What we do
Use the Neurorobotics Platform (NRP) developed in the HBP to connect spiking neural networks to virtual and real robots. This enables you to conduct embodiment experiments on our High Performance Computing (HPC) clusters. All this can be either done through an easy to use web interface or locally on your machine. That way you can build brains for bodies and bodies for brains.
Read our Mission Statement here.
Features
Globally accessible
Run simulations from anywhere without any installation. Launch a simulation, edit the parameters and gain fascinating insights into the world of neurorobotics.
Fully customizable
Choose from the predefined robot models and environments to then edit them and the brain models you use as controllers.
High performance
Use our high performance computing to your full advantage. Our clusters provide top of the line power through our web interface.
From any device
Since the platform runs in a browser, it is easily accessible from any device - be it a high-powered PC or a smartphone.
For Roboticists
Use neural controllers to breathe life into one of our detailed 3D robot models or customize your own with our robot designer.
For Neuroscientists
Connect your brain models to 3D bodies and let it explore one of our many simulation environments that you can customize with our environment designer.
Cloud Computing
Upload and share your experiments in our cloud. Everything is available on our website and right at your fingertips - from anywhere.
Moving forward
With a team of skilled researchers working relentlessly on driving the development, improvements and additional features will keep on coming.
Roadmap
The main focus of NRP's ongoing and future development is the implementation of user tools for designing custom experiments. This will enable experimenters to comfortably specify more sophisticated experiments with well-defined control flows, to select (and, to a certain extent, to create) virtual robots and environments, and to configure the connections between brain models and the embodiments.
Neurorobotics platform 0.1 May 2015
- Experiment Simulation Viewer Web based.
- Braitenberg Experiment with Lauron robot.
- Braitenberg Experiment with Husky robot.
- Spike train live view.
Neurorobotics platform 0.3 July 2015
- First integration into the collaboratory portal
- New environment (rough land field)
- Edition of experiments
- New robots (including iCub humanoid)
Neurorobotics platform 0.4 October 2015
- New experiment: eye tracking on iCub humanoid
- Robot metrics (dynamic state) monitoring
- Environment designer
Neurorobotics platform 0.5 January 2016
- New experiment: virtual mouse with soft skin animation
- New experiments: empty templates with predefined robots
- Saving, loading and sharing of edited experiments
- Integration into HBP collaboratory portal
- First version of experiment designer: state machine editor
Neurorobotics platform 1.0 March 2016
- First Public Release!
- Improved resource management and user support
- Tutorial videos
Neurorobotics platform 1.1 October 2016
- Better server discovery
- Rendering improvements
- User definable graphical settings
- UI improvements
- User debugging tools
- New template experiments
Neurorobotics platform 1.2 April 2017
- Support for bigger brain models
- Graphical transfer functions editor
- Basic brain visualization
- Python API for batch simulations (Virtual Coach)
- Object scaling
- New template experiments
- Camera Streaming
- Environment Enhancements
Neurorobotics platform 1.3 October 2017
- New virtual lab: the NRP Holodeck
- Support for muscle system (OpenSim integrated)
- Public demo server accessible 24/7
- User installable Platform (Live USB, source install)
- Bigger resources: new set of servers (not in collab)
- Clone, save, customize experiments also on local installations
- New template experiments
- Extended debugging tools
- Robot designer supports muscles
Neurorobotics platform 2.0 May 2018
- Yet bigger resources
- Models and sensor noise graphical libraries
- Spinnaker free run integration
- Structured transfer functions editor
- Robot inspector, ROS terminal, help tips
- Performance improvements
- Interact with the robot
Neurorobotics platform 2.1 November 2018
- Easy local installation using docker installer
- Support Nengo brains (in 2.1.1)
- Changelog informs user of new features and compatibility breaks
- New frontend design with layouts and new toolbars
- Support multiple robots (in progress)
- Code editors auto-persistance (no save button anymore)
Neurorobotics platform 2.2 April 2019
- Record and replay simulations
- New experiment creation work flow with robots and brain drag and drop
- New models libraries
- Support multiple robots (full)
- Plotting and visualization tools support for Nengo
- Join simulation shared by others
- Custom workspace management
The Neurorobotics platform is brought to you by:
- The Human Brain Project (HBP)
- Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)
- Technische Universität München (TUM - Robotics and Embedded Systems)
- Fortiss, an-Institut der Technischen Universität München (Fortiss)
- Forschungszentrum Informatik am Karlsruher Institut für Technologie (FZI)
- Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna (SSSUP - Istituto di BioRobotica)