A path-description method that uses a sequence of straight lines with coordinate transformations is presented. This concept is hardware-independent and may be applied to any kind of vehicle. A local vehicle-trajectory-control algorithm is used both for determining the transient portions of each vehicle trajectory and for keeping the vehicle moving along a given directed straight line. A vehicle-control command-system, MITCHI, is one realization of the idea and is introduced. The MITCHI command-system has been implemented on self-contained Yamabico mobile robots. Several design features, such as status transition, fast/slow command execution, and velocity control, as well as simulation results, are described. >

Vehicle path specification by a sequence of straight lines

This article proposes a computer architecture suitable for intelligent robots, especially for self-contained intelligent mobile robots. The main principles proposed by the authors are: (1) The robot should be a multiprocessor system with a master, several slave modules and a console. A simple star connection is employed. (2) The master carries user's programs written in a high level language with which a programmer is able to use all basic functions in the robots. It should have a special purpose operating system. (3) Each module is an independent microcomputer system loosely coupled to the master and dedicated to an elementary function such as manipulation, locomotion, sensing, or planning. (4) A serial TTL level or RS232C interface is employed between the master and each module. Two self-contained robots, Yamabico 9 and 10, constructed under these design principles have demonstrated the effectiveness of this proposed architecture.

Computer architecture for intelligent robots

The first chapter presents an analysis of problems related to vehicle control. The introduced mathematical model is built based on solid body equations, which includes the equations of kinematics, dynamics, and actuators. The structure of the mathematical model of a solid body is described in a 3D environment. Using the general model, the vehicle's model is created for a wheeled cart which is used in modeling examples in the rest of the book. The flat test scenes are described and the positions of goals and obstacles are given. Mechanisms of planning the paths as a union of linear and quadratic forms being the functions of vehicle's external coordinates are presented in this chapter. A wheeled cart vehicle with a multilayered control system is considered. The solutions generated by the planning level are implemented using the synthesized motion-control algorithms. The requirements are formulated for the motion planners; and performance criteria are given to estimate the planning algorithms. The limitations on the sensors characteristics, actuators, and environment are discussed.

Position-Path Control of a Vehicle

World Directory of Robotics Research and Development Activities

Active research and development is carried out for various mobile robots or robotic vehicles. This paper tries to find a new principle of the evolution of machine intelligence for robotic vehicles. The machine intelligence of robotic vehicles is the integrated ability composed of sensors, actuators, and computers, which produces the travel versatility of robots. Therefore, the relation between the performances of sensors, actuators, and computers, and the produced travel versatility was examined on 18 previously reported wheeled robotic vehicles with reference to the study on the evolution of vertebrate brains. The obtained hypothetical principles are as follows. Computer power varies in proportion to the summation of both rates of information input from sensors and information output to actuators for robots with the same grade of travel versatility. Robotic vehicles with a high grade of travel versatility have greater computer power than those with a low grade.

Evolution of machine intelligence for mobile robots

本論文は, 自立型移動ロボット山彦9号の走行モジュールに関するものである.コンピュータシステムにおいてはモジュール化の概念が極めて重要であるが, このことはロボット設計においても同様である.山彦9号はハードウエアの面でも, ソフトウエアの面でも, モジュール化が図られている.走行モジュール (LM) はROM, RAM, 2個のタイマ, シリアルインターフェイス, モータ, モータ駆動回路, シャフトエンコーダをもつ独立したマイクロコンピュータシステムであり, PWS方式の台車の移動を制御する.LMは山彦9号の頭システム (BR) とシリアル通信を介して情報交換を行い, BRの奴隷として働く.LM-BR間のインターフェイスとしてコマンド体系が定義されている.それはBRからLMへ送られる移動動作等を指定するコマンドと, LMからBRへ送られる (内部状態を知らせたり, コマンド終了のタイミングを知らせるための) 応答から成っている.移動コマンドはLMの両輪の速度を指定し, それによりLMは所望の軌を跡描き, かつコマンドが指定する終了条件が満たされると動作を終了する.LMのソフトウエアは次の3部分から成る.(1) 移動制御プロセス(2) モータサーボプロセス(3) 通信制御プロセス第1と第2のプロセスは5ms毎に呼ばれ, 実時間で規則正しい処理をし, 第3のプロセスは非同期的に起こるBRとの間の双方向通信を司る.移動制御プロセスは速度計算や終了条件判定を行う.最後には実験結果とLMプログラミングの例が含まれている.

https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/jrsj1983/2/5/2_5_402/_pdf

Masayuki Takata

Papers

A Locomotion Module for Wheeled Mobile Robots