CS 4750 - Foundations of Robotics

General Information

A class aimed at introducing CS students to the field of robotics, covering foundational mathematics and physics as well as important algorithms and tools. Afterwards, students should be prepared to take further robotics classes.

Prerequisites

• Multivariable calculus
• Linear algebra
• CS 1110 - Introduction to Computing Using Python

Topics Covered

• Different physical forms of robots
• Kinematics
• Dynamics
• Manipulator arms
• Navigation
• Control systems
• Uncertainty and probability

The course notes can be rather intimidating—attending class was definitely easier to follow.

Workload

Fall 2016:

• 3 coding projects
• 3 problem sets

However, because of problems creating the projects, only 1 project was actually assigned in fall 2016, with another optional one released later. Overall, the workload was reasonable; problem sets are released while the class is still going through the relevant concepts, so attending class is important. Problem sets themselves were medium-to-difficult, but fair, and the professor and TAs were helpful in office hours. The coding assignment was straightforward so long as you had been attending class, but was bogged down by problems with the robotics simulator software used.

General Advice

Attend class.

Testimonials

Overall, I enjoyed the class, and found it to be quite different from your typical CS class, with a focus on physics and mathematics, not just coding.

Past Offerings