基于视觉FastSLAM的移动机器人自主探索方法*

针对室内环境下机器人的移动和定位需要,提出基于视觉FastSLAM的移动机器人自主探索方法.该方法综合考虑信息增益和路径距离,基于边界选取探索位置并规划路径,最大化机器人的自主探索效率,确保探索任务的完整实现.在FastSLAM 2.0的基础上,利用视觉作为观测手段,有效融合全景扫描和地标跟踪方法,提高数据观测效率,并且引入地标视觉特征增强数据关联估计,完成定位和地图绘制.实验表明,文中方法能正确选取最优探索位置并合理规划路径,完成探索任务,并且定位精度和地图绘制精度较高,鲁棒性较好.     

Skeleton pruning as trade-off between skeleton simplicity and reconstruction error

The position and orientation of moving platform mainly depends on global positioning system and inertial navigation system in the field of low-altitude surveying, mapping and remote sensing and land-based mobile mapping system. However, GPS signal is unavailable in the application of deep space exploration and indoor robot control. In such circumstances, image-based methods are very important for self-position and orientation of moving platform. Therefore, this paper firstly introduces state of the art development of the image-based self-position and orientation method (ISPOM) for moving platform from the following aspects: 1) A comparison among major image-based methods (i.e., visual odometry, structure from motion, simultaneous localization and mapping) for position and orientation; 2) types of moving platform; 3) integration schemes of image sensor with other sensors; 4) calculation methodology and quantity of image sensors. Then, the paper proposes a new scheme of ISPOM for mobile robot — depending merely on image sensors. It takes the advantages of both monocular vision and stereo vision, and estimates the relative position and orientation of moving platform with high precision and high frequency. In a word, ISPOM will gradually speed from research to application, as well as play a vital role in deep space exploration and indoor robot control.     

A nonparametric learning approach to range sensing from omnidirectional vision

We present a novel approach to estimating depth from single omnidirectional camera images by learning the relationship between visual features and range measurements available during a training phase. Our model not only yields the most likely distance to obstacles in all directions, but also the predictive uncertainties for these estimates. This information can be utilized by a mobile robot to build an occupancy grid map of the environment or to avoid obstacles during exploration—tasks that typically require dedicated proximity sensors such as laser range finders or sonars. We show in this paper how an omnidirectional camera can be used as an alternative to such range sensors. As the learning engine, we apply Gaussian processes, a nonparametric approach to function regression, as well as a recently developed extension for dealing with input-dependent noise. In practical experiments carried out in different indoor environments with a mobile robot equipped with an omnidirectional camera system, we demonstrate that our system is able to estimate range with an accuracy comparable to that of dedicated sensors based on sonar or infrared light.     

A Mobile Robot Exploration Strategy with Low Cost Sonar and Tungsten-Halogen Structured Light

Autonomous environment mapping is an essential part of efficiently carrying out complex missions in unknown indoor environments. In this paper, a low cost mapping system composed of a web camera with structured light and sonar sensors is presented. We propose a novel exploration strategy based on the frontier concept using the low cost mapping system. Based on the complementary characteristics of a web camera with structured light and sonar sensors, two different sensors are fused to make a mobile robot explore an unknown environment with efficient mapping. Sonar sensors are used to roughly find obstacles, and the structured light vision system is used to increase the occupancy probability of obstacles or walls detected by sonar sensors. To overcome the inaccuracy of the frontier-based exploration, we propose an exploration strategy that would both define obstacles and reveal new regions using the mapping system. Since the processing cost of the vision module is high, we resolve the vision sensing placement problem to minimize the number of vision sensing in analyzing the geometry of the proposed sonar and vision probability models. Through simulations and indoor experiments, the efficiency of the proposed exploration strategy is proved and compared to other exploration strategies.      

Collision Detection and Safe Reaction Algorithm for Non-backdrivable Manipulator with Single Force/Torque Sensor

The paper presents a robust control law for homing of an autonomous robot. The proposed work aims to solve this problem for practical conditions such as random errors in commanded velocities and unknown distance sensor characteristics. The proposed steering control aligns the robot’s orientation with homing vector using arbitrary real valued distance function providing the capability to work in changing environment conditions. Finite time convergence to the equilibrium using proposed control law is achieved in the presence of bounded random velocity errors regardless of the initial position and orientation. Just the sign information as feedback supports applicability of proposed control law with any distance function. A matching parameter between panoramic images obtained at home and current positions is a function of distance between home and current positions. However, explicit relation between distance and image matching parameter is unknown. This work demonstrates the application of proposed method for visual homing based on image distance function rendering the benefit of minimal image processing. Various simulation and experimental results are presented for visual homing to support the theory presented in this paper. Advantage of proposed visual homing is also explored in changing environment conditions.     

基于改进SIFT算法的双目视觉SLAM研究

SIFT算法通常用于移动机器人视觉S LAM中。但其算法复杂、计算时间长,影响视觉SLAM的性能。在两方面对SIFT改进：一是用街区距离与棋盘距离的线性组合作为相似性度量;二是采用部分特征方法完成快速匹配。应用扩展卡尔曼滤波器融合SIFT特征信息与机器人位姿信息完成SLAM。仿真实验表明,在未知室内环境下,该算法运行时间短,定位精度高。     

基于激光雷达与双目视觉的移动机器人SLAM研究

为解决移动机器人在环境未知条件下,利用单一传感器自主导航时不能及时定位、构建地图不精确的问题,提出采用一种改进RBPF算法,在计算提议分布时将移动机器人的观测数据(视觉信息与激光雷达信息)和里程计信息融合;针对一般视觉图像特征点提取算法较慢的问题,采用基于ORB算法对视觉图像进行处理以加快视觉图像处理速度的方法;最后通过在安装有开源机器人操作系统(ROS)的履带式移动机器人进行实验,验证了采用该方法可构建可靠性更高、更精确的2D栅格图,提高了移动机器人SLAM的鲁棒性.     

改进深度强化学习的室内移动机器人路径规划

为了解决传统深度强化学习在室内未知环境下移动机器人路径规划中存在探索能力差和环境状态空间奖励稀疏的问题,提出了一种基于深度图像信息的改进深度强化学习算法。利用Kinect视觉传感器直接获取的深度图像信息和目标位置信息作为网络的输入,以机器人的线速度和角速度作为下一步动作指令的输出。设计了改进的奖惩函数,提高了算法的奖励值,优化了状态空间,在一定程度上缓解了奖励稀疏的问题。仿真结果表明,改进算法提高了机器人的探索能力,优化了路径轨迹,使机器人有效地避开了障碍物,规划出更短的路径,简单环境下比DQN算法的平均路径长度缩短了21.4%,复杂环境下平均路径长度缩短了11.3%。     

Visual Recognition of Types of Corridor Segments for Mobile Robots

This paper presents a visual recognition method to identify types of corridor segments such as T-junctions, L-junctions, and dead ends using vanishing point-based visual features and a two-layer recognition framework. This approach is useful for efficient robot navigation in the sense that a mobile robot is able to recognize the corridor segment type before reaching it, allowing the robot to make navigation decisions in advance. Furthermore, owing to our novel visual features made by using nonvertical vanishing points satisfying Manhattan world assumption, it is more probable for a mobile robot to recognize corridor segment types under partial occlusion by human. Experimental results have also been provided to demonstrate the validity of the proposed approach in real world environments.     

Gyro-based odometry associated with steering characteristics for wheeled mobile robot in rough terrain

Mobile robot used for planetary exploration performs several scientific missions over long distance travel and needs to have a high degree of autonomous mobility system because the communication delay from the Earth impedes its direct teleoperation. Localization of a mobile robot is of particular importance on the autonomous mobility. Classical localization methods such as wheel/visual odometry have been widely investigated and demonstrated, but they possess a well-known trade-off between computational cost and localization accuracy. This paper proposes an accurate gyro-based odometry method for a wheeled mobile robot in rough terrain. The robot in rough terrain is often subject to large wheel slip or vehicle sideslip related with its steering maneuver, and those slips degrade the localization accuracy. The basic approach of the proposed method is to exploit odometry data for the robot distance traveled as well as gyroscope data for the robot heading calculation; however each data-set is weighted in accordance with steering characteristics of a robot in rough terrain. The usefulness of the proposed method is examined through field experiments using a wheeled mobile robot testbed in Martian analog site. The experimental result confirms that the proposed method accurately estimates the robot trajectory.     

一种室内移动机器人自主探索方法

研究室内未知环境下的移动机器人自主探索问题,并提出改进策略.首先,提出一种基于可通行区域的探索目标点快速提取方法,以补充原有方法在特殊环境结构下出现的提取探索目标点失败的缺陷;然后,提出一种基于激光数据和栅格地图信息的实时拓扑地图构建与优化方法,使得探索地图更加精简,探索过程更加高效;最后,通过改进的避障模块实现机器人的运动控制,以到达机器人安全探索的目标.同时,该系统采取机器人操作系统(Robot operating system, ROS)下的分布式结构,将整体算法合理分配到客户端和服务器,降低系统实现的硬件要求.现场实验表明,所提出方法具有良好的自主导航性能,在较复杂的室内未知环境下,仍能保持良好的地图构建能力和避障能力.     

Environment model adaptation for mobile robot exploration

In this work, we propose a methodology to adapt a mobile robot’s environment model during exploration as a means of decreasing the computational complexity associated with information metric evaluation and consequently increasing the speed at which the system is able to plan actions and travel through an unknown region given finite computational resources. Recent advances in exploration compute control actions by optimizing information-theoretic metrics on the robot’s map. These metrics are generally computationally expensive to evaluate, limiting the speed at which a robot is able to explore. To reduce computational cost, we propose keeping two representations of the environment: one full resolution representation for planning and collision checking, and another with a coarse resolution for rapidly evaluating the informativeness of planned actions. To generate the coarse representation, we employ the Principal of Relevant Information from rate distortion theory to compress a robot’s occupancy grid map. We then propose a method for selecting a coarse representation that sacrifices a minimal amount of information about expected future sensor measurements using the Information Bottleneck Method. We outline an adaptive strategy that changes the robot’s environment representation in response to its surroundings to maximize the computational efficiency of exploration. On computationally constrained systems, this reduction in complexity enables planning over longer predictive horizons, leading to faster navigation. We simulate and experimentally evaluate mutual information based exploration through cluttered indoor environments with exploration rates that adapt based on environment complexity leading to an order-of-magnitude increase in the maximum rate of exploration in contrast to non-adaptive techniques given the same finite computational resources.     

Dense topological maps and partial pose estimation for visual control of an autonomous cleaning robot

We present a mostly vision-based controller for mapping and completely covering a rectangular area by meandering cleaning lanes. The robot is guided along a parallel course by controlling the current distance to its previous lane. In order to frequently compute and–if necessary–correct the robot’s distance to the previous lane, a dense topological map of the robot’s workspace is built. The map stores snapshots, i.e. panoramic images, taken at regular distances while moving along a cleaning lane. For estimating the distance, we combine bearing information obtained by local visual homing with distance information derived from the robot’s odometry. In contrast to traditional mapping applications, we do not compute the robot’s full pose w.r.t. an external reference frame. We rather rely on partial pose estimation and only compute the sufficient and necessary information to solve the task. For our specific application this includes estimates of (i) the robot’s distance to the previous lane and of (ii) the robot’s orientation w.r.t. world coordinates. The results show that the proposed method achieves good results with only a small portion of overlap or gaps between the lanes. The dense topological representation of space and the proposed controller will be used as building blocks for more complex cleaning strategies making the robot capable of covering complex-shaped workspaces such as rooms or apartments.     

Indoor scene recognition by a mobile robot through adaptive object detection

Mobile robotics has achieved notable progress, however, to increase the complexity of the tasks that mobile robots can perform in natural environments, we need to provide them with a greater semantic understanding of their surrounding. In particular, identifying indoor scenes, such as an Office or a Kitchen, is a highly valuable perceptual ability for an indoor mobile robot, and in this paper we propose a new technique to achieve this goal. As a distinguishing feature, we use common objects, such as Doors or furniture, as a key intermediate representation to recognize indoor scenes. We frame our method as a generative probabilistic hierarchical model, where we use object category classifiers to associate low-level visual features to objects, and contextual relations to associate objects to scenes. The inherent semantic interpretation of common objects allows us to use rich sources of online data to populate the probabilistic terms of our model. In contrast to alternative computer vision based methods, we boost performance by exploiting the embedded and dynamic nature of a mobile robot. In particular, we increase detection accuracy and efficiency by using a 3D range sensor that allows us to implement a focus of attention mechanism based on geometric and structural information. Furthermore, we use concepts from information theory to propose an adaptive scheme that limits computational load by selectively guiding the search for informative objects. The operation of this scheme is facilitated by the dynamic nature of a mobile robot that is constantly changing its field of view. We test our approach using real data captured by a mobile robot navigating in Office and home environments. Our results indicate that the proposed approach outperforms several state-of-the-art techniques for scene recognition.     

移动机器人导航系统中的车道线检测方法及实现

针对室外移动机器人GPS与惯性导航不足之处,在GPS与惯性导航基础上,提出了采用视觉检测方法实时识别路面的车道线信息,对移动机器人进行辅助定位。在传统的Canny边缘检测算子基础上,提出了使用改进型小波阀值算法与Canny边缘检测算子进行融合处理,其基本原理是先使用改进型小波阀值算法,代替传统的高斯滤波器进行平滑和降噪处理,然后再使用Canny边缘检测算子提取边缘特征。最后使用matlab软件对采集到的路面视频信息进行处理,计算出移动机器人相对于路面车道线的偏转角度和偏离距离。实验发现12000帧图像中有仅有892帧图像检测失败,成功率达到92.6%,取得较好效果。为移动机器人的室外自主移动提供有力支撑。     

Reactive Visual Navigation Based on Omnidirectional Sensing – Path Following and Collision Avoidance

Described here is a visual navigation method for navigating a mobile robot along a man-made route such as a corridor or a street. We have proposed an image sensor, named HyperOmni Vision, with a hyperboloidal mirror for vision-based navigation of the mobile robot. This sensing system can acquire an omnidirectional view around the robot in real time. In the case of the man-made route, road boundaries between the ground plane and wall appear as a close-looped curve in the image. By making use of this optical characteristic, the robot can avoid obstacles and move along the corridor by tracking the close-looped curve with an active contour model. Experiments that have been done in a real environment are described.     

基于全景视觉的移动机器人的运动目标检测

在动态背景下的运动目标检测中,由于目标和背景两者都是各自独立运动的,在提取前景运动目标时需要考虑由移动机器人自身运动引起的背景变化。仿射变换是一种广泛用于估计图像间背景变换的方法。然而,在移动机器人上使用全方位视觉传感器(ODVS)时,由于全方位图像的扭曲变形会 造成图像中背景运动不一致,无法通过单一的仿射变换描述全方位图像上的背景运动。将图像划分为网格窗口,然后对每个窗口分别进行仿射变换,从背景变换补偿帧差中得到运动目标的区域。最后,根据ODVS的成像特性,通过视觉方法解析出运动障碍物的距离和方位信息。实验结果表明,提出的方法能准确检测出移动机器人360°范围内的运动障碍物,并实现运动障碍物的精确定位,有效地提高了移动机器人的实时避障能力。     

结合历史运动状态的机器人高效沿墙算法研究

针对目前室内移动机器人沿墙走算法过于复杂、路径易重复、不能完全遍历、效率低等问题, 采用室内未知环境下结合历史状态的机器人沿墙高效遍历研究来解决这些问题. 该算法由移动机器人的上一个周期历史环境运动状态(分8类)、当前环境运动状态(分8类)和旋向信息(分2类)建立运动规则库, 沿墙行走时移动机器人时时采集这三类信息(上一个周期历史环境运动状态、当前环境运动状态和旋向信息)决定移动机器人当前的运动方向, 如此循环直到完成指定的沿墙任务. 最后对该算法进行了仿真与实际实验, 实验结果证明该算法可以在不同的、复杂的环境中高效、快速地完成沿墙走的任务, 并且对室内未知环境有很好的适应性.     

基于平行线的室内视觉导航

根据一组空间直线上的无穷远线素集在视平面上所形成的消失点对直线的平移具有稳定性的特点,提出了基于平行线的摄像机参数标定和自主移动平台室内视觉导航算法．在对摄像机进行标定时,将摄像机模型简化成关于移动平台航向角和X方向距离的线性模型,并利用走廊左右踢脚线在视平面上的投影直线的斜率、消失点坐标来标定摄像机的内、外参数;在视觉导航时,视走廊左右踢脚线为一组平行线,由其在视平面上的投影直线的斜率、消失点坐标,控制自主移动平台行驶的X方向距离和航向角,实现平台的室内视觉导航．本文采用YIQ彩色模型分割楼道图像,由Hough变换与最小二乘法相结合的方法提取楼道踢脚线．