, is of great importance for field robotics. In addition, increasingly complex and varied robotic applications require richer environment models. While perception based on traditional sensing (visual camera or laser range finder) has enabled important achievements in robotics, these have been restricted by the intrinsic limitations of the sensors. Alternative sensing modalities, which operate at various electromagnetic frequencies outside the visible spectrum, have allowed many new applications; examples include: automatic geological analysis using hyperspectral cameras, perception through smoke or at night with infrared imaging, road tracking in a dust storm using mm-wave radars. Furthermore, combining data from different sensing modalities can provide enhanced discrimination power and higher perception integrity.

The goal of this special issue is to publish outstanding results on novel perception concepts moti- vated by the use of alternative sensing in challenging applications and environments. We also seek contributions that can demonstrate how alternative sensing may allow for long-term autonomous operation of robotic systems. This call for papers follows a successful workshop at RSS 2012: Beyond laser and vision: Alternative sensing techniques for robotic perception.

We invite papers that exhibit theory and methods applied to field robotics using alternative sensing modalities. Topics of interest include:

1. •Algorithms and techniques for modelling, learning, feature extraction, etc.
   

2. •Novel methods for fusing or combining multiple sensing modalities
   

3. •Combination of traditional and alternative sensing
   

4. •Perception in adverse environmental conditions
   

5. •Sensor data integrity
   

6. •New applications enabled by alternative sensing
   

7. •Empirical studies assessing performance and limitations
   

The scope of this special issue covers the following alternative sensing modalities (but is not limited to): Hyperspectral/multispectral cameras, Infrared cameras, Radars (e.g. mm-wave, UWB or SAR), Flash Lidar, Sonars and acoustic sensors, Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID)

Submissions must include experimental results obtained in realistic conditions in the field. JFR encourages submission of multimedia attachments to the papers, e.g. videos or data sets.

Deadlines:

1. •May 17, 2013 - Manuscript submission
   

2. •July 17, 2013 - Decisions and author notification
   

3. •September 27, 2013 - Final manuscripts for publication
   

Authors interested in submitting to this issue can contact Thierry Peynot.

Special Issue on Low-Altitude Flight of UAVs

Special Issue Guest Editors: Jonathan Roberts (CSIRO), Roland Siegwart (ETH Zurich), Farid Kendoul (CSIRO)

Recently, there has been growing interest in developing Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) with advanced onboard autonomous capabilities. This special issue focuses on recent advances in the development of technologies for automating UAV near Earth or close to Earth flight with a particular emphasis on fully implemented systems that were tested under realistic conditions or even deployed in regular operations. The goal of this special issue is to publish outstanding results in the maturation and field-testing of autonomy technologies that enable low-altitude autonomous flight. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

1. •Guidance and control for UAV near Earth flight
   

2. •Autonomous flight inside structures and indoor environments
   

3. •Online mapping and obstacle detection
   

4. •Obstacle field navigation
   

5. •Near-obstacle flight
   

6. •Online and dynamic path planning
   

7. •Terrain following
   

8. •Non-GPS navigation and control
   

9. •Biologically inspired approaches to visual guidance and navigation in cluttered environments
   

This special issue is not restricted to any type of UAV platform. However, we will publish only high-quality papers that present real milestones in the area of low altitude autonomous flight with significant experimental results. We also invite application-oriented papers that provide technical description of UAV systems, analysis of results and experimentation, and lessons learned in development and operation of such systems at very low altitudes.

Papers dedicated to identifying and solving some key issues necessary to extend UAVs low altitude flight and enable new and useful applications are also encouraged. More specifically, we are interested to solicit papers in the areas of GPS vulnerabilities (e.g. spoofing and jamming) and counter-measures, physical interaction of UAVs with the environment, automated aerial refueling/docking, etc. The objective here is to stimulate interest and provide motivation for further research and development in these new research areas.

JFR encourages multimedia content and we invite authors to submit multimedia attachments to the paper such as videos that illustrate system concept, experiments and operations.

Deadlines:

1. •June 15, 2013           - Submission of manuscripts
   

2. •Aug 15, 2013         - Complete reviews
   

3. •Sep 21, 2013             - Final manuscripts due for publication
   

Authors interested in submitting to this issue can discuss submissions with the special issue editors (Jonathan Roberts, Roland Siegwart, Farid Kendoul)

Special Issue on Space Robotics

Special Issue Guest Editors: Michel van Winnendael, European Space Agency,  David Wettergreen, Carnegie Mellon University

Space applications present many challenges to robotic systems: from extremes of temperature, vacuum, shock and gravity, to limitations on power and communication, from the intricate complexity of systems engineering, to requirements for reliability, robustness and autonomy. The Journal of Field Robotics (JFR) announces its third special issue on space robotics to examine topics related to robots and space. This biannual special issue will present and discuss the state of the art in space robots. We invite papers that exhibit theory and methods applied to robotic systems in space including:

1. •specification and evaluation of system concepts and designs;
   

2. •effects of the space environment on robotic devices;
   

3. •methods of relevant sensing, actuation, and mobility;
   

4. •applications in manipulation, assembly, construction and excavation;
   

5. •algorithms for localization and navigation, and task or mission planning;
   

6. •techniques for safe and precise orbital maneuvering and landing;
   

7. •experiments conducted in space or planetary analogue settings; and
   

8. •analysis of human robot interaction and robot autonomy.
   

Papers for this special issue must provide technical descriptions of systems and results and analysis of experimentation. We invite discussion and analysis of orbital robots/spacecraft and planetary rovers as well as prototype systems that have been field tested in terrestrial analogue environments. Lessons learned in development and operation are pertinent to the discussion.

We encourage papers addressing all aspects of space robotic systems. Our emphasis is on systems that fulfill a specific space-relevant application. Robotic systems in Earth orbit, traveling in deep space, and operating on the surfaces of planets, moons, comets, or asteroids are of particular interest, as well systems envisioned for space application but developed and demonstrated in relevant environments here on Earth. The JFR encourages multimedia content and this issue seeks inclusion of media illustrating system concept, experiments, and of course space operation.

Deadlines:

1. •Dec 7, 2012 – Submit manuscripts
   

2. •Jan 25, 2013 – Reviews completed
   

3. •March 4, 2011 – Decisions and author notification
   

4. •May 3, 2013 – Final manuscripts for publication
   

Authors interested in submitting to this issue can discuss submissions with the special issue editors (David Wettergreen)

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Special Issue on Safety, Security, and Rescue Robotics (SSRR)

Special Issue Guest Editors: Andreas Birk,  Jacobs University, Fumitoshi Matsuno, Kyoto University

This special issue on Safety, Security, and Rescue Robotics (SSRR) is dedicated to identifying and solving the key issues necessary to field capable robots in response missions. This includes aerial and ground robots as well as unmanned underwater and surface marine vehicles. The scope of this special issue on SSRR covers the robots’ overall design as well as crucial components, e.g., for advanced locomotion, and intelligent onboard functionalities up to full autonomy.

Contributions of interests can hence come from the following three areas: 1) vehicles, i.e., complete marine, aerial, and ground robots as well as their components, 2) intelligent functionalities, e.g., mapping, advanced user interfaces, software components for autonomy, and 3) applications, e.g., field reports and end user studies. The related topics include:

1. •locomotion for ground, aerial, marine systems in unstructured environments
   

2. •non-standard designs including systems with many degrees of freedom and micro-robots
   

3. •mobile manipulation including the handling of human victims or of hazardous objects, or the facilitation of enabling actions like opening doors or removing obstacles
   

4. •sensing and perception to aid navigation and motion control, to detect and recognize hazards, and to detect victims
   

5. •mapping of unstructured environments including 2-D and 3-D approaches, the integration of GIS, and the handling of dynamic and semantic information
   

6. •intelligent behaviors to improve robot performance, survivability, and usability, e.g., handling radio-drop-outs, driving assistance, and the detection of hazardous areas
   

7. •advanced human-robot interfaces, especially to improve remote situational awareness
   

8. •algorithms for autonomous search, exploration, and surveillance
   

9. •multi-robot teams and mixed human-robot teams
   

10. •scenario identification and specification, e.g. for application areas like urban search and rescue, explosive ordinance disposal, CBRN hazard detection/mitigation, or surveillance
    

11. •emergency management concepts covering for example training methods
    

12. •performance requirements and evaluation methods
    

Submissions must follow the spirit of the Journal of Field Robotics, i.e., they must describe fully implemented systems that were tested under realistic conditions or even deployed in regular operations. Authors are encouraged to submit multimedia attachments to the paper, i.e., data sets, videos, etc.

Deadlines:

1. •November 15, 2010 – Submit manuscripts
   

2. •February 1, 2011 – Decisions and author notification
   

3. •March 15, 2011 – Final manuscripts for publication
   

For comments, suggestions, or requests, please send an email to Andreas Birk.

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Special Issue on State of the Art in Maritime Autonomous Surface and Underwater Vehicles

Special Issue Guest Editors: Terry Huntsberger, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Michael Keegan, Naval Undersea Warfare Center, Newport Division & Robert Brizzolara, Office of Naval Research

This special issue focuses on state-of-the-art developments in maritime autonomy and control for autonomous surface vehicles (ASVs) and autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs). The maritime domain poses a number of challenges for the development of autonomy algorithms for these types of vehicles. Among the these challenges are the oftentimes low bandwidth or no communication links with a control station, no easy access to GPS information for localization in the case of AUVs, widely varying sea-state conditions, possible limited sensing capabilities due to power and volume constraints, and strong currents and winds. A previous (June 2007) Special Issue of the Journal of Field Robotics on AUVs concentrated on platforms, monitoring and characterization of maritime environments, and vehicle health management.  The goal of this special issue is to publish outstanding results in the maturation and testing of the autonomy technologies for both autonomous sea surface and underwater vehicles that are currently being fielded through collaborations between university, industry and military. The concentration of the special issue will be on systems that have been tested in the field.

List of topics

1. •Autonomy for coordinated operations between autonomous maritime vehicles
   

2. •Real-time, onboard optimization of planning & execution
   

3. •Autonomy for heterogeneous maritime vehicles
   

4. •Adaptive and/or variable levels of autonomy
   

5. •Maritime image understanding for domain awareness
   

6. •Higher-level autonomy algorithms in the decision-making and control loops
   

7. •Sensors and sensor processing algorithms/fusion for maritime vehicle autonomy
   

8. •Obstacle avoidance, and other GNC functions for autonomous navigation
   

9. •Human-machine interfaces for control of single and multiple maritime autonomous vehicles
   

10. •Biologically inspired approaches to intelligent autonomy for autonomous maritime vehicles
    

11. •Collaborative control of multiple heterogeneous autonomous vehicles
    

12. •Fleet management of autonomous vehicles operating under heterogeneous constraints on control and communication 
    

Authors are encouraged to submit multimedia attachments to the paper (data sets, models and videos) as a means of enhancing the submission.

Important Dates:

1. •January 15, 2010 – Submission of manuscripts
   

2. •April 1, 2010 – Reviews sent to the authors
   

3. •June 1, 2010 – Final manuscripts due for publication
   

For comments, suggestions, or requests, please send email to Terry Huntsberger (terry.huntsberger@jpl.nasa.gov)

Special Issue on Visual Mapping and Navigation Outdoors

Special Issue Guest Editors:   Cyrill Stachniss, University of Freiburg, Stefan Williams, Australian Centre for Field Robotics, José Neira, University of Zaragoza

Mapping and navigation, the successful modeling and traversal of unknown environments using vehicles equipped with sensors, has been an extremely active research area in robotics. Recently, researchers have reported impressive results in this area, to the point that building 2D maps of indoor planar environments using laser sensors is considered a solved problem. For this reason, research has moved to addressing larger, non planar, less-structured and dynamic outdoor environments. Information rich visual sensors are being incorporated into these new systems because cameras have become inexpensive, light weight, and offer high performance in resolution and speed. Visual sensors offer much more detailed environmental information, but pose new challenges such as robust feature detection and tracking, data association, and 3D computation. Also, computationally efficient large-scale estimation is much harder using cameras than using a laser scanner.

The goal of this special issue of the Journal of Field Robotics is to publish outstanding results on the use of visual sensors for mapping and navigation in challenging outdoor environments: urban, suburban, off-road, underwater, and airborne, in applications that include but are not limited to surveying, virtual and augmented reality, surveillance and search and rescue operations. This call for papers follows a successful workshop on Visual Mapping and Navigation Outdoors at ICRA 2009.

List of topics

1. •Bearing only/monocular systems, multi-camera systems, mapping with omni-directional cameras, active/passive cameras
   

2. •Vision + other sensors
   

3. •Environment representations: metric, topological, semantic, hybrid
   

4. •Visual loop closing techniques
   

5. •Place recognition
   

6. •Large scale visual navigation and mapping
   

7. •Urban, suburban and off-road mapping
   

8. •Underwater applications
   

9. •Airborne navigation and mapping 
   

Important Dates:

1. •September 1, 2009 - Submission of manuscripts
   

2. •December 1, 2009 - Reviews sent to the authors
   

3. •March 1, 2010 - Final manuscripts due for publication
   

For comments, suggestions, or requests, please send email to Cyrill Stachniss (stachnis@informatik.uni-freiburg.de), Stefan Williams (stefanw@acfr.usyd.edu.au), or Jose Neira (jneira@unizar.es).

Special Issue on Vehicle-Terrain Interaction for Mobile Robots

Special Issue Guest Editors: Danwei Wang, Nanyang Technological University,  Philippe Martinet, Université Blaise Pascal & Karl Iagnemma, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

This special issue focuses on state-of-the-art developments in modeling, estimation, motion planning, and control of all terrain mobile robots with significant vehicle-terrain interaction effects. Mobility in outdoor unstructured or semi-structured environments is an important consideration for mobile robotic systems. Modeling and estimation of the contact between tire (or track, foot, or other appendage) and ground, control performance robustness to uncertainties and disturbances, path/trajectory generation over 3D terrain, and precise trajectory tracking in dynamic environments, represent challenging issues in our scientific community. This special issue will stimulate interest and provides motivation for further research and development in intelligent transportation and autonomous robotics.

We invite papers that exhibit theory and methods applied to modeling, estimation, path planning and control of all terrain mobile robots with vehicle-terrain interactions. Topics are including, but not limited to:

1. •modeling of interaction between the robot running gear and terrain, including analysis of the interaction between wheels, tracks, feet, or other appendages with soil, vegetation, or other natural materials;
   

2. •description of uncertainties to vehicle motions, such as skidding/ slipping, and methods for explicit consideration of these uncertainties in planning and control;
   

3. •methods for sensing, sensor fusion, and estimation in the presence of terrain-induced perturbations
   

4. •experiments in posture estimation, data fusion, and control implementation;
   

Papers for this special issue must also provide technical descriptions of systems and results and analysis of experimentation.  For this special issue, experimental verification via field experiments is considered essential.

Important Dates:

February 1, 2009- Submission of manuscripts

May 1,  2009-  Reviews sent to the authors

August 1, 2009- Final manuscripts due for publication

Authors interested in submitting to this issue can discuss submissions with the special issue editors: Danwei Wang (edwwang@ntu.edu.sg), Philippe Martinet (Philippe.Martinet@lasmea.univ-bpclermont.fr) and Karl Iagnemma (kdi@mit.edu)

Special Issue on Three-Dimensional Mapping

Special Issue Guest Editors: Patrick Pfaff, Kuka Roboter GmbH, Wolfram Burgard, University of Freiburg.

Recently, three-dimensional representations of environments have gained substantial interest in the robotics community as such maps provide better support for a wide variety of tasks including navigation, localization, and perception.  For example, robots that know about the three-dimensional structure of the environment can better avoid obstacles, can more reliably localize themselves, and can more robustly detect objects.  Accordingly, three-dimensional representations provide benefits in all applications in which robots are deployed in real-world scenarios. Additionally, three-dimensional models of environments are envisioned to be useful in a wide area of applications, which goes far beyond robotics, like architecture, emergency planning, interaction, and visualization. In all of these application domains, there is a need for methods that can automatically construct 3D-models. The goal of this special issue of the Journal of Field Robotics is to collect recent advances and state-of-the-art results in the area of learning three-dimensional maps with mobile robots with a particular emphasis on fielded systems and systems that operate in unstructured and dynamic environments.  

We particularly seek papers that both cover fundamental aspects of mapping along with those that describe the acquisition or maintenance of three-dimensional representations in natural, unstructured environments.

Authors are invited to submit papers that cover relevant areas of three-dimensional mapping for field robotic systems including (but not limited to) stereo vision, autonomous cars, navigation, dynamic objects, cooperative systems, approximation and reconstruction techniques, and 3D-SLAM.

Important Dates:

January 5, 2009- Submission of manuscripts

April 5, 2009 - Reviews sent to the authors

July 5, 2009- Final manuscripts due for publication

For comments, suggestions, or requests, please send email to Pfaff Patrick <PatrickPfaff@kuka-roboter.de> or Wolfram Burgard <burgard@informatik.uni-freiburg.de>

Special Issue on Advances in Agricultural Robotics

Special Issue Guest Editors: John Billingsley, University of Southern Queensland, John Reid, Intelligent Machine Systems, John Deere, Denny Oetomo, University of Melbourne

Automation is one of the most important reasons in the improvement of farming efficiency. The maturing technologies of the robotics community are paving the way for exciting deployments of robust robotic systems in the environment of large scale farming, one that is not entirely structured. Not only does this have the potential to increase productivity and the quality of agricultural facilities, it can also significantly alter the way in which the farming industry is modeled and conducted.

The emerging trend in autonomous farming is of great significance, not only to the robotics and agricultural communities, but also to industry and the wider community in general. The field of interest extends beyond agriculture to include broader areas such as forestry and aquaculture. Advances in agricultural efficiency provided by the robotics technology and automation greatly impact the sustainability of our natural resources to satisfy the demands of the growing world population.

High quality submissions are sought to present various state-of-the-arts applications of robotic techniques in the area of agricultural robotics and automation. Field experimentation results as well as conceptual ideas with potential to define the future of agricultural automation are of great interest. Perspectives from agricultural experts on robotics and automation are also of great interest. We invite papers that exhibit theory and methods applied to the field of agricultural robotics, including:

•Examples of robust implementation of robotics technology deployed on the farm

•Methods of sensing, identification, and localization in the semi-structured farming environment

•Mechanism analysis, design, as well as manipulation strategies specific to the tasks required in agricultural processes

•Techniques for reliable information sharing in an integrated farm automation framework

•Strategies for effective human-machine coordination and cooperation in farming tasks

•Algorithms for efficient interaction between systems and the environment

•Other novel ideas, concepts and applications that would be of significant contribution to the field of agricultural automation.

It is intended that papers for this special issue should provide technical descriptions of systems as well as results and analysis of field experiments. Lessons learned in development and operation are also pertinent.

Important Dates:
July 25, 2008        - Submission of manuscripts
September 25, 2008   - Complete reviews
October 15, 2008     - Notification of acceptance
December 15, 2008    - Final manuscripts due for publication

For comments, suggestions, or concerns, please send email to Denny.Nurjanto.Oetomo@eng.monash.edu.au

Special Issue On Space Robotics

Special Issue Guest Editors: David Wettergreen, Carnegie Mellon, Terry Fong, NASA Ames Research Center, Keiji Nagatani, Tohoku University

Space applications present many challenges to robotic systems: from extremes of temperature, vacuum, shock and gravity, to limitations on power and communication, from the intricate complexity of systems engineering, to requirements for reliability, robustness and autonomy.

The Journal of Field Robotics (JFR) announces a special issue on space robotics to examine these and other issues related to robots and space.  This special issue will present and discuss the state of the art in space robots, their theory and practice. 

We invite papers that exhibit theory and methods applied to robotic systems in space including:

1. • specification and evaluation of system concepts and designs;
   

2. • effects of the space environment on robotic devices;
   

3. • methods of sensing, actuation, and mobility;
   

4. • experiments in manipulation, assembly, construction and excavation;
   

5. • algorithms for localization and navigation, and task or mission planning;
   

6. • experiments in planetary exploration and scientific investigation;
   

7. • efforts related to deep space navigation and autonomous operation;
   

8. • techniques for safe and precise entry, descent, and landing; and
   

9. • analysis of human robot interaction and robot autonomy. 
   

Papers for this special issue must also provide technical descriptions of systems and results and analysis of experimentation.  We invite technical descriptions and analysis of orbital robots/spacecraft and planetary rovers as well as prototype systems in hat have been field tested in terrestrial analogue environments.  Lessons learned in development and operation are also pertinent.

We encourage papers addressing all aspects of space robotic systems.  Our emphasis is on systems that fulfill a specific space-relevant application.  Robotic systems in Earth orbit, traveling in deep space, and operating on the surfaces of planets, moons, comets, or asteroids are of particular interest, as well systems envisioned for space application but developed and demonstrated in relevant environments here on Earth.

The JFR encourages multimedia content and this special issue seeks inclusion of movies illustrating system concept and operation, engineering experiments, and of course space operation.

Deadlines:

July 2, 2008 – Submit manuscripts

August 15, 2008 – Reviews completed

August 29, 2008 – Decisions and author notification

October 3, 2008 – Final manuscripts for publication

Authors interested in submitting to this issue can discuss submissions with the special issue editors: David Wettergreen, Terry Fong and Keiji Nagatani