Training and Analysis of Mobile Robot Behaviour Through System Identification

In this paper we describe a new procedure to obtain the control code for a mobile robot, based on system identification: Initially, the robot is controlled by a human operator, who manually guides it through a desired sensor-motor task. The robot's motion is then identified using the NARMAX system identification technique. The resulting transparent model can subsequently be used to control the movement of the robot. Using a transparent mathematical model for robot control furthermore has the advantage that the robot's motion can be analysed and characterised quantitatively, resulting in a better understanding of robot-environment interaction. We demonstrate this approach to robot programming in experiments with a Magellan Pro mobile robot, using the task of door traversal as a testbed.