Dr. Mae Seto of Dalhousie University

Autonomy on a robot is the ability to make decisions, implement these decisions then evaluate the results and adapt as needed towards achieving a goal with minimal human intervention -- even when encountering uncertainty or unanticipated events.  Autonomy is imperative on autonomous systems operating in environments where they cannot communicate regularly or at high bandwidths with their human operator or access GNSS to assist with navigation and localization.  Within the last while, machine learning models have contributed to the on-board autonomy of autonomous systems. This edge computing has transformed the functionality possible for robots on long complex missions in difficult environments.  The presentation explores  where on-board autonomy is necessary, enablers of autonomy and especially where machine learning has contributed.  Use cases in the harsh marine and space environments are presented and discussed. 

Biography:

Dr. Mae Seto is a Professor at Dalhousie University’s Faculty of Engineering with cross-appointment to the Faculty of Computer Science.  Dr. Seto’s expertise is in autonomous systems, robotic autonomy, machine learning, communications and acoustics. Her work is applied to sensing in harsh environments like underwater, under-ice and space – to name a few.   Dr. Seto is also contracted by the  Dept. of National Defence and  Defene R&D Canada in her areas of expertise.  Internationally, Dr. Seto contributes to autonomous systems research and development through her work on NATO science and technology panels and working groups.  Prior to her appointment at Dalhousie University, Dr, Seto was a Defence Scientist at Defence R&D Canada for 16 years where she was Chief/Principal Scientist on scientific trials all over the world including one to the Canadian Arctic.