Foto by www.Lakeside-Labs.com

An interdisciplinary workshop on self-organization and swarm intelligence in cyber physical systems was held at Lakeside Labs this week. Experts presented their work and discussed open issues in this exciting field.

“Our crazyswarm is the largest indoor drone swarm that I’m aware of,” Nora Ayanian states. The assistant professor from the Viterbi School of Engineering at the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles was recently described by MIT Technology Review to be one of “35 innovators under 35.” She came to Klagenfurt to expound her latest results on multirobot coordination. She advocates for taking the perspective of a robot when designing coordination algorithms. Her team thus programmed a multiplayer computer game in which people have to form a certain spatial pattern by moving around, but they are constrained by the limited view of a robot and are not allowed to use any explicit communication. She expects new insights from this game for the development of a human-inspired approach for robot coordination.

The second keynote was given by Gianni Di Caro from Carnegie Mellon University. His talk emphasized latest advances in wearable interfaces for multi-modal interaction between humans and robot swarms. His philosophy is that most computations, such as decoding and fusion of vocal and gestural commands, are not done in the robots but in the wearable devices. Gianni was also a guest in Klagenfurt in 2013. “I enjoyed the Lakeside Research Days so much, that’s why I came back,” he says.

Two additional highlights were the presentations by Johannes Gerstmayr, professor for machine elements and design at the University of Innsbruck, and Thomas Schmickl, a professor for biology at the University of Graz. Gerstmayr introduced his adaptive tetrahedal elements, which can be put together to form reconfigurable robots and programmable matter. It is fascinating to imagine that these elements have the potential to enable reconfigurable furniture and art objects. Schmickl explained that entities in biological swarms might not need any explicit communication in order to collaborate. He also explained that the behavior of honeybees is quite diverse, and that only seven percent of honeybees are “goal finders” having the capability to systematically find a certain target, such as heat spots. According to Schmickl, the most promising application of swarm robotics is the search for extraterrestrial life forms. He currently develops swarms of small underwater robots for this purpose, which will soon be tested in the Adriatic Sea.

About 30 people attended the 2017 Lakeside Research Days, which was held in collaboration with the University of Klagenfurt from July 10 – 12, 2017. Emphasis was on scientific interaction and group work. The participants discussed, for example, the differences between swarms and controlled systems and concluded that swarms are especially useful in unknown and changing environments. The program also included laboratory sessions with training on micro-robots and talks from the Horizon 2020 project CPSwarm.

Keynotes were sponsored by the Lakeside Science & Technology Park GmbH, Infineon Technologies Austria AG, KELAG, and the TeWi-Förderverein. Melanie Schranz, senior researcher at Lakeside Labs and one of the organizers, is very satisfied with the outcome of the workshop: “I gained a lot of inspiration from great people for my own research,” she concludes.

Further impressions about the event can be found at Twitter Moments and #resdays17.

#resdays17 Tweets

Raheeb Muzaffar, an information technology specialist, has developed an application-layer framework that improves the transmission of videos between moving drones and mobile devices located at ground level. His work within the Interactive and Cognitive Environments (ICE) doctoral programme will be completed soon. Raheeb explains what makes this technology innovative and talks about his plans for the future in a conversation with Romy Mueller.

Raheeb Muzaffar was already aware of what to expect when he arrived in Klagenfurt as a PhD student, travelling from Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, December 2012: He’s travelled well before, had experience working with various universities and professional organizations, and was acquainted both with the European culture and the research environment. The doctoral programme “Interactive and Cognitive Environments (ICE)” suited him perfectly, allowing him to conduct research in an international environment. Doctoral students accepted into the programme are funded for a period of three years. During this time, they work at two universities. The research teams at the Alpen-Adria-Universität and the Queen Mary University in London offered Muzaffar, who wanted to work on the communication between drones, an environment that allowed him insight into various laboratories and research approaches. By combining the key research areas he experienced in Austria and Great Britain, he ultimately arrived at his very own topic: video transmission in drone networks.

He spotted a problematic issue in this context, which he has studied very closely over the past few years. “In a situation where several drones are airborne and are transmitting videos to several units located at ground level, we cannot currently guarantee that the footage will be reliably transmitted.” The problem is that the receiving devices do not have a feedback mechanism for the video packets being transmitted from the drones. The missing feedback mechanism causes unreliability rendering a distorted video reception. Also, when the transmitting devices and the receiving devices are in motion, the wireless transmission conditions are subject to continuous change, introducing an additional factor of uncertainty.

To address this problem, Raheeb Muzaffar has developed a so-called “video multicast streaming framework”, which allows feedback from multiple ground devices to the drones to add reliability allowing a smooth video reception. However, the framework is even more capable: “The drone does not only learn whether the video has arrived, but thanks to the feedback mechanism, the drone can adjust the transmission rate and the video quality to match the prevailing wireless conditions. Thus, the transmitting drones can re-send lost video packets following the transmission and video rate adaption.” Video communication between drones and receiving devices is useful for various applications such as search and rescue, surveillance, and disaster management.

When we asked him, if he can make profitable use of his technology, Raheeb Muzaffar laughed. At various conferences, he talked to the developers from the industry, who confirmed to him that modules endowed with similar functionality are expensive and that the WLAN protocol requires modification. However, his application is freely available. Anyone wishing to commercialise the technology as a product, is able to do so. In any case, over the course of numerous simulations and experiments, he has demonstrated that the streaming framework works and uses the conventional WLAN protocol without modifications.

Muzaffar’s research in Klagenfurt is coming to an end. By November, he will complete his doctoral thesis, and will pull up stakes in Klagenfurt, following his hopes and dreams to work in the research-based industry. The researcher was accompanied by his wife when he came to Klagenfurt. In the meantime, they celebrated the birth of their daughter. The Muzaffar family intends to travel more: “I am not tied to one location. I would enjoy working anywhere in Europe, but we also like the idea of moving to New Zealand.”

A few words with Raheeb Muzaffar

What career would you have chosen, if you had not become a scientist?

If I would not have become a scientist, I would have become a social worker. Before turning to research, I worked with Non-governmental organizations including iMMAP and UNICEF thinking that my technical expertise could help expedite the social work that the organizations are involved in. Besides the work I do plan to involve myself in some sort of social work may it be technical, educational, financial or emotional.

Do your parents understand what it is you are working on?

Yes, especially my father, he is quite interested in technology. He may not have the technical details but he is aware of research and the work I am involved in.

What is the first thing you do when you arrive at the office in the morning?

First thing in the morning is to check and answer my emails. Thereafter, I work by the plan. I always have a plan for the week/month regarding the tasks I need to do. Although sometimes things don’t go by the plan and I have to readjust the plan to meet deadlines.

Do you have proper holidays? Without thinking about your work?

Yes, at least once a year.

Why are so many people afraid of technical sciences?

In my opinion, every individual has a different aptitude to his/her work domain and one should do what one thinks he/she is interested in and can perform best. Having said that, working in the domain of technical science is quite challenging. The field has advanced and it is getting increasingly complex to even gain the basic understanding of different domains. To work in this field, one has to stay up to date. Developing something new involves a minimal margin of error. I think, people are afraid due to the complex nature of the studies that involve an extra bit of hard work, understanding, and patience.

Written by: Romy Müller, University of Klagenfurt

Originally published in German language in AAU News of the University of Klagenfurt, Austria. Also published at Medium.com.

Samira Hayat looking at drone. Source: Lakeside-Labs.com

Samira Hayat is following her calling: She has been a member of the Mobile Systems research team at the Department of Networked and Embedded Systems since 2012. Before that, she studied in Trento. Many years have passed since she left the “comfort zone” of her home country Pakistan and embraced the challenge of finding her way around new cultural spheres. Hayat is no stranger to leaving comfort zones behind. In doing so, she continues to discover new delight in her work and life.

Hayat’s research explores networks of drones. Drones that perform aerial patrols of vast areas and solve complicated tasks often rely on a large number of individual helicopters, which have to cooperate and communicate. This requires network technologies. Compared to networks located at ground-level, experience has shown that the demands posed by the airspace represent a far more complex challenge.

“They are highly mission-specific. Depending on whether my aim is to observe a construction site, to map a large area, or to distribute goods, I need the network of drones to draw upon a different set of characteristics each time. I chose to specialise in a fourth category – rescue missions.“

In order to rescue a casualty buried by an avalanche, the drones must locate the person very quickly, but must also pass the information on to the emergency services rapidly, so that they can act without delay.

Listening to Hayat as she speaks about the challenges of her research work, the enthusiasm with which she approaches the subject is apparent. She links this to another mission: “The human factor is also important for me. The work I do can really make a difference.”

The rescue missions performed by drone networks are highly involved, covering many separate sub-sections such as detection and communication. Currently, she is particularly interested in determining optimal processes from a mathematical perspective: Would it be better to merge these sub-sections for the purpose of a joint mission, or should they be split? Consequently, mathematics is gaining importance in her work and this, she admits, is something she was rather anxious about at first. However, she soon found that “once you have immersed yourself in the subject, you really begin to enjoy it.”

Taking turns, a pronounced practical orientation and theory both tend to feature strongly in Samira Hayat’s work. Listening closely while she speaks, a clear impression emerges that the right diversion and challenge always came at exactly the right time. Having long held an interest in mathematics and physics, she chose a rather abstract degree in electrical engineering, as mechanical engineering was less highly regarded in Pakistan at the time.

“Electrical engineering has a lot do with using your imagination and less with physical devices. When I compared my decision with other options, it was precisely this challenging abstract aspect that drew me to electrical engineering“, Hayat explains.

Ultimately, it proved to be the right decision. Concentrating on the networks of drones allowed her to benefit significantly from “learning by doing” when she first came to Klagenfurt. The experiments were very closely linked to the hardware, and experience showed that the little helicopters do not always obey the commands they are given.

“I really enjoyed this part of the work. Not everyone considers it to be academic, but this particular field is definitely part of scientific practice.”

Hayat has spent the past year at her desk engaged in theoretical work. She is close to completing her doctoral thesis.

“I have reached the point where I am able to appreciate how much I have learned, and what potentially remains to be discovered. I’m also aware that time is running out.”

This spring, Hayat will be spending four months as visiting researcher at the prestigious Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh. She is looking forward to becoming acquainted with new approaches and to presenting her own research results. Once more, Hayat is on a journey; one of her great passions alongside cooking and spending time with friends.

“I have always wanted to travel the world”, she says. Hayat grew up as one of seven siblings; her father is a doctor. Her four sisters also chose to become doctors, following their father’s wish. One brother qualified as a pilot and another brother is currently pursuing an engineering degree. Hayat finds it hard to imagine returning to her native country one day, and following a traditional path involving marriage and family.

However, she is keeping an open mind: “Anything could happen. I try to be as flexible as possible, and that demands a lot of energy. But I think this is a better use of energy than when it is invested in making plans, which end up being thrown overboard.” This also applies to the time after her doctoral studies: It remains to be seen what will seem important and right at the given time. An academic career, a position in industry, or starting a business venture – the possibilities are endless.

Written by: Romy Müller

Originally published in ad astra Magazin für Wissenschaft und Kultur der Alpen-Adria-Universität

Such multi-UAV systems were in the focus of the Sixth Lakeside Research Days organized and hosted by Lakeside Labs and the University of Klagenfurt in Klagenfurt, Austria, from July 8 to 12, 2013.

Concept and Program

The Research Days are a special format of workshop. Besides keynote talks given by invited experts from academia and industry, they feature a demonstration session, intensive group work, discussions on technological and business aspects, and social activities for attendees.

The keynotes were as follows:

• Small flying robots: Design and visual navigation
  By Roland Siegwart (ETH Zürich)
• Fusion of distributed perception in collaborative visual-SLAM approaches on mini-UAVs
  By Darius Burschka (TU München)
• Exploiting redundancy for reliable aerial computer vision
  By Horst Bischof (TU Graz)
• Aerial imaging and wireless communications with multiple autonomous UAVs
  By Christian Bettstetter and Evsen Yanmaz (U Klagenfurt and Lakeside Labs)
• Decisional issues in multi-UAV systems
  By Simon Lacroix (LAAS/CNRS)
• Slalom racing and flight dances: motion planning, control and learning for high-performance quadrocopter flight
  By Angela Schöllig (U Toronto)
• Multi-spectral people detection from UAVs
  By Stephen Cameron (Oxford)

A panel with Roland Siegwart, Hermann Hellwagner (Klagenfurt), Phil Charlesworth (EADS), and Michaël Rischmüller (Parrot) discussed business opportunities and start-up ideas of UAV systems.

Further information can be found in the final program and the Twitter feed #resdays13.

Media Coverage

The event was covered by various media including Austrian television ORF and the newspaper Der Standard (article Drones in peace missions).

Cover of “Der Standard” from 17 July, 2013

Impressions of the First Day

Keynote by Siegwart: Small flying robots

Keynote by Schöllig: Slalom racing and flight dancing

Image Gallery

Photos by Christian Philipp (Lakeside Labs GmbH) and Christian Bettstetter.