Navigation Stack Research Articles

Autonomous Navigation by Mobile Robot with Sensor Fusion Based on Deep Reinforcement Learning.

In the domain of mobile robot navigation, conventional path-planning algorithms typically rely on predefined rules and prior map information, which exhibit significant limitations when confronting unknown, intricate environments. With the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence technology, deep reinforcement learning (DRL) algorithms have demonstrated considerable effectiveness across various application scenarios. In this investigation, we introduce a self-exploration and navigation approach based on a deep reinforcement learning framework, aimed at resolving the navigation challenges of mobile robots in unfamiliar environments. Firstly, we fuse data from the robot's onboard lidar sensors and camera and integrate odometer readings with target coordinates to establish the instantaneous state of the decision environment. Subsequently, a deep neural network processes these composite inputs to generate motion control strategies, which are then integrated into the local planning component of the robot's navigation stack. Finally, we employ an innovative heuristic function capable of synthesizing map information and global objectives to select the optimal local navigation points, thereby guiding the robot progressively toward its global target point. In practical experiments, our methodology demonstrates superior performance compared to similar navigation methods in complex, unknown environments devoid of predefined map information.

Improved Hybrid Model for Obstacle Detection and Avoidance in Robot Operating System Framework (Rapidly Exploring Random Tree and Dynamic Windows Approach).

The integration of machine learning and robotics brings promising potential to tackle the application challenges of mobile robot navigation in industries. The real-world environment is highly dynamic and unpredictable, with increasing necessities for efficiency and safety. This demands a multi-faceted approach that combines advanced sensing, robust obstacle detection, and avoidance mechanisms for an effective robot navigation experience. While hybrid methods with default robot operating system (ROS) navigation stack have demonstrated significant results, their performance in real time and highly dynamic environments remains a challenge. These environments are characterized by continuously changing conditions, which can impact the precision of obstacle detection systems and efficient avoidance control decision-making processes. In response to these challenges, this paper presents a novel solution that combines a rapidly exploring random tree (RRT)-integrated ROS navigation stack and a pre-trained YOLOv7 object detection model to enhance the capability of the developed work on the NAV-YOLO system. The proposed approach leveraged the high accuracy of YOLOv7 obstacle detection and the efficient path-planning capabilities of RRT and dynamic windows approach (DWA) to improve the navigation performance of mobile robots in real-world complex and dynamically changing settings. Extensive simulation and real-world robot platform experiments were conducted to evaluate the efficiency of the proposed solution. The result demonstrated a high-level obstacle avoidance capability, ensuring the safety and efficiency of mobile robot navigation operations in aviation environments.

Targeted Sampling Dynamic Window Approach: A Path-Aware Dynamic Window Approach Sampling Strategy for Omni-Directional Robots

Abstract This paper describes a sampling strategy for the dynamic window approach (DWA), a local path planner, for omni-directional robot motion planning. An efficient local planner allows the robot to quickly respond to dynamic obstacles and ensures that commanded velocities meet the dynamic constraints of the robot. While typical DWA implementations sample the velocity space evenly, we propose that targeted sampling (TS) will result in a more fine-grained search of the relevant velocity space, leading to better control and performance in space-constrained environments. Our TS-DWA strategy is informed by the global planned path, allowing us to sample more velocities in the general path direction. We employ a polar velocity generator to selectively sample velocities and couple angular velocity samples to the path curvature. A bias for angular velocity is added for robots with a preferred heading, such as robots with forward-mounted sensors, to quickly turn toward the desired direction for better sensing. The strategy is implemented as a robot operating system (ROS) navigation stack local_planner plugin and tested in simulation with Gazebo using an omni-directional robot platform. Experiments show that as the space around the simulated robot gets smaller, our proposed sampling strategy results in more successful navigation trials to the goal in space-constrained environments compared to other commonly used methods like DWA and timed-elastic-band, where planning fails or oscillates. TS-DWA was also deployed on the Vision60 quadrupedal robot to demonstrate navigation through narrow corridors in the real world.

BSL: Navigation Method Considering Blind Spots Based on ROS Navigation Stack and Blind Spots Layer for Mobile Robot

BSL: Navigation Method Considering Blind Spots Based on ROS Navigation Stack and Blind Spots Layer for Mobile Robot

Composable and executable scenarios for simulation-based testing of mobile robots.

Few mobile robot developers already test their software on simulated robots in virtual environments or sceneries. However, the majority still shy away from simulation-based test campaigns because it remains challenging to specify and execute suitable testing scenarios, that is, models of the environment and the robots' tasks. Through developer interviews, we identified that managing the enormous variability of testing scenarios is a major barrier to the application of simulation-based testing in robotics. Furthermore, traditional CAD or 3D-modelling tools such as SolidWorks, 3ds Max, or Blender are not suitable for specifying sceneries that vary significantly and serve different testing objectives. For some testing campaigns, it is required that the scenery replicates the dynamic (e.g., opening doors) and static features of real-world environments, whereas for others, simplified scenery is sufficient. Similarly, the task and mission specifications used for simulation-based testing range from simple point-to-point navigation tasks to more elaborate tasks that require advanced deliberation and decision-making. We propose the concept of composable and executable scenarios and associated tooling to support developers in specifying, reusing, and executing scenarios for the simulation-based testing of robotic systems. Our approach differs from traditional approaches in that it offers a means of creating scenarios that allow the addition of new semantics (e.g., dynamic elements such as doors or varying task specifications) to existing models without altering them. Thus, we can systematically construct richer scenarios that remain manageable. We evaluated our approach in a small simulation-based testing campaign, with scenarios defined around the navigation stack of a mobile robot. The scenarios gradually increased in complexity, composing new features into the scenery of previous scenarios. Our evaluation demonstrated how our approach can facilitate the reuse of models and revealed the presence of errors in the configuration of the publicly available navigation stack of our SUT, which had gone unnoticed despite its frequent use.

Mobile Robot Obstacle Detection and Avoidance with NAV-YOLO

Intelligent robotics is gaining significance in Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) hangar operations, where mobile robots navigate complex and dynamic environments for Aircraft visual inspection. Aircraft hangars are usually busy and changing, with objects of varying shapes and sizes presenting harsh obstacles and conditions that can lead to potential collisions and safety hazards. This makes Obstacle detection and avoidance critical for safe and efficient robot navigation tasks. Conventional methods have been applied with computational issues, while learning-based approaches are limited in detection accuracy. This paper proposes a vision-based navigation model that integrates a pre-trained Yolov5 object detection model into a Robot Operating System (ROS) navigation stack to optimise obstacle detection and avoidance in a complex environment. The experiment is validated and evaluated in ROS-Gazebo simulation and turtlebot3 waffle-pi robot platform. The results showed that the robot can increasingly detect and avoid obstacles without colliding while navigating through different checkpoints to the target location.

Vision-based autonomous navigation stack for tractors operating in peach orchards

Recently, camera-based approaches have been proposed to replace expensive LiDAR or real-time kinematic (RTK) based solutions for the unmanned tractors operating in an orchard-like environment. However, constructing a completely autonomous navigation stack with a low-costly camera and onboard computer presents extra difficulties, such as a computationally efficient perception model, rapid path planning without costly SLAM, and the capacity to avoid obstacles. In this paper, a novel vision-based autonomous navigation stack is devised to address challenges of the wholly autonomous tractor using stereo camera and inertial measurement unit (IMU) that are inexpensive. The computational pipeline consists primarily of three modules: (1) the multi-task perception network, (2) the frame transformation algorithm, and (3) the motion planning module. The multi-task perception network detects tree trunks, obstacles, and traversable areas simultaneously from the RGB image with high efficiency (69 FPS) and accuracy (mAP@.5 of 96.7% and mIoU of 98.1%). For global path planning and trajectory prediction, the frame transformation algorithm integrates the downsized the navigational features and transforms them to the tractor frame from the image frame. The motion planning module then uses the fused data to plan the appropriate path (i.e., the center of the tree row, U-turn path, or J-turn path) and search for the optimal trajectory utilizing the optimized dynamic window approach (DWA) for path tracking. In the peach orchard, the proposed stack is implemented on our autonomous retrofitted tractor and its efficacy is demonstrated compared with the human-driving tractor.

Chasing millimeters: design, navigation and state estimation for precise in-flight marking on ceilings

Precise markings for drilling and assembly are crucial, laborious construction tasks. Aerial robots with suitable end-effectors are capable of markings at the millimeter scale. However, so far, they have only been demonstrated under laboratory conditions where rigid state estimation and navigation assumptions do not impede robustness and accuracy. This paper presents a complete aerial layouting system capable of precise markings on-site under realistic conditions. We use a compliant actuated end-effector on an omnidirectional flying base. Combining a two-stage factor-graph state estimator with a Riemannian Motion Policy-based navigation stack, we avoid the need for a globally consistent state estimate and increase robustness. The policy-based navigation is structured into individual behaviors in different state spaces. Through a comprehensive study, we show that the system creates highly precise markings at a relative precision of 1.5 mm and a global accuracy of 5–6 mm and discuss the results in the context of future construction robotics.

Computation offloading for ground robotic systems communicating over WiFi – an empirical exploration on performance and energy trade-offs

ContextRobotic systems are known to perform computation-intensive tasks with limited computational resources and battery life. Such systems might benefit from offloading heavy workloads to the Cloud; however, in some cases, this implies high network traffic that degrades performance and energy consumption.GoalIn this study, we aim at evaluating the impact of different computation offloading strategies on performance and energy consumption in the context of autonomous robots.MethodWe conduct two controlled experiments involving a robotic mission based on the Turtlebot3 robot and ROS 1. The mission consists of three tasks that are recurrent in robotics and good candidates for computation offloading in research, namely, SLAM mapping, navigation stack, and object recognition. Each of the tasks is either executed on board or offloaded in a full-factorial experiment design. The obtained measures are then statistically analyzed.ResultsThe results show that offloading the object recognition task causes a more significant decrease in resource utilization and energy consumption than both SLAM mapping and navigation. However, object recognition affects the volume of network traffic significantly to the extent that it can easily cause network congestion.ConclusionsIn the context of our experiments (i.e., those involving small-scale ground ROS-based mobile robots operating under WiFi networks), offloading object recognition is beneficial in terms of performance and energy consumption. Nevertheless, large network bandwidth needs to be available for object recognition offloading. While the image resolution and frame rate have a significant impact on not only the network traffic but also energy consumption and performance, these parameters need to be carefully set so that the results of this task can be always received in time, which is particularly crucial in real-time systems.

Autonomous navigation and indoor mapping for a service robot

Abstract
 Objective: Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) is a quite common and interesting problem in mobile robotics. It is the basis of safe autonomous navigation of mobile robots and the entrance to new combined applications with a manipulator for instance. Method: In order to find a solution to the SLAM problem, the ROS middleware and the MRPT were selected. Autonomous navigation was tested using two methods, the MRPT navigation ROS package, which is a reactive navigation method based on Trajectory Parameter Space (TP-Space) transformations, and the ROS navigation stack, a standard for differential drive and holonomic wheeled robots. Results: To validate the advantages and disadvantages of both approaches, a mobile robot with strong kinematic constraints (Ackermann-steering-type) known as Summit was used. As an additional work, an application using the mobile robot Summit and a robotic manipulator (Powerball) was carried out, with the intention of picking and placing objects of the mobile robot, a widely spread application among service robotics, especially, in the area of industrial logistics. Conclusions: Finally, it is concluded that with the tests carried out with the robot, it was possible to demonstrate autonomous navigation, using the two mentioned methods.

Long-Range Navigation in Complex and Dynamic Environments with Full-Stack S-DOVS

Robotic autonomous navigation in dynamic environments is a complex problem, as traditional planners may fail to take dynamic obstacles and their variables into account. The Strategy-based Dynamic Object Velocity Space (S-DOVS) planner has been proposed as a solution to navigate in such scenarios. However, it has a number of limitations, such as inability to reach a goal in a large known map, avoid convex objects, or handle trap situations. In this article, we present a modified version of the S-DOVS planner that is integrated into a full navigation stack, which includes a localization system, obstacle tracker, and novel waypoint generator. The complete system takes into account robot kinodynamic constraints and is capable of navigating through large scenarios with known map information in the presence of dynamic obstacles. Extensive simulation and ground robot experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of our system even in environments with dynamic obstacles and replanning requirements, and show that our waypoint generator outperforms other approaches in terms of success rate and time to reach the goal when combined with the S-DOVS planner. Overall, our work represents a step forward in the development of robust and reliable autonomous navigation systems for real-world scenarios.

Training a Non-Cooperator to Identify Vulnerabilities and Improve Robustness for Robot Navigation

Autonomous mobile robots have become popular in various applications coexisting with humans, which requires robots to navigate efficiently and safely in crowd environments with diverse pedestrians. Pedestrians may cooperate with the robot by avoiding it actively or ignoring the robot during their walking, while some pedestrians, denoted as non-cooperators, may try to block the robot. It is also challenging to identify potential vulnerabilities of a navigation policy, i.e., situations that the robot may cause a collision, in various crowd environments, which reduces the reliability and the safety of the robot. In this paper, we propose a deep reinforcement learning (DRL) approach to train a policy simulating the behavior of non-cooperators, which can effectively identify vulnerabilities of a navigation policy. We evaluate the approach both on the Robot Operating System (ROS) navigation stack with dynamic window approach (DWA) and a DRL-based navigation policy, which identifies useful vulnerabilities of both navigation policies for further improvements. Moreover, these non-cooperators play a game with the DRL-based navigation policy, then we can improve the robustness of such navigation policy by retraining it in the sense of asymmetric self-play. We evaluate the retrained navigation policy in various crowd environments with diverse pedestrians. The experimental results show that the approach can improve the robustness of the navigation policy. The source code for the training and the simulation platform is released online at <uri xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">https://github.com/DRL-Navigation</uri> .

Adaptive Backstepping Hierarchical Sliding Mode Control for 3-Wheeled Mobile Robots Based on RBF Neural Networks

This paper proposes a new adaptive controller for three-wheeled mobile robots (3WMRs) called the ABHSMC controller. This ABHSMC controller is developed through a cooperative approach, combining a backstepping controller and a Radial Basis Function (RBF) neural network-based Hierarchical Sliding Mode Controller (HSMC). Notably, the RBF neural network exhibits the remarkable capability to estimate both the uncertainty components of the model and systematically adapt its parameters, leading to enhanced output trajectory responses. A novel navigational model, constructed by the connection to the adaptive BHSMC controller, Timed Elastic Band (TEB) Local Planner, and A-star (A*) Global Planner, is called ABHSMC navigation stack, and it is applied to effectively solve the tracking issue and obstacle avoidance for the 3-Wheeled Mobile Robot (3WMR). The simulation results implemented in the Matlab/Simulink platform demonstrate that the 3WMRs can precisely follow the desired trajectory, even in the presence of disturbances and changes in model parameters. Furthermore, the controller’s reliability is endorsed on our constructed self-driving car model. The achieved experimental results indicate that the proposed navigational structure can effectively control the actual vehicle model to track the desired trajectory with a small enough error and avoid a sudden obstacle simultaneously.

Verification of the ROS NavFn planner using executable specification languages

The Robot Operating System (ROS) is a framework for building robust software for complex robot systems in several domains. The Navigation Stack stands out among the different libraries available in ROS, providing a set of components that can be reused to build robots with autonomous navigation capabilities. This library is a critical component, as navigation failures could have catastrophic consequences for applications like self-driving cars where safety is crucial.Here we devise a general methodology for verifying this kind of complex systems by specifying them in different executable specification languages with verification support and validating the equivalence between the specifications and the original system using differential testing techniques. The complex system can then be indirectly analyzed using the verification tools of the specification languages like model checking, semi-automated functional verification based on Hoare logic, and other formal techniques. In this paper we apply this verification methodology to the NavFn planner, which is the main planner component of the Navigation Stack of ROS, using Maude and Dafny as specification languages. We have formally proved several desirable properties of this planner algorithm like the absence of obstacles in the planned path. Moreover, we have found counterexamples for other concerns like the optimality of the path cost.

Handling Constrained Optimization in Factor Graphs for Autonomous Navigation

Factor graphs are graphical models used to represent a wide variety of problems across robotics, such as Structure from Motion (SfM), Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) and calibration. Typically, at their core, they have an optimization problem whose terms only depend on a small subset of variables. Factor graph solvers exploit the locality of problems to drastically reduce the computational time of the Iterative Least-Squares (ILS) methodology. Although extremely powerful, their application is usually limited to unconstrained problems. In this letter, we model constraints over variables within factor graphs by introducing a factor graph version of the Augmented Lagrangian (AL) method. We show the potential of our method by presenting a full navigation stack based on factor graphs. Differently from standard navigation stacks, we can model both optimal control for local planning and localization with factor graphs, and solve the two problems using the standard ILS methodology. We validate our approach in real-world autonomous navigation scenarios, comparing it with the de facto standard navigation stack implemented in ROS. Comparative experiments show that for the application at hand our system outperforms the standard nonlinear programming solver Interior-Point Optimizer (IPOPT) in runtime, while achieving similar solutions.

LAMP: Learning a Motion Policy to Repeatedly Navigate in an Uncertain Environment

Mobile robots are often tasked with repeatedly navigating through an environment whose traversability changes over time. These changes may exhibit some hidden structure, which can be learned. Many studies consider reactive algorithms for online planning, however, these algorithms do not take advantage of the past executions of the navigation task for future tasks. In this article, we formalize the problem of minimizing the total expected cost to perform multiple start-to-goal navigation tasks on a roadmap by introducing the learned reactive planning problem. We propose a method that captures information from past executions to learn a motion policy to handle obstacles that the robot has seen before. We propose the LAMP framework, which integrates the generated motion policy with an existing navigation stack. Finally, an extensive set of experiments in simulated and real-world environments show that the proposed method outperforms the state-of-the-art algorithms by 10% to 40% in terms of expected time to travel from start to goal. We also evaluate the robustness of the proposed method in the presence of localization and mapping errors on a real robot.

Evaluation and Comparison of Ultrasonic and UWB Technology for Indoor Localization in an Industrial Environment.

Evaluations of different technologies and solutions for indoor localization exist but only a few are aimed at the industrial context. In this paper, we compare and analyze two prominent solutions based on Ultra Wide Band Radio (Pozyx) and Ultrasound (GoT), both installed in an industrial manufacturing laboratory. The comparison comprises a static and a dynamic case. The static case evaluates average localization errors over 90 s intervals for 100 ground-truth points at three different heights, corresponding to different relevant objects in an industrial environment: mobile robots, pallets, forklifts and worker helmets. The average error obtained across the laboratory is similar for both systems and is between 0.3 m and 0.6 m, with higher errors for low altitudes. The dynamic case is performed with a mobile robot travelling with an average speed of 0.5 m/s at a height of 0.3 m. In this case, low frequency error components are filtered out to focus the comparison on dynamic errors. Average dynamic errors are within 0.3–0.4 m for Pozyx and within 0.1–0.2 m for GoT. Results show an acceptable accuracy required for tracking people or objects and could serve as a guideline for the least achievable accuracy when applied for mobile robotics in conjunction with other elements of a robotic navigation stack.

Improving Navigation Stack of a ROS-Enabled Industrial Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR) to be Incorporated in a Large-Scale Automotive Production

Improving Navigation Stack of a ROS-Enabled Industrial Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR) to be Incorporated in a Large-Scale Automotive Production

An End-to-End UAV Simulation Platform for Visual SLAM and Navigation

Visual simultaneous localization and mapping (v-SLAM) and navigation of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are receiving increasing attention in both research and education. However, extensive physical testing can be expensive and time-consuming due to safety precautions, battery constraints, and the complexity of hardware setups. For the efficient development of navigation algorithms and autonomous systems, as well as for education purposes, the ROS-Gazebo-PX4 simulator was customized in-depth, integrated into our previous released research works, and provided as an end-to-end simulation (E2ES) solution for UAV, v-SLAM, and navigation applications. Unlike most other similar works, which can only stimulate certain parts of the navigation algorithms, the E2ES platform simulates all of the localization, mapping, and path-planning kits in one simulator. The navigation stack performs well in the E2ES test bench with the absolute pose errors of 0.3 m (translation) and 0.9 degree (rotation), respectively, for an 83 m length trajectory. Moreover, the E2ES provides an out-of-box, click-and-fly autonomy in UAV navigation. The project source code is opened for the benefit of the research community.

A modular agricultural robotic system (MARS) for precision farming: Concept and implementation

AbstractIncreasing global population, climate change, and shortage of labor pose significant challenges for meeting the global food and fiber demand, and agricultural robots offer a promising solution to these challenges. This paper presents a new robotic system architecture and the resulting modular agricultural robotic system (MARS) that is an autonomous, multi‐purpose, and affordable robotic platform for in‐field plant high throughput phenotyping and precision farming. There are five essential hardware modules (wheel module, connection module, robot controller, robot frame, and power module) and three optional hardware modules (actuation module, sensing module, and smart attachment). Various combinations of the hardware modules can create different robot configurations for specific agricultural tasks. The software was designed using the Robot Operating System (ROS) with three modules: control module, navigation module, and vision module. A robot localization method using dual Global Navigation Satellite System antennas was developed. Two line‐following algorithms were implemented as the local planner for the ROS navigation stack. Based on the MARS design concept, two MARS designs were implemented: a low‐cost, lightweight robotic system named MARS mini and a heavy‐duty robot named MARS X. The autonomous navigation of both MARS X and mini was evaluated at different traveling speeds and payload levels, confirming satisfactory performances. The MARS X was further tested for its performance and navigation accuracy in a crop field, achieving a high accuracy over a 537 m long path with only 15% of the path having an error larger than 0.05 m. The MARS mini and MARS X were shown to be useful for plant phenotyping in two field tests. The modular design makes the robots easily adaptable to different agricultural tasks and the low‐cost feature makes it affordable for researchers and growers.