437 research outputs found
GUARDIANS final report
Emergencies in industrial warehouses are a major concern for firefghters. The large dimensions together with the development of dense smoke that drastically reduces visibility, represent major challenges. The Guardians robot swarm is designed to assist fire fighters in searching a
large warehouse. In this report we discuss the technology developed for a swarm of robots searching and assisting fire fighters. We explain the swarming algorithms which provide the functionality by which the robots react to and follow humans while no communication is required. Next we
discuss the wireless communication system, which is a so-called mobile ad-hoc network. The communication network provides also one of the means to locate the robots and humans. Thus the robot swarm is able to locate itself and provide guidance information to the humans. Together with
the re ghters we explored how the robot swarm should feed information back to the human fire fighter. We have designed and experimented with interfaces for presenting swarm based information to human beings
A Study on Recent Developments and Issues with Obstacle Detection Systems for Automated Vehicles
This paper reviews current developments and discusses some critical issues with obstacle detection systems for automated vehicles. The concept of autonomous driving is the driver towards future mobility. Obstacle detection systems play a crucial role in implementing and deploying autonomous driving on our roads and city streets. The current review looks at technology and existing systems for obstacle detection. Specifically, we look at the performance of LIDAR, RADAR, vision cameras, ultrasonic sensors, and IR and review their capabilities and behaviour in a number of different situations: during daytime, at night, in extreme weather conditions, in urban areas, in the presence of smooths surfaces, in situations where emergency service vehicles need to be detected and recognised, and in situations where potholes need to be observed and measured. It is suggested that combining different technologies for obstacle detection gives a more accurate representation of the driving environment. In particular, when looking at technological solutions for obstacle detection in extreme weather conditions (rain, snow, fog), and in some specific situations in urban areas (shadows, reflections, potholes, insufficient illumination), although already quite advanced, the current developments appear to be not sophisticated enough to guarantee 100% precision and accuracy, hence further valiant effort is needed
Using a mobile robot for hazardous substances detection in a factory environment
Dupla diplomação com a UTFPR - Universidade Tecnológica Federal do ParanáIndustries that work with toxic materials need extensive security protocols to avoid accidents.
Instead of having fixed sensors, the concept of assembling the sensors on a mobile
robot that performs the scanning through a defined path is cheaper, configurable and
adaptable. This work describes a mobile robot, equipped with several gas sensors and
LIDAR, that follows a trajectory based on waypoints, simulating a working Autonomous
Guided Vehicle (AGV). At the same time, the robot keeps measuring for toxic gases. In
other words, the robot follows the trajectory while the gas concentration is under a defined
value. Otherwise, it starts the autonomous leakage search based on a search algorithm
that allows to find the leakage position avoiding obstacles in real time. The proposed
methodology is verified in simulation based on a model of the real robot. Therefore, three
path plannings were developed and their performance compared. A Light Detection And
Ranging (LIDAR) device was integrated with the path planning to propose an obstacle
avoidance system with a dilation technique to enlarge the obstacles, thus, considering the
robot’s dimensions. Moreover, if needed, the robot can be remotely operated with visual
feedback. In addition, a controller was made for the robot. Gas sensors were embedded in
the robot with Finite Impulse Response (FIR) filter to process the data. A low cost AGV
was developed to compete in Festival Nacional de RobĂłtica (Portuguese Robotics Open)
2019 - Gondomar, describing the robot’s control and software solution to the competition.As indústrias que trabalham com materiais tóxicos necessitam de extensos protocolos
de segurança para evitar acidentes. Ao invés de ter sensores estáticos, o conceito de
instalar sensores em um robô móvel que inspeciona através de um caminho definido é mais
barato, configurável e adaptável. O presente trabalho descreve um robô móvel, equipado
com vários sensores de gás e LIDAR, que percorre uma trajetória baseada em pontos
de controle, simulando um AGV em trabalho. Em simultâneo são efetuadas medidas de
gases tóxicos. Em outras palavras, o robô segue uma trajetória enquanto a concentração
de gás está abaixo de um valor definido. Caso contrário, inicia uma busca autônoma
de vazamento de gás com um algoritmo de busca que permite achar a posição do gás
evitando os obstáculos em tempo real. A metodologia proposta é verificada em simulação.
TrĂŞs algoritmos de planejamento de caminho foram desenvolvidos e suas performances
comparadas. Um LIDAR foi integrado com o planejamento de caminho para propĂ´r
um sistema de evitar obstáculos. Além disso, o robô pode ser operado remotamente com
auxĂlio visual. Foi feito um controlador para o robĂ´. Sensores de gás foram embarcados no
robĂ´ com um filtro de resposta ao impulso finita para processar as informações. Um veĂculo
guiado automático de baixo custo foi desenvolvido para competir no Festival Nacional de
RobĂłtica 2019 - Gondomar. O controle do veĂculo foi descrito com o programa de solução
para a competição
The Effectiveness of Armoured Vehicles in Urban Warfare Conditions
Since the Second World War, the major armed conflicts have been occurred in or in the vicinity of the urban areas rather than rural areas, amongst conventional armies and armed groups or terrorists/insurgents. The architectural and construction characteristics of the urban area increase the opportunities for armed groups to ambush, easily escape, conceal, relocate and attack. Additionally, the narrow streets, the blocked roads by the debris of buildings, and IED threats make the urban areas one of the most dangerous conditions for infantries and armoured vehicles. The majority of present armoured combat vehicle types due to the limited visibility, low manoeuvre capability, and limited firing power, they are insufficient for performing the standalone operation without infantry forces and combat engineer support in urban warfare conditions. In this study, 13.400 data belonging to 676 attacks towards armoured vehicles during the counter-terrorism operations against PKK/PYD and ISIS in the urban areas were analysed within the perspective of forensic science techniques such as forensic ballistics and shooting reconstruction. According to the examinations and analyses carried out within the scope of this study; the leading critical features that an armoured combat vehicle that will operate in the urban areas may be listed under five general headings: Structure, Ballistic Protection and Armour, Self Defence and Weapon Systems, Situational/peripheral Awareness and C4I2 Systems and Integrated Warfare Systems
DepthLiDAR: active segmentation of environment depth map into mobile sensors
This paper presents a novel approach for creating
virtual LiDAR scanners through the active segmentation
of point clouds. The method employs top-view point cloud
segmentation in virtual LiDAR sensors that can be applied to
the intelligent behavior of autonomous agents. Segmentation
is correlated with the visual tracking of the agent for localization
in the environmentand point cloud. Virtual LiDARsensors
with different characteristicsand positions can then be generated.
Thismethod is referred to as the DepthLiDAR approach,
and is rigorously evaluated to quantify its performance and
determine its advantages and limitations. An extensive set
of experiments is conducted using real and virtual LiDAR
sensors to compare both approaches. The objective is to
propose a novel method to incorporate spatial perception in warehouses, aiming to achieve Industry 4.0. Thus, it is
tested in a low-scale warehouse to incorporate realistic features. The analysis of the experiments shows a measurement
improvement of 52.24% compared to the conventional LiDAR.This work was supported in part by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de
Pessoal de NĂvel Superior-Brasil (CAPES)–Finance Code 001 and in part
by the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento CientĂfico e TecnolĂłgico
(CNPq).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Mechatronic Systems
Mechatronics, the synergistic blend of mechanics, electronics, and computer science, has evolved over the past twenty five years, leading to a novel stage of engineering design. By integrating the best design practices with the most advanced technologies, mechatronics aims at realizing high-quality products, guaranteeing at the same time a substantial reduction of time and costs of manufacturing. Mechatronic systems are manifold and range from machine components, motion generators, and power producing machines to more complex devices, such as robotic systems and transportation vehicles. With its twenty chapters, which collect contributions from many researchers worldwide, this book provides an excellent survey of recent work in the field of mechatronics with applications in various fields, like robotics, medical and assistive technology, human-machine interaction, unmanned vehicles, manufacturing, and education. We would like to thank all the authors who have invested a great deal of time to write such interesting chapters, which we are sure will be valuable to the readers. Chapters 1 to 6 deal with applications of mechatronics for the development of robotic systems. Medical and assistive technologies and human-machine interaction systems are the topic of chapters 7 to 13.Chapters 14 and 15 concern mechatronic systems for autonomous vehicles. Chapters 16-19 deal with mechatronics in manufacturing contexts. Chapter 20 concludes the book, describing a method for the installation of mechatronics education in schools
Overcoming barriers and increasing independence: service robots for elderly and disabled people
This paper discusses the potential for service robots to overcome barriers and increase independence of
elderly and disabled people. It includes a brief overview of the existing uses of service robots by disabled and elderly
people and advances in technology which will make new uses possible and provides suggestions for some of these new
applications. The paper also considers the design and other conditions to be met for user acceptance. It also discusses
the complementarity of assistive service robots and personal assistance and considers the types of applications and
users for which service robots are and are not suitable
External multi-modal imaging sensor calibration for sensor fusion: A review
Multi-modal data fusion has gained popularity due to its diverse applications, leading to an increased demand for external sensor calibration. Despite several proven calibration solutions, they fail to fully satisfy all the evaluation criteria, including accuracy, automation, and robustness. Thus, this review aims to contribute to this growing field by examining recent research on multi-modal imaging sensor calibration and proposing future research directions. The literature review comprehensively explains the various characteristics and conditions of different multi-modal external calibration methods, including traditional motion-based calibration and feature-based calibration. Target-based calibration and targetless calibration are two types of feature-based calibration, which are discussed in detail. Furthermore, the paper highlights systematic calibration as an emerging research direction. Finally, this review concludes crucial factors for evaluating calibration methods and provides a comprehensive discussion on their applications, with the aim of providing valuable insights to guide future research directions. Future research should focus primarily on the capability of online targetless calibration and systematic multi-modal sensor calibration.Ministerio de Ciencia, InnovaciĂłn y Universidades | Ref. PID2019-108816RB-I0
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