MuNES: Multifloor Navigation Including Elevators and Stairs

Abstract

We propose a scheme called MuNES for single mapping and trajectory planning including elevators and stairs. Optimized multifloor trajectories are important for optimal interfloor movements of robots. However, given two or more options of moving between floors, it is difficult to select the best trajectory because there are no suitable indoor multifloor maps in the existing methods. To solve this problem, MuNES creates a single multifloor map including elevators and stairs by estimating altitude changes based on pressure data. In addition, the proposed method performs floor-based loop detection for faster and more accurate loop closure. The single multifloor map is then voxelized leaving only the parts needed for trajectory planning. An optimal and realistic multifloor trajectory is generated by exploring the voxels using an A* algorithm based on the proposed cost function, which affects realistic factors. We tested this algorithm using data acquired from around a campus and note that a single accurate multifloor map could be created. Furthermore, optimal and realistic multifloor trajectory could be found by selecting the means of motion between floors between elevators and stairs according to factors such as the starting point, ending point, and elevator waiting time. The code and data used in this work are available at https://github.com/donghwijung/MuNES