Describes the use of computer vision for inspection and model-based matching, and includes a self-contained introductory course on computer vision. Suitable as a self-study text for manufacturing engineers and computer scientists at advanced undergraduate to professional level. Annotation copyright

This book consists of contributions by leading authorities in nonlinear optics and optical physics. The topics covered include fundamental theories and formalisms on nonlinear optics and current topics of interest in optical physics, as well as more specialized subjects such as phase conjugation, nonlinear guided waves, parametric oscillators and some novel materials. The coverage is comprehensive and pedagogical in nature.

With increasing demands for high precision autonomous control over wide operating envelopes, conventional control engineering approaches are unable to adequately deal with system complexity, nonlinearities, spatial and temporal parameter variations, and with uncertainty. Intelligent Control or self-organizing/learning control is a new emerging discipline that is designed to deal with problems. Rather than being model based, it is experiential based. Intelligent control is the amalgam of the disciplines of artificial intelligence, systems theory and operations research. It uses most recent...

This book aims to describe how parallel computer architectures can be used to enhance the performance of robots, and their great impact on future generations of robots. It seeks to provide an in-depth, consistent and rigorous treatment of the topic. A clear definition of tools with results is given which can be applied to parallel processing for robot kinematics and dynamics. Another advantageous feature is that the algorithms presented have been implemented using a parallel processing system, unlike many publications in the field which have presented results in only theoretical terms. This...

This work introduces various topics, from concepts to the latest research, on cellular and micro-robotic systems. The cellular robotic system is a self-organizing robotic system composed of a large number of autonomous robotic units, named "cells". This idea came from the organic structure of a living body. Several topics in this area are covered, such as swarm intelligence, communications and robotic mechanisms. Micro-mechanisms, control and intelligence, with respect to this system are treated here. The combination of both technologies will prepare the way for a new paradigm in the field of...

This book provides final year undergraduate students, graduate students, research scientists and engineers with an up-to-date overview of the power of using surface analytical techniques for probing complex solid surfaces and lubricants as well as for understanding their interactions in tribological systems. The first three introductory chapters illustrate the need for surface analysis in tribology and the essentials of the analytical techniques. Following these, eight chapters on applications give insight into the contribution of the major analytical techniques to tribology. These chapters...

This volume focusses on the problem of planning in the context of robotics. This book extends the techniques developed for generic planning problems with robotics-specific considerations so that the task of planning can be discussed in a more uniform way. It also includes the latest results in reconfigurable (mobile) robot planning, multiple robot planning, plan recovery, and planning in uncertain environments. This volume is probably the very first book in the market that provides a theoretical foundation for planning techniques and their applications. It also bridges the gap that has been...

The molecular basis of surface chemical reactivity forms the central theme of this book. It is an attempt to survey current understanding about the working of heterogeneous catalysts, emphasizing surface chemical bonding in relation to reaction mechanisms.

Discussing the impulsive differential equations with a small parameter, this work introduces the subject and covers: regularly perturbed impulsive differential equations and modifications of the method of the small parameter; and singularly perturbed differential equations.