title: The cost of aquatic weed control in the Rotorua Te Arawa Lakes

authors: Champion, Paul

abstract: We will present information on the costs of aquatic weed control in the Rotorua, Te Arawa Lakes and thank all of the people who have willingly given us their estimated costs. Hopefully, this provides guidance on what current activities cost and what future scenarios might be feasible.

text: The cost of aquatic weed control in the Rotorua Te Arawa Lakes We will present information on the costs of aquatic weed control in the Rotorua, Te Arawa Lakes and thank all of the people who have willingly given us their estimated costs. Hopefully, this provides guidance on what current activities cost and what future scenarios might be feasible.

year: 2017

title: [Review of Sociocultural realities: exploring new horizons by Angus Macfarlane, Sonja Macfarlane and Melinda Webber]

authors: McNae, Rachel Elizabeth

abstract: This article reviews the book "Sociocultural realities: exploring new horizons", by Angus Macfarlane, Sonja Macfarlane and Melinda Webber, Christchurch, New Zealand, Canterbury University Press, 2015, 220 pp., $45 (softcover), ISBN 9781927145722

text: [Review of Sociocultural realities: exploring new horizons by Angus Macfarlane, Sonja Macfarlane and Melinda Webber] This article reviews the book "Sociocultural realities: exploring new horizons", by Angus Macfarlane, Sonja Macfarlane and Melinda Webber, Christchurch, New Zealand, Canterbury University Press, 2015, 220 pp., $45 (softcover), ISBN 9781927145722

year: 2017

title: Modified serpentine motion of the snake robot

authors: Jin, Pinwei

subjects: snake robot

abstract: The frequent occurrence of earthquake in New Zealand drives the research on snake robot for search and rescue operation because of its elongated body shape and locomotion mimicry of the biological snake. Both features are in favour of moving the snake robot through the earthquake disaster area. To facilitate the robot control and information gathering, it is usually required to install a camera on the snake robot head so that the video images of the disaster area can be send back to the human operator. This thesis presents the simulation of a snake robot performing serpentine motion. A camera is attached on the snake robot head to obtain the video image along the line of sight. A remote controller is incorporated to control the advancement based on the video images. This simulation reveals that the video images from the camera oscillate seriously because the camera on the snake robot head follows serpenoid curve during the locomotion. As a result, both robot control and information gathering are affected. A solution is proposed to stabilize the snake robot head and its camera by introducing a correction at the joint between the robot head and its body. This correction aligns the camera sight direction with the moving direction of the snake robot to yield satisfactory video images. Finally, an actual snake robot is implemented with a wireless camera installed on the head to show the effect of correction. Experiments are conducted to control the advancement of snake robot remotely just based on the video images obtained from the camera. This greatly improves the performance of the snake robot.

text: Modified serpentine motion of the snake robot The frequent occurrence of earthquake in New Zealand drives the research on snake robot for search and rescue operation because of its elongated body shape and locomotion mimicry of the biological snake. Both features are in favour of moving the snake robot through the earthquake disaster area. To facilitate the robot control and information gathering, it is usually required to install a camera on the snake robot head so that the video images of the disaster area can be send back to the human operator. This thesis presents the simulation of a snake robot performing serpentine motion. A camera is attached on the snake robot head to obtain the video image along the line of sight. A remote controller is incorporated to control the advancement based on the video images. This simulation reveals that the video images from the camera oscillate seriously because the camera on the snake robot head follows serpenoid curve during the locomotion. As a result, both robot control and information gathering are affected. A solution is proposed to stabilize the snake robot head and its camera by introducing a correction at the joint between the robot head and its body. This correction aligns the camera sight direction with the moving direction of the snake robot to yield satisfactory video images. Finally, an actual snake robot is implemented with a wireless camera installed on the head to show the effect of correction. Experiments are conducted to control the advancement of snake robot remotely just based on the video images obtained from the camera. This greatly improves the performance of the snake robot.

year: 2015