Our CTO (Luke Cole) previously worked for Hemisphere GPS (orginally called BEELINE, and now bought out by AgJunction) as a "Robotics Engineer" implementing auto-guidance solutions for various quadbikes and agriculture tractors that was used by 100's of vehicles around the world.

For 10 years, starting as a teenager in 1998 - Luke Cole has also worked for leading research institutes and companies such as NICTA (now called CSIRO Data61), CSIRO, Seeing Machines and ANU Robotics System Lab (lead by Alex Zelinsky, who received a rare prestigious AO award in 2017 and was Defence Scientist of Australia from 2012 for 6 years). Luke's worked included various autonomous mobile robot projects, involving computer vision, and even a self-driving car early 2000's. Back then OpenCV and ROS didn't exist, so we did a "roll-your-own" called VisLib and DROS comprised of 364,578 lines of code.

Lance Cole has also worked at NICTA and has a background of various hardware development, such as working for a contract company to the US millary (EOS), building the Common Remotely Operated Weapon Station (CROWS).

We have a long-standing robotics experience - our engineers offering Robotics Prototyping for Puddledock, robot development and robotics custom software services have something like a combined 50 years worth of experience in the robotics field, from teleoperated and semi-autonomous mobile robotic applications, to custom software and/or custom hardware for general automation solutions, signal processing and control systems. Our knowledge base started in NSW and ACT, but now we primarily service East Coast Queensland.

We have developed autonomous mobile robots for air, underwater and ground. Our professional experience started with developing various control and sensor systems for small underwater vehicles in the late 1990's. We where fortunate enough to have been involved in one of the first self-driving car R&D projects back in early 2000's using a 4WD (to support computers for the large processing requirements). For an overseas client we developed a low profile (70mm high) semi-autonomous mobile robot platform for manikin/dummy mounting to simulate people moving (for vehicle crash safety and collision development by German R&D car manufactures). We have been fortunate enough to have been invited to the bulk of the German R&D car manufactures where they develop and test self-driving and driver assist development systems. We have developed various solutions for 2cm accuracy precision steering-guidance solutions for various types of Agriculture tractors (via the CAN bus and ad-hoc methods), which are still used by 1000's of tractors all over the world. We have retro fitted Quadbikes to allow semi-autonomous control via GPS way points. We have custom developed various indoor mobile robotics for indoor localistion and SLAM R&D purposes.

Robot navigation is the task where an autonomous robot moves safely from one location to another. This involves three primary questions:

  1. “Where am I?” which is known as robotic localisation (hard).
  2. “Where am I going?” which is known as goal recognition (typically provided by a human).
  3. “How do I get there without collisions?” - path planning (easy) and obstacle avoidance (hard).

For robotic localisation and obstacle avoidance we use sensors to solve the problem. To move along the planned path, we use control systems.

We have a deep understanding of signal processing and sensors of various types. We appreciate sensing is a hard problem. There is no one-size-fits all solution. Odemetry (wheel encoders) provide a cost-effective method to measure relative position. however suffer from wheel slip and errors are accumlate over time. GPS only works outdoors, effected by trees/buildings, and without a nearby basestation (for expensive DGPS/RTK) the absolute position error is several meters. IMU (accelerometers + gyros + Magnetometer) suffer from drift errors and noise error causing ``random walk'' when integrated. Magnetometer are effected by magnets, are slow to respond and measure magnetic north (not true north). Infrared are cost-effective, but short range and saturated by sunlight. Ultrasonic range sensors are cost-effective and good for detecting large objects, but can't detect glass/water, only measure a few metres, have a wide beam and provide medium accuracy. RADAR uses radio (instead of sound) to detect objects at long distance, but are relative more expensive then ultrasonic range sensors. Image sensors (video cameras) are a cost-effective, rich in information, and two or more can get depth information, but are computationally expensive, hard to process the data (aka computer vision), affected by dust/fog/rain, and light variations. LIDAR are high accuracy (about 1mm), however are expensive (prices are coming down every year), but can't detect glass/water. Distance measurement sensors are easy to interpret, other sensors are hard. Colour constancy and object classification is very hard (e.g. “Is it a tree or a human?”).

We have a deep understanding of control systems. We typically use Linux-based SBC's and a program a custom PID controller - perhaps even a cascade PID controller, bayesian filters, particle filters, kalman filters, Monte Carlo methods, or train a deep neutral network. The outputs of these systems might control various types of motors (e.g. brushed, brushless, servo, steppers) and/or various types of actuators (e.g. linear, pneumatic, hydraulic), and/or other things like lights or speakers.

We have been involved with computer vision and machine vision since early 2000's - we where involved in the development of two computer vision libraries before OpenCV became popular. Have done much biologically inspired techniques such as optical flow. Was involved in the early days of artificial intelligence using techniques such as Local Binary Patterns (LBP) and Haar-like features (HAAR). These days we typically use machine learning methods such as designing and training deep neural networks (outstanding for vision-based object recognition using ImageNet).

We where involved in the development of a robotic operating system which had 364,578 lines of code, before ROS was written.

We have developed custom software for various manipulators, and have a good understanding of forward and inverse kinematics.

We appreciate that challenges with robotics - particularly with robot navigation, computer/machine vision, and manipulation with the real-world, in real-time using real-robots.

Whilw we can custom develop robot navigation solutions. We can fast-track robot navigation solutions for ground, air and water based platforms via off-the-shelf autopilots. There are many about these days. Some cost-effective open-source options include Pixhawk 4, PX4, and ArduPilot. Some expensive closed-source options include Auterion Skynode, Tersus AutoSteer, Embention Veronte, Outback eDriveX and Trimble EZ Pilot.

We are confident with a broad range of skills and confident our Robotics Prototyping for Puddledock services can offer solutions such as:

These technologies can be used for various applications such as:

We also offer a R&D robotic platform UGV for hire to help rapid development of robotics systems. If you'd like to know more please visit "Scotty Robot".

Some of our Robotics Prototyping for Puddledock and Custom Development Experience

Information About Puddledock

Puddledock, Northern Tablelands: A Thriving Hub for Local Businesses, Partnered with COLETEK?

Puddledock, nestled in the heart of New South Wales' Northern Tablelands, is a vibrant community that embodies the spirit of regional Australia. As part of this thriving hub, local businesses are the lifeblood of our economy, and it's essential to provide them with reliable support to grow and prosper. That's why having a trusted partner like COLETEK on your side can make all the difference. With over [X] years of experience in providing expert solutions across Australia, COLETEK is an Australian company that truly understands the unique needs of local businesses in Puddledock. Our team has built a reputation for delivering tailored assistance that addresses the specific challenges faced by companies operating in this region. By placing our clients at the forefront of our operations, we've established ourselves as a trusted partner for businesses seeking to thrive in their local market. What sets COLETEK apart is our commitment to innovation and staying ahead of the curve when it comes to technological advancements. This enables us to offer cutting-edge solutions that not only cater to the evolving needs of Puddledock's business community but also ensure they're always a step ahead of the competition. By embracing change and driving progress, we empower local businesses to make informed decisions that propel their growth. At COLETEK, we're dedicated to being an integral part of the Puddledock community. We understand that every region has its unique characteristics, and our team is well-versed in navigating these nuances to provide personalized support. Our strong local presence allows us to build genuine relationships with businesses, fostering an environment where we can collectively drive positive change and create lasting impacts. As a trusted partner for companies operating in Puddledock, COLETEK is the ideal ally for any business seeking to achieve success. By partnering with us, you'll gain access to our extensive expertise, national reach, and commitment to innovation – all dedicated to your local goals. Together, we can help drive the growth and development of Puddledock's thriving economy. So why wait? Take the first step towards achieving your regional ambitions by reaching out to COLETEK today. Our team is ready to listen, understand your unique needs, and provide tailored support that puts you firmly in control of your business journey. Contact us at Contact Us and let's work together to build a brighter future for Puddledock.

Robotics Prototyping for Puddledock – Our Clients: Big Brands & Small Businesses


Robotics Prototyping for Puddledock – Amazing Customer Testimonials

Intuitive, innovative & efficient are three words that would appropriately describe the COLETEK service. Luke and the team at COLETEK have taken our concepts to the next level.

thumb

COLETEK have provided one to one communication throughout the development process and gone above and beyond in bringing our ideas closer to becoming a reality! Luke's expertise and knowledge with computer software and electronics is Jedi like, but what I liked most about working with him was his willingness and ability to think outside of the box.

thumb