Remote Excavation on W3Remote Excavation on W3In May of 1994 the Departments of Anthropology and Computer Science at the University of Southern California began a collaborative project to develop a World Wide Web (WWW) server allowing users to "leave the Web" and interact with the real world. Although several existing servers already allowed users to interact with virtual worlds contained within the Web, our goal was to create the first system to allow Mosaic users to actually manipulate and explore a physical environment.
After a series of preliminary meetings, the team began work on a robotic excavation system. The system consists of a commercial robot arm fitted with a CCD camera to pass images to users. A robot operator can remotely move the arm - by clicking on an ISMAP - to select a viewpoint along X, Y and Z coordinates. Orientation is provided by the live images from the camera as well as a rendered map indicating the position of the arm in the environment.
The robot is stationed over a dry-earth surface, and a pneumatic system allows users to direct short bursts of compressed air onto the surface. Thus Mosaic users can "excavate" regions within the environment by positioning the arm, delivering a burst of air, and viewing an image of the newly cleared region. Various objects have been placed within the environment, and users are asked to decipher the underlying logic connecting the objects.
The project involved several technical and theoretical issues which are worth noting. In relation to interface design, the server required the development of new methods for dealing with issues such as user authentication, user queueing and interface security. Here the interdisciplinary collaboration was crucial to the project's success, and was greatly facilitated by using the WWW as a "virtual workspace." We held very few "face-to-face" meetings, using the Web as a means to discuss issues and present ideas to the team.
We see the project as an important step toward using similar systems in a variety of applications. The project has important implications for using the WWW in teleoperation, remote inspection, and remote manufacturing. It also has direct implications for education and research, particularly as related to the remote observation and manipulation of a physical environment and/or of individual objects.
You will now have the opportunity to observe and operate the robot. The
team has is also in the process of establishing a forum for discussing issues
related to the project, and we will post an address here in the near future.
Further information on the project will soon be available regarding:
Proceed to Robot Interface