September 2023 - RoboCup-worldwide

ISAIM 2024: Second Call for Papers
by Diochnos, Dimitrios 29 Sep '23

29 Sep '23

SECOND CALL FOR PAPERS Eighteenth International Symposium on ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE and MATHEMATICS ISAIM 2024 https://isaim2024.cs.ou.edu/ January 8-10, 2024 Fort Lauderdale, Florida PAPER SUBMISSION DEADLINE: Monday, October 9, 2023 The International Symposium on Artificial Intelligence and Mathematics (ISAIM) is a biennial meeting that fosters interactions between mathematics, theoretical computer science, and artificial intelligence. This is the fifteenth Symposium in the series, which is sponsored by Annals of Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence. We seek submissions of recent results with a particular emphasis on the foundations of AI and mathematical methods used in AI. Papers describing applications are also encouraged, but the focus should be on principled lessons learned from the development of the application. Traditionally, the Symposium attracts participants from a variety of disciplines, thereby providing a unique forum for scientific exchange. The three-day Symposium includes invited speakers, presentations of technical papers, and special topic sessions. SPECIAL TOPIC INVITED SESSIONS: o Boolean and pseudo-Boolean Functions -Organized by Endre Boros, Rutgers University, and Yves Crama, University of Liege o Alternative Models for Fairness in AI -Organizers: John Hooker, Tae Wan Kim, and Derek Leben, Carnegie Mellon University o Deep Reinforcement Learning Workshop: Bridging Theory and Practice -Organized by Abhishek Gupta, University of Washington, and Zhaorang Wang, Northwestern University PAPER SUBMISSION: Paper submission will be electronic via the submission link to OpenReview on the Paper Submission page of the Symposium website (https://isaim2024.cs.ou.edu/). Papers must be formatted in accordance with the guidelines given there. The site will start accepting submissions on October 1st, 2023. The submission deadline is Tuesday, October 9, 2023 (11:59PM PDT). Papers will be reviewed by members of the Program Committee. Authors will be notified of acceptance or rejection by Wednesday, November 8, 2023. Final versions of accepted papers, for inclusion in the conference electronic proceedings, are due by Wednesday, November 29, 2023. Work that will have been published as of January 2024 should not be submitted to ISAIM unless it introduces a significant addition to the previously published work. However, the ISAIM web site proceedings are not archival, so papers submitted to ISAIM can be under review at the time of submission and can be submitted elsewhere after ISAIM. Authors of a selected set of papers from the Symposium will be invited to submit full versions of their papers for inclusion in a special volume of the Annals of Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence, published by Springer. Those invited submissions will be subject to refereeing at the usual standards of the journal, and authors will receive more details with the acceptance notice. Papers must of course be new and unpublished to be considered for the special volume. Any questions regarding paper submission should be sent to the Program Committee Chairs (Claudio Gentile and Aldo Pacchiano) at the email address <isaim-l(a)lists.ou.edu>. IMPORTANT DATES: Paper submission: Tuesday, October 9, 2023 Notification: Wednesday, November 8, 2023 Final version due: Wednesday, November 29, 2023 Workshop: January 8-10, 2024, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida ORGANIZERS: o General Chair: Martin Charles Golumbic, University of Haifa o Conference Chair: Frederick Hoffman, Florida Atlantic University o Program Committee Chairs: Claudio Gentile, Google Research, New York Aldo Pacchiano, Boston University o Local Organizer: Maria Provost, Florida Atlantic University o Publications & Publicity Chair: Dimitrios I. Diochnos, University of Oklahoma Join isaim(a)googlegroups.com to receive announcements related to ISAIM.

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[jobs] Fully funded robotics Ph.D. positions in Fall 2023 at George Mason University
by Xuesu Xiao 25 Sep '23

25 Sep '23

Dear roboticists, the RobotiXX lab at the Department of Computer Science, George Mason University in the Washington, D.C. area (https://www2.gmu.edu/), is looking for self-motivated Ph.D. students in the area of robotics starting Fall 2024. The candidates will be supported with full tuition and stipends. At RobotiXX lab, we perform robotics research at the intersection of motion planning and machine learning, with a specific focus on deployable field robotics. Any candidate with relevant experience in robotics, motion planning, and machine learning is encouraged to apply. Hands-on knowledge in robotics hardware, field experience, and a good publication record is strongly preferred. The selected candidates will conduct independent research to develop highly capable and intelligent mobile robots that are robustly deployable in the real world with minimal human supervision, and publish papers in top-tier robotics conferences and journals. To apply, please visit George Mason University's admission website (https://www2.gmu.edu/admissions-aid) and send a single PDF of the following documents to Dr. Xuesu Xiao, Assistant Professor (xiao(a)gmu.edu<mailto:xiao@gmu.edu>): 1. cover letter, 2. curriculum vitae, 3. transcript, 4. three references, 5. relevant publications, 6. other relevant materials, with the subject line “[jobs] YOUR AFFILIATION - YOUR NAME”. For more information, please see the lab’s website (https://cs.gmu.edu/~xiao/RobotiXX/lab.html), research statement (https://cs.gmu.edu/~xiao/xuesu_website_files/Research_Statement.pdf), and YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCePdJzWg35eml4WRGkX3GQ/videos). Thanks Xuesu Xiao ----------------------- Xuesu Xiao, Ph.D. -- Assistant Professor Department of Computer Science George Mason University xiao(a)gmu.edu https://cs.gmu.edu/~xiao/

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[meetings] [news]CfP [Extended Abstract]:Multi-Robot and Multi-Agent Systems Symposium 2023
by Rohan Chandra 25 Sep '23

25 Sep '23

Hello, MRS 2023 will be held on December 4 -5, 2023, in-person at Boston University in Boston, MA, USA. We invite submissions of four (4) page extended abstracts. Accepted submissions will be presented at posters during the MRS 2023 conference sessions, but will not appear in the conference proceedings. It is expected that the authors of accepted extended abstracts will attend MRS2023 in-person to present their posters. *Abstract Submission Deadline:* October 10, 2023 23:59:59 Pacific Time. To submit an abstract, please visit *https://ras.papercept.net/conferences/scripts/start.pl <https://ras.papercept.net/conferences/scripts/start.pl>* and choose MRS 2023, and follow the instructions there. *Topics of Interest* Abstracts on any research related to multi-robot and multi-agent systems will be considered. The topics of interest include the following general fields, but are not limited to: - Modeling and Control - Discrete Planning, Routing, Multi-Robot Path Finding, Task Assignment - Distributed Optimization and Distributed Algorithms - Nonlinear Control, Lyapunov Methods, Optimal Control - Continuous Planning, Trajectory Optimization, Informative Planning - Deep Learning, Reinforcement Learning, General Learning, General AI - Distributed Perception, Vision, Mapping, SLAM - Estimation, Filtering, Bayesian Methods, Target Tracking - Robustness, Formal Methods, Network Resilience - Human Multi-Robot Interaction - Micro/Nano Scale Systems - Bio-Inspired Systems and Swarm Intelligence *Abstract Format*The page limit for each abstract submission is four (4) pages, following the IEEE two-column conference template. The entirety of the paper material, including references, must fit into 4 pages, i.e., text, figures, tables, acknowledgements, etc. Abstracts exceeding this 4-page limit will be returned without review. Accepted abstract submissions will be invited to be part of the poster sessions at the conference venue. Submissions are single blind: names of the authors should appear in the first page of the paper. All papers must be in English and submitted in PDF format. Please see https://sites.bu.edu/mrs2023/contribute/call-for-extended-abstracts/ for fomatting guidelines and templates. *Submission of Material Under Review*We invite authors to submit material that has not yet been accepted for publication. Material that is currently under review may be submitted in a modified form as an extended abstract. Similarly, work that has been presented at other workshops, but not appeared in the proceedings, is also welcome. These requirements should not be construed as overriding the requirements of other publishing venues. *About the Conference (*https://sites.bu.edu/mrs2023/) The goal of the conference is to bring together researchers who are in the field of multi-robot systems (MRS) and multi-agent systems (MAS). Typically, MRS/MAS research is spread across large conferences, and this makes it difficult for us to keep up to date on new findings and meet others in the area. The intent of this conference is to bring those researchers together with a high-quality symposium to highlight the very best in the field. Previous iterations include MRS 2017 (Los Angeles, CA, USA), MRS 2019 (New Brunswick, NJ, USA), and MRS 2021 (Cambridge, UK). General Chairs Christopher Amato, Northeastern University, USA Nora Ayanian, Brown University, USA Alyssa Pierson, Boston University, USA Program Chair Lorenzo Sabattini, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy Finance Chair Roberto Tron, Boston University, USA Sponsorship Chair Kevin Leahy, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, USA Publicity and Social Media Chair Rohan Chandra, University of Texas at Austin, USA

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�[jobs] Robotics Faculty Positions - The University of Texas at Austin
by Peter Stone 24 Sep '23

24 Sep '23

Dear Colleagues, Texas Robotics at the University of Texas at Austin invites applications for tenure-track faculty positions. Outstanding candidates in all areas of Robotics will be considered. Tenure-track positions require a Ph.D. or equivalent degree in a relevant area at the time of employment. Successful candidates are expected to pursue an active research program, to teach both graduate and undergraduate courses, and to supervise students in research. The University is fully committed to building a world-class faculty and we welcome candidates who resonate with our core values of learning, discovery, freedom, leadership, individual opportunity, and responsibility. Candidates who are committed to broadening participation in robotics, at all levels, are strongly encouraged.� The current robotics faculty includes representatives from several departments who work to advance fundamental scientific and engineering knowledge in areas such as intelligent navigation and manipulation, robot learning, multi-robot systems, and human-robot interaction, as well as on numerous applications including social, rehabilitation, surgery, autonomous vehicles, manufacturing, space, nuclear, and defense. Full details on our program are available at http://robotics.utexas.edu. The group recently moved into a custom-renovated historic building at the center of campus. To be considered for a position, please apply to one or more of the following departments: �- Computer Science: https://www.cs.utexas.edu/faculty/recruiting� �- Mechanical Engineering:�https://me.utexas.edu/people/faculty-jobs In addition, to ensure that your application is connected with the robotics search, please send your cover letter and CV, along with an indication of what positions you applied for to: faculty_jobs_robotics(a)utlists.utexas.edu Please note, this list is used for data collection purposes and inquires may not be monitored.� Complete applications to either of the above departments that meet the corresponding deadline will be considered. Robotics applications will be reviewed as they are received. Applicants are encouraged to apply as soon as possible for full consideration. ___ Professor Peter Stone Truchard Foundation Chair in Computer Science University Distinguished Teaching Professor Director, Texas Robotics Associate Chair, Department of Computer Science office: 512-471-9796 The University of Texas at Austin mobile: 512-810-3373 2317 Speedway, Stop D9500 pstone(a)cs.utexas.edu Austin, Texas 78712-1757 USA http://www.cs.utexas.edu/~pstone

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[Meetings] CoRL 2023 -- Workshop on Robot Learning in Athletics (RoboLetics)
by Zaidi, Zulfiqar Haider 22 Sep '23

22 Sep '23

Hi All, Please see the Call for Workshop Papers and Demonstrations below! Full-Day Workshop on Nov 06 at CoRL 2023 RoboLetics (Workshop on Robot Learning in Athletics) URL: https://sites.google.com/view/roboletics/home Important Dates * Submission deadline: 1st October, 2023 (Anywhere on Earth) * Author notification: 22nd October, 2023 * Workshop date: 6th November, 2023 Abstract: The workshop aims to explore the latest innovations and challenges in developing agile robotic systems with athletic behaviors, with a specific focus on leveraging learning techniques. Sports provide an ideal testbed for advancing robotic technology due to their demanding requirements of agility, autonomy, and precision. By addressing the unique challenges posed by sports applications, such as real-time control, dynamic adaptation, and intelligent game strategies, we can push the boundaries of robotic performance. The workshop will cover a wide range of vital topics including enhancing athletic behaviors through learning, improving real-time control in dynamic environments, overcoming challenges in deploying real-time machine learning systems, developing intelligent game strategies, and fostering interdisciplinary collaborations. By incorporating video demonstrations and various presentation formats, the workshop aims to facilitate knowledge exchange, inspire collaboration, and drive advancements in the integration of learning techniques in athletic robotics. The workshop is designed to engage a diverse audience from robotics, machine learning, sports science, and related disciplines, fostering interdisciplinary discussions and unlocking new possibilities for athletic and intelligent robotic systems. Call for Papers and Video Demonstrations We invite researchers to submit their contributions to the workshop in the form of short papers (2 pages) accompanied by video demonstrations or standalone papers (4 pages). These submissions should align with the workshop's topics of interest and will serve as a basis for initiating discussions during the event. Accepted papers will be presented as posters, presentations, and videos, and with the authors' permission, they will be published on the workshop website. Topics of Interest include: * Systems design enabling the learning of athletic behaviors in robots * Learning-based real-time controllers and planners for athletic movements * Safety frameworks for athletic robots * Sensing and state estimation under time and compute constraints with incomplete and imperfect knowledge of the world * Communication systems for robotic team sports * Synthesizing strategies for sports-playing robots * Human-robot collaboration for athletic and agile robots We encourage submissions that demonstrate and benchmark their approaches on sports-related applications such as table tennis, tennis, soccer, air hockey, and others. Invited Speakers Our workshop is privileged to host an exceptional lineup of speakers and panelists representing academia, industry, and athletics. Confirmed speakers include: * Jan Peters (TU Darmstadt) * Scott Kuindersma (Boston Dynamics) * Tuomas Haarnoja (Google Deepmind) * Soon Jo-Chung (Caltech, NASA JPL) * Koushil Sreenath (UC Berkeley) * Cassie Mitchel (Georgia Tech) * Davide Scaramuzza (ETH Zurich) * Laura Graesser (Google Robotics) * David D'Ambrosio (Google Robotics) Their expertise and contributions promise to make the workshop a truly enriching and insightful experience for all participants. Workshop Format The workshop will run in-person attendants and presenters. The accepted papers and demonstrations will be used to initiate discussion on the topics during the workshop and will be presented as both posters and presentations. Papers and video demonstrations will be published on the Workshop website with the authors’ permission. Submission Instructions Authors can submit demo papers of 2 pages accompanied with videos or 4 pages standalone contributions. All papers must be submitted in PDF and must follow the CoRL format. Templates are available here<https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Ksqw_9OMiCKEiGmoaqn3QCuqcRpgtZ5a/view>. All papers will be peer-reviewed (double-blind). Both unpublished original contributions and previously published work may be submitted. All submissions will be made electronically through the Openreview conference system following this link: https://openreview.net/group?id=robot-learning.org/CoRL/2023/Workshop/RoboL… Organizers * Matthew Gombolay, Georgia Institute of Technology * Alessandra Rossi, University of Naples Federico II * Rohan Paleja, Georgia Institute of Technology * Zulfiqar Zaidi, Georgia Institute of Technology * Georgios Angelopoulos, University of Naples Federico II * Kin Man Lee, Georgia Institute of Technology Contacts All questions about submissions should be emailed to any of the following people: * Zulfiqar Haider Zaidi (email: zzaidi8(a)gatech.edu<mailto:zzaidi8@gatech.edu>) * Rohan Paleja (email: rpaleja3(a)gatech.edu<mailto:rpaleja3@gatech.edu>) Zulfiqar Zaidi, Robotics Ph.D. Student Georgia Institute of Technology

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[meetings][CFP][ICSR 2023] CALL FOR WORKSHOPS AND TUTORIALS PROPOSALS
by Alessandra Rossi 19 Sep '23

19 Sep '23

******************** Apologies for cross-posting ******************** [image: image.png] *International Conference on Social Robotics* December 4-7, 2023, Doha, Qatar https://icsr23.qa IG: @icsr23_qa Twitter: @icsr23_qa Facebook: @icsr2023 ============================================================================== *** *CALL FOR WORKSHOPS AND TUTORIALS**** The ICSR 2023 Organising Committee invites proposals for *Workshops* *and** Tutorials* to be held during the 15th International Conference of Social Robotics in Doha, Qatar, from 4 to 7 December 2023. The ICSR conference is a leading forum where state-of-the-art innovative results, the latest developments and future perspectives that are relating to robot and human interactions are presented and discussed. The conference welcomes original contributions describing technically rigorous scientific and research advances in the area of social robotics and AI: innovative ideas and concepts, new discoveries and improvements, novel applications on the latest fundamental advances in the core technologies that form the backbone of social robotics and distinguished studies and projects pertaining social robotics and its interaction and impact in our society. The theme of this year’s conference is “*Human-Robot Collaboration: Sea, Air, Land, Space and Cyberspace*”. The theme emphasizes on all physical and cyber-physical domains where humans and robots collaborate. *PROPOSAL SUBMISSION DEADLINES* Deadline: *October 13, 2023* *WORKSHOPS/TUTORIALS PROPOSALS* Participants are invited to hold workshops on topics relevant to social robotics. We particularly welcome creative, innovative and interactive workshop formats that focus on areas of active research to generate significant discussion and exchange of ideas between participants, as well as interactions between established experts and early-career researchers. We encourage state-of-the-art programs with high level of interest, impact, creativity and innovation that will attract a broad and active audience. Workshops focusing on academia-industry partnership and technology transfer of robotics research are also welcome, with the aim of making connections to fields outside of robotics and/or connect academia to industry. Organisers of approved workshops and tutorials will be asked to create and maintain a dedicated webpage, which will be used to promote the workshop/tutorial, and disseminate relevant and updated information. Proposals should include the following information: ● *Title* ● *Workshop duration:* indicate full or half day ● *Workshop format*: online, hybrid, or on-site, and tutorial or workshop ● *Organisers:* name, affiliation and email of the members of your committee ● *Workshop description and objectives:* concise description of the content and objectives of the workshop/tutorial ● *Intended audience and Plan to solicit participation: *describe the intended workshop/tutorial audience, how you plan to solicit participation: (i) ahead of the workshop/tutorial to generate submission and (ii) within the workshop/tutorial in encouraging discussions and exchanges between participants ● *List of topics: * a bullet list of the topics of interest that will be covered by the workshop/tutorial ● *List of invited speakers: *list of any invited speakers (if applicable) ● *Additional information: *any relevant information that could not be captured by the previous sections (e.g. previous workshop organisation) The primary criteria in the evaluation of workshop and tutorial proposals will be the timeliness of the topics, the quality, track record, anticipated level of interest, impact, novelty or creativity, and technical background of the presenters. Submissions should be PDF documents of no more than 3 pages, and they should be sent by email to *icsr23(a)qu.edu.qa* <icsr23(a)qu.edu.qa> *FUNDING PROGRAMS FOR COLLABORATION * The ICSR Workshops and Tutorials are ideal venues for attendees to discuss and exchange ideas that can result into proposals that can be submitted to the programs of Qatar Research, Development, and Innovation (QRDI) Council for potential funding. Here are some of QRDI’s programs. *Qatar Open Innovation* The Qatar Open Innovation (QOI) program connects strategic entities within Qatar (Opportunity Owners), such as government agencies and large local enterprises with a global pool of innovators and technical experts. Innovators stand to obtain funding of up to USD 100,000 to develop, pilot and test their prototypes in collaboration with a strategic entity in Qatar. Through the program, innovators also gain access to new markets, and can obtain support in establishing their business in Qatar or forming official partnerships to help launch or expand their ventures. More details here: https://connect.qrdi.org.qa/innovation/p *Academic Research Grants* ARG is designed to support investigator-led R&D aimed at generating new knowledge and furthering scientific understanding in topics broadly aligned with any of the national RDI priority areas available at (link <https://qrdi.org.qa/en-us/QRDI2030#National-Priorities>). Furthermore, it aims to enhance Qatar’s reputation and contributions to the global stock of knowledge and contribute to the enhancement of capabilities of the research talent pool. Awarded funding budgets are QAR 900,000 (USD 246,561) per year, up to 3 years. At least 80% of the total annual budget and 65% of the effort should be expended inside Qatar. More details here: https://connect.qrdi.org.qa/scientific-research/p/opportunities/p/19

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Call for proposals: RCF and MathWorks Support for Research Projects 2024
by Gerald Steinbauer-Wagner 19 Sep '23

19 Sep '23

Call for proposals: RCF and MathWorks Support for Research Projects 2024 The RoboCup Federation (RCF) and MathWorks, a Global Sponsor of RoboCup, are pleased to announce this call for proposals to support research projects in RoboCup. RCF-MathWorks Support for Research Projects 2024 aims at funding robotics research projects that use MATLAB and Simulink software. The goal is to enable collaboration between RoboCup researchers and MathWorks engineers to foster progress of RoboCup and its leagues. For more info or clarification on the details of this call, please contact info(a)robocup.org or roboticsarena(a)mathworks.com Proposal Requirements Proposals in this category must meet *ALL* of the following requirements: 1. Work must be associated with one or more of the research topics listed below. 2. Work must primarily utilize MathWorks software such as MATLAB, Simulink, Stateflow, and other add-on products. Preference may be given if using one or more of the development methods listed below. 3. Project team will be assigned MathWorks contacts, and must arrange and participate in at least 3 progress check-in meetings with them during the course of the project. The team is encouraged to reach out to their MathWorks contacts whenever they have questions. 4. Final deliverables shall be posted publicly after review by MathWorks contacts. Research Topics 1. Navigation and Planning   a. Motion planning and collidion avoidance for manipulators and mobile Robots   b. Motion planning and collision avoidance for humanoid robots 2. Perception and Sensor Fusion   a. Object detection and tracking   b. Lidar and vision-based SLAM   c. Point cloud processing   d. Sensor fusion for pose estimation and localization 3. Control Systems   a. Control of humanoid robots   b. Hybrid systems and behavior   c. Multi-agent systems   d. Robot manipulation and grasping 4. Human-Robot Interaction (HRI)   a. Natural language processing   b. Signal and audio processing 5. Applied Learning-Based Techniques For any of the above topics (Navigation, Perception, Controls, HRI) Development Methods 1. Development tools   a. User interfaces and Web applications   b. Hardware initialization and calibration tools 2. Modeling and simulation   a. Model-based design of software components   b. Physical system simulation and design   c. Behavior modeling: finite-state machines, behavior trees, etc.   d. Multi-agent simulation 3. Embedded systems   a. Implementation to reduce memory, power consumption, etc.   b. Targeting microcontrollers, FPGAs, and GPUs   c. Real-time and hardware-in-the-loop simulation 4. Interfaces to standard platforms   a. Robots, e.g., Toyota, SoftBank, FESTO   b. Software frameworks, e.g., ROS   Support Support will be given as a gift between 5,000 and 10,000 USD depending on quantity and quality of accepted proposals in this category. Teams will be notified of the exact amount awarded upon their proposal being accepted. Funding will be provided directly by RCF after the RoboCup Symposium 2024 if the research and deliverables are completed in a satisfactory manner. Submission A single PDF file should be submitted through the easychair system https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=rcfsupport2024. under the Category: RCF and MathWorks Support for Research Projects 2024 The proposal (MAX 6 pages) must include: 1. description of the project, 2. motivations and goals, 3. intended use of MATLAB and/or Simulink software, 4. benefits for RoboCup and for the RoboCup League (not for a single or a few teams), 5. implementation plan and budget. Evaluation Application materials will be evaluated by a committee of RoboCup Trustees and MathWorks engineers. The evaluation of the proposals will be based on (i) the quality of the proposed research; (ii) the research contributions of the applicants, particularly in relation to RoboCup; (iii) the usage of MATLAB and/or Simulink software; and (iv) the impact of the proposed plan on the advancement and visibility of RoboCup. A limited number of awards is expected to be assigned. Deadlines Submission Deadline:   November 10th, 2023 Notification:   November 17th, 2023 Completion of the action: Preliminary work expected to be presented during the RoboCup 2024 Research Symposium, and official content publication by October 2024 Exceptions to this rule must be submitted for approval to the evaluation committee. ** For more information about the call for projects, please contact: info [at] robocup.org **

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Call for proposals: RCF Project Support 2024
by Gerald Steinbauer-Wagner 19 Sep '23

19 Sep '23

Call for proposals: RCF Project Support 2024 The RoboCup Federation (RCF) is pleased to announce this call for proposals to support activities for promoting the development of RoboCup Leagues. RCF Project Support aims at funding activities for the development of the RoboCup Leagues or the promotion of RoboCup in general. The main goal of these projects is to research and develop activities that support significant advancements of the RoboCup leagues and/or the RoboCup community which are difficult to achieve otherwise. This includes support for short-term visits for a collaboration between teams (e.g. joint team development, integration of research agendas) and/or RoboCup camps on special or novel topics. This year the RCF particularly encourages proposals in the following areas: Human-Robot-Interaction (HRI), any type interaction of a human with a robot within one of the RoboCup leagues Low-Cost Standard Robots, any ideas to lower the entry bar to a RoboCup league or to allow to scale the number of robots in a team Unified Game Controllers, development of game controllers that can be shared between RoboCup leagues easily and with minor re-configuration Data Sets from Competitions, any concept for automated collecting and annotating data (i.e. ground truth) from competitions in order to support statistical analysis or machine learning Support Support will be provided in the form of reimbursement upon receipts of direct expenses (e.g., hardware devices or costs for organization of events) or of a grant for the applicants. In case of hardware acquisition, it must be specified how the league (e.g. other teams) will benefit from this hardware. A detailed list of expenses must be described in the proposal. Funds from RCF are limited, partial funding may be also considered. Submission A single PDF file should be submitted through the easychair system https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=rcfsupport2024 under the Category: Projects for League Developments The proposal (MAX 4 pages) must include: 1. description of the project, 2. motivations and goals, 3. benefits for RoboCup and RoboCup leagues (not for a single or a few teams), 4. implementation plan and budget. Evaluation Application materials will be evaluated by a committee of RoboCup Trustees or RoboCup Exec members. The evaluation of the proposals will be based on (i) the quality of the proposed research; (ii) the research contributions of the applicants, particularly in relation to RoboCup; and (iii) the impact of the proposed plan on the advancement and visibility of RoboCup (e.g. high ranked publications). A limited number of awards is expected to be assigned. Deadlines Submission Deadline: November 10th, 2023 Notification: November 17th, 2023 Completion of the project: Preliminary work expected to be presented during the RoboCup Symposium 2024, the project needs to be finished by end of 2024 and a final report submitted by January 2025. Exceptions to this rule must be submitted for approval to the evaluation committee.

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[news][training] Robot Fleet Management with Open-RMF Training 10/9-10/11
by Yuhong Lin 19 Sep '23

19 Sep '23

Call for Participation: The 3rd Mastering Robot Fleet Management with Open-RMF Training Dear Roboticists, The Construct is excited to announce our 3rd "*Mastering Robot Fleet Management with Open-RMF Training*," taking place online from October 9 to 11, 2023. Join us from anywhere in the world to learn and gain hands-on experience with Open-RMF. *Training Details:* - *Dates*: October 9 - 11, 2023 - *Location*: Live Online Classes + Remote Real Robot Practice - *Time*: 9:00 - 18:00 Central European Summer Time (CEST) - *Seats*: Limited to 15 participants - *Website*: https://www.theconstructsim.com/robot-fleet-management-ros2-open-rmf-traini… <https://www.theconstructsim.com/robot-fleet-management-ros2-open-rmf-traini…> *About the Training:* Join industry mentors for a 3-Day Live Training: Gain practical skills in configuring, deploying and managing robot fleets with open-source software, while learning how to apply it to your real multi-robot scenarios. *What You Will Learn:* - RMF basic structure - How to create a compliant RMF simulation - How to set up Free Fleet for autonomous mobile robots - How to set up basic tasks like Deliver, Clean, Patrol, and Charge - How to create your own custom fleet adapter to integrate API and ROS2 systems of your robot into RMF. - How to dock in RMF - How to clean with RMF - How to create a GUI for humans to interact with RMF *Training Highlights:* - Expert instruction from industry professionals - Hands-on experience with real robots - Exercises with simulated robots - Practice in a real multi-robot application – Starbots Coffee Lab *Practical Sessions @ Starbots Coffee Lab:* Every day during this training, you’ll apply what you have learned into action at Starbots Coffee Lab, a real-world multi-robot system application: For any questions about this training, please contact info(a)theconstructsim.com.

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Full Professorship Human Computer Interaction @ Graz University of Technology
by Gerald Steinbauer-Wagner 18 Sep '23

18 Sep '23

The Faculty of Computer Science and Biomedical Engineering of Graz University of Technology is hiring a permanent full professorship for Human Computer Interaction. The topic of the call is broad and includes any approach and modes for interaction between humans and technical systems. If there is interest in such a position please check the following website: https://www.tugraz.at/fakultaeten/csbme/news/jobs-grants-calls/university-p… If there are any questions please contact the head of the hiring commission Prof. Tobias Schreck (tobias.schreck(a)cgv.tugraz.at).

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