Keywords
Citation
Thrun, S., Burgard, W. and Fox, D. (2006), "Probalistic Robotics", Kybernetes, Vol. 35 No. 7/8, pp. 1299-1300. https://doi.org/10.1108/03684920610675292
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2006, Emerald Group Publishing Limited
When a new area of any field develops it is always difficult to determine the right moment to introduce it as an established ongoing endeavour. Has there been sufficient development to justify a text? The authors are obviously convinced that the time is right and provide an excellent account of this new and developing area in robotics. The challenge is not one that is unfamiliar to those working in fields that are truly interdisciplinary, since probalistic robotics addresses perception and control in the face of uncertainty. This growing area is built on the base of mathematical statistics. Its advocates claim that probalistic robotics endows robots with a new level of robustness in real‐world situations.
The book's authors have provided a web site (www.probabilistic‐robotics.org) which is able to supplement the main text and provide what they consider to be more useful information about this newly presented material.
The chapters revolve around the mathematical concepts introduced and applied in the methods chosen and the algorithms produced. The chapters follow a pattern where examples are given and implemented in pseudocode with the mathematics explained with all the necessary discussion.
There are plenty of exercises and some interesting projects suggested.
The book seems to have been designed to cover a range of potential readers, although it maintains its key theme throughout. It is a must for anyone who wants to learn about probabilistic robotics, particularly if they are interested in the practitioner's viewpoint. Those who are involved with software developments in automation and robotics will find it contains a wealth of information. Of course, its mathematical/statistical basis should make it attractive to those in cybernetics and systems with the appropriate background, as it should to anyone involved in scientific research. With a content that includes so many different methods and illustrative techniques, together with a fund of algorithms, it is an attractive buy and worthwhile introduction to a new and exciting area of robotics.
MIT Press provide additional details about the book at: mitpress.mit.edu