Autonomous Navigation using a Real-Time 3 D Point Cloud

This paper presents a system for autonomous navigation of a mobile robot in an unknown environment based on the fusion of a continuously updated point cloud with proprioceptive sensors (IMU and encoders). A SICK LMS100 series laser is used to generate a wide field of view point cloud which is transmitted to a ground control station for visualisation during teleoperation. The point cloud is also used to generate an occupancy grid on which an efficient path planning algorithm is run in realtime. The advantages of this system are its efficiency, flexibility and quick coverage of a large unknown environment. Experiments show the ability of the system to map out a large area while navigating autonomously to a target position.

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