Browse Topic: Unmanned ground vehicles

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IMPLEMENTATION OF THE 4D/RCS ARCHITECTURE WITHIN THE SOUTHWEST SAFE TRANSPORT INITIATIVE2024-01-3086To be published on 11/15/2027
ABSTRACT Over time, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has refined the 4Dimension / Real-time Control System (4D/RCS) architecture for use in Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs). This architecture, when applied to a fully autonomous vehicle designed for missions in urban environments, can greatly assist in the process of saving time and lives by creating a more intelligent vehicle that acts in a safer and more efficient manner. Southwest Research Institute (SwRI®) has undertaken the Southwest Safe Transport Initiative (SSTI) aimed at investigating the development and commercialization of vehicle autonomy as well as vehicle-based telemetry systems to improve active safety systems and autonomy. This paper will discuss the implementation of the 4D/RCS architecture to the SSTI autonomous vehicle, a 2006 Ford Explorer.
McWilliams, George, Brown, Michael
SAE TOMORROW TODAY: Simulating Off-Road Autonomy in Combat135083/27/2025
As warfare becomes more technologically advanced, the military requires a "one-to-many" system that allows one operator to control a fleet of air, ground, and surface-level assets. This type of technology can also support industries like construction that may be experiencing labor shortages. To bring these visions to reality, there is a critical need for a virtual environment to stress-test autonomous systems and ensure they are secure. Enter Neya Systems, a wholly owned subsidiary of Applied Research Associates that is committed to advancing the field of unmanned systems through a robust simulation platform and expertise in autonomy, computer vision, and cybersecurity. To learn more, we sat down with Kurt Bruck, Vice President, Neya Systems, to discuss supporting the military as warfare becomes more technologically advanced and how his company is fostering safe and secure autonomous operations for unmanned ground vehicles. We'd love to hear from you. Share your comments, questions and
Hineman, Marcie
OMNI-DIRECTIONAL AUTONOMOUS GUIDED VEHICLE (AGV) WITH WIRELESS NAVIGATION2024-01-343611/15/2024
ABSTRACT Automatic guided vehicles (AGV) have made big inroads in the automation of assembly plants and warehouse operations. There are thousands of AGV units in operation at OEM supplier and service facilities worldwide in virtually every major manufacturing and distribution sector. Although today’s AGV systems can be reconfigured and adapted to meet changes in operation and need, their adaptability is often limited because of inadequacies in current systems. This paper describes a wireless navigated (WN) omni-directional (OD) autonomous guided vehicle (AGV) that incorporates three technical innovations that address the shortfalls. The AGV features consist of: 1) A newly developed integrated wireless navigation technology to allow rapid rerouting of navigation pathways; 2) Omnidirectional wheels to move independently in different directions; 3) Modular space frame construction to conveniently resize and reshape the AGV platform. It includes an overview of the AGVs technical features
Cheok, Ka C, Radovnikovich, Micho, Fleck, Paul, Hallenbeck, Kevin, Grzebyk, Steve, Vanneste, Jerry, Ludwig, Wolfgang, Garner, Robert
Off-Road Rover Mobility Simulation Using a Continuum Representation of Deformable Terrains 2022-01-04183/29/2022
We seek to develop control policies for optimized rover mobility on deformable granular material terrains using a co-simulation framework implemented in an open-source simulation platform. An elasto-plastic continuum model is employed for the purpose of increasing the simulation speed in capturing the dynamics of the deformable granular material terrain. The solution of the continuum problem is obtained using the smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) method; the rover is handled as a multibody system with constraints. Both the rover body and wheels are defined via geometries specified through triangular meshes. The two-way coupling between each wheel and the deformable terrain is implemented using so-called boundary conditions enforcing (BCE) particles attached to the rover wheel. A traction control algorithm is proposed to reduce wheel slip and hence power/energy usage in a hill-climbing scenario. The study is carried out in an in-house developed open source code called Chrono. The
Hu, Wei, Zhou, Zhenhao, Serban, Radu, Negrut, Dan
Virtual Driveline Concept-based Maneuverability Control of a Skid-Steering UGV with Individually Driven Wheels2022-01-04363/29/2022
In the absence of a physical driveline between the wheels powered by individual electric motors, in this paper, a concept of the virtual driveline system was applied to a small skid-steering unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) for the purpose of controlling its maneuverability, i.e., for fulfilling desired maneuvers in terrain zones constrained by natural and man-made objects. The virtual driveline concept supposes that the UGV driving wheels are connected via a virtual driveline that is a computational code to manage the power split among the wheels by using characteristics of a mechanical driveline system. The kinematic discrepancy factor (KDF) as a mechanical driveline characteristic is utilized to mathematically link the angular velocities and the drive torques of the electrically driven wheels. The UGV maneuverability is considered as a vehicle complex operational property, which characterization and assessment is limited in this study to an analysis of two simple operational properties
Zhang, Siyuan, Vantsevich, Vladimir, Gorsich, David, Letherwood, Michael
Hybrid Thermoelectric CompoundTBMG-395888/1/2021
Thermoelectrics directly convert heat into electricity and power a wide array of items, from NASA’s Perseverance rover currently exploring Mars to travel coolers that chill beverages.
Vortex Radiometer for Wireless CommunicationsTBMG-3820912/1/2020
Communication links are subject to atmospheric effects that reduce the signal power received at the antenna (i.e., a fade). If the atmospheric losses are too high, the signal level could drop below the minimum measurable power of the receiver, causing data loss across the communication link. Previous attempts to forewarn fading using predictive algorithms have yielded sub-optimal results largely because they rely on real-time performance data from the communications link itself, meaning they have very little time to respond.
Executive Roundtable: Robotics DesignTBMG-3813912/1/2020
As manufacturing facilities become more automated, robots are playing a larger role. And while collaborative robots and other robotic systems may help human workers, there are many questions still to be answered about cost, safety, and other factors. Motion Design posed some of those questions to a panel of robotics industry leaders.
Technology Advances Learning Capabilities of Drone SwarmsTBMG-3780710/1/2020
Swarming is a method of operations where multiple autonomous systems act as a cohesive unit by actively coordinating their actions. Future multi-domain battles will require swarms of dynamically coupled, coordinated, heterogeneous mobile platforms to overmatch enemy capabilities and threats targeting U.S. forces.
The Role of Autonomous Unmanned Ground Vehicle Technologies in Defense Applications20AERP10_0110/1/2020
Artificial Intelligence (AI), which is also being hailed as a part of Industrial Revolution 4.0, has established its presence across myriad fields in recent years. AI has become somewhat of an umbrella term for a host of scientific and technological evolutions across various applications, computer sciences, and use cases. Known predominantly as a series of technologies that promote intelligent execution of tasks in machines, AI is rapidly establishing itself as a reality in the current technological landscape, as well as a robust solution for future evolutions. The success of the AI field is characterized by the ever-increasing availability of computing power and data, backed by advancements in electronics miniaturization and machine learning (ML), among others.
The Role of Autonomous Unmanned Ground Vehicle Technologies in Defense ApplicationsTBMG-3788810/1/2020
Artificial Intelligence (AI), which is also being hailed as a part of Industrial Revolution 4.0, has established its presence across myriad fields in recent years. AI has become somewhat of an umbrella term for a host of scientific and technological evolutions across various applications, computer sciences, and use cases.
Unmanned Ground VehiclesTBMG-3789010/1/2020
FLIR Systems, Inc. Arlington, VA 703-682-3400
Unmanned Systems (UxS) Control Segment (UCS) Architecture: Architecture DescriptionAS6512A (Historical)7/14/2020
This document is the Architecture Description (AD) for the SAE Unmanned Systems (UxS) Control Segment (UCS) Architecture Library Revision A or, simply, the UCS Architecture. The architecture is expressed by a library of SAE publications as referenced herein. The other publications in the UCS Architecture Library Revision A are: AS6513A, AS6518A, AS6522A, and AS6969A.
AS-4UCS Unmanned Systems Control Segment Architecture
Autonomous Boats Automatically Target and Clasp Onto Each OtherTBMG-372207/1/2020
The city of Amsterdam envisions a future where fleets of autonomous boats cruise its canals to transport goods and people, collect trash, or self-assemble into floating stages and bridges. To further that vision, researchers have given new capabilities to their fleet of robotic boats that let them target and clasp onto each other and keep trying if they fail.
Navigation Measurement SoftwareTBMG-369996/1/2020
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center has developed FlashPose, a relative navigation measurement software and VHDL for spaceflight missions requiring vehicle-relative and terrain-relative navigation and control. FlashPose processes real-time or recorded range and intensity images from 3D imaging sensors, such as LiDARs, and compares them to known models of the target surfaces to output the position and orientation of the known target relative to the sensor coordinate frame. All algorithmic processing takes place in the software application, while custom FPGA firmware interfaces directly with the Ball Vision Navigation System (VNS) LiDAR and provides imagery to the algorithm.
Mars 2020 – Perseverance to the Red PlanetTBMG-370436/1/2020
NASA’s Mars Exploration Program has enabled robotic exploration of the Red Planet for the past 20 years. Each Mars mission is part of a continuing chain of innovation, each relying on past missions for proven technologies while contributing its own innovations to future missions. This chain allows NASA to push the boundaries of what is currently possible while still relying on proven technologies.
DDDAMS-based Urban Surveillance and Crowd Control via UAVs and UGVsTBMG-371006/1/2020
A comprehensive planning and control framework was designed and developed based on dynamic-data-driven, adaptive multi-scale simulation (DDDAMS) (see illustration) where dynamic data is incorporated into simulation, simulation steers the measurement process for data update and system control, and an appropriate level of simulation fidelity is selected based on the time constraints for evaluating alternative control policies using simulation.
Mars 2020 – Getting to MarsTBMG-370306/1/2020
The Mars 2020 mission duplicates most of Curiosity’s entry, descent, and landing (EDL) system and much of its rover design. The mission advances several innovations that include sensors to measure the atmosphere, cameras, and a microphone. Perseverance will have the ability to land in more challenging terrain than Curiosity, making more rugged sites eligible as safe landing candidates.
Mars 2020 – The Science of Mars 2020TBMG-370426/1/2020
NASA’s Mars Exploration Program has a long-term, systematic exploration plan for the Red Planet. Mars missions build on each other, with discoveries and innovations made by prior missions guiding what comes next. Mars missions are guided by evolving, discovery-driven science strategies that provide continuity in Mars science exploration themes.
Carbon Nanotube/Polymer Composites with Electrical and Thermal CharacteristicsTBMG-370396/1/2020
Materials used for military personal protection gear may also be tough enough for vehicles, potentially improving how unmanned vehicles dissipate energy. Researchers are studying the use of the polymers as matrix material for incorporation into lightweight composites in unmanned vehicle systems.
Mars 2020 – Building PerseveranceTBMG-370226/1/2020
The Mars Perseverance rover incorporates new design advances since Curiosity landed on the Red Planet, including a Mars Helicopter. Tech Briefs spoke with NASA’s Keith Comeaux, Deputy Project Chief Engineer, to learn more about these new technologies.
Robotic Combat Vehicles20AERP05_045/1/2020
Putting the Brains Behind the Brawn A new era of Robotic Combat Vehicles (RCV) is about to begin. The U.S. Army is getting ready to evaluate competing candidates to meet requirements for light and medium versions of a new class of modular unmanned ground vehicle (UGV). Designed to be controlled in the field via remote control, and in the future, autonomously, these new robot tanks have the potential to revolutionize ground warfare. We witnessed the debut of this emerging class of “robo-tank” when the Ripsaw M5 was unveiled by the team of Textron Systems, Howe & Howe, and FLIR Systems at the Association of the U.S. Army (AUSA) Conference, in October 2019. A couple months later, in January, the Army announced contracts to buy eight experimental RCVs for use in wargame tests next year. QinetiQ North America, along with its partner Pratt & Miller, was selected to provide four of their EMAV robots (Expeditionary Modular Autonomous Vehicles). Textron was tapped to provide four of the Ripsaw
Foldable Mechanical DevicesTBMG-368605/1/2020
Engineers have developed new technology that builds complex mechanisms into the exterior of a structure without taking up any actual space below the surface. This new class of mechanisms, called “developable mechanisms,” get their name from developable surfaces, or materials that can take on 3D shapes from flat conformations without tearing or stretching, like a sheet of paper or metal. They reside in a curved surface and can transform or morph when deployed to serve unique functions. When not in use, they can fold back into the surface of the structure seamlessly.
Validation of Architecture Models for Coordination of Unmanned Air and Ground Vehicles via ExperimentationTBMG-368185/1/2020
The role of unmanned systems continues to be defined and refined within the scope of military operations. Currently, unmanned systems are most often associated with operations in a single domain such as air, land, sea. However, the future of the military is progressing towards cross-domain operations.
Systems Engineering Approach to Develop Guidance, Navigation and Control Algorithms for Unmanned Ground VehicleTBMG-368235/1/2020
Despite the growing popularity of unmanned systems being deployed in the military domain, limited research efforts have been dedicated to the progress of ground system developments. Dedicated efforts for unmanned ground vehicles (UGV) focused largely on operations in continental environments, places where vegetation is relatively sparse compared to a tropical jungle or plantation estate commonly found in Asia. This research explores methods for the development of a UGV that would be capable of operating autonomously in a densely cluttered environment such as that found in Asia.
Systems Engineering Approach to Develop Guidance, Navigation and Control Algorithms for Unmanned Ground Vehicle20AERP05_065/1/2020
This research explores the development of a UGV capable of operating autonomously in a densely cluttered environment such as the tropical jungles or plantation estates commonly found in Asia. Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California Despite the growing popularity of unmanned systems being deployed in the military domain, limited research efforts have been dedicated to the progress of ground system developments. Dedicated efforts for unmanned ground vehicles (UGV) focused largely on operations in continental environments, places where vegetation is relatively sparse compared to a tropical jungle or plantation estate commonly found in Asia. This research explores methods for the development of a UGV that would be capable of operating autonomously in a densely cluttered environment such as that found in Asia. The development of unmanned systems as a force multiplier in the armed forces has been gaining traction in recent years. This is largely attributed to the urgent need for
Validation of Architecture Models for Coordination of Unmanned Air and Ground Vehicles via Experimentation20AERP05_075/1/2020
Using the relationship of system architecture products and model-based systems engineering analysis to quantify system performance highlights the feasibility of a UAV-UGV team collaboratively conducting the structured, rudimentary tasks necessary to find a person in distress. Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California The role of unmanned systems continues to be defined and refined within the scope of military operations. Currently, unmanned systems are most often associated with operations in a single domain such as air, land, sea. However, the future of the military is progressing towards cross-domain operations. This research uses a model-based systems engineering methodology for employing architecture in system analysis (MBSE MEASA) to design and analyze architectures for cross-domain collaborative unmanned systems conducting the fundamental tasks necessary to find a person in distress (PID).
Analysis of LiDAR and Camera Data in Real-World Weather Conditions for Autonomous Vehicle Operations2020-01-00934/14/2020
Autonomous vehicle technology has the potential to improve the safety, efficiency, and cost of our current transportation system by removing human error. With sensors available today, it is possible for the development of these vehicles, however, there are still issues with autonomous vehicle operations in adverse weather conditions (e.g. snow-covered roads, heavy rain, fog, etc.) due to the degradation of sensor data quality and insufficiently robust software algorithms. Since autonomous vehicles rely entirely on sensor data to perceive their surrounding environment, this becomes a significant issue in the performance of the autonomous system. The purpose of this study is to collect sensor data under various weather conditions to understand the effects of weather on sensor data. The sensors used in this study were one camera and one LiDAR. These sensors were connected to an NVIDIA Drive Px2 which operated in a 2019 Kia Niro. Two custom scenarios (static and dynamic objects) were
Goberville, Nick, El-Yabroudi, Mohammad, Omwanas, Mark, Rojas, Johan, Meyer, Rick, Asher, Zachary, Abdel-Qader, Ikhlas
Control Model of Automated Driving Systems Based on SOTIF Evaluation2020-01-12144/14/2020
In partially automated and conditionally automated vehicles, a part of the work of human drivers is replaced by the system, and the main source of safety risks is no longer system failures, but non-failure risks caused by insufficient system function design. The absence of unreasonable risk due to hazards resulting from functional insufficiencies of the intended functionality or by reasonably foreseeable misuse by persons, is referred to as the Safety Of The Intended Functionality. Drivers have the responsibility to supervise the automated driving system. When they don't agree with the operation behavior of the system, they will interfere with the instructions. However, this may lead to potential risks. In order to discover the causes of human misuse, this paper takes the trust feeling between the driver and the automated driving system as the starting point, and based on the collected data of track test, establishes the evaluation indicator -- degree of confidence to show the trust
Guo, Mengge, Shang, Shiliang, Haifeng, Cui, Zhang, Kaijiong, Deng, Weishun, Zhang, Xi, Yu, Fan
Decision Making and Trajectory Planning for Lane Change Control Inspired by Parallel Parking2020-01-01344/14/2020
Lane-changing systems have been developed and applied to improve environmental adaptability of advanced driver assistant system (ADAS) and driver comfort. Lane-changing control consists of three steps: decision making, trajectory planning and trajectory tracking. Current methods are not perfect due to weaknesses such as high computation cost, low robustness to uncertainties, etc. In this paper, a novel lane changing control method is proposed, where lane-changing behavior is analogized to parallel parking behavior. In the perspective of host vehicle with lane-changing intention, the space between vehicles in the target adjacent lane can be regarded as dynamic parking space. A decision making and path planning algorithm of parallel parking is adapted to deal with lane change condition. The adopted algorithm based on rules checks lane-changing feasibility and generates desired path in the moving reference system at the same speed of vehicles in target lane. Compared to algorithm for
Yu, Liangyao, Ru, Ze, Lu, Zhenghong, Liang, Guanqun, Xiong, Cenbo, Lanie, Abi, Wang, Ruyue
Self-Exploration of Automated System under Dynamic Environment2020-01-01264/14/2020
Exploring an unknown place autonomously is a challenge for robots, especially when the environment is changing. Moreover, in real world application, efficient path planning is crucial for autonomous vehicles to have timely response to execute a collision-free motion. In this paper we focus on environment exploration which enables an automated system to establish a map of an unknown environment with unforeseen objects moving within it. We introduce an exploration package that enables robots self-exploration with an online collision avoidance planner. The package consists of exploration module, global planner module and local planner module. We modularize the package so that developers can easily make modifications or even substitutions to some modules for their specific application. In order to validate the algorithm, we designed and built a robot car as a low cost validation platform to test the autonomous vehicle algorithms in the real world. The car has a 22.36 x 11.65 x 7.6 inches
Zhang, Weiyang, Sun, Yong, He, Haokun, Yu, Wenbo, Cai, Pengcheng
Reconciling Simultaneous Evolution of Ground Vehicle Capabilities and Operator Preferences2020-01-01724/14/2020
An objective evaluation of ground vehicle performance is a challenging task. This is further exacerbated by the increasing level of autonomy, dynamically changing the roles and capabilities of these vehicles. In the context of decision making involving these vehicles, as the capabilities of the vehicles improve, there is a concurrent change in the preferences of the decision makers operating the vehicles that must be accounted for. Decision based methods are a natural choice when multiple conflicting attributes are present, however, most of the literature focuses on static preferences. In this paper, we provide a sequential Bayesian framework to accommodate time varying preferences. The utility function is considered a stochastic function with the shape parameters themselves being random variables. In the proposed approach, initially the shape parameters model either uncertain preferences or variation in the preferences because of the presence of multiple decision makers. We consider
Slon, Christopher, Pandey, Vijitashwa, Gorsich, David, Jayakumar, Paramsothy
Lithium-Ion Battery Cell Modeling with Experiments for Battery Pack Design2020-01-11854/14/2020
Lithium-ion polymer battery has been widely used for vehicle onboard electric energy storage ranging from 12V SLI (Starting, Lighting, and Ignition), 48V mild hybrid electric, to 300V battery electric vehicle. Formulation on cell parameters acquired from minimum numbers of experiments, the modeling and simulation could be an effective approach in predicting battery performance, thermal effectiveness, and degradation. This paper describes the modeling, simulation, and validation of Lithium-Nickel-Manganese-Cobalt-Oxide (LiNiMnCoO2) based cell with 3.6V nominal voltage and 20Ah capacity. Constant current 20A, 40A, 60A, and 80A discharge tests are conducted in the computer-controlled cycler and temperature chamber. Discharging voltage curves and cell surface temperature distributions are recorded in each discharging test. A three-dimensional cell model is constructed in the COMSOL multi-physics platform based on the cell parameters. The model validation is performed by experimental
Liu, Yiqun, Liao, Y. Gene, Lai, Ming-Chia
Parameter Estimation of Non-Paved Roads for ICVs Using 3D Point Clouds2020-01-50212/24/2020
Road parameter estimation is important for intelligent and connected vehicles (ICVs) operating on non-paved roads as it may influence their path planning and motion control. This paper presents a method for the estimation of longitudinal slopes, lateral slopes, and roughness of non-paved roads using 3D point clouds. Firstly, the regions of interest (ROIs) of ground are extracted by rasterizing the point clouds with grids, and divided into blocks according to the densities of point clouds. Next, longitudinal and lateral slopes are estimated by calculating the angles between two preference planes fitted using Random Sample Consensus (RANSAC) and Least Squares. Finally, an index of roughness, which is similar to International Roughness Index (IRI), is proposed for road roughness estimation in different grids. Experimental tests on non-paved roads demonstrate that the proposed algorithm has satisfactory performance in terms of the estimation accuracy of road slopes and roughness.
Kangjian, Yan, Manjiang, Hu, Dongsheng, Wang, Xiaowei, Wang, Guotao, Xie
Helping Autonomous Vehicles See Around CornersTBMG-357601/1/2020
To improve the safety of autonomous systems, MIT engineers have developed a system that can sense tiny changes in shadows on the ground to determine if there’s a moving object coming around the corner.
Robot Performs Complex ManeuversTBMG-358301/1/2020
At a height of less than a foot, Salto (saltatorial locomotion on terrain obstacles) the robot can vault over three times its height in a single bound. First introduced in 2016, Salto now can bounce in place and jump through obstacle courses, potentially leaping through rubble to aid in search-and-rescue missions.
Sensor Perception and Motion Planning for an Autonomous Material Handling Vehicle2019-01-261110/22/2019
The ground mobile robotics study is structured on the two pivotal members namely Sensor Perception and Motion Planning. Sensor perception or Exteroception comprises the ability of measurement of the layout of the environment relative to vehicle's frame of reference which is a necessity for the implementation of safe navigation towards the goal destination in an unstructured environment. Environment scanning has played a significant role in mobile robots application to investigate the unexplored environment in the sector of defence while transporting and handling material in warehouse and hospitals. Motion Planning is a conjunction of analyzing the sensor's information while being able to plan the route from starting point to the target destination. In this paper, a 3600 2-D LiDAR is used to capture the spatial information of the surrounding, the scanning results are presented in a local map and global map. The LiDAR’s output is further transformed into an Occupancy grid for the
Prabhakar, Sahil, Priyanka, Dani, Ghosh, Ankit, Patil, Sanjay A
Apollo 11 History Archive Helps Virtual Reality Program Come to LifeTBMG-347417/1/2019
Spinoff is NASA’s annual publication featuring successfully commercialized NASA technology. This commercialization has contributed to the development of products and services in the fields of health and medicine, consumer goods, transportation, public safety, computer technology, and environmental resources.
The CAN Bus: Driving the Future of Autonomous Military Vehicles19AERP05_025/1/2019
It's a crisp November day in Michigan, and a convoy of British and American resupply vehicles are rumbling along at a comfortable 25 miles per hour. In the lead is a British Army Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles (RMMV) HX-60 truck, trailed closely by two U.S. Army Oshkosh Light Medium Tactical Vehicles (LMTVs). In total, there are zero humans operating this convoy. This was the scene in November 2017, when the US-UK Coalition Assured Autonomous Resupply (CAAR) demonstration took place at Camp Grayling, Michigan - the result of three years of research and engineering to examine the use of unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) in resupply situations, to tackle so-called “last mile” issues regarding supplying troops on the front lines of active conflicts around the world.
Localization and Mapping of Unknown Locations with Unmanned Ground VehiclesTBMG-343405/1/2019
The main goals of this research are to enhance a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software platform to support unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) exploring the complex environment of tunnels, to test the platform within a simulation environment, and to validate the architecture through field- testing.
The CAN Bus: Driving the Future of Autonomous Military VehiclesTBMG-343435/1/2019
It’s a crisp November day in Michigan, and a convoy of British and American resupply vehicles are rumbling along at a comfortable 25 miles per hour. In the lead is a British Army Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles (RMMV) HX-60 truck, trailed closely by two U.S. Army Oshkosh Light Medium Tactical Vehicles (LMTVs). In total, there are zero humans operating this convoy.
Localization and Mapping of Unknown Locations with Unmanned Ground Vehicles19AERP05_095/1/2019
Developing a commercial off-the shelf (COTS) software platform to enable UGVs to navigate and survive in complex environments. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, Vicksburg, Mississippi The main goals of this research are to enhance a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software platform to support unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) exploring the complex environment of tunnels, to test the platform within a simulation environment, and to validate the architecture through field-testing. In this research, software was designed and tested for a UGV in order to give it the capability to localize and map an unknown area while navigating. The UGV was equipped with a camera, acoustic sensor, and a laser range finder that provides the UGV with readings to determine its pose and landmarks within the unknown area to create a map of the unknown research.
Miniature Bearings Play a Major Role in Mars 2020 MissionTBMG-343925/1/2019
Timken North Canton, OH
Aerospace & Defense Technology: May 201919AERP055/1/2019
Autonomous "Wingman" Vehicles The Future of Military Unmanned Vehicle Technology The CAN Bus: Driving the Future of Autonomous Military Vehicles Underwater Drone Technology Eyes In the Sky For Drones, Combining Vision Sensor and IMU Data Leads to More Robust Pose Estimation Hydraulic Cylinder Position Sensor Technology Ensuring precision movement in robotic assemblies. Geospatial Accuracy of Small Unmanned Airborne System Data in the Coastal Environment Determining the performance of image processing software could lead to better data collection strategy. Monitoring a Nearshore Beneficial Use Site: Application of a Benthic Sled and Video Annotation Passive survey method provides less labor and resource intensive system for monitoring the effects of dredging on aquatic life in nearshore beneficial use sites. Developing Knowledge and Understanding for Autonomous Systems for Analysis and Assessment Events and Campaigns An effort to overcome the challenges involved in developing complete
Evaluation of Navigation in Mobile Robots for Long-Term Autonomy in Automotive Manufacturing Environments2019-01-05054/2/2019
In recent times, a number of reference implementations of Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) and navigation techniques have been made publicly available via the ROS Community. Several implementations have transitioned to commercial products (vacuum robots, drones, warehouse robots, etc.). However, in such cases, they are specialized and optimized for their specific domains of deployment. In particular, their success criteria have been based primarily on mission completion and safety of humans around them. In this light, deployment in any new operational design domain (ODD) requires at least a careful verification of performance and often re-optimization. We seek the technological gaps that need to be addressed to ensure the mobile robots are fit for automotive manufacturing environments. Automotive final assembly environments pose significant additional challenges for mobile robot deployment. They are replete with relatively unstructured tasks with significant uncertainty
Singh Gill, Jasprit, Tomaszewski, Mark, Jia, Yunyi, Pisu, Pierluigi, Krovi, Venkat N
Training of Neural Networks with Automated Labeling of Simulated Sensor Data2019-01-01204/2/2019
While convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have revolutionized ground-vehicle autonomy in the last decade, this class of algorithms requires large, truth-labeled data sets to be trained. The process of collecting and labeling training data is tedious, time-consuming, expensive, and error-prone. In order to automate this process, an automated method for training CNNs with simulated data was developed. This method utilizes physics-based simulation of sensors, along with automated truth labeling, to improve the speed and accuracy of training data acquisition for both camera and LIDAR sensors. This framework is enabled by the MSU Autonomous Vehicle Simulator (MAVS), a physics-based sensor simulator for ground vehicle robotics that includes high-fidelity simulations of LIDAR, cameras, and other sensors.
Goodin, Chris, Sharma, Suvash, Doude, Matthew, Carruth, Daniel, Dabbiru, Lalitha, Hudson, Christopher
Parameters Analyses and Identification for Rubber Bush Based on Theoretical Dynamic Model with Effects of Temperature and Preload2019-01-12724/2/2019
A series connection of the KVBC (Kelvin-Voigt and Bouc-wen) theoretical model of rubber bush in automobile suspension is established. The numerical calculation model is also developed through Matlab/simulation and 9 parameters are identified. Experiments are conducted on the rubber bush on a bench for dynamic and static characteristics and to supply appropriate and reliable data for parameter identification. Based on this, preload and temperature are taken into consideration in an ordinary KVBC model as two important additional factors. As a result, it leads to developing a novel model with new parameter identification, which is validated under different conditions. This new modeling method of rubber bush has three advantages. First, it shows improved accuracy for solving non-linear problems in a multi-body calculation, which is useful for researchers and vehicle engineers. In addition, this new method leads to a very important step for choosing appropriate bush model type before
He, Rong, Zhou, Hong
XPONENTIAL 2019 – An AUVSI ExperienceTBMG-341364/1/2019
The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) is bringing this year's XPONENTIAL 2019 to McCormick Place in Chicago, IL. The event, which runs from April 29 – May 2, will feature more than 150 technical sessions focused on all aspects of the unmanned vehicle and robotics market. Over 700 exhibitors representing more than 20 different industries will be showcasing their latest technology to an estimated 8,500 attendees from all over the world.
Walking Robot Moves Without GPSTBMG-338702/27/2019
Ants are able to use polarized light and ultraviolet radiation to locate themselves in space. AntBot mimics this ability to explore its environment randomly and go home automatically, without GPS or mapping.
Simulation Optimization of the NASA Mars Fuel In-Situ Resource Utilization and Its Infrastructure2018-01-196310/30/2018
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) current objectives include expanding space exploration and planning a manned expedition to Mars. In order to meet the latter objective, it is imperative that humans generate their own products by harnessing space resources, a process referred to as In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU). ISRU will enable NASA to reduce both payload mass and mission cost by reducing the number of consumables required to be launched from Earth. The discrete-event simulation discussed focuses primarily on one ISRU system, the production of fuel for a return trip to Earth by utilizing Mar’s atmosphere and regolith. This ISRU system primarily uses autonomous rovers for exploration, excavation, processing of Mar’s regolith to produce fuel, and disposal of the processed regolith. This study explores individual rover and component requirements including rover speeds, travel distances, functional periods, charging, and maintenance times. The interactions
Vezina, Ashley, Coutts, Lindsey, Cohen, Emily, Burns, David
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