A simple, inexpensive, and effective implementation of a vision-guided autonomous robot

Beau Tippetts; Kirt Lillywhite; Spencer Fowers; Aaron Dennis; Dah-Jye Lee; James Archibald

doi:10.1117/12.686586

2 October 2006 A simple, inexpensive, and effective implementation of a vision-guided autonomous robot

Beau Tippetts, Kirt Lillywhite, Spencer Fowers, Aaron Dennis, Dah-Jye Lee, James Archibald

Proceedings Volume 6384, Intelligent Robots and Computer Vision XXIV: Algorithms, Techniques, and Active Vision; 63840P (2006) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.686586
Event: Optics East 2006, 2006, Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Abstract

This paper discusses a simple, inexpensive, and effective implementation of a vision-guided autonomous robot. This implementation is a second year entrance for Brigham Young University students to the Intelligent Ground Vehicle Competition. The objective of the robot was to navigate a course constructed of white boundary lines and orange obstacles for the autonomous competition. A used electric wheelchair was used as the robot base. The wheelchair was purchased from a local thrift store for $28. The base was modified to include Kegresse tracks using a friction drum system. This modification allowed the robot to perform better on a variety of terrains, resolving issues with last year's design. In order to control the wheelchair and retain the robust motor controls already on the wheelchair the wheelchair joystick was simply removed and replaced with a printed circuit board that emulated joystick operation and was capable of receiving commands through a serial port connection. Three different algorithms were implemented and compared: a purely reactive approach, a potential fields approach, and a machine learning approach. Each of the algorithms used color segmentation methods to interpret data from a digital camera in order to identify the features of the course. This paper will be useful to those interested in implementing an inexpensive vision-based autonomous robot.

Citation Download Citation

Beau Tippetts, Kirt Lillywhite, Spencer Fowers, Aaron Dennis, Dah-Jye Lee, and James Archibald "A simple, inexpensive, and effective implementation of a vision-guided autonomous robot", Proc. SPIE 6384, Intelligent Robots and Computer Vision XXIV: Algorithms, Techniques, and Active Vision, 63840P (2 October 2006); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.686586

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