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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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