Web Standards as Standard Pieces in Robotics

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that modern web technologies can be effectively used for real-time control in robotics, challenging the notion that web-based systems are too slow or unreliable for such applications.

Contribution

It provides a detailed case study of implementing control systems over web technologies, showing their viability and discussing design considerations for practical use.

Findings

Web control can operate between 3Hz and 1kHz.

Web technologies can be integrated into various network topologies.

Design choices impact control performance and applicability.

Abstract

Modern robotics often involves the use of web technologies as a means to cope with the complexity of design and operation. Many of these technologies have been formalized into standards, which are often avoided by those in robotics and controls because of a sometimes warranted fear that "the web" is too slow, or too uncertain for meaningful control applications. In this work we argue that while web technologies may not be applicable for all control, they should not be dismissed outright because they can provide critical help with system integration. Web technologies have also advanced significantly over the past decade. We present the details of an application of a web server to perform open and close-loop control (between 3Hz and 1kHz) over a variety of different network topologies. In our study we also consider the impact of a web browser to implement the control of the plant. Our results confirm that meaningful control can be performed using web technologies, and also highlight design choices that can limit their applicability.