CALL FOR PAPERS
IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters
Special Issue on Autonomous System in Robotic Surgery: Current Challenges in Design, Modeling, Perception, Control and Applications
The advent of robot-assisted surgery has consistently improved the outcome of surgical procedures by providing more effective and precise medical interventions. Hence, in recent years, autonomous systems in robotic surgery have attracted growing research interests in an enormous scope of applications. Concurrently to the growing needs and requests of sophisticated mechanisms that can help, enhance the medical procedure and in some extent replace the medical practitioners, concerns related to the safety of completely autonomous surgical robotic systems have emerged during the years. Hence, how to integrate advanced designs, modeling, perception, learning, control, and cognition, which involve the highest levels of the imaginative ability to bring the multi-information together and create novel solutions, is an effective way to enhance the level of autonomy of intelligent surgical robotic system and it is becoming an inspiring and promising subject which aim at improving the performance of robotics surgery. However, there are still many challenges and problems related to safety of autonomous robotic surgical systems and their integration with the medical team which can be tackled only by developing more advanced robotic solutions.
Topics of interest for this special issue include and include but not limited to:
- Autonomous /semi-autonomous system for robotic-assisted surgery;
- Haptic mechanism in robotic surgery;
- Teleoperated system in robotic-assisted surgery;
- Image guided robotic-assisted surgery;
- Human-Robot interaction and collaboration in surgical systems;
- Sensory fusion and perception in surgical robotics;
- Interface in robotics surgery;
- Safety and robustness of robotic surgery devices.
Important Dates
- Call for Papers – 15 October 2020
- Papercept open for submission – 10 January 2021
- Submission deadline – 10 February 2021
- Authors receive RA-L reviews and recommendation – 07 May 2021
- Authors of accepted MS submit final RA-L version – 21 May 2021
- Authors of R&R MS resubmit revised MS – 06 June 2021
- Authors receive final RA-L decision – 11 July 2021
- Authors submit final RA-L files – 25 July 2021
- Camera ready version appears in RA-L on Xplore – 30 July 2021
- Final Publication – 10 August 2021
Guest Editors
Angela Faragasso, University of Tokyo, Japan, Email:Angelafar86@gmail.com
Jing Guo, Guangdong University of Technology, China, Email:toguojing@gmail.com
Hang Su, Politecnico di Milano Milan, Italy, Email: hang.su@ieee.org
Yue Chen, University of Arkansas, USA, Email: yc039@uark.edu
Elena De Momi, Politecnico di Milano, Italy, Email: elena.demomi@polimi.it
IEEE Transactions on Fuzzy Systems
Special Issue on Cyborg Intelligence: Human Enhancement with Fuzzy Sets
Aim and Scope
Well-known scientists and experts have expressed concern that robots may take over the world. More generally, there is concern that robots could take over human jobs and leave billions of people suffering long-term unemployment. Yet, such concerns ignored the potential of intelligence techniques to enhance the natural capabilities of human beings with in-the-body technologies and so become cyborgs with superior capabilities to robots. Cyborg intelligence is dedicated to improving the natural capabilities of human beings by integrating AI with biological intelligence and in-the-body technologies through tight integrations of machines and biological beings. The most critical challenges of cyborg intelligence include information fusion in sensory-motor integration, cognitive computational models, fuzzy control of cyborg systems, and related topics. Among these issues, fuzzy logic is a high-efficiency problem-solving control system that imitates the way people solve problems under uncertain, ambiguous, noisy, and even missed input information. Besides, the fuzzy logic system can use all the input and output data needed in processing. The key idea with the fuzzy logic is that inputs are taken from sensors having a certain value and transformed into membership values varying from 0 to 1. Recent theoretical developments on fuzzy sets provide novel perspectives for the key mechanisms of decision making and information processing in cyborg systems.
The goal of this special issue is to promote human enhancement with fuzzy systems through the theoretical frameworks of cyborg intelligence and publish frontier research and practical applications, which are concerned with hybrid fusion of organic and biomechatronic body parts with the integration of technologies including sensing, cognition, and fuzzy control across or between machines, humans, and organizations, where the sensing data should be comprehensively analyzed to help the robot take corresponding decisions concerning its position or other movements, and the fuzzy logic system is used for the artificial intelligence control algorithm of the cyborgs. Furthermore, the combination of new technologies, efficient scientific and engineering solutions, visions for future research, and the development of cyborg intelligence with fuzzy systems will also be provided.
With the rapid development of bionic technology, it is believed cyborg intelligence can assist humans to conquer many natural limitations such as disability, speed, strength, as well as intelligence. However, many challenges will still lie ahead. Thus, this special issue serves as an essential and timely update on this topic and should be of interest to potential readers.
Topics Covered
The lists of possible topics include, but are not limited to:
- Fuzzy-based augmented cognition and decision making on cyborg intelligence
- Fuzzy mechanisms for learning approaches and data-driven approaches to cyborg systems
- Computational intelligence methods via fuzzy logic (Energy-efficient optimization problem) with applications to cyborg systems
- Fuzzy-based sensing, fusion, and features extraction on cyborg intelligence
- Human-In-the-loop fuzzy control in human-centered cyborg systems
- Fuzzy control theory through extensions of ordinary fuzzy sets on cyborg control
- Applications of fuzzy-based cyborg intelligence on rehabilitation robotics, prosthesis and exoskeleton robotics, medical and surgical robots, biomimetic robots
Submission Guidelines
- Ensure you choose ‘Special Issue’ when submitting.
- A cover letter must be included which includes the title ‘Special Issue on Cyborg Intelligence: Human Enhancement with Fuzzy Sets’.
Important Dates
- 30 September 2021: Submission deadline
- July 2022: notification of first round of reviews
- September 2022: revised submissions due (for guidance only)
- November 2022: Final notice of acceptance/rejection
Guest Editors
Lead Guest Editor
- Zhijun Li, University of Science and Technology of China, China, Email: zjli@ieee.org
- Jian Huang, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, China, Email: huang_jan@mail.hust.edu.cn
Co-Guest Editor
- Hang Su, Politecnico di Milano, Italy, Email: hang.su@polimi.it
- Zhaojie Ju, University of Portsmouth, UK., UK, Email: zhaojie.ju@port.ac.uk
IEEE Journal of Biomedical and Health Informatics
Special Issue on AI-driven Synthetic Biology for Human Wellbeing
Synthetic biology aims at the rational design and transformation of biological systems, and it is characterized by theintegration of traditional biology, engineering, computer science and other disciplines. Synthetic biology has showngreat development potential in recent years. However, the biological system is extremely complex, which is difficultto accurately describe by traditional mathematical model. And it is also still unable to effectively predict thecomplex gene lines. In this background, construction of AI-driven engineering platform is an important research method of synthetic biological system.
With the rapid development of artificial intelligence in recent years, its continuous learning ability based on massive data and intelligent exploration ability in unknown space effectively meet the needs of the current trial and error platform for synthetic biological systems engineering. Through data driven and continuous learning, the deep integration of artificial intelligence and synthetic biology is the general trend, which brings new opportunities for the development of synthetic biology.
In this special issue, we are looking for emerging technologies, novel studies, and promising developments, which can realize and elevate the effectiveness and advantages of AI-driven synthetic biology for human wellbeing.
Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Graph neural network in sythetic biology
- Reinforcement learning in sythetic biology
- Meta learning in sythetic biology
- Explainable AI in synthetic biology
- AI-driven synthetic biology based drug development
- AI-driven synthetic biology based diagnostic techniques
- Construction of AI-driven synthetic biological information database
- AI-driven gene sequence analysis technology
- AI-driven synthetic biology for intelligent health system
- Data classification and clustering for intelligent health system
- AI-driven synthetic biology for vaccine development
Key Dates
- 30 September 2021: Submission deadline
- 30 October 2021: First Reviews Due
- 30 November 2021: Revised Manuscript Due
- 30 December 2021: Final Decision
Guest Editors
Houbing Song, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, USA, Email:h.song@ieee.org.com
Yuan Zhang(AE), Southwest University, China, Email:yuanzhang@swu.edu.com
Jose Neuman Souza, Universidade Federal do Ceara, Brazil, Email: neuman@ufc.br
Jianqiang Li, Shenzhen University, China, Email: lijq@szu.edu.cn
Frontiers in Robotics and AI Field Robotics Sensor Fusion and Machine Perception Robotic Control Systems
Special Issue on Telerobotics in Demanding Environments
In demanding work environments, for example, nuclear, chemical, disaster response, construction/demolition, mining, submarine tasks, there are extreme risks to the health and safety of human workers. Telerobotics is an obvious solution that can remove/distance people from such dangers. Advanced telerobotics technologies linked to dexterous locomotion and mobile manipulation platforms can substitute or assist workers in all stages, reducing or eliminating their exposure to hazards. There are two parts involved, for robots to be able to physically perform tasks and to problem-solve in complex environments. First, is the capabilities of the robot itself. This includes manipulation, locomotion, sensing, the capacity to withstand harsh conditions, etc. Second, is intelligent user interaction interface(s) that allow the human operator to intuitively control the task execution through immersive remote teleoperation.
The aim of this Research Topic is to capture promising research trends in Telerobotics in Demanding Environments. There are three key domains in remote telerobotic task execution: (i) Operator situational awareness through perception (visual, haptic, acoustic, etc.), cognition, and control in the remote environment; (ii) Remote robot capabilities (loco-manipulation, sensing, robust control, etc.); and (iii) Communication to allow seamless, high-bandwidth, low-latency, bi-directional exchange of information, in relation to real-time teleoperation.
This Research Topic will explore and understand how recent advances in these three domains can create a step-change in telerobotics in demanding and/or dangerous environments. The goal is to capture, not only the progress in operator situational awareness in teleoperation but also the enhancements in robot capabilities with respect to operating in high-risk environments.
To achieve this goal, the Research Topic will showcase recent developments that improve operator performance in telerobotics through the use of mixed reality interfaces, immersive haptic teleoperation, and multimodal sensory feedback. At the same time, the advancements in robot design, control, and sensing capabilities for executing tasks in harsh environments will be highlighted. The novel use of cloud robotics and advanced communication infrastructures will further demonstrate the full potential of telerobotic systems in the real world.
Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Mixed reality interfaces for telerobotics
- Haptic teleoperation in real-world tasks
- Advanced Tele-locomotion on difficult terrain
- Multimodal sensory perception (visual, haptic, acoustic, others)
- Robot design and control for harsh environments
- AI, perception, and scene understanding in dirty and cluttered environments
- Dexterous telemanipulation in cluttered spaces
- Shared autonomy and interactive learning in remote human-robot interaction
Key Dates
- 14 May 2021: Submission deadline
- 14 June 2021: First Reviews Due
- 14 July 2021: Revised Manuscript Due
- 14 August 2021: Final Decision
Guest Editors
Nikhil Deshpande, Italian Institute of Technology, Italy
Jinoh Lee, Helmholtz Association of German Research Centers, Germany
Fei Chen, Italian Institute of Technology, Italy
Kenjiro TADAKUMA, Tohoku University, Japan
IEEE Robotics and Automation Letter
Special Issue on Learning and Control for Robot Compliant Manipulation with Human in the Loop Motivation
This Special Issue is motivated by recent developments of robotic control methods, learning algorithms and relevant technologies for compliant manipulation. A large number of researchers have reported their significant contributions to this topic. However, there lacks a Special Issue of any relevant journal concentrating on this interesting topic. We believe that the cognitive and learning abilities as well as intelligent control methods are very important in the development of the next generation of robots of compliant manipulation, and therefore deserve to be studied and discussed in a dedicated special issue.
Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Dynamic environment estimation and prediction
- Machine learning-based compliant skill acquirement
- Imitation learning and applications to robot compliant manipulation
- Intelligent control design for robot compliant manipulation
- Physical human robot compliant interaction
- Optimization of human robot collaboration for compliant manufacturing automation.
- Safety for human in the loop robot manipulation in flexible/agile manufacturing
Key Dates
- 16 Sep 2021: Papercept open for submission
- 01 Oct 2021: Submission deadline
- 26 Dec 2021: Authors receive RA-L reviews and recommendation
- 09 Jan 2022: Authors of accepted MS submit final RA-L version
- 25 Jan 2022: Authors of R&R MS resubmit revised MS
- 01 Mar 2022: Authors receive final RA-L decision
- 15 Mar 2022: Authors submit final RA-L files
- 20 Mar 2022: Camera ready version appears in RA-L on Xplore
- 30 Mar 2022: Final Publication
Guest Editors
Chenguang Yang, Bristol Robotics Laboratory, UWE Bristol, UK, Email: cyang@ieee.org
Miao Li, Wuhan University, China, Email: miao.li@whu.edu.cn
Hao Ding, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, China, Email: hao.ding@usst.edu.cn
Andrea M. Zanchettin, Politecnico di Milano, Italy, Email: andreamaria.zanchettin@polimi.it
Julie A. Shah, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA, Email: julie_a_shah@csail.mit.edu
IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters
Special Issue on Robotic Handling of Deformable Objects
Motivation
There is a growing interest in the robotics community to investigate the handling of deformable objects. The ability to interact with deformable objects promises new applications for robots: cable assembly in industrial settings, doing laundry in households, dressing assistance in elderly care, organs and tissues manipulation in surgical operations, or fragile samples collection in underwater/space robotics, to name a few. However, deformable objects are considerably more complex to deal with than rigid ones. Specifically, some of the new challenges involved in handling object deformation are the following:
(1) The difficulty of sensing the deformation,
(2) The infinite degrees of freedom of the deformation configuration,
(3) The complexity of the high nonlinearity in modeling the deformation.
As a result, there is a necessity for novel methodological and technological approaches in this field, and these advances need to cover the full spectrum of robotic problems and tasks (perception, modeling, planning, and control).
Therefore, the aim of this special issue is to collect the latest research results that handle deformable objects in various robotic applications.
List of topics
Topics of interest for this special issue include and are not limited to:
- Sensing (e.g., vision, tactile) of deformable objects
- Robotic manipulation of deformable objects (planning, control, grasping, grippers design, etc.)
- Modeling of deformable objects for robotic handling
- Multi-robot and human-robot handling of deformable objects
- Benchmarking robotic handling of deformable objects
- Robot learning for handling deformable objects
- Mobile manipulation of deformable objects (with legged, wheeled, aerial or underwater robots)
Timeline
The special issue will follow the following timeline:
- 23 June 2021: Call for Papers
- 23 Sept 2021: Papercept open for submission
- 08 Oct 2021: Submission deadline
- 02 Jan 2022: Authors receive RA-L reviews and recommendation
- 16 Jan 2022: Authors of accepted MS submit final RA-L version
- 01 Feb 2022: Authors of R&R MS resubmit revised MS
- 08 Mar 2022: Authors receive final RA-L decision
- 22 Mar 2022: Authors submit final RA-L files
- 27 Mar 2022: Camera ready version appears in RA-L on Xplore
- 06 April 2022: Final Publication
Guest Editors
Jihong Zhu, TU Delft/Honda Research Institute Europe, Netherlands/Germany, Email: j.zhu-3@tudelft.nl
Claire Dune, Laboratoire COSMER – EA 7398, Université de Toulon, France, Email: claire.dune@univ-tln.fr
Miguel Aranda, CNRS, Clermont Auvergne INP, Institut Pascal, Université Clermont Auvergne, France, Email: miguel.aranda@sigma-clermont.fr
Youcef Mezouar, CNRS, Clermont Auvergne INP, Institut Pascal, Université Clermont Auvergne, France, Email: youcef.mezouar@sigma-clermont.fr
Juan Antonio Corrales, University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain, Email: juanantonio.corrales@usc.es
Pablo Gil, University of Alicante, Spain, Email: pablo.gil@ua.es
Gonzalo López-Nicolás, University of Zaragoza, Spain, Email: gonlopez@unizar.es
