This book contains 26 papers presented at the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on “CAD Based Programming for Sensory Robots,” held in IL CIOCCa, Italy, July 4-6, 1988. CAD based robot programming is considered to be the process where CAD (Computer Based) models are used to develop robot programs. If the program is generated, at least partially, by a programmer interacting, for example, with a computer graph i c d sp i 1 ay of the robot and its workce 11 env ironment, the process is referred to as graphical off-line programming. On the other hand, if the robot program is generated automatically, for example, by a computer, then the process is referred to as automatic robot programmi ng. The key element here is the use of CAD models both for interact i ve and automat i c generat i on of robot programs. CAD based programmi ng, therefore, bri ngs together computer based model i ng and robot programmi ng and as such cuts across several discipl ines including geometric model ing, robot programming, kinematic and dynamic modeling, artificial intelligence, sensory monitoring and so-on.
