From simulation to reality: development of a small-scale autonomous electric vehicle for educational and research purposes

Abstract

Robotics is a constantly evolving field, making it possible to perform various tasks that help people every day. Among these tasks, robot safe navigation through different environments is one of the challenges of mobile robotics. This work presents the development of a small autonomous vehicle designed for navigation using predefined coordinates. The chosen navigation strategy uses virtual vector fields that exploit an interaction of virtual attractive and repulsive forces. The proposed strategy has been validated through simulations and in real scenarios. Furthermore, this work presents the development of the physical prototype of the robot, emphasizing the practical and educational aspects of using autonomous robots, providing valuable insights and practical learning experiences in robotics and navigation.