Robotic Path Planning and Visibility with Limited Sensor Data

Abstract

Autonomous robotic systems (observers) equipped with range sensors must be able to discover their surroundings, in an initially unknown environment, for navigational purposes. We present an implementation of a recent environment- mapping algorithm [1] based on Essentially Non-oscillatory (ENO) interpolation [2]. An economical cooperative control tank-based platform [3] is used to validate our algorithm. Each vehicle on the test-bed is equipped with a flexible caterpillar drive, range sensor, limited onboard computing, and wireless communication.