This paper addresses the design, design method, test platform, and test results of an algorithm used in autonomous navigation for intelligent vehicles. The Bluefield State College (BSC) team created this algorithm for its 2009 Intelligent Ground Vehicle Competition (IGVC) robot called Anassa V. The BSC robotics team is comprised of undergraduate computer science, engineering technology, marketing students, and one robotics faculty advisor. The team has participated in IGVC since the year 2000. A major part of the design process that the BSC team uses each year for IGVC is a fully documented "Post-IGVC Analysis." Over the nine years since 2000, the lessons the students learned from these analyses have resulted in an ever-improving, highly successful autonomous algorithm. The algorithm employed in Anassa V is a culmination of past successes and new ideas, resulting in Anassa V earning several excellent IGVC 2009 performance awards, including third place overall. The paper will discuss all aspects of the design of this autonomous robotic system, beginning with the design process and ending with test results for both simulation and real environments.

Date Published: 18 January 2010
PDF: 11 pages
Proc. SPIE 7539, Intelligent Robots and Computer Vision XXVII: Algorithms and Techniques, 75390K (18 January 2010); doi: 10.1117/12.838446

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 7539:
Intelligent Robots and Computer Vision XXVII: Algorithms and Techniques
David P. Casasent; Ernest L. Hall; Juha Röning, Editor(s)