Efficient and secure real-time mobile robots cooperation using visual servoing

This paper deals with the challenging problem of navigation in formation of mobiles robots fleet. For that purpose, a secure approach is used based on visual servoing to control velocities (linear and angular) of the multiple robots. To construct our system, we develop the interaction matrix which combines the moments in the image with robots velocities and we estimate the depth between each robot and the targeted object. This is done without any communication between the robots which eliminate the problem of the influence of each robot errors on the whole. For a successful visual servoing, we propose a powerful mechanism to execute safely the robots navigation, exploiting a robot accident reporting system using raspberry Pi3. In addition, in case of problem, a robot accident detection reporting system testbed is used to send an accident notification, in the form of a specifical message. Experimental results are presented using nonholonomic mobiles robots with on-board real time cameras, to show the effectiveness of the proposed method

Omnidirectional Vision-Based Control from Homography

International audienc

Visual Servoing from straight lines

In this paper we consider the problem of controlling a robotic system by using the projection of 3D straight lines in the image plane of central catadioptric systems. Most of the effort in visual servoing are devoted to points, only few works have investigated the use of lines in visual servoing with traditional cameras and none has explored the case of omnidirectional cameras. First a generic central catadioptric interaction matrix for the projection of 3D straight lines is derived from the projection model of an entire class of camera. Then an image-based control law is designed and validated through simulation results and real experiments with a mobile robot.Dans cet article, nous présentons une stratégie de commande de systèmes robotiques en utilisant comme entrées d'une boucle d'asservissement visuel des primitives relatives à la projection de droites dans le plan image d'une caméra panoramique à point central unique. Afin de réaliser la commande d'un système robotique par asservissement visuel, il est nécessaire d'estimer la matrice d'interaction liant les mouvements de la caméra aux mouvements des primitives visuelles dans l'image. Dans cet article, nous dérivons la forme analytique de la matrice d'interaction générique relative à la projection de droites à partir d'un modèle de projection englobant la classe entière des caméras à point central unique. Elle est ensuite utilisée dans un schéma d'asservissement visuel. Des simulations ainsi que des résultats expérimentaux sur un robot mobile valident l'approche proposée

Vision-based Global Path Planning and Trajectory Generation for Robotic Applications in Hazardous Environments

The aim of this study is to find an efficient global path planning algorithm and trajectory generation method using a vision system. Path planning is part of the more generic navigation function of mobile robots that consists of establishing an obstacle-free path, starting from the initial pose to the target pose in the robot workspace.In this thesis, special emphasis is placed on robotic applications in industrial and scientific infrastructure environments that are hazardous and inaccessible to humans, such as nuclear power plants and ITER1 and CERN2 LHC3 tunnel. Nuclear radiation can cause deadly damage to the human body, but we have to depend on nuclear energy to meet our great demands for energy resources. Therefore, the research and development of automatic transfer robots and manipulations under nuclear environment are regarded as a key technology by many countries in the world. Robotic applications in radiation environments minimize the danger of radiation exposure to humans. However, the robots themselves are also vulnerable to radiation. Mobility and maneuverability in such environments are essential to task success. Therefore, an efficient obstacle-free path and trajectory generation method are necessary for finding a safe path with maximum bounded velocities in radiation environments. High degree of freedom manipulators and maneuverable mobile robots with steerable wheels, such as non-holonomic omni-directional mobile robots make them suitable for inspection and maintenance tasks where the camera is the only source of visual feedback.In this thesis, a novel vision-based path planning method is presented by utilizing the artificial potential field, the visual servoing concepts and the CAD-based recognition method to deal with the problem of path and trajectory planning. Unlike the majority of conventional trajectory planning methods that consider a robot as only one point, the entire shape of a mobile robot is considered by taking into account all of the robot’s desired points to avoid obstacles. The vision-based algorithm generates synchronized trajectories for all of the wheels on omni-directional mobile robot. It provides the robot’s kinematic variables to plan maximum allowable velocities so that at least one of the actuators is always working at maximum velocity. The advantage of generated synchronized trajectories is to avoid slippage and misalignment in translation and rotation movement. The proposed method is further developed to propose a new vision-based path coordination method for multiple mobile robots with independently steerable wheels to avoid mutual collisions as well as stationary obstacles. The results of this research have been published to propose a new solution for path and trajectory generation in hazardous and inaccessible to human environments where the one camera is the only source of visual feedback

Mobile Robots Navigation

Mobile robots navigation includes different interrelated activities: (i) perception, as obtaining and interpreting sensory information; (ii) exploration, as the strategy that guides the robot to select the next direction to go; (iii) mapping, involving the construction of a spatial representation by using the sensory information perceived; (iv) localization, as the strategy to estimate the robot position within the spatial map; (v) path planning, as the strategy to find a path towards a goal location being optimal or not; and (vi) path execution, where motor actions are determined and adapted to environmental changes. The book addresses those activities by integrating results from the research work of several authors all over the world. Research cases are documented in 32 chapters organized within 7 categories next described

Modelling and control of the coordinated motion of a group of autonomous mobile robots

The coordinated motion of a group of autonomous mobile robots for the achievement of a coordinated task has received signifcant research interest in the last decade. Avoiding the collisions of the robots with the obstacles and other members of the group is one of the main problems in the area as previous studies have revealed. Substantial amount of research effort has been concentrated on defning virtual forces that will yield reference trajectories for a group of autonomous mobile robots engaged in coordinated behavior. If the mobile robots are nonholonomic, this approach fails to guarantee coordinated motion since the nonholonomic constraint blocks sideway motions. Two novel approaches to the problem of modeling coordinated motion of a group of autonomous nonholonomic mobile robots inclusive of a new collision avoidance scheme are developed in this thesis. In the first approach, a novel coordination method for a group of autonomous nonholonomic mobile robots is developed by the introduction of a virtual reference system, which in turn implies online collision-free trajectories and consists of virtual mass-spring-damper units. In the latter, online generation of reference trajectories for the robots is enabled in terms of their linear and angular velocities. Moreover, a novel collision avoidance algorithm, that updates the velocities of the robots when a collision is predicted, is developed in both of the proposed models. Along with the presentation of several coordinated task examples, the proposed models are verifed via simulations. Experiments were conducted to verify the performance of the collision avoidance algorithm

Planning And Control Of Swarm Motion As Continua

In this thesis, new algorithms for formation control of multi agent systems (MAS) based on continuum mechanics principles will be investigated. For this purpose agents of the MAS are treated as particles in a continuum, evolving in an n-D space, whose desired configuration is required to satisfy an admissible deformation function. Considered is a specific class of mappings that is called homogenous where the Jacobian of the mapping is only a function of time and is not spatially varying. The primary objectives of this thesis are to develop the necessary theory and its validation via simulation on a mobile-agent based swarm test bed that includes two primary tasks: 1) homogenous transformation of MAS and 2) deployment of a random distribution of agents on to a desired configuration. Developed will be a framework based on homogenous transformations for the evolution of a MAS in an n-D space (n=1, 2, and 3), under two scenarios: 1) no inter-agent communication (predefined motion plan); and 2) local inter-agent communication. Additionally, homogenous transformations based on communication protocols will be used to deploy an arbitrary distribution of a MAS on to a desired curve. Homogenous transformation with no communication: A homogenous transformation of a MAS, evolving in an space, under zero inter agent communication is first considered. Here the homogenous mapping, is characterized by an n x n Jacobian matrix ( ) and an n x 1 rigid body displacement vector ( ), that are based on positions of n+1 agents of the MAS, called leader agents. The designed Jacobian ( ) and rigid body displacement vector ( ) are passed onto rest of the agents of the MAS, called followers, who will then use that information to update their positions under a pre- iv defined motion plan. Consequently, the motion of MAS will evolve as a homogenous transformation of the initial configuration without explicit communication among agents. Homogenous Transformation under Local Communication: We develop a framework for homogenous transformation of MAS, evolving in , under a local inter agent communication topology. Here we assume that some agents are the leaders, that are transformed homogenously in an n-D space. In addition, every follower agent of the MAS communicates with some local agents to update its position, in order to grasp the homogenous mapping that is prescribed by the leader agents. We show that some distance ratios that are assigned based on initial formation, if preserved, lead to asymptotic convergence of the initial formation to a final formation under a homogenous mapping. Deployment of a Random Distribution on a Desired Manifold: Deployment of agents of a MAS, moving in a plane, on to a desired curve, is a task that is considered as an application of the proposed approach. In particular, a 2-D MAS evolution problem is considered as two 1-D MAS evolution problems, where x or y coordinates of the position of all agents are modeled as points confined to move on a straight line. Then, for every coordinate of MAS evolution, bulk motion is controlled by two agents considered leaders that move independently, with rest of the follower agents motions evolving through each follower agent communicating with two adjacent agents