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[CFP] Call for Participation - RoboCup Brazil Open - @Home Virtual 2021
by Fagner Pimentel 17 Jul '21

17 Jul '21

*Call for Participation* RoboCup Brazil Open - @Home Virtual 2021 *October 11 – October 15, 2021* (Online) http://www.cbrobotica.org/ *Important dates:* - Jul. 30, 2021 Deadline for submission of qualification material and preregistration. (Team Description Paper, Team Video, Team Website). - Aug. 15, 2021 Qualification announcement - Aug 30, 2021 Robot model reception *Committee members:* - Executive Committee: "Plinio Thomaz Aquino Jr." < plinio.aquino(a)fei.edu.br> - Technical Committee: "Fagner Pimentel <fpimentel(a)fei.edu.br>" - Organizing Committee: "Ana Patricia Magalhaes < anapatriciamagalhaes(a)gmail.com>" - Organizing Committee: "Rodrigo Techi <techicrodrigo(a)gmail.com>" RoboCup is an international scientific initiative with the goal to advance the state of the art of intelligent robots through competitions. The 2021 edition of the RoboCup Brazil Open will again be virtual. All categories will have new challenges, adapted so that you and your team can participate from anywhere in the world, broadcast live on our Youtube channel (https://www.youtube.com/competicaobrasileiraderobotica). The RoboCup Brazil Open @Home Virtual competition aims to develop service and assistive robot technology with high relevance for future personal domestic applications. It is the largest international annual competition for autonomous service robots and is part of the RoboCup initiative. A set of benchmark tests is used to evaluate the robots’ abilities and performance in a virtual home environment setting. Focus lies on the following domains but is not limited to: Navigation and Mapping in virtual environments, Computer Vision and Object Recognition, Object Manipulation, Adaptive Behaviors, Behavior Integration, Ambient Intelligence, Standardization and System Integration. *This year we will have 4 slots (with the possibility of more) for teams outside Brazil to participate. * This page describes the preregistration and qualification procedure for RoboCup Brazil Open @Home 2021. The qualification procedure consists of two simple steps: *Step 1) Qualification Material Submission (mandatory)* The team *MUST* send an email to the @home committee (see above) to participate in the qualification process for the RoboCup Brazil Open @Home 2021 event. Please fill in the following information: Team Name: Country: Affiliation: Team Leader Name: Contact information (E-mail): Link to a team video: Link to a team web site devoted to their efforts: Team Description Paper (TDP) attached to the email based on the official template (http://www.cbrobotica.org/index.php/papers-tdps/). The e-mail subject should be: [@Home2021-Qualification] (YourTeamName) Considerations: - Only one platform can be specified per team. - Only one team leader can be specified per team. - Only one team video url can be specified per team. - Only one contact email can be specified per team. ***** *Deadline: Sunday, July 30, 2021 23:59 BRT* ****** *Step 2) Robot Model Submission:* Qualified teams ***MUST*** send the robot model to be used during the competition via email to the @home committee (see above). Please follow the template below: Team Name: Country: Affiliation: Virtual robot model attached to the email based on the official simulator. The e-mail subject should be: [@Home2021-RModel] (YourTeamName) The Technical Committee will inspect the robot models to verify they are compatible with the simulator and that all sensing and actuation is performed at component level and not bypassed by reading the variables of simulator such as position, pixel collision, etcetera. ***** *Deadline: Sunday, August 30, 2021 23:59 BRT* ****** *Instructions for the Qualification Material and Instructions for the Team Video:* In order to proof a running virtual robot model, each team has to provide a qualification video. As a minimum requirement for qualification, the video must show the robot(s) successfully solving a task involving the following abilities robust full-stack navigation (navigation, self localization, online mapping and collision avoidance), object manipulation, and object recognition. *Remarks:* - The shown task execution must look continuous, smooth, and robust. - When speeding-up video, the speed factor must be indicated. - The language spoken and shown in the video must be English. When using any other languages, translations must be included. - We strongly suggest upload videos to Youtube. *Copyright note:*When sending videos for qualification, teams implicitly grant permission to RoboCup Brazil Open @Home and the RoboCup Brasil to copy, modify, distribute, upload, publish, and use the multimedia material to promote the event and the league at convenience. *Instructions for the TDP* The TDP is a 6-pages long scientific paper, detailing information on the technical and scientific approach of the team’s research, while including also the following: - TDP - Group’s research focus and interests. - Innovative technology and scientific contribution - Please specify when your research is being used by other teams or research groups - Please specify when you are using software from other teams - Brief, general description of the system when solving a [domestic] task (portability to the real world) - The impact of your research must be clearly visible - Maximum length is *6 pages* (including figures and citations) - TDP length is *****6 pages***** (submissions over this hard limit will be discarded). *Remark: *The language for the TDP, its graphics, tables, images, and all additional content must be English. Content in other languages must be translated. *Copyright note:*All TDPs sent for qualification may be made publicly available in the RoboCup Brazil Open @Home Wiki for further reference. On submitting, teams implicitly grant permission to RoboCup Brazil Open @Home and the RoboCup Brasil to copy, distribute, upload, publish, and use the manuscript to promote the event and the league at convenience. ***** Exceeding the number of pages will automatically void your application *****. *Instructions for the Web site* While the TDP goes into detail about the technical and scientific approach of the team’s research, the website should be designed for a broader audience, including: - Photos of the virtual and/or real robot(s) - Videos of the virtual and/or real robot(s) - Description of the approaches and information on scientific achievements - Relevant publications (last 5 years, preferably available to download) - Link to repositories with software for the community - Team members - Previous participation in RoboCup - Participation and rankings in local RoboCup tournaments *Remark: *No IP addresses will be accepted as website. *Qualification materials will be judged by the following criteria:* - Team description paper (clarity, scientific contributions, re-usability by the league, applicability in real world) - Performance in local tournaments and previous competitions. - Qualification Video (number of demonstrated abilities, integration, difficulty of the task, portability to the real world) - Website (multimedia, publications from last 5 years, downloadable content, open-source software and other contributions) - Relevant Scientific contribution/publications (downloadable papers and open-source software) - Novelty of approach (what you do is new for @Home) We encourage teams to produce self-explicative videos for a general audience where complex tasks are solved. For Team Description Papers focus on the scientific contribution and avoid brief descriptions of the overall system. On behalf of RoboCup Brazil Open @Home Virtual Competition 2021 Organizing Committee. -- Fagner de Assis Moura Pimentel Ph.D. candidate at FEI University Center.

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ROBOTIS Giveaway Event Invitation + New Forum Site Announcement!
by ROBOTIS Support 14 Jul '21

14 Jul '21

Hello everyone, This is Andrew with the ROBOTIS Customer Support team, and ROBOTIS would like to invite you all to join our new *ROBOTIS community* forum page ( www.community.robotis.us <http://community.robotis.us/>). Based on your group's relevant interests, I thought it would be perfect to invite you all to join ROBOTIS for our first-ever “My Favorite Robot!” online giveaway and video sharing event <https://community.robotis.us/t/my-favorite-robot-video-sharing-contest-win-…> (Win Prizes). *Simple Rule to Participate:* *We just want to see your favorite robots (images or videos)*- from BattleBots, to Boston Dynamics, to your team's or personal project! 1. *Come and join* our online forum community.robotis.us 2. *Reply* to the giveaway thread with a video or/and image 3. *Short description* of your favorite robot to enter for a chance to win! 4. *Share* a link to your post with friends and family to get likes on the post the most likes will ultimately win! Grand prize includes $250 in Store Credit to our robotis.us online shop for state-of-the-art robot kits and hardware! Full details and rules for the competition event can be found here (Deadline: 7/31): https://community.robotis.us/t/my-favorite-robot-video-sharing-contest-win-… For any questions, feel free to contact us here or through the community page! PS If any researchers or professionals have a robot project and would like to showcase your work or applications, please reach out and we can consider interview opportunities with our team to promote you! Best regards, Andrew *ROBOTIS Technical Support / Customer Support* *(* *cs(a)robotis.com <cs(a)robotis.com>) * For general & technical support visit Community.Robotis.Us <http://community.robotis.us> *Leave us a Google Review here! <https://g.page/RobotisAmerica/review?rc> *Tell us how we're doing- what do you love, and what can we do better? Leave us a review or email our team! <http://www.robotis.us/> <https://twitter.com/ROBOTISAmerica> <https://www.facebook.com/RobotisAmerica/> <https://www.linkedin.com/company/3156709/> <https://www.youtube.com/robotisamerica> <https://github.com/ROBOTIS-GIT/> <https://www.reddit.com/r/DYNAMIXEL/>

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[jobs] PhD position at King's College London on @Home
by Matteo Leonetti 02 Jul '21

02 Jul '21

[apologies for multiple posting, lots of emails, the usual] Hello, a PhD position is available at King's College London under my supervision, in the Centre for Doctoral Training (CDT) on Safe and Trusted AI. Deadline: 25 July 2021. The currently available project is this one: https://safeandtrustedai.org/project/service-robot-adaptation-to-users-with… but other topics can be discussed, as long as they align with my research in planning and learning for autonomous robots (https://sensiblerobots.leeds.ac.uk/research/) and the focus of the CDT https://www.kcl.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/research-courses/safe-and-trusted-… . Please note that I just moved from Leeds to King's, so you'll still find references to Leeds (for instance in my web page above) here and there. The PhD is at King's. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to lead the migration of the LASR@Home team from Leeds to King's and the development towards RoboCup 2022. Feel free to contact me directly for any (related) inquiry. Best, -- Matteo Leonetti Lecturer (Assistant Prof.) King's College London

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Call for Applications: Doctoral Consortium of KR 2021 (deadline: June 30)
by Thanh Dinh 11 Jun '21

11 Jun '21

KR Doctoral Consortium Call for Applications November 3-12, 2021 Virtual (Originally: Hanoi, Vietnam) https://kr2021.kbsg.rwth-aachen.de The 18th International Conference on Principles of Knowledge Representation and Reasoning (KR 2021) invites PhD students to apply for the Doctoral Consortium program. 1) AIMS AND SCOPE The Doctoral Consortium (DC) is a student mentoring program bringing together PhD students and senior researchers from the area of KR. The aims of the consortium are: * to provide a forum for students to present their current research, and receive feedback from other students and senior researchers; * to promote contacts among PhD students working in similar areas; * to support students with information and advice on academic, research, and industrial careers. The DC is intended for PhD students who have a specific research proposal and some preliminary results, but who have sufficient time prior to completing their dissertation to benefit from the consortium experience. Preference will be given to students satisfying these criteria, but well-motivated applications from students who are at earlier or later stages of their doctoral studies will still be considered. Accepted students will participate in several dedicated DC events, which are planned to include a lightning talk session, a poster session, a mentoring event, and a DC invited talk. Details will be announced in due time. Each student will be given ample time to present their work and therefore be able to fully benefit from direct feedback from the assigned senior researcher mentor and the wider KR conference audience. Note that due to the ongoing global Covid-19 pandemic, KR 2021 and all of the DC events will take place online. 2) APPLICATION SUBMISSION Applications must be submitted through the EasyChair conference system (a link will be provided later). Each application must contain the following elements combined into a single PDF document: (1) Thesis summary. A description of the problem being addressed, your motivation for addressing the problem, proposed plan of research, the progress to date (what you have already achieved and what remains to be done), and related work. It must be four pages maximum and use the same style as for KR paper submissions. (2) Curriculum Vitae. A description of your background and relevant experience (research, education, employment), of two pages maximum. (3) Letter of recommendation. A letter from your thesis advisor that states that he/she supports your participation in the DC. (4) Optionally, a suggestion of up to 5 potential mentors with similar research interests, who could give good advice on technical aspects related to the work, and/or career opportunities. The selection process will consider the quality of the submitted proposal and the stage of the student's PhD project. Doctoral students who submit to the DC are permitted to have previously published their research, and are encouraged to submit papers to workshops associated to KR 2021. 3) IMPORTANT DATES Application deadline: June 30, 2021 Acceptance notification: July 21, 2021 Doctoral Consortium: November 3 - 12, 2021 For further information, please contact the DC chairs: Jens Classen, Simon Fraser University (jens_classen(a)sfu.ca) Magdalena Ortiz, TU Vienna (ortiz(a)kr.tuwien.ac.at)

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Call for Papers: Recently Published Research Track at KR 2021 (deadline: June 27)
by Thanh Dinh 11 Jun '21

11 Jun '21

Call for Papers *Recently Published Research Track* at the 18th Conference on Principles of Knowledge Representation and Reasoning (KR2021) November 3-12, 2021, Virtual (originally: Hanoi, Vietnam) https://kr2021.kbsg.rwth-aachen.de ------------------ Important Dates ------------------ Submission deadline: June 27, 2021, Notification: July 30, 2021 Conference: November 3-12, 2021 ------------------ The 18th International Conference on Principles of Knowledge Representation and Reasoning, KR 2021, invites submissions of abstracts of papers previously published in journals and conference proceedings for the Recently Published Research Track. The track is designed to provide a forum to discuss recent research on topics related to KR that may not be immediately familiar or easily accessible to the KR community. The track seeks papers that fall into one or both of the following two categories: 1) Papers that -- bridge KR to other areas of AI, computer science, or to other disciplines for which an interface with KR exists (this includes database theory, game theory, social choice, logic and philosophy, etc.); -- bridge KR to areas that make use of KR, such as multi-agent systems, planning, natural language understanding, machine learning, explainable AI; or -- go beyond the commonly-understood boundaries of KR. 2) Papers that are tightly related to KR and -- have been published in journals but have not been presented at workshops or conferences; -- have been presented at conferences that are not typically attended by the KR community; or -- have been accepted at general high-profile AI conferences such as IJCAI, ECAI, or AAAI, where the time allotted has not allowed for full discussion of all key aspects of the paper. Submitted papers need only be of interest to a subcommunity in KR (like DL, argumentation, NMR, etc.). However, they need to be made friendly to a KR audience. Submission materials: — A cover page (single page) listing the title, the authors, a complete reference to the original paper, and a public or privately accessible url from which the paper can be downloaded. A list of keywords is also expected. Finally, the cover page must contain a statement that the work the submission is based on has not been already presented to a KR audience in a major forum. — A one-page (preferred) and no more than two-page extended abstract of the paper following the format for regular paper KR 2021 submissions. The abstract should present the main contributions of the paper, discuss the relevance of the paper to KR, and explain the significance of the results. — A single pdf file with the materials should be submitted to the KR submission site at EasyChair. The authors should mark the submission as Recently Published Research. Submissions must meet the following criteria: a. Candidate papers must have been published in a journal or a conference proceedings in 2019 or later. b. Papers that are in press may be submitted as long as the final camera-ready version is available. c. Extensions of papers that have been previously presented at a KR conference are not eligible for this track. Extended abstracts of the accepted papers will be linked from the conference website. Authors of accepted papers will present their work at the KR conference, focussing on its significance and relevance to KR. Significant time will be allocated for discussion of the interdisciplinary aspects of the work and its potential impact on future research opportunities for KR. Note that due to the ongoing global Covid-19 pandemic, KR 2021 will take place as a fully online event. For any questions regarding suitability of a submission or any other aspect of the track, please email the special track program co-chairs: Vladimir Lifschitz, vl(a)cs.utexas.edu Pierre Marquis, marquis(a)cril.univ-artois.fr

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Fwd: SCIROC 2021: Call for interest now open!
by Luca Iocchi 16 Apr '21

16 Apr '21

Dear @Home teams, please consider participation to the SciRoc Challenge (Bologna, Italy, September 2021) that includes tests certainly in-line with @Home research interests. Do not hesitate to contact us for any information. Best regards, Luca. ---- *SMART CITIES ROBOTICS CHALLENGE (SCIROC) 2021 : Call for interest now open! Deadline: Friday 30^th April 2021. * After the outstanding success of our first Smart Cities Robotics Challenge in Milton Keynes, UK, in which we estimate we may have shown the state of the art in European robotics to around 650,000 people, we’re now promoting our second event in Bologna, Italy, 6 - 11 September 2021. Teams will bring their robots from all over Europe to compete in an environment that embeds the newest technologies in an ancient location. We’re aiming for a safe physical event (but have plans for teams that can’t travel if lockdown restrictions come back again). The last year has been hard, and across Europe it is time for people to start to re-emerge from their hibernation, and embrace life again. Our second SCIROC event will be an opportunity for robotics teams to get together and celebrate. It is also the perfect platform to show that robotics in Europe will play a role in supporting our happy safe future by showcasing research, and engaging with industry and the public. We all know how hard life has been with Covid-19, people will be full of questions about how robotics could help in the future. *Want to be involved?* For anyone that is interested in taking part in this year’s Smart City Challenge, our call for interested teams is now open! Register your interest via the SCIROC website by 30th April 2021: https://sciroc.org/2021-challenge-description/ We hope to see you in Bologna! Sarah Carter Project Manager SCIROC EU-H2020 / The European Robotics League Bristol Robotics Laboratory University of the West of England, Bristol, UK Tel. +44 (0) 117 32 83082 page1image2896128 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Unsubscribe: HRI-ANNOUNCEMENT-signoff-request(a)LISTSERV.ACM.ORG If you don't already have a password for the LISTSERV.ACM.ORG server, we recommend that you create one now. A LISTSERV password is linked to your email address and can be used to access the web interface and all the lists to which you are subscribed on the LISTSERV.ACM.ORG server. To create a password, visit: https://LISTSERV.ACM.ORG/SCRIPTS/WA-ACMLPX.CGI?GETPW1 Once you have created a password, you can log in and view or change your subscription settings at: https://LISTSERV.ACM.ORG/SCRIPTS/WA-ACMLPX.CGI?SUBED1=HRI-ANNOUNCEMENT

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BRAHUR/BRASERO 2021: Call for Papers - DEADLINE EXTENDED
by Marco Simões 10 Mar '21

10 Mar '21

Sorry for any duplication. ===================== Call For Papers The *IV Brazilian Humanoid Robot Workshop (BRAHUR)* and the *V Brazilian Workshop on Service Robotics (BRASERO)* will be a virtual edition. It will run from *May 19th to 21th, 2021*. These workshops will cover the most exciting new developments in the humanoid and service robotics field and related technologies. See further information on the Workshops web site: http://www.acso.uneb.br/brahurbrasero2021 ################### Important Dates ## ################### *Abstract registration deadline: March 15, 2021Submission deadline: March 22, 2021Notification: April 16, 2021Camera-ready: April 26, 2021* ########################### Submission Guidelines ## ########################### Considering that the primary goal of the joint workshops is the dissemination and sharing of work developed in robotics areas, focusing on humanoid robots and service robots, the works do not need to be original, but they must be relevant to the community (works published previously will NOT be accepted). Papers will be reviewed based on relevance, technical soundness, and clarity of presentation. All papers must not simultaneously be submitted to another journal or conference. Papers may be written in Portuguese or English. Articles written in Portuguese should also include the title and abstract in English. Papers must not exceed 6 (six) pages including all figures, references, and appendices, and must be submitted in one PDF file. Please, rely on good quality figures. The IEEE format for article submission should be followed: http://ras.papercept.net/conferences/support/files/ieeeconf_A4.dot http://ras.papercept.net/conferences/support/tex.php#latexclass (A4) <http://ras.papercept.net/conferences/support/tex.php#latexclass> At least *one author must be registered to BRAHUR/BRASERO 2021 for each accepted paper*. Submission link: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=brahurbrasero2021 ##################### List of Topics ## ##################### The Research Track publishes solid contribution focused on the theme of humanoid and service robotics or related technologies, which include (but is not limited to) the following topics: * Machine learning, intelligent systems, artificial intelligence, cognitive development, artificial neural networks, genetic algorithms, reinforcement learning, fuzzy logic applied to humanoid or service robots; * Computer vision, image processing, object segmentation and recognition, face recognition, camera calibration; * Multi-robot systems; * Multi-agent learning; * Multi-agent planning; * Feedback control, digital control, control theory; * Embedded systems; * Real-time systems; * Digital signal processing; * Object manipulation and action planning; * Innovations in mechanical design and materials; * Mobile robotics, simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM), sensor fusion; * Legged locomotion, biped walking and running; * Unmanned aerial vehicles; * Unmanned underwater vehicles; * Humanoids robots; * Ethics and the social implications of the advance of service robotics; * Robotics applications and case studies; * Assistive robotics. ############## Committees ## ############## *Organizing committee* - Ana Patricia Fontes Magalhães Mascarenhas (UNEB/ACSO and UNIFACS) - Adailton de Jesus Cerqueira Junior (UNEB/ACSO) - Jorge Alberto Prado Campos (UNEB/ACSO and UNIFACS) - Josemar Rodrigues de Souza (UNEB/ACSO) - Marco A C Simões (UNEB/ACSO) - Paulo Drews (FURG) - Robson Marinho da Silva (UNEB/ACSO) - Rodrigo Guerra (UFSM) - Tiago Nascimento (UFPB) ############## Publication ## ############## The BRAHUR/BRASERO 2021 proceedings will be published on BRAHUR/BRASERO 2021 website with DOI and ISBN ######## Venue ## ######## The conference will be held in Salvador, BA, Brazil (virtual). ########## Contact ## ########## All questions about submissions should be emailed to apmagalhaes(a)uneb.br *Take this opportunity and send your work!* *-- Marco Antonio Costa SimõesNucleo de Arquitetura de Computadores e Sistemas Operacionais - ACSO - http://www.acso.uneb.br <http://www.acso.uneb.br>Bahia Robotics Team - http://www.acso.uneb.br/bahiart <http://www.acso.uneb.br/bahiart>Universidade do Estado da Bahia - UNEBDepartamento de Ciências Exatas e da Terra - Campus IMestre em Ciência da Computação - UFPE* * <http://www.avg.com/email-signature?utm_medium=email&utm_source=link&utm_cam…> Livre de vírus. www.avg.com <http://www.avg.com/email-signature?utm_medium=email&utm_source=link&utm_cam…>. <#m_-9209586057992870033_m_8241794896325470754_m_5100748289025288629_DAB4FAD8-2DD7-40BB-A1B8-4E2AA1F9FDF2>*

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[news] [@Home2021] First Call for Participation: EXTENDED
by Mauricio Matamoros 28 Feb '21

28 Feb '21

Online version: https://athome.robocup.org/2021-cfp-all/ *First Call for Participation* RoboCup@Home Virtual 2021 (DSPL · OPL · SSPL) June 22 – June 28, 2021 (Online) https://2021.robocup.org// <https://2021.robocup.org/> https://athome.robocup.org/ https://github.com/RoboCupAtHome/RuleBook RoboCup is an international scientific initiative with the goal to advance the state of the art of intelligent robots through competitions (RoboCup@Home, RoboCup Soccer, RoboCup Rescue, RoboCup@Work and RoboCup Junior). The RoboCup@Home Virtual competition aims to develop service and assistive robot technology with high relevance for future personal domestic applications. It is the largest international annual competition for autonomous service robots and is part of the RoboCup initiative. A set of benchmark tests is used to evaluate the robots’ abilities and performance in a virtual home environment setting. Focus lies on the following domains but is not limited to: Navigation and Mapping in virtual environments, Computer Vision and Object Recognition, Object Manipulation, Adaptive Behaviors, Behavior Integration, Ambient Intelligence, Standardization and System Integration. This page describes the preregistration and qualification procedure for RoboCup@Home 2021. Important dates: Feb. 10, 2021 Publication of the Call for Participation Feb. 28, 2021 Deadline for submission of qualification material and preregistration. March 7, 2021 Deadline for submission of qualification material and preregistration. EXTENDED (Team Description Paper, Team Video, Team Website). Mar. 14, 2021 Qualification announcement April 24, 2021 Robot model reception The qualification procedure consists of three simple steps: Step 1) Qualification Material Submission (mandatory) The team ***MUST*** send an email to the Organizing Committee ( oc(a)robocupathome.org) to participate in the qualification process for the RoboCup@Home 2021 event. Please fill in the following information: Team Name: League: [ DSPL | OPL | SSPL ] Country: Affiliation: Team Leader Name: Contact information (E-mail): Rank in local tournaments: Link to a team video: Link to a team web site devoted to their efforts: Team Description Paper (TDP) attached to the email based on the official template (new teams only). OR Hereby team [Team Name] countersigns its qualification for RoboCup@Home 2021 (qualified teams only). The e-mail subject should be: [@Home2021-Qualification] (YourTeamName) Considerations: - Only one platform can be specified per team. - Only one team leader can be specified per team. - Only one team video url can be specified per team. - Only one contact email can be specified per team. - All the publications and software to be evaluated for qualification ***MUST*** be in the team’s website. - The email must be encoded in UTF-8 using only the ISO-8859-1 character set. *IMPORTANT:* Teams qualified for the 2020 RoboCup@Home do *NOT* need to resubmit their TDPs. ***** Deadline: Sunday, February 28, 2021 23:59 GMT ****** Step 2) Participation confirmation Teams qualified do not require to confirm attendance. Step 3) Robot Model Submission (Open Platform League): Qualified teams ***MUST*** send the robot model to be used during the competition via email to the Organizing Committee (oc(a)robocupathome.org). Please follow the template below: Team Name: League: [ DSPL | OPL | SSPL ] Country: Affiliation: Virtual robot model attached to the email based on the official simulator. The e-mail subject should be: [@Home2021-RModel] (YourTeamName) The Technical Committee will inspect the robot models to verify they are compatible with the simulator and that all sensing and actuation is performed at component level and not bypassed by reading the variables of simulator such as position, pixel collision, etcetera. *IMPORTANT:* OPL teams may opt to use the official robot models of any of the Standard Platform League. In these cases, instead of attaching the robot models, the email must state which model will be used by the team. ***** Deadline: Sunday, April 25, 2021 23:59 GMT ****** Instructions for the Qualification Material Instructions for the Team Video: In order to proof a running virtual robot model, each team has to provide a qualification video. As a minimum requirement for qualification, the video must show the robot(s) successfully solving a task involving the following abilities: robust full-stack navigation (navigation, self localization, online mapping and collision avoidance), object manipulation, and object recognition. Is strongly advised to show a test of any of the RoboCup@Home RuleBooks from 2009 on. *Remarks:* - The shown task execution must look continuous, smooth, and robust. - When speeding-up video, the speed factor must be indicated. - The language spoken and shown in the video must be English. When using any other languages, translations must be included. - We strongly suggest upload videos to Youtube. - Videos sent will be uploaded/displayed in the league’s youtube channel http://www.youtube.com/channel/UChkdCpT0xrFMMt-_N8wSVew/playlists” <http://www.youtube.com/channel/UChkdCpT0xrFMMt-_N8wSVew/playlists> - *Standard Platforms Only:* Teams are encouraged to use the standard robot in their Team Video. *Copyright note:*When sending videos for qualification, teams implicitly grant permission to RoboCup @Home and the RoboCup Federation to copy, modify, distribute, upload, publish, and use the multimedia material to promote the event and the league at convenience. Instructions for the TDP The TDP is an 6-pages long scientific paper, detailing information on the technical and scientific approach of the team’s research, while including also the following: - TDP - Group’s research focus and interests. - Innovative technology and scientific contribution - Please specify when your research is being used by other teams or research groups - Please specify when you are using software from other teams - Brief, general description of the system when solving a [domestic] task (portability to the real world) - The impact of your research must be clearly visible - Maximum length is *6 pages* (including figures and citations) - TDP length is *****6 pages***** (submissions over this hard limit will be discarded). For the TDP, please use the Springer LNAI format <http://www.springer.com/computer/lncs?SGWID=0-164-6-793341-0> used in the RoboCup Symposium submissions and limit yourself to 6 pages without altering margins or spacing (including references). You may download a template for the TDP from here <https://github.com/RoboCupAtHome/TDPTemplate>. *Remark: *The language for the TDP, its graphics, tables, images, and all additional content must be English. Content in other languages must be translated. *Copyright note:*All TDPs sent for qualification may be made publicly available in the RoboCup @Home Wiki for further reference. On submitting, teams implicitly grant permission to RoboCup @Home and the RoboCup Federation to copy, distribute, upload, publish, and use the manuscript to promote the event and the league at convenience. ***** Exceeding the number of pages will automatically void your application *****. Instructions for the Web site While the TDP goes into detail about the technical and scientific approach of the team’s research, the website should be designed for a broader audience, including: - Photos of the virtual and/or real robot(s) - Videos of the virtual and/or real robot(s) - Description of the approaches and information on scientific achievements - Relevant publications (last 5 years, preferably available to download) - Link to repositories with software for the community - Team members - Previous participation in RoboCup - Participation and rankings in local RoboCup tournaments *Remark: *No IP addresses will be accepted as website. *Remark: *Only documented active software repositories are considered as contributions to the league. It must be clear and straightforward to other teams how to use your software. Qualification materials will be judged by the following criteria: - Team description paper (clarity, scientific contributions, re-usability by the league, applicability in real world) - Performance in local tournaments and previous competitions. - Qualification Video (number of demonstrated abilities, integration, difficulty of the task, portability to the real world) - Website (multimedia, publications from last 5 years, downloadable content, open-source software and other contributions) - Relevant Scientific contribution/publications (downloadable papers and open-source software) - Novelty of approach (what you do is new for @Home) We encourage teams to produce self-explicative videos for a general audience where complex tasks are solved. For Team Description Papers focus on the scientific contribution and avoid brief descriptions of the overall system. With kind regards, and looking forward to see your team online, The 2021 RoboCup@Home Organizing and Technical Committees

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Greetings and test
by Luca Iocchi 16 Feb '21

16 Feb '21

Dear all, we moved the mailing lists on another server and I am just checking if everything works well. Let me also take this opportunity to greet all the RoboCup@Home community. I hope to (virtually) meet many of you during RoboCup 2021. Best regards, Luca

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[@Home2021] Call for Participation (DSPL · OPL · SSPL)
by Mauricio Matamoros 11 Feb '21

11 Feb '21

Online version: https://athome.robocup.org/2021-cfp-all/ *Call for Participation* RoboCup@Home Virtual 2021 (DSPL · OPL · SSPL) June 22 – June 28, 2021 (Online) https://2021.robocup.org// <https://2021.robocup.org/> https://athome.robocup.org/ https://github.com/RoboCupAtHome/RuleBook RoboCup is an international scientific initiative with the goal to advance the state of the art of intelligent robots through competitions (RoboCup@Home, RoboCup Soccer, RoboCup Rescue, RoboCup@Work and RoboCup Junior). The RoboCup@Home Virtual competition aims to develop service and assistive robot technology with high relevance for future personal domestic applications. It is the largest international annual competition for autonomous service robots and is part of the RoboCup initiative. A set of benchmark tests is used to evaluate the robots’ abilities and performance in a virtual home environment setting. Focus lies on the following domains but is not limited to: Navigation and Mapping in virtual environments, Computer Vision and Object Recognition, Object Manipulation, Adaptive Behaviors, Behavior Integration, Ambient Intelligence, Standardization and System Integration. This page describes the preregistration and qualification procedure for RoboCup@Home 2021. Important dates: Feb. 10, 2021 Publication of the Call for Participation Feb. 28, 2021 Deadline for submission of qualification material and preregistration. (Team Description Paper, Team Video, Team Website). Mar. 14, 2021 Qualification announcement April 24, 2021 Robot model reception The qualification procedure consists of three simple steps: Step 1) Qualification Material Submission (mandatory) The team ***MUST*** send an email to the Organizing Committee ( oc(a)robocupathome.org) to participate in the qualification process for the RoboCup@Home 2021 event. Please fill in the following information: Team Name: League: [ DSPL | OPL | SSPL ] Country: Affiliation: Team Leader Name: Contact information (E-mail): Rank in local tournaments: Link to a team video: Link to a team web site devoted to their efforts: Team Description Paper (TDP) attached to the email based on the official template (new teams only). *OR* Hereby team [Team Name] countersigns its qualification for RoboCup@Home 2021 (qualified teams only). The e-mail subject should be: [@Home2021-Qualification] (YourTeamName) Considerations: - Only one platform can be specified per team. - Only one team leader can be specified per team. - Only one team video url can be specified per team. - Only one contact email can be specified per team. - All the publications and software to be evaluated for qualification ***MUST*** be in the team’s website. - The email must be encoded in UTF-8 using only the ISO-8859-1 character set. *IMPORTANT:* Teams qualified for the 2020 RoboCup@Home do *NOT* need to resubmit their TDPs. ***** Deadline: Sunday, February 28, 2021 23:59 GMT ****** Step 2) Participation confirmation Teams qualified do not require to confirm attendance. Step 3) Robot Model Submission (Open Platform League): Qualified teams ***MUST*** send the robot model to be used during the competition via email to the Organizing Committee (oc(a)robocupathome.org). Please follow the template below: Team Name: League: [ DSPL | OPL | SSPL ] Country: Affiliation: Virtual robot model attached to the email based on the official simulator. The e-mail subject should be: [@Home2021-RModel] (YourTeamName) The Technical Committee will inspect the robot models to verify they are compatible with the simulator and that all sensing and actuation is performed at component level and not bypassed by reading the variables of simulator such as position, pixel collision, etcetera. *IMPORTANT:* OPL teams may opt to use the official robot models of any of the Standard Platform League. In these cases, instead of attaching the robot models, the email must state which model will be used by the team. ***** Deadline: Sunday, April 25, 2021 23:59 GMT ****** Instructions for the Qualification Material Instructions for the Team Video: In order to proof a running virtual robot model, each team has to provide a qualification video. As a minimum requirement for qualification, the video must show the robot(s) successfully solving a task involving the following abilities: robust full-stack navigation (navigation, self localization, online mapping and collision avoidance), object manipulation, and object recognition. Is strongly advised to show a test of any of the RoboCup@Home RuleBooks from 2009 on. *Remarks:* - The shown task execution must look continuous, smooth, and robust. - When speeding-up video, the speed factor must be indicated. - The language spoken and shown in the video must be English. When using any other languages, translations must be included. - We strongly suggest upload videos to Youtube. - Videos sent will be uploaded/displayed in the league’s youtube channel http://www.youtube.com/channel/UChkdCpT0xrFMMt-_N8wSVew/playlists” <http://www.youtube.com/channel/UChkdCpT0xrFMMt-_N8wSVew/playlists> - *Standard Platforms Only:* Teams are encouraged to use the standard robot in their Team Video. *Copyright note:*When sending videos for qualification, teams implicitly grant permission to RoboCup @Home and the RoboCup Federation to copy, modify, distribute, upload, publish, and use the multimedia material to promote the event and the league at convenience. Instructions for the TDP The TDP is an 6-pages long scientific paper, detailing information on the technical and scientific approach of the team’s research, while including also the following: - TDP - Group’s research focus and interests. - Innovative technology and scientific contribution - Please specify when your research is being used by other teams or research groups - Please specify when you are using software from other teams - Brief, general description of the system when solving a [domestic] task (portability to the real world) - The impact of your research must be clearly visible - Maximum length is *6 pages* (including figures and citations) - TDP length is *****6 pages***** (submissions over this hard limit will be discarded). For the TDP, please use the Springer LNAI format <http://www.springer.com/computer/lncs?SGWID=0-164-6-793341-0> used in the RoboCup Symposium submissions and limit yourself to 6 pages without altering margins or spacing (including references). You may download a template for the TDP from here <https://github.com/RoboCupAtHome/TDPTemplate>. *Remark: *The language for the TDP, its graphics, tables, images, and all additional content must be English. Content in other languages must be translated. *Copyright note:*All TDPs sent for qualification may be made publicly available in the RoboCup @Home Wiki for further reference. On submitting, teams implicitly grant permission to RoboCup @Home and the RoboCup Federation to copy, distribute, upload, publish, and use the manuscript to promote the event and the league at convenience. ***** Exceeding the number of pages will automatically void your application *****. Instructions for the Web site While the TDP goes into detail about the technical and scientific approach of the team’s research, the website should be designed for a broader audience, including: - Photos of the virtual and/or real robot(s) - Videos of the virtual and/or real robot(s) - Description of the approaches and information on scientific achievements - Relevant publications (last 5 years, preferably available to download) - Link to repositories with software for the community - Team members - Previous participation in RoboCup - Participation and rankings in local RoboCup tournaments *Remark: *No IP addresses will be accepted as website. *Remark: *Only documented active software repositories are considered as contributions to the league. It must be clear and straightforward to other teams how to use your software. Qualification materials will be judged by the following criteria: - Team description paper (clarity, scientific contributions, re-usability by the league, applicability in real world) - Performance in local tournaments and previous competitions. - Qualification Video (number of demonstrated abilities, integration, difficulty of the task, portability to the real world) - Website (multimedia, publications from last 5 years, downloadable content, open-source software and other contributions) - Relevant Scientific contribution/publications (downloadable papers and open-source software) - Novelty of approach (what you do is new for @Home) We encourage teams to produce self-explicative videos for a general audience where complex tasks are solved. For Team Description Papers focus on the scientific contribution and avoid brief descriptions of the overall system. With kind regards, and looking forward to see your team online, The 2021 RoboCup@Home Organizing and Technical Committees

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Call for Papers: Special Session on KR & Robotics (KR2021)
by Thanh Dinh 10 Feb '21

10 Feb '21

CALL FOR PAPERS **Special Session on Knowledge Representation and Robotics** at the 18th Conference on Principles of Knowledge Representation and Reasoning (KR2021) November 6-12, 2021, Hanoi, Vietnam https://kr2021.kbsg.rwth-aachen.de/ ------------------ Important Dates ------------------ Submission of title and abstract: March 24, 2021 Paper submission deadline: March 31, 2021 Author response period: May 24-26, 2021 Notification: June 15, 2021 Camera-ready papers: July 14, 2021 Conference dates: November 6-12, 2021 ------------------ Much progress has been made in robotics through the introduction of machine learning, often leading to autonomous systems that are effective but opaque with inexplicable behaviours. Many applications, however, require robots to explicitly capture knowledge and reason with it in order to achieve high-level cognitive skills. This special session is devoted to exploring the intersection of Knowledge Representation and Robotics. Papers are solicited in all areas of this intersection. In particular, we welcome papers that extend knowledge representation techniques to cope with the challenges posed by interacting with the physical world, such as: - dealing with uncertain, incomplete or contradictory information; - reasoning with time, space and perceptions; - grounding representations in the physical world; - combining discrete and continuous representations; - reasoning with bounded computational resources; - trustworthy and accountable robot behaviours; and - social intelligence for robots in human-centric environments. Robots are the archetypical integrated cognitive systems. Thus, we also welcome papers that address the integration of knowledge representation into whole robotic systems, such as: - integrating knowledge representation and machine learning; - integrating symbolic and sub-symbolic approaches; - integrating reasoning about actions and control; or - cognitive robot architectures. Finally, we welcome papers that show concrete examples where real robotic systems benefit from knowledge representation, for instance in: - sensor interpretation and understanding; - human-robot interaction; - multi-robot planning and coordination; or - dealing with errors and unexpected situations. ------------------ Information for Authors ------------------ The Special Session on KR & Robotics will allow contributions of both regular papers (9 pages) and short papers (4 pages), excluding references, prepared and submitted according to the instructions on the KR2021 website. The special session emphasizes KR & Robotics, and welcomes contributions that extend the state of the art at the intersection of KR & Robotics. Therefore, KR-only or Robotics-only submissions will not be accepted for evaluation in this special session. Submissions will be rigorously peer reviewed by PC members who are active in KR & Robotics. Submissions will be evaluated on the basis of the overall quality of their technical contribution, including criteria such as originality, soundness, relevance, significance, quality of presentation, and understanding of the state of the art. ------------------ Remote Participation Due to the Covid-19 Pandemic ------------------ We understand that the global public health situation may make it difficult or impossible for some, if not all, participants to travel to Hanoi. For this reason, we commit to allowing authors of accepted papers to present virtually and will work hard to enable the best possible experience for all conference participants. ------------------ Chairs ------------------ Alessandro Saffiotti (University of Orebro, Sweden) Mary-Anne Williams (University of New South Wales, Australia) ------------------

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Call for Papers: Special Session on KR & Machine Learning (KR2021)
by Thanh Dinh 08 Feb '21

08 Feb '21

Call for Papers **Special Session on Knowledge Representation and Machine Learning** at the 18th Conference on Principles of Knowledge Representation and Reasoning (KR2021) November 6-12, 2021, Hanoi, Vietnam https://kr2021.kbsg.rwth-aachen.de ------------------ Important Dates ------------------ Submission of title and abstract: March 24, 2021 Paper submission deadline: March 31, 2021 Author response period: May 24-26, 2021 Notification: June 15, 2021 Camera-ready papers: July 14, 2021 Conference dates: November 6-12, 2021 ----------- Description ----------- Over the last two decades, Machine Learning (ML) has made incredible progress and become very effective at solving specific tasks while being robust across many experimental learning applications. Deep learning, statistical (relational) learning, reinforcement learning and logic-based and/or probabilistic learning are among the many ML approaches that are witnessing such advancements. On the other hand, Knowledge Representation and Reasoning (KR) has continued to be at the core of Artificial Intelligence (AI) research providing solutions for explicit declarative representation of knowledge and knowledge-based inference, which have theoretical and practical relevance in many aspects of AI as well as in new emerging fields outside AI. The synergy between these two areas of AI has the potential to lead to new advancements on the foundations of AI that offer novel insights into open fundamental challenges including, but not limited to, learning symbolic generalisations from raw (multi-modal) data, using knowledge to facilitate data-efficient learning, supporting interpretability of learned outcomes, federated multi-agent learning and decision making. This year, for the second time, KR2021 will host a special session on "Knowledge Representation and Machine Learning". This special session aims at providing researchers and industrial practitioners with a dedicated forum for presentation and discussion of new ideas, research experience and emerging results on topics related to computational learning and symbolic knowledge representation and reasoning. This special session provides the opportunity for fostering meaningful connections between researchers from these two main areas of AI and, at the same time, offering the possibility to learn about progress made on these topics, share their own views and learn about approaches that could lead to effective cross-fertilisation among research in ML and KR and new innovative solutions to key AI research challenges. ---------------------- Expected contributions ---------------------- The Special Session on KR and ML at KR2021 invites submissions of papers across KR and ML on advancements in one of these areas for the purpose of addressing open research challenges in the other, integration of computational learning and knowledge representation and reasoning, and the application of combined KR and ML approaches to solve real-world problems, including case studies and benchmarks. We welcome papers on a wide range of topics, including but not limited to: -- Learning ontologies and knowledge graphs -- Learning action theories -- Learning common-sense knowledge -- Learning spatial and temporal theories -- Learning preference models -- Learning causal models -- Learning tractable probabilistic models -- Probabilistic reasoning and learning -- Graphical models for knowledge representation and reasoning -- Reasoning and learning over knowledge graphs -- Logic-based learning algorithms -- Neural-symbolic learning -- Interplay between logic & neural and other learning paradigms (e.g., logics for reasoning about neural networks, embedding of logical reasoning in neural paradigms) -- Statistical relational learning -- Multi-agent learning -- Machine learning for efficient knowledge inference -- Symbolic reinforcement learning -- Learning symbolic abstractions from unstructured data -- Machine-learning-driven reasoning algorithms -- Explainable AI -- Transfer learning -- Multi-agent learning -- Expressive power of learning representations -- Knowledge-driven natural language understanding and dialogue -- Knowledge-driven decision making -- Knowledge-driven intelligent systems for internet of things and cybersecurity -- Application of knowledge-driven ML to question answering and story understanding -- Application of knowledge-driven ML to Robotics --------------------------------------------- Submission Guidelines and Evaluation Criteria --------------------------------------------- The special session emphasizes KR and ML, and welcomes contributions that extend the state of the art at the intersection of KR and ML. Therefore, KR-only or ML-only submissions will not be accepted for evaluation in this special session. Submissions will be rigorously peer reviewed by PC members who are active in KR and ML. Submissions will be evaluated on the basis of the overall quality of their technical contribution, including criteria such as originality, soundness, relevance, significance, quality of presentation, and understanding of the state of the art. In this special session, the selection process of the highest quality papers will apply the following criteria: * Importance and novelty of using knowledge representation and reasoning to advance machine learning, or novelty of using machine learning solutions to advance knowledge representation and reasoning. * Applicability of the proposed solutions in real-world. * Reusability of datasets, case studies and benchmarks for systems and/or application papers. * Proved theoretical or empirically demonstrated practical advancement of the proposed solution with respect to baseline pure KR or ML approaches. Details on formatting and submission can be found on the KR21 website. -------------------------------------------------- Remote Participation Due to the Covid-19 Pandemic -------------------------------------------------- We understand that the global public health situation may make it difficult or impossible for some, if not all, participants to travel to Hanoi. For this reason, we commit to allowing authors of accepted papers to present virtually and will work hard to enable the best possible experience for all conference participants. ------ Chairs ------ Vaishak Belle (University of Edinburgh, UK) Luc De Raedt (KU Leuven, Belgium)

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Call for Papers - 9th ICAPS Workshop on Planning and Robotics (PlanRob 2021)
by Iman Awaad 29 Jan '21

29 Jan '21

[apologies for multiple copies] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- ** CALL FOR PAPERS ** 9th ICAPS Workshop on Planning and Robotics (PlanRob‚ 2021) https://icaps21.icaps-conference.org/workshops/PlanRob/ International Conference on Automated Planning and Scheduling ICAPS 2021  Guangzhou, China  June 7-8, 2021 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Topics and Objectives ********************* AI Planning & Scheduling (P&S) methods are key to enabling intelligent robots to perform autonomous, flexible, and interactive behaviors. Researchers in the P&S community have continued to develop approaches and produce planners, representations, as well as heuristics that robotics researchers can make use of. However, there remain numerous challenges complicating the uptake, use and successful integration of P&S technology in robotics, many of which have been addressed by robotics researchers with novel solutions. Strong collaboration and synergy between researchers in both communities is vital to the continued growth of the fields in a way that provide mutual benefits to the two communities. To foster this, the PlanRob workshop aims to provide a stable, long-term forum (having been held annually at ICAPS since 2013) where researchers from both the P&S and Robotics communities can openly discuss relevant issues, research and development progress, future directions and open challenges related to P&S when applied to Robotics. In addition to the usual paper submissions, the workshop’s format naturally lends itself to preliminary results, position papers as well as to work focused on challenges in using and integrating planners in robotics systems. Topics of interest include (but are not limited to) the following: - real-world planning applications for autonomous and intelligent robots; - optimizing behavior in large scale automated or semi-automated systems; - integrated planning and execution in robotic architectures; - planning domain representations for robotics applications; - P&S methods for optimization and adaptation in robotics; - mission, path, and motion planning for robots; - planning and coordination methods for multi-robot teams; - mixed-initiative planning and sliding autonomy for robotic systems; - human-aware planning and execution in human-robot interaction; - adversarial action planning in competitive robotic domains; - formal methods for robot planning and control; - challenges and solutions in using P&S technology in robotics; - open problems for P&S in robotics, - benchmark planning domains for robots. Important Dates **************** Paper submission: March 7, 2021 Notification of acceptance: April 1, 2021 Camera-ready version due: May 1, 2021 Workshop Date: June 7-8, 2021 The reference time-zone for all deadlines is UTC-12: Your submissions will be on time so long as there is still some place in the world where the deadline has not yet passed. Submissions *********** There are two types of submissions: short position papers and regular papers. Position papers are a maximum of four pages long while regular papers may be up to ten pages long. Papers may have an additional page containing references. Regular papers may be scheduled with more time in the final program. A poster session may be considered to provide a further presentation opportunity. The guidelines for formatting are the same as is used for ICAPS 2021 papers (typeset in the AAAI style as described at: http://www.aaai.org/Publications/Author/author.php), but with the AAAI copyright removed. The papers must be submitted in PDF format via the EasyChair system (https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=planrob2021). Please note that papers under review (e.g. which have been submitted to IJCAI-2021) are also welcome, however, in order to avoid potential conflicts, these manuscripts should be prepared as anonymous submissions for a double blind reviewing process. Accepted papers will be published on the workshop’s website. The organizers are investigating the availability of journal editors in order to invite a selection of accepted papers from the workshop to a special issue or post-proceedings volume. Organizers ********** Iman Awaad, Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences, Germany iman.awaad(a)h-brs.de Alberto Finzi, Università di Napoli "Federico II", Italy alberto.finzi(a)unina.it AndreA Orlandini  Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies (ISTC-CNR), Italy andrea.orlandini(a)istc.cnr.it The ICAPS PlanRob Workshop is partially supported by TAILOR "Foundations of Trustworthy AI - Integrating Reasoning, Learning and Optimization", a project funded by the European Commissione (EU H2020 ICT-48 G.A. 952215). -- Iman Awaad Researcher, Autonomous Systems Group Assistant director & Study advisor, Master's Programme in Autonomous Systems Bonn-Aachen International Center for Information Technology (b-it) Friedrich Hirzebruch-Allee 5, 53115 Bonn, Germany www.b-it-center.de Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences | Department of Computer Science Grantham Allee 20, 53757 Sankt Augustin, Germany Phone +49 (0) 2241 865-295 iman.awaad(a)h-brs.de mas-group.inf.h-brs.de www.facebook.com/AutonomousSystemsProgram

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RoboCup@Home 2021 Edition
by Maxime St-Pierre 11 Jan '21

11 Jan '21

Dear RoboCup@Home Community, After discussion with the RoboCup Federation and the Executive Committee, this year RoboCup@Home (2021) will be held in a simulated environment. All teams that were qualified last year (2020), will be automatically qualified for this year's competition (2021). The Technical Committee is currently writing a special version of the Rulebook to accommodate this new requirement. The discussion for these new change is going to happen on the discussions tab on the RoboCup@Home Rulebook GitHub Repository ( https://github.com/RoboCupAtHome/RuleBook/discussions). I highly suggest that everyone follow the development and contribute to the discussion since they will impact your team. If you have any suggestions or comments please submit them on the Rulebook GitHub repository. We will send out more information as they become available. Maxime St-Pierre OC Chair RoboCup@Home

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Call for Papers: Special Session on KR & Machine Learning (KR2021)
by Thanh Dinh 08 Jan '21

08 Jan '21

CALL FOR PAPERS **Special Session on Knowledge Representation and Robotics** at the 18th Conference on Principles of Knowledge Representation and Reasoning (KR2021) November 6-12, 2021, Hanoi, Vietnam https://kr2021.kbsg.rwth-aachen.de/ ------------------ Important Dates ------------------ Submission of title and abstract: March 24, 2021 Paper submission deadline: March 31, 2021 Author response period: May 24-26, 2021 Notification: June 15, 2021 Camera-ready papers: July 14, 2021 Conference dates: November 6-12, 2021 ------------------ Much progress has been made in robotics through the introduction of machine learning, often leading to autonomous systems that are effective but opaque with inexplicable behaviours. Many applications, however, require robots to explicitly capture knowledge and reason with it in order to achieve high-level cognitive skills. This special session is devoted to exploring the intersection of Knowledge Representation and Robotics. Papers are solicited in all areas of this intersection. In particular, we welcome papers that extend knowledge representation techniques to cope with the challenges posed by interacting with the physical world, such as: - dealing with uncertain, incomplete or contradictory information; - reasoning with time, space and perceptions; - grounding representations in the physical world; - combining discrete and continuous representations; - reasoning with bounded computational resources; - trustworthy and accountable robot behaviours; and - social intelligence for robots in human-centric environments. Robots are the archetypical integrated cognitive systems. Thus, we also welcome papers that address the integration of knowledge representation into whole robotic systems, such as: - integrating knowledge representation and machine learning; - integrating symbolic and sub-symbolic approaches; - integrating reasoning about actions and control; or - cognitive robot architectures. Finally, we welcome papers that show concrete examples where real robotic systems benefit from knowledge representation, for instance in: - sensor interpretation and understanding; - human-robot interaction; - multi-robot planning and coordination; or - dealing with errors and unexpected situations. ------------------ Information for Authors ------------------ The Special Session on KR & Robotics will allow contributions of both regular papers (9 pages) and short papers (4 pages), excluding references, prepared and submitted according to Authors Guidelines for KR2021. The special session emphasizes KR & Robotics, and welcomes contributions that extend the state of the art at the intersection of KR & Robotics. Therefore, KR-only or Robotics-only submissions will not be accepted for evaluation in this special session. Submissions will be rigorously peer reviewed by PC members who are active in KR & Robotics. Submissions will be evaluated on the basis of the overall quality of their technical contribution, including criteria such as originality, soundness, relevance, significance, quality of presentation, and understanding of the state of the art. ------------------ Chairs ------------------ Alessandro Saffiotti (University of Orebro, Sweden) Mary-Anne Williams (University of New South Wales, Australia) ------------------

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[CFP] AI LA Life Summit 2020
by Ross Mead 12 Oct '20

12 Oct '20

Call for Participation: AI LA Life Summit 2020 *********************************************************************** AI LA Life Summit 2020 October 13-15, 2020 (Virtual) https://lifesummit.la *********************************************************************** *** REGISTRATION *** https://hopin.to/events/life-summit-2020 * $5 student tickets * $25 industry tickets *** OVERVIEW *** Whether you are science-focused or science-curious, AI LA’s three-day summit will inspire and interconnect you through scientific storytelling. Learn from academic and industry researchers at the core of today’s innovations, especially if you are interested in pursuing a career at the intersection of biotechnology and healthcare. The Life Summit is a forum for coming together as a community, a platform for exchanging ideas, and a catalyst for the scientists of the next generation. *** SCHEDULE *** (All times in Pacific Time, UTC-7) DAY 1: REFLECT (Tue, Oct 13) * 8:00am - Keynote by Claire Bonaci, Microsoft Sr. Director, US Health & Life Sciences * 8:15am - Hackers without Borders * 9:15am - The Global Pivot * 10:15am - Challenges and Opportunities in Digital Delivery of Behavioral Health * 11:00am - Networking * 12:00pm - Break * 4:00pm - Keynote by Amanda Daflos , Chief Innovation Officer of City of Los Angeles * 4:15pm - LA's COVID-19 Response * 5:15pm - Equity in Telehealth * 6:00pm - Health Systems Stressed * 7:00pm - Networking DAY 2: RECENTER (Wed, Oct 14) * 8:00am - Keynote by George Tolomiczenko, Director of Medical Innovations at UC Irvine * 8:15am - Temporal Scene Understanding in Robot-assisted Surgery Using Deep Learning * 8:30am - Deep learning-enabled cellular image analysis at scale * 8:45am - Physics-Guided Deep Learning for COVID-19 Forecasting * 9:00am - Using Reinforcement Learning to Imitate Drug Discovery Experts and Accelerate Discovery * 9:15am - Better Storytelling Through Data: Lessons from the Frontlines and Backends of a Pandemic * 10:00am - Investor Roundtable * 11:00am - Networking * 12:00pm - Break * 4:00pm - Welcome * 4:15pm - AI Applications in Ophthalmology * 4:30pm - The Entrepreneurial Scientist * 5:15pm - AI Talk (UCLA) * 5:30pm - AI Talk (USC) * 5:45pm - Developing tools for collaborating around 3D+ biomedical imaging data * 6:00pm - AI in Healthcare * 7:00pm - Networking DAY 3: REIMAGINE (Thu, Oct 15) * 8:00am - Keynote by Stephanie Hsieh, Executive Director at Biocom LA * 8:15am - Reimagining Cancer Treatment * 9:15am - Reimagining R&D in Labs * 10:00am - Quantified Self & AI * 11:00am - Networking * 12:00pm - Break * 4:00pm - Keynote by Vivienne Ming, Professional Mad Scientist * 4:15pm - The Future of Synthetic Biology * 5:15pm - Living Robots * 6:05pm - Sustainable Living Systems * 7:00pm - Networking *** CONTACT *** For more information, contact the AI LA Executive Board: * Todd Terrazas, AI LA (todd(a)joinai.la) * Dr. Ross Mead, Semio (ross(a)semio.ai) *** ABOUT *** AI LA is a Los Angeles-based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with a mission to catalyze innovation through education, conversation, and collaboration. Since 2016, we have facilitated community events related to AI and its applications to education, environmental sustainability, healthcare, life sciences, the ethical and fair use of technology, and more! Learn more at https://joinai.la! -- -- Ross Mead, PhD Founder and CEO ross(a)semio.ai +1 (618) 696-2600 <https://semio.ai>

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ISIC 2021 in Hybrid mode with Scopus Proceedings
by SARIKA JAIN 05 Oct '20

05 Oct '20

Dear Colleague, Hope and pray that you stay safe in this COVID-19 situation. International Semantic Intelligence Conference (ISIC-2021) <https://www.ifis.uni-luebeck.de/~groppe/isic/> *Conference Dates: *Feb 25-27, 2021 Hard Deadline: *[October 10, 2020]* ISIC 2021 will allow remote participation and the organizing committee has started working toward putting together the technical infrastructure for both types of presentations (Face-to-face and remote). We understand that some workplaces are forfeiting the travel allowance, but need not worry as we make the remote participation available via online platforms. The registration amount for remote participation will be decreased by 30% in every category. You are hereby invited to submit full-length papers as the deadline of October 10, 2020, is approaching. The topics majorly include "Artificial Intelligence", "Machine Learning", and "Semantic Computing", but not limited to these. ISIC 2021 accepts submissions of all the three types - the comprehensive overview of the topic, - the review/survey of the topic, or - the research results/findings. *Star features of the conference:*Though it is its first edition, ISIC 2021 has attracted already - 4 top-shot researchers as advisory - 6 keynotes/invited talks - 2 tutorials - 11 special sessions with 31 chairs - Springer to publish the ISIC 2021 proceedings in the Communications in Computer and Information Science (CCIS) series, which is indexed in major indices - 11 special issues in journals (indexed in major indices) from 8 publishers for extended papers of ISIC 2021 - 21 members being chairs in main conference organization (coming from all around the world) - 200 Program Committee Members from various countries all around the world - high geographic diversity with members from 40 different countries - high gender diversity with 32% women The conference aims to establish itself as one of the best venues to publish the research findings with a publishing possibility in journals with major indices. Publication: Conference proceedings will be published by **CCIS Springer (Scopus Indexed) and available online. Few selected outstanding papers will be invited to submit the extended work in *Scopus / Web of Science (WoS) <https://nitkkr-ac-dot-yamm-track.appspot.com/Redirect?ukey=15AS1o6TPo8z6KbT…>* indexed journals. *Submission link: *https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=isic2021 <https://nitkkr-ac-dot-yamm-track.appspot.com/Redirect?ukey=15AS1o6TPo8z6KbT…> . *Important Dates:* Last date of Paper Submission: *[October 10, 2020]* Notification of acceptance: *[November 10, 2020]* Camera-ready submission of accepted papers: *[December 10, 2020]* If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact me at < jasarika(a)nitkkr.ac.in> Best Regards *On behalf of the Conference Committee* Dr. Sarika Jain Assistant Professor at the Department of Computer Applications National Institute of Technology Kurukshetra, India https://sites.google.com/view/nitkkrsarikajain/home <https://nitkkr-ac-dot-yamm-track.appspot.com/Redirect?ukey=15AS1o6TPo8z6KbT…> ######################################## Consider contributing to the International Semantic Intelligence Conference ISIC2021 <https://nitkkr-ac-dot-yamm-track.appspot.com/Redirect?ukey=15AS1o6TPo8z6KbT…> Delhi India Feb 25-27, 2021

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Elsevier Book Chapter
by SARIKA JAIN 30 Sep '20

30 Sep '20

Dear Colleague, This is a call for book chapter proposals for the book *"Leveraging Artificial Intelligence in Global Epidemics*" to be published by *Elsevier.* Deadline for submitting the Extended Summary: Sep 30, 2020 The individual chapters should provide a comprehensive overview of the chosen topic covering advances in the area and should be tutorial in nature and presentation, to appeal to a broad range of readers who may NOT be researchers on the topic. Hence, they shouldn't be like a research paper. You are hereby invited to submit first, a 2-3 page extended summary including (a) an abstract, (b) an outline / TOC / list of headings and sub-headings along with a summary of each heading, (c) short biographies of the authors, and (d) a statement why you are experts for the proposed chapter. Following a review of your summary, we'll offer our feedback and suggestions for improvement and better synergy with the rest of the chapters and cohesive coverage. *Chapter Submission Link*: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=aige2021 *Structure of the Book:* The book is planned to have 11-12 chapters divided into two sections. Part I consists of 3 chapters providing a holistic overview of global epidemics, a motivation for the book and challenges. Part II consists of emerging technologies that help fight against epidemics. Part II has 6 chapters as listed below. This makes 9 chapters. The rest 2-3 chapters are to be added dynamically based on the availability of authors (These chapters may be on The Use of Social Media for Tracking Public Behavior, Does AI help in Genome Sequencing, AI-assisted Testing, Computational Drug Repurposing, or any other trending and suitable topic in line with the title and the theme of the book). *Part I: Controlling Epidemics: A Perspective* This part provides an overview and study of Global Epidemic situations. It starts with assessing the countries' readiness for coping with epidemics, goes through the challenges in battling with epidemic, and then closes with a survey of existing approaches, techniques and tools available or developed by academicians or industry professionals for controlling the epidemics. 1 Setting the Scene (A Chapter by the Editors) This chapter provides an overview and summary of the complete book as a whole. It acts as glue between the chapters written by different authors and brings in synergy to all the chapters in both the parts of the book. In effect, it sets the scene for the reader and acts as an introductory and a must read before proceeding for the further chapters. 2 An Overview of Global Epidemics and the Challenges Faced (a) Assessing Countries' Readiness for Coping with Epidemics: There is a need of retrospective evaluation of each country's readiness for coping with epidemics. An automated data collection followed by evaluation will help in knowing if the human kind is well-equipped to deal with it. (b) A Study related to Ebola, Corona viruses, Zika, influenza, Dengue, Chikungunya, Malaria like infectious diseases will be presented in this chapter. A discussion on the most fatal pandemics recorded in the history (like the Plague, Spanish Flu, HIV/AIDS, COVID-19) and their economic consequences. What is common in these? All these have jumped to humans after being originated in animals somehow. (c) Challenges in Battling with Epidemics (d) ... 3 A Survey of Existing Approaches and Tools to fight against epidemic and the lessons learnt (a) Survey of tools/techniques/methodologies/software already available at the time of writing of this book to predict/detect/recommend actions during an epidemic situation. (b) Lessons learnt by every epidemic that has struck this world (including COVID-19) *Part II: Emerging Technologies Fight Against Epidemics* Having gone through the background of controlling global epidemic situation, this part of the book covers the emerging techniques to fight against epidemic. At the time of writing this book, COVID-19 pandemic was caused by coronavirus and was widespread with deadly results. The case study of COVID-19 has been presented to better exploit the study presented in each chapter. 4 AI Technologies specialized to the need in the fight against epidemic All current technologies under the umbrella of AI or surrounding AI should be covered like Data Science, Big Data, Machine Learning, Semantic Technologies, Data Analytics, cyber security. 5 Does AI help in Forecasting? This chapter will speak about WHO statistics on pathogens. AI can help predicting everything about spillovers, hence allowing the governments to plan ahead. AI can predict what, when, why, and where of the epidemic. We define AI and discuss the various machine learning models to predict the same. Case Study of Covid-19 for Predictions will be presented. 6 AI and Detection / Improved Diagnosis In case of outbreak of a disease; after detection, we need to publicize the threat. AI makes possible quick detection in order to enable possible vaccination and treatment; and alerts for the public. Diagnosis and Monitoring of cases is of paramount importance. Case Study of Covid-19 for Early Detection will be presented. 7 Generating Recommendations A global, AI-enabled data system can provide advices and issue warnings in real time. Help manage socio-economic impacts. 8 Role of AI in Contact Tracing The architecture of so called "Corona apps" and their backends is described in this chapter. The role of AI is clarified for these approaches and also other aspects like privacy and security. Furthermore, other approaches to contact tracing are introduced in this chapter. 9 Situation Awareness In any disaster, it is essential that the citizens get the correct information and organizations get the correct data. This chapter describes AI approaches to detect fake news or scams. 10-12 Open Topics dynamically picked by the authors Any other trending and suitable topic in line with the title and the theme of the book can be incorporated. Editors: - Le Gruenwald, The University of Oklahoma, USA, ggruenwald(a)ou.edu - Sarika Jain, National Institute of Technology, Kurukshetra, Haryana, India, jasarika(a)nitkkr.ac.in. - Sven Groppe, University of Lübeck, Germany, groppe(a)ifis.uni-luebeck.de *Deadlines:* Extended Summary: Sep 30, 2020 Notification of Proposal Approval: Oct 20, 2020 Full Chapter Submission: Jan 10, 2020 Best Regards Dr. Sarika Jain Assistant Professor at the Department of Computer Applications National Institute of Technology Kurukshetra, India https://sites.google.com/view/nitkkrsarikajain/ ######################################## Consider contributing to the International Semantic Intelligence Conference ISIC2021 <https://www.ifis.uni-luebeck.de/~groppe/isic/> Delhi India Feb 25-27, 2021

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LAST Call for Participation - The Virtual RoboCup Brazil Open 2020
by Marco Simões 28 Sep '20

28 Sep '20

Sorry for any duplication.=============The Virtual RoboCup Brazil Open 2020 Competition *10 – 14 November 2020 – ONLINE* http://www.cbrobotica.org *e-mail: organizacao(a)cbrobotica.org <organizacao(a)cbrobotica.org>* The Virtual RoboCup Brazil Open 2020 Competition will be held online, 10-14 November 2020. *General Chair*: João Alberto Fabro (fabro(a)utfpr.edu.br) *Important Dates: - Pre-registration and TDP submission: September 28- Regular Registration: November 3- Late Registration: November 14**Leagues* The rules and particularities of each category are defined by their chairs. Contact them for any questions. The Virtual RoboCup Brazil Open 2020 Competition leagues are as follows: *RoboCup Soccer Simulation 2D* Chair: Haroldo Dornelas (gm.haroldo(a)gmail.com) *RoboCup Soccer Simulation 3D* Chair: Adailton Cerqueira Jr. (adailton.junior(a)gmail.com) *RoboCup Brazil Open Flying Robot Trial League* Chair: Tiago Nascimento (tiagopn(a)ci.ufpb.br) *RoboCup Small Size Soccer (F180)* Chair: Rafael Guedes Lang (rglang(a)hotmail.com) *RoboCup Soccer Humanoid League / Standard Platform League (SPL)* Chair: Danilo Hernani Perico (danilo.perico(a)gmail.com) *RoboCup@Home* Chair: Plinio Thomaz Aquino Junior (plinio.aquino(a)fei.edu.br) *RoboCupJunior* General Chair: Andrique F. Amorim (andrique(a)gmail.com) *On Stage* Chair: Rosângela Matias (rosartematias(a)gmail.com) *Soccer* Chair: Alan Teixeira de Oliveira (alan.oliveira(a)ifnmg.edu.br *Rescue Maze* Chair: Diogo Novais (diogopereira(a)ifba.edu.br) *Rescue Simulation (CO-SPACE)* Chair: Tiago Hártur de Oliveira Feu (tiago.hartur(a)gmail.com) *Participation* All teams (including RC Junior teams) are required to register following the instructions here: http://www.cbrobotica.org/index.php/inscricao-2/ *Participation Fees* - Regular Registration from October 3, 2020 until November 3, 2020 - Team (includes 1 free student): US$ 50.00 - Additional student: US$ 5.00 - Additional professor: US$ 10.00 - Late Registration from November 4, 2020 until November 14, 2020 - Additional student: US$ 10.00 - Additional professor: US$ 20.00 In the Late Registration phase, only professors and students from teams already registered and paid until November 3 can make new registrations. For more information please visit our official website at http://www.cbrobotica.org For inquiries please contact us via the following email addresses: *General Enquiries/ Registration: organizacao(a)cbrobotica.org <organizacao(a)cbrobotica.org>* -- Marco Antonio Costa Simões Nucleo de Arquitetura de Computadores e Sistemas Operacionais - ACSO - http://www.acso.uneb.br Bahia Robotics Team - http://www.acso.uneb.br/bahiart Departamento de Ciências Exatas e da Terra - Campus I Universidade do Estado da Bahia - UNEB Mestre em Ciência da Computação - UFPE

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Second CFP: 10th World Congress on Information and Communication Technologies (WICT 2020) - Scopus - Springer - Online
by Dr. Umang Singh 27 Sep '20

27 Sep '20

** Second Call for Papers  - The 10th World Congress on Information and Communication Technologies (WICT'20) --http://www.mirlabs.org/wict20http://www.mirlabs.net/wict20On the World Wide Web* December 16-18, 2020 *Proceedings of WICT'2019: https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9783030493387Indexed by: SCOPUS, Thomson ISI Web of Science, DBLP, etc.History of WICT series: http://www.mirlabs.net/wict20/previous.phpWICT 2020: Scopus ProceedingsAll accepted and registered papers will be published in AISC Series of Springer, indexed in ISI Proceedings, EI-Compendex, DBLP, SCOPUS, Google Scholar and Springerlink. **Important Dates**---------------------Paper submission due: October 15, 2020Notification of paper acceptance: November 15, 2020Registration and Final manuscript due: November 25, 2020Conference: December 16-18, 2020**About WICT 2020**------------------After the success of the 9th World Congress on Information and Communication Technologies (WICT 2019), we are organizing WICT 2020 to provide an opportunity for the researchers from academia and industry to meet and discuss the latest solutions, scientific results and methods in the usage and applications of ICT in the real world. The conference programme will include workshops, special sessions, and tutorials, along with prominent keynote speakers and regular paper presentations in parallel tracks.In the past century, our society has been through several periods of dramatic changes, driven by innovations such as transportation systems, telephone etc. Last few decades have experienced technologies that are evolving so rapidly, altering the constraints of space and time, and reshaping the way we communicate, learn and think. Rapid advances in information technologies and other digital systems are reshaping our ecosystem. Innovations in ICT allow us to transmit information quickly and widely, propelling the growth of new urban communities, linking distant places and diverse areas of endeavor in productive new ways, which a decade ago was unimaginable. Thus, the theme of this World Congress is "Innovating ICT For Social Revolutions".**Submission Guidelines**-------------------------Submission of a paper should be made through the submission page from the conference web page. Please refer to the conference website for guidelines to prepare your manuscript.Paper format templates:http://www.springer.com/series/11156WICT’20 Submission Link:https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=wict2020**WICT 2020 Organization**-------------------------General ChairsAjith Abraham, Machine Intelligence Research Labs, USAPatrick Hung, Ontario Tech University, CanadaThinakaran Perumal, Universiti Putra Malaysia, MalaysiaProgram ChairsLeszek Sliwko, Axis Applications Ltd., UKUmang Singh, Institute of Technology & Science, India**Technical Contact**---------------------Dr. Ajith AbrahamEmail: ajith.abraham@ieee.orgNote: We sincerely hope that this conference announcement is interesting for you. If you are not interested or wish to unsubscribe then please reply to this email and we will remove your name from our future emails. Our apologies for any inconvenience.   Best Regards  Dr. Umang Singh PC Chair WICT 2020 Sr. Member IEEE, LMCSI Associate Professor, Department of IT Institute of Technology & Science, Ghaziabad - 201007(India) Contact Editor - SSNASC 2020 (Springer) for more details (https://easychair.org/cfp/SSNASC-2020) Editorial Board Member IJFSE(InderScience) Board of Refrees, BJIT(Springer) https://scholar.google.co.in/citations?user=x5H32lMAAAAJ&hl=en https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-umang-singh-23237214/ Alternative Email Id: dr.umang.singh@ieee.org,singh.umang@rediffmail.com

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Call for Participation - The Virtual RoboCup Brazil Open 2020
by Marco Simões 22 Sep '20

22 Sep '20

Sorry for any duplicates ================= ======================================================= The Virtual RoboCup Brazil Open 2020 Competition 10 – 14 November 2020 – ONLINE http://www.cbrobotica.org e-mail: organizacao(a)cbrobotica.org ======================================================= The Virtual RoboCup Brazil Open 2020 Competition will be held online, November 10-14, 2020. General Chair: João Alberto Fabro (fabro(a)utfpr.edu.br) =============== Important Dates =============== • Pre-registration and TDP submission: September 28 • Regular Registration: November 3 • Late Registration: November 14 ======== Leagues ======== The rules and particularities of each category are defined by their chairs. Contact them for any questions. The Virtual RoboCup Brazil Open 2020 Competition leagues are as follows: - RoboCup Soccer Simulation 2D Chair: Haroldo Dornelas (gm.haroldo(a)gmail.com) - RoboCup Soccer Simulation 3D Chair: Adailton Cerqueira Jr. (adailton.junior(a)gmail.com) - RoboCup Brazil Open Flying Robot Trial League Chair: Tiago Nascimento (tiagopn(a)ci.ufpb.br) - RoboCup Small Size Soccer (F180) Chair: Rafael Guedes Lang (rglang(a)hotmail.com) - RoboCup Soccer Humanoid League / Standard Platform League (SPL) Chair: Danilo Hernani Perico (danilo.perico(a)gmail.com) - RoboCup@Home Chair: Plinio Thomaz Aquino Junior (plinio.aquino(a)fei.edu.br) - RoboCupJunior General Chair: Andrique F. Amorim (andrique(a)gmail.com) * On Stage Chair: Rosângela Matias (rosartematias(a)gmail.com) * Soccer Chair: Alan Teixeira de Oliveira (alan.oliveira(a)ifnmg.edu.br * Rescue Maze Chair: Diogo Novais (diogopereira(a)ifba.edu.br) * Rescue Simulation (COSPACE) Chair: Tiago Hártur de Oliveira Feu (tiago.hartur(a)gmail.com) ============= Participation ============= All teams (including RC Junior teams) are required to register following the instructions here: http://www.cbrobotica.org/index.php/inscricao-2/ ================== Participation Fees ================== • Regular Registration from October 3, 2020 until November 3, 2020 • Team (includes 1 free student): US$ 50.00 • Additional student: US$ 5.00 • Additional professor: US$ 10.00 • Late Registration from November 4, 2020 until November 14, 2020 • Additional student: US$ 10.00 • Additional professor: US$ 20.00 In the Late Registration phase, only professors and students from teams already registered and paid until November 3 can make new registrations. For more information please visit our official website at http://www.cbrobotica.org For inquiries please contact us via the following email addresses: General Enquiries/ Registration: organizacao(a)cbrobotica.org -- Marco Antonio Costa Simões Nucleo de Arquitetura de Computadores e Sistemas Operacionais - ACSO - http://www.acso.uneb.br Bahia Robotics Team - http://www.acso.uneb.br/bahiart Departamento de Ciências Exatas e da Terra - Campus I Universidade do Estado da Bahia - UNEB Mestre em Ciência da Computação - UFPE

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[meetings] Call for Participation: New Foundations for Human-Centered AI
by Alessandro Saffiotti 24 Aug '20

24 Aug '20

====================================================================== = 1st International Workshop on New Foundations for Human-Centered AI = September 4, part of ECAI-2020, free registration ====================================================================== SYNOPSIS -------- In June 2018, the European Commission has appointed a "AI High Level Expert Group" (AI-HLEG) to support the implementation of the European Strategy on Artificial Intelligence. One of the first results of the AI-HLEG has been to deliver ethics guidelines on Artificial Intelligence (https://ec.europa.eu/futurium/en/ai-alliance-consultation/guidelines). These guidelines put forward a human-centered approach to AI, and list seven key requirements that human-centered, trustworthy AI systems should meet. Many of today's most popular AI methods, however, fail to meet these guidelines: making them compliant is a scientific endeavor that is as crucial as it is challenging and stimulating. This full day workshop will collectively address the fundamental questions of what are the scientific and technological gaps that we have to fill in order to make AI systems "human-centered" in terms of the above guidelines. PROGRAM ------- See the full program at the workshop web site: http://nehuai2020.aass.oru.se/ REGISTRATION ------------ The workshop is part of ECAI-2020, the European Conference on AI. To attend the workshop, you must register at https://digital.ecai2020.eu (free registration). ORGANIZERS ---------- Alessandro Saffiotti (Orebro University, Sweden) Luciano Serafini (Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Trento, Italy) Paul Lukowicz (DFKI, Kaiserslautern, Germany) SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS ------------------------ This worskhop is jointly organized by AI4EU (ai4eu.eu), the EU landmark project to develop a European AI on-demand platform and ecosystem; and by Humane-AI (humane-ai.eu), the EU FET preparatory action devoted to designing a European research agenda for Human Centered AI. ======================================================================

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Virtual RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2020 (VRCAP 2020): 2nd Call for Participation
by Asad Norouzi 19 Aug '20

19 Aug '20

##################### 2nd Call for Participation ################### The Virtual RoboCup Asia-Pacific (VRCAP 2020) Competition 8 – 12 October 2020 ONLINE 2020.robocupap.org ################ Virtual RoboCup Asia Pacific 2020 ################ The Virtual RoboCup Asia-Pacific (VRCAP) Competition will be held online, 8-12 October 2020. *Leagues* The Virtual RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2020 (VRCAP 2020) competition leagues are as follows: *RoboCupSoccer:* - Soccer 2D Simulation *RoboCup@Home:* - RoboCup@Home Simulation (TBC) *RoboCupRescue:* - Rescue Simulation (TBC) *RoboCupIndustrial:* - RoboCup@Work *RoboCupJunior:* - Soccer - Lightweight Primary - Lightweight Secondary - Open - Rescue - Rescue Line Primary - Rescue Line Secondary - Rescue Maze Primary - Rescue Maze Secondary - Rescue Simulation Primary - Rescue Simulation Secondary - OnStage - Preliminary Primary - Preliminary Secondary - Advanced Secondary *RoboCup Asia Pacific (RCAP) Challenges* The VRCAP 2020 Organizing Committee will be organizing RCAP Industry Sponsored Leagues and RCAP Challenges. The RCAP Challenges will be as follows: - RCAP CoSpace Grand Prix Challenge - RCAP CoSpace Rescue Challenge - RCAP Junior Humanoid *Participation* All teams (including RC Junior teams) are required to register through the online registration form here: http://2020.robocupap.org/registration *Important dates* - Regular Registration: 01 - 21 August 2020 - Late Registration: 22 - 28 August 2020 For more information please visit our official website at http://2020.robocupap.org/ For inquiries please contact us via the hereunder email addresses: General Enquiries: office(a)robocupap.org Registration: registration(a)robocupap.org Regards, RoboCup Asia-Pacific (RCAP) Office Virtual RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2020 (VRCAP 2020) Organizing Committee

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[Call for Participation] Latin American Summer School on Cognitive Robotics
by Latin American Summer School on Cognitive Robotics 19 Aug '20

19 Aug '20

https://www.lacoro.org We are excited to announce that our first Latin American Summer School on Cognitive Robotics (LACORO) is taking place on 2 weeks from now. This event aims at making cutting-edge knowledge on Artificial Intelligence for Robotics Applications accessible to everyone, especially in the Southern Hemisphere. We are mindful of uncertainty prompted by the outbreak of COVID-19 and we cannot forecast what impact it may have in the coming weeks and months. Despite this, we are still organizing LACORO, albeit as a webinar. Our aims are: - to build a sustainable community of students and researchers in the area of Artificial Intelligence for Robotics, particularly Cognitive Inspired Aspects of AI. - to make cutting-edge scientific topics accessible to everyone. - to overcome the complexity of a multi-cultural and interdisciplinary learning context. *Format:* We will organize the Summer School in Latin America biennially. LACORO will include cutting-edge lectures and tutorials on Artificial Intelligence and Robotics but also aspects of Human Cognition. Moreover, we will host a hackathon where attendees can acquire hands-on experience on some of the topics of the Summer School. *Date and Location*: September 1st to September 4th, 2020 through Zoom application. *Registration:* Please visit our website (www.lacoro.org), where you can find more information about invited speakers and corresponding schedule. We extended the registration deadline until the 23rd August 2020 . This Webinar will be free of charge. If you have any questions about the school or the registration process, please contact the organizing committee: lacoro(a)innovacionyrobotica.com Best regards from the organizing committee,

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Virtual RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2020 (VRCAP 2020): Call for Participation
by Asad Norouzi 31 Jul '20

31 Jul '20

####################### Call for Participation ##################### The Virtual RoboCup Asia-Pacific (VRCAP 2020) Competition 8 – 12 October 2020 ONLINE 2020.robocupap.org ################ Virtual RoboCup Asia Pacific 2020 ################ The Virtual RoboCup Asia-Pacific (VRCAP) Competition will be held online, 8-12 October 2020. *Leagues* The Virtual RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2020 (VRCAP 2020) competition leagues are as follows: *RoboCupSoccer:* - Soccer 2D Simulation *RoboCup@Home:* - RoboCup@Home Simulation (TBC) *RoboCupRescue:* - Rescue Simulation (TBC) *RoboCupIndustrial:* - RoboCup@Work *RoboCupJunior:* - Soccer - Lightweight Primary - Lightweight Secondary - Open - Rescue - Rescue Line Primary - Rescue Line Secondary - Rescue Maze Primary - Rescue Maze Secondary - Rescue Simulation Primary - Rescue Simulation Secondary - OnStage - Preliminary Primary - Preliminary Secondary - Advanced Secondary *RoboCup Asia Pacific (RCAP) Challenges* The VRCAP 2020 Organizing Committee will be organizing RCAP Industry Sponsored Leagues and RCAP Challenges. The RCAP Challenges will be as follows: - RCAP CoSpace Grand Prix Challenge - RCAP CoSpace Rescue Challenge - RCAP Junior Humanoid *Participation* All teams (including RC Junior teams) are required to register through the online registration form here: http://2020.robocupap.org/registration *Important dates* - Regular Registration: 01 - 21 August 2020 - Late Registration: 22 - 28 August 2020 For more information please visit our official website at http://2020.robocupap.org/ For inquiries please contact us via the hereunder email addresses: General Enquiries: office(a)robocupap.org Registration: registration(a)robocupap.org Regards, RoboCup Asia-Pacific (RCAP) Office Virtual RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2020 (VRCAP 2020) Organizing Committee

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[jobs] 3 years Assistant Professor (RTD-A) Position at DIAG, Sapienza Univrsity of Rome, Italy
by Luca Iocchi 25 Jun '20

25 Jun '20

A call for a 3-years Assistant Professor (RTD-A) is now open https://web.uniroma1.it/trasparenza/bando-2/2020-rtd-tempo-pieno-ssd-ing-in… Deadline to submit applications is on July 16, 2020. The position has been open by the Cognitive Cooperating Robots Lab, located at DIAG (Dipartimento di Ingegneria Informatica, Automatica e Gestionale) of Sapienza University of Rome, Italy (http://labrococo.dis.uniroma1.it/) It is for a 3 years contract, renewable, expected to start in Fall 2020, The ideal candidate holds a PhD in Computer Science with focus on artificial intelligence and robotics, has a very good publication record in top conferences/journals in the field, and has a strong background in software development for artificial intelligence and robotics applications. The main research area is the design and implementation of autonomous and social robotic systems and their performance evaluation in the context of the robotic competitions planned in the context of the SciRoc EU project. In addition, the projects BEAST and MADROB (EuroBench) aim at the design and implementation of simulation environments for humanoid robots in the tasks of door opening and cart pushing. The research activities of the researcher are expected to address also research challenges that go beyond the above mentioned projects, that will be jointly defined based on the background and previous research activity of the awarded candidate. For any further information, do not hesitate to contact me. Best regards, Luca

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Control, Modelling , Simulation, Soft Computing, Artificial Intelligence and Applications (IJSCAI)-Volume 09 Publication CFP.
by Fredrick Johnson 15 Jun '20

15 Jun '20

International Journal on Soft Computing, Artificial Intelligence and Applications (IJSCAI) ISSN : 2319 - 1015 [Online]; 2319 - 4081 [Print] Volume 9 Call for papers International Journal on Soft Computing, Artificial Intelligence and Applications (IJSCAI) is an open access peer-reviewed journal that provides an excellent international forum for sharing knowledge and results in theory, methodology and applications of Artificial Intelligence, Soft Computing. The Journal looks for significant contributions to all major fields of the Artificial Intelligence, Soft Computing in theoretical and practical aspects. The aim of the Journal is to provide a platform to the researchers and practitioners from both academia as well as industry to meet and share cutting-edge development in the field. Authors are solicited to contribute to the journal by submitting articles that illustrate research results, projects, surveying works and industrial experiences that describe significant advances in the areas of Database management systems. Topics of interest include but are not limited to, the following Artificial Intelligence * AI Algorithms * Artificial Intelligence tools & Applications * Automatic Control * Bioinformatics * Natural Language Processing * CAD Design & Testing * Computer Vision and Speech Understanding * Data Mining and Machine Learning Tools * Fuzzy Logic * Heuristic and AI Planning Strategies and Tools * Computational Theories of Learning * Hybrid Intelligent Systems * Information Retrieval * Intelligent System Architectures * Knowledge Representation * Knowledge-based Systems * Mechatronics * Multimedia & Cognitive Informatics * Neural Networks * Parallel Processing * Pattern Recognition * Pervasive computing and ambient intelligence * Programming Languages * Reasoning and Evolution * Recent Trends and Developments * Robotics * Semantic Web Techniques and Technologies * Soft computing theory and applications * Software & Hardware Architectures * Web Intelligence Applications & Search Soft Computing * Fuzzy Systems * Neural Networks * Machine learning * Probabilistic Reasoning * Evolutionary Computing * Pattern recognition * Hybrid intelligent systems * Software agents * Morphic Computing * Image processing * E-commerce, e-medicine * Rough Sets * Symbolic machine learning * Wavelet * Signal or Image Processing * Vision Recognition * Biomedical Engineering * Telecommunications * Reactive Distributed AI * Nano & Micro-systems * Data Visualization * Linear and nonlinear programming Control * Linear control theory * Mathematical control theory * Mathematical modelling and applications * Measurement systems * Modelling and control * Nonlinear control theory * Numerical methods in control systems * Optimization and optimal control * Parallel computing * Process control and automation * Real-time systems * Real and complex analysis * Robust control * Soft computing techniques Paper Submission Authors are invited to submit papers for this journal through submission system. Submissions must be original and should not have been published previously or be under consideration for publication while being evaluated for this Journal. Editor in Chief Tad Gonsalves, Sophia University, Japan Publication Charges 150 USD (maximum 20 pages): From January 2020 No Article Submission Charges Publication Frequency- Quarterly Important Dates * Submission Deadline : June 27,2020 * Notification : July 27,2020 * Final Manuscript Due : August 06,2020 Publication Date : Determined by the Editor-in-Chief --------November 2019, Volume 8, Number 4--------Sample Issue. Quality Identification of Endemic Pagaralam Salak Fruit using Expert System Buhori Muslim, Desi Puspita and Kasih Lestari, Sekolah Tinggi Teknologi Pagaralam, Indonesia The Effects of the LDA Topic Model on Sentiment Classification DU Jing Wei, Jinan University, China Thanks! Fred.

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Open Research Scientist Position available in KIWI-biolabs: Machine Learning / AI in LifeScience and Biotechnology robotics
by mark doerr 12 Jun '20

12 Jun '20

Dear Robotics groups, very recently the TU Berlin, Universities of Hildesheim and Greifswald won a BMBF research grant (KIWI) for closing the loop between Machine Learning and Robotics in Biotechnology to realise autonomous controlled experimentation between robotics labs. KIWI is a highly interdisciplinary project uniting over 20 international scientist from different Machine Learning, Robotics, Labautomation and Biotechnology Institutes, located in Berlin, Hildesheim and Greifswald. The Greifswald BioTech Robotic Plattform LARA (lara.uni-greifswald.de <http://lara.uni-greifswald.de>) is offering an open position for Research Assistant / PhD student. If you know a possible candidate who is passionate about applying machine-learning strategies to Biotechnology robotics in a highly interdisciplinary project, likes to develop data communication standards and knowledge database architectures, please do not hesitate to forward this job announcement - and please do not worry about the deadline (it is flexible): https://www.uni-greifswald.de/en/university/information/jobs/job/n/wissensc… https://www.uni-greifswald.de/universitaet/information/stellenausschreibung… This project will offer a unique opportunity to dive into the rapidly developing field of MachineLearning,Robotics and BioTechnology. With kind regards, mark doerr -- -- Dr. mark doerr Working group: Prof. Uwe T. Bornscheuer Institute of Biochemistry Dept. of Biotechnology & Enzyme Catalysis University of Greifswald Felix-Hausdorff-Str. 4 D-17487 Greifswald germany Phone: +49 (0)3834-420-4411 +49 (0)3834-420-4391 (Secr.) Fax: +49 (0)3834-420-794367 Room: B021 and B047 LARA-Web (BioTech Robotic platform) : http://lara.uni-greifswald.de/

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CFP Deadline Extension – 10th IEEE International Conference on Development and Learning (ICDL), Valparaiso Chile
by Nicolás Navarro-Guerrero 04 Jun '20

04 Jun '20

We hope that this message finds you healthy and that you and your families are safe and well during these difficult times! Since many countries are still under heavy pressure from COVID-19 together with the fact the Southern Hemisphere is just entering winter, we have decided to reschedule the conference to the 28th to the 30th of October. The conference will be hybrid, hosting both onsite and online participants. Online participants will have a reduced fee. We have also extended the submission deadline, and already submitted papers can be modified. CALL FOR PAPERS DEADLINE EXTENDED: 10th IEEE International Conference on Development and Learning (ICDL) (This is the follow-up of the previous ICDL-EpiRob conference series) 28th-30th October 2020, Valparaiso, Chile https://cdstc.gitlab.io/icdl-2020/ An IEEE Computational Society-sponsored conference ==== Important Dates ==== Paper Submission Deadline: 21th June 2020 (Final Extension) Paper Author Notification: 13th July 2020 Final Paper Version Due: 16th August 2020 Conference: 28th-30th October 2020 Also, we are receiving extended abstracts, and we are hosting a Journal Track, Follow up Special Issue, Workshops and Tutorials. For more information on these and all the activities of the conference, please visit our website: https://cdstc.gitlab.io/icdl-2020/ ==== Overview ==== The IEEE International Conference on Development and Learning (ICDL), previously referred to as ICDL-EpiRob, is the premier gathering of professionals dedicated to the advancement of cognitive and developmental learning. As such, ICDL is a unique conference gathering researchers from computer science, robotics, psychology and developmental studies. ICDL is a highly selective annual international conference that aims to showcase and share the very best interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary research on how humans and animals develop sensing, reasoning and actions. ICDL community focusses on the understanding of how biological agents take advantage of interaction with social and physical environments to develop their cognitive capabilities. Moreover, how this knowledge can be used to improve future computing and robotic systems. We invite submissions for the conference to explore, extend, and consolidate the interdisciplinary boundaries of this exciting research field. ==== Scope and Topics ==== The primary list of topics of interest includes, but not limited to: - principles and theories of development and learning; - development of skills in biological systems and robots; - nature vs nurture, developmental stages; - models on the contributions of interaction to learning; - verbal, non-verbal and multi-modal interaction; - models on active learning; - architectures for lifelong learning; - emergence of body and affordance perception; - analysis and modelling of human motion and state; - models for prediction, planning and problem solving; - models of human-human and human-robot interaction; - emergence of verbal and non-verbal communication; - epistemological foundations and philosophical issues; - robot prototyping of human and animal skills; - ethics and trust in computational intelligence and robotics; - social learning in humans, animals, and robots. ==== Submissions ==== Authors are invited to submit original and unpublished papers of six pages with the possibility of two-extra pages at a fee. Submissions are in the IEEE conference template. Submission will be selected for either oral or poster presentation based on the reviews. Accepted and presented regular six-page paper submissions will be included in the conference proceedings published by IEEE Xplore after the conference. For more information about submissions, travel grants, social events, etc. visit the conference webpage under https://cdstc.gitlab.io/icdl-2020/ ==== Organizing committee ==== General Chairs: Giulio Sandini, and Javier Ruiz-del-Solar Program and Finance Chairs: Nicolás Navarro-Guerrero, and María-José Escobar Bridge Chairs: Minoru Asada, Frédéric Alexandre, and Linda Smith Publicity Chairs: Carmelo Bastos, Maya Cakmak, Angelo Cangelosi, Yukie Nagai, and Emre Ugur Publication Chairs: Pablo Barros, and Haian Wu Tutorials and Workshops Chair: Miguel Solis Travel and Registration Awards Chair: Francisco Cruz Local chairs: Mauricio Araya Webpage Chairs: Cristóbal Nettle, and Patricio Castillo Graphics: Camila Angel Alfaro Best regards from the organizing committee,, Nicolás -- Nicolás Navarro-Guerrero https://nicolas-navarro-guerrero.github.io/

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ICLD-EpiRob 2020 Journal Track - Extended Deadline and COVID-19 Update
by Francisco Cruz 27 May '20

27 May '20

ICLD-EpiRob 2020 Journal Track - Call for Journal Articles for Oral or Poster Presentation The program committee of the 10th IEEE International Conference on Development and Learning (ICDL) invites published journal articles to be presented in the Journal Track of ICDL. 28th-30th October 2020, Valparaiso, Chile https://cdstc.gitlab.io/icdl-2020/ ==== COVID-19 Update ==== We have been monitoring the situation evolving around COVID-19 closely and after considering multiple options, together with our partners, we have made the following changes: - The conference will be rescheduled to the 28th to 30th of October of 2020. This will be almost two months later than initially planned. - Additionally, ICDL 2020 will be a hybrid event with on-site and online participants. Online/Virtual attendees will have a reduced registration fee. - Moreover, we have extended all our deadlines. Already submitted articles can be modified. - Finally, we will record and make as many of the talks available to the community. We hope that with these changes, we can still make exiting state-of-the-art research on cognitive and developmental systems to as many of you as possible. Stay safe and we hope to welcome you in Valparaiso. ==== Important Dates ==== Submission deadline: 29th June 2020 Author notification: 20th of July 2020 Conference: 28th-30th October 2020 ==== Overview ==== The Journal Track is designed to provide a forum to discuss important results related to cognitive and developmental systems recently published as journal articles, but have not been previously presented as conference papers. Thus, the journal track offers an opportunity to present outstanding results that might otherwise not be submitted to a conference due to their length and complexity. All accepted journal presentations will be selected for either oral or poster presentation during the conference based on the reviews - at least one author is expected to register to ICDL 2020 and to present the paper in person. ==== Submissions ==== Candidate papers must be original research articles published in a journal relevant to the research area during 2019 or 2020. Papers that are in press may be submitted as long as the final camera-ready version is available online. Extensions of papers that have been previously presented as conference papers may NOT be submitted to this track. All submissions must be made by email to Francisco Cruz, including (in a single PDF): - Title of the original journal paper. - Abstract of the paper. - A complete reference to the original paper in APA format. - URL where the paper can be downloaded from the publisher if available, or proof of the final acceptance. - A copy of the paper with its final camera-ready contents. Submissions will go through an expedited selection process led by the conference chairs. Selection criteria include the significance of the results and relevance to the ICDL community. ==== Scope and Topics ==== The primary list of topics of interest includes, but not limited to: - principles and theories of development and learning; - development of skills in biological systems and robots; - nature vs nurture, developmental stages; - models on the contributions of interaction to learning; - verbal, non-verbal and multi-modal interaction; - models on active learning; - architectures for lifelong learning; - emergence of body and affordance perception; - analysis and modeling of human motion and state; - models for prediction, planning and problem solving; - models of human-human and human-robot interaction; - emergence of verbal and non-verbal communication; - epistemological foundations and philosophical issues; - robot prototyping of human and animal skills; - ethics and trust in computational intelligence and robotics; - social learning in humans, animals, and robots. ==== Organizing committee ==== General Chairs: Giulio Sandini, and Javier Ruiz-del-Solar Program and Finance Chairs: Nicolás Navarro-Guerrero, and María-José Escobar Bridge Chairs: Minoru Asada, Frédéric Alexandre, and Linda Smith Publicity Chairs: Carmelo Bastos, Maya Cakmak, Angelo Cangelosi, Yukie Nagai, and Emre Ugur Publication Chairs: Pablo Barros, and Haian Wu Journal Track Chair: Francisco Cruz Tutorials and Workshops Chair: Miguel Solis Travel and Registration Awards Chair: Francisco Cruz Local chairs: Mauricio Araya Webpage Chairs: Cristóbal Nettle, and Patricio Castillo Graphics: Camila Angel Alfaro Best regards from the organizing committee, Francisco Cruz Research Fellow in Reinforcement Learning School of Information Technology Deakin University Locked Bag 20000, Geelong, VIC 3220 francisco.cruz(a)deakin.edu.au

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ICLD-EpiRob 2020 Journal Track - Call for Articles
by Francisco Cruz 17 Mar '20

17 Mar '20

ICLD-EpiRob 2020 Journal Track - Call for Journal Articles for Oral or Poster Presentation The program committee of the 10th IEEE International Conference on Development and Learning (ICDL) invites published journal articles to be presented in the Journal Track of ICDL. 7th-10th September 2020, Valparaiso, Chile https://cdstc.gitlab.io/icdl-2020/ ==== Important Dates ==== Submission deadline: 25th May 2020 Author notification: 8th of June 2020 Conference: 7th-10th September 2020 ==== Overview ==== The Journal Track is designed to provide a forum to discuss important results related to cognitive and developmental systems recently published as journal articles, but have not been previously presented as conference papers. Thus, the journal track offers an opportunity to present outstanding results that might otherwise not be submitted to a conference due to their length and complexity. All accepted journal presentations will be selected for either oral or poster presentation during the conference based on the reviews - at least one author is expected to register to ICDL 2020 and to present the paper in person. ==== Submissions ==== Candidate papers must be original research articles published in a journal relevant to the research area during 2019 or 2020. Papers that are in press may be submitted as long as the final camera-ready version is available online. Extensions of papers that have been previously presented as conference papers may NOT be submitted to this track. All submissions must be made by email to Francisco Cruz, including (in a single PDF): - Title of the original journal paper. - Abstract of the paper. - A complete reference to the original paper in APA format. - URL where the paper can be downloaded from the publisher if available, or proof of the final acceptance. - A copy of the paper with its final camera-ready contents. Submissions will go through an expedited selection process led by the conference chairs. Selection criteria include the significance of the results and relevance to the ICDL community. ==== Scope and Topics ==== The primary list of topics of interest includes, but not limited to: - principles and theories of development and learning; - development of skills in biological systems and robots; - nature vs nurture, developmental stages; - models on the contributions of interaction to learning; - verbal, non-verbal and multi-modal interaction; - models on active learning; - architectures for lifelong learning; - emergence of body and affordance perception; - analysis and modeling of human motion and state; - models for prediction, planning and problem solving; - models of human-human and human-robot interaction; - emergence of verbal and non-verbal communication; - epistemological foundations and philosophical issues; - robot prototyping of human and animal skills; - ethics and trust in computational intelligence and robotics; - social learning in humans, animals, and robots. ==== Organizing committee ==== General Chairs: Giulio Sandini, and Javier Ruiz-del-Solar Program and Finance Chairs: Nicolás Navarro-Guerrero, and María-José Escobar Bridge Chairs: Minoru Asada, Frédéric Alexandre, and Linda Smith Publicity Chairs: Carmelo Bastos, Maya Cakmak, Angelo Cangelosi, Yukie Nagai, and Emre Ugur Publication Chairs: Pablo Barros, and Haian Wu Tutorials and Workshops Chair: Miguel Solis Travel and Registration Awards Chair: Francisco Cruz Local chairs: Mauricio Araya Webpage Chairs: Cristóbal Nettle, and Patricio Castillo Graphics: Camila Angel Alfaro Best regards from the organizing committee, Francisco Cruz Research Fellow in Reinforcement Learning School of Information Technology Deakin University Locked Bag 20000, Geelong, VIC 3220 francisco.cruz(a)deakin.edu.au

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CFP Deadline Extension - 10th IEEE International Conference on Development and Learning (ICDL), Valparaiso Chile
by Nicolás Navarro-Guerrero 10 Mar '20

10 Mar '20

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, which has directly or indirectly affected countries how typically are well represented at the conference, we are extending the deadline submission. The health and safety of our conference participants is our top priority. Therefore, we are closely monitoring any travel advisories and governmental recommendations. Please check our website where we will post any relevant information as quickly as possible. CALL FOR PAPERS DEADLINE EXTENDED: 10th IEEE International Conference on Development and Learning (ICDL) An IEEE Computational Society-sponsored conference (This is the follow-up of the previous ICDL-EpiRob conference series) 7th-10th September 2020, Valparaiso, Chile https://cdstc.gitlab.io/icdl-2020/ ==== Important Dates ==== Submission deadline: 15th March 2020 -> New deadline: 12th April 2020 Author notification: 15th May 2020 -> moved to 31st of May 2020 Camera ready due: 1st July 2020 Conference: 7th-10th September 2020 ==== Overview ==== The IEEE International Conference on Development and Learning (ICDL), previously referred to as ICDL-EpiRob, is the premier gathering of professionals dedicated to the advancement of cognitive and developmental learning. As such, ICDL is a unique conference gathering researchers from computer science, robotics, psychology and developmental studies. ICDL is a highly selective annual international conference that aims to showcase and share the very best interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary research on how humans and animals develop sensing, reasoning and actions. ICDL community focusses on the understanding of how biological agents take advantage of interaction with social and physical environments to develop their cognitive capabilities. Moreover, how this knowledge can be used to improve future computing and robotic systems. We invite submissions for the conference to explore, extend, and consolidate the interdisciplinary boundaries of this exciting research field. ==== Scope and Topics ==== The primary list of topics of interest includes, but not limited to: - principles and theories of development and learning; - development of skills in biological systems and robots; - nature vs nurture, developmental stages; - models on the contributions of interaction to learning; - verbal, non-verbal and multi-modal interaction; - models on active learning; - architectures for lifelong learning; - emergence of body and affordance perception; - analysis and modelling of human motion and state; - models for prediction, planning and problem solving; - models of human-human and human-robot interaction; - emergence of verbal and non-verbal communication; - epistemological foundations and philosophical issues; - robot prototyping of human and animal skills; - ethics and trust in computational intelligence and robotics; - social learning in humans, animals, and robots. ==== Submissions ==== Authors are invited to submit original and unpublished papers of six pages with the possibility of two-extra pages at a fee. Submissions are in the IEEE conference template. Submission will be selected for either oral or poster presentation based on the reviews. Accepted and presented regular six-page paper submissions will be included in the conference proceedings published by IEEE Xplore after the conference. For more information about submissions, travel grants, social events, etc. visit the conference webpage under https://cdstc.gitlab.io/icdl-2020/ ==== Organizing committee ==== General Chairs: Giulio Sandini, and Javier Ruiz-del-Solar Program and Finance Chairs: Nicolás Navarro-Guerrero, and María-José Escobar Bridge Chairs: Minoru Asada, Frédéric Alexandre, and Linda Smith Publicity Chairs: Carmelo Bastos, Maya Cakmak, Angelo Cangelosi, Yukie Nagai, and Emre Ugur Publication Chairs: Pablo Barros, and Haian Wu Tutorials and Workshops Chair: Miguel Solis Travel and Registration Awards Chair: Francisco Cruz Local chairs: Mauricio Araya Webpage Chairs: Cristóbal Nettle, and Patricio Castillo Graphics: Camila Angel Alfaro Kind regards on behalf of the Organizing Committee, -- Nicolás Navarro-Guerrero Assistant Professor Department of Engineering, and School of Culture and Society Aarhus University, Denmark E-mail: nng(a)eng.au.dk https://au.dk/en/nng@eng.au.dk https://nicolas-navarro-guerrero.github.io/ Aarhus University Finlandsgade 22, building 5125 8200 Aarhus N Denmark Tel.: +45 8715 0000 eng(a)au.dk www.eng.au.dk/en/ -- Best regards, Nicolás -- Nicolás Navarro-Guerrero https://nicolas-navarro-guerrero.github.io/

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[jobs] 3 years Assistant Professor Position at DIAG, Sapienza Univrsity of Rome, Italy
by iocchi 05 Mar '20

05 Mar '20

Cognitive Cooperating Robots, located at DIAG (Dipartimento di Ingegneria Informatica, Automatica e Gestionale) of Sapienza University of Rome, Italy (http://labrococo.dis.uniroma1.it/) is planning to issue a call for assistant professor (3 years contract, renewable, expected to start in Fall 2020), to do research in the area of Human Robot Interaction, with focus on machine learning, perception, spoken language interaction. The ideal candidate holds a PhD in Computer Science with focus on artificial intelligence and robotics and in particular on the above research topics, has a very good publication record in top conferences/journals in the field, and has a strong background in software development for artificial intelligence and robotics applications. Interested candidates should send an expression of interest to Luca Iocchi <iocchi(a)diag.uniroma1.it> by March 20, 2020.

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Last CFP: New Foundations for Human-Centered AI (extended deadline)
by Alessandro Saffiotti 22 Feb '20

22 Feb '20

====================================================================== = NeHuAI-2020 = 1st International Workshop on New Foundations for Human-Centered AI = June 9, Santiago de Compostela, Spain (Part of ECAI-2020) ====================================================================== * Submission deadline extended to March 10 (strict) * SYNOPSIS -------- In June 2018, the European Commission has appointed a "AI High Level Expert Group" (AI-HLEG) to support the implementation of the European Strategy on Artificial Intelligence. One of the first results of the AI-HLEG has been to deliver ethics guidelines on Artificial Intelligence (https://ec.europa.eu/futurium/en/ai-alliance-consultation/guidelines). These guidelines put forward a human-centered approach to AI, and list seven key requirements that human-centered, trustworthy AI systems should meet, summarized by the following headers: 1. Human agency and oversight 2. Technical robustness and safety 3. Privacy and data governance 4. Transparency 5. Diversity, non-discrimination and fairness 6. Societal and environmental wellbeing 7. Accountability Many of today's most popular AI methods, however, fail to meet these guidelines: making them compliant is a scientific endeavor that is as crucial as it is challenging and stimulating. Systems based on deep learning are a case in point: while these systems often provide impressive results, their ability to _explain_ these results to the user is very limited, challenging requirements 4 and 7; in most cases we lack ways to formally _verify_ their correctness and assess their boundary conditions, challenging requirement 2; and we don't yet have methods to allow humans to _collaboratively_ influence or question their decisions, challenging requirement 1. Similar criticalities are present in many other popular AI methods. This full day workshop will collectively address the fundamental questions of what are the scientific and technological gaps that we have to fill in order to make AI systems _human-centered_ in terms of the above guidelines. PAPER SUBMISSION ---------------- Contributions are seeked on new foundations for building Human-Centered AI systems, able to comply with AI-HLEG recommendations. Contributions are seeked in the form of full papers (max 7 pages plus references) presenting mature results, or position papers and reports of relevant ongoing work (max 4 pages including references). More specific topics include, but are not limited to: - Explainable AI - Verifiable AI - Technical robustness and safety of AI systems - Collaboration between humans and AI systems - Integrating model-based and data-driven AI - Integrating symbolic- and sub-symbolic AI - Mixed initiative AI-Human systems - Proactive AI systems in human environments - Understanding and naturally interacting with humans - Understanding and interaction in complex social settings - Reflexivity and expectation managament - Integrating Learning, Reasoning and Acting in AI systems - Integrating human and robot cognition Papers should be formatted according to the ECAI2020 formatting style, available at the ECAI2020 website (ecai2020.eu). Submissions are not anonymous. Accepted papers will be made available on the workshop site, and must be presented at the workshop. There will be no official proceedings, but we will consider editing a special issue including extended versions of the presented papers. Submit your paper by March 10 (extended deadline, strict) via Easychair: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=nehuai2020 ORGANIZERS ---------- Alessandro Saffiotti (Orebro University, Sweden) Luciano Serafini (Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Trento, Italy) Paul Lukowicz (DFKI, Kaiserslautern, Germany) SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS ------------------------ This worskhop is jointly organized by AI4EU (ai4eu.eu), the EU landmark project to develop a European AI on-demand platform and ecosystem; and by Humane-AI (humane-ai.eu), the EU FET preparatory action devoted to designing a European research agenda for Human Centered AI. MORE INFORMATION ---------------- http://nehuai2020.aass.oru.se/ ======================================================================

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[ICDL-2020] Call for Tutorials
by Miguel Solís 15 Feb '20

15 Feb '20

Apologies if you receive multiple copies of this call due to cross-posting, please help to distribute among possible interested contributors. CALL FOR TUTORIALS: 10th IEEE International Conference on Development and Learning (ICDL) 7th-10th September 2020, Valparaiso, Chile Web page: https://cdstc.gitlab.io/icdl-2020/ An IEEE Computational Society-sponsored conference ==== Important Dates ==== Tutorial Proposals Open: 15th February 2020 Tutorial Proposals Deadline: 30h April 2020 Tutorial Proposals Notification: 15th May 2020 ==== Overview ==== We invite experts in different areas to organize a tutorial. The goal of tutorials is to provide insights into specific topics through hands-on training and interactive experiences or in-depth state of the art review. Tutorial organizers have several responsibilities, including activities scheduling, publicizing and providing the content on time. ICDL will support the organization with rooms, audio-visual equipment and coffee breaks. ==== Scope and Topics ==== The main list of topics of interest includes, but not limited to: - principles and theories of development and learning; - development of skills in biological systems and robots; - nature vs nurture, developmental stages; - models on the contributions of interaction to learning; - verbal, non-verbal and multi-modal interaction; - models on active learning; - architectures for lifelong learning; - emergence of body and affordance perception; - analysis and modelling of human motion and state; - models for prediction, planning and problem solving; - models of human-human and human-robot interaction; - emergence of verbal and non-verbal communication; - epistemological foundations and philosophical issues; - robot prototyping of human and animal skills; - ethics and trust in computational intelligence and robotics; - social learning in humans, animals, and robots. ==== Submission format ==== Proposals should be maximum of two pages long following the standard IEEE conference style. Proposals should be submitted in PDF format by email to icdl2020(a)ac3e.cl with subject “[Tutorials]”. Proposals should specify the following: Title Organizers Duration (half-day or full-day) A brief description of the topics to be covered Tentative program Target audience and interested groups Website Any logistic requirements such as poster stands, computers, projector, etc. For more information about the conference, travel grants, social events, etc. visit the conference webpage under https://cdstc.gitlab.io/icdl-2020/ ==== Organizing committee ==== General Chairs: Giulio Sandini, and Javier Ruiz-del-Solar Program and Finance Chairs: Nicolás Navarro-Guerrero, and María-José Escobar Bridge Chairs: Minoru Asada, Frédéric Alexandre, and Linda Smith Publicity Chairs: Carmelo Bastos, Maya Cakmak, Angelo Cangelosi, Yukie Nagai, and Emre Ugur Publication Chairs: Pablo Barros, and Haian Wu Tutorials and Workshops Chair: Miguel Solis Travel and Registration Awards Chair: Francisco Cruz Local chairs: Mauricio Araya Webpage Chairs: Cristóbal Nettle, and Patricio Castillo Graphics: Camila Angel Alfaro Best regards from the organizing committee,

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2nd CFP: New Foundations for Human-Centered AI (an ECAI workshop)
by Alessandro Saffiotti 12 Feb '20

12 Feb '20

====================================================================== = NeHuAI-2020 = 1st International Workshop on New Foundations for Human-Centered AI = June 9, Santiago de Compostela, Spain (Part of ECAI-2020) = http://nehuai2020.aass.oru.se/ ====================================================================== SYNOPSIS -------- In June 2018, the European Commission has appointed a "AI High Level Expert Group" (AI-HLEG) to support the implementation of the European Strategy on Artificial Intelligence. One of the first results of the AI-HLEG has been to deliver ethics guidelines on Artificial Intelligence (https://ec.europa.eu/futurium/en/ai-alliance-consultation/guidelines). These guidelines put forward a human-centered approach to AI, and list seven key requirements that human-centered, trustworthy AI systems should meet, summarized by the following headers: 1. Human agency and oversight 2. Technical robustness and safety 3. Privacy and data governance 4. Transparency 5. Diversity, non-discrimination and fairness 6. Societal and environmental wellbeing 7. Accountability Many of today's most popular AI methods, however, fail to meet these guidelines: making them compliant is a scientific endeavor that is as crucial as it is challenging and stimulating. Systems based on deep learning are a case in point: while these systems often provide impressive results, their ability to _explain_ these results to the user is very limited, challenging requirements 4 and 7; in most cases we lack ways to formally _verify_ their correctness and assess their boundary conditions, challenging requirement 2; and we don't yet have methods to allow humans to _collaboratively_ influence or question their decisions, challenging requirement 1. Similar criticalities are present in many other popular AI methods. This full day workshop will collectively address the fundamental questions of what are the scientific and technological gaps that we have to fill in order to make AI systems _human-centered_ in terms of the above guidelines. PAPER SUBMISSION ---------------- Contributions are seeked on new foundations for building Human-Centered AI systems, able to comply with AI-HLEG recommendations. Contributions are seeked in the form of full papers (max 7 pages plus references) presenting mature results, or position papers and reports of relevant ongoing work (max 4 pages including references). More specific topics include, but are not limited to: - Explainable AI - Verifiable AI - Technical robustness and safety of AI systems - Collaboration between humans and AI systems - Integrating model-based and data-driven AI - Integrating symbolic- and sub-symbolic AI - Mixed initiative AI-Human systems - Proactive AI systems in human environments - Understanding and naturally interacting with humans - Understanding and interaction in complex social settings - Reflexivity and expectation managament - Integrating Learning, Reasoning and Acting in AI systems Papers should be formatted according to the ECAI2020 formatting style, available at the ECAI2020 website (ecai2020.eu). Submissions are not anonymous. Submit your paper by February 25 via Easychair here: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=nehuai2020 ORGANIZERS ---------- - Alessandro Saffiotti (Orebro University, Sweden) - Luciano Serafini (Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Trento, Italy) - Paul Lukowicz (DFKI, Kaiserslautern, Germany) This worskhop is jointly organized by AI4EU (ai4eu.eu), the EU landmark project to develop a European AI on-demand platform and ecosystem; and by Humane-AI (humane-ai.eu), the EU FET preparatory action devoted to designing a European research agenda for Human Centered AI. MORE INFORMATION ---------------- http://nehuai2020.aass.oru.se/ ======================================================================

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Call for Participation, #ACDL2020, 3rd Advanced Course on Data Science & Machine Learning - Early Registration: February 20
by Ludovico Montalcini 12 Feb '20

12 Feb '20

ACDL 2020, 3rd Advanced Course on Data Science & Machine Learning An Interdisciplinary Course: Big Data, Deep Learning & Artificial Intelligence without Borders ACDL 2020 – A Unique Experience: Data Science, Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence with the World’s Leaders in the fascinating atmosphere of the ancient Certosa di Pontignano Certosa di Pontignano, Siena - Tuscany, Italy July 13-17, 2020 https://acdl2020.icas.xyz acdl(a)icas.xyz The past 2 editions have attracted more than 150 students per year and world-renowned experts in ML, AI, DP and DS including Yoshua Bengio, Leslie Kaelbling, Peter Norvig, Alex 'Sandy' Pentland, Marc'Aurelio Ranzato, Ruslan Salakhutdinov, Josh Tenenbaum, Naftali Tishby and Oriol Vinyals. More info about our current and past editions can be found here: https://acdl2020.icas.xyz/past-editions/ ACDL 2018 & ACDL 2019 Sold-out! Probably also ACDL 2020 ;-) Early registration deadline: February 20, 2020 https://acdl2020.icas.xyz/registration/ CALL FOR PARTICIPATION, POSTER & ORAL PRESENTATIONS: During the Registration Process we accept abstract submissions for posters and oral presentations to be presented during the poster sessions and the talk sessions. https://acdl2020.icas.xyz/registration/ Early registration deadline: February 20, 2020 Deadlines: Oral/Poster Presentation Submission: February 20, 2020. Notification of Decision for Oral/Poster Presentation: by March 12, 2020. Early Registration: Until February 20, 2020. Late Registration: After February 20, 2020. LECTURERS: Each Lecturer will hold three/four lessons on a specific topic. * Igor Babuschkin, DeepMind - Google, London, UK * Pierre Baldi, University of California Irvine, USA * Michael Bronstein, Twitter & Imperial College London, UK * Marco Gori, University of Siena, Italy * Victor Lempitsky, Samsung AI Center, Moscow Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology, Russia * Diederik P. Kingma, Google Brain, San Francisco, CA, USA * Panos Pardalos, University of Florida, USA * Daniela Rus, Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, MIT, USA * Mihaela van der Schaar, University of Cambridge, UK More speakers coming soon! Tutorial Speakers * Chip Huyen, Stanford University, USA 4-hour tutorial on "TensorFlow 2.0 for Deep Learning Research" * Adam Paszke, University of Warsaw, Poland 4-hour tutorial on "PyTorch: A Modern Library for Machine Learning" More tutorial speakers coming soon! SCOPE: The Advanced Course is not a summer school suited only for younger scholars. Rather, a significant proportion of seasoned investigators are regularly present among the attendees, often senior faculty at their own institutions. The balanced audience that we strive to maintain in each Advanced Course greatly contributes to the development of intense cross-disciplinary debates among faculty and participants that typically address the most advanced and emerging areas of each topic. Each faculty member presents lectures and discusses with the participants for one entire day. Such long interaction together with the small, exclusive Course size provides the uncommon opportunity to fully explore the expertise of each faculty, often through one-to-one mentoring. This is unparalleled and priceless. The Certosa di Pontignano provides the perfect setting to a relaxed yet intense learning atmosphere, with the stunning backdrop of the Tuscan landscapes. World-class wines and traditional foods will make the Advanced Course on Data Science and Machine Learning the experience of a lifetime. 8 ECTS POINTS: Participants will be delivered a certificate of attendance indicating the number of hours of lectures (36-40 hours of lectures). In according to the academic system all PhD and master students attending to the summer school will may get 8 ECTS points. A formal certificate of successful participation in the event will be delivered indicating the number of hours of lectures. VENUE & ACCOMMODATION: The venue of ACDL 2020 will be The Certosa di Pontignano — Siena Dr. Lorenzo Pasquinuzzi The Certosa di Pontignano Località Pontignano, 5 – 53019, Castelnuovo Berardenga (Siena) – Tuscany – Italy phone: +39-0577-1521104 fax: +39-0577-1521098 info(a)lacertosadipontignano.com https://www.lacertosadipontignano.com/en/index.php A few Kilometres from Siena, on a hill dominating the town stands the ancient Certosa di Pontignano, a unique place where nature, history and hospitality blend together in memorable harmony. Built in the 1300, its medieval structure remains intact with additions of the following centuries. The Certosa is centred on its historic cloisters and gardens. https://acdl2020.icas.xyz/venue/ ACCOMMODATION: https://acdl2020.icas.xyz/accommodation/ REGISTRATION: https://acdl2020.icas.xyz/registration/ We remind you that ACDL 2018 and ACDL 2019 sold out a long time before the registration deadline! Anyone interested in participating in ACDL 2020 should register as soon as possible! Similarly for accommodation at the Certosa di Pontignano (the School Venue), book your full board accommodation at the Certosa as soon as possible! All course participants should/must stay at the Certosa di Pontignano. See you in Tuscany next July! ACDL 2020 Organizing Committee. acdl(a)icas.xyz https://acdl2020.icas.xyz https://www.facebook.com/groups/204310640474650/ https://twitter.com/TaoSciences * Apologies for multiple copies. Please forward to anybody who might be interested *

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[Call for Participation] First Latin American Summer School on Cognitive Robotics
by Nicolás Navarro-Guerrero 12 Feb '20

12 Feb '20

https://www.lacoro.org We are excited to announce our first Latin American Summer School on Cognitive Robotics (LACORO), which aims at making cutting-edge knowledge on Artificial Intelligence for Robotics Applications accessible to everyone, especially in the Southern Hemisphere. Our aims are: - to build a sustainable community of students and researchers in the area of Artificial Intelligence for Robotics, particularly Cognitive Inspired Aspects of AI. - to make cutting-edge scientific topics accessible to everyone. - to overcome the complexity of a multi-cultural and interdisciplinary learning context. **Applications period is now open** Format: We will organize the Summer School in Latin America biennially. LACORO will include cutting-edge lectures and tutorials on Artificial Intelligence and Robotics but also aspects of Human Cognition. Moreover, we will host a hackathon where attendees can acquire hands-on experience on some of the topics of the Summer School. Date and Location: September 3rd to September 5th, 2020 at the Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María, Valparaíso, Chile. Applications: Please visit our website, where you can find more information regarding costs, travel, lodging, along with an application form. Pre-registration is required because there will be a limited number of participants. If you have any questions about the school or the application process, please contact the organizing committee: lacoro(a)innovacionyrobotica.com Best regards from the organizing committee, -- Nicolás Navarro-Guerrero Assistant Professor Department of Engineering, and School of Culture and Society Aarhus University, Denmark E-mail: nng(a)eng.au.dk https://nicolas-navarro-guerrero.github.io/ Aarhus University Finlandsgade 22, building 5125 8200 Aarhus N Denmark Tel.: +45 8715 0000 eng(a)au.dk www.eng.au.dk/en/

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[jobs] Knowledge Technology for Intelligent Neural Systems
by Wermter, Stefan 05 Feb '20

05 Feb '20

The Department of Informatics, Knowledge Technology Institute invites applications for a RESEARCH ASSOCIATE Knowledge Technology for Intelligent Systems - SALARY LEVEL 13 TV-L - As a University of Excellence, the University of Hamburg is one of the strongest research universities in Germany. As a flagship university in the greater Hamburg region, it nurtures innovative, cooperative contacts to partners within and outside academia. It also provides and promotes sustainable education, knowledge, and knowledge exchange locally, nationally, and internationally. The position in accordance with Section 28 subsection 1 of the Hamburg higher education act (Hamburgisches Hochschulgesetz, HmbHG) commences on 1 March 2020 or as soon as possible. This is a fixed term contract in accordance with Section 2 of the academic fixed-term labor contract act (Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz, WissZeitVG). The initial fixed term is three years. The position calls for 100% of standard work hours per week. Responsibilities: Research associates will be expected primarily to teach and conduct research. The research associate will also have the opportunity to pursue further academic qualifications, in particular a doctoral dissertation. At least one-third of set working hours will be made available for the research associate´s own academic work. Specific Duties: The successful candidate will contribute to teaching related to the Knowledge Technology Institute (4hrs/teaching week), in particular to Data-driven Intelligent Systems, but also to Research Methods or Bio-inspired Artificial Intelligence. Furthermore, the candidate is expected to conduct research in the area of Knowledge Technology and Intelligent Systems, in particular Neural Networks and Human-Robot Interaction. PhD candidates have the opportunity to advance their academic education through the completion of a doctoral dissertation. Requirements: A university degree in a relevant field. Academic degree in computer science qualifying the post holder to carry out the above-mentioned duties. In particular, an MSc or equivalent in the area of Intelligent Systems is desired. Your demonstrated research interests should be in the areas of Knowledge Technology and Intelligent Systems (e.g. Neural Networks, Intelligent Robotics, Natural Language Processing, Vision, or Hybrid Knowledge Representation etc). Publication experience is desirable. We are looking for very good communication skills and evidence for teamwork. A very good command of both German and English is a requirement for teaching and research. The Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg promotes equal opportunity. As women are currently underrepresented in this job category at Universit„t Hamburg according to the evaluation conducted under the Hamburg act on gender equality (Hamburgisches Gleichstellungsgesetz, HambGleiG), we encourage women to apply for this position. Equally qualified and suitable female applicants will receive preference. Qualified disabled candidates or applicants with equivalent status receive preference in the application process. For further information, please contact Prof. Dr. Stefan Wermter (wermter(a)informatik.uni-hamburg.de) or consult our website at https://www.informatik.uni-hamburg.de/wtm/. Applications should include a cover letter, a tabular curriculum vitae, language certificates German and English, and copies of degree certificate(s). Please send applications by 15 February 2020 or before the position gets filled to: Ms Katja Koesters (katja.koesters(a)informatik.uni-hamburg.de) in a single pdf document . Please do not submit original documents as we are not able to return them. Any documents sub-mitted will be destroyed after the application process has concluded. *********************************************** Professor Dr. Stefan Wermter Director of Knowledge Technology Department of Informatics University of Hamburg Vogt-Koelln-Str. 30 22527 Hamburg, Germany Email: wermter AT informatik.uni-hamburg.de https://www.informatik.uni-hamburg.de/WTM/ ***********************************************

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[@Home2020] Second Call for Participation (Extended)
by Mauricio Matamoros 22 Jan '20

22 Jan '20

Online version: https://athome.robocup.org/2020-cfp2-all/ Second Call for Participation RoboCup@Home 2020 (DSPL · OPL · SSPL) ====================================== June 23 - June 29, 2020 (Bordeaux, France) https://athome.robocup.org/ https://github.com/RoboCupAtHome/RuleBook RoboCup is an international scientific initiative with the goal to advance the state of the art of intelligent robots through competitions (RoboCup@Home, RoboCup Soccer, RoboCup Rescue, RoboCup@Work and RoboCup Junior). The RoboCup@Home league aims to develop service and assistive robot technology with high relevance for future personal domestic applications. It is the largest international annual competition for autonomous service robots and is part of the RoboCup initiative. A set of benchmark tests is used to evaluate the robots' abilities and performance in a realistic home environment setting. Focus lies on the following domains but is not limited to: Human-Robot-Interaction and Cooperation, Navigation and Mapping in dynamic environments, Computer Vision and Object Recognition under natural light conditions, Object Manipulation, Adaptive Behaviors, Behavior Integration, Ambient Intelligence, Standardization and System Integration. This page describes the preregistration and qualification procedure for RoboCup@Home 2020, second term. Important dates: Dec. 20, 2019 Publication of the Call for Participation Jan. 26, 2020 Deadline for submission of qualification material and preregistration. EXTENDED (Team Description Paper, Team Video, Team Website). Feb. 02, 2020 Qualification announcement The qualification procedure consists of a single step: Step 1) Qualification Material Submission (mandatory) The team ***MUST*** send an email to the Organizing Committee (oc(a)robocupathome.org) to participate in the qualification process for the RoboCup@Home 2020 event. Please fill in the following information: Team Name: League: [ DSPL | OPL | SSPL ] Country: Affiliation: Team Leader Name: Contact information (E-mail): Rank in local tournaments: Link to a team video: Link to a team web site devoted to their efforts: Team Description Paper (TDP) attached to the email based on the official template. The e-mail subject should be: [@Home2020-Qualification] (YourTeamName) Considerations: - Only one platform can be specified per team. - Only one team leader can be specified per team. - Only one team video url can be specified per team. - Only one contact email can be specified per team. - All the publications and software to be evaluated for qualification ***MUST*** be in the team's website. - The email must be encoded in UTF-8 using only the ISO-8859-1 character set. IMPORTANT: Teams that didn't obtain qualification during the first CFP are allowed to submit their improved materials, addressing the comments from the reviewers. **** Deadline: Sunday, January 19, 2020 23:59 GMT ***** Step 2) Participation confirmation Teams qualified during the Second Call for Participation do not require to confirm attendance. Step 3) Robot Acquisition (Standard Platform Leagues): No new teams will be elegible for standard robot acquisition in the Second Call for Participation. Instructions for the Qualification Material Instructions for the Team Video: In order to proof a running hardware, each team has to provide a qualification video. As a minimum requirement for qualification, the video must show the robot(s) successfully solving a task involving the integration of at least 5 different abilities, such as: environmental reasoning, high-level task planning, human-robot interaction, localization, manipulation, object recognition, people recognition, etc. Is strongly advised to show at least one Stage 2 test of the current or last year's rulebook. Remarks: - The shown task execution must look continuous, smooth, and robust. - When speeding-up video, the speed factor must be indicated. - The language spoken and shown in the video must be English. When using any other languages, translations must be included. - We strongly suggest upload videos to Youtube. - Videos sent will be uploaded/displayed in the league's youtube channel http://www.youtube.com/channel/UChkdCpT0xrFMMt-_N8wSVew/playlists" - Standard Platforms Only: Teams must use the standard robot in their Team Video. Copyright note:When sending videos for qualification, teams implicitly grant permission to RoboCup @Home and the RoboCup Federation to copy, modify, distribute, upload, publish, and use the multimedia material to promote the event and the league at convenience. Instructions for the TDP The TDP is an 8-pages long scientific paper, detailing information on the technical and scientific approach of the team's research, while including also the following: - TDP - Group's research focus and interests. - Innovative technology and scientific contribution - Please specify when your research is being used by other teams or research groups - Please specify when you are using software from other teams - Brief, general description of the system when solving a [domestic] task (applicability in the real world) - The impact of your research must be clearly visible - Maximum length is 8 pages (including figures and citations) - Annex - Photo(s) of the robot - Brief, compact list of the 3rd party robot's software (e.g. include MoveIt/YOLO) - Brief, compact description of all external computing devices, if any - Brief, compact description of the robot's hardware (OPL Only) - Please mark with an asterisk home-made software solutions - Annex should be appended after the References - There is no page limit for annex, but a maximum of one page is strongly encouraged - TDP length is ****8 pages + annex**** (any submissions over this length will be disqualified). - DSPL and SSPL: The robot depicted in the TDP or Team Video must be the league's standard one. For the TDP, please use the Springer LNAI format used in the RoboCup Symposium submissions and limit yourself to 8 pages without altering margins or spacing (including references but excluding the annex). You may download a template for the TDP from here. Remark: The language for the TDP, its graphics, tables, images, and all additional content must be English. Content in other languages must be translated. Copyright note:All TDPs sent for qualification may be made publicly available in the RoboCup @Home Wiki for further reference. On submitting, teams implicitly grant permission to RoboCup @Home and the RoboCup Federation to copy, distribute, upload, publish, and use the manuscript to promote the event and the league at convenience. ***** Exceeding the number of pages will automatically void your application *****. Instructions for the Web site While the TDP goes into detail about the technical and scientific approach of the team's research, the website should be designed for a broader audience, including: - Photos of the robot(s) - Videos of the robot(s) - Description of the approaches and information on scientific achievements - Relevant publications (last 5 years, preferably available to download) - Link to repositories with software for the community - Team members - Previous participation in RoboCup - Participation and rankings in local RoboCup tournaments Remark: No IP addresses will be accepted as website. Remark: Only documented active software repositories are considered as contributions to the league. It must be clear and straightforward to other teams how to use your software. Qualification and evaluation criteria: In this Second Call for Participation, all open participation slots will be assigned. In order to qualify, a team must meet the minimum selection requirements approved by the Executive Committee. However, meeting the minimum requirements won't automatically grant a participation slot. Only the top teams meeting the selection criterion will qualify for participation. The number of open participation slots varies per league with a saturation number of 12 teams per league Qualification materials will be judged by the following criteria: - Team description paper (clarity, scientific contributions, re-usability by the league, applicability in real world) - Performance in local tournaments and previous competitions. - Qualification Video (number of demonstrated abilities, integration, difficulty of the task, applicability in real world) - Website (multimedia, publications from last 5 years, downloadable content, open-source software and other contributions) - Relevant Scientific contribution/publications (downloadable papers and open-source software) - Novelty of approach (what you do is new for @Home) We encourage teams to produce self-explicative videos for a general audience where complex tasks are solved. For Team Description Papers focus on the scientific contribution and avoid brief descriptions of the overall system. With kind regards, and looking forward to see your team in Bordeaux, The 2020 RoboCup@Home Organizing and Technical Committees

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Robotica 2020 - 20th Portuguese Robotics Open - 1st CALL FOR PARTICIPATION
by Manuel Silva 17 Dec '19

17 Dec '19

======================================================================= (Our apologies if you receive multiple copies of this announcement) ======================================================================= ======================================================================= *** 1st CALL FOR PARTICIPATION *** *** Registrations are already open! *** ======================================================================= Robotica 2020 - 20th Portuguese Robotics Open http://robotica2020.uac.pt/ April 15-19, 2016 Ponta Delgada, Portugal The Portuguese Robotics Open is a RoboCup Event that aims at promoting Science and Technology among students from the 1st grade to university studies, as well among the general public, through robotic competitions. We would like to invite you to participate in the 20th Portuguese Robotics Open which will take place during April 15-19, 2020, at Ponta Delgada, S. Miguel - Azores, Portugal. If you are interested in participating, please pre-register your team and follow the procedure as outlined below. == Competitions == The following competitions are offered for the 20th Portuguese Robotics Open: Major Competitions -- RoboCup Middle Size League -- RoboCup 2D Simulation League -- RoboCup 3D Simulation League -- Autonomous Driving Competition -- RoboCup@Factory -- Robot@Factory Lite -- FreeBots & Ocean Freebots Competition Junior Competitions -- RoboCup Junior OnStage -- RoboCup Junior Soccer -- RoboCup Junior Rescue (Line, Maze, Simulation) -- Robot@Factory Lite -- First Challenger -- FreeBots & Ocean Freebots Junior Competition The rules of RoboCup competitions will be based on the RoboCup 2019 rules for each League. All competition rules are available selecting competitions from the menu at http://robotica2020.uac.pt. == Schedule == Early Registration deadline: March 10th, 2020 Late registration deadline: March 17th, 2020 Portuguese Robotics Open: April 15-19th, 2020 All deadlines are 23:59 GMT. == Registration == Registration is performed through the online form, available at: http://robotica2020.uac.pt/?page_id=50&lang=en (click at 'Access to register form' at the top of the page) Registration Fees: - Major Leagues fee per team: -- Until March 10th (early) - 5 team members - 260 Euros‚ -- After March 10th - 5 team members - 300 Euros‚ -- Additional team member: 50 Euros (no limit of extra members) - Junior Leagues fee per team: -- Until March 10th (early) - 1 tutor + 4 members - 120 Euros‚ -- After March 10th - 1 tutor + 4 members - 130 Euros‚ -- Additional team member: 40 Euros‚ (limited to 2 extra members) Scientific meeting - SPR / IEEE members -- Until March 16th - 300 Euros‚ -- After March 16th - 350 Euros‚ - Non-Member -- Until March 16th - 350 Euros‚ -- After March 16th - 400 Euros‚ - Student -- Until March 16th - 250 Euros‚ -- After March 16th - 300 Euros‚ == Description and History == The Portuguese Robotics Open (also known as Festival Nacional de Robótica) had its 1st edition in 2001. The event has had enormous growth since the 1st edition, both in the number of teams, participants and visitors and also includes an international IEEE conference where national an international researchers present their latest work in the field of Robotics (http://icarsc2020.uac.pt/). The 20th edition of the Portuguese Robotics Open will be held in Ponta Delgada, S. Miguel - Azores, Portugal, on April 15-19, 2020. Ponta Delgada is situated on the beautiful island of S. Miguel, Azores. It is the largest municipality and economic capital of the Autonomous Region of the Azores. The Azores is an archipelago of nine islands on the northeast, at the Atlantic Ocean. The main touristic attractions are the whale watching and the different lakes in the large volcanic craters of Sete Cidades, Fogo and Furnas. The airport of Ponta Delgada is very close to the city (10 minutes by car). Daily regular flights from Lisbon are from TAP - Air Portugal, SATA - Air Azores and Ryanair. There are also direct connections to some other cities of Europe (more or less, once a week). == Hoping to see you visiting Azores == The Portuguese Robotics Open is currently an initiative of Portuguese Society of Robotics. Hoping to see you at the Portuguese Robotics Open! Kind Regards, The Portuguese Robotics Open Organizing Committee Manuel Silva Professor Adjunto Departamento de Engenharia Electrotécnica [http://www2.isep.ipp.pt/assinatura_email/EMAIL_ISEP.png]<http://www2.isep.ipp.pt/assinatura_email/> ISEP | Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto Rua Dr. António Bernardino de Almeida, 431 4249-015 Porto - PORTUGAL tel. +351 228 340 500 | fax +351 228 321 159 mail(a)isep.ipp.pt | www.isep.ipp.pt<http://www.isep.ipp.pt>

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[jobs] Neural Network models for language and interactive robots
by Wermter, Stefan 11 Dec '19

11 Dec '19

The Department of Informatics, Institute of Knowledge Technology, invites applications for multiple positions as RESEARCH ASSOCIATES (Postdocs and PhD Students) in the context of the project CROSSMODAL LEARNING: Neural network models for language and interactive robots. Positions commence from January 2020 or as soon as possible thereafter and are in accordance with Section 28 subsection 3 of the Hamburg higher education act (Hamburgisches Hochschulgesetz, HmbHG) on SALARY LEVEL 13 TV-L. These are fixed-term contracts in accordance with Section 2 of the academic fixed-term labor contract act (Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz, WissZeitVG). The term is fixed for up to 4 years until 31st of December 2023. The full-time positions call for 39 hours per week. Responsibilities: Duties include academic services in the project named above. Research associates may also pursue independent research and further academic qualifications. Specific Duties: Duties in the project include the design, development and evaluation of neurocognitive models of crossmodal language learning as well as neurorobotic models for crossmodal joint attention and social interaction. The overall project aims to deepen interdisciplinary research between computer science, neuroscience, and psychology in order to set up collaborative research with a focus on human-robot-collaboration, artificial intelligence, neuroscience and psychology while focusing on the topic of cross-modal learning. The long-term challenge is to understand the neural, cognitive and computational evidence of cross-modal learning and to use this understanding for (1) better analyzing human performance with cross-modal correspondence and (2) building effective cross-modal computational and robot systems. Requirements: A university degree in a relevant subject. For doctoral positions, academic degree of MSc in computer science, computer engineering or similar. For post-doctoral positions, a doctorate, or equivalently the experience of more than three years of doctoral studies plus publications in the area of Intelligent Systems are required. The degree must qualify the post holder to carry out the above-mentioned duties. Programming skills in some of Python, C, ROS, Tensorflow or PyTorch are required. Your demonstrated research interests should be in some of the areas of Intelligent Systems (e.g. Neural Networks, Robotics, Machine Learning, Speech, Vision, or Affective Processing). International publication experience is expected. Very good communication skills in English are expected. The University aims to increase the number of women in research and teaching and explicitly encourages qualified women to apply. Equally qualified female applicants will receive preference in accordance with the Hamburg act on gender equality (Hamburgisches Gleichstellungsgesetz, HmbGleiG). Qualified disabled candidates or applicants with equivalent status receive preference in the application process. As a University of Excellence, Universität Hamburg is one of the strongest research universities in Germany. As a flagship university in the greater Hamburg region, it nurtures innovative, cooperative contacts to partners within and outside academia. It also provides and promotes sustainable education, knowledge, and knowledge exchange locally, nationally, and internationally. For further information, please contact Prof. Dr. Stefan Wermter or consult our website at: https://www.informatik.uni-hamburg.de/wtm/ Applications should include a cover letter, a tabular curriculum vitae, pdf of best publications, and copies of degree certificate(s). Please send applications by 15.01.2020 or until the post gets filled to Ms Katja Koesters (katja.koesters(a)informatik.uni-hamburg.de) in a single pdf document. *********************************************** Professor Dr. Stefan Wermter Director of Knowledge Technology Department of Informatics University of Hamburg Vogt-Koelln-Str. 30 22527 Hamburg, Germany Email: wermter AT informatik.uni-hamburg.de https://www.informatik.uni-hamburg.de/WTM/ ***********************************************

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[jobs] Web Software Engineers: shape the future of personal robotics with Semio!
by Ross Mead 08 Dec '19

08 Dec '19

Web Software Engineers: shape the future of personal robotics with Semio! Are you proficient with JavaScript, Node.js, React, and other web technologies? Do you want to work on bleeding-edge technologies that push the web to its limits? Do you want to be part of the robotics revolution? Apply today to join us at Semio! https://semio.ai/jobs THE COMPANY Semio is a Los Angeles-based software startup defining the way in which people will live, work, and play with robots in their everyday lives. Our software enables robot developers to rapidly create and deploy robot apps, and allows robot end-users to easily access and use those robot apps via natural communication, including both speech and body language. We’ve been developing and deploying our software for over three years, we’ve received tons of feedback from paying customers, and we’re now onboarding our first full-time employees to join us in our mission of enabling personal robots in every home and workplace. Join us! - We’re building kick-ass technology — from browser-based voice and animation design tools to natural language processing and computer vision infrastructure, we are at the forefront of some of the coolest and most innovative tech in the world - We’re 100% software-focused — we provide the AI software mind for robot hardware bodies - We’re working with large, enterprise customers — our customers are the biggest tech leaders of today developing the personal robots of tomorrow - We’re supported by sales revenue from customers — utilizing Lean startup methods and a strong go-to-market strategy, we bootstrapped the company from the ground up and have secured additional growth funding to expand our team and bring you onboard THE POSITION We’re hiring full stack, front-end, and back-end software engineers in full-time capacities to help expand our browser-based design tools for writing, animating, simulating, and deploying socially interactive apps for personal robots. Our design tools are already in the hands of satisfied customers — with your help, we’ll make their experience even better! - You’ll be one of the first employees — help shape the culture of the company and the industry as a whole - You’ll work on software that already has users — your contributions will immediately influence the direction of robot app development with industry leaders - You’ll work closely with users to identify and implement new features — human-centered design is at our core to deliver the best user experience - You’ll boldly go where no one has gone before — the personal robotics industry is a new and untrod frontier, so we promote a work environment in which to rapidly explore brave new ideas and test experimental hypotheses to pave an evidence-based path to success THE LOCATION Semio is based in sunny Los Angeles, California, USA! We explored other cities to find the best fit for the business, and ultimately arrived at LA based on opportunities and costs. Do you want a Bay Area or NYC work/life experience, but don’t want to pay their prices? Then LA is right for you! - LA is a hub of technology — as part of Silicon Beach, LA is one of the largest tech centers in the world, rivaling both Silicon Valley and Silicon Alley - LA is a hub of diversity — our community is a melting pot of people, culture, and ideas, and this rich immersion helps us build a more equitable and sustainable future for robotics and AI - LA is a hub of fun and sun — from the beautiful beaches of Venice and Santa Monica to the entertainment of Hollywood and Disneyland to the art, fashion, and nightlife of Downtown, there are plenty of ways to unwind… and the weather is perfect year-round! WHY SHOULD YOU APPLY? - Get in early with a company that already has amazing technology and market traction - Influence the culture of the company and the robotics industry as a whole - Live in a cost-effective metropolis with bleeding-edge tech, a diverse community, fun and sun! INTERESTED? APPLY NOW! Visit https://semio.ai/jobs and join the robotics revolution! We look forward to working with you! — Ross & Braden, Founders

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Fwd: REMINDER: Call for Participation RoboCup German Open 2020 (DL November 30)
by Sven Wachsmuth 29 Nov '19

29 Nov '19

Dear @Home-teams, Please note the approaching deadline is TOMORROW (Nov. 30). Best regards Sven -------- Weitergeleitete Nachricht -------- Betreff: REMINDER: Call for Participation RoboCup German Open 2020 (DL November 30) Datum: Wed, 27 Nov 2019 08:10:59 +0100 Von: Ansgar Bredenfeld <ansgar.bredenfeld(a)dr-bredenfeld.de> Organisation: Dr. Bredenfeld UG An: robocup-worldwide(a)cc.gatech.edu Dear RoboCup team leaders, we would like to remind you of the approaching deadline for the RoboCup German Open 2020. Best regards, Ansgar --------------------------------------------------------------------- RoboCup German Open 2020 Call for Participation https://robocupgermanopen.de 24 - 26 April 2020 MESSE MAGDEBURG, Germany The RoboCup German Open 2020 will be the 18th open RoboCup competition held in Germany. The event will take place in Magdeburg at MESSE MAGDEBURG. -- RoboCup Major Leagues (international teams) ---------------------- Competitions are offered in the following leagues: - RoboCupSoccer Standard Platform League - RoboCupSoccer Open Humanoid League - RoboCupRescue Robot League - RoboCup@Home League - RoboCupIndustrial Logistics League - RoboCupIndustrial RoboCup@Work League The registration opens *** 15 October 2019 ***. The registration deadline is *** 30 November 2019 ***. Visit https://robocupgermanopen.de to register your RoboCup Major League team. Details on the registration (fee, accommodation, rules) are available on the web site. Booking of blocked accommodation with special rates is possible after your registration. The Major Leagues Organizing Committee: - Patrick Göttsch, Thomas Röfer (Standard Platform League) - Reinhard Gerndt (Open Humanoid League) - Johannes Pellenz, Stefan May (Rescue Robot League) - Sven Wachsmuth, Raphael Memmesheimer (RoboCup@Home League) - Ulrich Karras (Logistics League) - Sebastian Zug (RoboCup@Work League) -- RoboCup Junior ---------------------------------------------------- The German RoboCup Junior qualification for RoboCup 2020 is performed in two steps. German teams qualify in eight local tournaments in Berlin, Hamburg, Hannover, Kassel, Mannheim, Oldenburg, Sankt Augustin and Vöhringen for the final of the 20th German RoboCup Junior Championship which is held within the RoboCup German Open 2020. The best Junior teams will qualify for RoboCup 2020 in France and the 3rd European RoboCup Junior Competition in Portugal. -- Important dates -------------------------------------------------- 15.10.2019 Registration opens 30.11.2019 Registration deadline RoboCup Major teams 15.02.2020 Invoices are sent to team leaders 15.03.2020 Registration deadline names of team members 15.04.2020 Registration fee due 23.04.2020 Set-up day Major League teams 24.04.2020 Competition day (open to the public) 25.04.2020 Competition day (open to the public) 26.04.2020 Competition day, finals (open to the public) Please contact info(a)robocupgermanopen.de for any questions. See you all again at the 18th RoboCup German Open 2020! Best regards, Ansgar Bredenfeld (Chair RoboCup German Open) RoboCup German Open is organized on behalf of the German RoboCup Committee by Landeshauptstadt Magdeburg and Dr. Bredenfeld UG.

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RoboCup German Open 2020: Call for Participation
by Sven Wachsmuth 18 Nov '19

18 Nov '19

Dear teams, please note that the deadline for the registration of major teams is *Nov 30, 2019*! There is no qualification procedure, but you should propose a web-link where we can find information about your team. Best regards Sven Wachsmuth -- RoboCup German Open 2020 Call for Participation https://robocupgermanopen.de 24 - 26 April 2020 MESSE MAGDEBURG, Germany The RoboCup German Open 2020 will be the 18th open RoboCup competition held in Germany. The event will take place in Magdeburg at MESSE MAGDEBURG, Tessenowstraße 9a, 39114 Magdeburg, Germany -- RoboCup Major Leagues (international teams) ---------------------- Competitions are offered in the following leagues: - RoboCupSoccer Standard Platform League - RoboCupSoccer Open Humanoid League - RoboCupRescue Robot League - RoboCup@Home League - RoboCupIndustrial Logistics League - RoboCupIndustrial RoboCup@Work League The registration opens *** 15 October 2019 ***. The registration deadline is *** 30 November 2019 ***. Visit https://robocupgermanopen.de to register your RoboCup Major League team. Details on the registration (fee, accommodation, rules) are available on the web site. Booking of blocked accommodation with special rates is possible after your registration. The Major Leagues Organizing Committee: - Thomas Röfer, Pattrick Göttsch (Standard Platform League) - Reinhard Gerndt (Humanoid League) - Johannes Pellenz, Stefan May (Rescue Robot League) - Sven Wachsmuth, Raphael Memmesheimer (RoboCup@Home League) - Ulrich Karras (Logistics League) - Sebastian Zug (RoboCup@Work League) Please contact info(a)robocupgermanopen.de for any questions. See you all again at the 18th RoboCup German Open 2020! Best regards, Ansgar Bredenfeld (Chair RoboCup German Open) RoboCup German Open is organized on behalf of the German RoboCup Committee by Landeshauptstadt Magdeburg and Dr. Bredenfeld UG.

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[meetings] Invitation to attend IROS 2019 Workshop: Semantic Policy and Action Representations for Autonomous Robots (SPAR)
by Karinne Ramirez-Amaro 01 Nov '19

01 Nov '19

*4th Workshop on Semantic Policy and Action Representations for Autonomous Robots (SPAR)* _*November 8*_, 2019 -*Room: LG-R10* - IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems - *Macau, China* *----Workshop URL* https://sites.google.com/view/spar2019/home Contact email: spar.workshop(a)gmail.com *----Workshop objectives* It has been a long-standing question whether robots can reach human level of intelligence that understands the essence of observed actions and imitates them even under different circumstances. Contemporary research in robotics and machine learning has attempted to solve this question from two different perspectives: One in a bottom-up manner by, for instance, solely relying on perceived continuous sensory data, whereas the other by approaching rather from the symbolic level in a top-down fashion. Although there have been shown encouraging results in both flows, understanding and imitation of actions have yet to be fully solved. Action semantics stands as a potential glue for bridging the gap between a symbolic action representation and its corresponding continuous signal level description. Semantic representation provides a tool for capturing the essence of action by revealing the inherent characteristics. Thus, semantic features help robots to understand, learn, and generate policies to imitate actions even in various styles with different objects. Thus, more descriptive semantics yields robots with greater capability and autonomy. This workshop focuses on new technologies that allow robots to learn generic semantic models for different tasks. In this workshop, we will bring together researchers from diverse fields, including robotics, computer vision, and machine learning in order to overview the most recent scientific achievements and the next break-through topics, and also to propose new directions in the field. **** We have a very exciting program for the SPAR workshop* Time Speaker 09:00 – 09:15 Welcome and introduction. Karinne Ramirez-Amaro & Yezhou Yang 09:20 – 09:55 Kei Okada, The University of Tokyo. "Task Instantiation from Life-long Episodic Memories of Service Robots" 10:00 – 10:35 Tanja Schultz, University of Bremen. "Biosignal Processing for Modeling Human Everyday Activities" 10:45 – 11:15 Coffee Break 11:20 – 11:55 Stefanos Nikolaidis, University of Southern California. "Learning Collaborative Action Plans from YouTube Videos" 12:00 – 12:35 Darius Burschka, Technical University of Munich. "Understanding the Static and Dynamic Scene Context for Human-Robot Collaboration in Households" 12:40 - 13:05 Joseph Lim, University of Southern California. TDB 13:05 – 14:00 Lunch 14:00 – 14:35 Georg von Wichert, Siemens. TBD 14:40 - 15:15 Chris Paxton, Nvidia Robotics lab. "From Pixels to Task Planning and Execution" 15:20 - 15:40 Spotlight talks 15:45 – 16:15 Coffee Break and poster presentations 16:20 – 16:40 Poster presentations 16:45 - 17:20 Jesse Thomason, University of Washington. "Action Learning from Realistic Environments with Directives" 17:25 - 17:40 Final remarks and end of the Workshop *----Invited Speakers (all confirmed)* * Kei Okada, The University of Tokyo. Japan. http://www.jsk.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/~k-okada/index-e.html * Tanja Schultz, University of Bremen. https://www.uni-bremen.de/en/csl/team/staff/prof-dr-ing-tanja-schultz/ * Georg von Wichert, Siemens. Germany. https://www.linkedin.com/in/georg-von-wichert-7a74796/ * Stefanos Nikolaidis, University of Southern California. USA https://stefanosnikolaidis.net/ * Joseph Lim, University of Southern California. https://viterbi-web.usc.edu/~limjj/ * Darius Burschka, Technical University of Munich. http://robvis01.informatik.tu-muenchen.de/ * Chris Paxton, Nvidia Robotics lab. https://research.nvidia.com/person/chris-paxton * Jesse Thomason, University of Washington https://jessethomason.com/ *----Organizers* * Karinne Ramirez-Amaro, Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden * Eren Erdal Aksoy, Halmstad University, Sweden * Yezhou Yang, Arizona State University, USA * Shiqi Zhang, SUNY Binghamton, USA *----Advisory Board* * Michael Beetz, University Bremen, Germany * Yiannis Aloimonos, University of Maryland, USA * Tamim Asfour, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany * Florentin Wörgötter, University of Göttinngen, Germany -- Asst. Prof. Karinne Ramirez Amaro Chalmers University of Technology Department of Electrical Engineering Systems and Control Division SE-412 96 Göteborg, Sweden IEEE Associate Vice President - Conference Operations E-mail:karinne@chalmers.se Office telephone: +46-31-772-1074 www.chalmers.se

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[@Home2020] First Call for Participation deadline extension
by Maxime St-Pierre 26 Oct '19

26 Oct '19

The @Home committee has decided to extend the deadline for the First Call for Participation from the 27th of October 2019 at 23:59 GMT to the 3rd of November 2019 at 23:59 GMT. Maxime St-Pierre OC Chair RoboCup@Home

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[meetings] Second Call For Papers ICAPS 2020 - Special Track on Human and Robotics
by Luca Iocchi 23 Oct '19

23 Oct '19

*Second Call for Papers: ICAPS 2020 <https://icaps20.icaps-conference.org/>* ICAPS 2020, the 30th International Conference on Automated Planning and Scheduling, will take place in /Nancy, France, June 14-19, 2020/. ICAPS 2020 is part of the ICAPS conference series, the premier forum for exchanging news and research results on theory and applications of intelligent planning and scheduling technology. ICAPS 2020 will feature 5 different tracks: *** *Main Track* (link <https://icaps20.icaps-conference.org/calls/call-for-papers/>) *** *Novel Applications Track* (link <https://icaps20.icaps-conference.org/calls/novel-applications-track/>) *** *Special Track on Human and Robotics* (link <https://icaps20.icaps-conference.org/calls/special-track-on-human-and-robot…>) *** *Special Track on Knowledge Engineering, Integrated Execution, and System Architectures* (link <https://icaps20.icaps-conference.org/calls/special-track-on-knowledge-engin…>) *** *Special Track on Planning and Learning* (link <https://icaps20.icaps-conference.org/calls/special-track-on-learning-and-pl…>) *Important Dates* November 15, 2019 Abstracts due (electronic submission) *November 20, 2019 Papers due* (electronic submission, PDF) January 6-8, 2020 Author feedback period January 20, 2020 Notification of acceptance or rejection The reference timezone for all deadlines is UTC-12. That is, as long as there is still some place anywhere in the world where the deadline has not yet passed, you are on time! *Author Guidelines* Authors may submit *long papers* (8 pages AAAI style plus up to one page of references) or *short papers* (4 pages plus up to one page of references). The type of paper must be indicated at submission time. All papers, regardless of length, will be reviewed against the standard criteria of relevance, originality, significance, clarity, soundness, and are expected to meet the same high standards set by ICAPS. Short papers may be of narrower scope, for example by addressing a highly specific issue, or proposing or evaluating a small, yet important, extension of previous work or new idea. Overlength papers will be rejected without review. Authors making multiple submissions must ensure that each submission has significant unique content. Papers submitted to ICAPS 2020 may not be submitted to other conferences or journals during the ICAPS 2020 review period nor may they be already under review or published in other conferences or journals. We will have an arrangement with ECAI 2020, through which selected papers reviewed by the ICAPS 2020 program committee, instead of being simply rejected, will be transferred (together with their reviews) to the ECAI 2020 program committee for consideration as ECAI2020 submissions, and vice versa. Author’s permission for this transfer will be asked in the submission form. As the ICAPS 2020 notification date falls between the IJCAI 2020 abstract and full paper submission dates, ICAPS allows abstract submission to IJCAI with the expectation that papers accepted to ICAPS will be withdrawn from IJCAI. [Authors are responsible for knowing and following the appropriate IJCAI rules.] *Submission Instructions* All submissions will be made electronically, through the EasyChair conference system: https://www.easychair.org/conferences/?conf=icaps2020 Submitted PDF papers should be anonymous for double-blind reviewing, adhere to the page limits of the relevant track CFP/submission type (long or short), and follow the AAAI author kit instructions for formatting: https://www.aaai.org/Publications/Templates/AuthorKit20.zip In addition to the submitted PDF paper, authors can submit supplementary material (videos, technical proofs, additional experimental results) for their paper. Please make sure that the supporting material is also anonymized. Papers should be self-contained; reviewers are encouraged, but not obligated, to consider supporting material in their decision. *Contact *For inquiries contact: ICAPS2020(a)easychair.org /Shirin Sohrabi// //Erez Karpas// //Chris Beck/ ICAPS 2020 Program Chairs -- This mailing list is about the integration of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics. Messages that pertain to AI alone or to Robotics alone should be posted on other lists. --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "ai-robotics" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to ai-robotics+unsubscribe(a)googlegroups.com <mailto:ai-robotics+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com>. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ai-robotics/be280a8b-c14e-9c9b-63db-b7801… <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ai-robotics/be280a8b-c14e-9c9b-63db-b7801…>.

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Call For Papers ICAPS 2020 - Special Track on Human and Robotics
by Luca Iocchi 09 Oct '19

09 Oct '19

Dear @Home teams, please notice the Special Track on Human and Robotics at ICAPS 2020 that would be a perfect venue for submitting your best research results in decision making for HRI tasks. Although the deadline is quite short, we hope to receive several contributions from RoboCup@Home community. Do not hesitate to contact me if you have any question. Best regards, Luca. *Call for Papers: ICAPS 2020 <https://icaps20.icaps-conference.org/>* ICAPS 2020, the 30th International Conference on Automated Planning and Scheduling, will take place in /Nancy, France, June 14-19, 2020/. ICAPS 2020 is part of the ICAPS conference series, the premier forum for exchanging news and research results on theory and applications of intelligent planning and scheduling technology. ICAPS 2020 will feature 5 different tracks: *** *Main Track* (link <https://icaps20.icaps-conference.org/calls/call-for-papers/>) *** *Novel Applications Track* (link <https://icaps20.icaps-conference.org/calls/novel-applications-track/>) *** *Special Track on Human and Robotics* (link <https://icaps20.icaps-conference.org/calls/special-track-on-human-and-robot…>) *** *Special Track on Knowledge Engineering, Integrated Execution, and System Architectures* (link <https://icaps20.icaps-conference.org/calls/special-track-on-knowledge-engin…>) *** *Special Track on Planning and Learning* (link <https://icaps20.icaps-conference.org/calls/special-track-on-learning-and-pl…>) *Important Dates* November 15, 2019 Abstracts due (electronic submission) *November 20, 2019 Papers due* (electronic submission, PDF) January 6-8, 2020 Author feedback period January 20, 2020 Notification of acceptance or rejection The reference timezone for all deadlines is UTC-12. That is, as long as there is still some place anywhere in the world where the deadline has not yet passed, you are on time! *Author Guidelines* Authors may submit *long papers* (8 pages AAAI style plus up to one page of references) or *short papers* (4 pages plus up to one page of references). The type of paper must be indicated at submission time. All papers, regardless of length, will be reviewed against the standard criteria of relevance, originality, significance, clarity, soundness, and are expected to meet the same high standards set by ICAPS. Short papers may be of narrower scope, for example by addressing a highly specific issue, or proposing or evaluating a small, yet important, extension of previous work or new idea. Overlength papers will be rejected without review. Authors making multiple submissions must ensure that each submission has significant unique content. Papers submitted to ICAPS 2020 may not be submitted to other conferences or journals during the ICAPS 2020 review period nor may they be already under review or published in other conferences or journals. We will have an arrangement with ECAI 2020, through which selected papers reviewed by the ICAPS 2020 program committee, instead of being simply rejected, will be transferred (together with their reviews) to the ECAI 2020 program committee for consideration as ECAI2020 submissions, and vice versa. Author’s permission for this transfer will be asked in the submission form. As the ICAPS 2020 notification date falls between the IJCAI 2020 abstract and full paper submission dates, ICAPS allows abstract submission to IJCAI with the expectation that papers accepted to ICAPS will be withdrawn from IJCAI. [Authors are responsible for knowing and following the appropriate IJCAI rules.] *Submission Instructions* All submissions will be made electronically, through the EasyChair conference system: https://www.easychair.org/conferences/?conf=icaps2020 Submitted PDF papers should be anonymous for double-blind reviewing, adhere to the page limits of the relevant track CFP/submission type (long or short), and follow the AAAI author kit instructions for formatting: https://www.aaai.org/Publications/Templates/AuthorKit20.zip In addition to the submitted PDF paper, authors can submit supplementary material (videos, technical proofs, additional experimental results) for their paper. Please make sure that the supporting material is also anonymized. Papers should be self-contained; reviewers are encouraged, but not obligated, to consider supporting material in their decision. *Contact *For inquiries contact: ICAPS2020(a)easychair.org /Shirin Sohrabi// //Erez Karpas// //Chris Beck/ ICAPS 2020 Program Chairs -- This mailing list is about the integration of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics. Messages that pertain to AI alone or to Robotics alone should be posted on other lists. --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "ai-robotics" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to ai-robotics+unsubscribe(a)googlegroups.com <mailto:ai-robotics+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com>. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ai-robotics/41567fc3-25bd-0034-01bc-0495c… <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ai-robotics/41567fc3-25bd-0034-01bc-0495c…>.

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[@Home2020] Call for Participation (DSPL · OPL · SSPL)
by Maxime St-Pierre 04 Oct '19

04 Oct '19

First Call for Participation RoboCup at Home 2020 (DSPL · OPL · SSPL) June 23 - June 29, 2020 (Bordeaux, France) https://athome.robocup.org/ https://github.com/RoboCupAtHome/RuleBook RoboCup is an international scientific initiative with the goal to advance the state of the art of intelligent robots through competitions (RoboCup at Home, RoboCup Soccer, RoboCup Rescue, RoboCup at Work and RoboCup Junior). The RoboCup at Home league aims to develop service and assistive robot technology with high relevance for future personal domestic applications. It is the largest international annual competition for autonomous service robots and is part of the RoboCup initiative. A set of benchmark tests is used to evaluate the robots' abilities and performance in a realistic home environment setting. Focus lies on the following domains but is not limited to: Human-Robot-Interaction and Cooperation, Navigation and Mapping in dynamic environments, Computer Vision and Object Recognition under natural light conditions, Object Manipulation, Adaptive Behaviors, Behavior Integration, Ambient Intelligence, Standardization and System Integration. Note for experienced participants: Included in the Rulebook is a standard object list. This message describes the preregistration and qualification procedure for RoboCup at Home League 2020. Important dates: Oct. 4, 2019 Publication of the Call for Participation Oct. 27, 2019 Deadline for submission of qualification material and preregistration. (Team Description Paper, Team Video, Team Website). Nov. 15, 2019 Qualification announcement Jan. 19, 2020 Deadline for Participation Confirmation The qualification procedure consists of the following steps: Step 1) Qualification Material Submission (mandatory) ===================================================== The team ****MUST**** send an email to the Organizing Committee (oc atrobocupathome.org <http://robocupathome.org> <http://robocupathome.org>) to participate in the qualification process for the RoboCup at Home 2020 event. Please fill in the following information: Team Name: League: [ DSPL | OPL | SSPL ] Country: Affiliation: Team Leader Name: Contact information (E-mail): Rank in local tournaments: Link to a team video: Link to a team web site devoted to their efforts: Team Description Paper (TDP) attached to the email based on the official template. The email subject should be: [@Home2020-Qualification] (YourTeamName) Considerations: - Only one platform can be specified per team. - Only one team leader can be specified per team. - Only one team video url can be specified per team. - Only one contact email can be specified per team. - All the publications and software to be evaluated for qualification ***MUST*** be in the team's website. - The email must be encoded in UTF-8 using only the ISO-8859-1 character set. ***** Deadline: Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019 23:59 GMT ****** Step 2) Participation confirmation (mandatory) ============================================== All qualified teams ****MUST**** send an email to the Organizing Committee (oc at robocupathome.org <http://robocupathome.org> <http://robocupathome.org>) to confirm (or cancel) their participation in the RoboCup at Home 2020 event. Confirming attendance implies that the team has sufficient resources to register, and commits to attend to the event. To confirm participation, please fill in the following information: Team Name: League: [ DSPL | OPL | SSPL ] Country: Hereby [Team Name] of [Country] [confirms | forfeits] participation in the the RoboCup at Home [League]. The email subject should be: [@Home2020-Confirmation] (YourTeamName) Remark: Qualified teams who miss the participation confirmation will be disqualified automatically and the participation slots freed for the Second Call for Participation. ***** Deadline: Sunday, Jan. 19, 2020 23:59 GMT ****** Step 3) Robot Acquisition (Standard Platform Leagues): ====================================================== Qualified Teams must contact the supplier as soon as the Qualification Notification arrives to start the acquisition procedure. Teams selected to receive Standard-Platform robots have to make an agreement with the supplier in compliance with the supplier's instructions. The suppliers are not allowed to sell, export, lease and/or ship their products to natural or legal persons and to entities and countries which are subject to international sanctions or prohibitions. Since Selection Committee cannot answer this issue, please ask the supplier directly. Remark: Failing to acquire a Standard-Platform will void the qualification of the SSPL/DSPL. It won't not possible for SSPL/DSPL to change to OPL. Instructions for the Qualification Material =========================================== Instructions for the Team Video ------------------------------- In order to prove a running hardware, each team has to provide a qualification video. As a minimum requirement for qualification, the video must show the robot(s) successfully solving a task involving the integration of at least 5 different abilities, such as: environmental reasoning, high-level task planning, human-robot interaction, localization, manipulation, object recognition, people recognition, etc. It is Highly Recommend to show at least one Stage 2 test of the current or last year's rulebook. Remarks: - The shown task execution must look continuous, smooth, and robust. - When speeding-up video, the speed factor must be indicated. - The language spoken and shown in the video must be English. When using any other languages, translations must be included. - We will only accept Youtube Video or a direct download link that has no country protection - Videos sent will be uploaded/displayed in the league's youtube channelhttp://www.youtube.com/channel/UChkdCpT0xrFMMt-_N8wSVew/playlists - *Standard Platforms Only:* New teams are allowed to use any robot in the Team Video. However, using the standard platform one is advised. Copyright note: When sending videos for qualification, teams implicitly grant permission to RoboCup @Home and the RoboCup Federation to copy, modify, distribute, upload, publish, and use the multimedia material to promote the event and the league at convenience. Instructions for the TDP ------------------------ The TDP is an 8-pages long scientific paper, detailing information on the technical and scientific approach of the team's research, while including also the following: - TDP - Group's research focus and interests. - Innovative technology and scientific contribution - Please specify when your research is being used by other teams or research groups. - Please specify when you are using software from other teams. - Brief, general description of the system when solving a [domestic] task (applicability in the real world) - The impact of your research must be clearly visible - Maximum length is *8 pages* (including figures and citations). - Annex - Photo(s) of the robot - Brief, compact list of the 3rd party robot's software (e.g. MoveIt/YOLO should be included, but not OpenCV.). - Brief, compact description of all external computing devices, if any. - Brief, compact description of the robot's hardware (OPL Only). - Please mark with an asterisk home-made software solutions. - Annex should be appended after the References. - There is no page limit for annex, but a maximum of one page is strongly encouraged. - TDP length is ****8 pages + annex**** (any submissions over this length will be disqualified). - DSPL and SSPL: The robot depicted in the TDP or Team Video must be the league's standard one. For the TDP, please use the Springer LNAI format<http://www.springer.com/computer/lncs?SGWID=0-164-6-793341-0> <http://www.springer.com/computer/lncs?SGWID=0-164-6-793341-0> used in the RoboCup Symposium submissions and limit yourself to 8 pages without altering margins or spacing (including references but excluding the annex). You may download a template for the TDP fromhttps://github.com/RoboCupAtHome/TDPTemplate. Remark: The language for the TDP, its graphics, tables, images, and all additional content must be English. Content in other languages must be translated. Copyright note: All TDPs sent for qualification may be made publicly available in the RoboCup @Home Wiki for further reference. On submitting, teams implicitly grant permission to RoboCup @Home and the RoboCup Federation to copy, distribute, upload, publish, and use the manuscript to promote the event and the league at convenience. ***** Exceeding the number of pages will automatically void your application ***** Instructions for the Web site ----------------------------- While the TDP goes into detail about the technical and scientific approach of the team's research, the website should be designed for a broader audience, including: - Photos of the robot(s) - Videos of the robot(s) - Description of the approaches and information on scientific achievements - Relevant publications (last 5 years, preferably available to download) - Link to repositories with software for the community - Team members - Previous participation in RoboCup - Participation and rankings in local RoboCup tournaments Remark: No IP addresses will be accepted as website. Remark: Only documented active software repositories are considered as contributions to the league. It must be clear and straightforward to other teams how to use your software. Qualification and evaluation criteria: -------------------------------------- In this first Call for Participation, up to 8 teams per league can be assigned a participation slot. In order to qualify, a team must meet the minimum selection requirements approved by the Executive Committee. However, meeting the minimum requirements won't automatically grant a participation slot. Only the top 8 teams meeting the selection criteria will qualify for participation. Rejections are strongly advised to improve their qualification materials and apply in the second CFP. Qualification materials will be judged by the following criteria: - Team description paper (clarity, completeness, innovation (scientific contributions), re-usability by the league, applicability in real world) - Performance in local tournaments and previous competitions. - Qualification Video (number of demonstrated abilities, integration, difficulty of the task, applicability in real world) - Website (multimedia, publications from the last 5 years, downloadable content, open-source software and other contributions) - Relevant Scientific contribution/publications (downloadable papers and open-source software) - Novelty of approach (what you do is new for @Home) We encourage teams to produce self-explicative videos for a general audience where complex tasks are solved. For Team Description Papers focus on the scientific contribution and avoid brief descriptions of the overall system. With kind regards, and looking forward to seeing your team in Bordeaux, The 2020 RoboCup@Home Organizing and Technical Committees _______________________________________________ robocup-athome mailing listrobocup-athome@lists.robocup.orghttp://lists.robocup.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/robocup-athome

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