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Internet‐based robotic systems have received much attention in recent years. A number of design issues are essential for designing this new type of robotic systems. This paper addresses the Internet time delay, the user interface design and concurrent user access for an Internet‐enabled arm robot. The implementation and application of the Internet‐enabled arm robot in an open control laboratory has been illustrated as a case study.

Today’s Internet technology provides a convenient way for us to develop an integrated network environment for the diversified applications of different robotic systems. To be successful in real‐world applications, Internet‐based robots require a high degree of autonomy and local intelligence to deal with the restricted bandwidth and arbitrary transmission delay of the Internet. This paper describes the first step toward building such an Internet‐based robotic system for teleoperation in the University of Essex. The system has a standard network protocol and an interactive human‐machine interface. Using a Web browser, a remote operator can control the mobile robot to navigate in our laboratory with visual feedback and a simulated environment map via the Internet. The employment of an intuitive user interface enables Internet users to control the mobile robot and implement useful tasks remotely. Although at its first stage, the developed system has the potential to be extended to many real‐world applications such as tele‐manufacturing, tele‐training and tele‐service.

This paper aims to develop a service‐oriented distributed multi‐robot system based on manufacturing message specification (MMS) and new‐generation distributed object technology – web services for realizing remotely monitoring and controlling multiple heterogeneous robots in the internet environment.

The study presents robot communication model and distributed multi‐robot monitoring and control software structure based on MMS and web services. In particular, monitoring and control software design of MMS concepts in web services environment using Unified Modeling Language model is discussed in detail. In addition, to verify the validity of the proposed design method, a multi‐robot prototype system for robot flexible assemble cell has been achieved. Its Server software is implemented in C++ with Visual Studio.NET being the development environment and Client software is programmed in Java with Borland JBuilder 9 being the development tool.

Finds that the communication structure following MMS can make the multi‐robot monitoring and control system have perfect robustness, interoperability and reconfigurability. Besides, web services technology can conveniently realize MMS services, also can successfully resolve the remote multi‐robot monitoring and control problem among cross‐network, cross‐platform and heterogeneous systems.

Provides an easy and low‐cost method for realizing heterogeneous multi‐robot remote driving. The web‐based distribution of the presented system is critical in enabling capabilities such as e‐manufacturing, e‐diagnostics and e‐maintenance.

The proposed system can be seamlessly integrated into other automated manufacturing systems or management systems in plug‐and‐play fashion. The combination of MMS and web services is in favor of real manufacturing equipments being embedded in the network, so the presented systematic methodology can be a useful reference for constructing web‐based reconfigurable manufacturing systems.

Provides robot communication model based on MMS and web services and presents service‐oriented distributed remote multi‐robot monitoring and control software architecture.

The Robots.txt and Robots Meta tags constitute a set of instruments that can be used to instruct software robots. However, the current version of Robots.txt and Robots Meta tags are both too simple and ambiguous in an internet world with many potential conflicts, especially in terms of copyright and trespass to chattels. This paper seeks to propose an amendment to the Robots.txt and Robots Meta tags to solve the problems.

Instead of following personal experience, this paper surveys several predominant cases in an attempt to find general principles that can be used as guidelines to amend the Robots.txt and Robots Meta tags.

According to several court cases, the Robots.txt and Robots Meta tags can not only be used to simply allow or refuse the software robots, but also expressing the online copyright authorization policies of webmasters. Any robot following the given policies can prevent possible conflicts, and undoubtedly, any robot ignoring these may be in breach of the law. In terms of adapting to their new roles successfully, the Robots.txt and Robots Meta tags need some supplements and adoption; as a result, the webmasters can express their will more explicitly and avoid unnecessary disputes in relation to copyright authorization scope and trespass to chattels as well.

This paper reveals the new function of the Robots.txt and Robots Meta tags. Based on this new function, this paper points out the disadvantages of the current Robots.txt and Robots Meta tags and proposes new a comprehensive amendment based on this new function.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a robotic system to feed aquatic organisms and measure water physicochemical parameters in experimental aquaculture ponds.

A dispatcher unit dispenses a precise amount of food and control panel software schedules the tasks and operates the robot. In the control panel, the feeding and measuring schedule is defined and sent to the mobile robot and the amount of food is requested by the robot to the dispatcher for each pond. The robot travels automatically on a monorail to dispense the food and measure the water parameters. The data are transmitted to the control panel. The system can be remotely operated over the internet through a client‐server software framework.

The robotic system is a tool for delegating feeding and measuring tasks. This allows researchers and technicians time to focus on more substantive aquacultural research tasks.

Future improvement will include an automatic unit for cleaning sensors between ponds to minimize the risk of cross‐contamination.

The system systematized feeding and measuring tasks, minimized human error, and optimized the use of resources for aquacultural experimentation. The robotic system can be programmed for a variety of experimental conditions, such as the delivery of different diets at diverse schedules.

The proposed robot was tested for feeding freshwater redclaw crayfish (Cherax quadricarinatus) and monitored the water parameters in real time. Based on the field results, the robotic system provided a reliable and robust device for aquacultural research applications.

The following paper is a “Q&A interview” conducted by Joanne Pransky of Industrial Robot journal as a method to impart the combined technological, business and personal experience of a prominent, robotic industry engineer-turned successful innovator and leader, regarding the challenges of bringing technological discoveries to fruition. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

The interviewee is Gianmarco Veruggio who is responsible for the Operational Unit of Genoa of the Italian National Research Council Institute of Electronics, Computer and Telecommunication Engineering (CNR-IEIIT). Veruggio is an early pioneer of telerobotics in extreme environments. Veruggio founded the new applicative field of Roboethics. In this interview, Veruggio shares some of his 30-year robotic journey along with his thoughts and concerns on robotics and society.

Gianmarco Veruggio received a master’s degree in electronic engineering, computer science, control and automation from Genoa University in 1980. From 1980 to 1983 he worked in the Automation Division of Ansaldo as a Designer of fault-tolerant multiprocessor architectures for fail-safe control systems and was part of the development team for the new automation of the Italian Railway Stations. In 1984, he joined the CNR-Institute of Naval Automation (IAN) in Genoa as a Research Scientist. There, he worked on real-time computer graphics for simulation, control techniques and naval and marine data-collection systems. In 1989, he founded the CNR-IAN Robotics Department (Robotlab), which he headed until 2003, to develop missions on experimental robotics in extreme environments. His approach utilized working prototypes in a virtual lab environment and focused on robot mission control, real-time human-machine interfaces, networked control system architectures for tele-robotics and Internet Robotics. In 2000, he founded the association “Scuola di Robotica” (School of Robotics) to promote this new science among young people and society at large by means of educational robotics. He joined the CNR-IEIIT in 2007 to continue his research in robotics and to also develop studies on the philosophical, social and ethical implications of Robotics.

Veruggio led the first Italian underwater robotics campaigns in Antarctica during the Italian expeditions in 1993, 1997 and 2001, and in the Arctic during 2002. During the 2001-2002 Antarctic expedition, he carried out the E-Robot Project, the first experiment of internet robotics via satellite in the Antarctica. In 2002, he designed and developed the Project E-Robot2, the first experiment of worldwide internet robotics ever carried out in the Arctic. During these projects, he organized a series of “live-science” sessions in collaboration with students and teachers of Italian schools. Beginning with his new “School of Robotics”, Veruggio continued to disseminate and educate young people on the complex relationship between robotics and society. This led him to coin the term and propose the concept of Roboethics in 2002, and he has since made worldwide efforts at dedicating resources to the development of this new field. He was the General Chair of the “First International Symposium on Roboethics” in 2004 and of the “EURON Roboethics Atelier” in 2006 that produced the Roboethics Roadmap. Veruggio is the author of more than 150 scientific publications. In 2006, he was presented with the Ligurian Region Award for Innovation, and in 2009, for his merits in the field of science and society, he was awarded the title of Commander of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, one of Italy’s highest civilian honors.

Automotive robot network planning needs sound methods, new management style, and practices that are based on co‐operation, respect and trust. This is fundamental because networking means sharing and exchanging quality information at all levels of the enterprise. Robots working in welding and assembly lines need to communicate with each other, with their cell/line control computer, with the factory production control systems, with quality control systems, assuring that quality is checked at process level in order to gain valuable feedback from the shop floor. In this paper, we introduce some of the most important network planning and engineering/technology management principles and rules that robot networkers should keep in mind. In the follow‐up paper we illustrate actual simulation case studies and results, based on our established methods.