Fuzzy integral-based gaze control architecture incorporated with modified-univector field-based navigation for humanoid robots

When a humanoid robot moves in a dynamic environment, a simple process of planning and following a path may not guarantee competent performance for dynamic obstacle avoidance because the robot acquires limited information from the environment using a local vision sensor. Thus, it is essential to update its local map as frequently as possible to obtain more information through gaze control while walking. This paper proposes a fuzzy integral-based gaze control architecture incorporated with the modified-univector field-based navigation for humanoid robots. To determine the gaze direction, four criteria based on local map confidence, waypoint, self-localization, and obstacles, are defined along with their corresponding partial evaluation functions. Using the partial evaluation values and the degree of consideration for criteria, fuzzy integral is applied to each candidate gaze direction for global evaluation. For the effective dynamic obstacle avoidance, partial evaluation functions about self-localization error and surrounding obstacles are also used for generating virtual dynamic obstacle for the modified-univector field method which generates the path and velocity of robot toward the next waypoint. The proposed architecture is verified through the comparison with the conventional weighted sum-based approach with the simulations using a developed simulator for HanSaRam-IX (HSR-IX).     

Decentralized behavior-based formation control of multiple robots considering obstacle avoidance

This paper proposes a decentralized behavior-based formation control algorithm for multiple robots considering obstacle avoidance. Using only the information of the relative position of a robot between neighboring robots and obstacles, the proposed algorithm achieves formation control based on a behavior-based algorithm. In addition, the robust formation is achieved by maintaining the distance and angle of each robot toward the leader robot without using information of the leader robot. To avoid the collisions with obstacles, the heading angles of all robots are determined by introducing the concept of an escape angle, which is related with three boundary layers between an obstacle and the robot. The layer on which the robot is located determines the start time of avoidance and escape angle; this, in turn, generates the escape path along which a robot can move toward the safe layer. In this way, the proposed method can significantly simplify the step of the information process. Finally, simulation results are provided to demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed algorithm.     

基于几何法的移动机器人路径规划

旨在解决动态环境中移动机器人与障碍物发生碰撞可能性的判断和避开障碍的路径规划。提出了采用几何计算的方法判断机器人和障碍物之间发生碰撞的条件,规划出机器人沿着收敛曲线运动到安全圆周,在安全圆周上作动态圆周运动,最后沿着圆弧退出圆周到达预定的避障路径。将基本的避开障碍的理论和几何算法有机地结合起来,获得了光滑的路径,提高了机器人避开障碍的效率。     

地图构建中动态障碍干扰滤除的一种方法

在移动机器人环境建图中,动态障碍物的存在直接影响传感器的读数,导致产生不一致的环境地图,因此,移动机器人构建地图必须滤除动态障碍物干扰。采用直线插补的方法在先前的局部图上搜寻机器人与目标点之间是否存在障碍物,若存在障碍,则可判定该障碍物已移走(即为动态障碍),应该予以滤除。实验结果证明,该方法能在建图过程中有效地滤除动态障碍,并能有效减少静态障碍物探测的误差累积,算法复杂度小。     

通讯受限条件下的机器人编队算法

针对通讯受限条件下大规模移动机器人编队任务,本文提出了基于行为的分布式多机器人线形编队控制和避障算法.机器人个体无需获得群体中所有机器人的信息,而是根据传感器获取的环境信息和局部范围内的机器人信息对其自身的调整方向进行预测,并最终很好地完成了设定的编队及避障任务.由于本文方法需求的通讯量不大,并且采用分布式控制,因此该...     

The leader-follower formation control of nonholonomic mobile robots

In this paper, the leader-waypoint-follower formation is constructed based on relative motion states of nonholonomic mobile robots. Since the robots’ velocities are constrained, we proposed a geometrical waypoint in cone method so that the follower robots move to their desired waypoints effectively. In order to form and maintain the formation of multi-robots, we combine stable tracking control method with receding horizon (RH) tracking control method. The stable tracking control method aims to make the robot’s state errors stable and the RH tracking control method guarantees that the convergence of the state errors tends toward zero efficiently. Based on the methods mentioned above, the mobile robots formation can be maintained in any trajectory such as a straight line, a circle or a sinusoid. The simulation results based on the proposed approaches show each follower robot can move to its waypoint efficiently. To validate the proposed methods, we do the experiments with nonholonomic robots using only limited on-board sensor information.     

Trajectory time scaling of a mobile robot to avoid dynamic obstacles on the basis of the INLVO

To ensure the collision safety of mobile robots, the velocity of dynamic obstacles should be considered while planning the robot’s trajectory for high-speed navigation tasks. A planning scheme that computes the collision avoidance trajectory by assuming static obstacles may result in obstacle collisions owing to the relative velocities of dynamic obstacles. This article proposes a trajectory time-scaling scheme that considers the velocities of dynamic obstacles. The proposed inverse nonlinear velocity obstacle (INLVO) is used to compute the nonlinear velocity obstacle based on the known trajectory of the mobile robot. The INLVO can be used to obtain the boundary conditions required to avoid a dynamic obstacle. The simulation results showed that the proposed scheme can deal with typical collision states within a short period of time. The proposed scheme is advantageous because it can be applied to conventional trajectory planning schemes without high computational costs. In addition, the proposed scheme for avoiding dynamic obstacles can be used without an accurate prediction of the obstacle trajectories owing to the fast generation of the time-scaling trajectory.     

基于BP神经网络的移动机器人避障设计及仿真

为了解决移动机器人在复杂环境中如何高效精确地躲避障碍物的问题,提出了一种基于BP神经网络的避障方法。建立了机器人的避障运动模型并设计了神经网络避障控制系统;分析了机器人在运动过程中与障碍物的位置关系,使用超声波传感器采集距离信息,进行BP神经网络输入、输出训练并采用Matlab工具进行仿真试验。结果表明,该方法可以高效精确地实现移动机器人的自主避障,运行相对稳定、轨迹连续平滑,达到了较为理想的避障效果。验证了方法的可行性和有效性,为移动机器人自主避障提供了一种新的控制方法。     

多移动机器人的领航-跟随编队避障控制

针对多移动机器人的编队控制问题,提出了一种结合Polar Histogram避障法的领航-跟随协调编队控制算法。该算法在领航-跟随l-φ编队控制结构的基础上引入虚拟跟随机器人,将编队控制转化为跟随机器人对虚拟跟随机器人的轨迹跟踪控制。结合移动机器人自身传感器技术,在简单甚至复杂的环境下为机器人提供相应的路径运动策略,实现实时导航的目的。以两轮差动Qbot移动机器人为研究对象,搭建半实物仿真平台,进行仿真实验。仿真结果表明:该方法可以有效地实现多移动机器人协调编队和避障控制。     

VCS-based motion planning for distributed mobile robots: collision avoidance and formation

This paper addresses decentralized motion planning among a homogeneous set of feedback-controlled mobile robots. It introduces the velocity obstacle, which describes the collision between robot and obstacle, and the hybrid interactive velocity obstacles are designed for collision checking between interacting robots. The (sub)goal selection algorithm is also studied for formation control, then the preferred velocity is designed for robot tracking its desired (sub)goal. Furthermore, the rules for the size regulation of obstacle are presented to avoid conservative motion planning and enhance the safety. Then, we establish a novel Velocity Change Space (VCS), map the velocity obstacles, the desired (sub)goal and the reachable velocity change window before collision in this space, and directly get the new velocity by a multi-objective optimization method. We apply VCS-based motion planning methods to distributed robots, and simulation is used to illustrate the good performances with respect to the un-conservative, foresighted and multi-objective optimal motion planning, especially the successful application in the formation control of the multi-robot system.     

Obstacle avoidance for redundant robots using configuration control

The article presents a new and simple solution to the obstacle avoidance problem for redundant robots. In the proposed approach, called configuration control, the redundancy is utilized to configure the robot so as to satisfy a set of kinematic inequality constraints representing obstacle avoidance, while the end-effector is tracking a desired trajectory. The robot control scheme is very simple, and uses on-line adaptation to eliminate the need for the complex dynamic model and parameter values of the robot. Several simulation results for a four-link planar robot are presented to illustrate the versatility of the approach. These include reaching around a stationary obstacle, simultaneous avoidance of two obstacles, robot reconfiguration to avoid a moving obstacle, and avoidance of rectangular obstacles. The simplicity and computational efficiency of the proposed scheme allows on-line implementation with a high sampling rate for real-time obstacle avoidance in a dynamically varying environment.     

全向移动机器人编队分布式控制研究

简单介绍了NuBot机器人的两个主要组成部分：全向视觉和全向运动系统,并给出了运动学分析．基于该机器人平台,提出了D-A和D-D控制两种跟踪算法．通过机器人之间的相对定位和局部通信,实现了多机器人编队的分布式控制,同时,该算法可对机器人朝向进行独立控制．针对不同情况下的编队避障问题,提出了编队变形和编队变换两种方法．仿真和实际机器人实验表明,D-A控制方法能够实现平滑的编队变换;编队变形方法能够在尽量保持原始队形的情况下保证编队顺利避障．     

Dynamic multi-robot team reconfiguration using weighted voting games

We consider the problem of dynamic reconfiguration of robot teams when they encounter obstacles while navigating in formation, in an initially unknown environment. We have used a framework from coalition game theory called weighted voting games to analyse this problem and proposed two heuristics that can appropriately partition a robot team into sub-teams. We have experimentally verified our technique on teams of e-puck robots of different sizes and with different obstacle geometries, both on the Webots simulator and on physical robots. We have also shown that our technique performs faster and generates considerably fewer partitions than an existing robot coalition formation algorithm.     

Hierarchical multi-robot navigation and formation in unknown environments via deep reinforcement learning and distributed optimization

Compared with a single robot, Multi-robot Systems (MRSs) can undertake more challenging tasks in complex scenarios benefiting from the increased transportation capacity and fault tolerance. This paper presents a hierarchical framework for multi-robot navigation and formation in unknown environments with static and dynamic obstacles, where the robots compute and maintain the optimized formation while making progress to the target together. In the proposed framework, each single robot is capable of navigating to the global target in unknown environments based on its local perception, and only limited communication among robots is required to obtain the optimal formation. Accordingly, three modules are included in this framework. Firstly, we design a learning network based on Deep Deterministic Policy Gradient (DDPG) to address the global navigation task for single robot, which derives end-to-end policies that map the robot’s local perception into its velocity commands. To handle complex obstacle distributions (e.g. narrow/zigzag passage and local minimum) and stabilize the training process, strategies of Curriculum Learning (CL) and Reward Shaping (RS) are combined. Secondly, for an expected formation, its real-time configuration is optimized by a distributed optimization. This configuration considers surrounding obstacles and current formation status, and provides each robot with its formation target. Finally, a velocity adjustment method considering the robot kinematics is designed which adjusts the navigation velocity of each robot according to its formation target, making all the robots navigate to their targets while maintaining the expected formation. This framework allows for formation online reconfiguration and is scalable with the number of robots. Extensive simulations and 3-D evaluations verify that our method can navigate the MRS in unknown environments while maintaining the optimal formation.     

移动机器人避障行为酶数值膜控制器

为了兼顾膜控制器控制下的移动机器人行走速度和避障效果,提出了一种基于酶数值膜系统的自适应巡航速度避障控制方法.该方法采用酶数值膜系统结构,利用膜之间的信息交流,实现多个膜融合多个传感器的距离信息,根据融合距离信息自适应调节巡航速度,使移动机器人能够有效的避开障碍物,同时兼顾无障碍物时移动机器人行走速度.基于移动机器人Pioneer3-DX的仿真和实物实验表明：该方法设计的酶数值膜控制器可行且避障控制效果更优.     

Sensor-Based Motion Planning of Wheeled Mobile Robots in Unknown Dynamic Environments

This paper presents a new sensor-based online method for generating collision-free paths for differential-drive wheeled mobile robots pursuing a moving target amidst dynamic and static obstacles. At each iteration, the set of all collision-free directions are calculated using velocity vectors of the robot relative to each obstacle, forming the Directive Circle (DC), which is the fundamental concept of our proposed method. Then, the best feasible direction close to the optimal direction to the target is selected from the DC, which prevents the robot from being trapped in local minima. Local movements of the robot are governed by the exponential stabilizing control scheme that provides a smooth motion at each step, while considering the robot’s kinematic constraints. The robot is able to catch the target at a desired orientation. Extensive simulations demonstrated the efficiency of the proposed method and its success in coping with complex and highly dynamic environments with arbitrary obstacle shapes.     

未知动态环境下非完整移动群机器人围捕

针对未知动态障碍物环境下非完整移动群机器人围捕,提出了一种基于简化虚拟受力模型的自组织方法.首先给出了个体机器人的运动方程,然后给出了未知动态环境下目标和动态障碍物的运动模型.通过对复杂环境下围捕行为的分解,抽象出简化虚拟受力模型,基于此受力模型,设计了个体运动控制方法,接着证明了系统的稳定性并给出了参数设置范围.不同情况下的仿真结果表明,本文给出的围捕方法可以使群机器人在未知动态障碍物环境下保持较好的围捕队形,并具有良好的避障性能和灵活性.最后分析了本文与基于松散偏好规则的围捕方法相比的优势.     

基于行为的多机器人任意队形的控制

针对多机器人队形优化控制任务,提出一种快速收敛的机器人任意队形的控制算法。各机器人在奔向目标的过程中以队形的几何中心为参考点,自主地确定队形向量。在保持队形的过程中,采用动态死区法,通过对各个区域大小的控制达到对机器人速度的控制,维持规定队形。采用反向避碰、切线避障,根据各机器人间的位置,引入整体队形向量约束机器人的方向,达到机器人整体队形的方向与机器人运动方向一致。实验结果表明该算法可以快速、有效地完成各种编队任务。     

基于改进模糊算法的移动机器人避障

为了提高移动机器人在连续障碍物环境下的避障性能,提出了一种具有速度反馈的模糊避障算法。移动机器人利用超声传感器感知周围环境,在模糊控制的基础上通过障碍物分布情况调整自身速度,进而引入优雅降级并把改进的模糊避障融入其中,增强了移动机器人的鲁棒性。实验结果表明,该方法能通过与环境交互调整机器人移动速度,控制机器人成功避障并优化避障路径,具有良好的有效性。     

B-Theta*: an Efficient Online Coverage Algorithm for Autonomous Cleaning Robots

We propose a novel approach to deal with the online complete-coverage task of cleaning robots in unknown workspaces with arbitrarily-shaped obstacles. Our approach is based on the boustrophedon motions, the boundary-following motions, and the Theta* algorithm known as B-Theta*. Under control of B-Theta*, the robot performs a single boustrophedon motion to cover an unvisited region. While performing the boustrophedon motion, if the robot encounters an obstacle with a boundary that has not yet been covered, it switches to the boundary mode to cover portions along the obstacle boundary, and then continues the boustrophedon motion until it detects an ending point. To move to an unvisited region, the robot detects backtracking points based on its accumulated knowledge, and applies an intelligent backtracking mechanism thanks to the proposed Theta* for multi-goals in order to reach the next starting point. Complete coverage is achieved when no starting point exists for a new boustrophedon motion. Computer simulations and experiments on real workspaces show that our proposed B-Theta* is efficient for the complete-coverage task of cleaning robots.