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Microsoft Robotic Developer Studio (RDS) comes with a Visual Simulation Environment (VSE) which is a virtual world that obeys the laws of physics. Developers use VSE to run their robots in a virtual world using the same code used in the real world. VSE allows you to do this because the entities that you place in VSE look, behave, act, and communicate the same way that real hardware components do.

You can use it to test advance algorithms such as system control and AI without buying any hardware. Once you get your code working in VSE, then you use the same code to control your robot using real robot hardware.

For example, if you want to build a robot using various sensors such as a laser range finder, camera, and bumpers located on various parts of a vehicle and you wanted to develop code to use the data from these sensors to control the vehicle as it navigates through a small town, you can use Microsoft RDS (Robotic Developer Studio) and VSE to build and test all your code and see if it really works as expected before buying and testing in a real robot vehicle.

This meeting will show you the basics for creating your virtual world and some of the tools and services available. The meeting is expect to be 2 hours and all are welcome.

I will provide a 4 hour training session covering the basics of using Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio (MRDS) for building robotic systems. We will cover CCR, DSS, and the most used tools so you will gain a working knowledge of how to build robots using this technology.

You will need a portable (laptop or notebook) PC running either Windows XP or Vista. You will also need Visual Studio Express 2008 (free) configured to use c#. I will bring the installation S/W on a thumb drive so we can load your PC at the begin of the training session. We will start the actual training at 10:30 AM. Come at 10:00 AM if you don't have the S/W installed.

This meeting will cover the just released version (2.0).

All are welcome.

We all know there is some complexity using Microsoft Robotic Developer Studio (MRDS). However, once you learn some basic patterns, it all falls into place. In this workshop, we will kickoff two projects from scratch. Those who participate will see how easy it is to build robots using this technology once the basics are understood. The two projects are:

1) Deformable Object Manipulation - description:

There is growing interest in the robotics community to be able to manipulate "soft" deformable objects such as clothing. This project will use real hardware (Lynxmotion 6 jointed robotic arm) to grip and fold articles of clothing (socks), making some simplifying assumptions. The hardware will be provided. We will build the project together, step by step, sharing ideas along the way. You can be an observer if you want and you are free to jump in and do specific tasks if you feel motivated. The only prerequisite is software coding experience. At the end of this project, you should be proficient using MRDS, robotic arms, and deformable object manipulation.

2) RoboChamps - description:

This project involves solving the RoboChamps Amazed (http://www.robochamps.com/rc/Common/challenge.aspx) challenge. The objective is to successfully navigate a maze with an autonomous robot, avoiding traps and surprises. This is a simulated challenge and requires only Visual Studio, MRDS (formerly MSRS), and the challenge software. All those items are free. We anticipate a combination of collaborative and individual efforts performed at the meetings and at home.

Whether you want to participate in one or the other or just find out more about what is going on, all are welcome.