A service-based network architecture for wearable robots

Abstract

We are developing a network architecture for our novel robot concept of wearable robot. Wearable robots are mobile information devices capable of supporting remote communication and intelligent interaction between networked entities. In this paper, a service-based wearable robot network architecture that involves extensions to the Jini network model is presented. We discuss three extensions to the original Jini model. The first extension involves the incorporation of a task coordinator service such that the execution of the services can be managed using a priority queue. The second extension enables the system to automatically push the required service proxy to the client intelligently based on certain system-related conditions. In the third extension, we allow the system to automatically deliver the services based on contextual information. Using a fuzzy-logic-based decision making system, the matching service can determine whether the service should be automatically delivered utilizing the information provided by the service, client, lookup service and context sensors. An application scenario has been implemented to demonstrate the feasibility of this distributed service-based robot architecture.