Kris Hauser · University of Illinois · Course chapter
What Is Robotics?
An introductory chapter examining what makes a robot and how sensing, physical movement and computation relate.
READ WITH A PURPOSE
Selected course chapters, tutorials and practical articles. Each includes a reading scope, application exercise and links to the learning paths it supports.
We link to the original publisher and write our own study notes. Vendor cases describe particular deployments; general engineering references are labeled in their reading notes.
Kris Hauser · University of Illinois · Course chapter
An introductory chapter examining what makes a robot and how sensing, physical movement and computation relate.
Kris Hauser · University of Illinois · Course chapter
A systems-oriented introduction to robot bodies, joints, actuation, sensing and computation.
Kris Hauser · University of Illinois · Course chapter
A mathematical chapter connecting vectors, coordinates and transformations to physical quantities in robotics.
Kris Hauser · University of Illinois · Course chapter
A substantial chapter on robot software timing, communication, architecture and development infrastructure.
Russ Tedrake · MIT · Course chapter
A course introduction explaining why apparently ordinary manipulation tasks combine difficult perception, planning and control problems.
Russ Tedrake · MIT · Course chapter
An interactive chapter connecting spatial transforms, kinematics and trajectories to a manipulation example.
Russ Tedrake · MIT · Course chapter
A chapter linking camera observations and point-cloud geometry to object-pose estimation.
Russ Tedrake · MIT · Course chapter
A worked dynamics example using a pendulum to build intuition about nonlinear behavior and control.
Russ Tedrake · MIT · Course chapter
A control chapter deriving linear-quadratic regulation and discussing extensions.
Gazebo project · Technical tutorial
A step-by-step simulation tutorial for constructing a robot model from linked parts and joints.
Gazebo project · Technical tutorial
A simulator tutorial showing how sensor models become observations for a robot application.
Gazebo project · Technical tutorial
An official overview of connecting ROS 2 applications with Gazebo simulation.
Open Navigation · Nav2 · Technical tutorial
An ordered navigation setup guide covering robot descriptions, transforms, odometry, sensing and navigation components.
Open Navigation · Nav2 · Practical guide
A technical guide to reasoning about navigation behavior beyond a first working configuration.
MoveIt project · Technical tutorial
A C++ tutorial demonstrating collision and constraint checks in a robot planning scene.
Hugging Face · LeRobot · Technical tutorial
An end-to-end tutorial connecting calibration, teleoperation, dataset recording, training and policy evaluation.
Hugging Face · LeRobot · Reference documentation
A technical description of robot dataset organization and metadata in the LeRobot ecosystem.
robomimic core team · Technical tutorial
A reproduction guide that connects dataset preparation with the training, logging and experiment instructions needed for comparison.
scikit-learn developers · Practical guide
An evaluation guide explaining held-out data and split strategies for meaningful model comparison.
OpenVLA authors · Research paper
The authors’ project page connects model design, demonstration data, fine-tuning and evaluation resources.
CS Unplugged · University of Canterbury · Practical guide
An educator-oriented explanation of problem decomposition and algorithmic thinking with activities beyond a particular robot brand.
Petoi · Technical tutorial
A manufacturer guide linking assembly, control and programming activities for specified robot-kit generations.
Universal Robots · Practical guide
A manufacturer article describing a machine-tending workflow and the components of a complete application.
Universal Robots · Practical guide
A manufacturer overview distinguishing robotic welding processes and their application contexts.
Universal Robots · Vendor case study
A supplier application overview with palletizing examples and descriptions of complete solution components.
Universal Robots · Vendor case study
A supplier overview of assembly applications, including fastening, insertion and integration examples.
Mobile Industrial Robots · Practical guide
A supplier introduction to internal-transport automation, workflow selection and adoption planning.
Boston Dynamics · Practical guide
A first-party walkthrough of recording inspection missions, replaying routes and reviewing observations.
Blue Robotics · Technical tutorial
A manufacturer tutorial connecting the operator computer, vehicle network, software and control interface.
Roborock · Practical guide
A household guide covering preparation, initial setup and continuing maintenance using an example product.
Fraunhofer IIS · Vendor case study
A research-institute project account connecting plant perception, localization and mechanical weed removal.
Avidbots · Vendor case study
A supplier-hosted discussion of facility leaders’ adoption concerns, implementation challenges, data and cleaning operations.
World Health Organization · Reference documentation
A public-health overview emphasizing that assistive products depend on people, services and access as well as technology.
Double Robotics · Reference documentation
A concise manufacturer reference for telepresence interfaces, account features and system requirements.
NASA Systems Engineering Handbook · Practical guide
A systems-engineering chapter connecting stakeholder expectations, requirements and design decisions.
NASA Systems Engineering Handbook · Practical guide
A handbook chapter distinguishing implementation, integration, verification, validation and transition.
Google Site Reliability Engineering · Practical guide
An engineering checklist connecting architecture, capacity and operational readiness before a service launch.
Diligent Robotics · Vendor case study
A first-party account of coordinating hospital logistics systems and mobile delivery.