Maintaining Communication Link for a Robot Operating in a Hazardous Environment

Abstract

Abstract – We address the problem of maintaining a robust high-bandwidth RF communication link between a mobile robot and its remote control/monitoring station. The solution we are exploring uses a number of autonomous mobile relay nodes. These slave robots convoy behind the teleoperated or autonomous lead robot and automatically stop where needed to maintain an ad hoc network that guarantees a link between the lead robot and its control station. Their mobility allows for more versatility in the network. Nodes that are no longer needed in the network have the ability to navigate back to the lead robot, in order to redeploy at a later time. This further extends the lead robot’s range. This paper describes the system, strategy, hardware development, software algorithms, and experiments conducted. I.