A self-contained truck-mounted brick laying machine can include a frame that can support packs or pallets of bricks placed on a platform. A transfer robot can pick up and move the brick(s). A carousel can be coaxial with a tower. The carousel can transfer the brick(s) via the tower to an articulated and/or telescoping boom. The bricks can be moved along the boom by, e.g., linearly moving shuttles, to reach a brick laying and adhesive applying head. The brick laying and adhesive applying head can mount to an element of the stick, about an axis which is disposed horizontally. The poise of the brick laying and adhesive applying head about the axis can be adjusted and can be set in use so that the base of a clevis of the robotic arm mounts about a horizontal axis, and the tracker component is disposed uppermost on the brick laying and adhesive applying head. The brick laying and adhesive applying head can apply adhesive to the brick and can have a robot that lays the brick. Vision and laser scanning and tracking systems can be provided to allow the measurement of as-built slabs, bricks, the monitoring and adjustment of the process and the monitoring of safety zones. The first, or any course of bricks can have the bricks pre machined by the router module so that the top of the course is level once laid.

A system for performing interactions within a physical environment including a robot base that undergoes movement relative to the environment, a robot arm mounted to the robot base, the robot arm including an end effector mounted thereon and a tracking system that measures a robot base position indicative of a position of the robot base relative to the environment. A control system acquires an indication of an end effector destination, determines a reference robot base position, calculates an end effector path extending to the end effector destination and repeatedly determines a current robot base position using signals from the tracking system, calculates a correction based on the current robot base position, the correction being indicative of a path modification, and controls the robot arm in accordance with the correction to move the end effector towards the end effector destination.

A system for performing interactions within a physical environment including a robot base, a robot base actuator that moves the robot base relative to the environment, a robot arm mounted to the robot base, the robot arm including an end effector mounted thereon and a tracking system that measures a robot base position indicative of a position of the robot base relative to the environment. A control system acquires an indication of end effector destinations, determines a robot base position, calculates a robot base path extending from the robot base position in accordance with the end effector destinations to allow continuous movement of the robot base along the robot base path in accordance with a defined robot base path velocity profile and uses the robot base path to cause the robot base to be moved along the robot base path in accordance with the robot base path velocity profile.

A system for performing interactions within a physical environment including a robot base, a robot base actuator that moves the robot base relative to the environment, a robot arm mounted to the robot base, the robot arm including an end effector mounted thereon and a tracking system that measures a tracking target position indicative of a position of a target mounted on the robot base. A control system acquires an indication of an end effector destination, determines a tracking target position at least in part using signals from the tracking system, determines a virtual robot base position offset from the robot base and calculates a robot base path extending from the virtual robot base position to the end effector destination, using this to control the robot base actuator to cause the robot base to be moved along the robot base path.

A system for performing interactions within a physical environment including a robot base that undergoes movement relative to the environment, a robot arm mounted to the robot base, the robot arm including an end effector mounted thereon and a tracking system that measures a robot base position indicative of a position of the robot base relative to the environment. A control system acquires an indication of an end effector destination, and repeatedly determines a robot base position using signals from the tracking system, calculates an end effector path extending to the end effector destination at least in part using the robot base position, generates robot control signals based on the end effector path and applies the robot control signals to the robot arm to cause the end effector to be moved along the end effector path towards the destination.

A system for performing interactions within a physical environment including a robot base that undergoes movement relative to the environment, a robot arm mounted to the robot base, the robot arm including an end effector mounted thereon and a tracking system that measures a robot base position indicative of a position of the robot base relative to the environment. A control system acquires an indication of an end effector destination, determines a reference robot base position, calculates an end effector path extending to the end effector destination and repeatedly determines a current robot base position using signals from the tracking system, calculates robot arm kinematics using the current robot base position and the end effector path and controls the robot arm to cause the end effector to be moved towards the end effector destination.

An automated brick laying system is provided including platform means, mortar application means for allowing mortar to be applied to a brick in use, and brick gripping means for allowing at least one brick to be gripped in use. At least one of the mortar application means and the brick gripping means is movably mounted on or to the platform means and is arranged to be independently movable relative to the platform means in use. At least one of the mortar application means and the brick gripping means is capable of or is arranged to undergo linear and/or sliding movement along at least three separate and pre-defined axes of movement in use.

A self-contained truck-mounted brick laying machine (2) is described. A truck (1) supports the brick laying machine (2) which is mounted on a frame (3) on the truck chassis. The frame (3) supports packs or pallets of bricks (52, 53) placed on a platform (51). A transfer robot can then pick up an individual brick and move it to, or between either a saw (46) or a router (47) or a carousel (48). The carousel is located coaxially with a tower (10), at the base of the tower (10). The carousel (48) transfers the brick via the tower (10) to an articulated (folding about horizontal axis (16)) telescoping boom comprising first boom element in the form of telescopic boom (12, 14) and second boom element in the form of telescopic stick (15, 17, 18, 19, 20). The bricks are moved along the folding telescoping boom by linearly moving shuttles, to reach a brick laying and adhesive applying head (32). The brick laying and adhesive applying head (32) mounts to element (20) of the stick, about an axis (33) which is disposed horizontally. The poise of the brick laying and adhesive applying head (32) about the axis (33) is adjusted and is set in use so that the base (811) of a clevis (813) of the robotic arm (36) mounts about a horizontal axis, and the tracker component (130) is disposed uppermost on the brick laying and adhesive applying head (32). The brick laying and adhesive applying head (32) applies adhesive to the brick and has a robot that lays the brick. Vision and laser scanning and tracking systems are provided to allow the measurement of as-built slabs, bricks, the monitoring and adjustment of the process and the monitoring of safety zones. The first, or any course of bricks can have the bricks pre machined by the router module (47) so that the top of the course is level once laid.

An one implementation, an automated construction robot system includes: a mobile base assembly configured to be displaceable within a work area; a head assembly configured to process a work surface; an arm assembly configured to moveably-couple the head assembly and the mobile base assembly and controllably-displace the head assembly with respect to the work surface; a machine vision system configured to scan a target area and generate target area information; and a computational system configured to: process the target area information to define a work area coating plan, generate one or more coating plan instructions based, at least in part, upon the work area coating plan, and manipulate one or more of the mobile base assembly, the head assembly and the arm assembly to apply a coating material to the work surface via the head assembly based, at least in part, upon the one or more coating plan instructions.

An automated construction robot system includes: a mobile base assembly configured to be displaceable within the work area; a head assembly configured to process a work surface; an arm assembly configured to moveably-couple the head assembly and the mobile base assembly and controllably-displace the head assembly with respect to the work surface; a machine vision system configured to scan a target area and generate target area information; and a computational system configured to: process the target area information to identify a surface defect, generate one or more remedial instructions based, at least in part, upon the surface defect identified, and manipulate one or more of the mobile base assembly, the head assembly and the arm assembly based, at least in part, upon the one or more remedial instructions.