Odometry and Laser Scanner Fusion Based on a Discrete Extended Kalman Filter for Robotic Platooning Guidance

This paper describes a relative localization system used to achieve the navigation of a convoy of robotic units in indoor environments. This positioning system is carried out fusing two sensorial sources: (a) an odometric system and (b) a laser scanner together with artificial landmarks located on top of the units. The laser source allows one to compensate the cumulative error inherent to dead-reckoning; whereas the odometry source provides less pose uncertainty in short trajectories. A discrete Extended Kalman Filter, customized for this application, is used in order to accomplish this aim under real time constraints. Different experimental results with a convoy of Pioneer P3-DX units tracking non-linear trajectories are shown. The paper shows that a simple setup based on low cost laser range systems and robot built-in odometry sensors is able to give a high degree of robustness and accuracy to the relative localization problem of convoy units for indoor applications

Estado del arte en robótica cooperativa aplicada al rescate de víctimas

The present article, in the context of a documentary research carried out and interpreted to be taken as a baseline in research for the ROMA Autonomous Mobile Robotics Group of the Francisco José de Caldas District University, describes the state of art of the applied RC to the rescue of victims. The revision is established chronologically in the last fifteen years; in Latin America; and focused mainly in Colombia. They are used as sources: The Google Schoolar database, and articles from the electronic engineering journals indexed for the year 2017 in COLCIENCIAS. As a product thrown, a particular model of communication technology used in CR is presented in the Colombian context.El presente artículo, en el contexto de una investigación documental realizada e interpretada para que fuera tomada como línea de base en investigaciones para el grupo de Robótica Móvil Autónoma ROMA de la Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas, describe el estado de arte de la RC aplicada al rescate de víctimas. Se establece cronológicamente la revisión en los últimos quince años; en Latinoamérica; y enfocada principalmente en Colombia. Se utilizan como fuentes: la base de datos Google Schoolar, y artículos de las revistas de Ingeniería electrónica indexadas para el año 2017 en COLCIENCIAS. Como producto arrojado se presenta un modelo particular de la tecnología de comunicación empleada en RC en el contexto colombiano

Experimental Testbed for Swarming and Cooperative Robotic Networks

This document describes an innovative cooperative robotics multi-vehicle testbed, featuring a flexible architecture that enables the system to be rapidly adapted to different applications. It also offers tools to reduce development and implementation time. The testbed consists of ten non-holonomic car-like robots networked together to share sensor information. Each vehicle features an on-board computer for local control, and a network of devices that can be suited with a variety of hot-swappable sensors depending on the application. The entire system is integrated with Player, an open source sensor server compatible with Gazebo, a 3D world simulator. Control algorithms can be evaluated in simulation mode and then ported to the real vehicle with virtually no code change. We present a flexible and complete system that serves the study of Cooperative Control, Hybrid and Embedded Systems, Sensor Networks, Networked Control and that can be used in an extensive range of applications.School of Electrical & Computer Engineerin

Adoption of vehicular ad hoc networking protocols by networked robots

This paper focuses on the utilization of wireless networking in the robotics domain. Many researchers have already equipped their robots with wireless communication capabilities, stimulated by the observation that multi-robot systems tend to have several advantages over their single-robot counterparts. Typically, this integration of wireless communication is tackled in a quite pragmatic manner, only a few authors presented novel Robotic Ad Hoc Network (RANET) protocols that were designed specifically with robotic use cases in mind. This is in sharp contrast with the domain of vehicular ad hoc networks (VANET). This observation is the starting point of this paper. If the results of previous efforts focusing on VANET protocols could be reused in the RANET domain, this could lead to rapid progress in the field of networked robots. To investigate this possibility, this paper provides a thorough overview of the related work in the domain of robotic and vehicular ad hoc networks. Based on this information, an exhaustive list of requirements is defined for both types. It is concluded that the most significant difference lies in the fact that VANET protocols are oriented towards low throughput messaging, while RANET protocols have to support high throughput media streaming as well. Although not always with equal importance, all other defined requirements are valid for both protocols. This leads to the conclusion that cross-fertilization between them is an appealing approach for future RANET research. To support such developments, this paper concludes with the definition of an appropriate working plan

3D Formation Control in Multi-Robot Teams Using Artificial Potential Fields

Multi-robot teams find applications in emergency response, search and rescue operations, convoy support and many more. Teams of autonomous aerial vehicles can also be used to protect a cargo of airplanes by surrounding them in some geometric shape. This research develops a control algorithm to attract UAVs to one or a set of bounded geometric shapes while avoiding collisions, re-configuring in the event of departure or addition of UAVs and maneuvering in mission space while retaining the configuration. Using potential field theory, weighted vector fields are described to attract UAVs to a desired formation. In order to achieve this, three vector fields are defined: one attracts UAVs located outside the formation towards bounded geometric shape; one pushes them away from the center towards the desired region and the third controls collision avoidance and dispersion of UAVs within the formation. The result is a control algorithm that is theoretically justified and verified using MATLAB which generates velocity vectors to attract UAVs to a loose formation and maneuver in the mission space while remaining in formation. This approach efficiently scales to different team sizes

Un método para estimar la posición y la dirección del líder en un conjunto de objetos móviles

RESUMEN: Patrones de movimiento pueden ser identificados cuando se estudia un grupo de entidades móviles, como un grupo de personas, una bandada de pájaros, un banco de peces, un convoy de vehículos, entre otros. En este artículo, se analiza un patrón, conocido como liderazgo. Informalmente, este patrón se caracteriza por una entidad móvil llamada líder que motiva o representa el comportamiento de un grupo con el fin de alcanzar un objetivo durante un período. Se propone un método formal para estimar la posición y la dirección donde un líder debería estar ubicado y orientado en un punto del tiempo con el fin de liderar un grupo. Estas estimaciones pueden también ser útiles para verificar la consistencia de los datos de un patrón de liderazgo y para estimar la información faltante (posición y dirección) de un líder en un tiempo específico, i.e., un proceso de imputación. Con el fin de mostrar la conveniencia de la propuesta, se implementó y se desarrolló una serie de experimentos mediante Netlogo, un entorno programable de modelado para la simulación de fenómenos naturales y sociales.ABSTRACT: Movement patterns can be identified when studying a group of moving entities such as a group of people, a flock of birds, a school of fish, a convoy of vehicles, among others. In this paper, it is analyzed a pattern, known as leadership. Informally, this pattern is characterized by a moving entity called leader that motivates or represents the behavior of the group in order to reach a goal during a period. A formal method is proposed to estimate the position and the direction where a leader should be located and headed at a timepoint in order to lead a group. These estimations can also be useful to check the consistency of the data about a leadership pattern, and to estimate the missing information (position and direction) of a leader at a specific time, i.e., an imputation process. In order to show the expediency of the proposal, a series of experiments were implemented and conducted using Netlogo, a programmable modeling environment for simulating natural and social phenomena

Mobile Robots

The objective of this book is to cover advances of mobile robotics and related technologies applied for multi robot systems' design and development. Design of control system is a complex issue, requiring the application of information technologies to link the robots into a single network. Human robot interface becomes a demanding task, especially when we try to use sophisticated methods for brain signal processing. Generated electrophysiological signals can be used to command different devices, such as cars, wheelchair or even video games. A number of developments in navigation and path planning, including parallel programming, can be observed. Cooperative path planning, formation control of multi robotic agents, communication and distance measurement between agents are shown. Training of the mobile robot operators is very difficult task also because of several factors related to different task execution. The presented improvement is related to environment model generation based on autonomous mobile robot observations