- RoboCup-worldwide - lists.robocup.org

Soccer Simulation 2D League-Deadline
by Nader Zare 18 Feb '22

18 Feb '22

Dear Team Leader Hello, The soccer simulation 2D committee members have decided to extend the submission deadline to Feb 25. Please submit your TDP and log files via the online form: https://forms.gle/s3JmVW8JwuVV4pDx9 and improve the manual of the server: https://github.com/rcsoccersim/manual/ *We recommend selecting one part from posted issues and posting a comment on that thread in order to reserve your editing part: https://github.com/rcsoccersim/manual/issues I hope to see you in Bangkok. Best regards RoboCup2022 Soccer Simulation 2D League Organizing Committee Nader Zare, Morteza Noohpisheh

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[meetings][school] (PERSEO) Ethics and Interdisciplinary Research Methods for Personalized Robotics
by Alessandra Rossi 17 Feb '22

17 Feb '22

Dear colleagues, We would like to invite to participate at the online Winter School on Ethics and Interdisciplinary Research Methods for Personalized Robotics organised within the Marie Skłodowska-Curie ETN Ethics and Interdisciplinary Research Methods for Personalized Robotics (PERSEO) project. The school will be held online on 23-25 March 2022. Free registration is required on the website https://perseo-winter-school.eu The school is particularly of interest for Master and PhD students. For any questions and information, do not hesitate to contact: Prof. Mark Coeckelbergh Boris Abramovic Zachary Storms Follow us: Website: www.perseo.eu Facebook: PerseoProject Twitter: PerseoProject Instagram: perseoproject YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpYwt6V8PgxtElH5qu87xeQ Kind regards, Alessandra Dr. Alessandra Rossi Assistant Professor PRISCA research lab Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy The Winter School is a training event within the ETN on PErsonalized Robotics as SErvice Oriented applications - PERSEO The PERSEO Winter School offers a new forum for learning, exchange and in-depth investigation of technological, methodological, and ethical aspects of personalized human-robot interaction, with the goal to understand and critically evaluate the opportunities and challenges in personal robotics. The aim of personal robotics is to develop robots which adapt and personalize their tasks and behaviors to each user's unique characteristics and needs. While personal robotics expands the possibilities in human-robot interaction, it also raises ethical concerns about user's data protection, moral rights, and emotional safety of users. The PERSEO Winter School is a training activity of the European Training Network on PErsonalized Robotics as SErvice Oriented applications (PERSEO). The personal robotics domain is raising new challenges concerning the need for robot behaviour with a high level of personalisation with respect to each user’s needs and preferences. The EU-funded PERSEO project provides training for Early-stage researchers (ESRs) from the fields of computer science, philosophy, and psychology in how robotics technology can be personalised on the physical, cognitive and social levels. This will help the ESRs understand how to address social, legal, and ethical issues that arise with the uptake of personal robots. We are committed to deliver on the following goals and training: (1) research methods and tools for personalized HRI; (2) user needs / user involvement; (3) experimental design; (4) methodologies for personalized robot applications; (5) data analysis and basic statistics; (6) results: description and analyses. The focus is on ethical and socio-cultural challenges of personalized human-robot interaction. It moves through a range of topics including artificial intelligence and ethics, data ethics, justice and fairness in algorithms and machine learning, trust and emotions in personalized HRI, deception, and persuasive technologies. We are happy to confirm the following keynote speakers: Prof. Tony Belpaeme (Ghent University, NL; University of Plymouth, UK) Prof. Esther Keymolen (Tilburg University, NL) Prof. Vincent C. Müller (Technical University of Eindhoven, NL)

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Call for Papers - 10th ICAPS Workshop on Planning and Robotics (PlanRob 2022)
by Iman Awaad 14 Feb '22

14 Feb '22

Apologies for multiple messages ** CALL FOR PAPERS ** Tenth ICAPS Workshop on Planning and Robotics (PlanRob‚ 2022) http://icaps22.icaps-conference.org/workshops/PlanRob/ ICAPS 2022 Workshop    June 20-21, 2022 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Topics and Objectives ********************* AI Planning & Scheduling (P&S) methods are key to enabling intelligent robots to perform autonomous, flexible, and interactive behaviours. 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. To celebrate the tenth edition on this workshop at ICAPS, a special session will be organised to revive the past PlanRob editions, analyse the state of the art and discuss the future scenarios. Chairs are also planning for a thematic special issue on a relevant international journal. Topics of Interest ****************** Topics of interest include (but are not limited to) the following: - real-world planning applications for autonomous and intelligent robots; - optimising behaviour 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 optimisation 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 18, 2022 Notification of acceptance: April 15, 2022 Camera-ready version due: June 10, 2022 Workshop Date: June 20-21, 2022 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 2022 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=planrob2022). Please note that papers under review (e.g. which have been submitted to IJCAI-2022) 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 organisers 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 Alberto Finzi Università di Napoli "Federico II", Italy AndreA Orlandini  Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies (ISTC-CNR), Italy

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[robocup-worldwide] Reminder: CFP RoboCup Rescue Agent Simulation competition 2022
by Dina Helal 14 Feb '22

14 Feb '22

Call for Participation 2022 RoboCup Rescue Agent Simulation Competitions to be held in Bangkok, Thailand — July 11-19, 2022 2022 RoboCup Rescue Simulation <https://rescuesim.robocup.org/upcoming-events/2022-bangkok-rescue-simulatio…> RoboCup 2022 https://2022.robocup.org IMPORTANT DATES Pre-Registration……………………………......: February 15, 2022 (23:55 GMT) Team Description Paper (TDP) submission…: February 28, 2022 (23:55 GMT) Qualified teams announcement…………..…..: March 15, 2022 Camera-ready TDP submission………….……: May 31, 2022 (23:55 GMT) Tournament dates………………………..……..: July 11-19, 2022 WAIVER OF THE TEAM FEE FOR NEW TEAMS The RoboCup Federation is pleased to introduce a waiver of the team fee for the 2022 international RoboCup competition for NEW teams in the major leagues. A NEW team is defined as a team all of whose team members have never participated in an annual international RoboCup competition. The waiver concerns only the team fee and does not imply any waiver of fees for team members. NEW FEATURES IN THE SIMULATOR Teams can now choose to implement their agents in Java or Python Python repo: roborescue/rcrs-sample-agent-python (github.com) <https://github.com/roborescue/rcrs-sample-agent-python> AGENT SIMULATION COMPETITION This initiative focuses on promoting the use of Artificial Intelligence to support teamwork coordination and decision-making of ground rescue teams in a post-disaster urban setting. It maintains a computer simulation platform that can realistically represent natural disaster scenarios where Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) plans can be assessed. This platform is a comprehensive artificial simulation environment that can be used as a testbed to the effectiveness of coordination strategies of USAR teams, coalition formations of heterogeneous teams, rescue plans to explore large-scale environments with limited set of resources to search for survivors, disaster response public policies, among others. The RoboCup Rescue Agent Simulation Competition involves primarily evaluating the performance of teams of agents in regards to their distributed coordination and planning algorithms for rescuing civilians in a city after an earthquake. The goal is evaluating the effectiveness of Ambulance Team, Police Force, and Fire Brigade agents on rescuing civilians in earthquake scenarios. Here are some of the challenges that can be tackled in this competition: - Decision Making Algorithms - Task Allocation Methods - Multi-Agent Coordination and Team Formation Methods - Path Finding - Search Algorithms GETTING STARTED GUIDE Here are some pointers to get started with the agents development - ADF Java: - Repository: roborescue/adf-sample-agent-java: RoboCup Rescue Agent Development Framework Sample Agent Java (github.com) <https://github.com/roborescue/adf-sample-agent-java> - Documentation: Java ADF manual <https://github.com/roborescue/adf-sample-agent-java/blob/master/docs/manual…> - [NEW] Python: - Repository: roborescue/rcrs-sample-agent-python (github.com) <https://github.com/roborescue/rcrs-sample-agent-python> - [NEW] Docker: - Repository: roborescue/rcrs-docker (github.com) <https://github.com/roborescue/rcrs-docker> - Using docker is optional for teams that wish to have an environment that is already setup for development INFRASTRUCTURE COMPETITION The Infrastructure competition involves the presentation of tools or simulators related to disaster management issues already developed by the participating team. The aim is to evaluate possible enhancements and expansions of the RoboCup Rescue Simulation League environment (both the agent simulator and frameworks and the virtual robot platform) based on the new ideas and concepts proposed in these tools and simulators. The evaluation will be done by a panel of experts and the winner chosen according to a set of factors related to the technical aspects of the tool or simulator and the presentation. The winner tool will be selected for further integration with the simulation platform. The participation on Infrastructure competition requires the submission of a detailed Team Description Paper (TDP) describing the tool or simulator. In addition to the submission of the TDP, teams interested in participating on the Infrastructure competition must release their source code as an open-source project PRIOR to July 2, 2022. Participant teams should address topics including, but not limited to - Improvements to the Virtual Robot Simulator - Improvements to the Agent Development Framework - Increase the number of participants on the RoboCup Rescue league - Provide agent development kits that render easy the participation of newcomers - Integrate the Agent and Virtual Robot competitions - Improve the RoboCup Rescue sub-simulators PRE-REGISTRATION Teams must register via the submission system available at https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=rcrs2022 no later than February 15, 2022 (23:55 UTC). This pre-registration requires only teams to fill the "Title" field and the name, institution, and contact information of all team members. The "Title" field should be "Agent_[TeamName]" to participate in the Agent Competition and “Infrastructure_[TeamName]” for the infrastructure competition, where [TeamName] should be replaced by the name of the team. The pre-registration does not imply that the team will be evaluated to participate in the competition, please see section QUALIFICATION below for further information. QUALIFICATION Teams must submit a Team Description Paper (TDP) (in English) describing the strategy and recent advancements implemented in the team. The TDP is limited to 16 pages and must be electronically submitted as PDF through the submission system available at https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=rcrs2022 no later than February 28, 2022 (23:55 UTC). The TDP file name has to be "Agent_[TeamName]" for the Agent Competition, where [TeamName] is the name of the team submitting the TDP. This format should be also used in the "Title" field in the submission system https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=rcrs2022. Teams should prepare their Agent Competition TDP based on the templates available at https://github.com/roborescue/rcrs-templates . (overleaf link) All TDPs will be peer-reviewed by at least two PC members. The evaluation criteria of contributions will be based on originality, quality, clarity, and its relevance to the league's aims. The suggestions of the reviewers should be incorporated into an improved version (i.e., Camera-Ready version) of the TDP. The camera-ready version should be uploaded to EasyChair no later than May 31, 2022. - The previous TDPs are accessible here: https://robocup-rescue.github.io/team_description_papers/ - Qualification results will be announced on March 15, 2022. - If you have any questions please reach out to rcrs2022(a)easychair.org RULES Please read the Agent Simulation Competition Rules document available at 2022 RoboCup Rescue Simulation <https://rescuesim.robocup.org/upcoming-events/2022-bangkok-rescue-simulatio…> for further details. ABOUT ROBOCUP RESCUE AGENT SIMULATION LEAGUE Natural disasters are major adverse events that cause large-scale economic, human, and environmental losses. They are usually difficult to predict and even more challenging to prevent from happening. These characteristics demand disaster management strategies to be in place to mitigate damaging consequences after a natural disaster. The mission of the RoboCup Rescue Agent Simulation League is to promote research and development in the socially significant domain of natural disaster with focus on multiagent teamwork coordination and decision support systems. The effective implementation of this mission is translated into three main objectives. First, the league aims to provide a simulator able to realistically represent natural disaster scenarios where response rescue plans can be assessed. Second, it aims to define evaluation benchmarks for response plans elaborated by policy-makers. Finally, it aims to promote research and development by organizing competitions to stimulate the exchange of ideas and experience between researchers and practitioners. These aims are designed to help in the development of more sophisticated and formalized response plans to effectively respond to natural disasters and reduce the negative impacts on society.

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[robocup-athome] Call for Participation: Simulation (Extended)
by Mauricio Matamoros 14 Feb '22

14 Feb '22

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[robocup-athome] Second Call for Participation (Extended)
by Mauricio Matamoros 14 Feb '22

14 Feb '22

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[robotics-worldwide] [news] RoboCup 2022 Virtual Robot Competition - Second Call for Participation
by AMIRREZA KABIRI 13 Feb '22

13 Feb '22

============================================================= Dear All, This is the Second Call for Participation for RoboCup 2022 Virtual Robot Competition, which will be held in *Bangkok, Thailand*, from *July 11-19, 2022*. We will be very happy to welcome you next year and hope to see you all in *Thailand* ! Please apologize for multiple postings and we would be thankful if you forward this call for participation to other mailing lists and colleagues you find useful. ************************************************************ ********************************** *Bangkok, Thailand* *July 11-19, 2022* https://robocup-rsvrl.github.io/ https://2022.robocup.org/ <https://www.robocup.org/leagues/27> *IMPORTANT DATES* Pre-Registration……………………………….: February 15, 2022 (23:55 GMT) Team Description Paper (TDP) submission..: March 21, 2022 (23:55 GMT) Qualified teams announcement…………..…: March 28, 2022 Team registration deadline…….…………..…: May 31, 2022 Camera-ready TDP submission………….….: June 8, 2022 (23:55 GMT) Tournament dates………………………..……: July 11-19, 2022 If you are interested in participating please take the time to pre-register your team for the RoboCup 2022 Virtual Robot Competition as soon as possible, so that we can inform you about the latest developments. The current plan is to have the competition in-person and closely monitor the COVID-19 restrictions and if needed the committee will provide the teams remote access to a competition platform by using a cloud computing service. In order to organise the we need to know the number of participating teams. The ultimate deadline for pre-registration is set on February 15, 2022. *(1) RoboCup Rescue Simulation League and Virtual Robot Competition* ——————— The RoboCup Rescue Simulation League is a socially relevant part of the RoboCup event. Its main purpose is to provide emergency decision support by integration of disaster information, prediction, planning, and human interface. A generic urban disaster simulation environment is constructed on network computers. Heterogeneous intelligent agents such as firefighters, commanders, victims, volunteers, etc. conduct search and rescue activities in this virtual disaster world. Agents can sense their environment and make decisions on the basis of the perceived data. Mission-critical human interfaces support disaster managers, disaster relief brigades, residents, and volunteers to decide their actions to minimize the disaster damage. Addressing this problem involves advanced and interdisciplinary research themes. AI/robotics research, for example, behavior strategy (e.g., multi-agent planning, real-time/anytime planning, heterogeneity of agents, robust planning, mixed-initiative planning) is a challenging problem. For disaster researchers, RoboCup Rescue works as a standard basis in order to develop practical comprehensive simulators adding necessary disaster modules. The Virtual Robot Competition is based on ROS/Gazebo, an advanced robot simulator in which users can simulate multiple agents whose capabilities closely mirror those of real robots. ROS/Gazebo currently features several ground and air robots, as well as a wide range of sensors and actuators. Moreover, by exploiting ROS, users can easily develop their robot systems integrating standard modules. Currently addressed research topics include but are not limited to - Human-robot interfaces - Autonomous navigation - Sensor fusion - Image processing - Speech processing - 2D and 3D mapping - Distributed planning - Distributed learning *(2) Major changes to this year (2022)* ——————- This year, we had a server migration to ROS2 bringing a great opportunity for roboticists to learn ROS2 in a tested environment via challenges. This new server could be accessed on "The Construct sim <https://www.theconstructsim.com/>" as this league will provide the remote participation option. *(3) Intention of participation* ——————- If you are interested to participate in the competition, please respond, before Feb 15, 2022, by filling out the following google form: https://forms.gle/U9vFrxGzky5EQ63CA <https://forms.gle/U9vFrxGzky5EQ63CA> *(4) Qualification material* ————————- Besides sending the intention of participation, please prepare before Mar 21, 2022, a Team Description Paper describing the most innovative contributions or scientific results your team is intended to provide. The TDP is limited to 8 pages and must be formatted according to the LNCS format: http://www.springer.com/gp/computer-science/lncs/conference-proceedings-gui… <https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.springer.com/gp/computer-science/ln…> And the tex template file of the TDP can be found on the overleaf: https://www.overleaf.com/read/nrcfnpygskyx <https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.overleaf.com/read/nrcfnpygskyx&sa=…> The Team Description Paper is an overview of the methodologies you use or intend to use to control your robots inside the Virtual Robot Competition. If applicable, include a reference to your latest publications. The qualification material should be placed on a dedicated web page on the team’s home page. Please include the link to the qualification material on the intention of participation information. *(5) Useful links* ———– - Virtual Robot Competition Wiki <https://robocup-rsvrl.github.io/> - Virtual Robot Competition 2022 Server <https://github.com/RoboCup-RSVRL/RoboCup2022RVRL_Demo> - Official RoboCup Rescue Simulation website <https://rescuesim.robocup.org/> - Virtual Robot Competition 2022 Rule (draft) <https://robocup-rsvrl.github.io/assets/rules/RoboCup2022-RVRL-Rules-draft.p…> With kind regards, Amirreza Kabiri on behalf of RoboCup Rescue Simulation Executive, Technical, and Organizing Committees

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LPNMR 2022 - second call for workshops
by cfp 11 Feb '22

11 Feb '22

[Apologies if you receive multiple copies of this email. Please distribute to interested parties.] --------------------------------------------------------------------------- CALL FOR WORKSHOPS 16th International Conference on Logic Programming and Non-monotonic Reasoning LPNMR 2022 https://sites.google.com/view/lpnmr2022 Genova, Italy September 5-8, 2022 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- The 16th International Conference on Logic Programming and Non-monotonic Reasoning (LPNMR 2022) will be held in Genova, Italy. The objective of the LPNMR workshop program is to stimulate the discussion and the exchange of ideas on topics related, but not limited, to declarative logic programming, non-monotonic reasoning, and knowledge representation. We aim at creating a forum where researchers from a broad spectrum of disciplines may interact and have an opportunity to promote collaboration and identify directions for joint future research. Accordingly, we solicit workshop proposals on theoretical and applied research topics. Workshop proposals should explain and motivate the topic of the workshop, and discuss the format of presentation of the contributes. Workshops will likely be half-day or one-day in duration, but we may consider longer programs. DATES * Workshop proposals submissions: February 25th, 2022 * Workshop proposals notifications: March 7th, 2022 * Workshop program: September 5th, 2022 (tentative date) SUBMISSION Proposals must be submitted via EasyChair: https://easychair.org/my/conference?conf=lpnmrws2022 Proposals should clearly specify the following: * Workshop title and acronym * A brief description, emphasizing why this workshop would appeal to audiences from LPNMR * A list of organizers with email addresses, web page URLs, and a short description of their experience in organizing events * A short description of the format of planned activities (talks, posters, panels, invited speakers if any, etc.) * The proposed duration (half day, one day, etc.) * A description of the history of the workshop (if any) * Expected number of participants VENUE Workshops are planned to be held at the University, which is in the city center of Genova. Genova is the capital of Liguria, stretching along the bay of Genova from Nervi to the east as far as Voltri to the west. Its old town district is one of the largest in Europe, and hosts some remarkable artistic and architectural treasures, including the Palazzi dei Rolli, fifty or so homes of the aristocracy entered on the UNESCO World Heritage List. In addition to offering a wealth of cultural attractions, Genova is a fascinating destination for tourists, with its scenic vantage points, sea promenades, aristocratic villas and of course the Riviera to the east and west, both easy to reach: Portovenere and Le Cinque Terre (also UNESCO World Heritage Sites), Portofino and Camogli to the east and Alassio, Sanremo, Bordighera to the west. The main conference will take place in Genova Nervi, Italy, in the Collegio Emiliani (http://www.collegioemiliani.it/, information available only in Italian on this link), which is a college directly situated on the sea. Nervi is a former fishing village, now a suburb of Genoa. Nervi is 7 km east of central Genova. Of course, we will continuously monitor the pandemic situation in order to evaluate whether the conference can be indeed held as an in-person event, or we will need to switch to a hybrid event, if not completely on-line. GENERAL CHAIR Georg Gottlob, Oxford University, UK PROGRAM CHAIRS Daniela Inclezan, Miami University, USA Marco Maratea, University of Genova, Italy PUBLICITY CHAIR Jessica Zangari, University of Calabria, Italy WORKSHOPS CHAIR Viviana Mascardi, University of Genova, Italy DOCTORAL CONSORTIUM CHAIR Martin Gebser, University of Klagenfurt, Austria LOCAL ORGANIZATION Matteo Cardellini, University of Genova, Italy Angelo Ferrando, University of Genova, Italy (Chair) Marco Mochi, University of Genova, Italy CONTACT For any details on workshops, please contact the Workshop Chair: viviana.mascardi(a)unige.it

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Reminder: RoboCup 2022 SPL Call for Participation
by Stefan Seering 10 Feb '22

10 Feb '22

Call for Applications for Participation RoboCup 2022 Standard Platform League spl.robocup.org <http://spl.robocup.org/> Monday 11th July through Sunday 17th July 2022 Bangkok, Thailand 2022.robocup.org <https://2022.robocup.org> RoboCup <https://www.robocup.org/> is an international initiative that fosters research and education in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence through a variety of competitions (RoboCupSoccer, RoboCupRescue, RoboCup@Home, RoboCupJunior) involving mostly multi-robot systems. RoboCup currently includes a number of different robot soccer leagues that focus on different research challenges. *The Standard Platform League (SPL)* is characterized by all the teams using an identical robot platform. Participating researchers focus on algorithmic development for fully autonomous robots, i.e., robots that operate with no external control. The SPL at RoboCup 2022 will use V6, V5 or older versions of the NAO humanoid robot manufactured by SoftBank Robotics <https://www.softbankrobotics.com/emea/en/nao>. The SPL robot soccer team competition games at RoboCup 2022 will be played indoor and outdoor between teams of five robots on a 6m x 9m playing surface. Teams should be able to play on a randomly assigned indoor or outdoor field within one hour. The RoboCup 2022 SPL will host: * A 5 vs. 5 team competition as the main competition of the event. * A 7 vs. 7 competition. * A visual referee technical challenge. * A dynamic ball handling technical challenge. * A video analysis and statistics open research challenge. The 5 vs. 5 team competition will consist of a similar number of games for most teams compared to recent years. The structure from 2019 will be used to allow all teams to play games against teams with similar skill levels. See Appendix A.4 of the preliminary rulebook <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/> for more details. The teams participating in the team competition should also compete in some of the additional technical challenges. The 7 vs. 7 side competition extends the ideas from the mixed team competition, and 1 vs. 1 remote challenge from RoboCup 2021 to a standardized 7 vs. 7 NAO V6 on-site competition. Its goal is to encourage more collaborative game play and offer a chance for teams to work together more closely. Participating in 7 vs. 7 is recognized as participation in a technical challenge. Additional technical challenges offered at the competition are the visual referee challenge and the dynamic ball handling challenge. The open research challenge aims to provide the SPL with long term performance statistics based on video analysis. Please note that the open research challenge comes with additional deadlines as mentioned in the rulebook. All challenges will be detailed further with the release of the SPL rules document. To assist in adoption of V6 Robots source code examples and documentation regarding V6 robots were published on the SPL website <https://spl.robocup.org/v6-support/>. One can also find example code working with V6 Robots in the code released by participating teams. These examples allow teams to adapt their competition code from recent years more easily to encourage use of V6 Robots. If you need access to the RoboCup NAOqi Image and the specific documentation, please write an email (mentioning your team affiliation) to rc-spl-tc(a)lists.robocup.org. Survey The RoboCup Federation is committed to supporting an in-person event in Thailand from July 11th-17th, as long as the LOC in Thailand decides it is possible. For this purpose, the RoboCup Federation plans to send a survey to all teams considering to apply for RoboCup 2022. If you are considering to apply for participation this year, please send an email stating your interest in RoboCup SPL to rc-spl-tc(a)lists.robocup.org by 12th of January 2022 in addition to your regular application. Qualification All interested teams must submit an original qualification document. For the qualification document to be considered, it must (1) be no longer than *6 pages* and (2) include all the following information in *sections with the specified headings*: 1. *Team Information:* the team name, the team leader(s), and the university/company affiliation(s) of the team 2. *Code Usage:* Acknowledge the team’s use of any other team’s code (1) previously from 2017 to present and (2) anticipated at RoboCup 2022. If code is used from other teams, is this code integrated into a code base that is mainly designed by the applying team? If the applying team does not use any other team’s code, state so. For further details, please have a look into the rule book, section A.1 <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/>. 3. *Own Contribution:* Describe in detail the ‘research publishable’ significant advancements the applying team has made and is going to use at RoboCup 2022, in accordance with the rule book, section A.1 <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/>. 4. *Past History:* provide game results in RoboCup Open competitions as well as main RoboCup competitions from 2018 onward. Include opponents and game scores from each competition in a table. State if the team plans to participate in any RoboCup Open competitions or friendlies prior to RoboCup 2022. 5. *Impact:* What is the impact of the team’s participation and research in RoboCup on (1) the SPL, (2) the team’s university/community? 6. *Video presentation:* Include a link to a video (maximum 5 minutes long, uploaded on the team’s web site or on some video server) that demonstrates the status of the team. The organizing committees use the video to determine the readiness of the team to compete effectively, and hence should focus on the team’s ability to play soccer. Teams who did not participate in the team competition at RoboCup 2019 or any challenge at RoboCup 2021 *must* include footage of at least one robot attempting to kick off and score (this footage must be captured as a single wide shot with no cuts). If robots from multiple teams are active in the footage (e.g., game footage), please include a textual overlay or additional document denoting which robots belong to the applying team for every scene. Videos of simulation contributions will also be accepted, but only when a real robot is unavailable. Preference will be given to teams that use real robots to show soccer skills in their video. 7. *Other:* Present any other information that you believe supports your application. If your application mentions more than one e-mail address, please specify which one should be used to contact your team regarding your application. Pre-Qualification Teams are given the chance to pre-qualify based on their performance at RoboCup 2019 and 2021. Teams will be pre-qualified for RoboCup 2022, if they submit the following original qualification document. Teams able to pre-qualify include: * B-Human * UNISABANA Herons SPL * rUNSWift * HULKs * Bembelbots * Berlin United- Nao TH * Nao Devils * HTWK Robots * UT Austin Villa The original qualification document must include: 1. *Team Information:* the team name, the team leader(s), and the university/company affiliation(s) of the team 2. *Code Usage:* Acknowledge the team’s use of any other team’s code (1) previously from 2017 to present and (2) anticipated at RoboCup 2020. If code is used from other teams, is this code integrated into a code base that is mainly designed by the applying team? If the applying team does not use any other team’s code, state so. For further details, please have a look into the rule book, section A.1 <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/>. 3. *Own Contribution:* Describe in detail the ‘research publishable’ significant advancements the applying team has made and is going to use at RoboCup 2022, in accordance with the rule book, section A.1 <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/>. 4. *TRR:* a link to a team research report describing their work for RoboCup 2019 or 2021 or both (which must be published in a publicly available location) 5. *Code Release:* a link to a public code release as detailed in the 2019 SPL rulebook If a joint 2019 team splits, only one team can be pre-qualified for 2022 (please, indicate which one). Qualification for Regional Opens Only Teams may also submit a short intent to participate in a regional open if they do not wish to participate in the 2022 RoboCup competition. Although teams may participate in regional opens without submitting this intent to participate, teams who submit an intent to participate and become qualified will be eligible for future special robot pricing. Special robot pricing for team competing in RoboCup Events are still being discussed. Updates about special prices will be announced as soon as offers and conditions are finalized. Teams must submit the following information by 15th of February 2022: (1) The team name, leader(s), and the university/company affiliation(s) of the team and (2) a short statement describing the status/progress of the team. A link to a short video showing robot soccer behaviours and/or game play (using robots or in simulation) may be included if available. Submission and Evaluation All applications with the (pre-)qualification material must be submitted by *15th of February 2022*, by email to rc-spl-tc(a)lists.robocup.org. Applications must not be sent to personal SPL TC/OC email addresses and must not contain video attachments. Note that applying serves as a statement of commitment to participate in the RoboCup 2022 SPL. The organizing committees are aware of the ongoing COVID situation and assume that all applications are subject to withdrawal due to COVID. Applications are not required to mention uncertainties related to COVID to avoid negative effects on future applications. We would rather encourage teams to plan optimistically and sign up with the possibility of withdrawing if situation requires it. For situations other than COVID: If you have doubts regarding the ability of your team to participate (due to funding, visas, etc.), please apply by the deadline but note this in your application. Declining to participate in any competition after the official early registration period has opened may negatively affect future applications (the later you decline, the worse it will affect future applications). Teams are encouraged to consider joint participation. Joint proposals will be judged on combined merit. Applications will be evaluated to consider a variety of components including: 1. Potential to play competitive games at RoboCup 2022 (demonstrated ability to play soccer, previous results, etc.) 2. Contributions (and potential contributions) to league (code releases/papers, active in organization, developing own code, etc.) 3. Diversity (region, team make-up, unique characteristics, etc.) Qualification decisions, including alternate lists, will be announced by 29th of February 2022. Robot Acquisition Teams who submit an intent to participate and become qualified will be eligible for potential future special robot pricing. Special robot pricing for team competing in RoboCup Events are still being discussed. Updates about special prices will be announced if offers and conditions are finalized. /RoboCup 2022 Standard Platform League Technical and Organizing Committees/

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Call for Participation - Rising Researchers Network - CLAIRE
by Miguel Abreu 07 Feb '22

07 Feb '22

Dear RoboCuppers, As an early-career researcher in AI, you might be interested in joining a European network for master, Ph.D., and postdoc researchers in AI. It is called CLAIRE Rising Researchers Network (in short R2Network) and you should join it because we have cookies and pizza. But seriously, it is not just the cookies and pizza we offer. CLAIRE is a powerful institution uniting research centers and universities all across Europe, with connections to top researchers in AI fields as well as industry, and a lot of resources at hand. Now, their board would like to have a lively debate with students in AI to learn how to make our academic life better. That’s why we are here. The Rising Researchers Network is meant to connect students affiliated with AI research all across Europe. If you become a member, we would love to get to know you and learn how to make your AI research life in Europe sweeter as direction of the activities of the network will be guided by the interests of its members. The CLAIRE board is here to listen to our ideas and to offer us all the possible resources to make them come true. Here is a list of goals we want to achieve in the future; and we are happy to extend it with your ideas! - Create a centralized database of current research visit/internship/postdoc positions opportunities at AI institutions and industry all across Europe - Organize events (hackathons, meetups,...) - Arrange mentorship from senior researchers - Facilitate research collaboration and mobility within Europe - Connect with top researchers from the European AI community And the most important aspect of the network: We support each other in our early-career research and decisions, and collaborate and share experiences with other students with similar interests. This is what networking is about after all. How to join? If you’re curious about this project, would like to join or learn more, simply drop us a short email at r2network(a)claire-ai.org. Then, and if you want to join, we will ask you to fill in a short application form and to become a CLAIRE supporter. Finally, we will give you access to an online communication platform (Mattermost) where all the discussion will happen and where you can learn more about us. We would love to see you there and learn more about you! Marie, Barbora, and Oliver --- Kernel Team of the R2Network ---

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Internship opportunity at Nomagic [Robotics, Software, ML]
by Aleksandra Mianowany 07 Feb '22

07 Feb '22

Dear RoboCup Community, my name is Aleksandra, and I’m a Technical Sourcer at Nomagic - a Warsaw-based start-up creating pick-and-place robots that eliminate tedious tasks in warehouses. I’m happy to share that we’re currently looking for* Europe-based* interns in Robotics, Software, and Machine Learning! We are looking for *last years' MA students or recent graduates* with a background in either machine learning, robotics, DevOps, or software engineering to join Nomagic for 3 to 6 months. We have fantastic projects waiting for you to change the world and guarantee that you will learn a lot from our amazing team of engineers. Interns are required to relocate to Warsaw for the internship, but we provide help with the relocation. Learn more & apply here: https://jobs.lever.co/Nomagic/86a7be68-fe80-48ae-8dbe-5436392e7c35 Please make sure you apply through the application form, not to our email - this will help us review your application faster. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me directly. Have a great week, Aleksandra -- [image: FreightHub Logo.png] Aleksandra Mianowany Technical Sourcer www.nomagic.ai/join

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Reminder: RoboCup 2022 SPL Call for Participation
by Stefan Seering 06 Feb '22

06 Feb '22

Call for Applications for Participation RoboCup 2022 Standard Platform League spl.robocup.org <http://spl.robocup.org/> Monday 11th July through Sunday 17th July 2022 Bangkok, Thailand 2022.robocup.org <https://2022.robocup.org> RoboCup <https://www.robocup.org/> is an international initiative that fosters research and education in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence through a variety of competitions (RoboCupSoccer, RoboCupRescue, RoboCup@Home, RoboCupJunior) involving mostly multi-robot systems. RoboCup currently includes a number of different robot soccer leagues that focus on different research challenges. *The Standard Platform League (SPL)* is characterized by all the teams using an identical robot platform. Participating researchers focus on algorithmic development for fully autonomous robots, i.e., robots that operate with no external control. The SPL at RoboCup 2022 will use V6, V5 or older versions of the NAO humanoid robot manufactured by SoftBank Robotics <https://www.softbankrobotics.com/emea/en/nao>. The SPL robot soccer team competition games at RoboCup 2022 will be played indoor and outdoor between teams of five robots on a 6m x 9m playing surface. Teams should be able to play on a randomly assigned indoor or outdoor field within one hour. The RoboCup 2022 SPL will host: * A 5 vs. 5 team competition as the main competition of the event. * A 7 vs. 7 competition. * A visual referee technical challenge. * A dynamic ball handling technical challenge. * A video analysis and statistics open research challenge. The 5 vs. 5 team competition will consist of a similar number of games for most teams compared to recent years. The structure from 2019 will be used to allow all teams to play games against teams with similar skill levels. See Appendix A.4 of the preliminary rulebook <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/> for more details. The teams participating in the team competition should also compete in some of the additional technical challenges. The 7 vs. 7 side competition extends the ideas from the mixed team competition, and 1 vs. 1 remote challenge from RoboCup 2021 to a standardized 7 vs. 7 NAO V6 on-site competition. Its goal is to encourage more collaborative game play and offer a chance for teams to work together more closely. Participating in 7 vs. 7 is recognized as participation in a technical challenge. Additional technical challenges offered at the competition are the visual referee challenge and the dynamic ball handling challenge. The open research challenge aims to provide the SPL with long term performance statistics based on video analysis. Please note that the open research challenge comes with additional deadlines as mentioned in the rulebook. All challenges will be detailed further with the release of the SPL rules document. To assist in adoption of V6 Robots source code examples and documentation regarding V6 robots were published on the SPL website <https://spl.robocup.org/v6-support/>. One can also find example code working with V6 Robots in the code released by participating teams. These examples allow teams to adapt their competition code from recent years more easily to encourage use of V6 Robots. If you need access to the RoboCup NAOqi Image and the specific documentation, please write an email (mentioning your team affiliation) to rc-spl-tc(a)lists.robocup.org. Survey The RoboCup Federation is committed to supporting an in-person event in Thailand from July 11th-17th, as long as the LOC in Thailand decides it is possible. For this purpose, the RoboCup Federation plans to send a survey to all teams considering to apply for RoboCup 2022. If you are considering to apply for participation this year, please send an email stating your interest in RoboCup SPL to rc-spl-tc(a)lists.robocup.org by 12th of January 2022 in addition to your regular application. Qualification All interested teams must submit an original qualification document. For the qualification document to be considered, it must (1) be no longer than *6 pages* and (2) include all the following information in *sections with the specified headings*: 1. *Team Information:* the team name, the team leader(s), and the university/company affiliation(s) of the team 2. *Code Usage:* Acknowledge the team’s use of any other team’s code (1) previously from 2017 to present and (2) anticipated at RoboCup 2022. If code is used from other teams, is this code integrated into a code base that is mainly designed by the applying team? If the applying team does not use any other team’s code, state so. For further details, please have a look into the rule book, section A.1 <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/>. 3. *Own Contribution:* Describe in detail the ‘research publishable’ significant advancements the applying team has made and is going to use at RoboCup 2022, in accordance with the rule book, section A.1 <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/>. 4. *Past History:* provide game results in RoboCup Open competitions as well as main RoboCup competitions from 2018 onward. Include opponents and game scores from each competition in a table. State if the team plans to participate in any RoboCup Open competitions or friendlies prior to RoboCup 2022. 5. *Impact:* What is the impact of the team’s participation and research in RoboCup on (1) the SPL, (2) the team’s university/community? 6. *Video presentation:* Include a link to a video (maximum 5 minutes long, uploaded on the team’s web site or on some video server) that demonstrates the status of the team. The organizing committees use the video to determine the readiness of the team to compete effectively, and hence should focus on the team’s ability to play soccer. Teams who did not participate in the team competition at RoboCup 2019 or any challenge at RoboCup 2021 *must* include footage of at least one robot attempting to kick off and score (this footage must be captured as a single wide shot with no cuts). If robots from multiple teams are active in the footage (e.g., game footage), please include a textual overlay or additional document denoting which robots belong to the applying team for every scene. Videos of simulation contributions will also be accepted, but only when a real robot is unavailable. Preference will be given to teams that use real robots to show soccer skills in their video. 7. *Other:* Present any other information that you believe supports your application. If your application mentions more than one e-mail address, please specify which one should be used to contact your team regarding your application. Pre-Qualification Teams are given the chance to pre-qualify based on their performance at RoboCup 2019 and 2021. Teams will be pre-qualified for RoboCup 2022, if they submit the following original qualification document. Teams able to pre-qualify include: * B-Human * UNISABANA Herons SPL * rUNSWift * HULKs * Bembelbots * Berlin United- Nao TH * Nao Devils * HTWK Robots * UT Austin Villa The original qualification document must include: 1. *Team Information:* the team name, the team leader(s), and the university/company affiliation(s) of the team 2. *Code Usage:* Acknowledge the team’s use of any other team’s code (1) previously from 2017 to present and (2) anticipated at RoboCup 2020. If code is used from other teams, is this code integrated into a code base that is mainly designed by the applying team? If the applying team does not use any other team’s code, state so. For further details, please have a look into the rule book, section A.1 <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/>. 3. *Own Contribution:* Describe in detail the ‘research publishable’ significant advancements the applying team has made and is going to use at RoboCup 2022, in accordance with the rule book, section A.1 <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/>. 4. *TRR:* a link to a team research report describing their work for RoboCup 2019 or 2021 or both (which must be published in a publicly available location) 5. *Code Release:* a link to a public code release as detailed in the 2019 SPL rulebook If a joint 2019 team splits, only one team can be pre-qualified for 2022 (please, indicate which one). Qualification for Regional Opens Only Teams may also submit a short intent to participate in a regional open if they do not wish to participate in the 2022 RoboCup competition. Although teams may participate in regional opens without submitting this intent to participate, teams who submit an intent to participate and become qualified will be eligible for future special robot pricing. Special robot pricing for team competing in RoboCup Events are still being discussed. Updates about special prices will be announced as soon as offers and conditions are finalized. Teams must submit the following information by 15th of February 2022: (1) The team name, leader(s), and the university/company affiliation(s) of the team and (2) a short statement describing the status/progress of the team. A link to a short video showing robot soccer behaviours and/or game play (using robots or in simulation) may be included if available. Submission and Evaluation All applications with the (pre-)qualification material must be submitted by *15th of February 2022*, by email to rc-spl-tc(a)lists.robocup.org. Applications must not be sent to personal SPL TC/OC email addresses and must not contain video attachments. Note that applying serves as a statement of commitment to participate in the RoboCup 2022 SPL. The organizing committees are aware of the ongoing COVID situation and assume that all applications are subject to withdrawal due to COVID. Applications are not required to mention uncertainties related to COVID to avoid negative effects on future applications. We would rather encourage teams to plan optimistically and sign up with the possibility of withdrawing if situation requires it. For situations other than COVID: If you have doubts regarding the ability of your team to participate (due to funding, visas, etc.), please apply by the deadline but note this in your application. Declining to participate in any competition after the official early registration period has opened may negatively affect future applications (the later you decline, the worse it will affect future applications). Teams are encouraged to consider joint participation. Joint proposals will be judged on combined merit. Applications will be evaluated to consider a variety of components including: 1. Potential to play competitive games at RoboCup 2022 (demonstrated ability to play soccer, previous results, etc.) 2. Contributions (and potential contributions) to league (code releases/papers, active in organization, developing own code, etc.) 3. Diversity (region, team make-up, unique characteristics, etc.) Qualification decisions, including alternate lists, will be announced by 29th of February 2022. Robot Acquisition Teams who submit an intent to participate and become qualified will be eligible for potential future special robot pricing. Special robot pricing for team competing in RoboCup Events are still being discussed. Updates about special prices will be announced if offers and conditions are finalized. /RoboCup 2022 Standard Platform League Technical and Organizing Committees/

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CFP: (Extended Deadline) DEI HRI Workshop on Inclusive HRI @ HRI 2022
by Frank Broz 04 Feb '22

04 Feb '22

Call for Papers DEI HRI 2022 Workshop (https://sites.google.com/view/dei-hri-2022/) We are inviting submissions for the workshop Inclusive HRI: Equity and Diversity in Design, Application, Methods, and Community (DEI HRI 2022), to be held virtually within the ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI 2022) on March 11th, 2022. Important Dates * Extended Deadline for Paper Submission: February 11th, 2022 * Paper Acceptance Notification: February 25th, 2022 * Camera Ready Paper: March 4th, 2022 * Workshop date: March 11th, 2022 Statement of Objectives Although being a pressing issue, an understanding of how robotic systems can replicate and amplify inequalities and injustice among underrepresented communities is still to be achieved within the HRl community. This workshop contributes to filling this gap by exploring the research questions: What do Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) mean in the context of HRI? How can we promote DEI in HRI? Our goal is to raise awareness on the importance of including DEI aspects in HRI to avoid exacerbating existing or creating new biases. This workshop will center around the themes of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Human-Robot Interaction. An additional goal of this workshop is to build community and solidarity among researchers in HRI who work on and are affected by these various and related issues. More information on the workshop can be found on the dedicated website<https://sites.google.com/view/dei-hri-2022/>. Submission Guidelines We invite authors to submit extended abstracts (up to 2 pages, excluding references) and short papers (up to 4 pages, excluding references) on a range of topics relevant to these questions and to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in HRI in general. Submissions may present current or in-progress research, position papers, critical essays, and summaries of already published research from all areas of HRI. Since we hope to learn from other fields of knowledge and form new connections with related research communities, we also welcome submissions from researchers outside of the HRI community. Authors should submit their papers on EasyChair<https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=deihri2022>. Papers should be formatted according to the IEEE two-column format<https://www.ieee.org/conferences/publishing/templates.html>. Submissions will be evaluated according to their fit to the workshop theme, and their adherence to the scientific standards of the discipline of origin. The workshop proceedings will be made publicly available on our website. List of Topics Topics of interest include, but are not limited to: * Accessibility * Bias in AI/ML algorithms * Disability and Ableism * Gender issues * LGBTQIA+ issues * Inclusive education * Intersectional feminism * Issues of representation * Neurodiversity * Racism * The global south The topics above can address one or more of the following domains: * HRI design * HRI applications * HRI research methods * HRI community Organizers More information on the workshop can be found on the workshop website<https://sites.google.com/view/dei-hri-2022/>. For any further questions, please feel free to reach out at our email addresses! * Dr. Maartje de Graaf - Utrecht University - m.m.a.degraaf(a)uu.nl<mailto:m.m.a.degraaf@uu.nl> * Dr. Giulia Perugia - Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) - g.perugia(a)tue.nl<mailto:g.perugia@tue.nl> * Dr. Eduard Fosch-Villaronga (corresponding) - Leiden University - e.fosch.villaronga(a)law.leidenuniv.nl<mailto:e.fosch.villaronga@law.leidenuniv.nl> * Dr. Angelica Lim - Simon Fraser University - angelica(a)sfu.ca<mailto:angelica@sfu.ca> * Dr. Frank Broz - Delft University - f.broz(a)tudelft.nl<mailto:f.broz@tudelft.nl> * Dr. Elaine Short, Tufts University, elaine.short(a)tufts.edu<mailto:elaine.short@tufts.edu> * Prof. dr. Mark Neerincx, Delft University and TNO, m.a.neerincx(a)tudelft.nl<mailto:m.a.neerincx@tudelft.nl> Since we acknowledge that we are a fairly homogeneous group of organizers, we would like to diversify our group composition. If you want to join the DEI HRI 2022 community and be part of the programme committee of the DEI HRI 2022 workshop, please let us know by filling out this form<https://forms.gle/fXxPiUJYBcJzSS2V9>.

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[robocup-athome] Call for Participation: Simulation
by Mauricio Matamoros 03 Feb '22

03 Feb '22

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[robocup-athome] Second Call for Participation
by Mauricio Matamoros 03 Feb '22

03 Feb '22

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[meetings][cfp](RO-MAN 2022) Special Session on Theory of Mind for social HRI
by Alessandra Rossi 03 Feb '22

03 Feb '22

Dear colleagues, It is my pleasure to invite you to submit your works at the special session on Theory of Mind for social HRI that will be held in conjunction with the IEEE RO-MAN conference in the beautiful Naples, Italy. The special session aims to define and explore the needed level of shared mental models between people and robots for effectively planning, navigating, manipulating objects and the environment, and transparently communicating. We welcome submissions from experts in the fields of Theory of Mind, cognitive and behavioural robotics, and social HRI. Please find attached below the call for papers. For any questions and information, do not hesitate to contact us (emails below). Kind regards, Alessandra Dr. Alessandra Rossi Assistant Professor PRISCA research lab Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy ================================================================================== *** SPECIAL SESSION Theory of Mind for social HRI *** Submission Code: 1y123 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN 2022) August 29th - September 2nd, 2022 Naples, Italy http://ro-man2022.org The ability of understanding and acknowledging others' mental states is known as Theory of Mind (ToM). Theory of Mind is a multi-modal system used by people to naturally communicate and understand each other. A growing group of Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) research focuses on investigating whether people form ToM towards robots, and what level of ToM a robot should have to communicate transparently with the humans in their shared environment in a sociable and accepted way. In this session, we want to probe deeper in the principal lines that can contribute towards this research direction. In particular, we aim to define and explore the needed level of shared mental models between people and robots for effectively planning, navigating, manipulating objects and the environment, and transparently communicating. The topics covered in this special session include, but are not limited to: • Cognitive robotics • Mental models in HRI • Robot etiquette • Theory of Mind in HRI • XAI in HRI • Cooperation and collaboration in human-robot teams • Detection and understanding human activity • Monitoring of behaviour and internal states of humans • Motion planning and navigation in human-centred environments • Multi-modal situation awareness and spatial cognition • Social intelligence for robots in interactive and non-interactive tasks TEMPLATES AND SUBMISSION PROCEDURE Authors should submit their papers electronically in PDF format via Papercept using the code for the special issue: 1y123 For the first submission, a manuscript can be of 6-8 pages including references. For the final submission, a manuscript should be of 6 pages, with 2 additional pages allowed at an extra charge. Authors will have to declare that the research presented in the submitted papers complies with the IEEE Code of Ethics. Authors should use the templates provided by the electronic submission system. The templates for US Letter format paper should be used. The manuscript submission website will require that you submit your abstract and make any final changes to the author list and title of the paper before uploading the paper. Use the following templates to create the paper and generate or export a PDF file: LaTeX or MS-Word. ORGANISERS Dr. Alessandra Rossi, University of Naples Federico II (IT), alessandra.rossi(a)unina.it Dr. Patrick Holthaus, University of Hertfordshire (UK), p.holthaus(a)herts.ac.uk Dr. Shruti Chandra, University of Waterloo (CA), shruti.chandra(a)uwaterloo.ca

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Call for Papers ICARSC'2022 - International Conference on Autonomous Robot Systems and Competitions
by Pedro Neto 02 Feb '22

02 Feb '22

[Our apologies if you receive multiple copies of this announcement] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- Call for Papers ICARSC'2022 - IEEE(*) International Conference on Autonomous Robot Systems and Competitions <https://festivalnacionalrobotica.pt/icarsc/> https://festivalnacionalrobotica.pt/icarsc/ / April 29-30, Santa Maria da Feira Portugal (*) IEEE co-sponsorship pending approval ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- Dear colleague We are pleased to inform you that ICARSC2022 IEEE(*) International Conference on Autonomous Robot Systems and Competitions will be held in Santa Maria da Feira, Portugal, on April 29-30, 2022. The conference is organized within ROBOTICA 2022 - 22nd Portuguese Robotics Open, a RoboCup-sponsored local event, and it is promoted by the Portuguese Robotics Society. (*) IEEE co-sponsorship pending approval == Conference Scope == ICARSC gathers participants from academia and industry working in the field of autonomous robotics and related areas. ICARSC is a well-established IEEE conference that has been growing continuously for over a decade and is nowadays a truly international forum attracting worldwide quality research papers. ICARSC has long been an IEEE co-sponsored event and its proceedings are indexed in IEEExplore and Scopus. Moreover, similarly to previous editions, extended versions of selected best papers will be invited for publication at relevant indexed journals. == Invited Speakers == George Nikolakopoulos, Luleå University of Technology, Sweden Jorge Dias, Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE == Important Dates == Submission Feb 21, 2022 Notification Mar 22, 2022 Camera Ready Mar 29, 2022 Registration Apr 14, 2022 Conference Apr 29-30, 2022 == Conference Topics == The conference aims to gather researchers from the industry and academia to present and discuss the latest trends in research and technology in the fields of robotics and related areas. Contributions from researchers, industry, and outputs from collaboration between industrial and academic R&D units are welcome in, but not limited to, the following topics. - Agricultural Robotics - Applications of Autonomous Intelligent Robots - Artificial Intelligence - Autonomous Robotic Systems - Computer Vision and Image Processing - Control Architectures and Programming - Cooperative Perception - Cooperative Planning and Task Allocation - Dexterous Manipulation and Grasping - Educational Robotics - Entertainment Robots - Evolutionary Robotics - Humanoid Robotics - Human-Robot Interaction - Localization, Mapping, and Navigation - Locomotion and Actuation Systems - Multi-Robot Coordination - Multi-Robot Systems - Planning, Reasoning and Modelling - Recognition and Tracking - Robot Learning - Robotic Competitions - Robotic Simulation - Sensors and Sensor Integration - Swarm Robotics - Space Robotics - Underwater Robotics == Paper Submission == Authors are invited to submit original research contributions in English. Six pages in the standard IEEE format ( <http://www.ieee.org/conferences_events/conferences/publishing/templates.htm l> http://www.ieee.org/conferences_events/conferences/publishing/templates.html ) are allowed for each paper, including tables and figures. Full draft papers should be submitted electronically, in PDF format, using the URL: <https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=icarsc2022> https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=icarsc2022. For evaluation purposes, authors must remove their names from the submitted papers, and should take reasonable care not to indirectly disclose their identity. Accepted papers will be scheduled for presentation, which requires that at least one of the authors should register at the Conference and present the paper. If the authors of an accepted paper do not show up at the conference, the corresponding paper will not be submitted to IEEExplore. == ICARSC2022 General/Program Chairs == Pedro Fonseca, University of Aveiro, Portugal Rodrigo Ventura, Instituto Superior Técnico, Portugal Luís Louro, University of Minho, Portugal Pedro Neto, University of Coimbra, Portugal

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Final Call for proposals: RCF and MathWorks Support for Research Projects 2022
by Gerald Steinbauer-Wagner 02 Feb '22

02 Feb '22

Call for proposals: RCF and MathWorks Support for Research Projects 2022 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 2022 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. The RoboCup Federation and MathWorks hosted a webinar to discuss the details of the call, describe expected results and MathWorks tools, showcase previously sponsored projects, and answer questions. Link to the webinar: https://youtu.be/znZSFBWAWhg For more info or clarification on the details of this call, please contact info(a)robocup.org 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 for Manipulators and Mobile Robots b. Motion planning for humanoid robots c. Collision avoidance 2. Perception and Sensor Fusion a. Object detection and tracking b. Lidar and vision-based SLAM c. Point cloud processing d. Fusing IMU with other sensors for localization and state estimation 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 a. Natural language processing b. Signal and audio processing NOTE: teams are encouraged to apply machine learning techniques (deep learning, reinforcement learning, etc.) toward these research topics 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 2022 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=rcfsupport2022 under the Category: RCF and MathWorks Support for Research Projects 2022 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: February 6th, 2022 Notification: February 8th, 2022 Completion of the action: Preliminary work expected to be presented during the RoboCup 2022 Research Symposium, and official content publication by October 2022 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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Final Call for proposals: RCF Project Support 2022
by Gerald Steinbauer-Wagner 02 Feb '22

02 Feb '22

Call for proposals: RCF Project Support 2022 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=rcfsupport2022 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: January 30th, 2022 Notification: February 8th, 2022 Completion of the project: Preliminary work expected to be presented during the RoboCup Symposium 2022, the project needs to be finished by end of 2022 and a final report submitted by January 2023. Exceptions to this rule must be submitted for approval to the evaluation committee.

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Neural Computing and Applications (NCAA) - Call for Topical Collectionon (Deadline March 31, 2022)
by Pub Conference 01 Feb '22

01 Feb '22

Neural Computing and Applications <https://www.springer.com/journal/521/> Topical Collection on Interpretation of Deep Learning: Prediction, Representation, Modeling and Utilization https://www.springer.com/journal/521/updates/19187658 Aims, Scope and Objective While Big Data offers the great potential for revolutionizing all aspects of our society, harvesting of valuable knowledge from Big Data is an extremely challenging task. The large scale and rapidly growing information hidden in the unprecedented volumes of non-traditional data requires the development of decision-making algorithms. Recent successes in machine learning, particularly deep learning, has led to breakthroughs in real-world applications such as autonomous driving, healthcare, cybersecurity, speech and image recognition, personalized news feeds, and financial markets. While these models may provide the state-of-the-art and impressive prediction accuracies, they usually offer little insight into the inner workings of the model and how a decision is made. The decision-makers cannot obtain human-intelligible explanations for the decisions of models, which impede the applications in mission-critical areas. This situation is even severely worse in complex data analytics. It is, therefore, imperative to develop explainable computation intelligent learning models with excellent predictive accuracy to provide safe, reliable, and scientific basis for determination. Numerous recent works have presented various endeavors on this issue but left many important questions unresolved. The first challenging problem is how to construct self-explanatory models or how to improve the explicit understanding and explainability of a model without the loss of accuracy. In addition, high dimensional or ultra-high dimensional data are common in large and complex data analytics. In these cases, the construction of interpretable model becomes quite difficult and complex. Further, how to evaluate and quantify the explainability of a model is lack of consistent and clear description. Moreover, auditable, repeatable, and reliable process of the computational models is crucial to decision-makers. For example, decision-makers need explicit explanation and analysis of the intermediate features produced in a model, thus the interpretation of intermediate processes is requisite. Subsequently, the problem of efficient optimization exists in explainable computational intelligent models. These raise many essential issues on how to develop explainable data analytics in computational intelligence. This Topical Collection aims to bring together original research articles and review articles that will present the latest theoretical and technical advancements of machine and deep learning models. We hope that this Topical Collection will: 1) improve the understanding and explainability of machine learning and deep neural networks; 2) enhance the mathematical foundation of deep neural networks; and 3) increase the computational efficiency and stability of the machine and deep learning training process with new algorithms that will scale. Potential topics include but are not limited to the following: - Interpretability of deep learning models - Quantifying or visualizing the interpretability of deep neural networks - Neural networks, fuzzy logic, and evolutionary based interpretable control systems - Supervised, unsupervised, and reinforcement learning - Extracting understanding from large-scale and heterogeneous data - Dimensionality reduction of large scale and complex data and sparse modeling - Stability improvement of deep neural network optimization - Optimization methods for deep learning - Privacy preserving machine learning (e.g., federated machine learning, learning over encrypted data) - Novel deep learning approaches in the applications of image/signal processing, business intelligence, games, healthcare, bioinformatics, and security Guest Editors Nian Zhang (Lead Guest Editor), University of the District of Columbia, Washington, DC, USA, nzhang(a)udc.edu Jian Wang, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao, China, wangjiannl(a)upc.edu.cn Leszek Rutkowski, Czestochowa University of Technology, Poland, leszek.rutkowski(a)pcz.pl Important Dates Deadline for Submissions: March 31, 2022 First Review Decision: May 31, 2022 Revisions Due: June 30, 2022 Deadline for 2nd Review: July 31, 2022 Final Decisions: August 31, 2022 Final Manuscript: September 30, 2022 Peer Review Process All the papers will go through peer review, and will be reviewed by at least three reviewers. A thorough check will be completed, and the guest editors will check any significant similarity between the manuscript under consideration and any published paper or submitted manuscripts of which they are aware. In such case, the article will be directly rejected without proceeding further. Guest editors will make all reasonable effort to receive the reviewer’s comments and recommendation on time. The submitted papers must provide original research that has not been published nor currently under review by other venues. Previously published conference papers should be clearly identified by the authors at the submission stage and an explanation should be provided about how such papers have been extended to be considered for this special issue (with at least 30% difference from the original works). Submission Guidelines Paper submissions for the special issue should strictly follow the submission format and guidelines ( https://www.springer.com/journal/521/submission-guidelines). Each manuscript should not exceed 16 pages in length (inclusive of figures and tables). Manuscripts must be submitted to the journal online system at https://www.editorialmanager.com/ncaa/default.aspx. Authors should select “TC: Interpretation of Deep Learning” during the submission step ‘Additional Information’.

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[meetings] AAMAS 2022 Call for scholarship applications
by Sara Bernardini 31 Jan '22

31 Jan '22

==== AAMAS 2022 CALL FOR SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS === Important Dates Application Submission Deadline: 12th of February 2022 (23:59 UTC-12) Notification: 26th of February 2022 (23:59 UTC-12) Student Attendance Support We are delighted to announce funding for the AAMAS 2022 student scholarship applications. This will enable the virtual registration fees to be waived to successful applicants. To be eligible you must be registered as a full-time student at a higher education institution (e.g., University). In allocating awards, we will prioritise to students who are listed as authors of a paper accepted for AAMAS 2022 (i.e., full paper or extended abstract at the main conference). Scholarships will then be allocated to students who had a paper accepted at an affiliated workshop or the Doctoral Consortium. Funding permitting, we will also try and support students who do not have a paper accepted but come from under-represented groups. Please note that attending the conference is a requirement for being supported. No support will be possible for students who do not attend AAMAS 2022. Submission Requirements To apply, you are required to register and click to complete the Student Scholarship Application Form within registration, via the following link: tinyurl.com/aamas2022scholarship <http://tinyurl.com/aamas2022scholarship> The requested information includes a scanned student ID card certifying you are registered as a full-time student. We care about your privacy: The Student Scholarship Application Form is compliant with GDPR (https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2016/679/oj <https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2016/679/oj>) and your data will be kept, processed, and then destroyed, according to the GDPR European regulations and the most recent US guidelines. Please note that participation in the student scholarship program carries with it an obligation to attend the conference and an encouragement to volunteer to act as a student volunteer. Student volunteers may be asked to support to conference in various ways, i.e., to help with running a particular session. Successful US applicants are also asked to participate in the Doctoral Consortium (DC) either as a presenter or as an attendee, with no obligation to have a paper accepted at the DC. US applicants are also asked to write a short report on their attendance at AAMAS. Please submit your application by the 12th of February 2022 (11:59pm, UTC-12) via the link above. We will notify you of your application decision by the 26th of February 2022 (11:59pm, UTC-12). If your application is successful, you will receive a code that you can then use upon registration as a conference fee waiver. We ask the applicants to not register for the conference before the scholarship notification. We will not be able to reimburse payments that have already been made. For any question, feel free to contact us at aamas2022scholarships(a)googlegroups.com <mailto:aamas2022scholarships@googlegroups.com> The AAMAS 2022 Scholarship Chairs: Hau Chan (University of Nebraska–Lincoln, United States) Wojciech Jamroga (University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg) Paolo Turrini (University of Warwick, United Kingdom)

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LPNMR 2022 - Call for Workshops
by cfp 28 Jan '22

28 Jan '22

[Apologies if you receive multiple copies of this email. Please distribute to interested parties.] --------------------------------------------------------------------------- CALL FOR WORKSHOPS 16th International Conference on Logic Programming and Non-monotonic Reasoning LPNMR 2022 https://sites.google.com/view/lpnmr2022 Genova, Italy September 5-8, 2022 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- The 16th International Conference on Logic Programming and Non-monotonic Reasoning (LPNMR 2022) will be held in Genova, Italy. The objective of the LPNMR workshop program is to stimulate the discussion and the exchange of ideas on topics related, but not limited, to declarative logic programming, non-monotonic reasoning, and knowledge representation. We aim at creating a forum where researchers from a broad spectrum of disciplines may interact and have an opportunity to promote collaboration and identify directions for joint future research. Accordingly, we solicit workshop proposals on theoretical and applied research topics. Workshop proposals should explain and motivate the topic of the workshop, and discuss the format of presentation of the contributes. Workshops will likely be half-day or one-day in duration, but we may consider longer programs. DATES * Workshop proposals submissions: February 25th, 2022 * Workshop proposals notifications: March 7th, 2022 * Workshop program: September 5th, 2022 (tentative date) SUBMISSION Proposals must be submitted via EasyChair: https://easychair.org/my/conference?conf=lpnmrws2022 Proposals should clearly specify the following: * Workshop title and acronym * A brief description, emphasizing why this workshop would appeal to audiences from LPNMR * A list of organizers with email addresses, web page URLs, and a short description of their experience in organizing events * A short description of the format of planned activities (talks, posters, panels, invited speakers if any, etc.) * The proposed duration (half day, one day, etc.) * A description of the history of the workshop (if any) * Expected number of participants VENUE Workshops are planned to be held at the University, which is in the city center of Genova. Genova is the capital of Liguria, stretching along the bay of Genova from Nervi to the east as far as Voltri to the west. Its old town district is one of the largest in Europe, and hosts some remarkable artistic and architectural treasures, including the Palazzi dei Rolli, fifty or so homes of the aristocracy entered on the UNESCO World Heritage List. In addition to offering a wealth of cultural attractions, Genova is a fascinating destination for tourists, with its scenic vantage points, sea promenades, aristocratic villas and of course the Riviera to the east and west, both easy to reach: Portovenere and Le Cinque Terre (also UNESCO World Heritage Sites), Portofino and Camogli to the east and Alassio, Sanremo, Bordighera to the west. The main conference will take place in Genova Nervi, Italy, in the Collegio Emiliani (http://www.collegioemiliani.it/, information available only in Italian on this link), which is a college directly situated on the sea. Nervi is a former fishing village, now a suburb of Genoa. Nervi is 7 km east of central Genova. Of course, we will continuously monitor the pandemic situation in order to evaluate whether the conference can be indeed held as an in-person event, or we will need to switch to a hybrid event, if not completely on-line. GENERAL CHAIR Georg Gottlob, Oxford University, UK PROGRAM CHAIRS Daniela Inclezan, Miami University, USA Marco Maratea, University of Genova, Italy PUBLICITY CHAIR Jessica Zangari, University of Calabria, Italy WORKSHOPS CHAIR Viviana Mascardi, University of Genova, Italy DOCTORAL CONSORTIUM CHAIR Martin Gebser, University of Klagenfurt, Austria LOCAL ORGANIZATION Matteo Cardellini, University of Genova, Italy Angelo Ferrando, University of Genova, Italy (Chair) Marco Mochi, University of Genova, Italy CONTACT For any details on workshops, please contact the Workshop Chair: viviana.mascardi(a)unige.it

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Second Call for Papers: 19th EUROPEAN CONFERENCE ON MULTI-AGENT SYSTEMS (EUMAS-2022)
by Jörg-Matthias Rothe 27 Jan '22

27 Jan '22

*********************************************** 19th EUROPEAN CONFERENCE ON MULTI-AGENT SYSTEMS (EUMAS-2022) September 14 - 16, 2022, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf https://ccc.cs.hhu.de/eumas2022/ *********************************************** ------------------------------------ IMPORTANT DATES ------------------------------------ - Deadline for paper submission: May 6, 2022 - Notification of authors: July 15, 2022 - Camera-ready papers due: August 12, 2022 - Conference: September 14 - 16, 2022 All deadlines are at 23:59 UTC-12, i.e., while it is still the respective date anywhere on earth. Submission instructions: https://ccc.cs.hhu.de/eumas2022/ ------------------------------------ AIMS AND SCOPE ------------------------------------ In the past two decades, we have seen an enormous increase of interest in agent-based computing and multi-agent systems (MAS). This field is set to become one of the key intelligent systems technologies in the 21st century. The EUMAS conference series aims to provide the main forum for academics and practitioners in Europe to discuss current MAS research and applications. EUMAS-2022, the 19th installment of the conference series, follows the tradition of previous editions (Oxford 2003, Barcelona 2004, Brussels 2005, Lisbon 2006, Hammamet 2007, Bath 2008, Agia Napa 2009, Paris 2010, Maastricht 2011, Dublin 2012, Toulouse 2013, Prague 2014, Athens 2015, Valencia 2016, Evry 2017, Bergen 2018, Thessaloniki 2019, Virtual 2020), and encourages and supports activity in the research and development of multi-agent systems, in academic and industrial efforts. The conference aspires to be the primary European forum for researchers interested in the theory and practice of autonomous agents and multi-agent systems. EUMAS enables researchers to meet, present challenges, preliminary and mature research results in an open and informal environment. To attract students as well as experienced researchers, preliminary as well as mature work, EUMAS 2021 offers three submission types and formal proceedings. Also, we will be working hard to arrange for the post-publication of selected papers in the form of a special issue of a high-quality journal in the area. EUMAS-2022 is a designated event of the European Association of Multi-Agent Systems (EURAMAS): http://www.euramas.org <http://www.euramas.org/> Topics of interest include but are not limited to: - Action and Planning - Adaptation and Learning - Agent Architectures - Agent Programming Languages - Agent Development Methodologies and Tools - Agent-Based Simulations and Modeling - Agent Organizations and Institutions - Agent-Oriented Software Engineering - Agents and Complex Systems - Applications of Multi-Agent Systems - Argumentation - Automated Negotiation - Biologically Inspired Approaches - Cognitive Models - Collective and Swarm Intelligence - Collective Intentionality - Communication, Cooperation, and Coordination - Deep Reinforcement Learning in Multi-Agent Domains - Economic Models - Electronic Commerce - Ethical Behaviour of Multi-Agent Systems - Formal Modeling - Game-Theoretic Methods - Logics for Multi-Agent Systems - Logics for Strategic Reasoning - Machine Learning for Multi-Agent Systems - Multi-Agent Learning - Multi-Robot Systems - Negotiation - Self-Organization - Semantic Web Agents - Socio-Technical Systems - Theories of Agency - Trust and Reputation - Verification - Virtual Agents - Voting and Judgment Aggregation Models for Multi-Agent Systems - Computational Social Choice - Social Networks - Human-Agent Interaction ------------------------------------ SUBMISSIONS ------------------------------------ EUMAS-2022 welcomes original, unpublished papers. Papers submitted shall describe original work that has not been published or accepted for publication, nor is currently under review by another conference or journal (it might be on arXiv or a similar preprint server, though). NEW! Papers rejected from AAMAS, AAAI, or IJCAI will be fast-tracked given that their original reviews and an authors' cover letter (indicating all changes made) will be submitted. Extended abstracts from AAMAS also qualify for this fast track. Each submission will be peer-reviewed in a double-blind fashion. All submissions should be formatted according to Springer's LNCS format and contain at least 12 and at most 16 pages, plus any number of additional pages for bibliography and, if needed, a clearly marked appendix. For templates and instructions for authors, see http://www.springer.de/comp/lncs/authors.html. Authors must submit their abstracts and papers through the EUMAS-2022 Easychair submission site https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=eumas2022. EUMAS-2022 accepted papers will be published by Springer in an LNCS/LNAI volume. As such, they will be made available to several indexing services (including Scopus, Google Scholar, DBLP, CPCI, EI Engineering Index, and more). Authors should consult Springer's author guidelines and use their proceedings templates, either for LaTeX (preferred) or for Word (if need be), for the preparation of their papers. Springer encourages authors to include their ORCIDs in their papers. We urge the authors to follow these guidelines from the submission stage already. Additional guidelines will be communicated after the conference to the authors of accepted papers for the preparation of the final versions to be included in the post-proceedings. ------------------------------------ Opportunity for a JAAMAS publication ------------------------------------ This year, the Journal of Autonomous Agents and Multi-Agent Systems (JAAMAS) will provide the opportunity for revised and extended versions of the EUMAS-2022 best paper award winner (see below) and the EUMAS-2022 best paper award runner-up to be fast-tracked for the journal. ----------------------------------------------------------- Opportunity to publish revised and extended papers in SN CS ----------------------------------------------------------- A selection of EUMAS-2022 papers will be invited to submit revised and extended versions for publication in a special issue of the Springer Nature Computer Science journal. ------------------------------------ Best Paper Award ------------------------------------ A Best Paper Award will be presented at the conference. ------------------------------------ Keynote Speakers ------------------------------------ Prof. Marija Slavkovik (University of Bergen) Prof. Carles Sierra (Artificial Intelligence Research Institute of the Spanish National Research Council, Barcelona) ------------------------------------ DOCTORAL CONSORTIUM ------------------------------------ There will be a doctoral consortium day prior to the conference where PhD students can present the topics related to MAS they are currently working on. Keynote Speaker for the PhD Day (September 14, 2022): Piotr Faliszewski (AGH University of Science and Technology Kraków) Organizers of the PhD Day: Linus Boes (HHU Düsseldorf) Christian Laußmann (HHU Düsseldorf) ------------------------------------ CONFERENCE CHAIRS ------------------------------------ Dorothea Baumeister (HHU Düsseldorf) Jörg Rothe (HHU Düsseldorf) ------------------------------------ PROGRAM COMMITTEE ------------------------------------ https://ccc.cs.hhu.de/eumas2022/ ------------------------------------ CONTACT DETAILS ------------------------------------ EUMAS-2022 Organizing Committee: eumas2022(a)cs.hhu.de

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[meetings][Second Call for papers] Longitudinal Social Impacts of HRI over Long-Term Deployments
by Joydeep Biswas 27 Jan '22

27 Jan '22

HRI 2022 Workshop March 7th, 2022 Virtual - 9:00 am - 6:00pm PST Workshop Objective This workshop seeks to grow the study of how real-world, deployed robot systems impact the people who interact with them and the social structure of the places that they inhabit. By bringing together researchers interested in longitudinal studies on real-world human-interactive long-term deployments, we hope to arrive at a clearer vision of how best to study these systems. Invited Speakers Maja Mataric, University of Southern California Reid Simmons, Carnegie Mellon University Stefanie Tellex, Brown University Selma Šabanović, Indiana University Paper Topics Contributions are invited on all topics relevant to longitudinal social impacts of HRI over long-term deployments including (but not limited to): - Longitudinal studies of HRI over real-world large-scale deployments - Interdisciplinary approaches and long-term autonomy - Methodological and technical challenges for longitudinal studies - Social impacts of HRI over long-term deployments - Social effects such as safety, privacy, and inclusion - New opportunities for HRI and HR teaming - Demonstrations of long-term deployments - Hardware and devices for human-robot interaction - New sensors, biological signals for longitudinal HRI Social Science and Technical Review Tracks All submissions will select at least one review track for their paper: either social science or technical. A submission may select both tracks if it appropriately represents the work. Submission types Submission types for this workshop include: - Short work-in-progress and position papers (2-4 pages) - Long-format integration and experimental papers (4-6 pages). All papers are to be considered for both oral presentations and posters, with final format to be indicated along with acceptance. To encourage participation, 1-2 page extended abstracts describing the research interests of participants will also be accepted and featured on the workshop's website. Key Dates Early Submission Deadline January 17, 2022 Early Submission Notifications February 7, 2022 Late Submission Deadline February 14, 2022 Late Submission Notifications March 1, 2022 Workshop Website https://sites.google.com/view/lsi-hri/home Submission Site https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=lsihri22 Organizers Justin Hart - hart(a)cs.utexas.edu Elliot Hauser - eah13(a)utexas.edu Samuel Baker - sebaker(a)austin.utexas.edu Joydeep Biswas - joydeepb(a)cs.utexas.edu Junfeng Jiao - jjiao(a)austin.utexas.edu Luis Sentis - lsentis(a)utexas.edu

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[meetings] (RO-MAN 2022) First call for regular and special sessions papers at the 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication
by Alessandra Rossi 27 Jan '22

27 Jan '22

Dear colleagues, Apologies for any cross-posting Please find attached below the first call for Regular and Special Session papers at the 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN 2022) that will be held in Naples (Italy) on August 29th - September 2nd, 2022. More information can be also found on the website and social media: http://ro-man2022.org IG: @ieeeroman2022 Twitter: @ROMAN2022ieee Facebook: @ieeeroman2022 For any questions and further information about the Regular and Special Session papers, please email program(at)ro-man2022.org Kind regards, Alessandra Rossi Publicity Chair Dr. Alessandra Rossi Assistant Professor PRISCA research lab Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy ================================================================================== *** FIRST CALL FOR REGULAR PAPERS and SPECIAL SESSIONS PAPERS *** 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN 2022) August 29th - September 2nd, 2022 Naples, Italy http://ro-man2022.org IG: @ieeeroman2022 Twitter: @ROMAN2022ieee Facebook: @ieeeroman2022 ================================================================================== REGULAR PAPERS and SPECIAL SESSIONS PAPERS IMPORTANT DATES SUBMISSION DEADLINE: MARCH 15, 2022 NOTIFICATION OF ACCEPTANCE: MAY 30, 2022 CAMERA-READY DEADLINE: JUNE 15, 2022 The RO-MAN2022 Organising Committee invites for the submission of Regular Papers and Special Session Papers to be held during the 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication in Naples, Italy from August 29th to September 2nd, 2022. The RO-MAN conference is a leading forum where state-of-the-art innovative results, the latest developments as well as future perspectives relating to robot and human interactive communication are presented and discussed. The conference covers a wide range of topics related to Robot and Human Interactive Communication, involving theories, methodologies, technologies, empirical and experimental studies. Proposals related to the study of robotic technology, psychology, cognitive science, artificial intelligence, human factors, ethics and policies, interaction-based robot design and other topics related to human-robot interaction are welcome. This year's theme is “Social, asocial, and antisocial robots”. One of its goals is to explore how to create robots that are capable of being welcomed as our assistants and companions in society while, at the same time, not being perceived as “asocial” or “antisocial”. A second aim is to understand how we can create robots perceived as facilitators of the natural development of human beings and communities, rather than obstacles. TEMPLATES AND SUBMISSION PROCEDURE Authors should submit their papers electronically in PDF format via Papercept. For the first submission, a manuscript can be of 6-8 pages including references. For the final submission, a manuscript should be of 6 pages, with 2 additional pages allowed at an extra charge. All papers submitted to RO-MAN 2022 will undergo a peer-review process. A manuscript will be reviewed by at least two reviewers, who will provide detailed comments. If the submission is accepted, the authors submit a revised “camera-ready” version that takes into account this feedback. The review process is managed by the program chair, the program co-chairs, the editors, and the conference associate editors. All papers are reviewed using a single-blind review process: authors declare their names and affiliations in the manuscript for the reviewers to see, but reviewers do not know each other’s identities, nor do the authors receive information about who has reviewed their manuscript. Authors will have to declare that the research presented in the submitted papers complies with the IEEE Code of Ethics. Authors should use the templates provided by the electronic submission system. The templates for US Letter format paper should be used. The manuscript submission website will require that you submit your abstract and make any final changes to the author list and title of the paper before uploading the paper. Use the following templates to create the paper and generate or export a PDF file: LaTeX or MS-Word. All authors and co-authors must be registered in the electronic system. It is the corresponding author’s responsibility to ensure that the complete author list and the correct title are being entered. This information will be used for the conference program and the proceedings. AUTHORS SHOULD ADHERE TO THE FOLLOWING STEPS FOR SUBMITTING THE PAPER (FOR INITIAL SUBMISSION): • Create an account: go to https://ras.papercept.net/, then PIN and fill out the form. Ask all your co-authors to do the same if they do not have an account on the system yet, write down the authors' PINs (this information is needed for manuscript processing purposes). • Go to Support Menu and depending on how you are preparing your paper, download a template: LaTeX or MS-Word, Use these templates/style files to create the paper and save in PDF format. • Upload the paper as pdf: go to https://ras.papercept.net/ and click on "Submit a contribution to RO-MAN 2022". • Submit (regular paper, special session paper). • Fill in the form presented on the next page (make sure to enter all author PINs created in Step 1). SPECIAL ISSUE ON RO-MAN 2022 CONFERENCE Best papers will be invited to submit an extended/revised version to a Special Issue of RSJ International Journal of Advanced Robotics. For any concerns about Full Papers preparation, submission and review process, please contact program(at)ro-man2022.org. PC CO-CHAIRS Nak Young Chong, JAIST (JP) Mary Ellen Foster, University of Glasgow (UK) Gentiane Venture, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology (JP)

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Call for Papers ICARSC'2022 - International Conference on Autonomous Robot Systems and Competitions
by Pedro Neto 21 Jan '22

21 Jan '22

[Our apologies if you receive multiple copies of this announcement] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- Call for Papers ICARSC'2022 - IEEE(*) International Conference on Autonomous Robot Systems and Competitions <https://festivalnacionalrobotica.pt/icarsc/> https://festivalnacionalrobotica.pt/icarsc/ / April 29-30, Santa Maria da Feira Portugal (*) IEEE co-sponsorship pending approval ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- Dear colleague We are pleased to inform you that ICARSC2022 IEEE(*) International Conference on Autonomous Robot Systems and Competitions will be held in Santa Maria da Feira, Portugal, on April 29-30, 2022. The conference is organized within ROBOTICA 2022 - 22nd Portuguese Robotics Open, a RoboCup-sponsored local event, and it is promoted by the Portuguese Robotics Society. (*) IEEE co-sponsorship pending approval == Conference Scope == ICARSC gathers participants from academia and industry working in the field of autonomous robotics and related areas. ICARSC is a well-established IEEE conference that has been growing continuously for over a decade and is nowadays a truly international forum attracting worldwide quality research papers. ICARSC has long been an IEEE co-sponsored event and its proceedings are indexed in IEEExplore and Scopus. Moreover, similarly to previous editions, extended versions of selected best papers will be invited for publication at relevant indexed journals. == Invited Speakers == George Nikolakopoulos, Luleå University of Technology, Sweden Jorge Dias, Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE == Important Dates == Submission Feb 21, 2022 Notification Mar 22, 2022 Camera Ready Mar 29, 2022 Registration Apr 14, 2022 Conference Apr 29-30, 2022 == Conference Topics == The conference aims to gather researchers from the industry and academia to present and discuss the latest trends in research and technology in the fields of robotics and related areas. Contributions from researchers, industry, and outputs from collaboration between industrial and academic R&D units are welcome in, but not limited to, the following topics. - Agricultural Robotics - Applications of Autonomous Intelligent Robots - Artificial Intelligence - Autonomous Robotic Systems - Computer Vision and Image Processing - Control Architectures and Programming - Cooperative Perception - Cooperative Planning and Task Allocation - Dexterous Manipulation and Grasping - Educational Robotics - Entertainment Robots - Evolutionary Robotics - Humanoid Robotics - Human-Robot Interaction - Localization, Mapping, and Navigation - Locomotion and Actuation Systems - Multi-Robot Coordination - Multi-Robot Systems - Planning, Reasoning and Modelling - Recognition and Tracking - Robot Learning - Robotic Competitions - Robotic Simulation - Sensors and Sensor Integration - Swarm Robotics - Space Robotics - Underwater Robotics == Paper Submission == Authors are invited to submit original research contributions in English. Six pages in the standard IEEE format ( <http://www.ieee.org/conferences_events/conferences/publishing/templates.htm l> http://www.ieee.org/conferences_events/conferences/publishing/templates.html ) are allowed for each paper, including tables and figures. Full draft papers should be submitted electronically, in PDF format, using the URL: <https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=icarsc2022> https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=icarsc2022. For evaluation purposes, authors must remove their names from the submitted papers, and should take reasonable care not to indirectly disclose their identity. Accepted papers will be scheduled for presentation, which requires that at least one of the authors should register at the Conference and present the paper. If the authors of an accepted paper do not show up at the conference, the corresponding paper will not be submitted to IEEExplore. == ICARSC2022 General/Program Chairs == Pedro Fonseca, University of Aveiro, Portugal Rodrigo Ventura, Instituto Superior Técnico, Portugal Luís Louro, University of Minho, Portugal Pedro Neto, University of Coimbra, Portugal

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Reminder and Update Call for proposals: RCF and MathWorks Support for Research Projects 2022
by Gerald Steinbauer-Wagner 21 Jan '22

21 Jan '22

Call for proposals: RCF and MathWorks Support for Research Projects 2022 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 2022 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. The RoboCup Federation and MathWorks hosted a webinar to discuss the details of the call, describe expected results and MathWorks tools, showcase previously sponsored projects, and answer questions. Link to the webinar: https://youtu.be/znZSFBWAWhg For more info or clarification on the details of this call, please contact info(a)robocup.org 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 for Manipulators and Mobile Robots b. Motion planning for humanoid robots c. Collision avoidance 2. Perception and Sensor Fusion a. Object detection and tracking b. Lidar and vision-based SLAM c. Point cloud processing d. Fusing IMU with other sensors for localization and state estimation 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 a. Natural language processing b. Signal and audio processing NOTE: teams are encouraged to apply machine learning techniques (deep learning, reinforcement learning, etc.) toward these research topics 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 2022 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=rcfsupport2022 under the Category: RCF and MathWorks Support for Research Projects 2022 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: February 6th, 2022 Notification: February 8th, 2022 Completion of the action: Preliminary work expected to be presented during the RoboCup 2022 Research Symposium, and official content publication by October 2022 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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Reminder Call for proposals: RCF Project Support 2022
by Gerald Steinbauer-Wagner 21 Jan '22

21 Jan '22

Call for proposals: RCF Project Support 2022 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=rcfsupport2022 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: January 30th, 2022 Notification: February 8th, 2022 Completion of the project: Preliminary work expected to be presented during the RoboCup Symposium 2022, the project needs to be finished by end of 2022 and a final report submitted by January 2023. Exceptions to this rule must be submitted for approval to the evaluation committee.

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[robotics-worldwide] [news] RoboCup 2022 Virtual Robot Competition - Call for Participation
by AMIRREZA KABIRI 20 Jan '22

20 Jan '22

* RoboCup Rescue Simulation Virtual Robot Competitions 2022* *Bangkok, Thailand**July 11-19, 2022* https://robocup-rsvrl.github.io/ https://2022.robocup.org/ <https://www.robocup.org/leagues/27> *IMPORTANT DATES* Pre-Registration……………………………….: February 15, 2022 (23:55 GMT) Team Description Paper (TDP) submission..: March 21, 2022 (23:55 GMT) Qualified teams announcement…………..…: March 28, 2022 Team registration deadline…….…………..…: May 31, 2022 Camera-ready TDP submission………….….: June 8, 2022 (23:55 GMT) Tournament dates………………………..……: July 11-19, 2022 If you are interested in participating please take the time to pre-register your team for the RoboCup 2022 Virtual Robot Competition as soon as possible, so that we can inform you about the latest developments. The current plan is to have the competition in-person and closely monitor the COVID-19 restrictions and if needed the committee will provide the teams remote access to a competition platform by using a cloud computing service. In order to organise the we need to know the number of participating teams. The ultimate deadline for pre-registration is set on February 15, 2022. *(1) RoboCup Rescue Simulation League and Virtual Robot Competition* ——————— The RoboCup Rescue Simulation League is a socially relevant part of the RoboCup event. Its main purpose is to provide emergency decision support by integration of disaster information, prediction, planning, and human interface. A generic urban disaster simulation environment is constructed on network computers. Heterogeneous intelligent agents such as firefighters, commanders, victims, volunteers, etc. conduct search and rescue activities in this virtual disaster world. Agents can sense their environment and make decisions on the basis of the perceived data. Mission-critical human interfaces support disaster managers, disaster relief brigades, residents, and volunteers to decide their actions to minimize the disaster damage. Addressing this problem involves advanced and interdisciplinary research themes. AI/robotics research, for example, behavior strategy (e.g., multi-agent planning, real-time/anytime planning, heterogeneity of agents, robust planning, mixed-initiative planning) is a challenging problem. For disaster researchers, RoboCup Rescue works as a standard basis in order to develop practical comprehensive simulators adding necessary disaster modules. The Virtual Robot Competition is based on ROS/Gazebo, an advanced robot simulator in which users can simulate multiple agents whose capabilities closely mirror those of real robots. ROS/Gazebo currently features several ground and air robots, as well as a wide range of sensors and actuators. Moreover, by exploiting ROS, users can easily develop their robot systems integrating standard modules. Currently addressed research topics include but are not limited to - Human-robot interfaces - Autonomous navigation - Sensor fusion - Image processing - Speech processing - 2D and 3D mapping - Distributed planning - Distributed learning *(2) Major changes to this year (2022)* ——————- This year, we had a server migration to ROS2 bringing a great opportunity for roboticists to learn ROS2 in a tested environment via challenges. This new server could be accessed on "The Construct sim <https://www.theconstructsim.com/>" as this league will provide the remote participation option. *(3) Intention of participation* ——————- If you are interested to participate in the competition, please respond, before Feb 15, 2021, by filling out the following google form: https://forms.gle/U9vFrxGzky5EQ63CA <https://forms.gle/U9vFrxGzky5EQ63CA> *(4) Qualification material* ————————- Besides sending the intention of participation, please prepare before Mar 21, 2022, a Team Description Paper describing the most innovative contributions or scientific results your team is intended to provide. The TDP is limited to 8 pages and must be formatted according to the LNCS format: http://www.springer.com/gp/computer-science/lncs/conference-proceedings-gui… <https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.springer.com/gp/computer-science/ln…> And the tex template file of the TDP can be found on the overleaf: https://www.overleaf.com/read/nrcfnpygskyx <https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.overleaf.com/read/nrcfnpygskyx&sa=…> The Team Description Paper is an overview of the methodologies you use or intend to use to control your robots inside the Virtual Robot Competition. If applicable, include a reference to your latest publications. The qualification material should be placed on a dedicated web page on the team’s home page. Please include the link to the qualification material on the intention of participation information. *(5) Useful links* ———– - Virtual Robot Competition Wiki <https://robocup-rsvrl.github.io/> - Virtual Robot Competition 2022 Server <https://github.com/RoboCup-RSVRL/RoboCup2022RVRL_Demo> - Official RoboCup Rescue Simulation website <https://rescuesim.robocup.org/> - Virtual Robot Competition 2022 Rule (draft) <https://robocup-rsvrl.github.io/assets/rules/RoboCup2022-RVRL-Rules-draft.p…> With kind regards, Amirreza Kabiri on behalf of RoboCup Rescue Simulation Executive, Technical, and Organizing Committees

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Research Project Learning Setplays from Demonstration - Call for Contributions
by Marco Simões 19 Jan '22

19 Jan '22

Hi, We have been working in the last years on a project in our lab named "Learning Setplays from Demonstration." The main goal of this project is to provide evidence that we can catch human's intuitive knowledge in a domain and use it to feed a massive dataset for robots to learn how to cooperate to solve problems in this domain. At this time, we are gathering contributions worldwide to populate the dataset. So we ask your contribution in the following way: 1- Watch some robot soccer games 2- Locate situations where you think you can demonstrate a setplay for a team to perform better in that situation 3-Create your demonstration 4- Send us several demonstrations To turn it easier for you, we have developed the BahiaRT's Learning Setplays from Demonstration Toolkit that encapsulates in Docker containers all tools you need to watch games and create setplays demonstrations. The following links contain all information you need: - The BahiaRT's Learning Setplays from Demonstration Toolkit - https://bitbucket.org/bahiart3d/setplaysdataset/src/master/ - Setup instructions: https://bitbucket.org/bahiart3d/setplaysdataset/src/master/README.md - Usage instructions: https://bitbucket.org/bahiart3d/setplaysdataset/src/master/USAGE.md - Video tutorial: https://youtu.be/h_s8rA2IS88 At the end of this project, we will provide: 1- A public massive setplays dataset organized using our fuzzy clustering strategy ready to be used for any soccer team (not only 3D simulation teams) 2- Source code of the dataset organizer and the deep reinforcement learning engine used for teams training. 3- Results published (Ph.D. thesis and several papers). You can see some earlier publications of this project at the end of this message. We appreciate your contribution. Anyone who enjoys soccer can contribute. You do not need any experience with robot soccer or 3D Soccer Simulation. I hope you have fun and send us several setplays demonstrations in the following weeks. If you have any doubts, please send a message to teambahiart(a)gmail.com. Best, Marco Earlier Publications: [1]M. A. C. Simões et al., “Generating a dataset for learning setplays from demonstration”, SN Appl. Sci., vol. 3, nº 6, p. 608, jun. 2021, doi: 10.1007/s42452-021-04571-y. [2]M. A. C. Simões, R. M. da Silva, e T. Nogueira, “A Dataset Schema for Cooperative Learning from Demonstration in Multi-robot Systems”, J Intell Robot Syst, vol. 99, nº 3–4, p. 589–608, set. 2020, doi: 10.1007/s10846-019-01123-w. [3]M. A. C. Simoes et al., “Strategy Planner: Enhancements to support better defense and pass strategies within an LfD approach”, in 2020 IEEE International Conference on Autonomous Robot Systems and Competitions (ICARSC), Ponta Delgada, Portugal, abr. 2020, p. 46–52. doi: 10.1109/ICARSC49921.2020.9096188. [4]M. A. C. Simões e T. Nogueira, “Towards setplays learning in a multiagent robotic soccer team”, in 2018 latin american robotic symposium, 2018 brazilian symposium on robotics (SBR) and 2018 workshop on robotics in education (WRE), nov. 2018, p. 277–282. doi: 10.1109/LARS/SBR/WRE.2018.00058. -- 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 <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_2444998134690685997_DAB4FAD8-2DD7-40BB-A1B8-4E2AA1F9FDF2>

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[robocup-athome] Call for Participation: Simulation
by Mauricio Matamoros 17 Jan '22

17 Jan '22

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[robocup-worldwide] CFP: RoboCup Rescue Agent Simulation competition 2022
by Dina Helal 12 Jan '22

12 Jan '22

Call for Participation 2022 RoboCup Rescue Agent Simulation Competitions to be held in Bangkok, Thailand — July 11-19, 2022 2022 RoboCup Rescue Simulation <https://rescuesim.robocup.org/upcoming-events/2022-bangkok-rescue-simulatio…> RoboCup 2022 https://2022.robocup.org IMPORTANT DATES Pre-Registration……………………………......: February 15, 2022 (23:55 GMT) Team Description Paper (TDP) submission…: February 28, 2022 (23:55 GMT) Qualified teams announcement…………..…..: March 15, 2022 Camera-ready TDP submission………….……: May 31, 2022 (23:55 GMT) Tournament dates………………………..……..: July 11-19, 2022 WAIVER OF THE TEAM FEE FOR NEW TEAMS The RoboCup Federation is pleased to introduce a waiver of the team fee for the 2022 international RoboCup competition for NEW teams in the major leagues. A NEW team is defined as a team all of whose team members have never participated in an annual international RoboCup competition. The waiver concerns only the team fee and does not imply any waiver of fees for team members. NEW FEATURES IN THE SIMULATOR Teams can now choose to implement their agents in Java or Python Python repo: roborescue/rcrs-sample-agent-python (github.com) <https://github.com/roborescue/rcrs-sample-agent-python> AGENT SIMULATION COMPETITION This initiative focuses on promoting the use of Artificial Intelligence to support teamwork coordination and decision-making of ground rescue teams in a post-disaster urban setting. It maintains a computer simulation platform that can realistically represent natural disaster scenarios where Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) plans can be assessed. This platform is a comprehensive artificial simulation environment that can be used as a testbed to the effectiveness of coordination strategies of USAR teams, coalition formations of heterogeneous teams, rescue plans to explore large-scale environments with limited set of resources to search for survivors, disaster response public policies, among others. The RoboCup Rescue Agent Simulation Competition involves primarily evaluating the performance of teams of agents in regards to their distributed coordination and planning algorithms for rescuing civilians in a city after an earthquake. The goal is evaluating the effectiveness of Ambulance Team, Police Force, and Fire Brigade agents on rescuing civilians in earthquake scenarios. Here are some of the challenges that can be tackled in this competition: - Decision Making Algorithms - Task Allocation Methods - Multi-Agent Coordination and Team Formation Methods - Path Finding - Search Algorithms GETTING STARTED GUIDE Here are some pointers to get started with the agents development - ADF Java: - Repository: roborescue/adf-sample-agent-java: RoboCup Rescue Agent Development Framework Sample Agent Java (github.com) <https://github.com/roborescue/adf-sample-agent-java> - Documentation: Java ADF manual <https://github.com/roborescue/adf-sample-agent-java/blob/master/docs/manual…> - [NEW] Python: - Repository: roborescue/rcrs-sample-agent-python (github.com) <https://github.com/roborescue/rcrs-sample-agent-python> - [NEW] Docker: - Repository: roborescue/rcrs-docker (github.com) <https://github.com/roborescue/rcrs-docker> - Using docker is optional for teams that wish to have an environment that is already setup for development INFRASTRUCTURE COMPETITION The Infrastructure competition involves the presentation of tools or simulators related to disaster management issues already developed by the participating team. The aim is to evaluate possible enhancements and expansions of the RoboCup Rescue Simulation League environment (both the agent simulator and frameworks and the virtual robot platform) based on the new ideas and concepts proposed in these tools and simulators. The evaluation will be done by a panel of experts and the winner chosen according to a set of factors related to the technical aspects of the tool or simulator and the presentation. The winner tool will be selected for further integration with the simulation platform. The participation on Infrastructure competition requires the submission of a detailed Team Description Paper (TDP) describing the tool or simulator. In addition to the submission of the TDP, teams interested in participating on the Infrastructure competition must release their source code as an open-source project PRIOR to July 2, 2022. Participant teams should address topics including, but not limited to - Improvements to the Virtual Robot Simulator - Improvements to the Agent Development Framework - Increase the number of participants on the RoboCup Rescue league - Provide agent development kits that render easy the participation of newcomers - Integrate the Agent and Virtual Robot competitions - Improve the RoboCup Rescue sub-simulators PRE-REGISTRATION Teams must register via the submission system available at https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=rcrs2022 no later than February 15, 2022 (23:55 UTC). This pre-registration requires only teams to fill the "Title" field and the name, institution, and contact information of all team members. The "Title" field should be "Agent_[TeamName]" to participate in the Agent Competition and “Infrastructure_[TeamName]” for the infrastructure competition, where [TeamName] should be replaced by the name of the team. The pre-registration does not imply that the team will be evaluated to participate in the competition, please see section QUALIFICATION below for further information. QUALIFICATION Teams must submit a Team Description Paper (TDP) (in English) describing the strategy and recent advancements implemented in the team. The TDP is limited to 16 pages and must be electronically submitted as PDF through the submission system available at https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=rcrs2022 no later than February 28, 2022 (23:55 UTC). The TDP file name has to be "Agent_[TeamName]" for the Agent Competition, where [TeamName] is the name of the team submitting the TDP. This format should be also used in the "Title" field in the submission system https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=rcrs2022. Teams should prepare their Agent Competition TDP based on the templates available at https://github.com/roborescue/rcrs-templates . (overleaf link) All TDPs will be peer-reviewed by at least two PC members. The evaluation criteria of contributions will be based on originality, quality, clarity, and its relevance to the league's aims. The suggestions of the reviewers should be incorporated into an improved version (i.e., Camera-Ready version) of the TDP. The camera-ready version should be uploaded to EasyChair no later than May 31, 2022. - The previous TDPs are accessible here: https://robocup-rescue.github.io/team_description_papers/ - Qualification results will be announced on March 15, 2022. - If you have any questions please reach out to rcrs2022(a)easychair.org RULES Please read the Agent Simulation Competition Rules document available at 2022 RoboCup Rescue Simulation <https://rescuesim.robocup.org/upcoming-events/2022-bangkok-rescue-simulatio…> for further details. ABOUT ROBOCUP RESCUE AGENT SIMULATION LEAGUE Natural disasters are major adverse events that cause large-scale economic, human, and environmental losses. They are usually difficult to predict and even more challenging to prevent from happening. These characteristics demand disaster management strategies to be in place to mitigate damaging consequences after a natural disaster. The mission of the RoboCup Rescue Agent Simulation League is to promote research and development in the socially significant domain of natural disaster with focus on multiagent teamwork coordination and decision support systems. The effective implementation of this mission is translated into three main objectives. First, the league aims to provide a simulator able to realistically represent natural disaster scenarios where response rescue plans can be assessed. Second, it aims to define evaluation benchmarks for response plans elaborated by policy-makers. Finally, it aims to promote research and development by organizing competitions to stimulate the exchange of ideas and experience between researchers and practitioners. These aims are designed to help in the development of more sophisticated and formalized response plans to effectively respond to natural disasters and reduce the negative impacts on society.

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[meetings][cfp] (RO-MAN 2022) EXTENDED DEADLINE for Workshops and Tutorials proposals at the 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication
by Alessandra Rossi 11 Jan '22

11 Jan '22

Dear colleagues, Apologies for any cross-posting We are pleased to inform you that we extended the deadline for proposals for Workshops and Tutorials to be held at the 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN 2022) in Naples (Italy) on August 29th - September 2nd, 2022. More information can be also found on the website and social media: http://ro-man2022.org IG: @ieeeroman2022 Twitter: @ROMAN2022ieee Facebook: @ieeeroman2022 For any questions and further information about the Workshop/Tutorial proposal, please email workshop(a)roman2022.org Please find attached the call for proposal. Kindest regards, Alessandra Rossi Publicity Chairs Dr. Alessandra Rossi Assistant Professor PRISCA research lab Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy ================================================================================== *** EXTENDED DEADLINE FOR WORKSHOPS AND TUTORIALS *** 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN 2022) August 29th - September 2nd, 2022 Naples, Italy http://ro-man2022.org IG: @ieeeroman2022 Twitter: @ROMAN2022ieee Facebook: @ieeeroman2022 ================================================================================== EXTENDED PROPOSAL SUBMISSION DEADLINE WORKSHOPS/TUTORIALS DEADLINE: FEBRUARY 7, 2022 ================================================================================== The RO-MAN2022 Organising Committee invites proposals for Workshops and Tutorials to be held during the 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication in Naples, Italy from August 29th to September 2nd, 2022. The RO-MAN conference is a leading forum where state-of-the-art innovative results, the latest developments as well as future perspectives relating to robot and human interactive communication are presented and discussed. The conference covers a wide range of topics related to Robot and Human Interactive Communication, involving theories, methodologies, technologies, empirical and experimental studies. Proposals related to the study of robotic technology, psychology, cognitive science, artificial intelligence, human factors, ethics and policies, interaction-based robot design and other topics related to human-robot interaction are welcome. This year's theme is “Social, asocial, and antisocial robots”. One of its goals is to explore how to create robots that are capable of being welcomed as our assistants and companions in society while, at the same time, not being perceived as “asocial” or “antisocial”. A second aim is to understand how we can create robots perceived as facilitators of the natural development of human beings and communities, rather than obstacles. WORKSHOPS and TUTORIALS PROPOSALS Workshops and tutorials should focus on key areas of established and emerging research, and should provide a forum for participants to exchange new ideas and discuss recent results. We encourage proposals for topics that have substantial community interest, with a creative and innovative program, led by recognised leaders in their fields, that will attract a broad and diverse audience. 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 • Format (indicate full or half day, tutorial or workshop) • Main organiser (one person only, complete address, phone, and email) • Co-organisers (complete address, and email) • Previous editions (if any) • Statement of objectives • Intended audience • List of speakers • List of topics • Plan to solicit participation • Workshop organisation • Plan for inclusion, diversity and equity The guidelines to submit a workshop/tutorial proposal are available at the Workshop and Tutorial section on the RO-MAN 2022 website or by clicking on this link. ================================================================================== The primary criteria in the evaluation of workshop/tutorial proposals will be the timeliness of the topics, the quality, track record, and diversity of the proposers and speakers, the coherence of the proposal, the novelty or creativity, and the expected value added to the overall conference. Aspects of diversity that will be considered include the age, gender, national origin, background, and workplace of the proposers and speakers. We will give priority to proposals that fully follow these requirements. Moreover, we encourage the submission of workshops and tutorial organized by communities that are under-represented within the RO-MAN activities. For any questions and further information about the Special Session and Workshop/Tutorial proposal, please email workshop(a)roman2022.org TUTORIAL / WORKSHOP CO-CHAIRS Amir Aly, University of Plymouth (UK) Daniel Riccio, University of Naples Federico II (IT) Raquel Ros, La Salle - Universitat Ramon Llull (ES)

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Sponsorship opportunities for student teams at the DATE Conference
by Vinco Sara 11 Jan '22

11 Jan '22

This year the Design Automation and Test in Europe conference (DATE, www.date-conference.com<http://www.date-conference.com/>), the biggest EDA conference in Europe, includes a sponsorship event that aims at bringing together student teams participating to international competitions with personnel from EDA and microelectronic companies. Teams have the opportunity to present their activities, success stories and challenges, and to receive funding and support by the companies for their future activities. The Sponsorship Fair will happen online on March 16th (5PM to 6:30PM CET). Teams will present their activities to the DATE attendees. Then, a poster session will follow to allow closer interaction of student teams with EDA and microelectronic companies, to allow discussion of sponsorship opportunities, e.g., in terms on monetary sponsorships, licenses, tutorials, etc. To submit your participation, go to https://www.softconf.com/date22/YPP<https://www.softconf.com/date22/YPP/> by January 30, 2022 to submit: * Team description: name, affiliation, reference contact, list of international competitions * A poster presenting the main activities, success stories and challenges, by giving a highlight to EDA-related activities. For more information visit the web site: https://www.date-conference.com/sponsorship-fair. In case you have any doubt or question, please feel free to contact us: young-people-program(a)date-conference.com <mailto:young-people-program@date-conference.com> Best regards, Sara Vinco --- Young People Program Co-Chair Design Automation and Test in Europe conference 2022

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Call for Participation: RoboCup 2022 Middle Size League
by 刘斐 11 Jan '22

11 Jan '22

Call for Participation   RoboCup 2022 Middle Size League July 11 to 17, 2022 (Bangkok, Thailand) https://2022.robocup.org We would like to invite all MSL teams to participate in the 2022 RoboCup MSL World Championships. If you are interested to participate please take the time to pre-register your team for the RoboCup 2022  MSL competitions.  1) Pre-registration  For the pre-registration please send an e-mail to rc-msl-oc(a)lists.robocup.org and liufei(a)caa.org.cn containing the following data: · team name · URL of the team’s home page · name of the team leader · e-mail address of team or team leader · affiliation · country · link to the qualification materials  Please send more information about teams to introduce them better on MSL website(https://msl.robocup.org/teams). Sending following information would be optional: · logo · profile (Describe team with at most 150 words). · most research topics (up to 6 topics)  2) Qualification materials  Please note that, according to the rules, the evaluation of some parts of the qualification materials will contribute to the scientific challenge final result.  By the time of pre-registration, please have ready the following qualification materials:  a) A Team Description Paper describing the most innovative contributions or scientific results (the TDP is limited to 8 pages and must be formatted according to the LNCS format: http://www.springer.com/computer/lncs?SGWID=0-164-6-793341-0) b) A list of 5 scientiﬁc papers published during the last 5 years of the team which are related to RoboCup. Abstracts of these papers and a complete reference to each paper must also be submitted. When more papers are submitted, only the first 5 will be considered; c) A list of results and awards obtained by the team in the last 3 years; d) A video showing the capabilities of the team’s robots (the maximum duration of the video is 60 seconds; if the submitted video is longer than 60 seconds, only the first 60 seconds will be considered for evaluation); e) A list of contributions of the team to the RoboCup MSL community. f) Declaration if the team will be part of a mixed team. g) Declaration if the team requires 802.11b access-point. h) A mechanical and electrical description together with a software flow chart (please include size and weight of the robots); i) List of MAC Addresses used by the team, with explicit indication of those that will be used for wireless communication and their type: robots or development computers. All other MAC addresses will be blocked.  The details regarding the qualification materials are contained in the rules and regulations document available at https://msl.robocup.org. Please read it thoroughly.  The qualification materials should be placed in a dedicated page of the team's web page. Please include the link to the qualification materials in the pre-registration information. 3) Important dates  · Deadline for pre-registration and submission of the qualification materials: March 21, 2022 · Announcement of qualified teams: March 28, 2022  4) Rules  The rules and regulations for the RoboCup 2022 Middle Size League had been published at: https://msl.robocup.org/rules   The updated rules and regulations had been released by December 31, 2021  5) Publication  Please note that after the announcement of the qualified teams the qualification materials of the qualified teams will be made publicly available. Therefore, teams applying for participation, grant the right of publication of their qualification materials to the MSL league(MAC addresses are an exception and should remain private).  6) Plagiarism  Plagiarism, loosely the unattributed use of other peoples' words, code and ideas (see “http://www.ieee.org/publications_standards/publications/rights/plagiarism_FAQ.html” for a more detailed description) is not tolerated in the RoboCup community.  The teams and team members that plagiarize other peoples' work and present it as their own will be disqualified. For a first offense, the team and team members will be banned from RoboCup competition for two years (usually the current and next year). Harsher penalties will be applied to repeat offenders or extremely serious cases of plagiarism. A team may be disqualified at any time for plagiarism, even after the competition has started. RoboCup will not reimburse teams for any expenses related to their disqualification.  7) Waiver of the team fee for NEW Teams  For the 2022 International RoboCup competition, NEW major teams can apply for team fee waiver. A NEW team is defined as a team all of whose team members have never participated in an annual international RoboCup competition. The waiver concerns only the team fee and does not imply any waiver of fees for team members.  The 2022 MSL Organizing and Technical Committees

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CFP: DEI HRI Workshop on Inclusive HRI @ HRI 2022
by Frank Broz 10 Jan '22

10 Jan '22

Call for Papers DEI HRI 2022 Workshop (https://sites.google.com/view/dei-hri-2022/) We are inviting submissions for the workshop Inclusive HRI: Equity and Diversity in Design, Application, Methods, and Community (DEI HRI 2022), to be held virtually within the ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI 2022) on March 11th, 2022. Important Dates * Deadline for Paper Submission: February 4th, 2022 * Paper Acceptance Notification: February 18th, 2022 * Camera Ready Paper: March 4th, 2022 * Workshop date: March 11th, 2022 Statement of Objectives Although being a pressing issue, an understanding of how robotic systems can replicate and amplify inequalities and injustice among underrepresented communities is still to be achieved within the HRl community. This workshop contributes to filling this gap by exploring the research questions: What do Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) mean in the context of HRI? How can we promote DEI in HRI? Our goal is to raise awareness on the importance of including DEI aspects in HRI to avoid exacerbating existing or creating new biases. This workshop will center around the themes of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Human-Robot Interaction. An additional goal of this workshop is to build community and solidarity among researchers in HRI who work on and are affected by these various and related issues. More information on the workshop can be found on the dedicated website<https://sites.google.com/view/dei-hri-2022/>. Submission Guidelines We invite authors to submit extended abstracts (up to 2 pages, excluding references) and short papers (up to 4 pages, excluding references) on a range of topics relevant to these questions and to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in HRI in general. Submissions may present current or in-progress research, position papers, critical essays, and summaries of already published research from all areas of HRI. Since we hope to learn from other fields of knowledge and form new connections with related research communities, we also welcome submissions from researchers outside of the HRI community. Authors should submit their papers on EasyChair<https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=deihri2022>. Papers should be formatted according to the IEEE two-column format<https://www.ieee.org/conferences/publishing/templates.html>. Submissions will be evaluated according to their fit to the workshop theme, and their adherence to the scientific standards of the discipline of origin. The workshop proceedings will be made publicly available on our website. List of Topics Topics of interest include, but are not limited to: * Accessibility * Bias in AI/ML algorithms * Disability and Ableism * Gender issues * LGBTQIA+ issues * Inclusive education * Intersectional feminism * Issues of representation * Neurodiversity * Racism * The global south The topics above can address one or more of the following domains: * HRI design * HRI applications * HRI research methods * HRI community Organizers More information on the workshop can be found on the workshop website<https://sites.google.com/view/dei-hri-2022/>. For any further questions, please feel free to reach out at our email addresses! * Dr. Maartje de Graaf - Utrecht University - m.m.a.degraaf(a)uu.nl<mailto:m.m.a.degraaf@uu.nl> * Dr. Giulia Perugia - Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) - g.perugia(a)tue.nl<mailto:g.perugia@tue.nl> * Dr. Eduard Fosch-Villaronga (corresponding) - Leiden University - e.fosch.villaronga(a)law.leidenuniv.nl<mailto:e.fosch.villaronga@law.leidenuniv.nl> * Dr. Angelica Lim - Simon Fraser University - angelica(a)sfu.ca<mailto:angelica@sfu.ca> * Dr. Frank Broz - Delft University - f.broz(a)tudelft.nl<mailto:f.broz@tudelft.nl> * Dr. Elaine Short, Tufts University, elaine.short(a)tufts.edu<mailto:elaine.short@tufts.edu> * Prof. dr. Mark Neerincx, Delft University and TNO, m.a.neerincx(a)tudelft.nl<mailto:m.a.neerincx@tudelft.nl> Since we acknowledge that we are a fairly homogeneous group of organizers, we would like to diversify our group composition. If you want to join the DEI HRI 2022 community and be part of the programme committee of the DEI HRI 2022 workshop, please let us know by filling out this form<https://forms.gle/fXxPiUJYBcJzSS2V9>.

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[journals] Neural Computing and Applications (NCAA) Special Issue CFP (Deadline: March 31, 2022)
by Pub Conference 08 Jan '22

08 Jan '22

Neural Computing and Applications <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.springer.com/journal/521/__;!!LIr3w…> Topical Collection on Interpretation of Deep Learning: Prediction, Representation, Modeling and Utilization https://www.springer.com/journal/521/updates/19187658 <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.springer.com/journal/521/updates/19…> Aims, Scope and Objective While Big Data offers the great potential for revolutionizing all aspects of our society, harvesting of valuable knowledge from Big Data is an extremely challenging task. The large scale and rapidly growing information hidden in the unprecedented volumes of non-traditional data requires the development of decision-making algorithms. Recent successes in machine learning, particularly deep learning, has led to breakthroughs in real-world applications such as autonomous driving, healthcare, cybersecurity, speech and image recognition, personalized news feeds, and financial markets. While these models may provide the state-of-the-art and impressive prediction accuracies, they usually offer little insight into the inner workings of the model and how a decision is made. The decision-makers cannot obtain human-intelligible explanations for the decisions of models, which impede the applications in mission-critical areas. This situation is even severely worse in complex data analytics. It is, therefore, imperative to develop explainable computation intelligent learning models with excellent predictive accuracy to provide safe, reliable, and scientific basis for determination. Numerous recent works have presented various endeavors on this issue but left many important questions unresolved. The first challenging problem is how to construct self-explanatory models or how to improve the explicit understanding and explainability of a model without the loss of accuracy. In addition, high dimensional or ultra-high dimensional data are common in large and complex data analytics. In these cases, the construction of interpretable model becomes quite difficult and complex. Further, how to evaluate and quantify the explainability of a model is lack of consistent and clear description. Moreover, auditable, repeatable, and reliable process of the computational models is crucial to decision-makers. For example, decision-makers need explicit explanation and analysis of the intermediate features produced in a model, thus the interpretation of intermediate processes is requisite. Subsequently, the problem of efficient optimization exists in explainable computational intelligent models. These raise many essential issues on how to develop explainable data analytics in computational intelligence. This Topical Collection aims to bring together original research articles and review articles that will present the latest theoretical and technical advancements of machine and deep learning models. We hope that this Topical Collection will: 1) improve the understanding and explainability of machine learning and deep neural networks; 2) enhance the mathematical foundation of deep neural networks; and 3) increase the computational efficiency and stability of the machine and deep learning training process with new algorithms that will scale. Potential topics include but are not limited to the following: - Interpretability of deep learning models - Quantifying or visualizing the interpretability of deep neural networks - Neural networks, fuzzy logic, and evolutionary based interpretable control systems - Supervised, unsupervised, and reinforcement learning - Extracting understanding from large-scale and heterogeneous data - Dimensionality reduction of large scale and complex data and sparse modeling - Stability improvement of deep neural network optimization - Optimization methods for deep learning - Privacy preserving machine learning (e.g., federated machine learning, learning over encrypted data) - Novel deep learning approaches in the applications of image/signal processing, business intelligence, games, healthcare, bioinformatics, and security Guest Editors Nian Zhang (Lead Guest Editor), University of the District of Columbia, Washington, DC, USA, nzhang(a)udc.edu Jian Wang, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao, China, wangjiannl(a)upc.edu.cn Leszek Rutkowski, Czestochowa University of Technology, Poland, leszek.rutkowski(a)pcz.pl Important Dates Deadline for Submissions: March 31, 2022 First Review Decision: May 31, 2022 Revisions Due: June 30, 2022 Deadline for 2nd Review: July 31, 2022 Final Decisions: August 31, 2022 Final Manuscript: September 30, 2022 Peer Review Process All the papers will go through peer review, and will be reviewed by at least three reviewers. A thorough check will be completed, and the guest editors will check any significant similarity between the manuscript under consideration and any published paper or submitted manuscripts of which they are aware. In such case, the article will be directly rejected without proceeding further. Guest editors will make all reasonable effort to receive the reviewer’s comments and recommendation on time. The submitted papers must provide original research that has not been published nor currently under review by other venues. Previously published conference papers should be clearly identified by the authors at the submission stage and an explanation should be provided about how such papers have been extended to be considered for this special issue (with at least 30% difference from the original works). Submission Guidelines Paper submissions for the special issue should strictly follow the submission format and guidelines ( https://www.springer.com/journal/521/submission-guidelines <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.springer.com/journal/521/submission…>). Each manuscript should not exceed 16 pages in length (inclusive of figures and tables). Manuscripts must be submitted to the journal online system at https://www.editorialmanager.com/ncaa/default.aspx <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.editorialmanager.com/ncaa/default.a…> . Authors should select “TC: Interpretation of Deep Learning” during the submission step ‘Additional Information’.

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[news]AAMAS2022 : Final Call for Applications - Doctoral Consortium - Deadline : January 7 2022 (Tomorrow)
by Brian Ravenet 06 Jan '22

06 Jan '22

************Final Call for AAMAS-22 Doctoral Consortium Applications (Deadline Extended to Jan 7 UTC-12)******** Submission Deadline: January 5 January 7 (23:59 UTC-12) Author Notification: February 5 (23:59 UTC-12) Camera Ready Deadline: February 28 (23:59 UTC-12) Doctoral Consortium: May 9 - 10 UPDATE: AAMAS 2022 and the doctoral consortium to be held as fully virtual events. DOCTORAL CONSORTIUM PROGRAM: The doctoral consortium (DC) of AAMAS 2022 is intended to provide Ph.D. students the opportunity (1) to receive feedback on their research (from established researchers in their fields), (2) to interact closely with established researchers/mentors, and (3) to build their professional network. Each accepted student to the program will be matched with an established researcher/mentor in the field who will assist the student with research and career management advice. An informal lunch will be organized between the students and their mentors allowing for in-depth discussion and exchange. Each student will be given ample time to orally present their work and therefore be able to fully benefit from direct feedback from the assigned senior researcher mentor and their peers. Furthermore, the students will also present a poster of their PhD work during the poster session of the main conference. Apart from extra feedback, this will also help provide students with new contacts and professional networking opportunities. In addition, the students will work in groups in a Social Good Idea Challenge. 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 also be considered. Program Format: It is our hope to hold the DC program in person and host our attendees at the conference venue. However, we are aware of the ongoing global public health situation and will be considering any safety protocols in place at the time when implementing the DC program. As such, we are also planning the possibility of running the DC program as a partly or fully virtual event. SUBMISSION PROCEDURE: The submission package should include the following items in one single pdf file: * A cover sheet containing: the student's name, email address, homepage, university affiliation, gender, citizenship, PhD start date, expected graduation date, name and email of PhD supervisor, at least three mentor suggestions (should be chosen from the list of PCs, SPCs, or ACs in (this year and past) AAMAS and related conferences, for example, the list of PCs, SPCs, and ACs for AAMAS can be found on current and previous AAMAS conference webpages. * A 1-page letter of support from the supervisor. * A 2-page (short) CV that includes the list of publications of the student. * A 2-page extended abstract of the student's thesis or thesis topic (in AAMAS submission format) * A 1-page personal statement citing around five favorite papers in the field and briefly describing how they influenced the students' work. Applications should be submitted via easychair [Link [1] or https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=aamas2022dc [1]]. 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 encouraged to submit papers to the associated workshops. Important: All students, including DC applicants, should apply for student scholarships separately on the scholarship website. While acceptance to the DC may play a role in scholarship decisions, those decisions are made by the scholarship chairs and are subject to available funding support. AAMAS will be hosting a list of diversity and inclusion activities. We strongly encourage everyone to participate in these activities as well as other conference activities (which will be decided at a later date). For any questions, please contact the doctoral consortium co-chairs. ORGANIZERS: Hau Chan (University of Nebraska-Lincoln, United States) Stacy Marsella (Northeastern University, United States) Links: ------ [1] https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=aamas2022dc

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[RoboCup 2022] RoboCup@Work Call for Participation
by Asad Norouzi 03 Jan '22

03 Jan '22

*Apologies for duplicate messages*Call for Applications for Participation RoboCup 2022 - RoboCup at Work https://2022.robocup.org Venue: Bangkok, Thailand Monday July 11th through Sunday July 17th 2022 RoboCup at Work: Competing for the Factory of the Future RoboCup at Work is a league and competition in RoboCup that targets the use of robots in work-related, industrial scenarios. It aims to foster research and development that enables the use of innovative mobile robots equipped with advanced manipulators for current and future industrial applications, where robots cooperate with human workers for complex tasks ranging from manufacturing, automation, and parts handling up to general logistics. The RoboCup at Work league is characterized by an industrial appealing environment composed of industrial objects such as screws and nuts, shelves, containers, platforms of various sizes, and networked automation devices such as conveyor belts, drilling machines, and others. The actual competition tasks to be performed in the environment are defined in a set of so-called tests. Each test addresses various mobile manipulation capabilities such as grasping, transportation, precision placement, and visual servoing. The full rules of RoboCup at Work as well as further technical details are (will be) posted on the RoboCup at Work website (https://atwork.robocup.org ). Participation in the Competition All teams that intend to participate in the competition have to perform the following steps: 1. Submission of qualification material, including a Team Description Paper and possibly additional material like videos or drawings 2. Final registration (qualified teams only) Qualification The qualification process serves a dual purpose: It should allow the Technical Committee to assess the safety of the robots a team intends to bring to the competition, and it should allow to rank teams according to a set of evaluation criteria in order to select the most promising teams for a competition, if not all interested teams can be permitted. The TC will select the qualified teams according to the qualification material provided by the teams. The evaluation criteria will include: - Team description paper - Relevant scientific contribution/publications - The professional quality of robot and software - Novelty of approach - Relevance to industry - Performance in previous competitions - Contribution to RoboCup at Work league, e.g. by -- Organization of events -- Provision and sharing of knowledge - Team website Team Description Paper The Team Description Paper (TDP) is a central element of the qualification process and has to be provided by each team as part of the qualification process. The TDP should at least contain the following information in the author/title section of the paper: - Name of the team (title) - Team members (authors), including the team leader - Link to the team web site - Contact information - The body of the TDP should contain information on the following: -- focus of research/research interest -- a description of the hardware, including an image of the robot(s) -- a description of the software, esp. the functional and software architectures -- innovative technology (if any) -- reusability of the system or parts thereof -- applicability and relevance to industrial tasks -- usage of components (software or hardware) developed by other RoboCup at Work teams The team description paper should cover in detail the technical and scientific approach, while the team website should be designed for a broader audience. Both the website and the TDP have to be written in English. All TDPs must be written using the following template: https://www.overleaf.com/latex/templates/springer-lecture-notes-in-computer… Submission and Evaluation All applications with the qualification material must be submitted by January 23rd, 2022 through the following online form: https://forms.gle/huZvNVCbZ6zraAB97 Qualified teams will be tentatively announced by February 1st, 2022. Best Regards, On behalf of The RoboCup@Work Committee

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CFP: RoboCup 2022 Soccer Simulation 2D League
by Nader Zare 28 Dec '21

28 Dec '21

Call for Participation RoboCup 2022 Soccer Simulation 2D League July 11 – July 17, 2022 Bangkok, Thailand https://2022.robocup.org/ We would like to invite you to participate in the RoboCup 2022 Soccer Simulation League 2D competition, which will take place July 11 - 17 2022, in Bangkok, Thailand. If you are interested in participating, please pre-register your team, and then submit qualification materials. Please see below in detail. Important Dates -Pre-registration Deadline: Feb 1, 2022 – 23:59 UTC ----Submit information via the online form: https://forms.gle/tKyVA2YXQGLZgt1T7 -Qualification Materials Submission Deadline: Feb 15, 2022 – 23:59 UTC ----Submit TDP, Log files via the online form: https://forms.gle/s3JmVW8JwuVV4pDx9 ----Submit a part of the documentation of the soccer server by Pull Request on GitHub. -Qualification Notification: March 1, 2022 To view the full Call for Participation document, please visit: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1y3QxyKUvmJw4V74TQga5wpFP2j41_VG-z16zb-j… Best Regards RoboCup2022 Soccer Simulation 2D League Organizing Committee Nader Zare, Morteza Noohpisheh

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[reminder] Survey about domestic robot competitions, in particular RoboCup@Home
by Alex Mitrevski 26 Dec '21

26 Dec '21

Dear RoboCup community, This is just a reminder that our survey about domestic robot competitions will remain open for only a few more days. If you would like to contribute towards shaping the RoboCup@Home competition, please take a few minutes to share your ideas (link to the survey below). Thanks in advance, and a big thanks to everyone who has already answered the survey! Best regards, Alex Mitrevski on behalf of the RoboCup@Home Technical Committee ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Dear RoboCup community, As part of the preparations for the rule book for next year's RoboCup@Home <https://athome.robocup.org> competition, which will take place in Bangkok, Thailand in 2022, we would like toimprove the competition tasks so that they serve the robotics research community better. We all know the transformative effect that various competitions in the computer vision community have had on our field; we hope that RoboCup@Home can have the same effect for domestic service and social robots. To make this possible, we need a collective effort from the community. We would, in particular, like to identify (i) research areas that are considered important by those of you working in the umbrella domain of "domestic service and social robots" as well as (ii) aspects that you, the community, consider important for a competition of this type to be valuable for your research activities. For this, we would be very much obliged if you could take a few minutes of your time to answer a short /anonymous/ survey about domestic robot competitions until 23:59 CET on December 30th, 2021. The link to the survey is https://forms.gle/DuNzPVKd5c41DRxq7 <https://forms.gle/DuNzPVKd5c41DRxq7> Please note that this survey is open to everyone, regardless of whether you are currently participating in RoboCup@Home or similar competitions; we would be particularly happy if the competition can attract researchers and groups which are currently not participating. Thanks in advance for your time and insights. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Alex Mitrevski Research Associate Room: C201 Email: aleksandar.mitrevski(a)h-brs.de Phone: +49-2241-865-206 Web: https://www.h-brs.de/en/inf/aleksandar-mitrevski Autonomous Systems Group Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg Computer Science Department Grantham-Allee 20 53757 Sankt Augustin, Germany ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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Call for Papers: 19th EUROPEAN CONFERENCE ON MULTI-AGENT SYSTEMS (EUMAS-2022)
by Jörg-Matthias Rothe 22 Dec '21

22 Dec '21

*********************************************** 19th EUROPEAN CONFERENCE ON MULTI-AGENT SYSTEMS (EUMAS-2022) September 14 - 16, 2022, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf https://ccc.cs.hhu.de/eumas2022/ *********************************************** ------------------------------------ IMPORTANT DATES ------------------------------------ - Deadline for paper submission: May 6, 2022 - Notification of authors: July 15, 2022 - Camera-ready papers due: August 12, 2022 - Conference: September 14 - 16, 2022 All deadlines are at 23:59 UTC-12, i.e., while it is still the respective date anywhere on earth. Submission instructions: https://ccc.cs.hhu.de/eumas2022/ ------------------------------------ AIMS AND SCOPE ------------------------------------ In the past two decades, we have seen an enormous increase of interest in agent-based computing and multi-agent systems (MAS). This field is set to become one of the key intelligent systems technologies in the 21st century. The EUMAS conference series aims to provide the main forum for academics and practitioners in Europe to discuss current MAS research and applications. EUMAS-2022, the 19th installment of the conference series, follows the tradition of previous editions (Oxford 2003, Barcelona 2004, Brussels 2005, Lisbon 2006, Hammamet 2007, Bath 2008, Agia Napa 2009, Paris 2010, Maastricht 2011, Dublin 2012, Toulouse 2013, Prague 2014, Athens 2015, Valencia 2016, Evry 2017, Bergen 2018, Thessaloniki 2019, Virtual 2020), and encourages and supports activity in the research and development of multi-agent systems, in academic and industrial efforts. The conference aspires to be the primary European forum for researchers interested in the theory and practice of autonomous agents and multi-agent systems. EUMAS enables researchers to meet, present challenges, preliminary and mature research results in an open and informal environment. To attract students as well as experienced researchers, preliminary as well as mature work, EUMAS 2021 offers three submission types and formal proceedings. Also, we will be working hard to arrange for the post-publication of selected papers in the form of a special issue of a high-quality journal in the area. EUMAS-2022 is a designated event of the European Association of Multi-Agent Systems (EURAMAS): http://www.euramas.org <http://www.euramas.org/> Topics of interest include but are not limited to: - Action and Planning - Adaptation and Learning - Agent Architectures - Agent Programming Languages - Agent Development Methodologies and Tools - Agent-Based Simulations and Modeling - Agent Organizations and Institutions - Agent-Oriented Software Engineering - Agents and Complex Systems - Applications of Multi-Agent Systems - Argumentation - Automated Negotiation - Biologically Inspired Approaches - Cognitive Models - Collective and Swarm Intelligence - Collective Intentionality - Communication, Cooperation, and Coordination - Deep Reinforcement Learning in Multi-Agent Domains - Economic Models - Electronic Commerce - Ethical Behaviour of Multi-Agent Systems - Formal Modeling - Game-Theoretic Methods - Logics for Multi-Agent Systems - Logics for Strategic Reasoning - Machine Learning for Multi-Agent Systems - Multi-Agent Learning - Multi-Robot Systems - Negotiation - Self-Organization - Semantic Web Agents - Socio-Technical Systems - Theories of Agency - Trust and Reputation - Verification - Virtual Agents - Voting and Judgment Aggregation Models for Multi-Agent Systems - Computational Social Choice - Social Networks - Human-Agent Interaction ------------------------------------ SUBMISSIONS ------------------------------------ EUMAS-2022 welcomes original, unpublished papers. Papers submitted shall describe original work that has not been published or accepted for publication, nor is currently under review by another conference or journal (it might be on arXiv or a similar preprint server, though). NEW! Papers rejected from AAMAS, AAAI, or IJCAI will be fast-tracked given that their original reviews and an authors' cover letter (indicating all changes made) will be submitted. Extended abstracts from AAMAS also qualify for this fast track. Each submission will be peer-reviewed in a double-blind fashion. All submissions should be formatted according to Springer's LNCS format and contain at most 15 pages, plus any number of additional pages for bibliography and, if needed, a clearly marked appendix. For templates and instructions for authors, see http://www.springer.de/comp/lncs/authors.html. Authors must submit their abstracts and papers through the EUMAS-2022 Easychair submission site https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=eumas2022. EUMAS-2022 accepted papers will be published by Springer in an LNCS/LNAI volume. As such, they will be made available to several indexing services (including Scopus, Google Scholar, DBLP, CPCI, EI Engineering Index, and more). Authors should consult Springer's author guidelines and use their proceedings templates, either for LaTeX (preferred) or for Word (if need be), for the preparation of their papers. Springer encourages authors to include their ORCIDs in their papers. We urge the authors to follow these guidelines from the submission stage already. Additional guidelines will be communicated after the conference to the authors of accepted papers for the preparation of the final versions to be included in the post-proceedings. ------------------------------------ Opportunity for a JAAMAS publication ------------------------------------ This year, the Journal of Autonomous Agents and Multi-Agent Systems (JAAMAS) will provide the opportunity for revised and extended versions of the EUMAS-2022 best paper award winner (see below) and the EUMAS-2022 best paper award runner-up to be fast-tracked for the journal. ----------------------------------------------------------- Opportunity to publish revised and extended papers in SN CS ----------------------------------------------------------- A selection of EUMAS-2022 papers will be invited to submit revised and extended versions for publication in a special issue of the Springer Nature Computer Science journal. ------------------------------------ Best Paper Award ------------------------------------ A Best Paper Award will be presented at the conference. ------------------------------------ Keynote Speakers ------------------------------------ Prof. Marija Slavkovik (University of Bergen) [TBA] ------------------------------------ DOCTORAL CONSORTIUM ------------------------------------ There will be a doctoral consortium day prior to the conference where PhD students can present the topics related to MAS they are currently working on. Keynote Speaker for the PhD Day (September 14, 2022): Piotr Faliszewski (AGH University of Science and Technology Kraków) Organizers of the PhD Day: Linus Boes (HHU Düsseldorf) Christian Laußmann (HHU Düsseldorf) ------------------------------------ CONFERENCE CHAIRS ------------------------------------ Dorothea Baumeister (HHU Düsseldorf) Jörg Rothe (HHU Düsseldorf) ------------------------------------ PROGRAM COMMITTEE ------------------------------------ https://ccc.cs.hhu.de/eumas2022/ ------------------------------------ CONTACT DETAILS ------------------------------------ EUMAS-2022 Organizing Committee: eumas2022(a)cs.hhu.de

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Call for proposals: RCF Project Support 2022
by Gerald Steinbauer-Wagner 20 Dec '21

20 Dec '21

Call for proposals: RCF Project Support 2022 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=rcfsupport2022 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: January 30th, 2022 Notification: February 8th, 2022 Completion of the project: Preliminary work expected to be presented during the RoboCup Symposium 2022, the project needs to be finished by end of 2022 and a final report submitted by January 2023. Exceptions to this rule must be submitted for approval to the evaluation committee.

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Call for proposals: RCF and MathWorks Support for Research Projects 2022
by Gerald Steinbauer-Wagner 20 Dec '21

20 Dec '21

Call for proposals: RCF and MathWorks Support for Research Projects 2022 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 2022 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. The RoboCup Federation and MathWorks hosted a webinar to discuss the details of the call, describe expected results and MathWorks tools, showcase previously sponsored projects, and answer questions. Link to the webinar: https://youtu.be/znZSFBWAWhg For more info or clarification on the details of this call, please contact info(a)robocup.org 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 for Manipulators and Mobile Robots b. Motion planning for humanoid robots c. Collision avoidance 2. Perception and Sensor Fusion a. Object detection and tracking b. Lidar and vision-based SLAM c. Point cloud processing d. Fusing IMU with other sensors for localization and state estimation 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 a. Natural language processing b. Signal and audio processing NOTE: teams are encouraged to apply machine learning techniques (deep learning, reinforcement learning, etc.) toward these research topics 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 2022 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=rcfsupport2022 under the Category: RCF and MathWorks Support for Research Projects 2022 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: January 30th, 2022 Notification: February 8th, 2022 Completion of the action: Preliminary work expected to be presented during the RoboCup 2022 Research Symposium, and official content publication by October 2022 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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ISAIM-2022: Call for Participation
by Diochnos, Dimitrios 17 Dec '21

17 Dec '21

CALL FOR PARTICIPATION Seventeenth International Symposium on ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE and MATHEMATICS ISAIM 2022 http://isaim2022.cs.ou.edu/ January 3-5, 2022 Online via Zoom (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) Registration is free and required in advance Zoom links will be sent by email several days before the symposium 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 will be the seventeenth Symposium in the series, sponsored by Florida Atlantic University and the Annals of Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence. Due to the pandemic the three-day Symposium will take place online. ISAIM-2022 will feature invited speakers, special topic sessions, and a special event: an interview of Judea Pearl by Stephen Wolfram. Registration is free but you need to register in advance so that you can get the Zoom links in a timely manner. KEYNOTE SPEAKERS: o Noa Agmon (Bar-Ilan University) o Cynthia Dwork (Harvard University) o Jerome Lang (LAMSADE, CNRS, Universite Paris-Dauphine, PSL) o Arun Ross (Michigan State University) o Ohad Shamir (Weizmann Institute of Science) o Noam Slonim (IBM Research AI) o Noga Zaslavsky (MIT) SPECIAL EVENT: o Judea Pearl 85th Birthday Celebration -Interview of Judea Pearl by Stephen Wolfram SPECIAL TOPIC INVITED SESSIONS: o In Memory of Naftali Tishby -Organized by Martin Golumbic (University of Haifa) o Boolean and pseudo-Boolean Functions -Organized by Endre Boros (Rutgers University) and Yves Crama (University of Liege) o Coalition Formation Games -Organized by Judy Goldsmith (University of Kentucky) and Joerg Rothe (Heinrich-Heine-Universitat Dusseldorf) o Combinatorial and Geometric Problems in Imaging Sciences -Organized by Valentin Brimkov (Buffalo State College) o Formalization in Mathematics -Organized by Gonzalo A. Aranda-Corral (Universidad de Sevilla) and Francisco Jesus Martin Mateos (Universidad de Sevilla) o Sequencing, sequential decision making and scheduling -Organized by Lisa Hellerstein (New York University) and Thomas Lidbetter (Rutgers University) o Uncertain Reasoning -Organized by Alessandro Antonucci (Istituto Dalle Molle di Studi sull'Intelligenza Artificiale - IDSIA), Salem Benferhat (University of Artois), and Kamal Premaratne (University of Miami) ORGANIZERS: o General Chair: Martin Charles Golumbic, University of Haifa o Conference Chair: Frederick Hoffman, Florida Atlantic University o Publications & Publicity Chair: Dimitrios I. Diochnos, University of Oklahoma REGISTRATION: o Registration is free and required in advance -Zoom links will be sent by email several days before the symposium -Visit https://isaim2022.cs.ou.edu/registration.html Send inquiries and requests to <isaim2022 AT cs.ou.edu>. Visit http://isaim2022.cs.ou.edu/. Join isaim(a)googlegroups.com to receive announcements related to ISAIM.

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[jobs][extended deadline] Two tenured positions in Autonomous Systems at Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences
by Alex Mitrevski 17 Dec '21

17 Dec '21

Dear roboticists, Please note that the application deadline for the positions below has been extended to January 12th, 2022. Regards, Nico Hochgeschwender ------------------------------ Dear roboticists, The Department of Computer Science at Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences (Sankt Augustin Campus), together with the Bonn-Aachen International Centre for Information Technology (b-it), has the following two permanent professorships (W2) for Computer Science, in particular in Autonomous Systems: 1. Mathematical foundations of autonomous systems 2. Industry-relevant and application-related aspects of autonomous systems. The two position are to be filled as soon as possible. We expect applicants for both positions to meet the following requirements: * the employment requirements of §36 HG NRW, in particular three years of professional experience outside of higher education institutions, * very good knowledge of English, as well as the ability and willingness to teach in English, * pedagogical and didactic skills in teaching complex learning content, * willingness to participate in activities within the university, as well as national and international committees, * experience in the acquisition, establishment and implementation of internal and externally funded research and development projects, * active participation in the further development and expansion of the MAS program. In addition, the following criteria would be desirable: * teaching experience at universities or comparable institutions, * willingness to also teach undergraduate courses that correspond to the topics of the call for applications, * willingness for interdisciplinary cooperation with other institutions within and outside the university, * evidence of international collaborations and networking with the professional community, * willingness to conduct courses and examinations in German. More detailed information can be found at: 1. Mathematical foundations of autonomous systems: https://stellen.h-brs.de/jobposting/dcdfdd50800036e2492311716a44c03b81a1583… <https://stellen.h-brs.de/jobposting/dcdfdd50800036e2492311716a44c03b81a1583…> 2. Industry-relevant and application-related aspects of autonomous systems: https://stellen.h-brs.de/jobposting/0adf13b597c4a2f154f856c2fcaf65311ffeb2c… <https://stellen.h-brs.de/jobposting/0adf13b597c4a2f154f856c2fcaf65311ffeb2c…> We would like to see more female scientists at our university and are therefore particularly pleased to receive applications from women. We welcome applicants with children. H-BRS is a certified family-friendly university - and proud of it. People with severe disabilities are part of our university. We give them preference in the application process if their qualifications are equal. The position is suitable for part-time work. For information about the professorship to be filled, please contact the head of the appointment committee Prof. Dr. Nico Hochgeschwender (nico.hochgeschwender(a)h-brs.de <mailto:nico.hochgeschwender@h-brs.de>). In addition, the Equal Opportunity Officer of the H-BRS, Dr. Barbara Hillen, is also happy to assist you (www.h-brs.de/de/gi/barbara-hillen <https://www.h-brs.de/de/gi/barbara-hillen>). Regards, Nico Hochgeschwender **************************************************************************************** Prof. Dr. Nico Hochgeschwender Professor of Autonomous Systems B-IT Bonn-Aachen International Center of Information Technology Fon: +49-2241-865-9634 Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University oAS Fax: +49-2241-865-8293 Computer Science Department Net: nico.hochgeschwender(a)h-brs.de Grantham-Allee 20 53757 Sankt Augustin, Germany Web: http://www.h-brs.de/de/inf/nico-hochgeschwender Twitter: @nico_roboticist **************************************************************************************** International Master Program on Autonomous Systems https://www.h-brs.de/en/inf/autonomous-systems-msc ****************************************************************************************

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RoboCup 2022 SPL Call for Participation
by Stefan Seering 16 Dec '21

16 Dec '21

Call for Applications for Participation RoboCup 2022 Standard Platform League spl.robocup.org <http://spl.robocup.org/> Monday 11th July through Sunday 17th July 2022 Bangkok, Thailand 2022.robocup.org <https://2022.robocup.org> RoboCup <https://www.robocup.org/> is an international initiative that fosters research and education in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence through a variety of competitions (RoboCupSoccer, RoboCupRescue, RoboCup@Home, RoboCupJunior) involving mostly multi-robot systems. RoboCup currently includes a number of different robot soccer leagues that focus on different research challenges. *The Standard Platform League (SPL)* is characterized by all the teams using an identical robot platform. Participating researchers focus on algorithmic development for fully autonomous robots, i.e., robots that operate with no external control. The SPL at RoboCup 2022 will use V6, V5 or older versions of the NAO humanoid robot manufactured by SoftBank Robotics <https://www.softbankrobotics.com/emea/en/nao>. The SPL robot soccer team competition games at RoboCup 2022 will be played indoor and outdoor between teams of five robots on a 6m x 9m playing surface. Teams should be able to play on a randomly assigned indoor or outdoor field within one hour. The RoboCup 2022 SPL will host: * A 5 vs. 5 team competition as the main competition of the event. * A 7 vs. 7 competition. * A visual referee technical challenge. * A dynamic ball handling technical challenge. * A video analysis and statistics open research challenge. The 5 vs. 5 team competition will consist of a similar number of games for most teams compared to recent years. The structure from 2019 will be used to allow all teams to play games against teams with similar skill levels. See Appendix A.4 of the preliminary rulebook <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/> for more details. The teams participating in the team competition should also compete in some of the additional technical challenges. The 7 vs. 7 side competition extends the ideas from the mixed team competition, and 1 vs. 1 remote challenge from RoboCup 2021 to a standardized 7 vs. 7 NAO V6 on-site competition. Its goal is to encourage more collaborative game play and offer a chance for teams to work together more closely. Participating in 7 vs. 7 is recognized as participation in a technical challenge. Additional technical challenges offered at the competition are the visual referee challenge and the dynamic ball handling challenge. The open research challenge aims to provide the SPL with long term performance statistics based on video analysis. Please note that the open research challenge comes with additional deadlines as mentioned in the rulebook. All challenges will be detailed further with the release of the SPL rules document. To assist in adoption of V6 Robots source code examples and documentation regarding V6 robots were published on the SPL website <https://spl.robocup.org/v6-support/>. One can also find example code working with V6 Robots in the code released by participating teams. These examples allow teams to adapt their competition code from recent years more easily to encourage use of V6 Robots. If you need access to the RoboCup NAOqi Image and the specific documentation, please write an email (mentioning your team affiliation) to rc-spl-tc(a)lists.robocup.org. Survey The RoboCup Federation is committed to supporting an in-person event in Thailand from July 11th-17th, as long as the LOC in Thailand decides it is possible. For this purpose, the RoboCup Federation plans to send a survey to all teams considering to apply for RoboCup 2022. If you are considering to apply for participation this year, please send an email stating your interest in RoboCup SPL to rc-spl-tc(a)lists.robocup.org by 12th of January 2022 in addition to your regular application. Qualification All interested teams must submit an original qualification document. For the qualification document to be considered, it must (1) be no longer than *6 pages* and (2) include all the following information in *sections with the specified headings*: 1. *Team Information:* the team name, the team leader(s), and the university/company affiliation(s) of the team 2. *Code Usage:* Acknowledge the team’s use of any other team’s code (1) previously from 2017 to present and (2) anticipated at RoboCup 2022. If code is used from other teams, is this code integrated into a code base that is mainly designed by the applying team? If the applying team does not use any other team’s code, state so. For further details, please have a look into the rule book, section A.1 <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/>. 3. *Own Contribution:* Describe in detail the ‘research publishable’ significant advancements the applying team has made and is going to use at RoboCup 2022, in accordance with the rule book, section A.1 <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/>. 4. *Past History:* provide game results in RoboCup Open competitions as well as main RoboCup competitions from 2018 onward. Include opponents and game scores from each competition in a table. State if the team plans to participate in any RoboCup Open competitions or friendlies prior to RoboCup 2022. 5. *Impact:* What is the impact of the team’s participation and research in RoboCup on (1) the SPL, (2) the team’s university/community? 6. *Video presentation:* Include a link to a video (maximum 5 minutes long, uploaded on the team’s web site or on some video server) that demonstrates the status of the team. The organizing committees use the video to determine the readiness of the team to compete effectively, and hence should focus on the team’s ability to play soccer. Teams who did not participate in the team competition at RoboCup 2019 or any challenge at RoboCup 2021 *must* include footage of at least one robot attempting to kick off and score (this footage must be captured as a single wide shot with no cuts). If robots from multiple teams are active in the footage (e.g., game footage), please include a textual overlay or additional document denoting which robots belong to the applying team for every scene. Videos of simulation contributions will also be accepted, but only when a real robot is unavailable. Preference will be given to teams that use real robots to show soccer skills in their video. 7. *Other:* Present any other information that you believe supports your application. If your application mentions more than one e-mail address, please specify which one should be used to contact your team regarding your application. Pre-Qualification Teams are given the chance to pre-qualify based on their performance at RoboCup 2019 and 2021. Teams will be pre-qualified for RoboCup 2022, if they submit the following original qualification document. Teams able to pre-qualify include: * B-Human * UNISABANA Herons SPL * rUNSWift * HULKs * Bembelbots * Berlin United- Nao TH * Nao Devils * HTWK Robots * UT Austin Villa The original qualification document must include: 1. *Team Information:* the team name, the team leader(s), and the university/company affiliation(s) of the team 2. *Code Usage:* Acknowledge the team’s use of any other team’s code (1) previously from 2017 to present and (2) anticipated at RoboCup 2020. If code is used from other teams, is this code integrated into a code base that is mainly designed by the applying team? If the applying team does not use any other team’s code, state so. For further details, please have a look into the rule book, section A.1 <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/>. 3. *Own Contribution:* Describe in detail the ‘research publishable’ significant advancements the applying team has made and is going to use at RoboCup 2022, in accordance with the rule book, section A.1 <https://spl.robocup.org/downloads/>. 4. *TRR:* a link to a team research report describing their work for RoboCup 2019 or 2021 or both (which must be published in a publicly available location) 5. *Code Release:* a link to a public code release as detailed in the 2019 SPL rulebook If a joint 2019 team splits, only one team can be pre-qualified for 2022 (please, indicate which one). Qualification for Regional Opens Only Teams may also submit a short intent to participate in a regional open if they do not wish to participate in the 2022 RoboCup competition. Although teams may participate in regional opens without submitting this intent to participate, teams who submit an intent to participate and become qualified will be eligible for future special robot pricing. Special robot pricing for team competing in RoboCup Events are still being discussed. Updates about special prices will be announced as soon as offers and conditions are finalized. Teams must submit the following information by 15th of February 2022: (1) The team name, leader(s), and the university/company affiliation(s) of the team and (2) a short statement describing the status/progress of the team. A link to a short video showing robot soccer behaviours and/or game play (using robots or in simulation) may be included if available. Submission and Evaluation All applications with the (pre-)qualification material must be submitted by *15th of February 2022*, by email to rc-spl-tc(a)lists.robocup.org. Applications must not be sent to personal SPL TC/OC email addresses and must not contain video attachments. Note that applying serves as a statement of commitment to participate in the RoboCup 2022 SPL. The organizing committees are aware of the ongoing COVID situation and assume that all applications are subject to withdrawal due to COVID. Applications are not required to mention uncertainties related to COVID to avoid negative effects on future applications. We would rather encourage teams to plan optimistically and sign up with the possibility of withdrawing if situation requires it. For situations other than COVID: If you have doubts regarding the ability of your team to participate (due to funding, visas, etc.), please apply by the deadline but note this in your application. Declining to participate in any competition after the official early registration period has opened may negatively affect future applications (the later you decline, the worse it will affect future applications). Teams are encouraged to consider joint participation. Joint proposals will be judged on combined merit. Applications will be evaluated to consider a variety of components including: 1. Potential to play competitive games at RoboCup 2022 (demonstrated ability to play soccer, previous results, etc.) 2. Contributions (and potential contributions) to league (code releases/papers, active in organization, developing own code, etc.) 3. Diversity (region, team make-up, unique characteristics, etc.) Qualification decisions, including alternate lists, will be announced by 29th of February 2022. Robot Acquisition Teams who submit an intent to participate and become qualified will be eligible for potential future special robot pricing. Special robot pricing for team competing in RoboCup Events are still being discussed. Updates about special prices will be announced if offers and conditions are finalized. /RoboCup 2022 Standard Platform League Technical and Organizing Committees/

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Postdoc in Robotics at Ostfalia University of Applied Sciences
by Gerndt, Reinhard 14 Dec '21

14 Dec '21

Dear All We have a 4 years postdoc position in our project ‘Meaningful Human Control’ (MeHuCo) funded by German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. The main objective of the research is developing a deeper understanding of potentials and limitations of high level control, prediction and assessment of autonomous robot behaviours. The tasks involves adapting and programming of anthropomorphic robots and conducting practical experiments in robot-robot and human-robot scenarios. The preferred candidate has a background in humanoid robotics and human-robot interaction. Willingness to work together with other disciplines is expected. German language capabilities or interest in acquiring it may be a plus. If you are interested, please reply to this email. (Please make sure, you do not copy the entire mailing list.) Regards Reinhard --- Prof. Dr.-Ing. Reinhard Gerndt Arbeitsgruppe Robotik / Robotics Group Institut für Verteilte Systeme / Institute for Distributed Systems Internationalisierungsbeauftragter / International Affairs Coordinator Ostfalia Hochschule für angewandte Wissenschaften - Fachhochschule Braunschweig/Wolfenbüttel - Ostfalia University of Applied Sciences Fakultät Informatik - Computer Science Department Salzdahlumer Str. 46-48 38302 Wolfenbüttel, Germany Tel.: +49 (0) 5331 939 32120 / 31005 FAX: +49 (0) 5331 939 31004 E-Mail: r.gerndt(a)ostfalia.de<mailto:r.gerndt@ostfalia.de> Web: www.ostfalia.de ********************************************************************** Der Inhalt dieser E-Mail ist vertraulich und ausschliesslich fuer den bezeichneten Adressaten bestimmt. Wenn Sie nicht der vorgesehene Adressat dieser E-Mail oder dessen Vertreter sein sollten, so beachten Sie bitte, dass jede Form der Kenntnisnahme, Veroeffentlichung, Vervielfaeltigung oder Weitergabe des Inhalts dieser E-Mail unzulaessig ist. Wir bitten Sie, sich in diesem Fall mit dem Absender der E-Mail in Verbindung zu setzen. The information contained in this email is confidential. It is intended solely for the addressee. Access to this email by anyone else is unauthorized. If you are not the intended recipient, any form of disclosure, reproduction, distribution or any action taken or refrained from in reliance on it, is prohibited and may be unlawful. Please notify the sender immediately. ********************************************************************** P Please consider the environment before deciding to print this e-mail.

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RoboCup 2022
by Peter Stone 14 Dec '21

14 Dec '21

Dear RoboCup Committee Members and Participants, I'm writing to you today to keep you informed about RoboCup 2022. As you know, we continue to face uncertainty about the feasibility of travel. However this year, we, the RoboCup Federation, are committed to supporting an in-person event in Thailand from July 11th-17th, as long as the LOC in Thailand decides it is possible. To help with planning, we need to estimate how many teams will participate in RoboCup in Thailand. For this purpose, we will send a survey around January 15 to all the prospective participants. Of course uncertainty will inevitably remain. Please plan on responding to the survey in the best way you can, taking into account all the factors relating to your country, Thailand, and your team. Please stay tuned for this survey. We will share the responses and the next steps by February. Warmly, Peter Stone President, RoboCup Federation ___ Professor Peter Stone David Bruton, Jr. Centennial Professor University Distinguished Teaching Professor Director, Texas Robotics Associate Chair, Department of Computer Science phone: 512-471-9796 The University of Texas at Austin fax: 512-471-8885 2317 Speedway, Stop D9500 pstone(a)cs.utexas.edu Austin, Texas 78712-1757 USA http://www.cs.utexas.edu/~pstone

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RoboCup 2022 Small Size League Call for Participation
by Carla Cosenza 13 Dec '21

13 Dec '21

Hello! The Small Size League committee is glad to invite you to participate in the RoboCup 2022! Below you can find important information about the competition and qualification. Location and dates RoboCup Bangkok 2022 Small Size League July 11 - 17, 2022 https://ssl.robocup.org/robocup-2022/ About RoboCup RoboCup is an international scientific initiative with the goal to advance the state of the art of intelligent robots. When established in 1997, the original mission was to field a team of robots capable of winning against the human soccer World Cup champions by 2050. About the Small Size League The RoboCup Small Size League is a part of the RoboCup Research Federation focused on multi-agent coordination and control. Teams currently compete in 11 vs. 11 soccer matches (6 vs. 6 in Div. B). The robots must fit within an 18 cm diameter circle and must be no higher than 15 cm. The robots play soccer with an orange golf ball on a green carpeted field that is about 12 m long by 9 m wide. About the qualification To qualify for the competition, each team must submit a Team Description Paper and a video by February 1, 2022. More information on the qualification requirements and processes are located on the website<https://ssl.robocup.org/robocup-2022-qualification/>. Please direct all inquiries to the Small Size League Organizing Committee: rc-ssl-oc(a)lists.robocup.org<mailto:rc-ssl-oc@lists.robocup.org> Thank you! Carla Cosenza RoboCup Small Size League | Organizing Committee

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Call for Participation Humanoid Soccer Competition and the Humanoid Research Demonstration
by Jasper Güldenstein 11 Dec '21

11 Dec '21

* Call for Participation * RoboCup 2022 Humanoid Soccer Competition https://humanoid.robocup.org/ July 11 - 17, 2022, Bangkok, Thailand https://humanoid.robocup.org/hl-2022/ Important: This Call for Participation concerns the Humanoid Soccer Competition and the Humanoid Research Demonstration. A separate call may be published for the Humanoid Open Competition. =========================================================== The RoboCup Humanoid League invites teams to apply for participation at the RoboCup 2022 Humanoid Soccer Competition and the Humanoid Research Demonstration in Bangkok, Thailand. The Humanoid League will host competitions in the following categories: * Humanoid Soccer Competition * KidSize: 40 - 100cm robot height (FIFA size 1 ball) * AdultSize: 130 - 200cm robot height (FIFA size 5 ball) * Humanoid Research Demonstration In addition, we may organize a Humanoid Open Competition with a CfP following later this year. For more detailed class definitions and more information about the humanoid league, please refer to the humanoid league home page at https://humanoid.robocup.org/ and join the humanoid league mailing list at: https://lists.robocup.org/listinfo/robocup-humanoid Teams are also encouraged to form and apply as joint teams. Joint proposals will be judged on their combined merit. Teams must provide the following qualification material: 1) Humanoid Soccer Competition ======================================= You do not need to provide a full robot team to apply for competing in the Humanoid Soccer Competition. The qualifying round of Drop-In games will be played with only one robot per team. Teams that cannot provide a full team of robots (four robots in KidSize and two in AdultSize) will be grouped to form a playable team for the main tournament games. In case of a sufficient number of qualified teams, the sub-leagues (KidSize and/or AdultSize) will be divided into League A and League B. Teams are seeded into the leagues based on the results of an initial round of Drop-In games. Each application to the Humanoid Soccer Competition will be reviewed by two members of the Technical Committee and two others teams applying to the Humanoid Soccer Competition. The combined reviewing score will decide whether a team qualifies for participation. Reviewing other team's material is mandatory for teams that want to participate in the Humanoid Soccer Competition. Failing to provide an adequate review by the provided deadline will have consequences for the teams own qualification status. 1.1) Robot Video --------------------------------------- Teams need to provide a video of their robot demonstrating the robots' autonomous soccer playing skills. The recommended skills needed for qualification are: * localization of unknown ball position, * walking ability towards the ball, * robot positioning at the ball for kicking, * kicking the ball towards the goal, * ability of getting up autonomously from a fall (KidSize only) We encourage teams to include in the video more complex and intelligent behavior such as demonstrating localization, and robots playing in a game, recordings from actual soccer matches are admissible. If possible, please provide footage that demonstrates the robot behavior without wires attached. The qualification video must be supplied as a link via youtube. The maximum duration of the video must not exceed 5 minutes. The qualifying team is responsible to ensure that the video adheres to YouTube's TOS (especially in regards to music copyright) to prevent the video from being blocked for the reviewers. Teams that do not provide a qualification video or a viewable video will not be qualified! 1.2) Software Description --------------------------------------- During the registration process, a form will be provided to submit details about the algorithms used or anticipated to be used for the participation in the 2022 competition. Algorithms shall be described in such detail that they can be reproduced by other teams. If software from other teams or standard algorithms are used, references need to be included. If the algorithm has been adapted to be used in the competition, those deviations need to be described in appropriate details. The form will include questions in the following areas: * Walking * Vision * Localization * Team Communication * Behavior * Contributions to the RoboCup community, e.g. software releases, paper publications, provision of league infrastructure or data sets Responses to the questions are expected to reflect the current or anticipated status of the software during the RoboCup 2022 competition. If the software has not changed or no changes are anticipated to be made until the competition, teams may copy & paste a response from previously submitted material. 1.3) Extended Abstract --------------------------------------- A two-page extended abstract must be submitted. For teams which have previously participated in the Humanoid League, the extended abstract needs to: * include lessons learned from the participation in previous RoboCup competitions * highlight major problems that the team is trying to solve for the upcoming competition * outline the plans for the major changes that the teams anticipate to have implemented by the RoboCup 2022 competition * describe the implementation status of the changes planned by the time of submitting the application For teams which have never participated in the RoboCup Humanoid League, the Extended Abstract needs to pitch the scientific aspects of their humanoid robotic system and highlight their research interests. The Extended Abstract is limited to 2 pages maximum and must be submitted in PDF format. Extended Abstracts are designed to highlight the changes and scientific developments since the last RoboCup. Thus, we expect the usage of material from previous TDPs or Extended Abstracts to be minimal. If used, they need to be cited appropriately. Submissions of last year's Extended Abstract will be desk-rejected. The Extended Abstract must follow the LNCS format which can be downloaded from https://www.springer.com/gp/computer-science/lncs/conference-proceedings-gu…. Teams that do to follow the LNCS formatting and style guidelines will not be qualified. No exceptions to this rule will be made. 1.4) Robot Specification --------------------------------------- Regardless of the kid or adult size competition, a one-page specification (PDF) must be provided for each different type of humanoid robot used by the team that includes the following: * Robot picture * Robot name * Height of the robot * Weight of the robot * Walking speed in cm/s * Number of degrees of freedom and type of motors on each kinematic chain of the robot * Type of sensors used (incl. type of camera(s) and specific manufacturer part number (e.g. “6-DoF IMU” is NOT an acceptable description)) * Computing unit(s) * Other specs 1.5) Rules --------------------------------------- This year’s rule discussion has not been completed yet. Therefore, no update has been made except for the change of the minimum size of Adult Size robots to 130cm. All other hardware specifications will stay the same for RoboCup 2022 such that teams already know if their robot qualifies. We will initiate the rule discussion with proposals from the discussion at RoboCup 2021 in the coming weeks. The current version of the rules may be found here: http://humanoid.robocup.org/wp-content/uploads/RCHL-2020-Rules-Dec23.pdf We expect the final version of the 2022 rules to be published in early spring 2022. 1.6) Registration --------------------------------------- The following information is required for registration: * Team name * URL of the team's home page * Name of team leader or team contact person * E-mail address of team leader or contact person * Postal address of the team, team leader or contact person * Competition category: Humanoid Soccer Competition KidSize or AdultSize Please note that teams applying for participation in several categories must submit individual application material for each class, and pay the appropriate registration fee for each category. At least one team member must register on each team. Furthermore, teams in different categories must be able to compete, and guarantee to have members acting as referees available independently and at the same time. 1.7) Letter of Commitment --------------------------------------- Regardless of the specific competition, a one-page letter addressed to the RoboCup Humanoid League Technical Committee including the following: * a statement committing to participate in the RoboCup 2022 Humanoid League competition, * a statement committing to make a person with sufficient knowledge of the rules available as referee during the competition. The letter must be printed, hand signed by the team leader, digitally scanned and submitted either as a JPG, PNG or PDF file. If the letter does not contain a hand-written signature, it is not considered valid. The TC may include the fulfillment of the statement of commitment of participation as well as the performance of the team's referee in previous RoboCup competitions into consideration for qualification. 2. Humanoid Research Demonstration (HRD) ======================================= The RoboCup Humanoid League invites the research community to apply for showcasing the latest research and development results that are relevant for humanoid robots, during the virtual Humanoid League 2022. Researchers are invited to submit their demonstrations independently of whether they participate in the RoboCup competitions, symposium or have a RoboCup team. Contributions will be evaluated for scientific and technical excellence. 2.1. Topics of Interest --------------------------------------- We welcome demonstrations containing new ideas, concepts, practical studies, and experiment demonstrations relevant to the field of Humanoid Robotics. This year, the special theme of the Humanoid Research Demonstration is sim2real learning and we particularly invite teams to showcase their research in this area. Other topics of interest include, but are not limited to: * Components, joints and mechanics; * Soft robotics; * Anthropomorphic vs. non-anthropomorphic; * Walking, running, jumping and other humanoid locomotion; * Adaptability and scalability; * Sensors and perception; * Control and stability; * Dealing with falling; * Reflexes and learning; * Energy supply and efficiency; * Robot design and robotic kits; * Virtual robots and simulation; * Benchmarking; * Bipedal robots applied to real problems; * Education with and for humanoid robots. 2.2. Procedure --------------------------------------- The Humanoid Research Demonstration will take place in one or several sessions and participating teams are asked to show a demonstration of the system live in Bangkok or stream their demonstration from their lab during the session. As a back-up solution, each team needs to provide a video demonstration prior to the beginning of the tournament. If the demonstration is performed in Bangkok, the Humanoid League will provide a humanoid league soccer playing field for the demonstration. However, the members of the Technical Committee of the Humanoid League understand that for some demonstrations this setup may not be ideal and will try to accommodate all teams. If a team requires other arrangements for the demonstration, it must submit a request to the Technical Committee at least 3 months before the competition to allow sufficient time for alternative arrangements. 2.3. Application --------------------------------------- We invite teams to apply to participate in the Humanoid Research Demonstration by submitting the following material: 2.3.1. Demonstration Data * Demonstration title; * URL of the group’s home page; * Name of the contact person; * E-mail address of the contact person; * Postal address of the contact person. 2.3.2. Demonstration Video The first part of the material is a video of your robot or robotic part demonstrating its skills or a brief overview of the software demonstration if your demonstration does not involve a physical embodiment. The video must be supplied as a link to it via YouTube. The maximum duration of the video is 3 minutes. The proponent is responsible to ensure that the video adheres to YouTube’s TOS (especially in regards to music copyright) to prevent the video from being blocked for the reviewers. 2.3.3. Hardware Specification If the demonstration includes any type of hardware to be showcased, a one-page specification (PDF) for each different type of humanoid type robot/mechanism used that includes the following: * Robot/mechanism picture; * Robot/mechanism name; * Size of the humanoid type robot/mechanism; * Weight of the robot/mechanism; * Robots/mechanisms joint specification; * Type of sensors used (incl. type of camera(s)); * Computing unit(s); * Other specifications 2.3.4. Short paper A short paper describing the robot, robot part of software and its task and required environment, limited to four (4) pages including text, references, tables, and figures. The short paper must follow the LNCS format which can be downloaded fromhttp://www.springer.com/computer/lncs?SGWID=0-164-6-793341-0 <http://www.springer.com/computer/lncs?SGWID=0-164-6-793341-0>. Please pay special attention to the “Author guidelines” that you’ll be able to find there. 3) Plagiarism ======================================= Plagiarism, loosely the unattributed use of other peoples' words, code, and ideas is not tolerated in the RoboCup community. See the point “Publishing Ethics” at https://www.springer.com/gp/computer-science/lncs/conference-proceedings-gu… for a more detailed description. The teams and team members that plagiarize other peoples' work, and present it as their own will be disqualified. For a first offense, the team and team members will be banned from RoboCup competition for two years (usually the current and next year). Harsher penalties will be applied to repeat offenders or extremely serious cases of plagiarism. A team may be disqualified at any time for plagiarism, even after the competition has started. RoboCup will not reimburse teams for any expenses related to their disqualification. 4) Online Submission ======================================= All qualification material must be submitted online at http://submission.robocuphumanoid.org/ 5) Important Dates ======================================= Humanoid Soccer Competition * Submission system open: November 29th, 2021 * Submission deadline: December 12th, 2021 * Team Review Period: December 13th - December 27th * Announcement of qualified teams: January 21st, 2022 Humanoid Research Demonstration * Submission system open: November 29th, 2021 * Submission deadline: February 14th, 2022 6) Publication ======================================= Please note that after the announcement of the qualified teams the qualified teams submitted material will be made publicly available on the Humanoid League website. Teams applying for participation, therefore, implicitly grant the right of publication of their qualification material to the Humanoid League. 7) Visa Process ======================================= If you are a citizen of a country that needs a Visa for traveling to Thailand, please start the VISA process as soon as you receive your notification of qualification. If you are not sure if you're eligible for a VISA-exempt, please consult the official website of the Thailand government for information. With best regards, Technical Committee of RoboCup Humanoid League 2021

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[Journals] Call for IEEE TNNLS Special Issue on "Stream Learning, " Submission Deadline: December 15, 2021
by Pub Conference 11 Dec '21

11 Dec '21

Guest Editors: Jie Lu, University of Technology Sydney, Australia; Joao Gama, University of Porto, Portugal; Xin Yao, Southern University of Science and Technology, China; Leandro Minku, University of Birmingham, UK. *Submission Deadline: December 15, 2021 [EXTENDED].* *Website: * *https://cis.ieee.org/images/files/Publications/TNNLS/special-issues/One-Page_IEEE_Transactions_on_NNLS-SI-CFP-Update.pdf* <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/cis.ieee.org/images/files/Publications/T…>

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[meetings][cfp] (TRAITS @ HRI 2022) The Road to a successful HRI: AI, Trust and ethicS Workshop
by alessandra.rossi＠unina.it 08 Dec '21

08 Dec '21

Dear colleagues, Apologies for any cross-posting It is our great pleasure to invite you to submit your work at the second edition of TRAITS - The Road to a successful HRI: AI, Trust and ethicS Workshop that will be held in conjunction with HRI 2022 conference. The workshop and conference will be fully online on March 7-11, 2022. This year edition of TRAITS will have the participation of three amazing keynote speakers that will share their valuable experience and knowledge covering topics on AI, trust and ethics in HRI. More information can be also found on the website and social media: Workshop Website: https://sites.google.com/view/traits-hri-2022/home Workshop Twitter account: @HriTraits For any questions and further information, please do not hesitate to email me. Kind regards, Alessandra On behalf of the organising committee Dr. Alessandra Rossi Postdoctoral researcher PRISCA research lab University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy ============================================================ TRAITS 2022: The Road to a successful HRI: AI, Trust and ethicS online March 7-11, 2022 Conference website https://sites.google.com/view/traits-hri-2022/home Submission link https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=traits2022 Submission deadline February 21, 2022 The Road to a successful HRI: AI, Trust and ethicS - TRAITS The increasing presence of robots in human-centred environments requires natural robot behaviours to ensure a successful and efficient human-robot interaction (HRI). Guaranteeing such high quality HRIs is very challenging due to the inherent uncertainty of human-robot dynamics involving the perception, reasoning and decision-making of robots and people. In such realities, robots and people need to be able to cooperate together to reach a goal, which can only be achieved if people accept and trust robots to complete their task and prevent any potential harm (emotional or physical) to people and their belongings. Then, they need to correctly interpret the other's behaviour, and act accordingly. Finally, they need to be able to adapt and communicate their intention and internal state in a way that the other counterpart can understand and accept, e.g. through social cues. Successful HRIs, therefore, can be guaranteed by designing robots: 1) able to autonomously sense and react to the situation, people and the environment by integrating artificial intelligence (AI) techniques; 2) such that people feel comfortable to interact with robots and trust them to reach intended outcomes, and 3) by adhering to ethical and legal principles. This workshop is a continuation of a successful workshop at the HRI conference 2021. This iteration of workshop will continue contributing to the exploration of successful HRIs from a multidisciplinary perspective, and the analysis of the different aspects of HRI that impact its success. For this reason, in this second edition, we wish to particularly focus on the AI algorithms required to implement autonomous and proactive interactions as well as to AI techniques that can make the robot explain itself and its behaviour being legible and understandable by humans. Furthermore, we concentrate on the factors that enhance, undermine, or recover humans' trust in robots. Finally, potential ethical and legal concerns, and how they can be addressed will be considered. Submission Guidelines All papers must be original and not simultaneously submitted to another journal or conference. Authors are invited to submit an extended abstract of 2 pages or full papers up to 6 pages on original and unpublished research. We also invite authors to submit 2 pages position papers. All submitted papers will be reviewed by two reviewers. The abstracts of the accepted papers will appear on the workshop website. Authors should submit their papers formatted according to the ACM SIG format, which is also used for contributions to the main conference. All papers must be submitted in PDF format. Use the following templates to create the paper and generate or export a PDF file: LaTeX, on Overleaf or MS-Word. Following HRI 2021 directives, we invite authors to prepare an anonymised submission. Authors are expected to remove author and institutional identities from the cover page, the acknowledgements section, and the PDF meta-data. More information about how to anonymise your submission can be found on the conference website. Authors will be able to submit a PDF copy through Easychair. Please see submission instructions. List of Topics We intend to open the workshop to a broad audience from academia and industry researching social robotics, machine learning, robot behavioural control, and so on. We will foster the exchange of insights on past and ongoing research and contribute to the discussion of innovative ideas for tackling unresolved issues providing new and inspirational directions of research. Topics of interest include but are not limited to: • Evaluation of human-robot interaction quality; • Human factors affecting successful HRI; • Mental models in HRI; • XAI in HRI; • Trustworthy AI; • Antecedents of Trust and Human-Robot Trust; • The impact of social robots on acceptance in HRI; • Legal frameworks for trustworthy robotics; • Ethics implications in HRI Invited Speakers • AI in HRI: Tony Belpaeme (confirmed) • Trust and acceptance in HRI: Kristin Schaefer (to be confirmed) • Ethics in HRI: John Danaher (confirmed) Each session of the program will be interspersed with break-out sessions during which attendees will be available to networking and discuss further the workshop topics. One of the break-out sessions will be dedicated to a “mentor and mentees” event where attendees, in particular students and PhD students who just started to work in research, are encouraged to ask questions and advices to the keynotes speakers. Participants and attendees will be invited to submit questions before the workshop to allow the keynotes to also reply offline. Questions and comments will be available in a special session on the workshop website. Committees Alessandra Rossi, University of Naples Federico II, Italy, alessandra.rossi(a)unina.it Antonio Andriella, Institut de Robotica i Informatica Industrial (CSIC-UPC), Spain, aandriella(a)iri.upc.edu Silvia Rossi, University of Naples Federico II, Italy, silvia.rossi(a)unina.it Anouk van Maris, University of the West of England, Bristol Robotics Laboratory, UK, anouk.vanmaris(a)uwe.ac.uk Publication Authors of accepted papers will also be invited to publish their works on a pre-print archive (e.g. arXiv) to increase the visibility of their work, this Workshop and the whole Conference. Attendees, invited speakers, and participants of the workshop will also be invited to submit extended and revised works to a special issue in high rank journal. Contact More information can be found on the website. All questions about submissions should be emailed to the organising committee members. Workshop Website: https://sites.google.com/view/traits-hri-2022/home Workshop Twitter account: @HriTraits

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[meetings][cfp] (RO-MAN 2022) Second call for proposals for Special Sessions, Workshops and Tutorials at the 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication
by Alessandra Rossi 08 Dec '21

08 Dec '21

Dear colleagues, Apologies for any cross-posting Please find attached below the second call for proposals for Special Sessions, Workshops and Tutorials at the 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN 2022) that will be held in Naples (Italy) on August 29th - September 2nd, 2022. More information can be also found on the website and social media: http://ro-man2022.org IG: @ieeeroman2022 Twitter: @ROMAN2022ieee Facebook: @ieeeroman2022 For any questions and further information about the Special Session and Workshop/Tutorial proposal, please email workshop(a)roman2022.org or contactinfo(a)roman2022.org. Kindest regards, Alessandra Rossi Publicity Chairs Dr. Alessandra Rossi Postdoctoral researcher PRISCA research lab University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy ============================================================ *** SECOND CALL FOR SPECIAL SESSIONS, WORKSHOPS, AND TUTORIALS *** ============================================================ 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN 2022) August 29th - September 2nd, 2022 Naples, Italy http://ro-man2022.org IG: @ieeeroman2022 Twitter: @ROMAN2022ieee Facebook: @ieeeroman2022 ============================================================= The RO-MAN2022 Organising Committee invites proposals for Special Sessions, Workshops and Tutorials to be held during the 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication in Naples, Italy from August 29th to September 2nd, 2022. The RO-MAN conference is a leading forum where state-of-the-art innovative results, the latest developments as well as future perspectives relating to robot and human interactive communication are presented and discussed. The conference covers a wide range of topics related to Robot and Human Interactive Communication, involving theories, methodologies, technologies, empirical and experimental studies. Proposals related to the study of robotic technology, psychology, cognitive science, artificial intelligence, human factors, ethics and policies, interaction-based robot design and other topics related to human-robot interaction are welcome. This year's theme is “Social, asocial, and antisocial robots”. One of its goals is to explore how to create robots that are capable of being welcomed as our assistants and companions in society while, at the same time, not being perceived as “asocial” or “antisocial”. A second aim is to understand how we can create robots perceived as facilitators of the natural development of human beings and communities, rather than obstacles. PROPOSAL SUBMISSION DEADLINES SPECIAL SESSIONS DEADLINE: JANUARY 10, 2022 WORKSHOPS/TUTORIALS DEADLINE: JANUARY 10, 2022 SPECIAL SESSION PROPOSALS Prospective special session organisers are invited to submit a proposal via the main conference's submission system. The organisers of the accepted special sessions will be responsible for the high-quality peer-review of the submitted papers according to IEEE standards (i.e. at least 2 anonymous peer-reviews). The organisers will be Associate Editors (AE) for the proposed session, and they will be responsible for assigning reviewers and judging the submitted paper for the special session. Proposals should include the following information: • Title: Please propose a title that shows the relevance of the session for the RO-MAN community and the innovativeness of the proposed topic. • Aims and scope: Please explain why the chosen topic is novel and relevant, with the potential to contribute to the growth of the RO-MAN community, and is also suitable for either the conference theme or a new emerging theme with potentially high impact. • Tentative speakers: Please provide a list of prospective contributing authors and tentative titles. Special Sessions are normally expected to have 4 to 6 papers. Invited speakers or session-related demonstrations (such as renowned speakers or industrial talks) could be a part of the Special Session. • Organisers and biographies: Please provide a short bio-sketch of the session organisers including their experience in the topic of the Special Session. The guidelines to submit a special session proposal are available at the Special Session section on the RO-MAN 2022 website or by clicking on this link. WORKSHOPS and TUTORIALS PROPOSALS Workshops and tutorials should focus on key areas of established and emerging research, and should provide a forum for participants to exchange new ideas and discuss recent results. We encourage proposals for topics that have substantial community interest, with a creative and innovative program, led by recognised leaders in their fields, that will attract a broad and diverse audience. 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 • Format (indicate full or half day, tutorial or workshop) • Main organiser (one person only, complete address, phone, and email) • Co-organisers (complete address, and email) • Previous editions (if any) • Statement of objectives • Intended audience • List of speakers • List of topics • Plan to solicit participation • Workshop organisation • Plan for inclusion, diversity and equity The guidelines to submit a workshop/tutorial proposal are available at the Workshop and Tutorial section on the RO-MAN 2022 website or by clicking on this link. ============================================================== The primary criteria in the evaluation of special session and workshop/tutorial proposals will be the timeliness of the topics, the quality, track record, and diversity of the proposers and speakers, the coherence of the proposal, the novelty or creativity, and the expected value added to the overall conference. Aspects of diversity that will be considered include the age, gender, national origin, background, and workplace of the proposers and speakers. We will give priority to proposals that fully follow these requirements. Moreover, we encourage the submission of workshops, tutorial and special sessions organized by communities that are under-represented within the RO-MAN activities. For any questions and further information about the Special Session and Workshop/Tutorial proposal, please email workshop(a)roman2022.org or contact info(a)roman2022.org. SPECIAL SESSION CO-CHAIRS JongSuk Choi, Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KR) Mariacarla Staffa, University of Naples Parthenope (IT) Kerstin Haring, University of Denver (USA) TUTORIAL / WORKSHOP CO-CHAIRS Amir Aly, University of Plymouth (UK) Daniel Riccio, University of Naples Federico II (IT) Raquel Ros, La Salle - Universitat Ramon Llull (ES)

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[Journal] Call for IEEE TNNLS Special Issue on "Stream Learning, " Submission Deadline: December 15, 2021
by Pub Conference 07 Dec '21

07 Dec '21

IEEE TNNLS Special Issue on "Stream Learning," Guest Editors: Jie Lu, University of Technology Sydney, Australia; Joao Gama, University of Porto, Portugal; Xin Yao, Southern University of Science and Technology, China; Leandro Minku, University of Birmingham, UK. Submission Deadline: December 15, 2021 [EXTENDED]. Website: https://cis.ieee.org/images/files/Publications/TNNLS /special-issues/One-Page_IEEE_Transactions_on_NNLS-SI-CFP-Update.pdf <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://cis.ieee.org/images/files/Publications/…>

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Survey about domestic robot competitions, in particular RoboCup@Home
by Alex Mitrevski 03 Dec '21

03 Dec '21

Dear RoboCup community, As part of the preparations for the rule book for next year's RoboCup@Home <https://athome.robocup.org> competition, which will take place in Bangkok, Thailand in 2022, we would like toimprove the competition tasks so that they serve the robotics research community better. We all know the transformative effect that various competitions in the computer vision community have had on our field; we hope that RoboCup@Home can have the same effect for domestic service and social robots. To make this possible, we need a collective effort from the community. We would, in particular, like to identify (i) research areas that are considered important by those of you working in the umbrella domain of "domestic service and social robots" as well as (ii) aspects that you, the community, consider important for a competition of this type to be valuable for your research activities. For this, we would be very much obliged if you could take a few minutes of your time to answer a short /anonymous/ survey about domestic robot competitions until 23:59 CET on December 30th, 2021. The link to the survey is https://forms.gle/DuNzPVKd5c41DRxq7 <https://forms.gle/DuNzPVKd5c41DRxq7> Please note that this survey is open to everyone, regardless of whether you are currently participating in RoboCup@Home or similar competitions; we would be particularly happy if the competition can attract researchers and groups which are currently not participating. Thanks in advance for your time and insights. Best regards, Alex Mitrevski on behalf of the RoboCup@Home Technical Committee ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Alex Mitrevski Research Staff Room: C201 Email:aleksandar.mitrevski@h-brs.de Phone: +49-2241-865-206 Web:https://www.h-brs.de/en/inf/aleksandar-mitrevski Autonomous Systems Group Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg Computer Science Department Grantham-Allee 20 53757 Sankt Augustin, Germany ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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RCAP 2021
by noda50＠gmail.com 02 Dec '21

02 Dec '21

Dear all RoboCuppers, I like to share about the news of RoboCup Asia Pacific (RCAP) 2021 Aichi, Japan. In the last weekend, RCAP 2021 was successfully held in person. The following article reports about the event. https://robotstart.info/2021/11/28/rcap21-report.html Unfortunately, the article is in Japanese, but you can see several photo and movies that provide RoboCup atmosphere!!! --Itsuki Noda

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[journals] Call for paper-Neural Computing and Applications, Topical Collection on Interpretation of Deep Learning
by Pub Conference 01 Dec '21

01 Dec '21

Neural Computing and Applications <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.springer.com/journal/521/__;!!LIr3w…> Topical Collection on Interpretation of Deep Learning: Prediction, Representation, Modeling and Utilization https://www.springer.com/journal/521/updates/19187658 <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.springer.com/journal/521/updates/19…> Aims, Scope and Objective While Big Data offers the great potential for revolutionizing all aspects of our society, harvesting of valuable knowledge from Big Data is an extremely challenging task. The large scale and rapidly growing information hidden in the unprecedented volumes of non-traditional data requires the development of decision-making algorithms. Recent successes in machine learning, particularly deep learning, has led to breakthroughs in real-world applications such as autonomous driving, healthcare, cybersecurity, speech and image recognition, personalized news feeds, and financial markets. While these models may provide the state-of-the-art and impressive prediction accuracies, they usually offer little insight into the inner workings of the model and how a decision is made. The decision-makers cannot obtain human-intelligible explanations for the decisions of models, which impede the applications in mission-critical areas. This situation is even severely worse in complex data analytics. It is, therefore, imperative to develop explainable computation intelligent learning models with excellent predictive accuracy to provide safe, reliable, and scientific basis for determination. Numerous recent works have presented various endeavors on this issue but left many important questions unresolved. The first challenging problem is how to construct self-explanatory models or how to improve the explicit understanding and explainability of a model without the loss of accuracy. In addition, high dimensional or ultra-high dimensional data are common in large and complex data analytics. In these cases, the construction of interpretable model becomes quite difficult and complex. Further, how to evaluate and quantify the explainability of a model is lack of consistent and clear description. Moreover, auditable, repeatable, and reliable process of the computational models is crucial to decision-makers. For example, decision-makers need explicit explanation and analysis of the intermediate features produced in a model, thus the interpretation of intermediate processes is requisite. Subsequently, the problem of efficient optimization exists in explainable computational intelligent models. These raise many essential issues on how to develop explainable data analytics in computational intelligence. This Topical Collection aims to bring together original research articles and review articles that will present the latest theoretical and technical advancements of machine and deep learning models. We hope that this Topical Collection will: 1) improve the understanding and explainability of machine learning and deep neural networks; 2) enhance the mathematical foundation of deep neural networks; and 3) increase the computational efficiency and stability of the machine and deep learning training process with new algorithms that will scale. Potential topics include but are not limited to the following: - Interpretability of deep learning models - Quantifying or visualizing the interpretability of deep neural networks - Neural networks, fuzzy logic, and evolutionary based interpretable control systems - Supervised, unsupervised, and reinforcement learning - Extracting understanding from large-scale and heterogeneous data - Dimensionality reduction of large scale and complex data and sparse modeling - Stability improvement of deep neural network optimization - Optimization methods for deep learning - Privacy preserving machine learning (e.g., federated machine learning, learning over encrypted data) - Novel deep learning approaches in the applications of image/signal processing, business intelligence, games, healthcare, bioinformatics, and security Guest Editors Nian Zhang (Lead Guest Editor), University of the District of Columbia, Washington, DC, USA, nzhang(a)udc.edu Jian Wang, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao, China, wangjiannl(a)upc.edu.cn Leszek Rutkowski, Czestochowa University of Technology, Poland, leszek.rutkowski(a)pcz.pl Important Dates Deadline for Submissions: March 31, 2022 First Review Decision: May 31, 2022 Revisions Due: June 30, 2022 Deadline for 2nd Review: July 31, 2022 Final Decisions: August 31, 2022 Final Manuscript: September 30, 2022 Peer Review Process All the papers will go through peer review, and will be reviewed by at least three reviewers. A thorough check will be completed, and the guest editors will check any significant similarity between the manuscript under consideration and any published paper or submitted manuscripts of which they are aware. In such case, the article will be directly rejected without proceeding further. Guest editors will make all reasonable effort to receive the reviewer’s comments and recommendation on time. The submitted papers must provide original research that has not been published nor currently under review by other venues. Previously published conference papers should be clearly identified by the authors at the submission stage and an explanation should be provided about how such papers have been extended to be considered for this special issue (with at least 30% difference from the original works). Submission Guidelines Paper submissions for the special issue should strictly follow the submission format and guidelines ( https://www.springer.com/journal/521/submission-guidelines <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.springer.com/journal/521/submission…>). Each manuscript should not exceed 16 pages in length (inclusive of figures and tables). Manuscripts must be submitted to the journal online system at https://www.editorialmanager.com/ncaa/default.aspx <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.editorialmanager.com/ncaa/default.a…> . Authors should select “TC: Interpretation of Deep Learning” during the submission step ‘Additional Information’.

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HRI 2022 Workshop: Longitudinal Social Impacts of HRI over Long-Term Deployments
by Joydeep Biswas 30 Nov '21

30 Nov '21

Longitudinal Social Impacts of HRI over Long-Term Deployments HRI 2022 Workshop March 7th, 2022 Virtual - 9:00 am - 7:00pm PST Workshop Objective This workshop seeks to grow the study of how real-world, deployed robot systems impact the people who interact with them and the social structure of the places that they inhabit. As the world sees robots begin to inhabit places designed for people - delivery robots on city streets, and robots with jobs in airports, shopping malls, and in the home - we expect the importance of understanding these impacts to grow. By bringing together researchers interested in longitudinal studies on real-world human-interactive long-term deployments, we hope to arrive at a clearer vision of how best to study these systems. Workshop Audience We invite technical and/or social science researchers whose work incorporates longitudinal studies, real-world deployments, long-term deployments, ethics and social impacts, and general human-robot interaction for a day of talks and discussions regarding objectives, metrics, hypotheses, and best practices. Workshop Details The event will contain multiple virtual sessions including invited talks, oral paper presentations, poster presentations, and panel discussions. After the day’s presentations, there will be hosted breakout discussions intended to aid in the formation of collaborations and the synthesis of ideas. In the evening there will be a virtual social event to form and deepen connections amongst this research community. Paper Topics Contributions are invited on all topics relevant to longitudinal social impacts of HRI over long-term deployments and topics that can help to inform this core idea, including (but not limited to): - Longitudinal studies of HRI over real-world large-scale deployments - Interdisciplinary approaches and long-term autonomy - Methodological and technical challenges for longitudinal studies - Social impacts of HRI over long-term deployments - Social effects such as safety, privacy, and inclusion - New opportunities for HRI and HR teaming - Demonstrations of long-term deployments - Hardware and devices for human-robot interaction - New sensors, biological signals for longitudinal HRI Social Science and Technical Review Tracks While the event itself will be single track, all submissions will select at least one review track for their paper: either social science or technical. A submission may select both tracks if it appropriately represents the work. These tracks are to ensure the relevance of reviews, and submissions which are a blend of each are welcome. Each corresponding author will be asked to briefly review up to two other submissions per submitted papers, and to select at least one review track for which they’d be comfortable reviewing. Author reviews will be coordinated by a workshop program committee, which will request additional reviews as needed and generally ensure the formation of a compelling workshop program. Submission types Submission types for this workshop include: - short work-in-progress and position papers (2-4 pages) - long-format integration and experimental papers (4-6 pages). All papers are to be considered for both oral presentations and posters, with final format to be indicated along with acceptance. Key Dates Early Submission Deadline January 17, 2022 Early Submission Notifications February 7, 2022 Late Submission Deadline February 14, 2022 Late Submission Notifications March 1, 2022 Workshop Website https://sites.google.com/view/lsi-hri/home Submission Site https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=lsihri22 Organizers Justin Hart - hart(a)cs.utexas.edu Elliot Hauser - eah13(a)utexas.edu Samuel Baker - sebaker(a)austin.utexas.edu Joydeep Biswas - joydeepb(a)cs.utexas.edu Junfeng Jiao - jjiao(a)austin.utexas.edu Luis Sentis - lsentis(a)utexas.edu

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[@Home2022] First Call for Participation (Deadline extended)
by Mauricio Matamoros 29 Nov '21

29 Nov '21

Online version: https://athome.robocup.org/2022-cfp1-all/ ========================================================================= *First Call for Participation* RoboCup@Home 2022 (DSPL · OPL · SSPL) Summer 2022 (Bangkok, Thailand) 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 2022. Important dates: Oct. 31, 2021 Publication of the Call for Participation *Dec. 12, 2021* *EXTENDED Deadline for submission of qualification material.* *(Team Description Paper, Team Video, Team Website).* Jan. 10, 2022 Qualification announcement Jan. 30, 2022 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[at] robocupathome.org) to participate in the qualification process for the RoboCup@Home 2022 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: [@Home2022-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 EXTENDED: Sunday, Dec. 12, 2021 23:59 GMT ****** Step 2) Participation confirmation (mandatory) All qualified teams ***MUST*** send an email to the Organizing Committee (oc[at]robocupathome.org) to confirm (or cancel) their participation in the RoboCup@Home 2022 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@Home [League]. The e-mail subject should be: [@Home2022-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. 30, 2022 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 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. *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 allowed to use any robot in their Team Video. However, the use of the standard robot is advised. *HINT:* It is strongly advised to show your robot(s) smoothly and accurately solving any of the Stage II tests of the 2018, 2019, and 2020 rulebooks. *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 <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 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 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 criterion 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, 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 Bangkok, The 2022 RoboCup@Home Organizing and Technical Committees

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Call for Participation RoboCup Humanoid League Virtual Season
by Jasper Güldenstein 25 Nov '21

25 Nov '21

* Call for Participation * RoboCup Humanoid League Virtual Season https://humanoid.robocup.org/hl-vs2022/ December 17th 2021 to April 30th, 2022 =========================================================== The RoboCup Humanoid League is inviting interested teams to apply for participation in the Humanoid League Virtual Season. The Humanoid League will host competitions in the following categories: * KidSize: 40 – 100cm robot height (FIFA size 1 ball) * AdultSize: 130 – 200cm robot height (FIFA size 5 ball) For more detailed class definitions and more information about the humanoid league, please refer to the humanoid league home page at https://humanoid.robocup.org/, specifically the robot specifications found at https://humanoid.robocup.org/hl-vs2022/ 1. Humanoid League Virtual Season ================================= A virtual soccer competition will be organized similar to RoboCup 2021 but distributed over several months with games every other week. Since the Virtual Humanoid Soccer Competition will be held entirely online, all teams registering for the competition will be admitted. The exact tournament format will be announced once the number of participating teams is known. Details on the setup and implementation will be published and continuously updated on the RoboCup Humanoid League website:https://humanoid.robocup.org/hl-vs2022/ 1.1. Simulator & Game Rules ---------------------------- As in RoboCup 2021, Webots with the Humanoid League simulation world, the automatic refereeing system, and the simulation interface will be used. We keep the specifications of the simulation interface and the server up to date on the this link: https://humanoid.robocup.org/hl-vs2022/ Currently, the automatic refereeing system and the simulation world are being worked on. Most significantly, domain randomization will be introduced. This includes reasonably uneven ground, randomized reset positions of the robots starting poses, and varying lighting conditions, backgrounds and ball textures. As with any major change during the competition, these will be announced and finalized 3 weeks before the next game. Bug Fixes are not subject to this deadline. Robot models must be submitted 2 weeks before the start of the competition to be verified. If you would like to update your robot model during the season it must be submitted by Monday 8am CET of the week the next game is scheduled. The rules of the virtual game will initially be the ones used for RoboCup 2021 but will be updated during the competition. The 3 week notice period also applies here to allow teams to adapt their software. 1.2. Competition Schedule ------------------------- Matches will be played approximately every other week (see preliminary schedule). Whether Saturday or Sunday will be the day of streaming will be determined by a vote of the participating teams during the sign-up process. Two workshops are planned (see dates below) with a focus on sim2real transfer. Further information on these will follow soon. Matchday 1: Dec 18th / 19th Matchday 2: Jan 8th / 9th Matchday 3: Jan 22nd / 23rd Workshop 1: Jan 28th/29th/30th Matchday 4: Feb 5th / 6th Matchday 5: Feb 19th / 20th Matchday 6: Mar 5th / 6th Matchday 7: Mar 19th / 20th Matchday 8: Apr 2nd / 3rd Workshop 2: Apr 8th/9th/10th Matchday 9: Apr 16th / 17th Matchday 10 Apr 30th/ May 1st Please note that the exact dates of the games are subject to change in case of significant bugs in the simulation or automatic refereeing software or an overlap with regional RoboCup tournaments. In these cases, the teams will be notified as early as possible about a shift in the game schedule. 1.3. Competition Setup ----------------------- The competition will be performed entirely in the cloud. Each team is guaranteed to play a minimum of 8 games. The exact tournament format will be announced once the number of participating teams in each size class has been determined. Details of the server specification are the same as in RoboCup 2021 and can be found here https://humanoid.robocup.org/hl-vs2022/ The deadline for teams uploading their software is Thursday, if Saturday is selected as matchday, and Friday if Sunday is selected. The simulation will then be run in the cloud and a video of the match streamed online on the match days. Access to log files will be provided to teams after the match has been streamed. Teams will be given possibilities to test the setup of the competition. Several test scenarios will be offered to teams in early December. These scenarios will be similar to the ones offered during the mock competition. Teams must pass the tests in the order presented if they have not already proven so during previous virtual competition that they pass these tests. *Robot model inspection*: A manual inspection is carried out by members of the TC, making sure that the model does not crash or significantly slows down the simulator. The TC also checks that the team.json is in the proper format and all fields are set. *Connection test*: We launch a simulator with one robot instance, and we start a game to verify whether Webots accepts the connection. *Walking test*: We launch a simulator with one robot instance, and we start a game with a cap of 5 minutes real time. We inspect the video for evidence of the robot being able to walk in the ready or play state. *Penalty shoot-out*: We launch a simulator and one robot instance with the teams being paired (if possible). Teams need to be able to move the ball to pass. *Short game*: We launch a simulator and 4 robot instances with the teams being paired (when it is possible). The game time is capped to 2.5 minutes per half time, RR style. Teams need to be able at least to touch the ball to pass. If custom test scenarios are required by teams to test specific components of the cloud infrastructure together with the team’s software, please let us know. 1.3. Registration ------------------ The registration process for the Humanoid League Virtual Season is done in two steps. First, you need to submit general data about your team via the submission system of the Humanoid League: http://submission.robocuphumanoid.com/. All teams that fulfill the formal requirements are automatically qualified to participate. The following data is required: * Team name * URL of the team’s home page * Name of team leader or team contact person * E-mail address of team leader or contact person * Postal address of the team, team leader or contact person * Competition category: Humanoid League Virtual Season Kid or Adult * Letter of Commitment Please note that teams applying for participation in several classes must register individually for each class and pay the appropriate registration fee. The registration form must be filled out online at http://submission.robocuphumanoid.org/ <http://submission.robocuphumanoid.org/> In the second step, the teams must pay a fee of $340 for the entire tournament season (including a minimum of 8 games plus tests). Payment needs to be made to the Federation via Wire Transfer or PayPal. Detailed instructions are sent to teams after registration. Please note that teams need to cover the respective transfer and conversion fees that apply for your country when transferring money to the US. For PayPal, US-based teams need to pay 2% of processing fees (around 7 USD), for international teams a 4% processing fee applies (around 14 USD). The fees for wire transfer depend on the country and specific bank. 1.4. Submission of Robot Model File ------------------------------------ Robot models used in the competition must comply with the specifications published here: https://humanoid.robocup.org/hl-vs2022/ They must be submitted by December 1st, 2021. Teams are highly encouraged to make their robot model available to the research community with an open-source license. This is, however, not a requirement for participation. In order for the Technical Committee to ensure the robot models comply with the laws of the game, the full robot file needs to be made available to the Technical Committee during the qualification process. 1.5. Registration Fee --------------------------- Each team must pay a registration fee of $340. This fee will only be used to cover the costs to run the simulations of the games and tests in the cloud. All work (e.g. automatic referee development or organisation) is done by volunteers. The amount is calculated by using the experience from RoboCup 2021 and projecting it to the number of games we plan. Any extra funds will be used for future Humanoid League Virtual Seasons as a buffer. 2. Submission System ===================== The submission system will be opened Monday November 15th and all application material must be submitted online at http://submission.robocuphumanoid.com/. 3. Deadlines ============= Registration system open: November 16th, 2021 Deadline for submission: November 26th, 2021 Deadline for payment of registration fee: December 10th, 2021 Submission of robot model file: December 1st, 2021 With best regards, Technical Committee of RoboCup Humanoid League 2021

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Save the Date: ISAIM-2022
by Diochnos, Dimitrios 23 Nov '21

23 Nov '21

SAVE THE DATE Seventeenth International Symposium on ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE and MATHEMATICS ISAIM 2022 http://isaim2022.cs.ou.edu/ January 3-5, 2022 Online via Zoom (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) 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 will be the seventeenth Symposium in the series, sponsored by Florida Atlantic University and the Annals of Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence. Due to the pandemic the three-day Symposium will take place online. ISAIM-2022 will feature invited speakers and special topic sessions. Registration is free but you need to register in advance so that you can get the Zoom links in a timely manner. KEYNOTE SPEAKERS: o Noa Agmon (Bar-Ilan University) o Cynthia Dwork (Harvard University) o Jerome Lang (LAMSADE, CNRS, Universite Paris-Dauphine, PSL) o Arun Ross (Michigan State University) o Ohad Shamir (Weizmann Institute of Science) o Noam Slonim (IBM Research AI) o Noga Zaslavsky (MIT) SPECIAL TOPIC INVITED SESSIONS: o In Memory of Naftali Tishby -Organized by Martin Golumbic (University of Haifa) o Boolean and pseudo-Boolean Functions -Organized by Endre Boros (Rutgers University) and Yves Crama (University of Liege) o Coalition Formation Games -Organized by Judy Goldsmith (University of Kentucky) and Joerg Rothe (Heinrich-Heine-Universitat Dusseldorf) o Combinatorial and Geometric Problems in Imaging Sciences -Organized by Valentin Brimkov (Buffalo State College) o Formalization in Mathematics -Organized by Gonzalo A. Aranda-Corral (Universidad de Sevilla) and Francisco Jesus Martin Mateos (Universidad de Sevilla) o Sequencing, sequential decision making and scheduling -Organized by Lisa Hellerstein (New York University) and Thomas Lidbetter (Rutgers University) o Uncertain Reasoning -Organized by Alessandro Antonucci (Istituto Dalle Molle di Studi sull'Intelligenza Artificiale - IDSIA), Salem Benferhat (University of Artois), and Kamal Premaratne (University of Miami) ORGANIZERS: o General Chair: Martin Charles Golumbic, University of Haifa o Conference Chair: Frederick Hoffman, Florida Atlantic University o Publications & Publicity Chair: Dimitrios I. Diochnos, University of Oklahoma Send inquiries and requests to <isaim2022 at cs DOT ou DOT edu>. Visit http://isaim2022.cs.ou.edu/. Join isaim(a)googlegroups.com to receive announcements related to ISAIM.

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Readership Position available at the University of Hertfordshire:
by Daniel Polani 23 Nov '21

23 Nov '21

Dear RoboCuppers, please note a unique opportunity (late early or mid-career) at UH below to join our enthusiastic and quirky team. Of course I should mention our Humanoid RoboCup Lab and Robot House facilities. Please feel free to contact me for further information (or follow below link). Readership/Principal Lectureship in Robotics and Adaptive Systems School of Physics, Engineering and Computer Science University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, UK Closing: 6. December 2021 Applications are invited for a Reader/Principal Lectureship on emerging topics in Robotics/AI, including, but not limited to: - Robotics: embodied and/or cognitive robotics, soft robotics, adaptive or evolutionary robotic design, robot safety and ethics, sensorics and robotics, emotional/social robots, smart homes and sensors, sensor fusion, assistive robotics, human-robot interaction, agricultural robotics, humanoid robots - Machine learning: reinforcement learning, Deep Methods, statistical methods, large scale data modelling/intelligent processing and high-performance learning algorithms - Biological and biophysical computation paradigms, systems biology, neural computation - Complex Systems: collective intelligence, adaptive, autonomous and multi-agent/robot systems, collective and swarm intelligence, social and market modelling, adaptive, evolutionary and unconventional computation - Mathematical Modelling: statistical modelling, information-theoretic methods, compressive sensing, intelligent data visualization, multiscale models, optimization; causality - Emerging Topics in AI: computer algebra and AI, topological methods (e.g. persistent homology), algebraic and category-theoretical methods in AI; modern topics in games and AI; quantum algorithms for AI - AI and applications: financial modelling, AI and biology/physics/cognitive sciences - Foundations: fundamental questions of intelligence and computation, emergence of life/intelligence, Artificial Life Closing Date: 6. December 2021 To apply and for further information, please see: https://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/CKJ638/reader-principal-lecturer-in-robotics-and…, Ref. No.: 032595 - Daniel Polani

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[jobs] Mulitple Openings at Magazino Germany
by Sebastian Eltester 18 Nov '21

18 Nov '21

Dear Robocup community, are you ready to help shape the future of robotics? Then become a Magazino<https://www.magazino.eu/company/?lang=en>!! 🤖 We have plenty of job opportunities open, whether it is a student position, a junior position or a senior position. If you are eager to join a highly divers team with backgrounds from all over the world then hit the apply button to join us! Take a closer look at our vacancies: * Robot Release QA Engineer (f/m/x)<https://www.magazino.eu/apply-now/robot-release-qa-engineer-f-m-x/?lang=en> * Robot Deployment Engineer (f/m/x), Region Munich<https://www.magazino.eu/apply-now/robot-deployment-engineer-f-m-x-region-mu…> * Robot Deployment Engineer (f/m/x), Region NRW/Lower Saxony<https://www.magazino.eu/apply-now/robot-deployment-engineer-f-m-x-region-nr…> * Working Student Remote Operator (f/m/x)<https://www.magazino.eu/apply-now/working-student-f-m-x-remote-operator-rob…> 🌈 We're open to all nationalities and all genders! 🌈 If you have questions, feel free to contact us any time! Cheers! Sebastian PS.: Who else is stoked for RCAP? Sebastian Eltester Operations Center Lead T +49-89-2155-2415-8 M +49-171-9718580 <mailto:waggershauser@magazino.eu>eltester(a)magazino.eu<mailto:eltester@magazino.eu> | [www.magazino.eu]www.magazino.eu [signature_775036230]<https://www.magazino.eu/> [signature_520303617] <https://www.facebook.com/Magazino-GmbH-737817356290011/> [signature_1689280880] <https://www.xing.com/xbp/pages/magazino-gmbh> [signature_607702122] <https://www.linkedin.com/company/magazino-gmbh/> [signature_1213976598] <https://www.instagram.com/magazino_loves_robots/> MAGAZINO GmbH | Landsberger Straße 234 80687 München | Deutschland Amtsgericht München HRB 209758 | USt-IdNr.: DE293308625 Geschäftsführer: Frederik Brantner, Lukas Zanger

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[jobs] Two tenured positions in Autonomous Systems at Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences
by Alex Mitrevski 16 Nov '21

16 Nov '21

Dear roboticists, The Department of Computer Science at Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences (Sankt Augustin Campus), together with the Bonn-Aachen International Centre for Information Technology (b-it), has the following two permanent professorships (W2) for Computer Science, in particular in Autonomous Systems: 1. Mathematical foundations of autonomous systems 2. Industry-relevant and application-related aspects of autonomous systems. The two position are to be filled as soon as possible. We expect applicants for both positions to meet the following requirements: * the employment requirements of §36 HG NRW, in particular three years of professional experience outside of higher education institutions, * very good knowledge of English, as well as the ability and willingness to teach in English, * pedagogical and didactic skills in teaching complex learning content, * a willingness to participate in activities within the university, as well as national and international committees, * experience in the acquisition, establishment and implementation of internal and externally funded research and development projects, * active participation in the further development and expansion of the MAS program. In addition, the following criteria would be desirable: * teaching experience at universities or comparable institutions, * willingness to also teach undergraduate courses that correspond to the topics of the call for applications, * willingness for interdisciplinary cooperation with other institutions within and outside the university, * evidence of international collaborations and networking with the professional community, * willingness to conduct courses and examinations in German. More detailed information can be found at: 1. Mathematical foundations of autonomous systems: https://stellen.h-brs.de/jobposting/dcdfdd50800036e2492311716a44c03b81a1583… <https://stellen.h-brs.de/jobposting/dcdfdd50800036e2492311716a44c03b81a1583…> 2. Industry-relevant and application-related aspects of autonomous systems: https://stellen.h-brs.de/jobposting/0adf13b597c4a2f154f856c2fcaf65311ffeb2c… <https://stellen.h-brs.de/jobposting/0adf13b597c4a2f154f856c2fcaf65311ffeb2c…> We would like to see more female scientists at our university and are therefore particularly pleased to receive applications from women. We welcome applicants with children. H-BRS is a certified family-friendly university - and proud of it. People with severe disabilities are part of our university. We give them preference in the application process if their qualifications are equal. The position is suitable for part-time work. For information about the professorship to be filled, please contact the head of the appointment committee Prof. Dr. Nico Hochgeschwender (nico.hochgeschwender(a)h-brs.de <mailto:nico.hochgeschwender@h-brs.de>). In addition, the Equal Opportunity Officer of the H-BRS, Dr. Barbara Hillen, is also happy to assist you (www.h-brs.de/de/gi/barbara-hillen <https://www.h-brs.de/de/gi/barbara-hillen>). Regards, Nico Hochgeschwender **************************************************************************************** Prof. Dr. Nico Hochgeschwender Professor of Autonomous Systems B-IT Bonn-Aachen International Center of Information Technology Fon: +49-2241-865-9634 Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University oAS Fax: +49-2241-865-8293 Computer Science Department Net: nico.hochgeschwender(a)h-brs.de Grantham-Allee 20 53757 Sankt Augustin, Germany Web: http://www.h-brs.de/de/inf/nico-hochgeschwender Twitter: @nico_roboticist **************************************************************************************** International Master Program on Autonomous Systems https://www.h-brs.de/en/inf/autonomous-systems-msc ****************************************************************************************

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Postdoctoral Position at University of Glasgow
by Alessandro Vinciarelli 16 Nov '21

16 Nov '21

Dear all, we have a postdoctoral position (3 years) for the European Project SONICOM (http://www.sonicom.eu). The main goal of the successful candidate will be the development of methodologies capable to infer the personality traits of an individual (both self-assessed and attributed) from speech data rendered in VR and, possibly, from other nonverbal behavioural cues. The preferred candidates have an established track record in speech/signal processing and machine learning (in particular deep networks). Please apply by clicking on the following link: https://lnkd.in/dYVpY_KS The deadline is on November 25th at 23.45. Best, Alessandro

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Call for IEEE TNNLS Special Issue on "Stream Learning, " Submission Deadline: December 15, 2021
by Pub Conference 16 Nov '21

16 Nov '21

IEEE TNNLS Special Issue on "Stream Learning," Guest Editors: Jie Lu, University of Technology Sydney, Australia; Joao Gama, University of Porto, Portugal; Xin Yao, Southern University of Science and Technology, China; Leandro Minku, University of Birmingham, UK. Submission Deadline: December 15, 2021 [EXTENDED]. Website: https://cis.ieee.org/images/files/Publications/TNNLS/special-issues/One-Pag…

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PhD/MS Openings in Human-Robot Interaction at University of Pittsburgh's School of Information and Computing
by Michael Lewis 15 Nov '21

15 Nov '21

The PhD programs in Informatics and Networked Systems or Intelligent Systems provide interdisciplinary training in robotics, AI, and HRI. The available position(s) at ULab (http://www.pitt.edu/~cmlewis/research.html) comes with a 2-5 year Graduate Assistantship to study human interaction with AI and robotic systems. You will work in close collaboration with Prof. Sycara's laboratory at Carnegie Mellon University ( http://www.ri.cmu.edu/person.html?person_id=304) to study Theory of Mind models of Artificial Social Intelligence, Human-Autonomy Teams (HATs) and metrics for evaluating them. Applicants at either bachelors or masters level are invited to apply. Please contact Michael Lewis cmlewis(a)pitt.edu to discuss possible assistantship and instructions for application.

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CPS&IoT'2022 - the 10th International Conference on Cyber-Physical Systems and Internet-of-Things
by Jozwiak, Lech 12 Nov '21

12 Nov '21

Special Focus: Green CPS&IoT for Green World Special Theme of CPS&IoT’2022: Artificial Intelligence, Edge Computing, Architectures, Methods and Tools for Autonomous Robots, Vehicles, Assistive, Environmental and other advanced CPS&IoT Dear Colleague, Please find the Call for Papers of CPS&IoT’2022 - the 10th International Conference on Cyber-Physical Systems and Internet-of-Things, Budva, Montenegro, 7-10 June, 2022 attached to this e-mail. CPS&IoT’2022 will be held in the Conference Venue (Hotel Budva) and online. All papers that will be accepted after the conference review process will be published in the CPS&IoT’2022 Conference Proceedings regardless of the authors' physical presence at the conference and will be presented by their authors either in the Conference Venue or online. The CPS&IoT’2022 Conference will host several prestigious keynote speakers from industry and academia. Extended journal versions of selected high-quality papers will be published in a special issue of the ISI indexed journal “Microprocessors and Microsystems” (MICPRO) https://www.journals.elsevier.com/microprocessors-and-microsystems<https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.journ…>. The CPS&IoT'2022 Conference<https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fembeddedc…> is collocated with the CPS&IoT’2022 Summer School<https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fembeddedc…> and MECO'2022 Conference<https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fembeddedc…> - the 11th Mediterranean Conference on Embedded Computing. Together they constitute a major Europe based conference event in CPS and IoT. Please also find attached the Call for Workshops and Special Sessions of CPS&IoT’2022. You are encouraged to submit your papers, as well as, Workshop and Special Session Proposals to the CPS&IoT’2022 Conference, and to participate in the collocated CPS&IoT’2022 Summer School. Paper Submission Deadline: 31 January 2022. Workshop and Special Session Proposal Submission Deadline: 30 November 2021. Best regards, Lech Jozwiak Program Chairman of the CPS&IoT’2022 Conference and Radovan Stojanovic Managing Chairman of the CPS&IoT’2022 Conference

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[Journal] IJAIT Call for Special Issue on Explainable Machine Learning in Methodologies and Applications
by Pub Conference 08 Nov '21

08 Nov '21

Computational Intelligence Journal Special Issue on Explainable Machine Learning in Methodologies and Applications https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/page/journal/14678640/homepage/special_issu… This special issue aims to bring together original research articles and review articles that will present the latest theoretical and technical advancements of machine and deep learning models. We hope that this Special Issue will: 1) improve the understanding and explainability of machine learning and deep neural networks; 2) enhance the mathematical foundation of deep neural networks; and 3) increase the computational efficiency and stability of the machine and deep learning training process with new algorithms that will scale. Potential topics include but are not limited to the following:  Interpretability of deep learning models  Quantifying or visualizing the interpretability of deep neural networks  Neural networks, fuzzy logic, and evolutionary based interpretable control systems  Supervised, unsupervised, and reinforcement learning  Extracting understanding from large-scale and heterogeneous data  Dimensionality reduction of large scale and complex data and sparse modeling  Stability improvement of deep neural network optimization  Optimization methods for deep learning  Privacy preserving machine learning (e.g., federated machine learning, learning over encrypted data)  Novel deep learning approaches in the applications of image/signal processing, business intelligence, games, healthcare, bioinformatics, and security Important Dates Deadline for Submissions: March 31, 2022 First Review Decision: May 31,‬2022 Revisions Due: June 30, 2022 Deadline for 2nd Review: July 31, 2022 Final Decisions: August 31, 2022  Final Manuscript: September 30, 2022

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Call for paper-Neural Computing and Applications, Topical Collection on Interpretation of Deep Learning
by Pub Conference 08 Nov '21

08 Nov '21

Neural Computing and Applications <https://www.springer.com/journal/521/> Topical Collection on Interpretation of Deep Learning: Prediction, Representation, Modeling and Utilization https://www.springer.com/journal/521/updates/19187658 Aims, Scope and Objective While Big Data offers the great potential for revolutionizing all aspects of our society, harvesting of valuable knowledge from Big Data is an extremely challenging task. The large scale and rapidly growing information hidden in the unprecedented volumes of non-traditional data requires the development of decision-making algorithms. Recent successes in machine learning, particularly deep learning, has led to breakthroughs in real-world applications such as autonomous driving, healthcare, cybersecurity, speech and image recognition, personalized news feeds, and financial markets. While these models may provide the state-of-the-art and impressive prediction accuracies, they usually offer little insight into the inner workings of the model and how a decision is made. The decision-makers cannot obtain human-intelligible explanations for the decisions of models, which impede the applications in mission-critical areas. This situation is even severely worse in complex data analytics. It is, therefore, imperative to develop explainable computation intelligent learning models with excellent predictive accuracy to provide safe, reliable, and scientific basis for determination. Numerous recent works have presented various endeavors on this issue but left many important questions unresolved. The first challenging problem is how to construct self-explanatory models or how to improve the explicit understanding and explainability of a model without the loss of accuracy. In addition, high dimensional or ultra-high dimensional data are common in large and complex data analytics. In these cases, the construction of interpretable model becomes quite difficult and complex. Further, how to evaluate and quantify the explainability of a model is lack of consistent and clear description. Moreover, auditable, repeatable, and reliable process of the computational models is crucial to decision-makers. For example, decision-makers need explicit explanation and analysis of the intermediate features produced in a model, thus the interpretation of intermediate processes is requisite. Subsequently, the problem of efficient optimization exists in explainable computational intelligent models. These raise many essential issues on how to develop explainable data analytics in computational intelligence. This Topical Collection aims to bring together original research articles and review articles that will present the latest theoretical and technical advancements of machine and deep learning models. We hope that this Topical Collection will: 1) improve the understanding and explainability of machine learning and deep neural networks; 2) enhance the mathematical foundation of deep neural networks; and 3) increase the computational efficiency and stability of the machine and deep learning training process with new algorithms that will scale. Potential topics include but are not limited to the following: - Interpretability of deep learning models - Quantifying or visualizing the interpretability of deep neural networks - Neural networks, fuzzy logic, and evolutionary based interpretable control systems - Supervised, unsupervised, and reinforcement learning - Extracting understanding from large-scale and heterogeneous data - Dimensionality reduction of large scale and complex data and sparse modeling - Stability improvement of deep neural network optimization - Optimization methods for deep learning - Privacy preserving machine learning (e.g., federated machine learning, learning over encrypted data) - Novel deep learning approaches in the applications of image/signal processing, business intelligence, games, healthcare, bioinformatics, and security Guest Editors Nian Zhang (Lead Guest Editor), University of the District of Columbia, Washington, DC, USA, nzhang(a)udc.edu Jian Wang, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao, China, wangjiannl(a)upc.edu.cn Leszek Rutkowski, Czestochowa University of Technology, Poland, leszek.rutkowski(a)pcz.pl Important Dates Deadline for Submissions: March 31, 2022 First Review Decision: May 31, 2022 Revisions Due: June 30, 2022 Deadline for 2nd Review: July 31, 2022 Final Decisions: August 31, 2022 Final Manuscript: September 30, 2022 Peer Review Process All the papers will go through peer review, and will be reviewed by at least three reviewers. A thorough check will be completed, and the guest editors will check any significant similarity between the manuscript under consideration and any published paper or submitted manuscripts of which they are aware. In such case, the article will be directly rejected without proceeding further. Guest editors will make all reasonable effort to receive the reviewer’s comments and recommendation on time. The submitted papers must provide original research that has not been published nor currently under review by other venues. Previously published conference papers should be clearly identified by the authors at the submission stage and an explanation should be provided about how such papers have been extended to be considered for this special issue (with at least 30% difference from the original works). Submission Guidelines Paper submissions for the special issue should strictly follow the submission format and guidelines ( https://www.springer.com/journal/521/submission-guidelines). Each manuscript should not exceed 16 pages in length (inclusive of figures and tables). Manuscripts must be submitted to the journal online system at https://www.editorialmanager.com/ncaa/default.aspx. Authors should select “TC: Interpretation of Deep Learning” during the submission step ‘Additional Information’.

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Call for Special Offers (RoboCup Humanoid League)
by Maike Paetzel-Prüsmann 05 Nov '21

05 Nov '21

========================================================= Call for Special Offers (Humanoid League) ========================================================= Research institutes and companies that produce and sell relevant hardware for RoboCup humanoid teams are encouraged to send their proposals for special offers to the Technical Committee of the Humanoid League. A special offer is limited in time and enables teams and institutes participating in RoboCup 2022 to buy a hardware product used for the RoboCup 2022 competition for a reduced price or under other special conditions. Hardware products can either be complete robot platforms or relevant hardware parts needed for robot construction. Special offers will be published on the humanoid league website and sent out via the RoboCup email list. Special offers are *not* considered an official sponsoring of the RoboCup event. Important dates: ----------------------------------------------------------- * Deadline: November 29th 2021 * Notification: December 3rd 2021 Submission guidelines and procedure ---------------------------------------------------------- Send an email with a the following information to the Humanoid League Technical Committee <rc-hl-tc(a)lists.robocup.org> : 1. Name of institution or company and contact information of a person responsible for the offer 2. Description of the special offer as it shall appear on the website (max 100 words). This MUST include information about the product, the price and a point of contact 3. Explanation of relevance to the league (if not obvious from the description) 4. Date of expiry for the special offer All proposals for special offers will be reviewed by the Technical Committee and checked for relevance to the league. The responsible person for the special offer will be notified on December 3rd about the decision. Kind regards, Maike (for the Humanoid Legue Technical Committee) -- Dr. Maike Paetzel-Prüsmann Postdoctoral Researcher Foundations of Computational Linguistics Laboratory University of Potsdam, Germany Pronouns: she / her More information: https://www.maike-paetzel.de/

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AtHome2022 - First Call for Participation
by Mauricio Matamoros 31 Oct '21

31 Oct '21

Online version: https://athome.robocup.org/2022-cfp1-all/ ==================================================================== First Call for Participation RoboCup@Home 2022 (DSPL · OPL · SSPL) Summer 2022 (Bangkok, Thailand) 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 2022. Important dates: Oct. 31, 2021 Publication of the Call for Participation Nov. 28, 2021 Deadline for submission of qualification material. (Team Description Paper, Team Video, Team Website). Jan. 10, 2022 Qualification announcement Jan. 30, 2022 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 [at]robocupathome.org) to participate in the qualification process for the RoboCup@Home 2022 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: [@Home2022-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, Nov. 28, 2021 23:59 GMT ***** ****Step 2) Participation confirmation (mandatory)**** All qualified teams ***MUST*** send an email to the Organizing Committee (oc[at]robocupathome.org) to confirm (or cancel) their participation in the RoboCup@Home 2022 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@Home [League]. The e-mail subject should be: [@Home2022-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. 30, 2022 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 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. 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 are allowed to use any robot in their Team Video. However, the use of the standard robot is advised. HINT: It is strongly advised to show your robot(s) smoothly and accurately solving any of the Stage II tests of the 2018, 2019, and 2020 rulebooks. 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 RoboCups · 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 criterion 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, 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 Bangkok, The 2022 RoboCup@Home Organizing and Technical Committees

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AAMAS 2022 Call on Diversity and Inclusion Activities
by Sara Bernardini 30 Oct '21

30 Oct '21

Submission Deadline: Rolling submissions will be processed until April 1, 2022. Submission Notification: Rolling notification. DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION ACTIVITIES: Participation in AI (including Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems) by groups that are underrepresented in computer science is a fraction of what is needed to have an AI workforce that reflects the diversity in society. Diversity has many facets, including race, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, and cultural background. We would like to invite submissions of proposals for activities that will help broaden participation in the AI (including Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems) field. Activities can range from meetings for specific groups, to panels, workshops to discuss the situation and propose changes, reports on outreach activities, and more. SUBMISSION PROCEDURE: The proposals should be short (2 pages, pdf) and should address the following: 1. What activity is proposed and its specific objectives 2. Who will be the chair of the activity 3. What is the target audience (academics, industry, graduate students, undergraduate students, etc) 4. What is expected number of participants 5. Duration of the proposed activity (1/2 day, 1 day, 2 hours, etc) 6. Will the activity be by invitation only or will it need an open call for participation/registration/submission, and what is the expected timeline (call out, deadline, notification) 7. Funding needed (if any) and potential sources of funding 8. Advertisement strategy: how will the event be advertised on mailing lists and social media? 9. Willingness of in-person, online, or hybrid event organization: AAMAS 2022 may be held in-person, online, or hybrid. Please describe your plan for conducting in-person, online, and hybrid events. Each proposal should be submitted electronically as a single PDF file via emails to all co-chairs (hchan3(a)unl.edu and long.tran-thanh(a)warwick.ac.uk). For any questions, please contact the co-chairs of the diversity and inclusion activities. ORGANIZERS: Hau Chan (University of Nebraska-Lincoln, USA) Long Tran-Thanh (University of Warwick, UK)

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AAMAS-2022 Call for Demos
by Sara Bernardini 30 Oct '21

30 Oct '21

Call for Demos https://aamas2022-conference.auckland.ac.nz/calls/call-for-demos Important Dates Demonstration Submission: January 21st 2022 (23:59 UTC-12) Author Notification: February 25th 2022 (23:59 UTC-12) Camera Ready Submission: March 11th 2022 (23:59 UTC-12) Information for Authors The goal of the AAMAS Demo track is to provide opportunities for participants from academia and industry to present their latest developments in agent-based and robotic systems. Interactive systems and novel applications are particularly welcome. Two “Best Demo” awards will be selected by the Demos Program Committee along with the conference attendees to recognise the most innovative demo (the one with the most original and significant research methodologies) and the best application demo (the one with the highest potential for real-world impact). Authors of accepted papers and posters in the main track of the AAMAS conference, as well as workshop presenters, are particularly encouraged to submit. Topics of Interest Topics of interest include (but are not limited to) the following: Systems implementing agents in real-world settings in various application areas such as engineering (e.g., transportation, robotics, manufacturing, grid), economy (e.g.,e-commerce), health care, societal challenges and education. Systems supporting the development of agents which include development environments and tools to assist developers in the specification, design, implementation and/or testing of agent systems. Systems using agents to model behavior which include virtual agents, simulation systems,games and social robots. Submission Requirements Submissions accepted to the Demo track will be advertised on the AAMAS website and included in the conference proceedings. Each Demo submission must consist of both the following elements (paper + video). Paper (maximum 4 pages): Papers should not be anonymised, i.e., author names and affiliations should be included. Pages 1-2: Description of the system to be demonstrated. The authors are encouraged to discuss the application domain, problem scenario, technology used, agent/multi-agent techniques involved, innovations of the system, interactive aspects, etc. Page 3: List the bibliographic references. Page 4: A list of requirements for the demo setup at the conference for the organizers, in case the conference will be held in person. Papers must be prepared using the AAMAS 2022 template and submitted as PDF files. Submissions not conforming to the guidelines above will be rejected. Video (maximum 5 minutes): The paper must contain a URL to a (QuickTime or YouTube) demonstration video of no more than 5 minutes, showing and explaining the execution of the system. The video should be understandable without sound as much as possible, as they may be played during the conference (see below). The video should include (at the beginning and at the end) the title of the demo and the track number provided by the submission system. At least one author of each accepted demonstration is required to register and attend the conference to carry out the demonstration. In case of an in-person (or hybrid) conference: The organisers will make every effort to facilitate demo requirements. If you have unusual requirements please contact the organisers in advance. We will provide a poster board, a monitor with a standard HDMI connector, a power strip and a 2m table for each demonstration. Videos of accepted demo papers will be played (with no sound) during breaks and demo sessions to increase visibility. In case of a strictly virtual conference: The demos will have predefined slots in the program for interactive (Q&A) sessions. In addition, the videos will be available for all conference registrants throughout the conference. Submissions should be made through the Demo track submission system at: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=aamas22demo Selection Process The submission and selection process for the AAMAS 2022 Demos will be separate from that of the main conference. Each submission will be assessed by the Demos Program Committee. The authors will receive a brief evaluation report with the notification. The evaluation criteria are: Relevance to the AAMAS conference Significance and originality Video content and presentation Maturity and readiness of the demonstration Potential for public interaction Potential impact in the intended application domain Potential interest to a broader audience Demonstration Chairs Noa Agmon (Bar-Ilan University, Israel) Mubbasir Kapadia (Rutgers University, USA)

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[meetings] First call for proposals for Special Sessions, Workshops and Tutorials at the 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN 2022)
by Alessandra Rossi 29 Oct '21

29 Oct '21

Dear colleagues, Apologies for any cross-posting Please find attached below the first call for proposals for Special Sessions, Workshops and Tutorials at the 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN 2022) that will be held in Naples (Italy) on August 29th - September 2nd, 2022. More information can be also found on the website and social media: http://ro-man2022.org IG: @ieeeroman2022 Twitter: @ROMAN2022ieee Facebook: @ieeeroman2022 For any questions and further information about the Special Session and Workshop/Tutorial proposal, please email workshop(a)roman2022.org or contact info(a)roman2022.org. Kindest regards, Alessandra Rossi, Minsu Jang and Tariq Iqbal Publicity Chairs Dr. Alessandra Rossi Postdoctoral researcher PRISCA research lab University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy Visiting Researcher Fellow of the Higher Education Academy Adaptive Systems Research Group University of Hertfordshire, United Kingdom ================================================================================== *** FIRST CALL FOR SPECIAL SESSIONS, WORKSHOPS, AND TUTORIALS *** 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN 2022) August 29th - September 2nd, 2022 Naples, Italy http://ro-man2022.org IG: @ieeeroman2022 Twitter: @ROMAN2022ieee Facebook: @ieeeroman2022 ================================================================================== The RO-MAN2022 Organising Committee invites proposals for Special Sessions, Workshops and Tutorials to be held during the 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication in Naples, Italy from August 29th to September 2nd, 2022. The RO-MAN conference is a leading forum where state-of-the-art innovative results, the latest developments as well as future perspectives relating to robot and human interactive communication are presented and discussed. The conference covers a wide range of topics related to Robot and Human Interactive Communication, involving theories, methodologies, technologies, empirical and experimental studies. Proposals related to the study of robotic technology, psychology, cognitive science, artificial intelligence, human factors, ethics and policies, interaction-based robot design and other topics related to human-robot interaction are welcome. This year's theme is “Social, asocial, and antisocial robots”. One of its goals is to explore how to create robots that are capable of being welcomed as our assistants and companions in society while, at the same time, not being perceived as “asocial” or “antisocial”. A second aim is to understand how we can create robots perceived as facilitators of the natural development of human beings and communities, rather than obstacles. PROPOSAL SUBMISSION DEADLINES SPECIAL SESSIONS DEADLINE: JANUARY 10, 2022 WORKSHOPS/TUTORIALS DEADLINE: JANUARY 10, 2022 SPECIAL SESSION PROPOSALS Prospective special session organisers are invited to submit a proposal via the main conference's submission system. The organisers of the accepted special sessions will be responsible for the high-quality peer-review of the submitted papers according to IEEE standards (i.e. at least 2 anonymous peer-reviews). The organisers will be Associate Editors (AE) for the proposed session, and they will be responsible for assigning reviewers and judging the submitted paper for the special session. Proposals should include the following information: • Title: Please propose a title that shows the relevance of the session for the RO-MAN community and the innovativeness of the proposed topic. • Aims and scope: Please explain why the chosen topic is novel and relevant, with the potential to contribute to the growth of the RO-MAN community, and is also suitable for either the conference theme or a new emerging theme with potentially high impact. • Tentative speakers: Please provide a list of prospective contributing authors and tentative titles. Special Sessions are normally expected to have 4 to 6 papers. Invited speakers or session-related demonstrations (such as renowned speakers or industrial talks) could be a part of the Special Session. • Organisers and biographies: Please provide a short bio-sketch of the session organisers including their experience in the topic of the Special Session. The guidelines to submit a special session proposal are available at the Special Session section on the RO-MAN 2022 website or by clicking on this link. WORKSHOPS and TUTORIALS PROPOSALS Workshops and tutorials should focus on key areas of established and emerging research, and should provide a forum for participants to exchange new ideas and discuss recent results. We encourage proposals for topics that have substantial community interest, with a creative and innovative program, led by recognised leaders in their fields, that will attract a broad and diverse audience. 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 • Format (indicate full or half day, tutorial or workshop) • Main organiser (one person only, complete address, phone, and email) • Co-organisers (complete address, and email) • Previous editions (if any) • Statement of objectives • Intended audience • List of speakers • List of topics • Plan to solicit participation • Workshop organisation • Plan for inclusion, diversity and equity The guidelines to submit a workshop/tutorial proposal are available at the Workshop and Tutorial section on the RO-MAN 2022 website or by clicking on this link. ================================================================================== The primary criteria in the evaluation of special session and workshop/tutorial proposals will be the timeliness of the topics, the quality, track record, and diversity of the proposers and speakers, the coherence of the proposal, the novelty or creativity, and the expected value added to the overall conference. Aspects of diversity that will be considered include the age, gender, national origin, background, and workplace of the proposers and speakers. We will give priority to proposals that fully follow these requirements. Moreover, we encourage the submission of workshops, tutorial and special sessions organized by communities that are under-represented within the RO-MAN activities. For any questions and further information about the Special Session and Workshop/Tutorial proposal, please email workshop(a)roman2022.org or contact info(a)roman2022.org. SPECIAL SESSION CO-CHAIRS JongSuk Choi, Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KR) Mariacarla Staffa, University of Naples Parthenope (IT) Kerstin Haring, University of Denver (USA) TUTORIAL / WORKSHOP CO-CHAIRS Amir Aly, University of Plymouth (UK) Daniel Riccio, University of Naples Federico II (IT) Raquel Ros, La Salle - Universitat Ramon Llull (ES)

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IEEE TNNLS Call for Special Issue on "Stream Learning", Submission Deadline: December 15, 2021 [EXTENDED]
by Pub Conference 28 Oct '21

28 Oct '21

*CALL FOR PAPERS* *IEEE Transactions on Neural Networks and Learning Systems Special Issue on STREAM LEARNING* https://cis.ieee.org/images/files/Publications/TNNLS/special-issues/One-Pag… *Introduction* In recent years, machine learning from streaming data (called *Stream Learning*) has enjoyed tremendous growth and exhibited a wealth of development at both the conceptual and application levels. Stream Learning is highly visible in both the machine learning and data science fields, and become a new hot direction in recent years. Research developments in Stream Learning include learning under concept drift detection (whether a drift occurs), understanding (where, when, and how a drift occurs), and adaptation (to actively or passively update models). Recently we have seen several new successful developments in Stream Learning such as massive stream learning algorithms; incremental and online learning for streaming data; and streaming data- based decision-making methods. These developments have demonstrated how Stream Learning technologies can contribute to the implementation of machine learning capability in dynamic systems. We have also witnessed compelling evidence of successful investigations on the use of Stream Learning to support business real-time prediction and decision making. In light of these observations, it is instructive, vital, and timely to offer a unified view of the current trends and form a broad forum for the fundamental and applied research as well as the practical development of Stream Learning for improving machine learning, data science and practical decision support systems of business. This special issue aims at reporting the progress in fundamental principles; practical methodologies; efficient implementations; and applications of Stream Learning methods and related applications. The special issue also welcomes contributions in relation to data streams, incremental learning and reinforcement learning in data streaming situations. Scope of the Special Issue We invite submissions on all topics of Stream Learning, including but not limited to: • *Data stream prediction* • *Concept drift detection, understanding and adaptation* • *Recurrent concepts* • *Experimental setup and Evaluation methods for stream learning* • *Reinforcement learning on streaming data* • *Streaming data-based real-time decision making* • *Ensemble methods for stream learning* • *Auto machine learning for stream algorithms* • *Neural networks for big data streams* • *Transfer learning for streaming data* • *Real-world applications of stream learning* • *Active learning for streaming data* • *Online learning for streaming data* • *Imbalance learning for streaming data* • *Lifelong learning for streaming data* • *Incremental learning for streaming data* • *Continuous learning for streaming data* • *Clustering for streaming data* • *Audio/speech/music streams processing* • *Stream learning benchmark datasets* • *Multi-drift and multi-stream learning* • *Stream processing platforms* Timeline • Submission deadline: *Dec 15, 2021* • Notification of first review: March 1, 2022 • Submission of revised manuscript: Jun 1, 2022 • Notification of final decision: Aug 1, 2022 Guest Editors • Jie Lu (University of Technology Sydney, Australia) • Joao Gama (University of Porto, Portugal) • Xin Yao (Southern University of Science and Technology, China) • Leandro Minku (University of Birmingham, UK) Submission Instructions - Read the Information for Authors at http://cis.ieee.org/tnnls <http://cis.ieee.org/tnnls> - Submit your manuscript at the TNNLS webpage (http://mc.manuscriptcentr <http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/tnnls)>al.com/tnnls) <http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/tnnls)> and follow the submission procedure. Please, clearly indicate on the first page of the manuscript and in the cover letter that the manuscript is submitted to this special issue. Early submissions are welcome.

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[jobs] Research Engineer Position, Robotic Arm Control & Simulation - University of Potsdam, Germany
by Maike Paetzel-Prüsmann 27 Oct '21

27 Oct '21

# Research Engineer Position, Robotic Arm Control & Simulation, University of Potsdam Conditional on the final funding decision by the funding body, applications are invited from suitably qualified candidates for a nine-month research engineer position starting as soon as possible (not later than February 2022) with the "Computational Linguistics Lab Potsdam (colabPotsdam)" (headed by Prof. David Schlangen) at the University of Potsdam, Germany. The positions is 40 hours of work per week (100%). The salary is determined by the collective bargaining agreement for public employees in Germany (TV-L 13 Ost). The duration of the contract is for nine month (in accordance with Section 2 subsection 1 of the German Academic Fixed-Term Contract Law (WissZeitVG)). ## Job description The position will be part of an upcoming research project on enabling industrial robots working together with humans (cobots) to use spoken conversations to learn new collaborative task. The goal is to build upon a robotic system which has basic capabilities of grasping and manipulating objects and extend it with the possibility of learning new and advanced tasks from spoken instructions as well as visual reference resolution. As a research engineer, your responsibility is to set up the framework for the robotic arm controller, both in simulation and, in cooperation with the industrial partner Synergetion GmbH, in the lab environment. The control of the robot arm will be implemented using ROS and the Open Source software Webots will be used for the 3D simulations. ### Requirements * A Master's or PhD degree in Computer Science, Robotics or related fields (defended by start of contract) * Experience with ROS or ROS2 * Experience with a simulation software, ideally Webots * Strong programming skills in Python * Proficiency in working with git * The working language of the group is English. Very good spoken and written command of English is required. Experience in one or more of the following fields / technologies is desirable: robot programming, C++, computer vision, CAD-Software, 3D modelling, robot arms, industrial robots. ## The place The beautiful city of Potsdam is surrounded by rivers and lakes and supports a wide variety of recreational activities. It is part of the Berlin metropolitan area, one of the cultural and scientific capitals of the world. The city of Berlin is within commuting distance, and many researchers and students choose to live there. The region offers a high quality of urban life at comparatively still modest costs. Handicapped applicants will be given preference in case of equal suitability. The University of Potsdam strives to increase the proportion of women in research and teaching and specifically encourages female applicants to apply for this position. ## Applications Deadline: The position remains open until filled with a suitable candidate To apply, send the following documents as a single PDF: * Statement of interests that motivates your application * Curriculum vitae * If available, coding samples or links to your contributions to public code repositories * Scans of transcripts and academic degree certificates * The names, affiliations, and contact details of up to three people who can provide reference letters for you. Address for applications and queries: david.schlangen(a)uni-potsdam.de -- Dr. Maike Paetzel-Prüsmann Postdoctoral Researcher Foundations of Computational Linguistics Laboratory University of Potsdam, Germany Pronouns: she / her More information: https://www.maike-paetzel.de/

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Multiple vacancies at the University of Melbourne
by Uwe Aickelin 16 Oct '21

16 Oct '21

We have advertised five opportunities to join the top ranked School of Computing and Information Systems in Australia (THES and QS). Please share with your networks and encourage applications.. Full details below. Algorithmic Fairness: https://jobs.unimelb.edu.au/en/job/906606/senior-lecturerassociate-professo… Machine Learning and Systems (two positions): https://jobs.unimelb.edu.au/caw/en/job/906506/lecturer-or-senior-lecturer-i… Digital Ethics: https://jobs.unimelb.edu.au/caw/en/job/906636/senior-lecturerassociate-prof… Information Systems: https://jobs.unimelb.edu.au/caw/en/job/904639/lecturersenior-lecturer-infor… Professor Uwe Aickelin | Head of School of Computing and Information Systems Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology Level 3, Melbourne Connect – 700 Swanston Street The University of Melbourne, Victoria 3010 Australia T: +61 3 8344 3635 E: uwe.aickelin(a)unimelb.edu.au<mailto:uwe.aickelin@unimelb.edu.au> http://aickelin.com/ | http://linkedin.com/in/aickelin

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Postdoc in HRI/Deep Learning at CMU
by Michael Lewis 12 Oct '21

12 Oct '21

Postdoctoral Fellow Position at Carnegie Mellon University Deep Reinforcement Learning Techniques for Human Robot Teaming Systems OPEN POSITION: A postdoctoral fellow position at Robotics Institute, CMU SUPERVISOR: Prof. Katia Sycara (katia(a)cs.cmu.edu) The Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University Website: http://ri.cmu.edu/ri-faculty/katia-sycara LOCATION: The Advanced Agent-Robotics Technology Lab The Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA DESCRIPTION: The successful candidate will work on Deep Reinforcement Learning algorithms for human agent teams, with agents interacting autonomously or with humans. Start date in early 2021 is desirable but negotiable. The expected duration of the position is one to two years with renewals upon review. In particular the research will involve computational models for making inferences and predictions about the behaviors and activities of human-agent teams so as to (1) perform complementary beneficial actions, and (2) give advice to human and agent team mates to improve overall team performance. QUALIFICATIONS: - PhD in a field related to AI/ML in particular reinforcement learning in Robotics, CS or related discipline. - A strong theoretical background in Machine Learning, multi robot decision making, and decision-making under uncertainty. - Programming skills including experiences using C++, Python, and/or MATLAB, Neural Network frameworks, eg pytorch - Ability to present work clearly both written and orally - Experiences with deep learning mandatory, experience with ROS desired. APPLICATION DETAILS: Applicants should provide the following material via email to Prof. Katia Sycara (katia(a)cs.cmu.edu). Please use the subject line: “Postdoc application”. Applications will be reviewed as they are received. - A curriculum vitae - A statement of research expertise and interests (up to 2 pages) - Up to 3 publications - Names and contact information of three references - Dates of availability - A personal website, if available, where further details can be found DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES The postdoc will (a) carry out high quality research and publish the research results, (b) assist in research supervision and guidance of graduate and undergraduate students, (c) present research results to sponsors, (d) participate in research proposal preparation.

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New forum for cross-cutting topics of leagues
by Oskar von Stryk 04 Oct '21

04 Oct '21

Dear RoboCuppers, We are happy to announce the establishment of a new forum for the discussion of cross-cutting topics among the RoboCup leagues: https://cross.forum.robocup.org/ The list of all forums hosted on robocup.org can be found here: https://forum.robocup.org/ Best regards, Oskar von Stryk (On behalf of RoboCup IT Team)

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World Robot Summit 2020 Fukushima
by Satoshi Tadokoro 04 Oct '21

04 Oct '21

Dear To whom it may concern We are pleased to announce that WRS2020 Fukushima will be held at the Fukushima Robot Test Field from October 8 (Fri.) to October 10 (Sun.), 2021. World Robot Summit (WRS), hosted by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO), is an international robotics competition that simultaneously holds competitions, exhibitions, symposiums, and other events. At WRS2020 FUKUSHIMA, the "Disaster Robotics Category" competition (WRC) will be held alongside the "ROBOICHI" event, which will feature exhibitions by robot-related companies in Fukushima Prefecture and various stage events. Registration for this event is now open. We hope that you will visit the WRS2020 FUKUSHIMA. In addition, there will be live streaming of the competitions and stages on WRS VIRTUAL. If you will not be able to attend the on-site events in Fukushima, we hope to see you on WRS VIRTUAL. 【Outline of WRS2020 FUKUSHIMA】 Name: World Robot Summit 2020 (WRS2020) FUKUSHIMA Hosts: Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) Date: October 8 (Fri.) - 10 (Sun.), 2021 (3 days) Venue: Fukushima Robot Test Field (Minamisoma City, Fukushima Prefecture) ■Introduction page of WRS2020 FUKUSHIMA https://wrs.nedo.go.jp/en/fukushima/ 【Outline of ROBOICHI】 Name: ROBOICHI Hosts: Fukushima Prefecture Date: October 8 (Fri.) - 10 (Sun.), 2021 (3 days) Venue: Fukushima Robot Test Field (Minamisoma City, Fukushima Prefecture) 【WRS VIRTUAL】 Contents: Competitions and various programs will be broadcasted during the WRS FUKUSHIMA event. In addition, you can try the competition experience on WRS VIRTUAL. ■Introduction page of WRS VIRTUAL https://wrs.nedo.go.en/ Thanks and best regards. ------------------------------------------------------ Contact: World Robot Summit Secretariat 14-1, Koamicho, Nihombashi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, 103-8548 Email: info(a)worldrobotsummit.org ------------------------------------------------------

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[news] results of the survey on robotics labs during CoViD19
by Andreas Birk 29 Sep '21

29 Sep '21

Dear all, first of all, many thanks to all of you who participated in our survey on the impact of CoViD19 on robotics labs and other forms of hands-on education. The results are now published in an article in the IEEE Robotics and Automation Magazine (RAM), which is Open Access: A. Birk and D. Simunovic, Robotics Labs and Other Hands-On Teaching During COVID-19: Change Is Here to Stay? in IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine, doi:10.1109/MRA.2021.3102979, 2021 https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9523602 Among others, there is evidence that there is a potentially long-lasting impact, i.e., that instructors report an expectation of changes to be permanent. Furthermore, a vast majority of the participants reported a switch to online teaching with hands-on elements. This has among others strong consequences for the used equipment, e.g., simulation environments for use at home emerged as the most important tool for hands-on robotics education, while the use of take-home hardware could not substantially profit from the pandemic. Interestingly, there is a also significant discrepancy between the students' performance as perceived by the instructors and the actual grades the students achieved, which are significantly higher than before. Best regards, Andreas & Dora -- =============================================================================== Prof. Dr. Andreas Birk =============================================================================== Jacobs University Robotics Group Research 1, Campus Ring 12, 28759 Bremen, Germany http://robotics.jacobs-university.de/ =============================================================================== Commercial registry: Amtsgericht Bremen, HRB 18117 Managing Directors: Prof. Dr. Thomas Auf der Heyde / Andrea Herzig Erler Chairman of the Board of Governors: Tim Cordßen-Ryglewski ===============================================================================

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AAMAS-2022 - Call for Papers
by Francesco Amigoni 28 Sep '21

28 Sep '21

******************************************************************** * CALL FOR PAPERS * AAMAS-2022: The 21st International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems Auckland, New Zealand, 9-13 May 2022 https://aamas2022-conference.auckland.ac.nz/ ******************************************************************** We invite you to submit your best work in the area of agents and multiagent systems to AAMAS-2022, the 21st International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems (AAMAS-2022). We hope to be able to welcome all of you to Auckland next year, but a final decision on the conference modality (fully in presence, fully virtual, hybrid) will be only taken by the end of 2021. In the meantime, we look forward to your AAMAS-2022 exciting papers! Please visit the conference website for the full Call for Papers. ******************************************************************** AREAS OF INTEREST & SPECIAL TRACKS ******************************************************************** We welcome the submission of technical papers describing significant and original research on all aspects of the theory and practice of autonomous agents and multiagent systems. Areas of interest include: Coordination, Organisations, Institutions, and Norms Markets, Auctions, and Non-Cooperative Game Theory Social Choice and Cooperative Game Theory Knowledge Representation, Reasoning, and Planning Learning and Adaptation Modelling and Simulation of Societies Humans and AI / Human-Agent Interaction Engineering Multiagent Systems >>> Robotics <<< Innovative Applications AAMAS-2022 will also feature three special tracks, the Blue Sky Ideas Track, the JAAMAS Track, and the Demo Track, each with a separate Call for Papers. ******************************************************************** IMPORTANT DATES ******************************************************************** Abstract submission: October 1st 2021 Full paper submission: October 8th 2021 Authors rebuttal: November 22nd-25th 2021 Notification: December 20th 2021 Camera Ready submission: January 28th 2022 Tutorials/DC/Workshops: May 9-10, 2022 Main Conference: May 11-13, 2022 ******************************************************************** QUESTIONS ******************************************************************** If you have any questions please contact the Programme Chairs, Piotr Faliszewski, AGH University of Science and Technology, Kraków, Poland, and Viviana Mascardi, University of Genova, Genova, Italy. ******************************************************************** --------------------------------------------------------- Francesco Amigoni Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Laboratory Dipartimento di Elettronica, Informazione e Bioingegneria Politecnico di Milano Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32 I-20133 Milano (MI), Italy Voice: +39 02 2399-3475 Email: francesco.amigoni(a)polimi.it<mailto:francesco.amigoni@polimi.it> Web: https://amigoni.faculty.polimi.it ---------------------------------------------------------

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[meetings] CfP: Oct 1, International Rescue Robotics Symposium
by Oskar von Stryk 27 Sep '21

27 Sep '21

The German Rescue Robotics Center (DRZ) invites participants to the International Symposium on the Current State and Challenges for Intelligent Robotic Assistance in Disaster Response When: 1 Oct 2021, 13:00-16:30 (CET) Where: Online and onsite in Dortmund, Germany What: Invited talks by leading researchers and practitioners and a round table discussion The symposium will highlight the current status and future challenges in intelligent ground and aerial robotic systems assisting in disaster response from the perspectives of research, development, training, and application. Confirmed speakers: * Emanuele Gissi, Italian Fire and Rescue Service * Adam Jacoff, NIST, USA * Jean-Paul Monet, Bouches-du-Rhone Fire Department, France * Robin Murphy, Texas A&M University, USA * Tomas Svoboda, Czech Technical University, Prague, Czech Republic * Satoshi Tadokoro, Tohoku University, Japan We welcome a broad audience, including first responders, industry, academia and general public. For more details and updates on the program and to register (free of charge) please visit the website: https://rettungsrobotik.de/en/symposium [1] The International Symposium Rescue Robotics is part of the Rescue Robotics Days 2021: https://rettungsrobotik.de/en/rettungsrobotiktage/ [2] Ivana Kruijff-Korbayova and Oskar von Stryk (Symposium Co-Chairs) Links: ------ [1] https://rettungsrobotik.de/en/symposium/ [2] https://rettungsrobotik.de/en/rettungsrobotiktage/

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[jobs] 1 PhD position as part of the ETN PERSEO (Horizon 2020 MSCA)
by Silvia Rossi 15 Sep '21

15 Sep '21

_________________________________________________ Call for Applications 1 Early Stage Researcher/ PhD Positions Marie Skłodowska-Curie – ITN PERSEO Project www.perseo.eu <http://www.perseo.eu/> _________________________________________________ Applications are invited for 1 Early-Stage Researcher (ESR) position to be funded by the Marie-Sklodowska-Curie European Training Network on “PErsonalized Robotics as SErvice Oriented applications” (PERSEO) within the Horizon 2020 Programme of the European Commission. The ESR positions to be filled is: ESR12, Università Degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Italy: Personalized Social Cues for Robots as Information Providing Interfaces OBJECTIVES: Design and develop a set of solutions for a multimodal user interface to maintain engagement through personalized social interaction and to enrich such interaction with social cues that can influence persuasion. To pursue this goal, the project will hybridize domain knowledge with on-line learning of the social strategies that are more effective for each specific user. The expected benefit is the reduction of the time needed for familiarisation with the robot and the support of the long-lasting use of it, minimizing the risk of rejection by frustration. Selection and social colouring of recommendations and instructions will be introduced by balancing the candidate output with the estimated receptiveness and engagement of the user. The network will train 15 early-stage researchers in the context of research and development for “PErsonalized Robotics as SErvice Oriented applications” (www.perseo.eu <http://www.perseo.eu/>). The consortium is formed by 8 prestigious European Universities and 2 leading robotics businesses plus 9 partner organisations to cover a full training programme on scientific, technical, and personal development skills. Placements will include secondments in current world-leading organisations in Spain, Germany, Austria, UK, Italy, Denmark, the Netherlands, etc. to gather the necessary knowledge and implement it in Europe. Thus, collaboration within the network is strongly encouraged. Candidates We are looking for talented and highly motivated early career researchers with a degree giving access to PhD studies in a domain relevant to the ESR position of interest (such as Computer Science, Cognitive Science, Robotics, Engineering). We expect dedication and enthusiasm for experimental research, combined with scientific curiosity and the capacity to teamwork in an interdisciplinary environment. Preferred qualifications include excellent grades, research talent and personal ambition. Applicants should have excellent command of English, together with good academic writing and presentation skills. Additional preferable requirements: - Advanced programming skills - Experience in robot programming and/or human-robot interaction research Fulltime employments as PhD students are offered for 3 years. The starting date of the contract is negotiable, but ideally it would be 1 November 2021. Benefits PERSEO fellows will beneﬁt from: Outstanding training aimed at fostering scientiﬁc, technical and transferable skills Short-term secondments in the PERSEO network Scientiﬁc advice from internationally recognized experts A solid mentoring strategy followed up through a personalised career development plan. The position will permit to carry out research in a stimulating group with the chance to join high-level training events. You will get a very attractive salary plus an allowances package in accordance with the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) rules <https://www.bioremia.eu/fileadmin/bioremia/h2020-wp1820-msca_en.pdf%22%20%5…> and the personal circumstances of the applicant. The monthly gross ESR salary, subject to local tax, social benefit and other deductions following national regulations is of 4000€. The PhD students will be employed with full social security coverage and all benefits in accordance with the Marie Sklodowska-Curie ITN fellowship regulations of the European Union. For further information please visit the MSCA website <https://ec.europa.eu/res>. Eligibility criteria To be eligible, the candidate: must be in the first four years of her/his research career. Candidates should ideally possess a master’s degree in a relevant academic field or a comparable degree that allows them to embark in a PhD (applications from candidates who already possess a doctoral degree cannot be considered). must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the country of the institution that recruits the student for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately before the recruitment date. Short stays such as holidays and/or compulsory national service are not taken into account. must be willing to spend a prolonged time in another institute/country of the network during the PhD thesis period. For further details on eligibility criteria please check in the Information Note for ITN Fellows <https://ec.europa.eu/research/mariecurieactions/sites/mariecurie2/files/msc…>. Application DOCUMENTS TO BE SENT 1. Application form (see Project Website www.perseo.eu <http://www.perseo.eu/>) 2. a copy of the passport 3. a full CV 4. a 2-page motivation letter including a description of previous research experience (1 page) and current research interest, outlining the fit to the desired ESR (1 page) 5. one or more reference letters and names of 2 referees including contact details 6. Transcripts of grades obtained for B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees, expected final grade 7. Certificates 8. List of Publications (if any) Only documents in English language will be accepted. Applicants should submit the documentation exclusively via e-mail in ONE PDF document to applications(a)perseo.eu <mailto:applications@perseo.eu> (max file size 5 MB) by 10 October, 2021 at 23 pm (GMT). Your application will be jointly processed by the members of the PERSEO consortium and treated according to the GDPR. Applications failing to include the requested documentation or do not meet the eligibility criteria, WILL NOT be considered in this competition. SELECTION OF CANDIDATES Shortlisted candidates will be selected on the basis of the fit of their CV and research interests with the chosen research project(s). These candidates will be invited for an online interview and positions will be offered after approval by the PERSEO Committee. To ensure equality of opportunities, we strongly encourage women with the appropriate qualifications to apply. If equally qualified, participants with a handicap will be preferred. FURTHER INFORMATION It is strongly recommended to contact supervisor silvia.rossi(a)unina.it <mailto:silvia.rossi@unina.it> via E-mail before submitting an application.

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Final week to apply to the PAL Robotics Stacking Challenge!
by Cailin Greiner 15 Sep '21

15 Sep '21

Hi all! My name is Cailin, and I am writing to you on behalf of YES!Delft, Europe’s leading tech incubator. We have an exciting event with Ahold Delhaize and PAL Robotics that we thought would be great for this community of robotics enthusiasts. If you and your team like coding challenges then the AIRLab Stacking challenge is for you! Within this challenge, students, company teams, professors and research teams in the field of robotics from all over the world are invited to join Ahold Delhaize, AI for Retail AIR Lab and PAL Robotics with research on retail and robotics. Algorithms will be coded using a simulation that can later be deployed using the TIAGo robot developed by PAL Robotics. Winning teams will be awarded a cash prize up to *€5000*. Deadline applications: September 17th. More information can be found here: https://www.yesdelft.com/airlab-stacking-challenge/

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LAST CALL - RoboCup Brazil Open
by Comunicação RoboCup 13 Sep '21

13 Sep '21

Hi teams, Last days to sign up for RoboCup Brazil Open! Do not leave to the last minute! The event will be online, streamed live on our youtube channels. Already registered? Did you check if everyone on the team is registered correctly? If you have any questions, please send it to us by email at organizacao(a)cbrobotica.org ! *Registrations are open for RoboCup Brazil Open* *The event will be virtual, with the same categories of RoboCup Federation* RoboCup Brazil launches the RoboCup Brazil Open, a virtual event with the same categories of the Robocup WorldWide. Registrations are now open for teams from all over the world. All the categories have been adapted and will happen in a fully remote format, using simulators, challenges and submission of articles written by the teams. Our goal is to disseminate the studies and technologies developed by universities in the field of robotics and IA. The event will happen in October 11th-15th, and will be broadcast through lives on the RoboCup Brazil Youtube channel. *Categories:* RoboCup Open Flying Robot Trial League Small Size Soccer Humanoid League Standard Plataform League (SPL) Simulation 2D Simulation 3D RoboCup at@Home IEEE Humanoid Robot Racing (HRR) IEEE Open IEEE Standard Educational Kit (SEK) IEEE Very Small Size Soccer RoboCup Junior Soccer Open RoboCup Junior Rescue Maze Primary RoboCup Junior Rescue Maze RoboCup Junior Rescue Simulation Primary RoboCup Junior Rescue Simulation Open * Registration* To participate, you and your team must register by september 15th, on the website: www.cbrobotica.org . The registration fee is US$ 50 per team. *RoboCup Brasil is a non-profit civil association, organized by volunteer professors and researchers. The association holds the Brazilian Robotics Olympiad, the Brazilian Robotics Competition and the National Robotics Show.-- Patrícia VergaraComunicação RoboCup Brasil(11) 9.8686-4993www.robocup.org.br <http://www.robocup.org.br>*

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[jobs] tenure track position in Automation at Jacobs University Bremen
by Andreas Birk 13 Sep '21

13 Sep '21

Jacobs University [1] in Bremen, Germany offers a tenure track position for a Lecturer, Senior Lecturer or Assistant Professor of Computer Science with specialization in Automation. The position is linked to Computer Science and the Robotics and Intelligent Systems program; hence expertise with respect to Intelligent Systems and AI is also welcome. Jacobs University is an international, English speaking environment, which has received very good positions in international rankings - Jacobs University is among others ranked on place 19 among all small universities in the world (<5,000 students) in the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Ranking. The deadline for submission of applications is 08.10.2021. Applications can be submitted online [2]. [1] http://www.jacobs-university.de/ [2] https://sdworxhr03.pi-asp.de/bewerber-web/?company=*G042-FIRMA-ID&tenant=&l… <https://sdworxhr03.pi-asp.de/bewerber-web/?company=*G042-FIRMA-ID&tenant=&l…> -- =============================================================================== Prof. Dr. Andreas Birk =============================================================================== Jacobs University Robotics Group Research 1, Campus Ring 12, 28759 Bremen, Germany http://robotics.jacobs-university.de/ =============================================================================== Commercial registry: Amtsgericht Bremen, HRB 18117 President: Prof. Dr. Antonio Loprieno Managing Directors: Prof. Dr. Thomas Auf der Heyde / Andrea Herzig Erler Chairwoman of the Board of Governors: Dr. Claudia Schilling ===============================================================================

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RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021: Call for Participation
by RCAP Office 31 Aug '21

31 Aug '21

Dear RoboCuppers, You are welcome to participate in the RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021 (RCAP 2021). ============== Call for Participation =============== *RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021 (RCAP 2021)* 25-29 November 2021 https://2021.robocupap.org/eng/participation.html RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021 Aichi Japan (RCAP 2021) will be held at Aichi Sky Expo (Aichi International Convention & Exhibition Center), November 25-29, 2021. RCAP 2021 will be held in a hybrid ON-SITE and VIRTUAL format. Due to the current uncertainties of Covid-19, ON-SITE competitions will only open to participants from Japan. - ON-SITE Competitions: Participants from Japan. - VIRTUAL Competitions: Participants from all over the world. *LEAGUES:* Virtual Competitions are open to participants from all over the world, with most of the leagues of RoboCup 2021 Worldwide. For details of leagues, please refer to: https://2021.robocupap.org/eng/leagues.html *REGISTRATION:* All teams are required to pre-register through the online form: https://2021.robocupap.org/eng/registration.html *IMPORTANT DATES:* - Deadline for pre-registration (both on-line and virtual competitions): 30 September 2021 - Announcement of qualified teams: 14 October 2021 - Deadline for registration: 4 November 2021 *REGISTRATION FEES:* The registration fee is waived for all Japanese teams/members. The registration fee for teams to participate in virtual competitions (except teams from Japan): - Major Team Registration Fee: Waived - Major Staff/Students: USD60/person - Junior Team Registration Fee: Waived - Junior Students/Mentors: USD40/person *SYMPOSIUM:* https://2021.robocupap.org/eng/symposium.html *CONTACT:* For inquiries please contact us via the hereunder email addresses: - Aichi Local Organizing Committee (General Enquiries, On-site competitions): - rcap2021(a)intergroup.co.jp - RCAP Office (Registration fees and payments, Virtual competitions): - office(a)robocupap.org For more information please visit our official website at https://2021.robocupap.org/eng/index.html We look forward to welcoming you to RCAP 2021 Aichi Japan! Best Regards, RoboCup Asia-Pacific (RCAP) Office, RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021 (RCAP 2021) Organizing Committee

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RoboCup Brazil Open 2021 - 2nd Call for Participation
by April Foster 25 Aug '21

25 Aug '21

======================================= Registrations are open for RoboCup Brazil Open 2021 The event will be virtual, with most of the categories of RoboCup Federation RoboCup Brazil launches the RoboCup Brazil Open, a virtual event with most of the categories of the Robocup WorldWide. Registrations are now open for teams from all over the world. All the categories have been adapted and will happen in a fully remote format, using simulators, challenges, and submission of articles written by the teams. Our goal is to disseminate the studies and technologies developed by universities in the field of robotics and AI. The event will happen on *October 11th-15th* and will be broadcast through lives on the RoboCup Brazil Youtube channel. In 2020, more than 700 students from Latin America attended the event. ============= Categories: ============= RoboCup Soccer Simulation 3D League RoboCup Soccer Simulation 2D League RoboCup Small Size Soccer League RoboCup Soccer Humanoid League RoboCup Soccer Standard Plataform League (SPL) RoboCup @Home RoboCup Open Flying Robot Trial League RoboCupJunior Soccer Open RoboCupJunior Rescue Maze Primary RoboCupJunior Rescue Maze RoboCupJunior Rescue Simulation Primary RoboCupJunior Rescue Simulation Open IEEE Humanoid Robot Racing (HRR) IEEE Open IEEE Standard Educational Kit (SEK) IEEE Very Small Size Soccer ================= Registration ================= To participate, you and your team must register *by August 30th*, on the website: www.cbrobotica.org . The registration fee is US$ 50 per team. *RoboCup Brasil is a non-profit civil association, organized by volunteer professors and researchers. The association holds the Brazilian Robotics Olympiad, the Brazilian Robotics Competition, and the National Robotics Show.* -- RoboCup Brazil http://www.robocup.org.br/

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[HRI][meetings][CFP] Special Issue on IJSR "GENDERING ROBOTS: Ongoing (Re)configurations of Gender in Robotics"
by Giulia Perugia 17 Aug '21

17 Aug '21

Dear colleagues, After the success of the GenR 2021 workshop at RO-MAN 2021 last week, I am pleased to announce that the homonym Special Issue “GENDERING ROBOTS: Ongoing (Re)configurations of Gender in Robotics” is now open for submissions on the International Journal of Social Robotics (IJSR)! The Special Issue opened on August 12th and will stay open until January 31st, 2022. All submitted papers will be reviewed as soon as they are received and the accepted papers will be published online first until the complete Special Issue is published. Please note that we welcome submissions from all disciplines addressing the topic of gender in robots and are open to submissions from Ethics, Social Sciences, Psychology, and Humanities, as well as more technical and traditional Social Robotics and HRI papers. You can find more information on the Special Issue below and on our website <https://sites.google.com/view/ro-man21-genr-workshop/special-issue?authuser…>. Please feel free to reach out for questions and details to our email addresses (see below). Kindest regards, Giulia Perugia ============================================================= *SPECIAL ISSUE GENDERING ROBOTS: ONGOING (RE)CONFIGURATIONS OF GENDER IN ROBOTICS* International Journal of Social Robotics (IJSR) - Impact Factor 5.126 (2020) [link to journal <https://www.springer.com/journal/12369/>][link to special issue <https://www.springer.com/journal/12369/updates/19292566>] The field of HRI is increasingly employing humanoid robots and anthropomorphic designs to aid social interactions between humans and robots. However, designing robots with human-like characteristics can have far-reaching implications. For instance, integrating identity markers such as gender into robotic systems can involuntarily transfer implicit biases into the human-robot interaction (HRI) and perpetuate harmful structural patterns and societal stereotypes. This Special Issue aims to *deepen the social, ethical, and psychological understanding of the attribution of gender to robots, addressing how the design and use of gendered robots might impact HRI and affect society at large*. We welcome original papers investigating the attribution of gender to social robots, the influence of robot’s gender on the perception of and interaction with robots (e.g., acceptance, trust), the design of gendered robots, and its ethical and societal implications. Through this special issue, we would like to inspire discussions about the mindful use of robots in society and promote the possibility of using robots to challenge harmful social practices (e.g., gender stereotypes, gender inequality). Our ultimate goal is to bridge the communication gap we observed between the different disciplines addressing the topic of gender in robotics and the lack of spaces to converse with and learn from one another. The Special Issue is based on the GenR workshop “GENDERING ROBOTS: Ongoing (Re)configurations of Gender in Robotics” which took place on August 12th, 2021 at the 30th IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN 2021). The Special issue opened on August 12th, 2021 and will stay open until *January 31st, 2022*. All submitted papers will be reviewed as soon as they are received. Accepted papers are published Online First until the complete Special Issue is published. *Topics of interest* include, but are not limited to - Gendering practices in Social Robotics - Experimental studies on gendered robots - Feminist robotics - Robot’s gender design - Norm-critical design - Queer design in HRI - Sex Robots - Ethics of Gendered Robots - Normative deviance in relation to robot gender - Societal implications and applications of gendered robots - Performative arts encompassing a reflection on gender in robotics - Non-binary perspectives on robot gender *Instructions to submit your paper to the Special Issue:* When submitting your paper to the International Journal of Social Robotics via the Editorial Manager, you will be asked if your paper belongs to a special issue, please select YES as an answer. At this point, a *pull down menu* will appear and you will be able to select the title of the special issue, select "GENDERING ROBOTS (GenR): Ongoing (Re)configurations of Gender in Robotics". Besides selecting the Special Issue upon submission, you should also specify in your *cover letter* that you wish to submit your manuscript to the special issue "GENDERING ROBOTS (GenR): Ongoing (Re)configurations of Gender in Robotics". Please, feel free to contact us should you need further information about the special issue. The Guest Editors: - Dr. Giulia Perugia (Lead guest editor): giulia.perugia(a)it.uu.se - Dr. Katie Winkle: winkle(a)kth.se - Dominika Lisy: dominika.lisy(a)liu.se - Ryan Blake Jackson: rbjackso(a)mymail.mines.edu

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KBS Special Issue on Deep Learning (IF: 8.038) Deadline: August 31, 2021
by Pub Conference 11 Aug '21

11 Aug '21

Robust, Explainable, and Privacy-Preserving Deep Learning https://www.journals.elsevier.com/knowledge-based-systems/call-for-papers/r… <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.journals.elsevier.com/knowledge-bas…> *Aim and Scope* The exponentially growing availability of data such as images, videos and speech from myriad sources, including social media and the Internet of Things, is driving the demand for high-performance data analysis algorithms. Deep learning is currently an extremely active research area in machine learning and pattern recognition. It provides computational models of multiple nonlinear processing neural network layers to learn and represent data with increasing levels of abstraction. Deep neural networks are able to implicitly capture intricate structures of large-scale data and deploy in cloud computing and high-performance computing platforms. The deep learning approach has demonstrated remarkable performances across a range of applications, including computer vision, image classification, face/speech recognition, natural language processing, and medical communications. However, deep neural networks yield ‘black-box’ input-output mappings that can be challenging to explain to users. Especially in the healthcare, cybersecurity, and legal fields, black-box machine learning techniques are unacceptable, since decisions may have a profound impact on peoples’ lives due to the lack of interpretability. In addition, many other open problems and challenges still exist, such as computational and time costs, repeatability of the results, convergence, and the ability to learn from a very small amount of data and to evolve dynamically. Further, despite their enormous societal benefits, deep learning can pose real threats to personal privacy. For example, deep neural networks and other machine learning models are built based on patients' personal and highly sensitive data such as clinical records or tracked health data in the domain of healthcare. Moreover, they can be vulnerable to attackers trying to infer the sensitive data that was used to build the model. This raises important research questions about how to develop deep learning models that protect private data against inference attacks while still being accurate and useful predictive models. This Special Issue will present robust, explainable, and efficient next-generation deep learning algorithms with data privacy and theoretical guarantees for solving challenging artificial intelligence problems. This Special Issue aims to: 1) improve the understanding and explainability of deep neural networks; 2) improve the accuracy of deep learning leveraging new stochastic optimization and neural architecture search; 3) enhance the mathematical foundation of deep neural networks; 4) design new data privacy mechanisms to optimally tradeoff between utility and privacy; and 5) increase the computational efficiency and stability of the deep learning training process with new algorithms that will scale. Potential topics include but are not limited to the following: · Novel theoretical insights on the deep neural networks · Exploration of post-hoc interpretation methods which can shed light on how deep learning models produce a specific prediction and generate a representation · Investigation of interpretable models which aim to construct self-explanatory models and incorporate interpretability directly into the structure of a deep learning model · Quantifying or visualizing the interpretability of deep neural networks · Stability improvement of deep neural network optimization · Optimization methods for deep learning · Privacy preserving machine learning (e.g., federated machine learning, learning over encrypted data) · Novel deep learning approaches in the applications of image/signal processing, business intelligence, games, healthcare, bioinformatics, and security *Important Dates* · Submission Deadline: August 31, 2021 · First Review Decision: September 30, 2021 · Revisions Due: October 31, 2021 · Final Decision: November 30, 2021 · Final Manuscript: December 31, 2021 *Review Procedures* This special issue will run as per the timeline given from submission to publication, while maintaining the rigorous peer review and high standards of the journal. All manuscripts submitted must be original, not under consideration elsewhere, and not previously published. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts are available on the Guide for Authors’ page. Authors can expect their manuscripts to be reviewed fairly, and in a skilled, conscientious manner. To enhance objectivity, and to guarantee high scientific quality and relevance to the subject, three peer reviewers will be selected to evaluate a manuscript. The peer review process shall be designed to avoid bias and conflict of interest on the part of reviewers and shall be composed of experts in the relevant field of research. A key criterion in publication decisions will be the manuscript’s fit for the special issue and the readership of KBS. Papers will be published online as soon as accepted in continuous flow. *Submission Instructions* The submission system will be open around one week before the first paper comes in. When submitting your manuscript please select the article type “*VSI: Deep Learning*”. Please submit your manuscript before the submission deadline. All submissions deemed suitable to be sent for peer review will be reviewed by at least two independent reviewers. Once your manuscript is accepted, it will go into production, and will be simultaneously published in the current regular issue and pulled into the online Special Issue. Articles from this Special Issue will appear in different regular issues of the journal, though they will be clearly marked and branded as Special Issue articles. Please see an example here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/science-of-the-total-environment/spec… <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/science-o…> Please ensure you read the Guide for Authors before writing your manuscript. The Guide for Authors and the link to submit your manuscript is available on the Journal’s homepage.

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[HRI][meetings] Program / registration GenR 2021 Workshop "GENDERING ROBOTS: Ongoing (Re)configurations of Gender in Robotics" @RO-MAN 2021
by Giulia Perugia 08 Aug '21

08 Aug '21

Dear colleagues, It is with great pleasure that we announce that the schedule <https://sites.google.com/view/ro-man21-genr-workshop/schedule?authuser=0> of the GenR 2021 workshop "GENDERING ROBOTS: Ongoing (Re)configurations of Gender in Robotics'' is online and the registration <https://sites.google.com/view/ro-man21-genr-workshop/registration?authuser=0> to the workshop is open! The GenR 2021 workshop will take place on August 12th from 15:00 to 19:00 (CEST time) as part of the 30th IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN 2021). Please, find below the schedule of the workshop. Kindest regards, Giulia Perugia =============================== *IEEE RO-MAN 2021 GenR WORKSHOP * Workshop Date: August 12th, 2021 (15:00 - 19:00 CEST) Attendees wishing to attend the workshop should register for the workshop via our website ( https://sites.google.com/view/ro-man21-genr-workshop/registration?authuser=0). We will then email the joining link to all registered participants ahead of the event. Alternatively, the link to the workshop will be available to all registered attendees of RO-MAN 2021. *WORKSHOP PROGRAM* *15:00 - 15:10 - INTRODUCTION* *15:10 - 15:55 - KEYNOTE TALK #1 - PROF. ROBERT SPARROW - Title: TBA* *15:55 - 16:30 - PAPER PRESENTATIONS #1 * - Tatsuya Nomura - *Relationships between Gender Conception, Generations, and Negative Attitudes toward Robots in Japan* - Laetitia Tanqueray, Ginevra Castellano, and Stefan Larsson - *A Preliminary Case Study on Gender Norms in Robot-Assisted Diagnosis of Perinatal Depression: A Socio-Legal HRI Perspective* - Hanna Pelikan, Sofia Thunberg, and Erika Johnson - *Gender Studies and Robotics – A Dialogue * - Katie Winkle, Gaspar Melsion, Iolanda Leite, Madeline Balaam, Donald McMillan, Maria Arnelid, Katherine Harrison, and Ericka Johnson - *Feminism x Social Robotics* - Juana Valeria Hurtado and Valentina Mejia - *Feminist Perspective on Robot Learning Processes* *16:30 - 17:05 - PANEL DISCUSSION #1 * Themes: Diversity in Research Participation, Cross cultural differences, ‘Effectiveness vs ethics’ when it comes to (stereotypically) gendered robots Panelists: Prof. Ericka Johnson, Dr. Katherine Harrison, Prof. Verena Reiser, Dr. Megan Strait, Prof. James E. Young *17:05 - 17:15 - COFFEE BREAK * *17:15 - 17:45 - PAPER PRESENTATIONS #2* - *Astrid Weiss and Katta Spiel - Should robots have a gender -- Should they be gendered?* - *Niklas Ellerich-Groppe, Merle Weßel, Frauke Koppelin and Mark Schweda - An Ethical Perspective on Gender Stereotyping and Queering in Care Robotics* - *Piercosma Bisconti Lucidi and Giulia Perugia - How Do We Gender Robots? Inquiring the Relationship Between Perceptual Cues and Context of Use * - *Ryan Blake Jackson and Tom Williams - Eugenicists Should Not Design Robots: On the Principle of Procreative Beneficence and Robot Gendering* *17:45 - 18:15 - PANEL DISCUSSION #2* Themes: Queering Robots and Genderless Robots, Gender Issues: from HRI to HHI to HRI Panelists: Prof. Ericka Johnson, Dr. Katherine Harrison, Prof. Verena Reiser, Dr. Megan Strait, Prof. James E. Young *18:15 - 19:00 - KEYNOTE TALK #2 - PROF. FRIEDERIKE EYSSEL - Title: Gender. Diversity and Social Robots: A Social Psychological Perspective* *19:00 - 19:05 - CONCLUDING REMARKS*

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[meetings] [On-site Training] Get ROS2 Industrial Ready: ROS2 Basics + ROS2 Nav2 + Manipulation with Movelt2
by Yuhong Lin 06 Aug '21

06 Aug '21

Get ROS2 Industrial Ready: ROS2 Basics + ROS2 Nav2 + Manipulation with Movelt2 - Where: Barcelona, Spain - When: September 20, 2021 → September 24, 2021 - Registration website: https://www.theconstructsim.com/ros2-onsite-training/ - Limited to 20 Spots Dear Roboticists, Understanding how ROS2 works is becoming a MUST. ROS2 is expected to fully replace ROS1 by 2023. The Galactic distribution released in May 2021 shows ROS2 is very mature and ready for real-world applications. In this five-day ROS2 training, learn how to program robots with ROS 2 Galactic, including navigation and grasping. Participants will practice with robot simulations and then with real robots to test their programs live. WHAT YOU’LL LEARN - Creation of ROS2 packages - Management of the new Colcon universal building system - Topic publishers and subscribers in ROS2 Python - Nodes management: life cycle, executors and callback groups - Services and actions - Hybrid application with ROS1 and ROS2 - Use of debugging tools in ROS2 - ROS2 Mapping - ROS2 Localization - ROS2 Path Planning - ROS2 + DDS - Create and configure a MoveIt2 package for a robotic arm - Perform ROS2 Motion Planning & Grasping AT A GLANCE Prerequisites - Knowledge of Python Programming language - Basic understanding of Linux Ubuntu Operating System - Knowledge of ROS1 (recommended but not required) Language: English Programming Language: Python REAL ROBOTS USED - RB-1 BASE mobile robot (provided by Robotnik <https://robotnik.eu/>) - UR3e robot arm WHO IS THIS WORKSHOP FOR? - ROS developers that want to transition to ROS2 - Researchers focusing their research on ROS2 - Engineers or CTOs who want to build scalable robotics products, faster. TRAINING DETAILSDay 1 - ROS2 Fundamentals Topic 1 Understanding Basic ROS2 Concepts - Structure and launch ROS2 programs (packages and launch files) - Create basic ROS2 programs (Python-based) - Understand basic ROS2 concepts: Nodes, Client Libraries, etc. Topic 2 ROS2 Topics - Topic Subscribers - Topic Publishers - Interfaces - Management of nodes Topic 3 ROS2 Debugging Tools - Use logs in ROS2 - RViz2 debugging tool - ROS2 doctor Day 2: ROS2 Advanced Topics - ROS2 DDS - ROS2 Services - ROS2 Actions - ROS1_Bridge Day 3: ROS2 Nav2 - ROS2 Mapping - ROS2 Localization - ROS2 Path Planning and Obstacle Avoidance Day 4: ROS2 Nav2 Advanced Features & Manipulation Topic 1 ROS2 Nav2 Galactic Functionality - Waypoint Task Executors - Speed Limited Zones - Keep out zones Topic 2 Arm Navigation with MoveIt2 - Configure a Moveit2 package for a robotic arm - Programatically perform motion planning Day 5: Grasping - Use perception to detect object location - Grasp object This course created by The Construct (http://theconstructsim.com/), in cooperation with Robotnik (https://www.robotnik.eu/). *Yuhong Lin* VP of Marketing at The Construct ylin(a)theconstructsim.com www.theconstructsim.com [image: https://app.theconstructsim.com/#/Profile/ylin2] <https://app.theconstructsim.com/#/Profile/ylin2> [image: Facebook] <http://www.facebook.com/theconstructsim> [image: Twitter] <https://twitter.com/_TheConstruct_> [image: LinkedIn] <https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-construct>

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CFP: RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021 Symposium Aichi, Japan
by Wataru UEMURA 29 Jul '21

29 Jul '21

Dear colleagues, The RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021 Symposium will be held with RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021 Aichi, Japan on 29 November 2021. We call for submissions of papers reporting innovative, original research with relevance to areas of robotics and artificial intelligence as listed below. Looking forward to your submission. Best Regards, RCAP 2021 Symposium co-chairs Noriaki Mitsunaga and Wataru Uemura ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Call for Papers ====================================== RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021 Symposium Aichi, Japan November 29, 2021 ====================================== https://2021.robocupap.org/eng/symposium.html rcap2021(a)intergroup.co.jp ******************************************************************** OVERVIEW The RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021 Symposium will be held with RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021 Aichi, Japan on 29 November 2021. We call for submissions of papers reporting innovative, original research with relevance to areas of robotics and artificial intelligence as listed below. Within the described scope of topics, we also encourage submissions of high-quality overview articles, papers describing real-world research, and papers reporting theoretical results. Researchers are invited to submit their work independently of whether they participate in the RoboCup Asia-Pacific competitions or not. GENERAL INFORMATION The RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021 Symposium will be held in a hybrid setting. Then you can participate and present your research at the venue below or online. Since it is held in a hybrid setting, we welcome short oral presentations instead of poster presentations. The registration site for participants will be announced later. SUBMISSION AND PROCEEDINGS All papers will be peer-reviewed and evaluated by members of the program committee. The proceedings of the RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021 Symposium will be published online one week before the conference. Papers should be formatted following the LNAI author guidelines (https://www.springer.com/gp/computer-science/lncs/conference-proceedings-gu…). Springer’s proceedings LaTeX and Word templates are also available in Overleaf. Papers must be electronically submitted through the EasyChair electronic submission system (https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=rcap2021sympsium). All submissions (both long and short presentaitons) are limited to 12 pages including references and must be in PDF format. IMPORTANT DATES * Deadline for Submission of papers: August 9, 2021 * Notification to authors: October 15, 2021 * Submission of camera-ready copies: October 25, 2021 * RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021: November 22-29, 2021 * RoboCup Asia-Pacific 2021 Symposium: November 29, 2021 SYMPOSIUM CO-CHAIRS * Noriaki Mitsunaga, Osaka Kyouiku University * Wataru Uemura, Ryukoku University TOPICS Topics of interest include, but are not limited to: * Multi-Robot Systems * Robot Cognition and Learning * Robot Hardware and Software * Perception and Action * Human-Robot Interaction * Education and Edutainment * Applications and Benchmarking ==================== Wataru UEMURA, Dr. Eng. Ryukoku University http://friede.elec.ryukoku.ac.jp/~wataru ====================

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ML and Optimisation postdoc vacancies
by Uwe Aickelin 26 Jul '21

26 Jul '21

If you are looking for a Machine Learning / Optimisation postdoc, we have two exciting jobs for you. Please check below positions RF 4 (machine learning / optimisation) and RF 5 (uncertainty handling). You will work with a top team on a super high impact application - I can assure you our work could not be more central to current events in Australia!!! Please note, due to the urgency of the work, you must be currently located within Australia and able to commence immediately or as soon as your notice period has been served. These roles are part of a $20m Hub and more vacancies will be advertised soon. https://jobs.unimelb.edu.au/en/job/905792/research-fellows-pharma-and-food-… Please apply online – deadline 22 August 2021. Professor Uwe Aickelin | Head of School of Computing and Information Systems Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology Level 3, Melbourne Connect – 700 Swanston Street The University of Melbourne, Victoria 3010 Australia T: +61 3 8344 3635 E: uwe.aickelin(a)unimelb.edu.au<mailto:uwe.aickelin@unimelb.edu.au> http://aickelin.com/ | http://linkedin.com/in/aickelin [A close up of a sign Description automatically generated] <https://melbconnect.com.au/> [Join R U OK?Day | R U OK?] I acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land on which I work, and pay my respects to the Elders, past and present. This email and any attachments may contain personal information or information that is otherwise confidential or the subject of copyright. Any use, disclosure or copying of any part of it is prohibited. The University does not warrant that this email or any attachments are free from viruses or defects. Please check any attachments for viruses and defects before opening them. If this email is received in error, please delete it and notify us by return email. CRICOS: 00116K

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RoboCup Brazil Open
by Comunicação RoboCup 23 Jul '21

23 Jul '21

Hi teams, *Registrations are open for RoboCup Brazil Open* *The event will be virtual, with the same categories of RoboCup Federation* RoboCup Brazil launches the RoboCup Brazil Open, a virtual event with the same categories of the Robocup WorldWide. Registrations are now open for teams from all over the world. All the categories have been adapted and will happen in a fully remote format, using simulators, challenges and submission of articles written by the teams. Our goal is to disseminate the studies and technologies developed by universities in the field of robotics and IA. The event will happen in October 11th-15th, and will be broadcast through lives on the RoboCup Brazil Youtube channel. In 2020, more than 700 students from Latin American attended the event. *Categories:* RoboCup Open Flying Robot Trial League Small Size Soccer Humanoid League Standard Plataform League (SPL) Simulation 2D Simulation 3D RoboCup at@Home IEEE Humanoid Robot Racing (HRR) IEEE Open IEEE Standard Educational Kit (SEK) IEEE Very Small Size Soccer RoboCup Junior Soccer Open RoboCup Junior Rescue Maze Primary RoboCup Junior Rescue Maze RoboCup Junior Rescue Simulation Primary RoboCup Junior Rescue Simulation Open * Registration* To participate, you and your team must register by August 30th, on the website: www.cbrobotica.org . The registration fee is US$ 50 per team. *RoboCup Brasil is a non-profit civil association, organized by volunteer professors and researchers. The association holds the Brazilian Robotics Olympiad, the Brazilian Robotics Competition and the National Robotics Show.* -- Patrícia Vergara Comunicação RoboCup Brasil +55 (11) 9.8686-4993 www.robocup.org.br

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[jobs] Multiple open positions @PRISCA LAB - University of Naples Federico II
by alessandra.rossi＠unina.it 23 Jul '21

23 Jul '21

Dear Colleagues, PRISCA lab (University of Naples Federico II) is looking for multiple postdoctoral researchers and research assistants in Human-Robot Interaction. Applications are invited from candidates with a master’s degree or PhD in Cognitive Science, Artificial Intelligence, Cognitive Sciences, Psychology, or other relevant disciplines. Candidates are expected to have research expertise in Human-Robot Interaction and Social Robotics. Preferable knowledge and hands-on experience with ROS, C/C++, Python. According to the preferred and most suitable position for the candidate, the research activities will be framed within the following projects: CHIST-ERA on Explainable Machine Learning-based Artificial Intelligence - COHERENT "COllaborative HiErarchical Robotic ExplaNaTions” project, and Italian PON I&C 2014-2020 MISE BRILLO "Bartending Robot for Interactive Long-Lasting Operations” project or ClassMate Robot project for the development of robotics application in educational settings. The selection will be based on CV and a skype interview. For further information and to apply please contact Prof. Silvia Rossi (silrossi(a)unina.it) ----------------------------- About the projects COHERENT will develop a novel framework to combine explanations originated at the different robotic levels into a single explanation. This combination is not unique and may depend on several factors including the step into the action sequence, or the temporal importance of each information source. Robotic tasks are interesting because they entail performing a sequence of actions, and thus the system must be able to deliver these explanations also during the execution of the task, either because the user requested or actively because an unforeseen situation occurs. COHERENT will propose effective evaluation metrics oriented to the special case of explanations in HRI systems. The proposed measures, based on trustworthiness and acceptance, will be defined together with the definition of benchmark tasks that are repeatable and enable the comparison of results across different explainable developments. More information at coherent.csic.es (http://coherent.csic.es/) BRILLO aims to the creation of a robotic platform capable of managing the tasks related to the management of a bar counter in its multiple aspects of interaction, handling and customization of the services offered. To this end, the goal is to study how to manage HRI processes dynamically creating a system that is easy and pleasant to use for the man. Therefore, issues related to the modelling of the interaction between the user and robotic bartender in terms of customization of the interaction for effective and long-lasting use of the services offered will be addressed. The project is in collaboration with the ICAROS centre of the University of Naples Federico II and the industrial partner TOTARO Automazioni S.R.L. More information is available at http://prisca.unina.it/brillo ----------------------------- Prisca lab contains robots and forefront technology available for innovative projects. A home lab, furnished to resemble a private home with IoT sensors for conducting HRI experiments is available. Research facilities include 1 Furhat robot, 1 PEPPER robot, 1 Nao Robot, 1 Sanbot Elf, 1 Sanbot Nano, 2 Turtlebot2, 4 Pioneer 3DX, Various Microsoft Kinect and wearable sensors, 1 ZEUS totem - reconfigurable multitouch table for human-machine interaction studies, Arduino and ODroid platforms, multiple servers and Nas for big data management and deep learning, 1 WASP 3d printer. About Naples Naples is the third-largest city in Italy and is the capital of the Campania region. It is world-known for its rich history, art, culture, architecture, music, and gastronomy. Naples is a lively, exciting, and bustling city situated on the Southwest coast, on the Bay of Naples. Dating to the 2nd millennium B.C., Naples has centuries of important art and architecture with a predominance of Medieval, Baroque and Renaissance-era churches, castles, and palaces. Several attractive tourist and archaeological sites such as Capri, Ischia, Amalfi Coast, Pompei, Ercolano, Mount Vesuvius, are close to Naples by car and public transportation. Dr. Alessandra Rossi Postdoctoral researcher PRISCA research lab University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy Visiting Researcher Fellow of the Higher Education Academy Adaptive Systems Research Group University of Hertfordshire, United Kingdom

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DDP 2021- IEEE
by ijwa＠dline.info 20 Jul '21

20 Jul '21

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Call for contributions - AIhub AI for Good focus series - "affordable and clean energy"
by Oskar von Stryk 17 Jul '21

17 Jul '21

Call for contributions - AIhub AI for Good focus series - "affordable and clean energy" Selected UN SDG for August is: affordable and clean energy AIhub is looking for researchers, users and stakeholders in AI relating to affordable and clean energy who are interested in writing or talking about their work. The UN's aim with this goal is to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all. In this focus issue we'll be considering any AI work, or opinion and discussion pieces, relating to these topics. You could write (or describe on video) a short blog post about your research, write an opinion piece about an area of current interest, give a tutorial, or take part in an interview. Read more: https://aihub.org/2021/07/09/focus-on-affordable-and-clean-energy-call-for-… This is a great way how to make your work more visible within the AI community and to the wide public as well. If you are interested, please do get in touch at aihuborg(a)gmail.com deadline for contributions is 15 Aug 2021 Focus on affordable and clean energy: call for contributions [1] We are launching the next topic in our focus series on the UN sustainable development goals (SDGs). In August we will start publishing posts relating the goal of "affordable and clean energy", which is SDG number 7 on the UN list. Links: ------ [1] https://aihub.org/2021/07/09/focus-on-affordable-and-clean-energy-call-for-…

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Re: [RoboCup-worldwide] [CFP] Call for Participation - RoboCup Brazil Open - @Home Virtual 2021
by Fagner Pimentel 16 Jul '21

16 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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CFP: First Call for Papers - please circulate this CFP to your colleagues and networks
by Marco Simões 09 Jul '21

09 Jul '21

Sorry for any duplicates ========================== ** First Call for Papers - please circulate this CFP to your colleagues and networks ** -- The 21st International Conference on Intelligent Systems Design and Applications (ISDA’21) –- http://www.mirlabs.org/isda21 http://www.mirlabs.net/isda21 On the World Wide Web December 13-15, 2021 Proceedings of ISDA’20: https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007%2F978-3-030-71187-0 Indexed by: DBLP, EI Compendex, INSPEC, WTI Frankfurt eG, zbMATH, Japanese Science and Technology Agency (JST). Proceedings of ISDA'21 are expected to be published by Springer Verlag in one of the series. Details will be available soon. History of ISDA series: https://www.mirlabs.org/isda21/previous.php **Important Dates** --------------------- Paper submission due: September 30, 2021 Notification of paper acceptance: October 31, 2021 Registration and Final manuscript due: November 15, 2021 Conference: December 13-15, 2021 **About ISDA 2021** ------------------ The International Conference on Intelligent Systems Design and Applications (ISDA) is a major international conference bringing together researchers, engineers, and practitioners who work in the areas of intelligent systems and their applications in industry and the real world. Every year, ISDA attracts authors from over 30 countries. After the success of the 20th conference, which was held online, this year's event will also be held online during December 13-15, 2021. ISDA 2021 is expected to provide an opportunity for researchers to meet and discuss the latest solutions, scientific results, and methods in solving intriguing problems in the fields of artificial intelligence and its real-world applications. The conference programme will include workshops, special sessions, tutorials, prominent keynote speakers, and regular paper presentations in parallel tracks. All submitted papers will be reviewed by experts in the field based on the criteria of originality, significance, quality, and clarity. Conference contents will be submitted for inclusion in Springer and other Abstracting and Indexing (A&I) databases. **Topics (not limited to)** --------------------------- Intelligent Systems Architectures and Applications Intelligent Image and Signal Processing Intelligent Internet Modeling Intelligent Data mining Intelligent Business Systems Intelligent Control and Automation Intelligent Agents Intelligent Knowledge Management Innovative Information Security Innovative Networking and Communication Techniques Web Intelligence Intelligent Software Engineering **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/11156 ISDA’21 Submission Link: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=isda2021 **ISDA 2021 Organization** ------------------------- General Chairs Ajith Abraham, Machine Intelligence Research Labs (MIR Labs), USA Thomas Hanne, University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland, Switzerland Weiping Ding, Nantong University, China Program Chairs Tzung-Pei Hong, National University of Kaohsiung, Taiwan Tatiane Nogueira Rios, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Brazil **Technical Contact** --------------------- Dr. Ajith Abraham Email: ajith.abraham(a)ieee.org Note: 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. -- 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 -- 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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Call for Applications for the Italian National PhD Program in Artificial Intelligence @ Sapienza Consortium
by Francesco Fuggitti 07 Jul '21

07 Jul '21

*Call for Applications for the Italian National PhD Program in Artificial Intelligence @ Sapienza Consortium with competences in Security and Cybersecurity - 31 positions - deadline July 23, 2021* The Italian National PhD Program in Artificial Intelligence is made of 5 federated PhD programs that bring together 61 universities and research institutions and start next academic year with a dedicated support of the Italian government to grow a young generation of AI Experts. The 5 PhD courses share a common basis in the foundations and developments of AI, and each one has an additional area of competence in a strategic sector of AI application (details at https://www.phd-ai.it/). The section of the PhD centered at Sapienza, Rome, Italy, shares the common focus on basic research in AI while adding to it competences in Security and Cybersecurity. It offers 31 PhD positions located in 12 Italian top research institutions (https://phd.uniroma1.it/phd-ai/). Applications are welcome from students who are interested in AI foundational topics, as well as students who are interested in the application of AI in Security and Cybersecurity. The deadline for applications is July 23, 2021. Call for application < https://www.uniroma1.it/sites/default/files/field_file_allegati/bando_37_ai…> (en) Positions available < https://www.uniroma1.it/sites/default/files/field_file_allegati/allegato_a_…> (en) Application form <https://www.uniroma1.it/en/pagina/phd-application-form> (en) Bando < https://www.uniroma1.it/sites/default/files/field_file_allegati/bando_37_ai…> (it) Allegato posti banditi < https://www.uniroma1.it/sites/default/files/field_file_allegati/allegato_a_…> (it) Modulo domanda < https://www.uniroma1.it/it/pagina/dottorati-presentazione-della-domanda> (it) For special enquiries, please contact the Sapienza Consortium Coordinator, Prof. Daniele Nardi <nardi(a)diag.uniroma1.it>.

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CfP: HIS 2021 - "Hybrid Intelligent Computing Towards a Greener Future"
by Marco Simões 06 Jul '21

06 Jul '21

Sorry for any duplicates ========================== ************************************************************************* ** Hybrid Intelligent Systems - HIS 2021 ** Hybrid Intelligent Computing Towards a Greener Future ** December 14 - 16, 2021 ** Online - https://www.mirlabs.net/his21/ ************************************************************************* Hybridization of intelligent systems is a promising research field of modern artificial/computational intelligence concerned with the development of the next generation of intelligent systems. A fundamental stimulus to the investigations of Hybrid Intelligent Systems (HIS) is the awareness in the academic communities that combined approaches will be necessary if the remaining tough problems in artificial/computational intelligence are to be solved. Recently, Hybrid Intelligent Systems are getting popular due to their capabilities in handling several real-world complexities involving imprecision, uncertainty, and vagueness. HIS'2021 builds on the success of last year's. HIS'2021 is the 20th International conference that brings together researchers, developers, practitioners, and users of soft computing, computational intelligence, agents, logic programming, and several other intelligent computing techniques. The aim of HIS'2021 is to serve as a forum to present current and future work as well as to exchange research ideas in this field. HIS'2021 invites authors to submit their original and unpublished work that demonstrates current research using soft computing, computational intelligence, and other intelligent computing techniques and their applications in science, technology, business, and commerce. ******************************** ** IMPORTANT DATES ******************************** Paper submission due: *September 30, 2021* Notification of paper acceptance: *October 31, 2021* Registration and Final manuscript due: *November 15, 2021* ******************* ** TOPICS ******************* HIS'2021 will focus on the following themes: Hybrid Intelligent Systems: Architectures - Interactions between neural networks and fuzzy inference systems. - Artificial neural network optimization using global optimization techniques. - Fuzzy clustering algorithms and optimization techniques. - Fuzzy inference system optimization using global optimization algorithms. - Hybrid computing using neural networks - fuzzy systems - evolutionary algorithms. - Hybrid optimization techniques (evolutionary algorithms, simulated annealing, tabu search, GRASP, etc.). - Hybrid of soft computing and statistical learning techniques. - Models using inductive logic programming, logic synthesis, grammatical inference, case-based reasoning, etc. - Autonomic computing. - Hybridization with novel computing paradigms: Quantum computing, DNA computing, membrane computing, etc. Hybrid Intelligent Systems: Applications - Image and Signal Processing - Internet Modeling, Communication and Networking - Data mining - Computational Biology and Bioinformatics - Business Information Systems - Control and Automation - Special topics **************************** ** Author guidelines **************************** Proceedings are expected to be published by Springer Verlag in one of the series. Details will be available soon. Papers maximum length is 10 pages. - Papers must be formatted according to Springer format (Latex/word) available at: http://www.springer.com/series/11156 Templates: -Word <https://www.mirlabs.net/his21/download/splnproc1703.zip> -Latex <https://www.mirlabs.net/his21/download/llncs2e.zip> -- 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 <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…>. <#DAB4FAD8-2DD7-40BB-A1B8-4E2AA1F9FDF2>

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Call for Papers - KBS Special Issue on Deep Learning (IF: 8.038)
by Pub Conference 05 Jul '21

05 Jul '21

Robust, Explainable, and Privacy-Preserving Deep Learning https://www.journals.elsevier.com/knowledge-based-systems/call-for-papers/r… <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.journals.elsevier.com/knowledge-bas…> *Aim and Scope* The exponentially growing availability of data such as images, videos and speech from myriad sources, including social media and the Internet of Things, is driving the demand for high-performance data analysis algorithms. Deep learning is currently an extremely active research area in machine learning and pattern recognition. It provides computational models of multiple nonlinear processing neural network layers to learn and represent data with increasing levels of abstraction. Deep neural networks are able to implicitly capture intricate structures of large-scale data and deploy in cloud computing and high-performance computing platforms. The deep learning approach has demonstrated remarkable performances across a range of applications, including computer vision, image classification, face/speech recognition, natural language processing, and medical communications. However, deep neural networks yield ‘black-box’ input-output mappings that can be challenging to explain to users. Especially in the healthcare, cybersecurity, and legal fields, black-box machine learning techniques are unacceptable, since decisions may have a profound impact on peoples’ lives due to the lack of interpretability. In addition, many other open problems and challenges still exist, such as computational and time costs, repeatability of the results, convergence, and the ability to learn from a very small amount of data and to evolve dynamically. Further, despite their enormous societal benefits, deep learning can pose real threats to personal privacy. For example, deep neural networks and other machine learning models are built based on patients' personal and highly sensitive data such as clinical records or tracked health data in the domain of healthcare. Moreover, they can be vulnerable to attackers trying to infer the sensitive data that was used to build the model. This raises important research questions about how to develop deep learning models that protect private data against inference attacks while still being accurate and useful predictive models. This Special Issue will present robust, explainable, and efficient next-generation deep learning algorithms with data privacy and theoretical guarantees for solving challenging artificial intelligence problems. This Special Issue aims to: 1) improve the understanding and explainability of deep neural networks; 2) improve the accuracy of deep learning leveraging new stochastic optimization and neural architecture search; 3) enhance the mathematical foundation of deep neural networks; 4) design new data privacy mechanisms to optimally tradeoff between utility and privacy; and 5) increase the computational efficiency and stability of the deep learning training process with new algorithms that will scale. Potential topics include but are not limited to the following: · Novel theoretical insights on the deep neural networks · Exploration of post-hoc interpretation methods which can shed light on how deep learning models produce a specific prediction and generate a representation · Investigation of interpretable models which aim to construct self-explanatory models and incorporate interpretability directly into the structure of a deep learning model · Quantifying or visualizing the interpretability of deep neural networks · Stability improvement of deep neural network optimization · Optimization methods for deep learning · Privacy preserving machine learning (e.g., federated machine learning, learning over encrypted data) · Novel deep learning approaches in the applications of image/signal processing, business intelligence, games, healthcare, bioinformatics, and security *Important Dates* · Submission Deadline: August 31, 2021 · First Review Decision: September 30, 2021 · Revisions Due: October 31, 2021 · Final Decision: November 30, 2021 · Final Manuscript: December 31, 2021 *Review Procedures* This special issue will run as per the timeline given from submission to publication, while maintaining the rigorous peer review and high standards of the journal. All manuscripts submitted must be original, not under consideration elsewhere, and not previously published. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts are available on the Guide for Authors’ page. Authors can expect their manuscripts to be reviewed fairly, and in a skilled, conscientious manner. To enhance objectivity, and to guarantee high scientific quality and relevance to the subject, three peer reviewers will be selected to evaluate a manuscript. The peer review process shall be designed to avoid bias and conflict of interest on the part of reviewers and shall be composed of experts in the relevant field of research. A key criterion in publication decisions will be the manuscript’s fit for the special issue and the readership of KBS. Papers will be published online as soon as accepted in continuous flow. *Submission Instructions* The submission system will be open around one week before the first paper comes in. When submitting your manuscript please select the article type “*VSI: Deep Learning*”. Please submit your manuscript before the submission deadline. All submissions deemed suitable to be sent for peer review will be reviewed by at least two independent reviewers. Once your manuscript is accepted, it will go into production, and will be simultaneously published in the current regular issue and pulled into the online Special Issue. Articles from this Special Issue will appear in different regular issues of the journal, though they will be clearly marked and branded as Special Issue articles. Please see an example here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/science-of-the-total-environment/spec… <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/science-o…> Please ensure you read the Guide for Authors before writing your manuscript. The Guide for Authors and the link to submit your manuscript is available on the Journal’s homepage.

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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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[HRI][meetings][CFP] DEADLINE EXTENSION - GenR 2021 Workshop "GENDERING ROBOTS: Ongoing (Re)configurations of Gender in Robotics" @RO-MAN2021
by Giulia Perugia 30 Jun '21

30 Jun '21

Dear Colleagues, We are glad to inform you that the *deadline* for submissions of the *GenR 2021* *workshop* "Gendering Robots: Ongoing (Re)configurations of Gender in Robotics" has been extended until *JULY 7th*! The workshop will be held on *August 12th* from 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM CEST within the RO-MAN 2021 conference. Below, you can find the call for papers with all the information you need regarding the workshop's topics of interest, paper format, panelists, and keynote speakers. Please, feel free to contact us in case you have any questions and help us circulate the call within your network. Kindest regards, Giulia Perugia ================================ *CALL FOR PAPERS - IEEE RO-MAN 2021 GenR WORKSHOP * *GENDERING ROBOTS: Ongoing (Re)configurations of Gender in Robotics* *IMPORTANT DATES & INFO* Deadline for Paper Submission: July 7th, 2021 Paper Acceptance Notification: July 21st, 2021 Camera Ready Paper: July 28th, 2021 Main Conference Date: August 8th-12th, 2021 Workshop Date: August 12th, 2021 (3:00 PM - 7:00 PM) Workshop Website: https://sites.google.com/view/ro-man21-genr-workshop/home Twitter: @GenR_ROMAN <https://twitter.com/GenrRoman> Submission page: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=genr2021 Full call for papers: https://easychair.org/cfp/GenR2021 STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES Within the GenR workshop, we aim to provide researchers investigating gender in robotics with a platform to share their work and invite interested scholars to reflect with us on inclusive and ethical practices in robot gendering. We hope to explore motivations for robot gendering, and understand how robot gendering might impact human-robot interaction in the face of its risks with regards to stereotype propagation. Furthermore, we would like to inspire discussions about the mindful use of robots in society and promote the possibility to use robots to oppose/challenge harmful social practices (gender stereotypes, gender inequality, etc.). To this end, we invite those working in related domains (e.g., Social Robotics, and Gender Studies) to discuss with us best practices to re-configure gender in robotics and shed light on issues of gender from a multidisciplinary perspective. Our goal is to bridge the communication gap we observed between disciplines addressing the topic of gender in robotics and the lack of spaces to converse with and learn from one another. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to: - Gendering practices in Social Robotics - Experimental studies on gendered robots - Feminist robotics - Robot’s gender design - Norm-critical design - Queer design in HRI - Sex Robots - Ethics of Gendered Robots - Normative deviance in relation to robot gender - Societal implications and applications of gendered robots - Performative arts encompassing a reflection on gender in robotics - Non-binary perspectives on robot gender SUBMISSION GUIDELINES Since our workshop aims at bringing researchers from different fields together and starting a conversation on the process of gendering robots, we are open to two formats of submissions: abstracts (1 page) and short papers (2-4 pages). We particularly encourage multidisciplinary submissions presenting works in progress, as accepted authors will be invited to identify discussion points and questions they would like to put to our panelists and other attendees. In line with the intent of the workshop, we accept different types of submissions: empirical papers, experimental design protocols, philosophical essays, studies with preliminary results and more conclusive papers. Authors should submit their papers formatted according to the IEEE two-column format <http://ras.papercept.net/conferences/support/support.php>, the same as the main conference (LaTeX <http://ras.papercept.net/conferences/support/tex.php> or MS-Word <http://ras.papercept.net/conferences/support/word.php> templates). Authors should submit a PDF of their paper through EasyChair <https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=genr2021>. Submissions will be evaluated according to their fit to the workshop theme, their thought-provoking content, and their adherence to the scientific standards of the discipline of origin. The reviews will consist of constructive feedback mindful of the authors’ multidisciplinary background. We will prefer qualitative evaluations to score-based numerical ones. The workshop proceedings will be published on ArXiv and the authors will be invited to submit their work in a SPECIAL ISSUE <https://www.springer.com/journal/12369/updates/19292566?IFA> on the International Journal of Social Robotics. INVITED SPEAKERS Prof. Robert SPARROW, Monash University, Australia Prof. Friederike EYSSEL, University of Bielefeld, Germany PANEL DISCUSSION Prof. Ericka JOHNSON - Linköping University (Sweden) Dr. Katherine HARRISON- Linköping University (Sweden) Prof. Verena RIESER- Heriot Watt University (UK) Dr. Megan STRAIT - University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (USA) Prof. James E. *YOUNG* - University of Manitoba (Canada) COMMITTEE Dr. Giulia PERUGIA (main organiser), Uppsala University, Sweden, giulia.perugia(a)it.uu.se Dr. Katie WINKLE, KTH, Sweden, winkle(a)kth.se Ryan Blake JACKSON, Colorado School of Mines, USA, rbjackso(a)mymail.mines.edu Dominika LISY, Linköping University, Sweden, dominika.lisy(a)liu.se

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RoboCup 2021 Farewell + Survey
by Peter Stone 30 Jun '21

30 Jun '21

TL;DR - Please send photos/videos and complete survey: https://forms.gle/Es1DfR4H8ubyt54c7 Dear RoboCuppers, Back in November, when the board of trustees and I made the difficult decision to hold RoboCup 2021 remotely, we had no idea if it would work. In many of the leagues, there were neither rules nor infrastructure to support remote competitions. We knew that it was risky, but we also suspected that the RoboCup community would rise to the challenge. Now that the event has concluded, I am pleased to report that RoboCup 2021 was an unmitigated success! Every single league held a successful competition of some sort, and we had more than 2,000 registered participants - a similar number to our usual in-person attendance. I feel like I've said this so many times to so many people over the past few days. But I also don't think it can be said enough. So once more, Thank you! We couldn't have done it without you: the members of the event organizing committee, the executive committee, the technical committees, the organizing committees, and indeed all of the participants! No matter where your team finished in the league rankings, RoboCup couldn't have without your participation. I hope and trust that you've also gained something from the experience, both intellectually and personally. In case you were too busy programming to catch the symposium, I encourage you now to go back to the underline site and find recordings of the events on June 23rd, 25th, and 28th: https://underline.io/events/108/schedule I'd also like to ask all participants to fill out this short survey, which will help with our future planning: https://forms.gle/Es1DfR4H8ubyt54c7 And finally, to help us commemorate RoboCup 2021 in the future, please consider sharing with us any photos or videos that we can put into the RoboCup archive. There is one link for each league below. We request that: - they are free to use by RoboCup Federation and also partners of RoboCup on websites, press releases, etc. - you could/should send also information of the source, for giving credits (you can upload a text file with the author's names per picture, or list of pictures). Here are the links: Soccer Humanoid: https://cloud.robocup.org/s/ktyQcBFxGt8s3wc Soccer Standard Platform: https://cloud.robocup.org/s/B42aKfDi3adr7ce Soccer Middle Size: https://cloud.robocup.org/s/XAsJaqqwiadjp3X Soccer Small Size: https://cloud.robocup.org/s/ktHR4PRtgqCeRd5 Soccer Simulation: https://cloud.robocup.org/s/6qDd9HqwdWwnrPP Rescue Robot: https://cloud.robocup.org/s/3tgQjymcwNWNx5x Rescue Simulation: https://cloud.robocup.org/s/9xQ8zNcsG8WeKfy @Home: https://cloud.robocup.org/s/5yNefc5j8nRggMq Industrial @Work: https://cloud.robocup.org/s/dXfLz68BDGMBJnD Industrial Logistics: https://cloud.robocup.org/s/yHwpAwpYdXf3ydL Junior Soccer: https://cloud.robocup.org/s/iDiTpYCxAGEgNZn Junior OnStage: https://cloud.robocup.org/s/k969FLXDbMBiHbM Junior Rescue: https://cloud.robocup.org/s/YBbg9L5WzzGkd7F I look forward to seeing all of you in person in Thailand next year! Best Regards, Peter Stone President, RoboCup Federation

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Neural Computing and Applications (NCAA) Special Issue on Interpretation of Deep Learning
by Pub Conference 29 Jun '21

29 Jun '21

*Neural Computing and Applications (NCAA) Special Issue **on Interpretation of Deep Learning: Prediction, Representation, Modeling and Utilization* https://www.springer.com/journal/521/updates/19187658 Aims, Scope and Objective While Big Data offers the great potential for revolutionizing all aspects of our society, harvesting of valuable knowledge from Big Data is an extremely challenging task. The large scale and rapidly growing information hidden in the unprecedented volumes of non-traditional data requires the development of decision-making algorithms. Recent successes in machine learning, particularly deep learning, has led to breakthroughs in real-world applications such as autonomous driving, healthcare, cybersecurity, speech and image recognition, personalized news feeds, and financial markets. While these models may provide the state-of-the-art and impressive prediction accuracies, they usually offer little insight into the inner workings of the model and how a decision is made. The decision-makers cannot obtain human-intelligible explanations for the decisions of models, which impede the applications in mission-critical areas. This situation is even severely worse in complex data analytics. It is, therefore, imperative to develop explainable computation intelligent learning models with excellent predictive accuracy to provide safe, reliable, and scientific basis for determination. Numerous recent works have presented various endeavors on this issue but left many important questions unresolved. The first challenging problem is how to construct self-explanatory models or how to improve the explicit understanding and explainability of a model without the loss of accuracy. In addition, high dimensional or ultra-high dimensional data are common in large and complex data analytics. In these cases, the construction of interpretable model becomes quite difficult and complex. Further, how to evaluate and quantify the explainability of a model is lack of consistent and clear description. Moreover, auditable, repeatable, and reliable process of the computational models is crucial to decision-makers. For example, decision-makers need explicit explanation and analysis of the intermediate features produced in a model, thus the interpretation of intermediate processes is requisite. Subsequently, the problem of efficient optimization exists in explainable computational intelligent models. These raise many essential issues on how to develop explainable data analytics in computational intelligence. This Topical Collection aims to bring together original research articles and review articles that will present the latest theoretical and technical advancements of machine and deep learning models. We hope that this Topical Collection will: 1) improve the understanding and explainability of machine learning and deep neural networks; 2) enhance the mathematical foundation of deep neural networks; and 3) increase the computational efficiency and stability of the machine and deep learning training process with new algorithms that will scale. Potential topics include but are not limited to the following: - Interpretability of deep learning models - Quantifying or visualizing the interpretability of deep neural networks - Neural networks, fuzzy logic, and evolutionary based interpretable control systems - Supervised, unsupervised, and reinforcement learning - Extracting understanding from large-scale and heterogeneous data - Dimensionality reduction of large scale and complex data and sparse modeling - Stability improvement of deep neural network optimization - Optimization methods for deep learning - Privacy preserving machine learning (e.g., federated machine learning, learning over encrypted data) - Novel deep learning approaches in the applications of image/signal processing, business intelligence, games, healthcare, bioinformatics, and security Guest Editors Nian Zhang (Lead Guest Editor), University of the District of Columbia, Washington, DC, USA, nzhang(a)udc.edu Jian Wang, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao, China, wangjiannl(a)upc.edu.cn Leszek Rutkowski, Czestochowa University of Technology, Poland, leszek.rutkowski(a)pcz.pl Important Dates Deadline for Submissions: March 31, 2022 First Review Decision: May 31, 2022 Revisions Due: June 30, 2022 Deadline for 2nd Review: July 31, 2022 Final Decisions: August 31, 2022 Final Manuscript: September 30, 2022 Peer Review Process All the papers will go through peer review, and will be reviewed by at least three reviewers. A thorough check will be completed, and the guest editors will check any significant similarity between the manuscript under consideration and any published paper or submitted manuscripts of which they are aware. In such case, the article will be directly rejected without proceeding further. Guest editors will make all reasonable effort to receive the reviewer’s comments and recommendation on time. The submitted papers must provide original research that has not been published nor currently under review by other venues. Previously published conference papers should be clearly identified by the authors at the submission stage and an explanation should be provided about how such papers have been extended to be considered for this special issue (with at least 30% difference from the original works). Submission Guidelines Paper submissions for the special issue should strictly follow the submission format and guidelines ( https://www.springer.com/journal/521/submission-guidelines). Each manuscript should not exceed 16 pages in length (inclusive of figures and tables). Manuscripts must be submitted to the journal online system at https://www.editorialmanager.com/ncaa/default.aspx. Authors should select “TC: Interpretation of Deep Learning” during the submission step ‘Additional Information’.

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RoboCup Symposium day, including awards ceremonies
by Peter Stone 28 Jun '21

28 Jun '21

Dear RoboCuppers, Congratulations to everyone on what by all appearances was a very successful set of competitions! While the competitions have completed, Monday brings the RoboCup Symposium, our community's main scientific event. Please tune in on the Underline mainstage starting at 9am UTC for a fun and interesting program. Each paper will be presented with a short 5-minute video. There will be time to talk with the authors and ask questions afterwards at the interactive sessions in Gather Town. You can browse the posters and videos in Gather Town at your convenience any time. At 11am UTC, there will be a panel on building a research career in RoboCup with representatives from different stages of their careers. Between noon and 2pm UTC, there will be the RoboCup Junior awards ceremony (noon), the Handover ceremony for everyone with a preview of RoboCup 2022 (12:45), and the RoboCup Major awards ceremony (1:15). All participants are strongly encouraged to attend - whether or not you won an award! Immediately following, we will have our final keynote speech, by Stefanie Tellex: "Towards Complex Language in Partially Observed Environments." At the end of the day, there will be a panel reflecting back on 25 years of RoboCup. I look forward to seeing you all there! Best, Peter Stone President, RoboCup Federation

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PhD studentship in Machine Learning for Human-Robot Interaction (PI: Frank Foerster, University of Hertfordshire)
by Daniel Polani 27 Jun '21

27 Jun '21

Dear all, on behalf of Frank Förster, I'd like to bring to your notice this PhD opportunity (deadline for applications 30. June 2021): PhD studentship MACHINE LEARNING FOR HUMAN-ROBOT INTERACTION Adaptive Systems Research Group Centre for Computer Science and Informatics Research School of Physics, Engineering and Computer Science University of Hertfordshire, UK Contact: Frank Foerster (f.foerster(a)herts.ac.uk) ============ Short-listings will start on 30 June 2021* Bursary £15,285 p.a. * application before this date is strongly encouraged We invite applications for a PhD studentship at the University of Hertfordshire, UK, under the supervision of Dr. Frank Foerster in the area of robotic language acquisition or symbol grounding as well as approaches to implement repair mechanisms in human-robot interaction more generally. We are particularly interested in pursuing research that connects to the following two topics, but alternative ideas will be considered too. Research Topics Topic 1: Socially driven Machine Learning in Robotic Language Acquisition Topic 2: Repair Mechanisms in Interaction More information including relevant papers are provided in the following PDF: https://www.herts.ac.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/331737/ML_HRI.pdf Independent of the particular topic, we have recently become member of the HomeBank corpora, and would strongly encourage interaction and collaboration with developmental psychologists and psycholinguists. Person Profile You will have an excellent first degree and a very keen interest and motivation in human-machine interaction in general or in language acquisition in particular. Optimally you should have an excellent background in Computer Science, Computational/Cognitive Robotics, (computational) linguistics, Artificial intelligence, or similar disciplines with a considerable quantitative/computational component. Due to the interdisciplinary nature of the topic we will also consider applicants with a background in (developmental) psychology, philosophy, or pragmatics as long as you have some experience in programming, machine learning, or dialogue systems. Prior experience with topics such as reinforcement learning, or statistical learning more generally is highly desirable, but not essential if the quantitative background is otherwise very strong. The knowledge of later Wittgenstein is a big plus. If you have questions, have alternative suggestions for a related, but distinct topic, and/or are generally interested in applying, please contact Dr. Frank Foerster f.foerster(a)herts.ac.uk ============ Research in Computer Science at the University of Hertfordshire has been recognised as excellent by the latest Research Assessment Exercise, with 50% of the research submitted being rated as internationally excellent or world leading. The University of Hertfordshire provides a very stimulating environment, offering a large number of specialised and interdisciplinary seminars as well as general training and researcher development opportunities. The University is situated in Hatfield, in the green belt just north of London. Hatfield is close to Central London (less than 25 minutes by direct train to Kings Cross), with convenient access to Stansted, Luton and Heathrow airports, and, via the nearby historic town of St. Albans, also to Gatwick airport. Application forms and submission instructions are available under https://www.herts.ac.uk/study/schools-of-study/physics-engineering-and-comp… Eligibility ----------- Applicants must submit or obtain: - a completed application form, which can be obtained from website linked above - a research statement stating past experience/research background and interest and motivation/research ambition for current project - two academic references - copies of qualification certificates and transcripts - a copy of your passport Applications from outside the UK or EU are eligible for this studentship. The application form should be returned to: doctoralcollegeadmissions(a)herts.ac.uk

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Finals day!
by Peter Stone 27 Jun '21

27 Jun '21

Dear RoboCuppers, Sunday brings our last day of competitions in RoboCup 2021. Traditionally, we schedule the games sequentially so that we can all watch the finals in all the leagues and then at the end of the day we have the awards ceremony. Due to people being in different time zones, we don't have such a scripted finals day this year. But I still encourage you to watch the top teams in as many leagues as possible. We may be able to update the schedule on the website. But in case not, I'm attaching a document with the timings and links of Sunday's games in many of the leagues. Meanwhile, we will hold the award ceremony in the middle of the symposium on Monday. Please plan on being there. Good luck to everyone on Sunday! Best, Peter Stone President, RoboCup Federation

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Friday at RoboCup: 2nd keynote talk
by Peter Stone 25 Jun '21

25 Jun '21

RoboCuppers, I know I've said this already, but it really is thrilling to see the videos and livestreams of the competitions from all around the world. Kudos to all of you for keeping the RoboCup spirit alive this year! On Friday, please tune in to the Underline main stage at 13:30 UTC for the 2nd keynote talk of the symposium by Jean-Paul Laumond: "Robotics: The Science of Motion." Immediately after the talk, I will be in the gather.town space to meet with some of my RoboCup friends. I hope you'll join us there as well! Best, Peter Stone President, RoboCup Federation

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Recordings of opening ceremony and invited talk available
by Peter Stone 24 Jun '21

24 Jun '21

Dear RoboCuppers, I hope your competitions are all proceeding nicely. In case you missed them, there are now recordings of the opening ceremony and the first keynote talk available on the Underline page. Click on the schedule for June 23rd to find them. By the way, I've heard reports that the website works better in Firefox and Chrome than in Safari. If you're having any trouble with it, you may want to try switching browsers. Good luck with your games on Thursday! Best, Peter Stone President, RoboCup Federation

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Main stage access
by Peter Stone 23 Jun '21

23 Jun '21

RoboCup participants, In case it isn't clear, to access the main stage, click on the star in the left navigation window of the Underline page. The direct link is: https://www.underline.io/events/108/mainstage Best, Peter

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RoboCup 2021 opening ceremony and first keynote
by Peter Stone 22 Jun '21

22 Jun '21

Dear RoboCuppers, It's exciting to see some of the live streams from the leagues running. Congratulations to everyone on getting to this point! The opening ceremony will begin in just a few hours - at 13:30 UTC on Wednesday. Please plan to tune in to the Underline mainstage at that time, followed by the first symposium keynote by Dieter Fox "Toward Robust Manipulation in Complex Environments" at 14:00. Immediately after that (around 15:00), I encourage you to log in to gather.town. Dieter intends to be there to answer questions, and you will have an opportunity to also mingle with each other. Remember that all the symposium posters and presentations are now accessible in the symposium room. And next to the symposium room, there is now a set of meeting rooms that you can use as needed (in addition to the league rooms). I've already enjoyed catching up with some of you in gather.town, and I look forward to seeing more of you there over the coming days. See you soon! Peter Stone President, RoboCup Federation

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RoboCup 2021!
by Peter Stone 21 Jun '21

21 Jun '21

RoboCup community, I'm very excited about RoboCup getting started. Some of the leagues are already underway, and the rest will be starting in the next couple of days. While fine-tuning your code and preparing for the competition, I hope you'll all take the time to also interact with each other - learn about the approaches other teams are taking, share your own advances, catch up with friends from past years, and make new friends - both within your leagues and across leagues. As usual, each league is expected to have league meetings to go over the rules, brainstorm changes for next year, and elect technical committees for next year. To help that happen, we've prepared gather.town environments for you to join, with separate rooms for each league and booths for our sponsors - please visit them! Registered participants can log in on the underline site and then navigate to "RoboCup Lounge" in the left panel to get there. These can be used for informal meetings, league meetings, or however you wish - you should be able to join any time (some leagues are using other platforms for such meetings, which is also fine - please follow the instructions of your own organizing committees). I'm mainly writing now to ask everyone to mark your calendar for the opening ceremony and first symposium invited talk on Wednesday: June 23rd ========= UTC 13:30 - opening ceremony - Underline mainstage UTC 14:00 - invited talk by Dieter Fox - Underline mainstage UTC 15:00 - community gathering - Gather.town Before then, please make sure that if you've registered, you are able to access Underline and successfully join our Gather.town. I look forward to seeing you all soon. And good luck to all your teams! Best, Peter Stone President, RoboCup Federation

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CFP - KBS Special Issue on Deep Learning
by Pub Conference 17 Jun '21

17 Jun '21

Robust, Explainable, and Privacy-Preserving Deep Learning https://www.journals.elsevier.com/knowledge-based-systems/call-for-papers/r… <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.journals.elsevier.com/knowledge-bas…> *Aim and Scope* The exponentially growing availability of data such as images, videos and speech from myriad sources, including social media and the Internet of Things, is driving the demand for high-performance data analysis algorithms. Deep learning is currently an extremely active research area in machine learning and pattern recognition. It provides computational models of multiple nonlinear processing neural network layers to learn and represent data with increasing levels of abstraction. Deep neural networks are able to implicitly capture intricate structures of large-scale data and deploy in cloud computing and high-performance computing platforms. The deep learning approach has demonstrated remarkable performances across a range of applications, including computer vision, image classification, face/speech recognition, natural language processing, and medical communications. However, deep neural networks yield ‘black-box’ input-output mappings that can be challenging to explain to users. Especially in the healthcare, cybersecurity, and legal fields, black-box machine learning techniques are unacceptable, since decisions may have a profound impact on peoples’ lives due to the lack of interpretability. In addition, many other open problems and challenges still exist, such as computational and time costs, repeatability of the results, convergence, and the ability to learn from a very small amount of data and to evolve dynamically. Further, despite their enormous societal benefits, deep learning can pose real threats to personal privacy. For example, deep neural networks and other machine learning models are built based on patients' personal and highly sensitive data such as clinical records or tracked health data in the domain of healthcare. Moreover, they can be vulnerable to attackers trying to infer the sensitive data that was used to build the model. This raises important research questions about how to develop deep learning models that protect private data against inference attacks while still being accurate and useful predictive models. This Special Issue will present robust, explainable, and efficient next-generation deep learning algorithms with data privacy and theoretical guarantees for solving challenging artificial intelligence problems. This Special Issue aims to: 1) improve the understanding and explainability of deep neural networks; 2) improve the accuracy of deep learning leveraging new stochastic optimization and neural architecture search; 3) enhance the mathematical foundation of deep neural networks; 4) design new data privacy mechanisms to optimally tradeoff between utility and privacy; and 5) increase the computational efficiency and stability of the deep learning training process with new algorithms that will scale. Potential topics include but are not limited to the following: · Novel theoretical insights on the deep neural networks · Exploration of post-hoc interpretation methods which can shed light on how deep learning models produce a specific prediction and generate a representation · Investigation of interpretable models which aim to construct self-explanatory models and incorporate interpretability directly into the structure of a deep learning model · Quantifying or visualizing the interpretability of deep neural networks · Stability improvement of deep neural network optimization · Optimization methods for deep learning · Privacy preserving machine learning (e.g., federated machine learning, learning over encrypted data) · Novel deep learning approaches in the applications of image/signal processing, business intelligence, games, healthcare, bioinformatics, and security *Important Dates* · Submission Deadline: August 31, 2021 · First Review Decision: September 30, 2021 · Revisions Due: October 31, 2021 · Final Decision: November 30, 2021 · Final Manuscript: December 31, 2021 *Dissemination, Composition and Review Procedures* · A Call for Papers (CFP) will be circulated to invite submissions. · World leading researchers will be invited as authors. · To further attracting contributors from around the world, the CFP will be advertised across numerous society newsletters, different websites, mailing lists, conferences, associations, and social media groups, etc. This special issue will run as per the timeline given from submission to publication, while maintaining the rigorous peer review and high standards of the journal. All manuscripts submitted must be original, not under consideration elsewhere, and not previously published. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts are available on the Guide for Authors’ page. Authors can expect their manuscripts to be reviewed fairly, and in a skilled, conscientious manner. To enhance objectivity, and to guarantee high scientific quality and relevance to the subject, three peer reviewers will be selected to evaluate a manuscript. The peer review process shall be designed to avoid bias and conflict of interest on the part of reviewers and shall be composed of experts in the relevant field of research. A key criterion in publication decisions will be the manuscript’s fit for the special issue and the readership of KBS. Papers will be published online as soon as accepted in continuous flow. *Submission Instructions* The submission system will be open around one week before the first paper comes in. When submitting your manuscript please select the article type “*VSI: Deep Learning*”. Please submit your manuscript before the submission deadline. All submissions deemed suitable to be sent for peer review will be reviewed by at least two independent reviewers. Once your manuscript is accepted, it will go into production, and will be simultaneously published in the current regular issue and pulled into the online Special Issue. Articles from this Special Issue will appear in different regular issues of the journal, though they will be clearly marked and branded as Special Issue articles. Please see an example here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/science-of-the-total-environment/spec… <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/science-o…> Please ensure you read the Guide for Authors before writing your manuscript. The Guide for Authors and the link to submit your manuscript is available on the Journal’s homepage.

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Fwd: [CFP][meeting][news] CALL FOR WORKSHOP PROPOSALS @ ICSR2021 - the 13th International Conference on Social Robotics
by Mariacarla Staffa 15 Jun '21

15 Jun '21

[CFP][meeting][news] CALL FOR WORKSHOP PROPOSALS @ ICSR2021 - the 13th International Conference on Social Robotics CALL FOR WORKSHOP PROPOSALS The 13th International Conference on Social Robotics (ICSR 2021) November 10-13, 2021, Singapore http://www.colips.org/conferences/icsr2021/wp/ ========================================================== The 13th International Conference on Social Robotics (ICSR 2021) brings together researchers and practitioners working on the interaction between humans and intelligent robots and on the integration of robots into the fabric of our society. The theme of this year’s conference is ‘Robotics in our everyday lives’, emphasizing on the increasing importance of robotics in human daily living. ICSR 2021 will take place in Singapore as a hybrid conference on 10-13 November 2021 with half-day and full-day workshops being hosted to provide a stage to discuss emerging research questions and challenges in Social Robotics. We particularly welcome creative, interactive workshop formats that aim to achieve one or more of the following: (i) increase the number of actively involved participants (ii) generate significant discussion and exchange of ideas between participants (iii) generate interactions between established experts and early-career researchers (iv) make connections to fields outside of robotics and/or connect academia to industry == Important Dates == · Workshop proposal submission deadline: 19 June 2021 · Notification of acceptance: 2 July 2021 · Half page abstract and website URL Due: 31 July 2021 · Workshop Date: 10 or 13 November 2021 · Conference: 10-13 November 2021 == Submission == Submissions should be PDF documents of no more than 3/4 pages (following the Springer LNCS/LNAI style for the layout. Detailed instructions for paper submission are available on the conference web site. LNCS style templates are available on the Springer LNCS website) and should include: 1. Title 2. Workshop duration: half-day or full-day 3. Workshop form: online, hybrid, or on-side 4. Organizers: name and the affiliation of the members of your organizing committee (Name, Affiliation, Email address). 5. Workshop description and objectives: concise description of the content and objectives of the workshop. 6. Intended audience and plans to solicit participation: describe the intended workshop audience, how you plan to solicit participation: (i) ahead of the workshop to generate submission and (ii)within the workshop in encouraging discussions and exchanges between participants. 7. List of topics: a bulleted list of the topics of interest that will be covered by the workshop. 8. List of invited speakers: list any invited speakers (if applicable) 9. Additional information: Any relevant information that could not be captured by the previous sections (e.g. regarding previous workshop organisation) Proposals on workshops will be considered by the organizing committee. Interested participants shall contact icsr2021.info(a)gmail.com for proposal submission. We look forward to hosting your workshop at ICSR 2021! _______________________________________________ == Workshop Chairs of ICSR 2021 == Keng Peng Tee, A*STAR Institute for Infocomm Research, Singapore Maartje de Graaf, Universiteit Utrecht, Netherlands Mariacarla Staffa, University of Naples Federico II, Italy Mariacarla Staffa, PhD Assistant Professor Department of Physics, University of Naples "Federico II", Italy

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GECON 2021 - 3rd CfP - Extended Submission Deadline 21.June.2021 - 18h Intl. Conf. on Economics of Grids, Clouds, Systems and Services
by Jörn ALTMANN 10 Jun '21

10 Jun '21

================================================== GECON 2021 Call for Papers - Extended Deadline 18th International Conference on Economics of Grids, Clouds, Systems & Services http://2021.gecon-conference.org 21-23. September 2021, Online Springer LNCS Proceedings Fast Tracks for several Journals in Computer Systems and E-Commerce ================================================== Third Call for full papers (12 pages), short papers (8 pages), and new-idea papers (4 pages + poster presentation), which will be included in the proceedings. Announcement of confirmed workshops, special topic sessions, and tutorials (please see below for details): - Energy Efficiency Methodologies in Cloud Computing - Law & Computer Science - Climate Change & Computer Science - Trustworthy Services, Information Exchange and Content Handling in the Context of Blockchain - Regulation Reformation for Balancing Blockchain Innovation GECON 2021 builds upon the very successful tradition of the conference previous editions (http://www.gecon-conference.org) since 2003. GECON solicits contributions that are interdisciplinary, combining business and economic aspects with engineering and computer science related themes. The conference will be held online. ============== / Important Deadlines / ============== The submission deadlines have been extended to give more time to prepare the papers: - Paper abstract submission deadline: June 14th, 2021 - Full Paper and Short Paper submission deadline: June 21st, 2021 - New-Idea Paper Submission deadline: July 12th, 2021 - Notification of acceptance of submissions: July 19th, 2021 - Camera Ready deadline: July 26th, 2021 ============ / Topics of Interest / ============ As a global market for infrastructures, platforms, and software services emerge, the need to understand and deal with its implications and its interdisciplinary challenges is quickly growing. To address this, GECON encourages the submission of papers, which combine at least one economic/legal area and one technologic area. GECON list of areas includes but is not limited to: -Economics- Trustworthiness of services Ecosystem economics Incentive design, strategic behavior & game theory Market mechanisms, auctions models, and bidding languages Economic efficiency Techno-economic analysis and modelling Pricing schemes and revenue models Metering, accounting, and billing Cost-benefit analysis Automated trading and bidding support tools Trust, reputation, security, and risk management Performance monitoring, optimization, and prediction Energy efficiency Sustainability Business models and strategies Decision support Ecosystems -Law and Legal Aspects- Standardization, interoperability, and legal aspects Service level Agreements (SLAs) Negotiation, monitoring, and enforcement Governance of ecosystems Privacy -Clouds, Grids, Systems and Services- IaaS, SaaS, PaaS and Federation of resources Vertical scaling, burstable computing, vertical elasticity Resource management: allocation, sharing, and scheduling Capacity planning Virtualization and containers Service science, management and engineering (SSME) Software engineering Security -Applications and Technologies Transforming the Economy- Smart grids, smart cities, and smart buildings Energy-aware infrastructures and services Fog, edge, osmosis computing Micro-services, serverless computing Internet-of-Things Blockchains Community networks Social networks Social computing Big data Reports on industry test-beds and operational markets Data stream ingestion and complex event processing Open source =============================== / Publication and Submission Guidelines for Papers / =============================== Original full papers and short papers (work-in-progress papers), which are not currently under review at another conference, will be considered. Manuscripts will be reviewed based on technical merit, originality, and relevance. Past acceptance rates have been around 30 per cent in recent years. All submissions shall be submitted using the Springer LNCS format. Submitted full papers should not exceed 12 pages and WIP papers should not exceed 8 pages (including references and appendices). New-idea papers should be exactly 4 pages. For further details, please visit the GECON 2021 web page. Paper submissions are managed through EasyChair at https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=gecon2021. The proceedings will be published by Springer LNCS. Extended versions of up to 10 accepted papers in the Computer Science field will be invited for publication in a special issue in the: - Elsevier Journal of Future Generation Computing Systems. For papers targeting mainly business and economic aspects, special issues in: - Springer Electronic Markets Journal, - Elsevier Electronic Commerce Research and Applications, or - Springer Electronic Commerce Research with up to 15 papers are foreseen. ======================== / New-Idea Paper (Poster) Submissions / ======================== New-idea papers provide a unique opportunity for PhD students and young researchers to present their new ideas, and senior researchers to present their starting activities, current progress, or novel approaches of their works and to receive constructive feedback from their peers as well as experts in the field (including academics and practitioners) at the GECON conference. New-Idea papers will comprise a 4-page paper, which will be Included in the proceedings) and a poster presentation. Authors of accepted full papers and short papers (work-in-progress papers) are also welcome to present their work in poster sessions, giving them a higher visibility than only giving a talk. Posters will be organized and presented throughout the conference using gather.town, allowing for many discussions with participants and a highly interactive conference. ================================== / Accepted Tutorial: “Energy Efficiency Methodologies in Cloud Computing” (Karim Djemame) / ================================== Computer systems have faced significant power consumption challenges over the past 20 years. The dual challenge of both power and performance has in recent years shifted from the devices and circuits level, to their current position as first-order constraints for system architects and software developers. A common theme is the need for low-power computing systems that are fully interconnected, self-aware, context-aware and self-optimising within application boundaries. The tutorial presents a number of energy efficiency methodologies and their use in domains such as cloud computing, which makes up a large proportion of the total ICT energy consumption. Cloud computing providers resort to a variety of techniques to improve energy consumption at each level of the cloud computing stack: application design, programming model, middleware, virtualisation, hardware. Therefore, research on energy efficiency in cloud computing has attracted considerable attention and has focused on many aspects including ICT equipment (servers, networks) as well as software solutions running on top of ICT equipment (cloud management system domain for managing the cloud infrastructure). ==================================== / Accepted Special Topic Session: Law & Computer Science / ==================================== As Law and Computer science develop, they pose each other new challenges. These challenges are expressed in questions such as: Where must computer scientists stretch their abilities to provide law with adequate solutions? What legal developments are required to deal with new computer science achievements? In this panel, hosted by Orna Agmon Ben-Yehuda of the CRI institute at the University of Haifa, we will hear answers from: * Niva Elkin-Koren, of Tel-Aviv University Faculty of Law, Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University. * Supreeth Shastri, of the University of Iowa * Vincent Mueller, of Leeds university ================================= / Accepted Special Topic Session: Climate Change and Computer Science / ================================= The purpose of this special session is to promote the focus of research on climate change challenges related to computer science. As the GECON community comprises multi-disciplinary skills for addressing these challenges, we are optimistic that this special session will bring highly useful ideas and results. Special session topics include but are not limited to technology, cost, benefit, and society aspects of: * Digital support to pandemic control policies * Digital support to climate change prevention * Fintech platforms to facilitate SME credit and supporting small businesses through big data, blockchain finance, supply chain finance * Analytical and simulation capabilities of models and data involved in climate research: resource allocation systems, health diffusion, population dynamics, individual behavior. * Ecosystem of active and reactive involvement of citizens and other actors. * Collaborative tools for data, models, methods, and resources sharing to support decision making. * Recommender systems ====================================== / Accepted Workshop: Trustworthy Services, Information Exchange and Content Handling in the Context of Blockchain / ====================================== Blockchain is by nature a decentralized and trustless platform, i.e., only a minimum level of trust is required regarding executing the transactions properly which is achieved by means of a consensus mechanism and an economic game that incentivizes actors to comply with the rules defined by the protocol. At the same time, there are no guarantees on service quality or seller behavior in a service exchange. For example, the service purchased may be of lower quality than expected, and the trustworthiness or provenance of data employed can be questionable. To this end, this workshop will address challenges, problems, and solutions in this context. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following: * Blockchain e-markets * Trustworthy Smart Oracles * Smart Contracts for SLA-compliance * Blockchain business models * Decentralized auctions in the blockchain * Information asymmetry in the blockchain * Decentralized Reputation Models * Decentralized Recommendation Systems * Privacy-preserving, secure decentralized data storage and its economics * DIDs and anonymity * Tokenization paradigms * Token distribution strategies * Data Provenance * Chains of trust in the blockchain * Data access control in the blockchain * Gas fee determination and stabilization ==================================== / Accepted Special Topic Session: Regulation Reformation for Balancing Blockchain Innovation / ==================================== Industries claim that regulations do not accompany the industries’ demand for a comprehensive systematic reformation despite the governments’ extensive investments and regional regulatory sandboxes. Five panelists from academic, industrial, and legal communities address what regulations affect blockchain innovation involving the architecture incompatible with the regulatory framework and discuss reimagining the regulations for blockchain’s societal transformation. ================= / Conference Organization / ================= Orna Agmon Ben-Yehuda (University of Haifa, Israel) Jorn Altmann (Seoul National University, South-Korea) Jose Angel Banares (Zaragoza University, Spain) Karim Djemame (University of Leeds, UK) Maurizio Naldi (Libera Università Maria SS. Assunta (LUMSA), Italy) Vlado Stankovski (University of Ljubljana, Slovenia) Bruno Tuffin (Inria Rennes, France) Contact for Questions: gecon2021(a)easychair.org @&@#^%&*%$@*#*&%#%^&$#@^@^&@%$@*^#&@ @%#&#@^*$@@#*%&%#@*$*&^@#$%@#%&$&%@ Prof. Dr. Jörn ALTMANN office 37-305 Technology Management, Economics, and Policy Program Schoolof Engineering Practice Collegeof Engineering Seoul National University 1 Gwanak-Ro, Gwanak-Gu, 08826 Seoul, South-Korea phone: +82 70 7678 6676 phone: +49 4155 129333 phone: +1 510 962 3062 phone: +44 20 32393134 fax: +1 610 956 4404 email: jorn.altmann(a)acm.org www: http://altmann.my-groups.de/

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Knowledge-Based Systems Special Issue on Robust, Explainable, and Privacy-Preserving Deep Learning
by Pub Conference 08 Jun '21

08 Jun '21

Robust, Explainable, and Privacy-Preserving Deep Learning https://www.journals.elsevier.com/knowledge-based-systems/call-for-papers/r… *Aim and Scope* The exponentially growing availability of data such as images, videos and speech from myriad sources, including social media and the Internet of Things, is driving the demand for high-performance data analysis algorithms. Deep learning is currently an extremely active research area in machine learning and pattern recognition. It provides computational models of multiple nonlinear processing neural network layers to learn and represent data with increasing levels of abstraction. Deep neural networks are able to implicitly capture intricate structures of large-scale data and deploy in cloud computing and high-performance computing platforms. The deep learning approach has demonstrated remarkable performances across a range of applications, including computer vision, image classification, face/speech recognition, natural language processing, and medical communications. However, deep neural networks yield ‘black-box’ input-output mappings that can be challenging to explain to users. Especially in the healthcare, cybersecurity, and legal fields, black-box machine learning techniques are unacceptable, since decisions may have a profound impact on peoples’ lives due to the lack of interpretability. In addition, many other open problems and challenges still exist, such as computational and time costs, repeatability of the results, convergence, and the ability to learn from a very small amount of data and to evolve dynamically. Further, despite their enormous societal benefits, deep learning can pose real threats to personal privacy. For example, deep neural networks and other machine learning models are built based on patients' personal and highly sensitive data such as clinical records or tracked health data in the domain of healthcare. Moreover, they can be vulnerable to attackers trying to infer the sensitive data that was used to build the model. This raises important research questions about how to develop deep learning models that protect private data against inference attacks while still being accurate and useful predictive models. This Special Issue will present robust, explainable, and efficient next-generation deep learning algorithms with data privacy and theoretical guarantees for solving challenging artificial intelligence problems. This Special Issue aims to: 1) improve the understanding and explainability of deep neural networks; 2) improve the accuracy of deep learning leveraging new stochastic optimization and neural architecture search; 3) enhance the mathematical foundation of deep neural networks; 4) design new data privacy mechanisms to optimally tradeoff between utility and privacy; and 5) increase the computational efficiency and stability of the deep learning training process with new algorithms that will scale. Potential topics include but are not limited to the following: · Novel theoretical insights on the deep neural networks · Exploration of post-hoc interpretation methods which can shed light on how deep learning models produce a specific prediction and generate a representation · Investigation of interpretable models which aim to construct self-explanatory models and incorporate interpretability directly into the structure of a deep learning model · Quantifying or visualizing the interpretability of deep neural networks · Stability improvement of deep neural network optimization · Optimization methods for deep learning · Privacy preserving machine learning (e.g., federated machine learning, learning over encrypted data) · Novel deep learning approaches in the applications of image/signal processing, business intelligence, games, healthcare, bioinformatics, and security *Important Dates* · Submission Deadline: August 31, 2021 · First Review Decision: September 30, 2021 · Revisions Due: October 31, 2021 · Final Decision: November 30, 2021 · Final Manuscript: December 31, 2021 *Dissemination, Composition and Review Procedures* · A Call for Papers (CFP) will be circulated to invite submissions. · World leading researchers will be invited as authors. · To further attracting contributors from around the world, the CFP will be advertised across numerous society newsletters, different websites, mailing lists, conferences, associations, and social media groups, etc. This special issue will run as per the timeline given from submission to publication, while maintaining the rigorous peer review and high standards of the journal. All manuscripts submitted must be original, not under consideration elsewhere, and not previously published. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts are available on the Guide for Authors’ page. Authors can expect their manuscripts to be reviewed fairly, and in a skilled, conscientious manner. To enhance objectivity, and to guarantee high scientific quality and relevance to the subject, three peer reviewers will be selected to evaluate a manuscript. The peer review process shall be designed to avoid bias and conflict of interest on the part of reviewers and shall be composed of experts in the relevant field of research. A key criterion in publication decisions will be the manuscript’s fit for the special issue and the readership of KBS. Papers will be published online as soon as accepted in continuous flow. *Submission Instructions* The submission system will be open around one week before the first paper comes in. When submitting your manuscript please select the article type “*VSI: Deep Learning*”. Please submit your manuscript before the submission deadline. All submissions deemed suitable to be sent for peer review will be reviewed by at least two independent reviewers. Once your manuscript is accepted, it will go into production, and will be simultaneously published in the current regular issue and pulled into the online Special Issue. Articles from this Special Issue will appear in different regular issues of the journal, though they will be clearly marked and branded as Special Issue articles. Please see an example here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/science-of-the-total-environment/spec… Please ensure you read the Guide for Authors before writing your manuscript. The Guide for Authors and the link to submit your manuscript is available on the Journal’s homepage.

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RoboCup 2021 - starting in 2 weeks!
by Peter Stone 08 Jun '21

08 Jun '21

Dear RoboCup community, I'm writing to share my excitement about RoboCup 2021, which will officially begin in just two weeks! (some leagues may start even sooner) Many of you reading this message have been hard at work helping with the organization, and even more of you have been hard at work preparing your teams. As of now there are more than 300 teams registered, and about 1500 participants! As you know, this year's RoboCup will be very different than in the past. But I'm very encouraged by the way all the leagues have found creative ways to make the best of a difficult situation - by using simulators, live streams, deploying robots in each other's labs, etc. The organizing team and I are doing everything we can to make sure the event will be a great scientific and engineering challenge for all participants, that will advance research as always. And we're also doing everything we can to make it a great community meet-up. To make that possible, we are working with Underline to prepare some plenary "main-stage" events including an opening ceremony, awards ceremonies, and a fantastic line-up of invited speakers (Dieter Fox, Jean-Paul Laumond, and Stefanie Tellex). We will also have a Gather.town space for league meetings, the symposium poster sessions, and other informal interactions. Gather.town will be available to registererd participants at all times. (Instructions on using Gather.town will be provided, but you may want to prepare by installing the app on your computer - that tends to work better than using it in the browser) As always, each league is creating its own competition schedule, and the symposium will have a great lineup of papers and posters. As they become available, we'll keep links to the schedules on the Underline main page (to be released soon) and/or the event webpage: https://2021.robocup.org/home Since this is the first time we're organizing RoboCup online, please bear with us if there are some glitches. We're counting on everyone to come to the event with a good spirit and to do your best to be flexible and help find solutions as needed. Meanwhile, good luck with your continued preparations! We look forward to seeing you all at the opening ceremony in a couple of weeks. Best, Peter Stone General Chair, RoboCup 2021 President, RoboCup Federation On behalf of the whole organizing committee: https://2021.robocup.org/

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RoboCup 2021 Worldwide
by April Foster 03 Jun '21

03 Jun '21

Dear RoboCup Community, This is a reminder that RoboCup 2021 Worldwide <https://2021.robocup.org/home> will begin in a few weeks, with the main activities planned for June 22nd - 28th. Please note that the deadline for Major and Junior Team registrations is Monday, June 7, 2021. Registration will remain open for additional team members and Symposium-only registrants through June 28th. For more information about the registration process, fees, and deadlines, please visit: https://2021.robocup.org/participants/registration-process-and-fees The RoboCup Federation has selected Underline <https://underline.io/> to provide central services for this fully online event. RoboCup 2021 participants are asked to please complete the following release form from the RoboCup Federation and Underline: https://robocup21release.paperform.co/. More information about the online event platform will be sent to registered participants prior to the event. The RoboCup Federation is looking forward to bringing RoboCuppers from around the world together again!

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[HRI][meetings][CFP] GenR 2021: IEEE RO-MAN Workshop "GENDERING ROBOTS: Ongoing (Re)configurations of Gender in Robotics"
by Giulia Perugia 30 May '21

30 May '21

Dear Colleagues, We are glad to invite you to submit your work in the form of an abstract (1 page) or short paper (2-4 pages) to the *GenR2021 workshop "Gendering Robots: Ongoing (Re)configurations of Gender in Robotics"*. The workshop will last half a day and will be held as part of the IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN 2021) on August 12th, 2021. The workshop is intentionally *multidisciplinary*, hence we welcome submissions from all fields of study. Below, you can find further information regarding important dates, workshop website, and call for papers. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions and to circulate the call within your network. Kindest regards, Giulia Perugia ================================ *CALL FOR PAPERS - IEEE RO-MAN 2021 GenR WORKSHOP * *GENDERING ROBOTS: Ongoing (Re)configurations of Gender in Robotics* *IMPORTANT DATES & INFO* Deadline for Paper Submission: June 30th, 2021 Paper Acceptance Notification: July 21st, 2021 Camera Ready Paper: July 28th, 2021 Main Conference Date: August 8th-12th, 2021 Workshop Date: August 12th, 2021 Workshop Website: https://sites.google.com/view/ro-man21-genr-workshop/home Twitter: @GenR_ROMAN <https://twitter.com/GenrRoman> Submission page: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=genr2021 Full call for papers: https://easychair.org/cfp/GenR2021 STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES Within the GenR workshop, we aim to provide researchers investigating gender in robotics with a platform to share their work and invite interested scholars to reflect with us on inclusive and ethical practices in robot gendering. We hope to explore motivations for robot gendering, and understand how robot gendering might impact human-robot interaction in the face of its risks with regards to stereotype propagation. Furthermore, we would like to inspire discussions about the mindful use of robots in society and promote the possibility to use robots to oppose/challenge harmful social practices (gender stereotypes, gender inequality, etc.). To this end, we invite those working in related domains (e.g. Social Robotics, and Gender Studies) to discuss with us best practices to re-configure gender in robotics and shed light on issues of gender from a multidisciplinary perspective. Our goal is to bridge the communication gap we observed between disciplines addressing the topic of gender in robotics and the lack of spaces to converse with and learn from one another. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to: - Gendering practices in Social Robotics - Experimental studies on gendered robots - Feminist robotics - Robot’s multimodal gender design - Norm-critical design - Queer design in HRI - Sex Robots - Ethics of Gendered Robots - Normative deviance in relation to robot gender - Societal implications and applications of gendered robots - Performative arts encompassing a reflection on gender in robotics - Non-binary perspectives on robot gender SUBMISSION GUIDELINES Since our workshop aims at bringing researchers from different fields together and starting a conversation on the process of gendering robots, we are open to two formats of submissions: abstracts (1 page) and short papers (2-4 pages). We particularly encourage multidisciplinary submissions presenting works in progress, as accepted authors will be invited to identify discussion points and questions they would like to put to our panelists and other attendees. In line with the intent of the workshop, we accept different types of submissions: empirical papers, experimental design protocols, philosophical essays, studies with preliminary results and more conclusive papers. Authors should submit their papers formatted according to the IEEE two-column format <http://ras.papercept.net/conferences/support/support.php>, the same as the main conference (LaTeX <http://ras.papercept.net/conferences/support/tex.php> or MS-Word <http://ras.papercept.net/conferences/support/word.php> templates). Authors should submit a PDF of their paper through EasyChair <https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=genr2021>. Submissions will be evaluated according to their fit to the workshop theme, their thought-provoking content, and their adherence to the scientific standards of the discipline of origin. The reviews will consist of constructive feedback mindful of the authors’ multidisciplinary background. We will prefer qualitative evaluations to score-based numerical ones. The workshop proceedings will be published on ArXiv and the authors will be invited to submit their work in a SPECIAL ISSUE. INVITED SPEAKERS Prof. Robert SPARROW, Monash University, Australia Prof. Friederike EYSSEL, University of Bielefeld, Germany PANEL DISCUSSION Prof. Ericka JOHNSON - Linköping University (Sweden) Dr. Katherine HARRISON- Linköping University (Sweden) Prof. Verena RIESER- Heriot Watt University (UK) (TBC) Dr. Megan STRAIT - University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (USA) COMMITTEE Dr. Giulia PERUGIA (main organiser), Uppsala University, Sweden, giulia.perugia(a)it.uu.se Dr. Katie WINKLE, KTH, Sweden, winkle(a)kth.se Ryan Blake JACKSON, Colorado School of Mines, USA, rbjackso(a)mymail.mines.edu Dominika LISY, Linköping University, Sweden, dominika.lisy(a)liu.se

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2nd CFP GECON 2021- 18h Intl. Conf. on Economics of Grids, Clouds, Systems and Services, submission deadline: June 7th, 2021
by Jörn ALTMANN 24 May '21

24 May '21

=================================================================== 18th International Conference on Economics of Grids, Clouds, Systems & Services http://2021.gecon-conference.org <http://2021.gecon-conference.org> 21-23. September 2021, Online Springer LNCS Proceedings Fast Track for several Journals in Computer Systems and E-Commerce =================================================================== Second Call for full papers, short papers (work-in-progress papers), and poster presentations. Announcement of confirmed panels and tutorials. GECON 2021 builds upon the very successful tradition of the conference previous editions (http://www.gecon-conference.org <http://www.gecon-conference.org>) since 2003. GECON solicits contributions that are interdisciplinary, combining business and economic aspects with engineering and computer science related themes. The conference will be held online. ====================== / Important Deadlines / ======================= - Paper abstract submission deadline: May 31st, 2021 - Full Paper and short paper (Work-in-progress) submission deadline: June 7th, 2021 - Notification of acceptance of papers: July 5th, 2021 - Camera Ready deadline: July 12th, 2021 - Poster Submission deadline: July 12th, 2021 ====================== / Topics of Interest / ======================= As a global market for infrastructures, platforms, and software services emerge, the need to understand and deal with its implications and its interdisciplinary challenges is quickly growing. To address this, GECON encourages the submission of papers, which combine at least one economic/legal area and one technological area. GECON list of areas includes but is not limited to: -Economics- Trustworthiness of services Ecosystem economics Incentive design, strategic behavior & game theory Market mechanisms, auctions models, and bidding languages Economic efficiency Techno-economic analysis and modelling Pricing schemes and revenue models Metering, accounting, and billing Cost-benefit analysis Automated trading and bidding support tools Trust, reputation, security, and risk management Performance monitoring, optimization, and prediction Energy efficiency Sustainability Business models and strategies Decision support Ecosystems -Law and Legal Aspects- Standardization, interoperability, and legal aspects Service level Agreements (SLAs) Negotiation, monitoring, and enforcement Governance of ecosystems Privacy -Clouds, Grids, Systems and Services- IaaS, SaaS, PaaS and Federation of resources Vertical scaling, burstable computing, vertical elasticity Resource management: allocation, sharing, and scheduling Capacity planning Virtualization and containers Service science, management and engineering (SSME) Software engineering Security -Applications and Technologies Transforming the Economy- Smart grids, smart cities, and smart buildings Energy-aware infrastructures and services Fog, edge, osmosis computing Micro-services, serverless computing Internet-of-Things Blockchains Community networks Social networks Social computing Big data Reports on industry test-beds and operational markets Data stream ingestion and complex event processing Open source ====================================================== / Publication and Submission Guidelines for Papers / ====================================================== Original full papers and short papers (work-in-progress papers), which are not currently under review by another conference, will be considered. Manuscripts will be reviewed based on technical merit, originality, and relevance. Past acceptance rates have been around 30 per cent in recent years. Full papers and short papers (work-in-progress papers) shall be submitted using the Springer LNCS format. Submitted full papers should not exceed 12 pages and WIP papers should not exceed 8 pages (including references and appendices). For further details, visit the GECON 2021 web page. Paper submissions are managed through EasyChair at https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=gecon2021 <https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=gecon2021>. The proceedings will be published by Springer LNCS. Extended versions of up to 10 accepted papers in the Computer Science field will be invited for publication in a special issue of the - Elsevier Journal of Future Generation Computing Systems. For papers targeting mainly business and economic aspects, a special issue of the - Springer Electronic Markets Journal or the - Elsevier Electronic Commerce Research and Applications - Springer Electronic Commerce Research with up to 15 papers is foreseen. ====================== / Poster Submissions / ====================== Poster presentations provide a unique opportunity for PhD students and young researchers to present their ongoing work and to receive constructive feedback from their peers as well as experts in the field (including academics and practitioners) at the GECON conference. Authors of accepted full papers and short papers (work-in-progress papers) are also welcome to present their work in poster sessions, giving them a higher visibility then just giving a talk. Posters will be organized and presented throughout the conference using gather.town, allowing for many discussions with participants and a highly interactive conference. ===================================================== / Accepted Tutorial: “Energy Efficiency / / Methodologies in Cloud Computing” (Karim Djemame)/ ===================================================== Computer systems have faced significant power consumption challenges over the past 20 years. The dual challenge of both power and performance has in recent years shifted from the devices and circuits level, to their current position as first-order constraints for system architects and software developers. A common theme is the need for low-power computing systems that are fully interconnected, self-aware, context-aware and self-optimising within application boundaries. The tutorial presents a number of energy efficiency methodologies and their use in domains such as cloud computing, which makes up a large proportion of the total ICT energy consumption. Cloud computing providers resort to a variety of techniques to improve energy consumption at each level of the cloud computing stack: application design, programming model, middleware, virtualisation, hardware. Therefore, research on energy efficiency in cloud computing has attracted considerable attention and has focused on many aspects including ICT equipment (servers, networks) as well as software solutions running on top of ICT equipment (cloud management system domain for managing the cloud infrastructure). ========================================================== / Accepted Special Topic Session: Law & Computer Science / ========================================================== As Law and Computer science develop, they pose each other new challenges. These challenges are expressed in questions such as: Where must computer scientists stretch their abilities to provide law with adequate solutions? What legal developments are required to deal with new computer science achievements? In this panel, hosted by Orna Agmon Ben-Yehuda of the CRI institute at the University of Haifa, we will hear answers from: * Niva Elkin-Koren, of Tel-Aviv University Faculty of Law, Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University. * Supreeth Shastri, of the University of Iowa =========================== / Conference Organization / =========================== Orna Agmon Ben-Yehuda (University of Haifa, Israel) Jorn Altmann (Seoul National University, South-Korea) Jose Angel Banares (Zaragoza University, Spain) Karim Djemame (University of Leeds, UK) Maurizio Naldi (Libera Università Maria SS. Assunta (LUMSA), Italy) Vlado Stankovski (University of Ljubljana, Slovenia) Bruno Tuffin (Inria Rennes, France) Contact for Questions:gecon2021@easychair.org <mailto:gecon2021@easychair.org> @&@#^%&*%$@*#*&%#%^&$#@^@^&@%$@*^#&@ @%#&#@^*$@@#*%&%#@*$*&^@#$%@#%&$&%@ Prof. Dr. Jörn ALTMANN office 37-305 Technology Management, Economics, and Policy Program Departmentof Industrial Engineering Collegeof Engineering Seoul National University 1 Gwanak-Ro, Gwanak-Gu, 08826 Seoul, South-Korea phone: +82 70 7678 6676 phone: +49 4155 129333 phone: +1 510 962 3062 phone: +44 20 32393134 fax: +1 610 956 4404 email: jorn.altmann(a)acm.org www: http://altmann.my-groups.de/

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ENIAC 2021 - Call For Papers
by Reinaldo A. C. Bianchi 21 May '21

21 May '21

CALL FOR PAPERS The 18th National Meeting on Artificial and Computational Intelligence Online event, organized by C4AI Center for Artificial Intelligence<https://c4ai.inova.usp.br/>, November 29 - December 03, 2021 >>> Deadline for paper submission: August 09, 2021 <<< ENIAC 2021 is the eighteenth of a series of successful meetings bringing together Artificial Intelligence and Computational Intelligence, supported by Brazilian Special Interest Groups on Artificial Intelligence and Computational Intelligence from Brazilian Computer Society. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the sanitary and economical related issues, the ENIAC 2021 will be held online as part of BRACIS 2021. Such event provides a forum for researchers, practitioners, educators, and students to present and discuss innovations, trends, experiences and developments in the fields of Artificial Intelligence and Computational Intelligence. In particular, it is the ideal event for undergraduate and postgraduate students to submit and present their first papers! ACTIVITIES AND THEMES Authors are encouraged to submit articles containing new ideas, discussions on existing work, practical studies, and experiments relevant to the field of Artificial and Computational Intelligence, which have not been previously published. The topics of interest include, but are not limited to: AI in Emerging Countries: Public Policies and the Future of Work Applications of Artificial Intelligence Artificial Life Artificial Neural Networks Automated Planning and Scheduling Automated Reasoning Computational Intelligence Computer Vision Data Mining Data Science Decision Making in Food Production Networks Decision Support Systems Deep Learning Distributed Artificial Intelligence and Multiagent Systems Evolutionary Computation and Metaheuristics Fundamentals of Artificial Intelligence Fuzzy Systems Graph-Oriented Machine Learning Hybrid Intelligent Systems Intelligent Human-Computer Interfaces Intelligent Information Systems Intelligent Robotic Intelligent Tutoring Systems Knowledge Acquisition Knowledge Base Construction Knowledge-Enhanced Machine Learning Knowledge Representation and Reasoning Logic Programming Machine Learning Machine Learning for Medical Diagnosis Model-Based Reasoning Natural Language Processing Natural Language Processing in Portuguese Ontologies Representation Learning Software Tools for Artificial Intelligence Text and Web Mining UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT SPECIAL TRACK AND BEST UNDERGRADUATE PAPER AWARD Following up on ENIAC 2020, we will have a special track for papers whose first author is an Undergraduate student. Such papers will undergo the same reviewing process as papers on the main track. However, the best papers in this track will be invited to make an oral presentation in a special session and will run for the Best Undergraduate Paper Award. PAPER FORMAT AND SUBMISSION Manuscripts are limited to twelve (12) pages including text, references, appendices, tables, and figures. Articles may be written either in Portuguese or English, using the SBC article style: SBC Template <http://www.sbc.org.br/documentos-da-sbc/summary/169-templates-para-artigos-…> Papers written in Portuguese must have titles and abstracts in English. Manuscripts that do not follow the formatting guidelines might be rejected without review. Submissions should be carried out online using the JEMS system: https://jems.sbc.org.br/jems2/ Please select the appropriate track (Undergraduate track for papers whose main author is an Undergraduate student, Main track for the others). The review process will be double-blind (authors' names and institutions must be omitted in the papers). All submitted papers will be reviewed by at least two experts in the field. Authors of accepted papers will be invited to present their work either in an oral presentation or in a poster session. All accepted papers will likely be published electronically through the SBC Open Lib - SOL. There will be no distinction between papers presented in oral or poster format in the proceedings. BEST PAPER AWARD AND SPECIAL ISSUE Authors of selected papers will be invited to present their work in a special session and will run for a Best Paper Award. IMPORTANT DATES Paper submission: August 09, 2021 Notification to authors: September 27, 2021 Camera-ready copy due: October 04, 2021

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BRACIS 2021 - Call For Papers
by Reinaldo A. C. Bianchi 21 May '21

21 May '21

Call For Papers 10th Brazilian Conference on Intelligent Systems (BRACIS) http://c4ai.inova.usp.br/bracis/ Online Event November 29 - December 03, 2021 >>>> Deadline for paper submissions: June 20, 2021 (extended) <<<< >>>> CALL FOR PAPERS <<<< The Program Committee of the 10th Brazilian Conference on Intelligent System (BRACIS) invites submissions of original research papers for the conference from November 29th to December 3th, 2021. Due to the COVID pandemic and the sanitary and economical related issues, the conference will be held online. BRACIS 2021 will be organized by C4AI Center for Artificial Intelligence (https://c4ai.inova.usp.br/). BRACIS is the most important event in Brazil for researchers in the fields of Artificial and Computational Intelligence. The Brazilian Conference on Intelligent Systems (BRACIS) originated from the combination of the two most traditional scientific events in Brazil in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Computational Intelligence (CI): the Brazilian Symposium on Artificial Intelligence - SBIA (21 editions ), and the Brazilian Symposium on Neural Networks - SBRN (12 editions). The conference aims to promote theory and applications of Artificial and Computational Intelligence. BRACIS also aims for the promotion of international level research by exchanging scientific ideas among researchers, practitioners, scientists, and engineers. IMPORTANT DATES - Paper submission - June 20, 2021 (extended) - Notification to authors - July 30, 2021 - Camera-ready copy due - August 19, 2021 SPECIAL ISSUES Authors of selected papers will be invited to submit extended versions of their work to be appreciated for publication in special issues after the conference. SUBMISSION DETAILS *** Please, note that BRACIS submission is double-blind *** This means that both the reviewer and author identities are concealed from the reviewers, and vice versa, throughout the review process. To facilitate this, authors need to ensure that their manuscripts are prepared in a way that does not reveal their identity. Submissions should include significant and unpublished research on all aspects of Artificial Intelligence (AI) or Computational Intelligence (CI). Submission format Submitted papers must be written in English, and not exceed 15 pages, including all tables, figures, references, and appendices. Formatting instructions, as well as templates for Word and LaTeX, are available at Conference Proceedings guidelines<https://www.springer.com/gp/computer-science/lncs/conference-proceedings-gu…>. Springer’s proceedings LaTeX templates are also available in Overleaf<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.overleaf.com_latex…> . All submitted papers will be reviewed by at least three experts in the field. Accepted papers will be included in the BRACIS proceedings, and submitted for publication in Springer in Lecture Notes in Computer Science (LNCS) / Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence (LNAI) series. Only PDF files can be uploaded in the submission system. [https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/IhrJhR4_lPr0gjUtatcXK5qAr38MvNaZVAPBX9bFx…] SUBMISSION SYSTEM JEMS - Journal and Event Management System (Coming soon) https://jems.sbc.org.br/jems2/ TOPICS OF INTEREST Topics of interest include (but are not restricted to): * Agent-based and Multi-Agent Systems * AI in Emerging Countries: Public Policies and the Future of Work * Bioinformatics and Biomedical Engineering * Cognitive Modeling and Human Interaction * Combinatorial and Numerical Optimization * Computer Vision * Constraints and Search * Decision Making in Food Production Networks * Deep Learning * Distributed AI * Education * Evolutionary Computation and Metaheuristics * Forecasting * Foundations of AI * Fuzzy Systems * Game Playing and Intelligent Interactive Entertainment * Graph-Oriented Machine Learning * Hybrid Systems * Information Retrieval, Integration, and Extraction * Intelligent Robotics * Knowledge-Enhanced Machine Learning * Knowledge Representation and Reasoning (including Commonsense Reasoning, Model-Based Reasoning, Probabilistic Reasoning, Approximate Reasoning) * Knowledge Representation and Reasoning in Ontologies and the Semantic Web * Logic-based Knowledge Representation and Reasoning * Machine Learning and Data Mining * Machine Learning for Medical Diagnosis * Meta-learning * Molecular and Quantum Computing * Multidisciplinary AI and CI * Natural Language Processing * Natural Language Processing in Portuguese * Neural Networks * Pattern Recognition and Cluster Analysis * Planning and Scheduling * Reinforcement Learning GENERAL CHAIR Reinaldo A. C. Bianchi, Centro Universitário FEI and C4AI Zhao Liang, Universidade de São Paulo (USP) and C4AI PROGRAM CHAIRS: André Britto, Universidade Federal de Sergipe (UFS) (andre(a)dcomp.ufs.br<mailto:andre@dcomp.ufs.br>) Karina Valdivia Delgado, Universidade de São Paulo (USP) (kvd(a)usp.br<mailto:kvd@usp.br>)

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Migration of robocup-worldwide list
by Ali Modaresi 18 May '21

18 May '21

Dear robocup-worldwide subscribers, RoboCup IT Team is currently migrating the mailing lists which are still hosted at Georgia Tech, to a server at robocup.org, because the old mailing list is being blocked by an increasing number of servers. The new address of the list (to be used to send messages to all the subscribers) is robocup-worldwide(a)lists.robocup.org The old address is not working anymore, therefore, please update the list address with the new one and remove the old one. Please note that the old passwords are not usable anymore. In order to get your password please enter your email address on https://lists.robocup.org/options/robocup-worldwide and then click on the remind button. You will receive an email with your password immediately. In addition, you can share the list link via https://lists.robocup.org/listinfo/robocup-worldwide Please don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions. Best regards, ╔════════════════════╗ ║ Ali Modaresi ║ ║ RoboCup IT support ║ ╚════════════════════╝

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