Page 329 - Concise Encyclopedia of Robotics

Temperature Sensing
interplanetary scale. The Moon is more than a light-second away from
Earth; the Sun is 8 light-minutes away. The nearest stars are at distances
of several light-years. The delay between the sending of a command and
the arrival of the return signal must be less than 0.1 s if telepresence is to
be realistic. This means that the telechir cannot be more than about
15,000 km, or 9300 mi, away from the control operator.
Another problem is the resolution of the robotic vision system.A human
being with good eyesight can see things with several times the detail of
the best fast-scan television sets. To send that much detail, at realistic
speed, requires a huge signal bandwidth. There are engineering problems
(and cost problems) that go along with this.
Still another limitation is best put as a question: How will a robot be
able to “feel”something and transmit these impulses to the human brain?
For example, an apple feels smooth, a peach feels fuzzy, and an orange
feels shiny yet bumpy. How can this sense of texture be realistically trans-
mitted to the human brain? Will people allow electrodes to be implanted
in their brains so they can perceive the universe as if they are robots?
For further information
For details about the latest progress in this field, consult a good college or
university library. The Internet can be a useful source of information, but
one must check the dates on which Web sites were last revised.Information
on some specific topics can be found in this book under the following
headings: AUTONOMOUS ROBOT, BACK PRESSURE SENSOR, BINOCULAR MACHINE VISION,
BINAURAL MACHINE HEARING, CAPACITIVE PROXIMITY SENSING, EXOSKELETON, FLYING EYEBALL,
MILITARY ROBOT, SURGICAL ASSISTANCE ROBOT, POLICE ROBOT, POSITION SENSING, PRESSURE SENSING,
PROPRIOCEPTOR, REMOTE CONTROL, ROBOTIC SPACE TRAVEL, SUBMARINE ROBOT, TACTILE
SENSING, TELEOPERATION, TEMPERATURE SENSING, TEXTURE SENSING, and VISION SYSTEM.
TEMPERATURE SENSING
In a robotic system, temperature sensing is one of the easiest things to do.
Digital thermometers are commonplace nowadays, and cost very little.
The output from a digital thermometer can be fed directly to a micro-
computer or robot controller, allowing a robot to ascertain the temperature
at any given location.
Temperature data can cause a robotic system to behave in various
ways. An excellent practical example is a fleet of fire-protection robots.
Temperature sensors can be located in many places throughout a house,
manufacturing plant, nuclear power plant, or other facility.At each sensor
location, a critical temperature can be determined in advance. If the
temperature at some sensor location rises above the critical level, a signal
is sent to a central computer. The computer can dispatch one or more

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