Special Issue on Selected Papers from ROBOMEC’07 (Part 2)

The Robotics and Mechatronics Conference 2007 (ROBOMEC'07) was held at “ALVE,” Akita, Japan, on May 10-12, 2007, sponsored by the Robotics and Mechatronics Division of the Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers (JSME). Prof. Chonan of Akita Prefectural University was the general chair and Prof. Kosuge of Tohoku University program chair. With the possibilities to help and develop solutions for managing quality of life of all people, the conference was organized based on the motto “Robotics and Mechatronics Improving the Quality of Life.” A record-breaking 918 papers were presented and more than 1300 attended the conference. This special issue presents 18 papers from the conference. Of 100 outstanding presentations recommended for submission, 46 were submitted and reviewed. Of these, the first 17 have already been published in Part 1 (Vol.20, No.2). We thank the authors for their invaluable contributions to this issue and the reviewers for their extensive time and effort. We also thank Editor-in-Chief, Prof. Tatsuo Arai of Osaka University for organizing this special issue.