U.S. flag
        An official website of the United States government
          Here’s how you know
        Here’s how you know**Official websites use .gov**
              
              A **.gov** website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
        **Secure .gov websites use HTTPS**
              
              A **lock** (  A locked padlock
) or **https://** means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. https://www.nist.gov/el/intelligent-systems-division-73500/unmanned-ground-vehicles-research-and-standard-test-methods-7
  Search NIST
    Search
              Menu

      


Close
    Topics
        All Topics
                                                        Advanced communications
                                                        Artificial intelligence
                                                        Bioscience
                                                        Buildings and construction
                                                        Chemistry
                                                        Climate
                                                        Cybersecurity
                                                        Electronics
                                                        EnergyEnvironment
                                                        Fire
                                                        Forensic science
                                                        Health
                                                        Information technology
                                                        Infrastructure
                                                        Manufacturing
                                                        Materials
                                                        Mathematics and statisticsMetrology
                                                        Nanotechnology
                                                        Neutron research
                                                        Performance excellence
                                                        Physics
                                                        Public safety
                                                        Resilience
                                                        Standards
                                                        Transportation
            Publications
            Labs & Major Programs
        Laboratories
                                Communications Technology Laboratory
                                  Engineering Laboratory
                                  Information Technology Laboratory
                                  Material Measurement Laboratory
                                  Physical Measurement LaboratoryUser Facilities
                                NIST Center for Neutron Research
                                  CNST NanoFab
                                                        Research Test Beds
                                                        Research Projects
                                                        Tools & InstrumentsMajor Programs
                                Baldrige Performance Excellence Program
                                  CHIPS for America Initiative
                                  Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP)
                                  Office of Advanced Manufacturing
                                  Special Programs Office
                                  Technology Partnerships Office
            Services & Resources
        Standards and Measurements
                                Calibration Services
                                  Laboratory Accreditation (NVLAP)
                                  Quality System
                                  Standard Reference Materials (SRMs)
                                  Standards.gov
                                  Time Services
                                  Office of Weights and MeasuresSoftware
                                                        Data
                                Chemistry WebBook
                                  National Vulnerability Database
                                  Physical Reference Data
                                  Standard Reference Data (SRD)
                                                        Storefront
                                                        License & PatentsComputer Security Resource Center (CSRC)
                                                        NIST Research Library
            News & Events
        News
                                                        Events
                                                        Blogs
                                                        Feature Stories
                                                        AwardsVideo Gallery
                                                        Image Gallery
                                                        Media Contacts
            About NIST
        About Us
                                Leadership
                                  Organization Structure
                                  Budget & Planning
                                                        Contact Us
                                                        Visit
                                                        Careers
                                Student programsWork with NIST
                                                        History
                                NIST Digital Archives
                                  NIST Museum
                                  NIST and the Nobel
                                                        Educational Resources
 
 Engineering Laboratory
    
      
  A-Unmanned Ground Vehicles Research and Standard Test Methods
                            Expand or Collapse
          NIST's Unmanned Ground Vehicle Test Facilities
                      Unmanned Ground Vehicle Research
                      Mobile Manipulator Research
                                              Expand or Collapse
                Publications
                                  PhD Thesis
                      In the News
                      Standards
                      Past Events
                                              Expand or Collapse
                Media
                      Current Meetings
                                              Expand or Collapse
                Face-to-Face Meetings
                                                                Expand or Collapse
                      2018 July - ASTM Committee F45 on Driverless Automatic Guided Industrial Vehicles
                                  Virtual MeetingsPhD Thesis

Share
  Facebook
                      Linkedin
                      Twitter
                      Email

Roger Bostelman, “Performance Measurement of Mobile Manipulators”, University of Burgundy, Dijon, France, U.F.R. Sciences et Techniques, Thesis for Doctor of the University, Specialty: Computer Science, 16 March, 2018.

***Abstract***

An advanced approach to flexible manufacturing is to move robotic manipulators, using an AGV or mobile robot, called mobile manipulators, between workstations. The use of mobile manipulators can be advantageous in a number of situations. It can result in cost savings when a single mobile manipulator can be used to replace several stationary manipulators. However, mobile manipulators are “a relatively young discipline within robotics.” An extensive literature review of the research leading to commercial mobile manipulators and mobile robots was performed.  The performance measurement of mobile manipulators, including a mobile base with an onboard robot arm, is virtually non-existent.  However, mobile manipulators are beginning to appear in manufacturing, healthcare, and possibly other industries and therefore, a method to measure their performance is critical to both manufacturers and users of these relatively complex systems.  Measurements of mobile manipulators performing standard tasks (poses and motions) are also non-existent except for simply ensuring that the task has been more or less completed.  The task chosen for this thesis is assembly due to its requirement for relatively precise system posing.

Performance test methods have lagged behind safety test methods for mobile manipulators which is progressing towards development of a new safety standard in the US. Metrics for safety and performance of mobile manipulators include many areas, such as: safe operation, task completion, time to complete the task, quality, and quantity (i.e., accuracy and repeatability, respectively) of tasks completed. Prior to industrial acceptance and standards development for mobile manipulators, users of these new systems will expect manufacturers to provide real performance data to guide their procurement and assure suitability for given application tasks.   Due to the relatively high cost to procure and setup motion tracking systems to measure systems performance, an alternative method for use by manufacturers and users is ideal.  A new test method concept that uses an artifact, called the Reconfigurable Mobile Manipulator Artifact (RMMA), is described in this thesis and compared to an optical tracking system that was used as ground truth for the RMMA and mobile manipulator.

System modeling the mobile manipulator system, components, and the associated measurements can help to improve the understanding of these relatively complex systems. Systems Modeling Language (SysML) was chosen and used throughout this thesis because of SysML has reusable software modules for structure, behavior, requirements and parametrics off the mobile manipulator.  The models describe the many aspects of measuring mobile manipulator performance also as new research area. The models were evaluated through experiments on an example mobile manipulators’ components and the entire system. SysML was used to describe the theoretical basis of the performance through propagation of uncertainty where mathematical equations are also modeled.

A use case is modeled and described where the concepts researched to measure mobile manipulator performance are applied to a manufacturing implementation.  The simplistic nature of the measurement process using the RMMA can be directly applied to today’s manufacturing processes, and extended beyond the contributions of this research to other even more complex measurement needs.  The research is also discussed to even apply to cross-industry test methods for exoskeletons worn by humans.



Thesis_Index
  

Click here to review/download the thesis

Then click Cliquez ici !

[Top]

    
    Created May 14, 2018, Updated June 2, 2021 ‹ Publications
              In the News ›
 HEADQUARTERS
            100 Bureau Drive
              Gaithersburg, MD 20899301-975-2000
            Webmaster | Contact Us | Our Other Offices
        Twitter
            
Facebook
            
LinkedIn
            
Instagram
            
YouTube
            
Giphy
            
RSS Feed
            
Mailing List
                              How are we doing? Feedback

  
  Site Privacy
                      Accessibility
                      Privacy Program
                      Copyrights
                      Vulnerability Disclosure
                      No Fear Act Policy
                      FOIA
                      Environmental Policy
                      Scientific Integrity
                      Information Quality Standards
                      Commerce.gov
                      Science.gov
                      USA.gov
                      Vote.gov