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- Robot Workspace Monitoring using a Blockchain-based 3D Vision ApproachPublication . Lopes, Vasco; Pereira, Nuno; Alexandre, LuísBlockchain has been used extensively for financial purposes, but this technology can also be beneficial in other contexts where multi-party cooperation, security and decentralization of the data is essential. Properties such as immutability, accessibility and non-repudiation and the existence of smart-contracts make blockchain technology very interesting in robotic contexts that require event registration or integration with Artificial Intelligence. In this paper, we propose a system that leverages blockchain as a ledger to register events and information to be processed by Oracles and uses smart-contracts to control robots by adjusting their velocity, or stopping them, if a person enters the robot working space without permission. We show how blockchain can be used in computer vision problems by interacting with multiple external parties, Oracles, that perform image analysis and how it is possible to use multiple smart-contracts for different tasks. The method proposed is shown in a scenario representing a factory environment, but since it is modular, it can be easily adapted and extended for other contexts, allowing for simple integration and maintenance.
- “Less is more”: Simplifying point clouds to improve grasping performancePublication . Lopes, Vasco; Alexandre, Luís; Fernandes, MiguelObject grasping is a task that humans do without major concerns. This results from self learning and by observing of other skilled humans doing such task with previous information. However, grasping novel objects in unknown positions for a robot is a complex task which encounters many problems, such as sub-optimal performance rates and the time consumption. In this paper we present a method that complements the state-of-the-art grasping algorithms with two segmentation steps, the first one which removes the largest planar surface in the point cloud of the world before the grasp detector receives them and the second one that complements this segmentation with another segmentation that calculates where the object is located and segments the point cloud by executing a crop around the object. The proposed method significantly improves the grasping success rate (100% improvement over the baseline approach) and simultaneously is able to reduce the time consumption by 23%.
- Improving Grasping Performance by Segmentation of Large Planar SurfacePublication . Lopes, Vasco; Alexandre, LuísGrasping objects is a task that humans do without major concerns. This results from learning and observing other skilled humans doing such task and with previous information, unconsciously, we know how to pick up different types of objects. However, grasping novel objects in unknown positions for a robot is a complex task which encounters many problems, such as the performance rates that are not perfect and the time consumption. In this paper we present a method that complements the state-ofthe- art grasping by removing the largest planar surface of the image of the world before the grasp detector receives them. The proposed method improves the performance rate and is also capable of reducing the time consumption.
- An Overview of Blockchain Integration with Robotics and Artificial IntelligencePublication . Lopes, Vasco; Alexandre, LuísBlockchain technology is growing everyday at a fast-passed rhythm and it's possible to integrate it with many systems, namely Robotics with AI services. However, this is still a recent field and there isn't yet a clear understanding of what it could potentially become. In this paper, we conduct an overview of many different methods and platforms that try to leverage the power of blockchain into robotic systems, to improve AI services or to solve problems that are present in the major blockchains, which can lead to the ability of creating robotic systems with increased capabilities and security. We present an overview, discuss the methods and conclude the paper with our view on the future of the integration of these technologies.
- An Overview of Blockchain Integration with Robotics and Artificial IntelligencePublication . Lopes, Vasco; Alexandre, LuísBlockchain technology is growing everyday at a fast-passed rhythm and it is possible to integrate it with many systems, namely Robotics with AI services. However, this is still a recent field and there is not yet a clear understanding of what it could potentially become. In this paper, we conduct an overview of many different methods and platforms that try to leverage the power of blockchain into robotic systems, to improve AI services, or to solve problems that are present in the major blockchains, which can lead to the ability of creating robotic systems with increased capabilities and security. We present an overview, discuss the methods, and conclude the paper with our view on the future of the integration of these technologies.
- Controlling Robots using Artificial Intelligence and a Consortium BlockchainPublication . Lopes, Vasco; Alexandre, Luís; Pereira, NunoBlockchain is a disruptive technology that is normally used within financial applications, however it can be very beneficial also in certain robotic contexts, such as when an immutable register of events is required. Among the several properties of Blockchain that can be useful within robotic environments, we find not just immutability but also decentralization of the data, irreversibility, accessibility and non-repudiation. In this paper, we propose an architecture that uses blockchain as a ledger and smart-contract technology for robotic control by using external parties, Oracles, to process data. We show how to register events in a secure way, how it is possible to use smart-contracts to control robots and how to interface with external Artificial Intelligence algorithms for image analysis. The proposed architecture is modular and can be used in multiple contexts such as in manufacturing, network control, robot control, and others, since it is easy to integrate, adapt, maintain and extend to new domains.
- Detecting Robotic Anomalies using RobotChainPublication . Lopes, Vasco; Alexandre, LuísRobotic events can provide notable amounts of information regarding a robot’s status, which can be extrapolated to detect productivity, anomalies, malfunctions and used for monitorization. However, when problems occur in sensitive environments like a factory, the logs of a machine may be discarded because they are susceptible to chances and malicious intents. In this paper we propose to use RobotChain for anomaly detection. RobotChain is a method to securely register robotic events, using a blockchain, which ensures that once an event gets registered on it, it’s secured and cannot be tampered with. We show how this system can be leveraged with the module for anomaly detection, that uses the information contained on the blockchain to detect anomalies on a UR3 robot.
- Real-time 2D–3D door detection and state classification on a low-power devicePublication . Ramôa, João Gaspar; Lopes, Vasco; Alexandre, Luís; Mogo, SandraIn this paper, we propose three methods for door state classifcation with the goal to improve robot navigation in indoor spaces. These methods were also developed to be used in other areas and applications since they are not limited to door detection as other related works are. Our methods work ofine, in low-powered computers as the Jetson Nano, in real-time with the ability to diferentiate between open, closed and semi-open doors. We use the 3D object classifcation, PointNet, real-time semantic segmentation algorithms such as, FastFCN, FC-HarDNet, SegNet and BiSeNet, the object detection algorithm, DetectNet and 2D object classifcation networks, AlexNet and GoogleNet. We built a 3D and RGB door dataset with images from several indoor environments using a 3D Realsense camera D435. This dataset is freely available online. All methods are analysed taking into account their accuracy and the speed of the algorithm in a low powered computer. We conclude that it is possible to have a door classifcation algorithm running in real-time on a low-power device.