Vision Based Target Tracking and Collision Avoidance for Mobile Robots

A real-time object tracking and collision avoidance method is presented for mobile robot navigation in indoors environments using stereo vision and a laser sensor. Stereo vision is used to identify the target and to calculate its relative distance from the mobile robot while laser based range measurements are utilized to avoid collision with surrounding objects. The target is tracked by its predetermined or dynamically defined color. The mobile robot’s velocity is dynamically adjusted according to its distance from the target. Experimental results in indoor environments demonstrate the effectiveness of the method.