Socially Compliant Path Planning for Robotic Autonomous Luggage Trolley Collection at Airports

Detection and Control Framework for Unpiloted Ground Support Equipment within the Aircraft Stand

The rapid advancement in Unpiloted Robotic Vehicle technology has significantly influenced ground support operations at airports, marking a critical shift towards future development. This study presents a novel Unpiloted Ground Support Equipment (GSE) detection and control framework, comprising virtual channel delineation, boundary line detection, object detection, and navigation and docking control, to facilitate automated aircraft docking within the aircraft stand. Firstly, we developed a bespoke virtual channel layout for Unpiloted GSE, aligning with operational regulations and accommodating a wide spectrum of aircraft types. This layout employs turning induction markers to define essential navigation points, thereby streamlining GSE movement. Secondly, we integrated cameras and Lidar sensors to enable rapid and precise pose adjustments during docking. The introduction of a boundary line detection system, along with an optimized, lightweight YOLO algorithm, ensures swift and accurate identification of boundaries, obstacles, and docking sites. Finally, we formulated a unique control algorithm for effective obstacle avoidance and docking in varied apron conditions, guaranteeing meticulous management of vehicle pose and speed. Our experimental findings reveal an 89% detection accuracy for the virtual channel boundary line, a 95% accuracy for guiding markers, and an F1-Score of 0.845 for the YOLO object detection algorithm. The GSE achieved an average docking error of less than 3 cm and an angular deviation under 5 degrees, corroborating the efficacy and advanced nature of our proposed approach in Unpiloted GSE detection and aircraft docking.

Trajectory Optimization of Pickup Manipulator in Obstacle Environment Based on Improved Artificial Potential Field Method

In order to realize the technique of quick picking and obstacle avoidance, this work proposes a trajectory optimization method for the pickup manipulator under the obstacle condition. The proposed method is based on the improved artificial potential field method and the cosine adaptive genetic algorithm. Firstly, the Denavit–Hartenberg (D-H) method is used to carry out the kinematics modeling of the pickup manipulator. Taking into account the motion constraints, the cosine adaptive genetic algorithm is utilized to complete the time-optimal trajectory planning. Then, for the collision problem in the obstacle environment, the artificial potential field method is used to establish the attraction, repulsion, and resultant potential field functions. By improving the repulsion potential field function and increasing the sub-target point, obstacle avoidance planning of the improved artificial potential field method is completed. Finally, combined with the improved artificial potential field method and cosine adaptive genetic algorithm, the movement simulation analysis of the five-Degree-of-Freedom pickup manipulator is carried out. The trajectory optimization under the obstacle environment is realized, and the picking efficiency is improved.

Safe and Robust Mobile Robot Navigation in Uneven Indoor Environments

Complex environments pose great challenges for autonomous mobile robot navigation. In this study, we address the problem of autonomous navigation in 3D environments with staircases and slopes. An integrated system for safe mobile robot navigation in 3D complex environments is presented and both the perception and navigation capabilities are incorporated into the modular and reusable framework. Firstly, to distinguish the slope from the staircase in the environment, the robot builds a 3D OctoMap of the environment with a novel Simultaneously Localization and Mapping (SLAM) framework using the information of wheel odometry, a 2D laser scanner, and an RGB-D camera. Then, we introduce the traversable map, which is generated by the multi-layer 2D maps extracted from the 3D OctoMap. This traversable map serves as the input for autonomous navigation when the robot faces slopes and staircases. Moreover, to enable robust robot navigation in 3D environments, a novel camera re-localization method based on regression forest towards stable 3D localization is incorporated into this framework. In addition, we utilize a variable step size Rapidly-exploring Random Tree (RRT) method which can adjust the exploring step size automatically without tuning this parameter manually according to the environment, so that the navigation efficiency is improved. The experiments are conducted in different kinds of environments and the output results demonstrate that the proposed system enables the robot to navigate efficiently and robustly in complex 3D environments.