Autonomous Wheelchair: Concept and Exploration

This paper is part of a larger project with as goal the construction of an autonomous wheelchair. We implemented some existing algorithms and made the first hardware setup for the project. We found that a lot of optimization is still necessary, but could indicate in what direction this research should first be aimed. For our localization approach, using FastSLAM, landmark data association is key. We use Vector Field Histograms as obstacle avoidance planning algorithm, which still has problems with local extrema. With these problems will be dealt in future research. Keywords-Autonomous wheelchair; sensor fusion; FastSLAM; curvature scale space; obstacle avoidance.

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