Textbook in PDF format

Illuminating resource presenting commonly used robotic methodologies and technologies, with recent developments and clear application examples across different project types.
Infrastructure Robotics presents state-of-the-art research in infrastructure robotics and key methodologies that enable the development of intelligent robots for operation in civil infrastructure environments, describing sensing, perception, localization, map building, environmental and operation awareness, motion and task planning, design methodologies, robot assistance paradigms, and physical human-robot collaboration. The text also presents many case studies of robotic systems developed for real-world applications in maintaining various civil infrastructures, including steel bridges, tunnels, underground water mains, underwater structures, and sewer pipes. In addition, later chapters discuss lessons learned in deployment of intelligent robots in practical applications overall.
Infrastructure Robotics provides a timely and thorough treatment of the subject pertaining to recent developments, such as computer vision and machine learning techniques that have been used in inspection and condition assessment of critical civil infrastructures, including bridges, tunnels, and more.
Written by highly qualified contributors with significant experience in both academia and industry,Infrastructure Robotics covers topics such as:
Design methods for application of robots in civil infrastructure inspired by biological systems including ants, inchworms, and humans
Fundamental aspects of research on intelligent robotic co-workers for human-robot collaborative operations
The ROBO-SPECT European project and a robotized alternative to manual tunnel structural inspection and assessment
Wider context for the use of additive manufacturing techniques on construction sites
Maintaining civil infrastructure assets, including bridges, tunnels, water mains, power and telecommunication transmission towers, underwater wharf piles, and sewers, has traditionally been labor intensive and often hazardous for workers. The need for safe, efficient, and effective infrastructure maintenance has led to a desire, across industry sectors, to automate maintenance operations. Intelligent robots that can work either on their own or collaboratively with humans in a structural environment offer a highly promising solution to maintenance operations.
Significant progress has been made in developing robotic systems for civil infrastructure inspection and maintenance. Increasing numbers of students, practitioners, researchers, and professionals are becoming interested in this exciting field. The editors, who have been conducting infrastructure robotics research for over 20 years, think that a book that provides comprehensive, state-of-the-art information about infrastructure robotics will address an important gap in the literature, as there are currently very few books available on this topic. Internationally renowned researchers in infrastructure robotics have authored various chapters of this book.
The book is organized into two parts. Part I discusses the methodologies that enable robots to operate in civil infrastructure environments for inspection and maintenance. It includes an introduction to infrastructure robotics (Chapter 1), the design of infrastructure robotic systems (Chapter 2), robot perception, localization and SLAM (Chapter 3), Machine Learning and Computer Vision algorithms (Chapter 4), robotic coverage planning (Chapter 5), and physical human–robot collaboration for infrastructure maintenance (Chapter 6). Part I does not cover the fundamentals of robotics, such as kinematics, dynamics, and control because there are many textbooks that cover these topics.
Part II presents 11 case studies that highlight different types of intelligent robotic systems designed for maintaining various civil infrastructures. These include climbing robots, underwater robots, wheeled robots, legged robots, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Each case study focuses on a specific type of infrastructure and its corresponding robotic systems. The case studies cover a wide range of civil infrastructures, such as steel bridges (Chapter 7), underwater structures (Chapter 8), tunnels (Chapter 9), underground construction (Chapter 10), underground water mains (Chapter 11), wastewater pipes (Chapter 12), confined spaces in steel structures (Chapter 13), electrical power lines (Chapter 14), oil refineries (Chapter 15), and solar panels (Chapter 16). Additionally, Chapter 17 discusses aerial repair and manufacturing techniques. These case studies provide insights and lessons learned from the development and deployment of robots for practical applications. Readers can gain knowledge and understanding of the challenges, successes, and practical considerations associated with implementing robotic systems for infrastructure maintenance.
The intended readers of this book are researchers, engineers, and graduate students who are interested in design, control, and use of intelligent robotic systems for inspection and maintenance of civil infrastructures. Professionals in civil engineering, asset management, and project management may be also interested in reading this book. We hope that the readers would find this book interesting and useful in their research as well as in practical engineering work