Meeting Pearls 1/Meeting Pearls Vol 1 (1994).iso/installed_progs/text/faqs/robotics-faq.part1

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Subject: comp.robotics Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) part 1/3
Newsgroups: comp.robotics,news.answers,comp.answers
From: [e-mail] (Kevin Dowling)
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 18:29:52 GMT

Archive-name: robotics-faq/part1
Last-modified: Tue Apr 19 12:39:11 1994

This is part 1 of 3 of the comp.robotics Frequently Asked Questions
(FAQ) list. This FAQ addresses commonly asked questions relating to
robotics.

____________________________________________________________________________
This FAQ was compiled and written by Kevin Dowling with numerous
contributions by readers of comp.robotics. Acknowledgements are listed
at the end of the FAQ.

This post, as a collection of information, is Copyright 1993 Kevin
Dowling. Distribution through any means other than regular Usenet
channels must be by permission. The removal of this notice is
forbidden.

This FAQ may be referenced as:
Dowling, Kevin (1993) "Robotics: comp.robotics Frequently Asked
Questions" Usenet news.answers.  Available via anonymous ftp from
rtfm.mit.edu in pub/usenet/news.answers/robotics-faq/part1, part2 and
part3. 70+ pages.

Please send changes, additions, suggestions and questions to:
Kevin Dowling                tel:    [phone]
Robotics Institute            fax:    [phone]
Carnegie Mellon University        net:    [e-mail]
Pittsburgh, PA 15213

___________________________________________________________________________
    This FAQ's purpose is to provide a resource of information,
pointers, and a guide to robotics related questions. If the expires
date above is more than two months old you should obtain a new copy.
See the section on Where to Find This FAQ.

Table of Contents:    [use +++ to search quickly]

Part 1
    +++Where to find this FAQ and comp.robotics archives
    +++Related FAQ's
    +++What is Robotics?
    +++Robotics Related Organizations
    +++Robotics Associations of Many Countries
    +++Robot Societies
    +++Robotics Publications
    +++Conferences and Competitions

Part 2
    +++Organizations doing robotics
    +++Graduate programs in robotics
    +++Mobile robot companies
    +++Manipulator companies
    +++Small Inexpensive Robots
    +++Architectures for Robots

Part 3
    +++Sensors
    +++Actuators
    +++Imaging for Robotics
    +++Wireless communication
    +++Robot Parts: Suppliers and sources for parts
    +++Hero Robots
    +++Puma Manipulators
    +++Simulators
    +++Real-Time Operating Systems
    +++Survey of Robot Development Environments
    +++What is the Miniboard?
    +++Microcontrollers
    +++Books and Online Information

    +++Acknowledgements

_____________________________________________________________________________
+++Where to find this FAQ and comp.robotics archives:

If you haven't done so, new users on the net should read
news.announce.newusers. In particular, the following posts are a good
idea:
    -A Primer on How to Work With The Usenet Community
    -Answers to Frequently Asked Questions About Usenet
    -Hints on Writing Style for Usenet

This FAQ is currently posted to comp.answers, news.answers and
comp.robotics.  All posts to news.answers are archived and are
available via anonymous FTP and e-mail from the following locations:

FTP:
    FTP is a way of copying file between networked computers. If
    you need help in using or getting started with FTP, send
    e-mail to [e-mail] with
        send usenet/news.answers/ftp-list/faq
    as the body of the message.

    location:  rtfm.mit.edu [18.70.0.209]
    directory: /pub/usenet/news.answers/robotics-faq
    filenames: part1, part2

    location:  ftp.uu.net [137.39.1.9]
    directory: /archive/usenet/news.answers/robotics-faq
    filenames: part1.Z, part2.Z [use uncompress]

    location:  nic.switch.ch [130.59.1.40]
    directory: info_service/Usenet/periodic-postings
    filenames: [Check info_service/Usenet/00index]

    location:  ftp.cs.cmu.edu [128.2.206.173]
    directory: /user/nivek/ftp/robotics-faq
    filenames: part1, part2

E-mail:
    Send email to [e-mail] containing these lines:
    send usenet/news.answers/robotics-faq/part1
    send usenet/news.answers/robotics-faq/part2

Mosaic:
    Jason Almeter at Indiana Univ has written a converter for the
    FAQ for html format. It can be found at:
    http://cs.indiana.edu/robotics/robotics.html

comp.robotics archives:
    You can find a dozen or more sites in the US, Europe and Japan
that store the FAQ and archives for comp.robotics by using the
Internet search programs, Archie, Gopher or Wais.

One location is:
    location:  wilma.cs.brown.edu:
    filenames:  pub/comp.robotics/
In addition to the FTP archive maintained at wilma.cs.brown.edu, there
are a couple of other mechanisms available:
- the comp.robotics archive at wilma is also available as a WAIS
  source (called "comp.robotics.src"), and hence it is also available
  to WWW browsers, via the appropriate WAIS gateway.
- Moises Lejter maintains a mailing list of individuals who would
  rather receive comp.robotics via Email as a daily digest of all
  messages posted to comp.robotics in each 24-hour period.  Anyone
  interested should send email directly to <[e-mail]>

____________________________________________________________________________
+++Related FAQ's

There are a number of newsgroups with topics related to robotics.
These include comp.realtime, comp.ai, sci.electronics, sci.virtual
worlds, and for fabricating there is also rec.metalworking.

Most regularly posted FAQ's can be found at rtfm.mit.edu (rtfm is an
acronym for Read The #$%** Manual)

    location:  rtfm.mit.edu [18.70.0.209]
    directory: /pub/usenet/news.answers/<newsgroup>
    where <newsgroup> is the name of a given newsgroup.

For sci.virtual-worlds:
    locations: milton.u.washington.edu
    directory: public/virtual-worlds
    filenames:  cheap-vr

____________________________________________________________________________
+++What is Robotics?

    A reprogrammable, multifunctional manipulator designed to move
material, parts, tools, or specialized devices through various
programmed motions for the performance of a variety of tasks"
                Robot Institute of America, 1979

Obviously this was a committee-written definition. It's rather dry and
uninspiring. Better ones might include:
    Force through intelligence.
    Where AI meet the real world.

Webster says:
    An automatic device that performs functions normally ascribed
    to humans or a machine in the form of a human.

-Where did the word robot come from?

The word 'robot' was coined by the Czech playwright Karel Capek
(pronounced "chop'ek") from the Czech word for forced labor or serf.
Capek was reportedly several times a candidate for the Nobel prize for
his works and very influential and prolific as a writer and
playwright.  Mercifully, he died before the Gestapo got to him for his
anti-Nazi sympathies in 1938.

The use of the word Robot was introduced into his play R.U.R.
(Rossum's Universal Robots) which opened in Prague in January 1921.
The play was an enormous success and productions soon opened
throughout Europe and the US. R.U.R's theme, in part, was the
dehumanization of man in a technological civilization. You may find it
surprising that the robots were not mechanical in nature but were
created through chemical means. In fact, in an essay written in 1935,
Capek strongly fought that this idea was at all possible and, writing
in the third person, said:

    "It is with horror, frankly, that he rejects all
    responsibility for the idea that metal contraptions could ever
    replace human beings, and that by means of wires they could
    awaken something like life, love, or rebellion. He would deem
    or a grave offence against life."

    [The Author of Robots Defends Himself - Karl Capek, Lidove
    noviny, June 9,1935, translation: Bean Comrada]

There is some evidence that the word robot was actually coined by
Karl's brother Josef, a writer in his own right. In a short letter,
Capek writes that he asked Josef what he should call the artifical
workers in his new play. Karel suggests Labori, which he thinks too
'bookish' and his brother mutters "then call them Robots" and turns
back to his work, and so from a curt response we have robots.

R.U.R is found in most libraries. The most common English translation
is that of P. Selver from the 1920's which is not completely faithful
to the original. A more recent and accurate translation is in a
collection of Capek's writings called Towards the Radical Center
published by Catbird Press in North Haven, CT. tel: [phone]

The term 'robotics' refers to the study and use of robots. It coined
by the late Isaac Asimov, the prolific science and science fiction
writer, in a number of his robot stories. First use was probably back
in the late 30's or early 40's.

-When did robots, as we know them today, come into existance?

The first industrial modern robots were the Unimates developed by
George Devol and Joe Engleberger in the late 50's and early 60's. The
first patents were by Devol for parts transfer machines. Engleberger
formed Unimation and was the first to market robots.  As a result,
Engleberger has been called the 'father of robotics.'

Modern industrial arms have increased in capability and performance
through controller and language development, improved mechanisms,
sensing, and drive systems. In the early to mid 80's the robot
industry grew very fast primarily due to large investments by the
automotive industry. The quick leap into the factory of the future
turned into a plunge when the integration and economic viability of
these efforts proved disastrous. The robot industry only recently
recovered to mid-80's revenue levels. In the mean time there has been
an enormous shakeout in the robot industry. In the US, for example,
only one US company, Adept, remains in the production industrial robot
arm business. Most of the rest went under, consolidated, or were sold
to european and japanese companies.

In the research community the first automata were probably Grey
Walter's machina (1940's) and the John's Hopkins beast. Teleoperated
or remote controlled devices had been built even earlier with at least
the first radio controlled vehicles built by Nikola Tesla in the
1890's. Tesla is better known as the inventor of the induction motor,
AC power transmission, and numerous other electrical devices. Tesla
had also envisioned smart mechanisms that were as capable as humans.

SRI's Shakey navigated highly structured indoor environments in the
late 60's and Moravec's Stanford Cart was the first to attempt natural
outdoor scenes in the late 70's. From that time there has been a
proliferation of work in autonomous driving machines that cruise at
highway speeds and navigate outdoor terrains in commercial
applications.

____________________________________________________________________________
+++Robotics Related Organizations:
    There are a number of organizations and societies related to
robotics. Some are related specifically to industry, several to
academia and a number of hobbyist groups. In addition, a number of the
groups, such as the ASME or IEEE, are very large organizations and
robotics is one of many sub-disciplines in their respective fields.

Advanced Robot Technology Research Association (Japan)
Kikai-shinko Bldg
3-5-8 Shiba-Kohen, Minato-ku, Tokyo
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
Has joint research programs with member companies.
Members are 20 or so Japanese companies including:
Ishikawajima-Harima, Oki Electric, Kawasaki Heavy Industry, Kobe
Steel, Komatsu, Sumitomo Electric Industries, Toshiba, JGC, NEC,
Hitachi, Fanuc, Fujitsu, Fuji, Matshushita Research Institute, Mitsui,
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Mitsubishi Electric, Yaskawa

American Society of Mechanical Engineers, (ASME)
345 E. 47th Street
New York, NY 10017
Mechanical Engineering magazine, like the IEEE's Spectrum, is
an excellent general publication on aspects of mechanical engineering.
There are often publications on robotics and the ASME sponsors a
number of other publications and conferences that are relevant to
robotics. The ASME also has a BBS service, MechEng, with an email
server. send email to <[e-mail]> with 'send info' in
the body.

Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems (AUVS)
1735 North Lynn Street
Suite 950
Arlinton, VA 22209-2022
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
Promoting worldwide advancement of unmanned vehicle systems.
Membership includes subscription to Unmanned Systems magazine, AUVS
News Bulletin, regional seminars, annual symposium and trade show, and
other opportunities. AUVS also sponsors an annual aerial Robotics
Competition. See Conference announcements for more details.
or see URL http://cwis.usc.edu/dept/robotics/other/auvsarc/auvsarc.html

Student membership: $15/year
Educational Institutions/Libraries $100/year
Individual: $40/year
Corporate memberships also available.

Center for Autonomous and Man-controlled Robotic and Sensing Systems
Charles Jacobus, CAMRSS director
ERIM
PO Box 8618
Ann Arbor, MI 48107
tel: [phone] X2457
Member companies include: Ball Aerospace, Coulter Electronics, ERIM,
Fairchild, Ford Aerospace, Geospectra, Grumman, Industrial Technology
Institute, KMS Fusion, Michigan State, UofM.

American Insitute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA)
370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW
Washington, DC 20024
tel: [phone]
tel: [phone] (Technical Information Service)
Conferences and publications, several cover automation technologies
for servicing on the ground and in space as well as exploration.

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
Service Center
445 Hoes Lane
Piscataway, NJ 08854-4150
tel: [phone]
tel: 800.678.IEEE
A large organization with hundreds of publications including journals,
transactions, Spectrum, sponsoring conferences, workshops and meetings.
   IEEE membership is $95 regular ($23 students)
   For membership in the IEEE Computer Society, add $22.
   $20 for IEEE Expert (Intelligent Systems and their Applications)
   $12 for Transactions on Neural Networks
   $12 for Transactions on Systems, Man and Cybernetics
   $15 for Transactions on Robotics and Automation
   $19 for Transactions on Knowledge and Data Engineering
   $24 for Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine IntelligenceIEEE

The International Society for Optical Engineering, (SPIE)
P.O.Box 10
Bellingham, Washington 98227-0010.
tel: [phone] (PST)
fax: [phone]
tlx: 46-7053
net: [e-mail]
ftp: mom.spie.org  (anonymous)
    SPIE has publications, meetings and conferences in the field
of intelligent robots, mobile robots, teleoperation, machine vision,
etc.
    SPIE is a nonprofit society dedicated to advancing engineering
and scientific applications of optical, electro-optical, and
optoelectronic instrumentation, systems and technology. Its members
are scientists, engineers, and users interested in the reduction to
practice of these technologies. SPIE provides the means for
communicating new developments and applications to the scientific,
engineering, and user communities through its publications, symposia,
and short courses.

The Material Handling Institute
8720 Red Oak Blvd, Suite 201
Charlotte, NC 28217
  Primary robotics focus is on AGV's.

National Service Robots Association (NSRA)
900 Victors Way
PO Box 3724
Ann Arbor, MI 48106
tel: [phone]
An organization devoted to robots other than on the factory floor.

Robotics Industry Association (RIA)
(same address as NSRA)

Society of Manufacturing Engineers, (SME)
One SME Drive
PO Box 930
Dearborn, MI  48121
tel: [phone]

Utility/Manufacturer Robot Users group (UMRUG)
Contact: Harry T. Roman
MC: 16-H
Public Service Electric and Gas Company
80 Park Plaza
PO Box 570
Newark, NJ 07101
tel: [phone]

+++Robotics Associations of Many Countries
______________________________________________

Compilied from a list provided by the British Robot Association.
Alphabatized by English spelling of country.

Australian Robot Association Inc
G.P.O. Box 1527
SYDNEY 2001
New South Wales
Australia
Contact: Mr Michael Kassler
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Osterreichisches Forschungszentrum
Seibersdorf GmbH
Hauptabteilung Fertigungstechnik und Automation
A-2444 SEIBERSDORF
Austria
Contact: Mr Erwin Fugger
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

SOBRACON - Sociedade Brasileira de Comando
Numerico, Automazacao e Computacao Grafica
Rua General Jardim, 645-7 andar, cjto.72
01223 011 - Sao Paulo, SP
Brazil
Contact: Mr. Arnaldo Pereira Ribeiro
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

British Robot Association (BRA)
BRA Aston Science Park
Love Lane
Birmingham B7 4BJ
England
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
  Meetings, newsletters, information, contacts, sponsor of several
  events in the UK.  Individual and Student rate is 60 pounds UK.

"Robot" Interindustry Research and Production Association
(MNTK "Robot")
Izmailovskaya sq.,7
MOSCOW - Russia
CIS
Contact: Mr. Vladimir P Stepanov
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

China Society of Industrial
Automation & Automated Industries
8, 7F, Tun Hwa N. Rd.
TAIPEI - China
Contact: Mr. Chen, Chen-Chang
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Danish Industrial Robot Association (DIRA)
Teknologiparken
DK-8000 AARHUS C
Denmark
Contact: Mr. John Nielsen
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Robotics Society in Finland
c/o Suomen Automaation Tuki Oy
Asemapaallikonk. 12 C
FIN-00520 HELSINKI
Finland
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
Contact: Mr. Hannu Lehtinen
e-mail: [e-mail]

Fachgemeinschaft MHI im VDMA
P.O. Box 71 08 64
D-6000 FRANKFURT (MAIN) 71
Germany
Contact: Mr. Berndt Knoerr
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

IPA
Nobelstrasse 12
D-7000 STUTTGART 80
Germany
Contact: Mr Rolf D Schraft
tel:[phone]
fax: [phone]

Association Francaise de Robotique
Industrielle (AFRI)
Tour 66
4, Place Jussieu
F-75252 PARIS CEDEX 05
France
Contact: Mr. Arnauld Laffaille
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Hungarian Robotics Association
c/o Tungsram T.H. Co.Ltd.
Centre of Robotics and Automation
H-1340 Budapest
IV., Vaci ut 77
Hungary
Contact: Dr. Jozsef K. Tar
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Government of India
Ministry of Science & Technology
Dept. of Science & Technology
Technology Bhavan
New Mehrauli Road
New Delhi-110 016
India
Contact: Mr. A.N.N. Murthy, Director
tel: [phone], 654-793
fax: [phone]

SIRI - Associazione Italiana di Robotica
c/o ETAS Periodici
Via Mecenate 91
I-20138 MILANO
Italy
Contact: Mr Daniele Fabrizi
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Japan Industrial Robot Association
c/o Kikaishinko Bldg
3-5-8, Shibakoen, Minato-Ku
TOKYO
Japan
Contact: Mr Kanji Yonemoto
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

KIST - Korea Institute of Science and Technology
P.O. Box 131, Cheongryang
Seoul
Korea
Contact: Mr. Chun Sik-lee
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Meininger Automation bv
P.O. Box 743
NL-2280 AS RIJSWIJK
Netherlands
Contact: Mr Jack B Eijlers
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Federation of Norwegian Engineering Industries (TBL)
Box 7072 - H
N-0306 OSLO 3
Norway
Contact: Mr Johan Ulleland
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Polish Federation of Engineering Associations (NOT)
Czackiego Str 3/5
PL-00950 WARSZAWA
Poland
Contact: Mr. Kazimierz Wawrzyniak
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Singapore Industrial Automation Association (SIAA)
151 Chin Swee Road
#03-13 Manhattan House
SINGAPORE 0316
Singapore
Contact: Mr Stephen Teng
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

MVVZ Robot
Nam. Legionarov 3
CZ-080 01 PRESOV
Slovakia
Contact: Mr Vladimir Cop
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

"J. Stefan" Institute
Jamova 39
61000 Ljubljana
Slovenia
Contact: Mr Jadran Lenarcic
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone], 273-677

Asociacion Espanola de Robotica
Rambla de Catalunya 70, 3r 2a
E-08007 BARCELONA
Spain
Contact: Mr Luis Basanez
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Swedish Industrial Robot Association (SWIRA)
Box 5506
S-114 85 STOCKHOLM
Sweden
Contact: Mr Thomas Hardenby
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Schweizerische Gesellschaft fur
Automatik, Arbeitsgruppe Robotik
Postgasse 17
CH-3011 BERN
Switzerland
Contact: Mr Charles Giroud
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

British Robot Association (BRA)
Aston Science Park, Love Lane
Aston Triangle
BIRMINGHAM B7 4BJ
United Kingdom
Contact: Mr. Donald Pitt
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Robotic Industries Assoc (RIA)
P.O. Box 3724
ANN ARBOR, MI 48106
USA
Contact: Mr. Donald A. Vincent
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]

Secretariat of IFR
c/o Sveriges Verkstadsindustrier
Box 5506
S-114 85 STOCKHOLM
Swden
Contact: Mr Lennart Djupmark
     Mrs Kerstin Teglof Delgado
tel: [phone] or
     [phone]
fax: [phone]

__________________________________________________________________________
+++Robot Societies

The original computer club in Silicon Valley was the Homebrew computer
club, out of which evolved a major portion of the personal computer
industry. In that spirit, if not the hope for history repeating
itself, a number of robotics societies and clubs have sprung up.

[This list as posted had several typos - if you find an error please
let me know - nivek]

Atlanta Hobby Robotics Association
P.O. Box 2050
Stone Mountain, GA 30086
    There is also a robotics bbs in Atlanta, although I'm not sure
it is directly connected with the AHRA. bbs: Robots R4U 404.978.7300


The Robot Group
PO Box 164334
Austin, TX 78701
tel: [phone]
net: <[e-mail]>
     gopher://gopher.cs.utexas.edu/Other Interesting Gophers/Robogopher


Austin Robotics Group [Is this still in existances?]
608 Garden Path Cove
Round Rock, TX 78736
tel: [phone]

Connecticut Robotics Society
P.O. Box 127
Canaan CT 06018
tel: [phone]

The Dallas Personal Robotics Group
P.O. Box 1626
Hurst, TX 76053

LA Area Robotics and Automation Group
<[e-mail]>
Los Angeles, CA
    If you wish to subscribe to the <la-ragroup> mailing list,
please send a message to:
        [e-mail]
with a blank Subject: line and the body of the message reading:
        subscribe la-ragroup <First Name> <Last Name>
[David Lee                              e-mail: [e-mail]]

Robot Society of Southern CA
10471 S. Brookhurst
Anaheim, CA 92804
tel: [phone]

Robotics Club of Maryland
Computer Science Dept.
A.V. Williams Bldg. (115)
University of Maryland
College Park, Md.  20742-3255
contact: Stephen Klueter, President
net: <[e-mail]>

The Robotics Society of America
PO Box 1205
Danville, CA 94526-1205
tel:[phone]
fax: [phone]
bbs: 415.648.6427 (supports 14.4Kb)
net: <[e-mail]>
    Subscription to SFRSA "Magazine" The normal subscription rate
will be $25 for 12 monthly issues.

Seattle Robotics Society
P.O. Box 30668
Seattle, WA 98103-0668
tel: [phone]
    SRS also operates a bbs: 206.633.2905

Triangle Amateur Robotics Club
P.O. Box 17523
Raleigh, NC 27619
tel: [phone]
net: [e-mail] (Rodney Radford)
tel: [phone] x7703
hme: 919.469.9359
Meets first Monday of every month at 7:30pm on NCSU campus (110 Clark Lab)

A related group:
MicroMechanics Information Clearinghouse
Requests to join list are sent to: <[e-mail]>
FTP site:
    location: mems.isi.edu
    directory: /pub/prm, /pub/prospero, /pub/mems, /pub/papers
WWW-URL:    http://mems.isi.edu/mems

Robot related performance art:
-----------------------------
Survival Research Laboratories
1458-C San Bruno Ave.
San Francisco, CA  94110
tel/fax: [phone]
contact: SRL director Mark Pauline
net: <[e-mail]>
    Survival Research Laboratories is a not-for-profit machine-
performance art group conceived of and founded by Mark Pauline in
November 1978.  Since its inception SRL has operated as an
organization of creative technicians dedicated to re-directing the
 industry, science, and the military
away from their typical manifestations in practicality, product or
warfare.  Since 1979, SRL has staged over 45 mechanized presentations
in the United States and Europe.  Each performance consists of a
unique set of ritualized interactions between machines, robots, and
special effects devices, employed in developing themes of
socio-political satire.  Humans are present only as audience or
operators.

    Survival Research Laboratories is now available for
email and time-restricted Gopher and anonymous FTP access from
0000-0600 PST daily. [NOTE TIME RESTRICTION!]:
    location:  srl.org
    directory: /pub/SRLImageBank, /pub/SRLInfo
The directory holds scanned-in photographs and video images of SRL
shows in GIF format; /pub/SRLInfo has news. Image file sizes range
from 70 to 250 Kbytes, but our link speed is only 9600 baud; please be
patient. Always select BINARY mode before FTP file transfers.
Filenames can be specified in upper or lower case.  Comments or
questions to [e-mail].

__________________________________________________________________________
+++Robotics Publications:

There are a number of academic journals and trade magazines devoted to
robotics.  There are no magazines currently devoted to the hobbyist or
designer of robotic mechanisms. In the 1980's Robotics Engineering
(nee Robotics Age) lasted for 7-8 years but folded. The one difficulty
I noted as a subscriber was that the magazine attempted to address the
hobbyist, the curious and those whose work was devoted to robotics
without successfully catering to all groups.

This list of periodical covers the academic journals, the trade
magazines devoted to both robotics and relevant sub-areas, and the
lone newsletter for hobbyists.

Automation in Construction
    Publisher: Elsevier Science Publisher B. V., Amsterdam.
    Desk Editor: Erik de Vries
    The Editor of the journal is
    Dr. T. Michael Knasel
    10324 Lake Avenue
    Cleveland, OH 441102-1239.
    fax: [phone].

<NEW>
Autonomous Robots
ISSN 0929-5593
Kluwer Academic Publishers
Journal Dept
PO Box 358, Accord Station
Hingham, MA 02018-0358
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
subscription: $50/individual
Vol 1, 1994 (2 issues)
Editor-in-chief
George Bekey <[e-mail]>

Industrial Robot
    ISSN 0143-991X
    Quarterly, $145/year
    MCB University Press Ltd.
    62 Toller Lane
    Bradford, West Yorkshire
    England, BD8 9BY
    tel: [phone],
    fax: [phone]
    --in the US
    MCB University Press Ltd.
    PO Box 10812
    Birmingham, AL 35201-0812
    tel: [phone] (1-205-995-1567),
    fax: [phone]

Institute of  Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE)
    The IEEE has a formidable array of journals, transactions and
    magazines. Here are a few that are relevant to robotics work:
    IEEE Transactions on Robotics and Automation
    IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man and Cybernetics
    IEEE Control Systems Magazine
    IEEE Computer Magazine
    IEEN Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence
    IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics
    Cost: Have to join IEEE and then subscribe. Student rates are
    much less expensive than non-student rates.

International Journal of Robotics and Automation
    Published 4 times annually. ISSN 0826-8185
    ACTA Press, PO Box 354, CH-8053, Zurich, Switzerland or ACTA
    Press, PO Box 2481, Anaheim, CA 92814.
    Subscriptions: $165 US or 313.50 SFr. ($12 US or 22.80 SFr postage and
    handling). A special rate is available to members of IASTED.

International Journal of Robotics Research (IJRR)
    MIT Press
    28 Carleton Street
    Cambridge, MA 02142
    Cost: $50/year to individuals

Journal of Intelligent & Robotic Systems
    Three issues per volume, $58.50 per volume (individual)
    Kluwer Academic Publishers Group
    PO Box 322,
    3300 AH Dordrecht,
    The Netherlands
    --in the US:
    PO Box 358
    Accord Station,
    Hingham, MA 02018-0358

Journal of Robotic Systems
    G. Beni and S. Hackwood, editors
    College of Engineering
    University of California, Riverside
    Riverside, CA 92521-0425
    Publisher:
    Interscience Division
    Professional, Reference, and Trade Group
    John Wiley and Sons, Inc.
    605 Third Ave.
    New York, NY 10158

Mechatronics (Mechanics, Electronics, Control)
    Editors-in-Chief:
    Dr. R. W. Daniel
    Department of Engineering Science,
    University of Oxford,
    Parks Road,
    Oxford, OX1-3PJ
    United Kingdom:
    tel: [phone]
    fax: [phone]

    Professor J. R. Hewit
    Engineering Design Institute
    Department of Mechanical Engineering,
    University of Technology, Loughborough
    Leicestershire, LE11 3TU
    UNITED KINGDOM
    tel: [phone]
    fax: [phone])

    Published by Pergamon Press Ltd, Headington Hill Hall, Oxford
    OX3 0BW UK.  1993 subscription rates: 193 pounds Sterling (US
    $312) Personal subscription rates for those whose library
    subscribes at a regular rate are available on request.
    Subscription rates for Japan are available on request.

Robot (Japanese)
    Industrial Robots and Application Systems
    published bimonthly
    Japan Industrial Robot Association (JIRA)
    Kikai-Shinko Building
    3-5-8, Shiba-Kohen,
    Mina To-ku
    Tokyo, Japan
    tel: [phone]
    fax: [phone]

Robot Explorer
    'The newsletter of motile systems'
    ISSN: 1060-4375
    Appropriate Solutions
    145 Grove Street
    PO Box 458
    Peterborough, NH 03458-0458
    tel: [phone]
    fax: [phone]
    net: [e-mail]
    $14.95/year in the US, $29.95 to the rest of the world.

Robotica
    International Journal of Information, Education and Research
    in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence
    Quarterly publication, US $179 per year!
    Cambridge University Press
    The Edinburgh Building
    Shaftesbury Road,
    Cambridge CB2 2RU (UK)
    in the US:
    Cambridge University Press
    Journals Department
    40 West 20th Street
    New York, NY 10011-4211

Robotics and Autonomous Systems
    -- In Europe --
    Elsevier Science Publishers B.V.
    Journals Department
    PO Box 211, 100 AE Amsterdam
    The Netherlands
    Editors in Chief:
    Prof. F.C.A. Groen
    University of Amsterdam
    Faculty of Mathematics and CS
    Dept. of Computer Systems
    Kruislaan 403
    1098 SJ Amsterdam
    The Netherlands
    net: <[e-mail]>

    -- In the US and Canada --
    Elsevier Science Publishing Co., Inc.
    Journal Information Center
    655 Avenue of the Americas
    New York, NY 10010
    Editor in Chief
    Prof. T.C. Henderson
    University of Utah
    Dept. of Computer Science
    3160 Merrill Engineering Bldg.
    Salt Lake City, UT 84112 USA
    net: <[e-mail]>

Robotics Today
    Published by:
    Society of Manufacturing Engineers
    One SME Drive
    PO Box 930
    Dearborn, MI 48121
    tel: [phone]

Robotics World
    "The end-user's magazine of flexible automation"
    Published quarterly
    Communication Channels
    6255 Barfield Road
    Atlanta, GA 30328
    tel: [phone]
    They also publish the Robotics World Directory $49.95

    Don't have addresses for:
Advanced Robotics (in english)
    published by
    International Journal of the Robotics Society of Japan
Robotics and Computer Integrated Manufacturing

Useful and relevant trade magazines:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Usually free, mostly ads or industry news. Many articles
written by advertisers. Great sources of product information. Our lab
at CMU receives 50-60 trade magazines and journals per month and while
no one reads all of the articles, pointers are passed on to people
around the lab. This keeps the group abreast of new products and
developments.

Advanced Imaging
    445 Broad Hollow Rd.
    Melville, NY 11747
    tel: [phone]
    fax: [phone]
    Subscription free to qualified professionals, $50/yr otherwise.

ComputerCraft
    CQ Communications
    76 N. Broadway
    Hicksville, NY 11801
    tel: [phone]
    fax: [phone]
    cost: $18.97/yr
    ISSN: 1055-5072

Computer Applications Journal
    Circuit Cellar Inc.
    4 Park St. Suite 20
    Vernon, CT 06066
    Subscriptions: P.O. Box 7694
    Riverton, NJ 08077
    tel: [phone]
    cost: $21.95/yr
    ISSN: 0896-8985
    Excellent for those building hardware, programming
    microcontrollers, etc. Also a very good source for companies
    who have products in these areas.

Design News
    Cahners Publishing Co.
    275 Washington Street
    Newton, MA. 02158
     engineers.
    Cost: Free to qualified recipients; otherwise - ?

EE Times
    CMP Publications, Inc.
    600 Community Drive
    Manhasset, NY  11030
    Cost: Free to qualified recipients (in the U.S.); otherwise -
    $159/yr    (U.S. & Foreign)

Electronic Design
    Penton Publishing Inc
    1100 Superior Ave
    Cleveland, OH 44114-2543
    611 Route #46 West
    Hasbrouck Heights, NJ 07604
    tel: [phone]
    fax: [phone]
    cost: $95.00/yr (free if qualified)
    ISSN: 0013-4872

Electronics Now (formerly Radio Electronics)
    Gernsback Publications Inc
    Subscription Dept
    Box 55115
    Boulder, CO 80321-5115
    500-B Bi-County Boulevard
    Farmingdale, NY 11735
    tel: [phone]
    cost: $19.97/yr
    ISSN: 0033-7862

Embedded Systems Programming
    Miller Freeman
    600 Harrison St.
    San Francisco, CA 94107
    tel: [phone] (customer service)
    tel: [phone]
    bbs: 415.905.2689.
    $49.95 for 12 issues

Machine Design
    Penton Publishing Inc.
    1100 Superior Ave.
    Cleveland, OH 44114-2543
    tel: [phone]
    fax: [phone]
    Cost: Free to qualified recipients in the U.S.; otherwise -
    $100.00/yr in U.S.; $140/yr in Canada; $160/yr - all other
    Foreign

Midnight Engineering 'Journal of Personal Product Development'
    Published by William E Gates, [No, not him...]
    111 E. Drake Road
    Suite 7041
    Fort Collins, CO 80525
    tel: [phone]
    fax: [phone]
    One-year (6 issues) $24, canada and mexico $29, other foreign
    $49 (airmail) Perhaps marginal for this list but focus is on
    "resources and insight for the entrepreneurial engineer"
    Issues and articles on developing hardware, software,
    micro-controllers, product development, marketing, patenting
    issues, startups, etc etc. Excellent if you need this info.

Modern Materials Handling
    44 Cook Street
    Denver, CO  80206-5800
    tel: [phone]
    Trade magazine covering productivity solutions for
    manufacturing, warehousing and distribution.  Typically
    includes articles on factory automation, etc.  Cost: Free to
    qualified recipients; otherwise - $75 for US subscribers.

Motion Control
    Tower Media Corp.
    800 Roosevelt Rd.
    Bldg. C, Suite 206
    Glen Ellyn, IL  60137
    Trade magazine for Motion Control applications and Technology.
    Cost: Free to qualified recipients in the U.S.; otherwise -
    $50/yr in U.S. $90/yr foreign subscriptions.

NASA Tech Briefs
    Associated Business Publications Co., Ltd.
    41 E. 42nd St.
    New York, NY  10017-5391
    Contains useful technology transfer information which very
    often includes robotics research performed at various NASA
    centers.  Cost: Free to qualified recipients; otherwise -
    $75.00/yr in the U.S., $150.00/yr for Foreign subscriptions

Nuts and Volts
    430 Princeland Court
    Corona, CA 91719
    tel: [phone]
    Electronics classifieds and ads. Lots of devices and products
    relevant for robot builders. Often features articles on robot
    building as well by Karl Lunt.

Sensors
    Helmers Publishing
    174 Concord Street
    PO Box 874
    Peterborough, NH 03458-0874
    tel: [phone]
    Trade magazine devoted to sensing devices. Publishes directory.
    Cost: Free to qualified subscribers, $55/yr otherwise

    [To add]
GPS World (Global Positioning System related)
RF Design
Sea Technology
Laser Focus
POB (surveying profession)
Broadcast Engineering (TV and radio engineering)

Other sources:
--------------
Thomas Register
    Thomas Publishing Company
    One Penn Plaza
    New York, NY 10117-0139
    tel: [phone]
    fax: [phone]
    About $250 for a 20-odd volume encyclopedia of US industry.
Concentration on heavier industries - but still an amazing source for
information. No company or lab building products should be without
one. Available on CD-ROM for a much higher price.

EEM - The 'Thomas Register' for Electrical engineers.
[Address to add]
_____________________________________________________________________________
+++Conferences and Competitions

There are a wide variety and number of conferences related to robotics
and automation. Some are focused on industrial applications, many are
researchy in nature and most are a mixture of both. Proceedings
should be available in most good libraries or by interlibrary loan.

The conference announcements are listed chronologically. That is, the
ones further in the future are towards the end of the list.

Summary list of conferences listed in detail:
--------------------------------------------
2nd Annual International Unmanned Ground Vehicle Robotics Competition
    Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan, May 20-22, 1994
NTC '94 1994 IEEE National Telesystems Conference
    San Diego, CA, May 26-27
Artificial Life IV
    MIT, Cambridge, MA, July 6-8, 1994,
IROS '94 International Workshop on Intelligent Robotics Systems '94
    Grenoble, France, 11-15 July 1994
AUV '94 Symposium on Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Technology
    Draper Laboratories, Cambridge, MA, July 19-20, 1994
From Animals to Animats
    Brighton, UK, August 8-12, 1994
PerAc'94 Lausanne, From perception to action
    Lausanne, Switzerland, 7-9 september 1994
SPIE Mobile Robots IX
Telemanipulator and Telepresence Technologies
Sensor Fusion
[and several other SPIE conferences at the same time]
    Boston, MA, 3-4 October 1994
AMS'94 Autonomous Mobile Systems
    University Stuttgart, Germany, Oct 13-14th 1994
International Dedicated Conference on Robotics, Motion and Machine Vision
    Aachen, Germany, Oct 31 - Nov 4th 1994
MVA'94: IAPR Workshop on Machine Vision Applications
    Kawasaki, Japan, Dec 13-15, 1994
ANS 6th Topical Meeting on Robotics and Remote Systems
    Monterey, California, February 5-10, 1995
IJCAI-95
    Palais de Congres, Montreal, August 20-25 1995.

=---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2nd Annual International Unmanned Ground Vehicle Robotics Competition
May 20-22, 1994 at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan

        $10,000.00 Prize

Prize money to the university teams for the best Autonomous Unmanned
Ground Vehicles
All Terrain (ATV) Class
Outdoor Natural Terrain Course
Sponsor: Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems
Host: AUVS Great Lakes Chapter


[The National AUVS Convention is held nearby at Cobo Hall in Detroit
on May 23-25, 194]

For Information please contact:
    Paul Lescoe
    Robotics Office
    Army-Tank Automotive Command
    tel: [phone]
    fax: [phone]
    net: [e-mail]

    Dr. Ka C. Cheok or Barbara Dhalman
    Department of Electrical and Systems Engineering
    Oakland University
    248 Dodge Hall
    Rochester, MI 48309-4401
    tel: [phone] or 313.370.2177
    fax: [phone]

    Candy McLellan
    School of Engineering and Computer Science
    Oakland University
    tel: [phone]


End of 2nd International UGV Competition Description
=-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1994 IEEE National Telesystems Conference (NTC '94)
San Diego, CA May 26-27, 1994

Areas of interest include:
    Dual-use technology applications
    Advanced technology for Telesystems
    Aircraft Navigation/Landing Systems
    Communications Systems and Networks
    Satellite Communication Systems
    Space Navigation Systems
    Telemetry and Remote Sensing
    Telerobotics/Unmanned Vehicles
    Tethered Systems and RPV's

Bob Bolger
Publicity Chair
ARINC Research Corporation
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
net: [e-mail]

=-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

                          Artificial Life IV
                    An Interdisciplinary Workshop
                   on the Synthesis and Simulation
                          of Living Systems

                             organized by:
                             Rodney Brooks
                    MIT Artificial Intelligence Lab
                             July 6-8, 1994
                           MIT, Cambridge, MA

                            CALL FOR PAPERS

                        Proceedings Editors:
                        Rodney Brooks, MIT AI Lab
                        Pattie Maes, MIT Media Lab

We are happy to invite contributions for the Fourth Artificial Life
Workshop, to be held at MIT in Cambridge, Massachusetts, July 6-8,
1994.

Artificial Life complements the traditional Biological sciences,
cby attempting to
synthesize phenomena normally associated with natural living systems
within computers and other "artificial" media. By extending the
empirical foundation upon which the science of Biology rests beyond
the carbon-chain based life that has evolved on Earth, Artificial Life
can contribute to Theoretical Biology by locating "life-as-we-know-it"
within the larger context of "life-as-it-could-be."

The three previous workshops in this series were held in Santa Fe, New
Mexico.  Next year's workshop is intended to continue in the spirit of
the earlier events, encouraging people with a broad range of
backgrounds to share and exchange opinions, ideas, and techniques.

Contributions may made in the following categories: PAPER (30 minutes
for presentation and questions); DEMONSTRATION, which includes robots,
computer demos and/or videos (please give time estimate).

Some PAPER contributions may be accepted as POSTERs.  Presentations of
posters may include a computer display (BYOC).

Authors of PAPERs should send 4 copies of a full paper, not to
exceed 14 pages of 12pt single spaced text to the address below by
March 15, 1994 (you get to work all weekend then send it express on
Monday the 14th...).  No papers will be accepted for review after
March 15th.  Authors will be notified of the status of their
contributions by April 15, 1994.  Contributions should include an
email address, telephone and fax numbers on the cover page.

Proprietors of DEMONSTRATIONs should send a maximum four page abstract
describing their contribution to the same address by March 15th.
DEMONSTRATIONs will be held on Thursday afternoon, July 7th, and will
incorporate an ``Artificial 4-H show''.

All accepted PAPERs will be included in the proceedings which will be
available to all registered participants at the workshop.  Some
POSTERs may be included in the proceedings, and some DEMONSTRATIONs
will be included in a companion videotape.  There will be a very tight
production schedule on the proceedings and camera ready copy will be
absolutely due by Friday May 13th.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

        * Self-organization and emergent functionality
        * Definitions of life
        * Origin of life
        * Self-reproduction
        * Computer viruses
        * Synthesis of "the living state"
        * Evolution and population genetics
        * Coevolution and ecological dynamics
        * Growth, development and differentiation
        * Organization and behavior of social and colonial organisms
        * Animal behavior
        * Global and local ecosystems and their interactions
        * Autonomous agents (mobile robots and software agents)
        * Collective intelligence ("swarm" intelligence)
        * Theoretical biology
        * Philosophical issues in Alife (from Ontology to Ethics)
        * Formalisms and tools for Alife research
        * Guidelines and safeguards for the practice of Alife

Papers should be sent to:

                        Rodney Brooks/Alife IV
                        MIT Artificial Ingelligence Lab
                        545 Technology Square
                        Cambridge, MA 02139, USA

                        [e-mail]

=------------------------------------------------------------------------------

IROS '94
                  FIRST  ANNOUNCEMENT
            INTERNATIONAL  WORKSHOP
                                   on
                   INTELLIGENT
                         ROBOTIC
                   SYSTEMS '94

             Grenoble,  France,  11-15  July  1994
                 CALL  FOR  PAPERS
This workshop is organized by :

LIFIA                  Laboratory of Fundamental Informatics
                       and Artificial Intelligence, Institute of
               Informatics and Applied Mathematics of
                       Grenoble, Grenoble, France

IPPT-PAN               Institute of Fundamental Technological
                       Research, Polish Academy of Sciences,
                       Warsaw, Poland

THEME  AND  TOPICS
The theme for this year workshop will be combining perception and
action. The workshop will combine invited lectures by established
researchers with original presentations by junior scientists about
research in progress. Topics included  :

      o   Learning and Control;
      o   Neural Network and Fuzzy Techniques for Control;
      o   Active and Real Time Computer Vision;
      o   Integration and Control of Perception and Action;
      o   Planning and Plan Execution for Perception and Action;
ORGANISERS
General Chairman      James L.Crowley, LIFIA IMAG, France,
                      46 av.  Felix Viallet, 38031 Grenoble Cedex,
                      Tel.:[phone] fax:[phone],
                      E-mail:  [e-mail]

Chairman              Adam Borkowski, IPPT PAN, Poland,
of the Programme      21 Swietokrzyska Str., 00-049 Warsaw,
Committee             Tel.  : [phone] ext 250
                      fax   : [phone],
                  E-mail:  [e-mail]

Co-Chairman           Artur Dubrawski, IPPT PAN, Poland,
of  the  Programme    21 Swietokrzyska Str., 00-049 Warsaw,
Committee           Tel.  : [phone] ext 250
              fax   : [phone],
              E-mail:  [e-mail]

Secretary             Patrick Reignier, LIFIA - IMAG, France,
                      46 av.  F'elix Viallet, 38031 Grenoble Cedex,
                      Tel.:[phone] fax:[phone],
                      E-mail:  [e-mail]

                      Olivier Causse, Lab.  of Image Analysis, DK,
                      Fr.  Bajers Vej 7 D, DK-9220 Aalborg
                      Tel.:[phone] fax:[phone],
                      E-mail:  [e-mail]

The event is organised in cooperation with the CEC Human Capital and
Mobility Network SMART and the Committee for Automatics and Robotics
of the Polish Academy of Sciences.

LOCATION
The event will take place at Grenoble, in the heart of the French
Alps. Grenoble has many convenient railway and bus connections from
all over France. International flights to Paris or Lyon would be
suitable.

LANGUAGE
The conference language will be English

SUBMISSION
Persons wishing to submit a paper should send an extended abstract of
approximately four pages to the programme chairman (Professor A.
Borkowski, address before)

TIMETABLE
- Extended abstracts must be received by the programme chairman by
  January 15 1994.
- Notification of acceptance will be sent before February  28  1994.
- Full papers (8 pages) must be received before April 30 1994

All accepted papers will be published in the Proceedings of the
Workshop. Detailed information regarding programme, conference fee,
accomodation will be given in the second annoucement issued
in January 1994.

End of IROS '94 description
=----------------------------------------------------------------------

AUV'94 SYMPOSIUM ON AUTONOMOUS UNDERWATER VEHICLE TECHNOLOGY
July 19-20 1994, Charles Stark Draper Laboratories, Cambridge, MA

The IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society is sponsoring a symposium on
Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Technology to be held in the
Boston, MA. area  at the Cambridge Center Marriott Hotel on
July 19-20 1994.  The objective of the Symposium is to disseminate
knowledge of recent technological advances in the field, to be a
focus for the current state of the art including identification of
technology shortfalls and to provide a forum for discussion of
new relevant ideas.

TOPICS
The Symposium will focus on topics that are related to the
AUTONOMOUS OPERATION OF UNDERWATER VEHICLES.  These
include but are not limited to :
    Sensors and Multi-Sensor Fusion
    Communications and Telemetry
    Navigation
    Imaging Techniques and Systems
    Modeling and Simulation Methods
    Mission Control and Software Architectures
    Energy Systems
    Autonomous Manipulation
    Vehicle Design and Control
    Launch and Recovery Techniques and Issues
    Multiple Cooperating Vehicles
The Symposium will include a VIDEO PROCEEDINGS Session and visits to
area technical attractions including the C. S. Draper Laboratories.

ABSTRACTS
t a proposed title and an abstract
(300-500 words) with a cover sheet containing title author(s) names,
addresses with one author named as the point of contact including
phone and fax numbers.  Since acceptance is by review of abstracts,
it would be helpful if authors would describe the problem addressed
solutions obtained and its importance to the subject of the
conference.  Abstracts should be submitted to :
    Professor A. J. Healey, Technical Program Chairman
    Department of Mechanical Engineering
    Naval Postgraduate School
    Monterey, CA 93943  Ph. 408-656-3462 Fax: [phone]
        [e-mail]

DEADLINES
The following deadlines have been established and it is important
that authors adhere closely to these dates.

    Abstracts Due:                November 8 1993
    Notice of Acceptance            January 15 1994
    and Authors Kits Distributed
    Full Paper Manuscript (Camera Ready)    April 15 1994

INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONIC ENGINEERS
OCEANIC ENGINEERING SOCIETY

=------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                 Conference Announcement and FINAL Call For Papers
                         FROM ANIMALS TO ANIMATS
    Third International Conference on Simulation of Adaptive Behavior (SAB94)
                     Brighton, UK, August 8-12, 1994
        The object of the conference is to bring together researchers in
        ethology, psychology, ecology, cybernetics, artificial intelligence,
        robotics, and related fields so as to further our understanding of
        the behaviors and underlying mechanisms that allow animals and,
        potentially, robots to adapt and survive in uncertain environments.

        The conference will focus particularly on well-defined models,
        computer simulations, and built robots in order to help characterize
        and compare various organizational principles or architectures
        capable of inducing adaptive behavior in real or artificial animals.

        Contributions treating any of the following topics from the
        perspective of adaptive behavior will receive special emphasis.

   Individual and collective behavior   Autonomous robots
   Neural correlates of behavior        Hierarchical and parallel organizations
   Perception and motor control         Emergent structures and behaviors
   Motivation and emotion               Problem solving and planning
   Action selection and behavioral      Goal directed behavior
    sequences                           Neural networks and evolutionary
   Ontogeny, learning and evolution      computation
   Internal world models                Characterization of environments
    and cognitive processes             Applied adaptive behavior

       Authors should make every effort to suggest implications of their
       work for both natural and artificial animals.  Papers which do not
       deal explicitly with adaptive behavior will be rejected.

Submission Instructions

  Authors are requested to send five copies (hard copy only) of a full paper
  to the Program Chair (Dave Cliff). Papers should not exceed 10 pages
  (excluding the title page), with 1 inch margins all around, and no smaller
  than 10 pt (12 pitch) type (Times Roman preferred). LaTex template
  available by email, see below. This is same format as SAB90 and SAB92.
  Each paper must include a title page containing the following: (1) Full
  names, postal addresses, phone numbers, email addresses (if available),
  and fax numbers for each author, (2) A 100-200 word abstract, (3) The
  topic area(s) in which the paper could be reviewed (see list above).
  Camera ready versions of the papers, in two-column format,  will be
  required after acceptance.  Computer, video, and robotic demonstrations
  are also invited.  Please contact Phil Husbands to make arrangements for
  demonstrations.  Other program proposals will also be considered.


Conference committee

    Conference Chair:

Philip HUSBANDS        Jean-Arcady MEYER         Stewart WILSON
School of Cognitive    Groupe de Bioinformatique The Rowland Institute
 and Comp. Sciences    Ecole Normale Superieure    for Science
University of Sussex   46 rue d'Ulm              100 Cambridge Parkway
Brighton BN1 9QH, UK   75230 Paris Cedex 05      Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
[e-mail]  [e-mail]        [e-mail]

   Program Chair:      David CLIFF
                       School of Cognitive and Computing Sciences
                       University of Sussex
                       Brighton BN1 9QH, UK
                       e-mail: [e-mail]

   Financial Chair:    P. Husbands, H. Roitblat
   Local Arrangements: I. Harvey, P. Husbands

Program Committee

  M. Arbib, USA            R. Arkin, USA            R. Beer, USA
  A. Berthoz, France       L. Booker, USA           R. Brooks, USA
  P. Colgan, Canada        T. Collett, UK           H. Cruse, Germany
  J. Delius, Germany       J. Ferber, France        N. Franceschini, France
  S. Goss, Belgium         J. Halperin, Canada      I. Harvey, UK
  I. Horswill, USA         A. Houston, UK           L. Kaelbling, USA
  H. Klopf, USA            L-J. Lin, USA            P. Maes, USA
  M. Mataric, USA          D. McFarland, UK         G. Miller, UK
  R. Pfeifer, Switzerland  H. Roitblat, USA         J. Slotine, USA
  O. Sporns, USA           J. Staddon, USA          F. Toates, UK
  P. Todd, USA             S. Tsuji, Japan          W. Uttal, USA
  D. Waltz, USA.

Official Language: English
Publisher: MIT Press/Bradford Books

Conference Information
  The conference will be held in the centre of Brighton, on the South Coast.
  This is a resort town, less than one hour from London, only 30 mins from
  London Gatwick airport. A number of invited speakers will be giving tutorial
  talks in  subject areas covered by the conference. Through sponsorship,
  conference fees will be kept to a minimum and there should also be some
  travel grants available. We have made arrangements for the Proceedings to
  be available at the conference, which requires efficient processing of
  submitted papers; hence if possible first submissions should be made using
  LaTex template available by email.

Email Information
  Email [e-mail] with subject line "Subscribe mail-list"
  to be put on our mailing list and be sent further information about
  conference arrangements when available.
  Email [e-mail] with subject line "LaTex template"
  to be sent LaTex template for camera-ready and for initial submissions.

Important Dates
===============

         JAN 5, 1994:    Submission deadline
         MAR 10:         Notification of acceptance or rejection
         APR 10:         Camera ready revised versions due
         MAY 1:          Early registration deadline
         JUL 8:          Regular registration deadline
         AUG 8-12:       Conference dates

General queries to: [e-mail]

=-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
PerAc'94 Lausanne
From perception to action

A state of the art conference on perceptive processing, artificial life,
autonomous agents, emergent behaviours and micro-robotic systems

Lausanne, Switzerland, 7-9 september 1994

    Swarm intelligence
    Micro-robotics
    Evolution, genetic processes
    Competition and cooperation
    Learning machines

    Self organization
    Active perception
    Sensory/motor loops
    Emergent behavior
    Cognition

----------------------------------------------
|    Call for Papers, Call for Posters       |
|  Call for Demonstrations, Call for Videos  |
|                 Contest                    |
----------------------------------------------

Contributions can be made in the following categories:

-- Papers -- (30 to 45 minutes). 2-page abstracts should be submitted
by February 1, 1994.  The conference will have no parallel sessions,
and a didactically structured program.  Most of the papers will be
solicited.  The submitted abstracts should attempt a synthetic
approach from sensing to action.  Selected authors will have to adapt
their presentation to the general conference program and prepare a
complete well-structured text before June 94.

-- Posters -- 4-page short papers that will be published in the
proceedings and presented as posters are due for June 1, 1994. Posters
will be displayed during the whole Conference and enough time will be
provided to promote interaction with the authors. A jury will
thoroughly examine them and the two best posters will be presented as
a paper in the closing session (20' presentation).

-- Demonstrations --  Robotic demonstrations are considered as posters.
In addition to the 4-page abstract describing the scientific interest of
the demonstration, the submission should include a 1-page requirement for
demonstration space and support.

-- Videos --  5 minute video clips are accepted in Super-VHS or VHS
(preferably PAL, NTSC leads to a poorer quality). Tapes together with
a 2-page description should be submitted before June 1, 1994. Clips will be
edited and distributed at the conference.

-- Contest -- A robotic contest will be organized the day before the
conference.  Teams participating to the contest will be able to follow
the conference freely.  The contest will consist in searching for and
collecting or stacking 36mm film cans.  One or several mobile robots
or robotic arms can be used for this task.  The rules and preliminary
registration forms will be sent upon request by air-mail only as soon
as definitive (end of October 93).


For further information:
Prof J.D. Nicoud, LAMI-EPFL, CH-1015 Lausanne
fax ++41 21 693-5263, Email [e-mail]

Program Committee and referees (September 93)

L. Bengtsson, Uni Halmstad, S. -- R. Brooks, MIT, Cambridge, USA.
P. Dario, Santa Anna, Pisa, I. -- J.L. Deneubourg, ULB, Bruxelles, B
R. Eckmiller, Uni, D|sseldorf, D. -- N. Franceschini, Marseilles, F
T. Fukuda, Uni, Nagoya, JP. -- S. Grossberg, Uni, Boston, USA
J.A. Meyer, Uni, Paris, F. -- R. Pfeifer, Uni, Z|rich, CH
L. Steels, VUB, Brussels, B. -- A. Treisman, Uni, Princeton, USA
F. Varela, Polytechnique, Paris, F. -- E. Vittoz, CSEM, Neuchbtel, CH

J. Albus, NIST, Gaithersburg, USA. -- D.J. Amit, Uni, Jerusalem, Israel
X. Arreguit, CSEM, Neuchbtel, CH. -- H. Asama, Riken, Wako, JP
R. Beer, Case Western, Cleveland, USA. -- G. Beni, Uni, Riverside, USA
P. Bourgine, Cemagref, Antony, F. -- Y. Burnod, Uni VI, Paris, F
J.P. Changeux, Inst. Pasteur, Paris, F. -- D. Cliff, Uni Sussex, Brighton, UK
Ph. Gaussier, LAMI, Lausanne, CH. -- P. Husbands, Uni Sussex, Brighton, UK
O. Kubler, ETH, Z|rich, CH. -- C.G. Langton, Santa Fe Inst, USA
I. Masaki, MIT, Cambridge, USA. -- E. Mazer, LIFIA, Grenoble, F
M. Mataric, MIT, Cambridge, USA . -- H. Miura, Uni, Tokyo, JP
S. Rasmussen, Los Alamos, USA. -- G. Sandini, Uni, Genova, I
T. Smithers, Uni, San Sebastian, E. -- J. Stewart, Inst. Pasteur, Paris, F
L. Tarassenko, Uni, Oxford, UK. -- C. Touzet, EERIE, Nnmes, F
P. Vershure, NSI, La Jolla, USA.

End of PerAc'94 Lausanne
=-----------------------------------------------------------------------------


Announcement & Call for Papers

Robotics Related Conferences at:
--------------------------------

SPIE's International Symposium on

Photonic Sensors & Controls for Commercial Applications

Part of SPIE's Photonics East


31 Oct. - 4 Nov. 1994
Hynes Convention Center
Boston, Massachusetts USA
============================================================


Contents
========

1.0 Abstract and Manuscript Due Dates
2.0 Robotics Related Conferences
3.0 Program Tracks
4.0 General Information
5.0 Submission of Abstracts
6.0 How to Receive More Information


1.0 ABSTRACT AND MANUSCRIPT DUE DATES
=====================================

* Abstract Due Date: 4 April 1994

     Late abstract submissions may be considered, subject to
     program time availability and chair's approval.


* Manuscript Due Date: 3 October 1994 or 8 August 1994+

     + Proceedings will be available on site. Abstract and
     manuscript due dates must be strictly observed.


2.0 ROBOTICS RELATED CONFERENCES
================================

----------------------------------------------------------
Machine Vision and Robotic Applications in Greenhouses and
Livestock Facilities
----------------------------------------------------------

Conference Chair: Peter P. Ling, Rutgers Univ.


---------------------------------------------
Telemanipulator and Telepresence Technologies
---------------------------------------------

Conference Chair: Hari Das, Jet Propulsion Lab.

Program Committee: Bernard D. Adelstein, NASA Ames Research Ctr.;
Robert J. Anderson, Sandia National Labs.; Thomas P. Caudell,
Univ. of New Mexico; Janez Funda, IBM Thomas J. Watson Research
Ctr.; Blake Hannaford, Univ. of Washington; Won Soo Kim, Jet
Propulsion Lab.; James M. Manyika, Oxford Univ. (UK); Thomas B.
Sheridan, Man-Machine Systems Lab./MIT

Cosponsoring organization: IEEE NNC-Virtual Reality Technical
Committee


--------------------------------------------------------
Intelligent Robots and Computer Vision XIII: Algorithms,
Techniques, Active Vision, Materials Handling*
--------------------------------------------------------

Conference Chair: David P. Casasent, Carnegie Mellon Univ.

Cochair: Ernest L. Hall, Univ. of Cincinnati

Program Committee: Mongi A. Abidi, Univ. of Tennessee/Knoxville;
Rolf-Jurgen Ahlers, Rauschenberger Metallwaren GmbH (FRG); Bruce
G. Batchelor, Univ. of Wales College Cardiff (UK); Madan M.
Gupta, Univ. of Saskatchewan (Canada); Ian Horswill, AI Lab./MIT;
Sunanda Mitra, Texas Tech Univ.; Prasanna G. Mulgaonkar, SRI
International; Daniel Raviv, Florida Atlantic Univ.; Ellen M.
Reid, Motorola; Steven K. Rogers, Air Force Institute of
Technology; Juha Roning, Univ. of Oulu (Finland); Scott A.
Starks, Univ. of Texas/El Paso; M. A. Taalebinezhaad, Univ. Laval
(Canada); Hemant D. Tagare, Yale Univ.; Andrew K. C. Wong, Univ.
of Waterloo (Canada)

*    Manuscript Due Date: 8 August 1994
     Proceedings will be available at the meeting.


------------------
Sensor Fusion VII*
------------------

Conference Chair: Paul S. Schenker, Jet Propulsion Lab.

Program Committee: Terrance E. Boult, Columbia Univ.; Su-Shing
Chen, Univ. of North Carolina/Charlotte; David B. Cooper, Brown
Univ.; Gregory D. Hager, Yale Univ.; Martin Herman, National
Institute of Standards and Technology; Terrance L. Huntsberger,
Univ. of South Carolina; Ren C. Luo, North Carolina State Univ.;
James M. Manyika, Oxford Univ. (UK); Suresh B. Marapane, Univ. of
Tennessee/Knoxville; Gerard T. McKee, Univ. of Reading (UK);
Evangelos E. Milios, York Univ. (Canada); Robin R. Murphy,
Colorado School of Mines; Bobby S. Y. Rao, Univ. of
California/Berkeley; Michael Seibert, Lincoln Lab./MIT; W. Brent
Seales, Univ. of Kentucky; Charles V. Stewart, Rennselaer
Polytechnic Institute; Stelios C. A. Thomopoulos, The
Pennsylvania State Univ.

*    Manuscript Due Date: 8 August 1994
     Proceedings will be available at the meeting.


----------------
Mobile Robots IX
----------------

Conference Chairs: William J. Wolfe, Univ. of Colorado/Denver;
Wendell H. Chun, Martin Marietta Astronautics Group

Program Committee: Ronald C. Arkin, Georgia Institute of
Technology; David J. Braunegg, MITRE Corp.; David P. Casasent,
Carnegie Mellon Univ.; Douglas W. Gage, Naval Command Control and
Ocean Surveillance Ctr.; Surender K. Kenue, General Motors
Research and Environmental Staff; William Y. Lim, Grumman Corp.;
Bijan G. Mobasseri, Villanova Univ.; David W. Parish, Omnitech
Robotics, Inc.


-------------------
Vision Geometry III
-------------------

Conference Chairs: Robert A. Melter, Long Island Univ.; Angela Y.
Wu, The American Univ.

Program Committee: Ari Gross, CUNY/Queens College and Columbia
Univ.; T. Yung Kong, CUNY/Queens College; Jack Koplowitz,
Clarkson Univ.; David Mount, Univ. of Maryland/College Park; Ivan
Stojmenovic, Univ. of Ottawa (Canada)


3.0 PROGRAM TRACKS
==================

Including those listed above, twenty-two conferences are
scheduled for this symposium. The conferences are organized into
five program tracks:

*    Photonic Devices and Materials
*    Smart Highways
*    Agriculture, Forestry & Biological Processing
*    Automated Inspection
er Vision


4.0 GENERAL INFORMATION
=======================

* Advance Technical Program

The comprehensive Advance Technical Program for this symposium
will list conferences, paper titles and authors in order of
presentation, education program schedule including course
descriptions and instructor biographies, and an outline of all
planned special events. Call SPIE at 206/676-3290 (Pacific Time),
or e-mail [e-mail] to request that a copy be sent to you
when it becomes available in July 1994.

* Hotel Accommodations

SPIE will be reserving rooms at discounted rates at several
hotels near the Hynes Convention Center for this symposium.
Meeting headquarters hotel will be The Sheraton Boston Hotel and
Towers. In order to book rooms at hotels offering the special
symposium rates, you will need to make these arrangements through
the Boston Housing Bureau.  By calling hotels directly, you will
not receive the special symposium rates.  Information about how
to make your hotel accommodation reservations will be included in
the Advance Program. Hotel rates are expected to range from $90-
$145.

* Registration

Registration fees for conferences and short courses, a
registration form, technical and general information for SPIE's
Boston Symposium  & Exposition: Photonic Sensors and Controls for
Commercial Applications will be available in the Advance Program.

* How to exhibit

Companies interested in exhibiting at this symposium may contact
Sue Davis, Director of Conferences and Exhibits, at 503/663-1284,
or Diane Robinson, Exhibits Manager, at SPIE headquarters, phone
206/676-3290, fax [phone], e-mail [e-mail].


5.0 SUBMISSION OF ABSTRACTS
===========================

Abstract Due Date: 4 April 1994

*    Send abstract via E-mail to
     [e-mail] (ASCII format);
*    or fax one copy to SPIE at 206/647-1445;
*    or mail four copies to:

     Photonics East
     SPIE, P.O. Box 10
     Bellingham, WA  98227-0010

     Shipping address:

     1000 20th St.
     Bellingham, WA  98225

     Telephone [phone]
     Telex 46-7053
     Anonymous FTP: mom.spie.org
     E-mail: [e-mail]


-------------------------
Conditions for Acceptance
-------------------------

*    Authors are expected to secure travel and accommodation
     funding, independent of SPIE, through their sponsoring
     organizations before submitting abstracts.
*    Only original material should be submitted.
*    Commercial papers, descriptions of papers, with no research
     content, and papers where supporting data or a technical
     description cannot be given for proprietary reasons will not
     be accepted for presentation in this symposium.
*    Abstracts should contain enough detail to clearly convey the
     approach and the results of the research.
*    Government and company clearance to present and publish
     should be final at the time of submittal.
*    Applicants will be notified of acceptance by 20 June 1994.


Your abstract should include the following:

I.   ABSTRACT TITLE

II.  AUTHOR LISTING (principal author first)
     Full names and affiliations.

III. CORRESPONDENCE FOR EACH AUTHOR
     Mailing address, telephone, telefax, e-mail address.

IV.  SUBMIT TO:     (Conference Title)  (Conference Chair)
                    at Photonic Sensors

V.   PRESENTATION
     Indicate your preference for "Oral Presentation" or "Poster
     Presentation." Placement subject to chairs' discretion.

VI.  ABSTRACT TEXT
     250 words.

VII. BRIEF BIOGRAPHY (principal author only)
     50 to 100 words.


* Paper Review

To assure a high quality conference, all abstracts and
Proceedings papers will be reviewed by the Conference Chairs for
technical merit and content.

* Proceedings of These Meetings

These meetings will result in published Proceedings that can be
ordered through the Advance Program. Manuscripts are required of
all accepted applicants and must be submitted in English by 8
August 1994 or 3 October 1994.  Copyright to the manuscript is
expected to be released for publication in the conference
Proceedings. Note: If an author does not attend the meeting and
make a presentation, the chair may opt not to publish the
author's manuscript in the conference proceedings. Proceedings
papers are indexed in leading scientific databases including
INSPEC, Compendex Plus, Physics Abstracts, Chemical Abstracts,
International Aerospace Abstracts, and Index to Scientific and
Technical Proceedings.

* Publishing Policy

Manuscript due dates must be strictly observed. Whether the
Proceedings volume will be published before or after the meeting,
late manuscripts run the risk of not being published. The
objective of this policy is to better serve the conference
participants and the technical community at large. Your
cooperation in supporting this objective will be appreciated by
all.

* Chair/Author Benefits

Chairs/authors/co-authors are accorded a reduced-rate
registration fee. Included with fee payment are a copy of the
Proceedings in which the participant's role or paper appears, a
complimentary one-year nonvoting membership in SPIE (if never
before a member), and other special benefits.

* Poster Presentation

Interactive poster sessions will be scheduled. All conference
chairs encourage authors to contribute papers with technical
content that lends itself well to the poster format. Please
indicate your preference on the abstract.

* Oral Presentation

Each author is generally allowed 15 minutes plus a five-minute
discussion period. SPIE will provide the following media
equipment free of charge: 35 mm carousel slide projectors,
overhead projectors, electric pointers, and video equipment
(please give at least two weeks advance notice).


6.0 HOW TO RECEIVE MORE INFORMATION
===================================

The complete text of the printed announcement and call for papers
for Photonic Sensors & Controls for Commercial Applications is
available via anonymous FTP at:

mom.spie.org     meetings/calls/sensors_controls.txt

=-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Announcement and Call for Papers
10th Workshop on Autonomous Mobile Systems
                AMS'94
On October 13th and 14th 1994 at the University Stuttgart, Germany

In its 10-year anniversary, the workshop on "Autonomous Mobile Systems"
will be organized by the Institute of Parallel and Distributed High
Performance Systems at the Univ. Stuttgart, Germany. Please send an
abstract of 1-2 pages of your paper proposal to the address below.
All papers accepted will be published in the "Informatik aktuell" series
of Springer-Verlag. The workshop languages will be German and English.

Topics:
  - Autonomous and Cooperative Systems
  - Cooperation and Coordination
  - Autonomous System in Road Traffic
  - Image Processing for Mobile Systems
  - Techniques for Modeling and Simulation
  - Programming Techniques and Tools
  - Planning for Autonomous Mobile Systems
  - Multiple Sensors, Data Fusion, and Data Interpretation
  - Applications of Autonomous Mobile Systems
  - Use in Manufacturing, Service, Cleaning, Construction Site
    Supporting Disabled Persons
  - Exploration, Learning, and Self Organization
  - Behaviour-based AI (Artificial Life)

Dates and Deadlines:
     1. May  1994  Submission of Paper Abstracts
    15. May  1994  Notification of Acceptance
     1. July 1994  Submission of camera-ready Papers
13.+14. Oct. 1994  Workshop AMS'94

Workshop Committee:
Prof. R. Dillmann (Univ. Karlsruhe)  Prof. G. Faerber (TU Muenchen)
Prof. P. Levi (Univ. Stuttgart)      Prof. U. Rembold (Univ. Karlsruhe)
Prof. G. Schmidt (TU Muenchen)

Contact:
Prof. Dr. P. Levi
Dr. Th. Braeunl
Applied Computer Science - Computer Vision
Universitaet Stuttgart, IPVR
Breitwiesenstr. 20-22, D-70565 Stuttgart, Germany
Tel.: [phone], Fax: [phone]
email: [e-mail]

=------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                             CALL FOR PAPERS
INTERNATIONAL DEDICATED CONFERENCE ON ROBOTICS, MOTION AND MACHINE VISION
is conference is dedicated to practical industry applications and
existing products.  This meeting will also be concerned with the
economical viability of applications.  Therefore, we strong encourage
papers which deal with cost analysis and performance/cost optimization
considering speed.  accuracy, available features and tools, software
cost, hardware cost, engineering time, and maintenance time.

Papers are sought in these and related subjects:

- Calibration of motion devices, vision systems, and
  motion-vision systems,(methodology, error estimation,
  error minimization, accuracy).
- Accuracy and repeatability of motion devices, vision
  systems, and motion-vision systems.
- Criteria for accuracy, repeatability and calibration
  versus manufacturing requirements.
- Error compounding effect in motion-vision applications.
- Challenging applications (speed, accuracy, cost, methodology, etc.).
- Failed applications (speed, accuracy, cost, methodology, etc.).
- New methodologies in industrial applications.
- High Speed industrial applications.
- High accuracy industrial applications.
- Subpixel accuracy in industrial applications.
- Under 5 micron accuracy in industrial applications.
- Force and torque sensors integration.
- Application software for a workcell.
- Handling uncertainties in robot motion including
  uncertainty representation, propagation, reduction, and error
  recovery.

IMPORTANT DATES:
   ABSTRACTS DUE: 14TH MARCH, 1994
   DRAFT MANUSCRIPTS DUE: 16TH MAY 1994
   FINAL PAPERS DUE: 18TH JULY 1994

Please send abstracts to:
ISATA Secretariat
42 Lloyd Park Avenue
Croydon, CR0 5SB, England
Telephone: [phone]
Telefax: 081 686 1490

=------------------------------------------------------------------------------
         MVA'94: IAPR Workshop on Machine Vision Applications
                         December 13-15, 1994
                           Kawasaki, Japan

The International Association for Pattern Recognition (IAPR) announces
the 4th IAPR International Workshop on Machine Vision Applications to
be held in Kawasaki on December 13-15, 1994.

The workshop is sponsored by the IAPR Technical Committees 6, 8, and
10.  The purpose of the workshop is to bring together researchers and
practitioners from both academia and industry, and to exchange their
knowledge and stimulate each other through intensive discussions on
the following research topics:

Main Topic: Machine Vision and its Applications
     Machine Vision Algorithms
          Feature extraction,  Range data / 3D shapes,  Motion / Image
          sequence analysis, Neural  network applications, Color image
          analysis,  AI-based vision,   Human  interface,  and related
          technologies.

     Special Purpose Architectures
          Intelligent  sensors,  VLSI image processor chips, Massively
          parallel  processing,  Architectures  for  3D  and/or motion
          processing,  Image  processing systems, Software environment
          for image processor, and related technologies.

     Industrial Applications
          Factory automation, Disaster prevention and rescue, Security
          control,  Navigation,  Mobile robots, Civil and construction
          engineering,       Agriculture/Forestry/Fishery,       Other
          applications, and related technologies.

     Document, Map and Line Drawing Processing
          Document  image  processing, Drawing recognition, Multimedia
          database,   Map   and   engineering  drawing  database,  Map
          processing  and  map-based  systems,  3D reconstruction from
          maps or drawings, and related technologies.

    The workshop will include several invited talks and about 100
papers for oral and poster presentations on the above topics.  All
presentations will be in English.  Those who wish to present a paper
are requested to submit four copies of a 500-1000 word extended
abstract with at least one main figure by June 15, 1994 to:
           Prof. Mikio Takagi
           Institute of Industrial Science
           University of Tokyo
           7-22-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106, Japan
           FAX: [phone]

    The abstract should contain the following in its first page.
           1) Title of the paper
           2) Author name(s) and his/her(their) affiliation(s)
           3) A person's name and address to be contacted,
              also, phone and fax numbers, Email address if available
           4) Answers to the following questions:
              a) What is the original contribution of this work?
              b) Why should this contribution be considered important?

Authors of papers that are accepted will be notified by August 1,
1994. Final camera-ready papers are due by October 1, 1994.

Notice: International Technical Exhibition on Image Technology and
Equipment will be held in Tokyo, near the workshop site, on December
7-9, 1994. All participants for the workshop are encouraged to visit
the exhibition.

For further information, please contact:
    Prof. Mikio Takagi
    Institute of Industrial Science, University of Tokyo
    7-22-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106, JAPAN
    PHONE: [phone]  FAX: [phone]
    EMAIL: [e-mail]

=------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Call for Abstracts & Call for Exhibitors
ANS 6th Topical Meeting on Robotics and
Remote Systems

February 5-10, 1995
Monterey, California USA

Sponsored by:
AMERICAN NUCLEAR SOCIETY
Robotics and Remote Systems Division
and the Northern California Section

Cosponsored by
o Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
o Electric Power Research Institute
o The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
o British Nuclear Energy Society

You are invited to submit extended abstracts for review and
consideration for the ANS Sixth Topical Meeting on Robots and Remote
Systems.  The theme of this Topical is "Robots in the Environment,"
and emphasis will be placed on robot technology and applications in a
variety of remote environments, including nuclear, environmental
remediation, underwater and space.  Sessions are arranged in four
primary interest areas or "tracks" so that no two papers in a track
are presented concurrently.  The tracks and topics of interest for
this abstract solicitation are listed below.

APPLICATIONS
    Nuclear power and fuel cycle
    Environmental Restoration
    Waste Management
    Remote Manufacturing and Processing
    Laboratory Automation
    Manipulator Applications
    Medical Application

HOSTILE ENVIRONMENTS
    Hardening and Survivability Technologies
    Undersea
    Space
    Law Enforcement
    Emergency Response and HazMat Handling
    Military

CONTROL SYSTEMS
    Control Systems and Architectures
    Virtual Reality Application to Remote Systems
    Sensors and Machine Vision
    Human Factors and the Human/Machine Interface
    Artificial Intelligence and Smart Systems
    Remote Viewing and Telepresence

RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT
    Autonomous Systems and Mobility
    Mechanical Design and Special Tooling
    Manipulator R&D
    Remote Engineering

The ANS 6th Topical Meeting on Robotics and Remote Systems Symposium,
sponsored by the American Nuclear Society, will be held at the Hyatt
Regency Monterey in Monterey, California, just minutes from the
beautiful California central coast.
 Updates in the various technology areas will be featured as well as
several new special interest sessions which have proven popular in
recent years.  Both oral and poster papers will be presented, and
submissions of your original work are requested.  We encourage
papers/presentations from European and Pacific Rim countries.

Technical Sessions
Both oral presentations and poster sessions will be featured for the four-day
conference

Send Abstracts on new and innovative work to:

Program Chairman
Scott A. Couture
ANS 6th Topical on Robotics and
Remote Systems
P.O. Box 10333
Pleasanton, CA  94588
Phone: [phone]/FAX [phone]

INSTRUCTIONS FOR ABSTRACT PREPARATION AND MAILING ____________________
Abstracts of new and innovative work are solicited.  Submission format is an
 three copies to the program chairman.

ABSTRACT DEADLINE - APRIL 1, 1993 - SEND TO:
6th Topical Meeting on Robotics and Remote Systems
Attn:  Scott Couture, Technical Program Chair
P.O. Box 10333     Pleasanton, CA  94588

Acceptance Categories:
Papers may be accepted for:
1.    Oral presentations for a specified time (20-35 minutes, nominal)
2.    Poster presentation with the author expected to be in attendance to explain
his or her paper and to answer questions.
All papers accepted for the ANS 6th Topical Meeting on Robotics and Remote
Systems are eligible for publication in the ANS Transactions issue for the
Symposium subject to formal review and acceptance procedures.


Return this information sheet

Sixth Topical Meeting on Robotics and Remote Systems
February 5-10, 1995, Monterey, California
___  I am interest edin attending this Topical Meeting.  Please send additional
information as it becomes available.
___  I am interested in presenting a paper at this Topical Meeting.

Tentative title of paper:
___  I am interested in presenting a poster session
___  I am interested in Exhibit Space for this Topical Meeting.

Name:
Affiliation:
Address:
City/State/Zip

=------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                     CALL FOR PARTICIPATION: IJCAI-95

IJCAI-95 will take  place at the  Palais de Congres,  Montreal, August  20-25
1995.

The biennial IJCAI  conferences are  the major forums  for the  international
scientific exchange and presentation of AI research. The Conference Technical
Program will include workshops, tutorials, panels and invited talks, as  well
as tracks for paper and videotape presentations.

PAPER TRACK: SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS AND GUIDELINES

Topics of Interest

Submissions are invited on substantial, original, and previously unpublished
research in all aspects of AI, including, but not limited to:

* Architectures and languages for AI (e.g. parallel hardware and software for
  building AI systems)
* Artistic, entertainment and multimedia applications.
* Automated   reasoning   (e.g.  theorem   proving,   abduction,   automatic
  programming, search,  context  management  and  truth  maintenance systems,
  constraint satisfaction, satisfiability checking)
* Cognitive modeling (e.g. user models, memory models)
* Connectionist and PDP models
* Distributed AI, autonomous agents, multi-agent systems and real-time
  issues.
* Intelligent teaching systems
* Knowledge Engineering and Principles of AI applications (e.g. for design,
  manufacturing control, grand challenge applications)
* Knowledge representation  (e.g. logics  for knowledge,  action, belief  and
  intention, nonmonotonic  formalisms,  complexity  analysis,  languages
  and systems for representing knowledge)
* Learning, knowledge acquisition and case-based reasoning
* Logic programming (e.g. semantics, deductive databases, relationships to
  AI knowledge representation)
* Natural language (e.g. syntax, semantics, discourse, speech recognition
  and understanding, natural language front ends, generation systems,
  information extraction and retrieval)
* Philosophical foundations
* Planning and reasoning about action (including the relation between
  planning and control)
* Qualitative reasoning and naive physics (e.g. temporal and spatial
  reasoning, model-based reasoning, diagnosis)
* Reasoning under uncertainty (including fuzzy logic and fuzzy control)
* Robotic and artificial life systems (e.g. unmanned vehicles,
  vision/manipulation systems)
* Social, economic and legal implications
* Vision (e.g. color, shape, stereo, motion, object recognition, active
  vision, model-based vision, vision architectures and hardware, biological
  modeling).

Timetable

Submissions must be received by 6th January 1995. Submissions received  after
that date will be returned unopened.  Authors should note that ordinary  mail
can sometimes be considerably delayed,  especially over the new year  period,
and should take this into account when timing their submissions. Notification
of receipt will  be mailed to  the first author  (or designated author)  soon
after receipt.

Notification of acceptance or rejection: successful authors will be  notified
on or before 20th March 1995.  Unsuccessful authors will be notified by  27th
March 1995. Notification  will be  sent to  the first  author (or  designated
author).

Camera ready copies of the final versions of accepted papers must be received
by the publisher in the USA by 24th April 1995.

Note that at least one  author of each accepted  paper is required to  attend
the conference to present the work.

General

Authors should submit six (6) copies of  their papers in hard copy form.  All
paper submissions  should be  to  the following  address. Electronic  or  fax
submissions cannot be accepted.

IJCAI-95 Paper Submissions,
American Association for Artificial Intelligence,
445, Burgess Drive,
Menlo Park, CA. 94025, USA.
(telephone [phone], email [e-mail]).

Appearance and Length

Papers should be printed on  8.5'' x 11'' or A4  sized paper. They must  be a
maximum of 15 pages long, each page having no more than 43 lines, lines being
at most  140mm long  and with  12 point  type. Title,  abstract, figures  and
references must be included within  this length limit. Papers breaking  these
rules will not be considered for presentation at the conference.

Letter quality  print is  required. (Normally,  dot-matrix printout  will  be
unacceptable unless  truly of  letter quality.  Exceptions will  be made  for
submissions from  countries  where  high  quality  printers  are  not  widely
available.)

Title Page

Each copy of the paper must include  a title page, separate from the body  of
the paper. This should contain:

* Title of the paper
* Full names, postal addresses, phone numbers, fax numbers and email
  addresses (where these exist) of all authors. The first postal address
  should be one that is suitable for delivery of items by courier service
* An abstract of 100-200 words
* A set of keywords giving the area/subarea of the paper and describing the
  topic of the paper. This information, together with the title of the paper,
  will be the main information used in allocating reviewers.
* The following declaration:
   ``This paper has not already been accepted by and is not currently under
     review for a journal or another conference. Nor will it be submitted
     for such during IJCAI's review period.''

Policy on Multiple Submissions

IJCAI will not accept any paper which, at the time of submission, is
under review for a journal or another conference. Authors are also
expected not to submit their papers elsewhere during IJCAI's review
period.  These restrictions apply only to journals and conferences,
not to workshops and similar specialized presentations with a limited
audience.

Review Criteria

Papers will be subject to peer review, but this review will not be
``blind'' (that is, the reviewers will be aware of the names of the
authors). Selection criteria include accuracy and originality of
ideas, clarity and significance of results and the quality of the
presentation. The decision of the Program Committee, taking into
consideration the individual reviews, will be final and cannot be
appealed.  Papers selected will be scheduled for presentation and will
be printed in the proceedings. Authors of accepted papers, or their
representatives, are expected to present their papers at the
conference.

Distinguished Paper Awards

The Program  Committee will  distinguish one  or more  papers of  exceptional
quality for special awards.  This decision will in  no way depend on  whether
the authors choose to enhance their paper with a video presentation.

Other Calls

Calls for  tutorial  and  workshop  proposals  and  video  presentations  for
IJCAI-95 will be issued shortly.


=------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In addition to those listed above many other annual conferences are
held. Here are a few of them:

Annual International Conference of IEEE on Robotics and Automation
(ICARA)

 Robots and Systems

Annual Symposium on Industrial Robots

International Symposium of Robotics Research

Autonomous Intelligent Systems

International Conference on Computer Vision

British Machine Vision Conference

IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Conference

IMAC/SICE International Symposium on Robotics, Mechatronics and
    Manufacturing Systems.

American Association for Artificial Intellignece (AAAI)
    Probably the largest and most prestigious conference
  on AI. Now sponsoring a robot competition at the annual AAAI
  conference.

Competitions:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There are a number of robot gatherings where robot builders can bring
their creations to show and compete with others.

Hong-Kong ping pong competitions:
    Contact:    Robin Bradbeer <[e-mail]>

BEAM robot olympics:
    Contact:    Mark Tilden <[e-mail]>
    Articles on the BEAM Olympics:

    Dewdney, A.K. Photovores: intelligent robots are constructed
    from castoffs. Scientific American Sept 1992, v267, n3, p42(1)

    Maylon, John.  At the Robot Olympics.  Whole Earth Review.
    Spring 1992, pp 80-84.

    Smit, Michael C., and Mark Tilden, Beam Robotics. Algorithm,
    Vol. 2, No. 2, March 1991, Pg 15-19

___________________________________________________________________________
End of part 1

--

aka: Kevin Dowling            Carnegie Mellon University
tel: [phone]            The Robotics Institute
adr: [e-mail]            Pittsburgh, PA 15213
--

aka: Kevin Dowling            Carnegie Mellon University
tel: [phone]            The Robotics Institute
adr: [e-mail]            Pittsburgh, PA 15213