Development of Search‐and‐rescue Robots for Underground Coal Mine Applications

Rescue missions after coal mine accidents are highly risky and sometimes impossible for rescuers to perform. To decrease the risk to rescuers, two generations of tracked mobile robots have been designed and developed to replace the rescuers. In this paper, we present the design iterations with experiments carried out in training sites for rescuers and in working coal mines, and we summarize the design and development experiences of the mobile robots for such rescue missions. In coal mine rescue robots, the explosion‐proof and waterproof designs are adapted to the explosive and wet environments, while the suspension systems are adapted to the unstructured working environments. The design and development experiences may provide a reference for designing and developing future mobile robot systems for coal mine accident rescue missions.     

Connection Mechanism for Autonomous Self-Assembly in Mobile Robots

This paper presents a connection mechanism for autonomous self-assembly in mobile robots. Using this connection mechanism, mobile robots can be autonomously connected and disconnected. The purpose of self-assembly in mobile robotics is to add a new capability to mobile robots, thus, improving their performance to best fit the terrain conditions. Construction of a reconnectable joint is of primary concern in such systems. In this paper, first the geometric conditions and force equations of a general docking mechanism are studied. Then, we discuss the design details of our connection mechanism and present some experimental results that show that the proposed mechanism overcomes significant alignment errors and is considerably power efficient.      

一类多移动机器人运动协调仿真系统的研究与实现

在多机器人系统的研究中,多移动机器人系统的运动协调性始终是热点,也是该领域的一个基础研究方向.文章使用了一类通用的多移动机器人协调控制仿真软件,通过运用基于线程的程序结构和面向对象的软件设计法,有效地实现了复杂环境下大规模移动机器人系统协调运动的实时模拟,同时采用切分窗口技术并运用数字信号传输代码,实现了多机器人运动状态和多机器人相关信息的同步显示,从而能更加方便地获取机器人数据.     

An approach to mobile software robots for the WWW

This paper describes a framework for developing mobile software robots by using the PLANET mobile object system, which is characterized by a language-neutral layered architecture, the native code execution of mobile objects, and asynchronous object passing. We propose an approach to implementing mobile Web search robots that takes full advantage of these characteristics, and we base our discussion of its effectiveness on experiments conducted in the Internet environment. The results show that the PLANET approach to mobile Web search robots significantly reduces the amount of data transferred via the Internet and that it enables the robots to work more efficiently than the robots in the conventional stationary scheme whenever nontrivial amounts of HTML files are processed     

A decentralized control system for cooperative transportation by multiple non-holonomic mobile robots

In this paper, we propose a decentralized control system for transporting a single object by multiple non-holonomic mobile robots. Each agent used in the proposed system has two arms, which can steer around a joint offset from the centre point between two driving wheels. One of these mobile robots acts as a leader, who is assumed to be able to plan and to manipulate the omnidirectional motion of the object by using a resolved velocity control. Other robots, referred to as followers, cooperatively transport the object by keeping a constant relative position with the object using a simple PI control. Different from conventional leader–follower type systems that transport an object by multiple robots in coordination, the present followers can plan an action based on their local coordinate and need no absolute positional information. In addition, as a special case, a system consisting of only two robots is introduced, in which the follower robot not only has an arm length controller to follow the leader but also has a fuzzy controller as an avoidance controller to avoid obstacles or a posture controller to keep a desired posture of the object. Simulation results are given to demonstrate the good performance of the proposed systems.     

Distributed Consensus of Multiple Nonholonomic Mobile Robots

Consensus problems of multiple nonholonomic mobile robots are considered in this paper. These problems are simplified into consensus problems of two subsystems based on structure of nonholonomic mobile robots. Linear distributed controllers are constructed respectively for these two subsystems thanks to the theory of nonautonomous cascaded systems. Consensus of multiple nonholonomic mobile robots has been realized using the methodology proposed in this paper no matter whether the group reference signal is persistent excitation or not. Different from previous research on cooperative control of nonholonomic mobile robots where the consensus problem under persistent exciting reference has received a lot of attention, this paper reports the first consensus result for multiple nonholonomic mobile robots whose group reference converges to zero. Simulation results using Matlab illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed controllers in this paper.      

基于视觉的移动机器人可通行区域识别研究综述

实现实时准确的可通行区域识别,是户外环境下移动机器人导航的重要组成部分。对基于视觉的移动机器人可通行区域识别研究进行了综述,首先介绍了移动机器人视觉导航常用的视觉系统,并从障碍物检测、地形分类两个方面介绍了该问题研究的进展,最后对该领域的技术发展趋势进行了探讨。     

Fast grasping of unknown objects through automatic determination of the required number of mobile robots

In this paper, we present a strategy for fast grasping of unknown objects by mobile robots through automatic determination of the number of robots. An object handling system consisting of a Gripper robot and a Lifter robot is designed. The Gripper robot moves around an unknown object to acquire partial shape information for determination of grasping points. The object is transported if it can be lifted by the Gripper robot. Otherwise, if all grasping trials fail, a Lifter robot is used. In order to maximize use of the Gripper robot’s payload, the detected grasping points that apply the largest force to the gripper are selected for the Gripper robot when the object is grasped by two mobile robots. The object is measured using odometry and scanned data acquired while the Gripper robot moves around the object. Then, the contact point for calculating the insert position for the Lifter robot can be acquired quickly. Finally, a strategy for fast grasping of known objects by considering the transition between stable states is used to realize grasping of unknown objects. The proposed approach is tested in experiments, which find that a wide variety of objects can be grasped quickly with one or two mobile robots.     

Coordination of multiple mobile robots with limited communication range in pursuit of single mobile target in cluttered environment

This paper addresses the problem of coordinating multiple mobile robots in searching for and capturing a mobile target, with the aim of reducing the capture time. Compared with the previous algorithms, we assume that the target can be detected by any robot and captured successfully by two or more robots. In this paper, we assume that each robot has a limited communication range. We maintain the robots within a mobile network to guarantee the successful capture. In addition, the motion of the target is modeled and incorporated into directing the motion of the robots to reduce the capture time. A coordination algorithm considering both aspects is proposed. This algorithm can greatly reduce the expected time of capturing the mobile target. Finally, we validate the algorithm by the simulations and experiments.     

Hybrid autonomous control for multi mobile robots

Reinforcement learning can be an adaptive and flexible control method for autonomous system. It does not need a priori knowledge; behaviors to accomplish given tasks are obtained automatically by repeating trial and error. However, with increasing complexity of the system, the learning costs are increased exponentially. Thus, application to complex systems, like a many redundant d.o.f. robot and multi-agent system, is very difficult. In the previous works in this field, applications were restricted to simple robots and small multi-agent systems, and because of restricted functions of the simple systems that have less redundancy, effectiveness of reinforcement learning is restricted. In our previous works, we had taken these problems into consideration and had proposed new reinforcement learning algorithm, 'Q-learning with dynamic structuring of exploration space based on GA (QDSEGA)'. Effectiveness of QDSEGA for redundant robots has been demonstrated using a 12-legged robot and a 50-link manipulator. However, previous works on QDSEGA were restricted to redundant robots and it was impossible to apply it to multi mobile robots. In this paper, we extend our previous work on QDSEGA by combining a rule-based distributed control and propose a hybrid autonomous control method for multi mobile robots. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method, simulations of a transportation task by 10 mobile robots are carried out. As a result, effective behaviors have been obtained.     

Learning to select distinctive landmarks for mobile robot navigation

In landmark-based navigation systems for mobile robots, sensory perceptions (e.g., laser or sonar scans) are used to identify the robot’s current location or to construct internal representations, maps, of the robot’s environment. Being based on an external frame of reference (which is not subject to incorrigible drift errors such as those occurring in odometry-based systems), landmark-based robot navigation systems are now widely used in mobile robot applications.The problem that has attracted most attention to date in landmark-based navigation research is the question of how to deal with perceptual aliasing, i.e., perceptual ambiguities. In contrast, what constitutes a good landmark, or how to select landmarks for mapping, is still an open research topic. The usual method of landmark selection is to map perceptions at regular intervals, which has the drawback of being inefficient and possibly missing ‘good’ landmarks that lie between sampling points.In this paper, we present an automatic landmark selection algorithm that allows a mobile robot to select conspicuous landmarks from a continuous stream of sensory perceptions, without any pre-installed knowledge or human intervention during the selection process. This algorithm can be used to make mapping mechanisms more efficient and reliable. Experimental results obtained with two different mobile robots in a range of environments are presented and analysed.     

A hierarchical type-2 fuzzy logic control architecture for autonomous mobile robots

Autonomous mobile robots navigating in changing and dynamic unstructured environments like the outdoor environments need to cope with large amounts of uncertainties that are inherent of natural environments. The traditional type-1 fuzzy logic controller (FLC) using precise type-1 fuzzy sets cannot fully handle such uncertainties. A type-2 FLC using type-2 fuzzy sets can handle such uncertainties to produce a better performance. In this paper, we present a novel reactive control architecture for autonomous mobile robots that is based on type-2 FLC to implement the basic navigation behaviors and the coordination between these behaviors to produce a type-2 hierarchical FLC. In our experiments, we implemented this type-2 architecture in different types of mobile robots navigating in indoor and outdoor unstructured and challenging environments. The type-2-based control system dealt with the uncertainties facing mobile robots in unstructured environments and resulted in a very good performance that outperformed the type-1-based control system while achieving a significant rule reduction compared to the type-1 system.     

一种基于行为效用理论的多移动机器人编队协调方法

本文提出了一种基于行为效用理论的多移动机器人编队协调方法，用于解决多移动机器人编队初始化问题，实现自治的多移动机器人按特定的空间结构进行编队以完成特定的任务．我们对编队问题协调控制策略和算法进行了研究，给出了行为效用方程及两个衡量值，并针对编队问题的协调控制过程中目标点重复决策问题及偏远目标的选择问题进行了探讨并给出了相应的改进协调方案，计算机仿真试验验证了本文所提方法的有效性和可行性．     

An algorithm for safe navigation of mobile robots by a sensor network in dynamic cluttered industrial environments

Mobile robots have been widely implemented in industrial automation and smart factories. Different types of mobile robots work cooperatively in the workspace to complete some complicated tasks. Therefore, the main requirement for multi-robot systems is collision-free navigation in dynamic environments. In this paper, we propose a sensor network based navigation system for ground mobile robots in dynamic industrial cluttered environments. A range finder sensor network is deployed on factory floor to detect any obstacles in the field of view and perform a global navigation for any robots simultaneously travelling in the factory. The obstacle detection and robot navigation are integrated into the sensor network and the robot is only required for a low-level path tracker. The novelty of this paper is to propose a sensor network based navigation system with a novel artificial potential field (APF) based navigation algorithm. Computer simulations and experiments confirm the performance of the proposed method.     

A real-time responsiveness measurement method of linux-based mobile systems for P2P cloud systems

Linux-based mobile computing systems such as robots, electronic control devices, and smart-phone are the most important types of P2P cloud systems in recent days. To improve the overall performance of networked systems, each mobile computing system requires real-time characteristics. For this reason, mobile computing system developers want to know how well real-time responsiveness is supported; several real-time measurement tools have been proposed. However, those previous tools have their own measurement schemes and we think that the results from those models do not show how responsive those systems are. In this paper, we propose ELRM, a new real-time measurement method that has clear measurement interval definitions and an accurate measurement method for real-time responsiveness. We evaluate ELRM on various mobile computing systems and compare it with other existing models. As a result, our method can obtain more accurate and intuitive real-time responsiveness measurement results.     

Robust Formation Control of Multiple Wheeled Mobile Robots

This paper considers formation control of a group of wheeled mobile robots with uncertainty. Decentralized cooperative robust controllers are proposed in two steps. In the first step, cooperative control laws are proposed for multiple kinematic systems with the aid of results from graph theory such that a group of robots comes into a desired formation. In the second step, cooperative robust control laws for multiple uncertain dynamic systems are proposed with the aid of backstepping techniques and the passivity properties of the dynamic systems such that multiple robots comes into a desired formation. Since communication delay is inevitable in cooperative control, its effect on the proposed controllers is analyzed. Simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed controllers.     

A methodology for design and analysis of cooperative behaviors with mobile robots

New methodologies are needed for modeling of physically cooperating mobile robots to be able to systematically design and analyze such systems. In this context, we present a method called the ‘P-robot Method’ under which we introduce entities called the p-robots at the environmental contact points and treat the linked mobile robots as a multiple degree-of-freedom object, comprising an articulated open kinematic chain, which is manipulated by the p-robots. The method is suitable to address three critical aspects of physical cooperation: a) analysis of environmental contacts, b) utilization of redundancy, and c) exploitation of system dynamics. Dynamics of the open chain are computed independent of the constraints, thus allowing the same set of equations to be used as the constraint conditions change, and simplifying the addition of multiple robots to the chain. The decoupling achieved through constraining the p-robots facilitates the analysis of kinematic as well as force constraints. We introduce the idea of a ‘tipping cone’, similar to a standard friction cone, to test whether forces on the robots cause undesired tipping. We have employed the P-robot Method for the static as well as dynamic analysis for a cooperative behavior involving two robots. The method is generalizable to analyze cooperative behaviors with any number of robots. We demonstrate that redundant actuation achieved by an adding a third robot to cooperation can help in satisfying the contact constraints. The P-robot Method can be useful to analyze other interesting multi-body robotic systems as well.     

The cost of probabilistic agreement in oblivious robot networks

In this paper, we look at the time complexity of two agreement problems in networks of oblivious mobile robots, namely, at the gathering and scattering problems. Given a set of robots with arbitrary initial locations and no initial agreement on a global coordinate system, gathering requires that all robots reach the exact same but not predetermined location. In contrast, scattering requires that no two robots share the same location. These two abstractions are fundamental coordination problems in cooperative mobile robotics. Oblivious solutions are appealing for self-stabilization since they are self-stabilizing at no extra cost. As neither gathering nor scattering can be solved deterministically under arbitrary schedulers, probabilistic solutions have been proposed recently.The contribution of this paper is twofold. First, we propose a detailed time complexity analysis of a modified probabilistic gathering algorithm. Using Markov chains tools and additional assumptions on the environment, we prove that the convergence time of gathering can be reduced from O(n²) (the best known bound) to O(1) or , depending on the model of multiplicity detection. Second, using the same technique, we prove that scattering can also be achieved in fault-free systems with the same bounds.     

Integrity protection for Code-on-Demand mobile agents in e-commerce

The mobile agent paradigm has been proposed as a promising solution to facilitate distributed computing over open and heterogeneous networks. Mobility, autonomy, and intelligence are identified as key features of mobile agent systems and enabling characteristics for the next-generation smart electronic commerce on the Internet. However, security-related issues, especially integrity protection in mobile agent technology, still hinder the widespread use of software agents: from the agent's perspective, mobile agent integrity should be protected against attacks from malicious hosts and other agents. In this paper, we present Code-on-Demand (CoD) mobile agents and a corresponding agent integrity protection scheme. Compared to the traditional assumption that mobile agents consist of invariant code parts, we propose the use of dynamically upgradeable agent code, in which new agent function modules can be added and redundant ones can be deleted at runtime. This approach will reduce the weight of agent programs, equip mobile agents with more flexibility, enhance code privacy and help the recoverability of agents after attack. In order to meet the security challenges for agent integrity protection, we propose agent code change authorization protocols and a double integrity verification scheme. Finally, we discuss the Java implementation of CoD mobile agents and integrity protection.     

Maze exploration behaviors using an integrated evolutionary robotics environment

This paper presents results generated with a new evolutionary robotics (ER) simulation environment and its complementary real mobile robot colony research test-bed. Neural controllers producing mobile robot maze searching and exploration behaviors using binary tactile sensors as inputs were evolved in a simulated environment and subsequently transferred to and tested on real robots in a physical environment. There has been a considerable amount of proof-of-concept and demonstration research done in the field of ER control in recent years, most of which has focused on elementary behaviors such as object avoidance and homing. Artificial neural networks (ANN) are the most commonly used evolvable controller paradigm found in current ER literature. Much of the research reported to date has been restricted to the implementation of very simple behaviors using small ANN controllers. In order to move beyond the proof-of-concept stage our ER research was designed to train larger more complicated ANN controllers, and to implement those controllers on real robots quickly and efficiently. To achieve this a physical robot test-bed that includes a colony of eight real robots with advanced computing and communication abilities was designed and built. The real robot platform has been coupled to a simulation environment that facilitates the direct wireless transfer of evolved neural controllers from simulation to real robots (and vice versa). We believe that it is the simultaneous development of ER computing systems in both the simulated and the physical worlds that will produce advances in mobile robot colony research. Our simulation and training environment development focuses on the definition and training of our new class of ANNs, networks that include multiple hidden layers, and time-delayed and recurrent connections. Our physical mobile robot design focuses on maximizing computing and communications power while minimizing robot size, weight, and energy usage. The simulation and ANN-evolution environment was developed using MATLAB. To allow for efficient control software portability our physical evolutionary robots (EvBots) are equipped with a PC-104-based computer running a custom distribution of Linux and connected to the Internet via a wireless network connection. In addition to other high-level computing applications, the mobile robots run a condensed version of MATLAB, enabling ANN controllers evolved in simulation to be transferred directly onto physical robots without any alteration to the code. This is the first paper in a series to be published cataloging our results in this field.