Indoor localization of a mobile robot using sensor fusion : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Engineering in Mechatronics with Honours at Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand

Reliable indoor navigation of mobile robots has been a popular research topic in recent years. GPS systems used for outdoor mobile robot navigation can not be used indoor (warehouse, hospital or other buildings) because it requires an unobstructed view of the sky. Therefore a specially designed indoor localization system for mobile robot is needed. This project aims to develop a reliable position and heading angle estimator for real time indoor localization of mobile robots. Two different techniques have been developed and each consisted of three different sensor modules based on infrared sensing, calibrated odometry and calibrated gyroscope. Integration of these three sensor modules is achieved by applying the real time Kalman filter which provides filtered and reliable information of a mobile robot's current location and orientation relative to its environment. Extensive experimental results are provided to demonstrate its improvement over conventional methods like dead reckoning. In addition, a control strategy is developed to control the mobile robot to move along the planned trajectory. The techniques developed in this project have potentials for the application for mobile robots in medical service, health care, surveillances, search and rescue in indoor environments

A Neural Network Strategy Applied in Autonomous Mobile Localization

In this article, a new approach to the problem of indoor navigation based on ultrasonic sensors is presented, where artificial neural networks (ANN) are used to estimate the position and orientation of a mobile robot.
This approach proposes the use of three Radial Basis Function (RBF) Networks, where environment maps from an ultrasonic sensor and maps synthetically generated are used to estimate the robot localization.
The mobile robot is mainly characterized by its real time
operation based on the Matlab/Simulink environment, where the
whole necessary tasks for an autonomous navigation are done in a hierarchical and easy reprogramming way. 
Finally, practical results of real time navigation related to robot localization in a known indoor environment are shown

A genetic algorithm for mobile robot localization using ultrasonic sensors

A mobile robot requires the perception of its local environment for position estimation. Ultrasonic range data provide a robust description of the local environment for navigation. This article presents an ultrasonic sensor localization system for autonomous mobile robot navigation in an indoor semi-structured environment. The proposed algorithm is based upon an iterative non-linear filter, which utilizes matches between observed geometric beacons and an a-priori map of beacon locations, to correct the position and orientation of the vehicle. A non-linear filter based on a genetic algorithm as an emerging optimization method to search for optimal positions is described. The resulting self-localization module has been integrated successfully in a more complex navigation system. Experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method in real world applications.Publicad

MOBILE ROBOT AUTONOMOUS NAVIGATION USING CRICKET INDOOR LOCATION SYSTEM

A mobile robot has an ability to perform autonomous navigation in indoor environment when some information based on their current location was acquired. In order to perform navigation, the cricket indoor location system consists of transmitter and receiver was used in this project. This proposal describes how to integrate the cricket indoor location system with the mobile robot based on the current location from reference point. By using hardware/software design methodology, this project development was divided into two processes which are hardware design process and software design process. This project based on the embedded microcontroller, PIC located on the mobile robot process a signal from cricket indoor location system to perform the autonomous navigation. An event driven programming was used to ensure the correct event was executed based on input from sensor. Cricket indoor location system is a system that consists of several beacons and listeners to operate. As a conclusion, this proposal will demonstrate that integrated PIC and mobile robot, Stingray communicate with the cricket system to perform autonomous navigation

The Problem of Human-following for a Mobile Robot

The problem of human-following for mobile robotic systems have been extensively studied. There are a number of approaches for different types of robots and sensor systems. In particular, different equipment of the environment and sensor-based methods by using a special suit have been applied for solution of the problem ofhuman-following for mobile robots. This paper proposes an algorithm for the problem of human-following in an unequipped indoor environment for a low-cost mobile robot with a single visual sensor. We consider the results of computational experiments. Also, we consider the results of robotic experiments for day and night navigation

Wavefront Propagation and Fuzzy Based Autonomous Navigation

Path planning and obstacle avoidance are the two major issues in any navigation system. Wavefront propagation algorithm, as a good path planner, can be used to determine an optimal path. Obstacle avoidance can be achieved using possibility theory. Combining these two functions enable a robot to autonomously navigate to its destination. This paper presents the approach and results in implementing an autonomous navigation system for an indoor mobile robot. The system developed is based on a laser sensor used to retrieve data to update a two dimensional world model of therobot environment. Waypoints in the path are incorporated into the obstacle avoidance. Features such as ageing of objects and smooth motion planning are implemented to enhance efficiency and also to cater for dynamic environments

Safe Navigation for Indoor Mobile Robots - PartII: Exploration, Self Localization and Map Building

International audienceThis paper is the second part of the author's contribution on the topic of Safe Navigation for Indoor Mobile Robots. It presents a new solution to the exploration, self localization and map building problem taking advantage of the sensor-based navigation framework presented in the paper: Safe Navigation for Indoor Mobile Robots - Part I: A Sensor-based Navigation Framework. The model of the indoor environment is structured as an hybrid representation, both topological and geometrical, which is incrementally built during the exploration task. The topological aspect of the model captures the connectivity and accessibility of the different places in the environment, and the geometrical model holds up an accurate robot localization and map building method. To overpass the problem of drift inherited to the odometry when the robot navigates in large scale environments, a new dead-reckoning method is proposed combining laser readings and feedback control inputs. Embedding the self-localization and map building problem in a sensor-based navigation framework improves both the quality and the robustness of the representation built during the exploration phase and authorizes a further use to achieve safe navigation tasks successfully. Experiments are shown which confirm the interests of the proposed methodology

Effect of tag-to-anchor and multiple tag interference on uwb sensors accuracy for dynamic real-time position tracking of mobile robot in indoor environment

Autonomous mobile robot application in industry application shows that there is an increase in productivity in a certain process that boost the output of the production, especially in an indoor environment. The main key component of an autonomous mobile robot is to have a precise navigation system. However, to increase the precision of the navigation system, the localization of the mobile robot is required. One of the methods to perform localization is by using Ultra-width band technology (UWB). Thus, this paper presents the study of the effect of interference on the UWB sensor's accuracy. Based on this study, the result shows that the accuracy of the UWB sensor is 20cm. Also, the possibility of data spread in the reading of the UWB sensor increase due to the increasing number of active tags

2D mapping using omni-directional mobile robot equipped with LiDAR

A room map in a robot environment is needed because it can facilitate localization, automatic navigation, and also object searching. In addition, when a room is difficult to reach, maps can provide information that is helpful to humans. In this study, an omni-directional mobile robot equipped with a LiDAR sensor has been developed for 2D mapping a room. The YDLiDAR X4 sensor is used as an indoor scanner. Raspberry Pi 3 B single board computer (SBC) is used to access LiDAR data and then send it to a computer wirelessly for processing into a map. This computer and SBC are integrated in robot operating system (ROS). The movement of the robot can use manual control or automatic navigation to explore the room. The Hector SLAM algorithm determines the position of the robot based on scan matching of the LiDAR data. The LiDAR data will be used to determine the obstacles encountered by the robot. These obstacles will be represented in occupancy grid mapping. The experimental results show that the robot is able to follow the wall using PID control. The robot can move automatically to construct maps of the actual room with an error rate of 4.59%

Tahap penguasaan, sikap dan minat pelajar Kolej Kemahiran Tinggi MARA terhadap mata pelajaran Bahasa Inggeris

Kajian ini dilakukan untuk mengenal pasti tahap penguasaan, sikap dan minat pelajar Kolej Kemahiran Tinggi Mara Sri Gading terhadap Bahasa Inggeris. Kajian yang dijalankan ini berbentuk deskriptif atau lebih dikenali sebagai kaedah tinjauan. Seramai 325 orang pelajar Diploma in Construction Technology dari Kolej Kemahiran Tinggi Mara di daerah Batu Pahat telah dipilih sebagai sampel dalam kajian ini. Data yang diperoleh melalui instrument soal selidik telah dianalisis untuk mendapatkan pengukuran min, sisihan piawai, dan Pekali Korelasi Pearson untuk melihat hubungan hasil dapatan data. Manakala, frekuensi dan peratusan digunakan bagi mengukur penguasaan pelajar. Hasil dapatan kajian menunjukkan bahawa tahap penguasaan Bahasa Inggeris pelajar adalah berada pada tahap sederhana manakala faktor utama yang mempengaruhi penguasaan Bahasa Inggeris tersebut adalah minat diikuti oleh sikap. Hasil dapatan menggunakan pekali Korelasi Pearson juga menunjukkan bahawa terdapat hubungan yang signifikan antara sikap dengan penguasaan Bahasa Inggeris dan antara minat dengan penguasaan Bahasa Inggeris. Kajian menunjukkan bahawa semakin positif sikap dan minat pelajar terhadap pengajaran dan pembelajaran Bahasa Inggeris semakin tinggi pencapaian mereka. Hasil daripada kajian ini diharapkan dapat membantu pelajar dalam meningkatkan penguasaan Bahasa Inggeris dengan memupuk sikap positif dalam diri serta meningkatkan minat mereka terhadap Bahasa Inggeris dengan lebih baik. Oleh itu, diharap kajian ini dapat memberi panduan kepada pihak-pihak yang terlibat dalam membuat kajian yang akan datang