Human-Robot Cooperation in Surface Inspection Aerial Missions

Scientific Conference (2017, September 21)

The goal of the work presented in this paper is to facilitate the cooperation between human opera- tors and aerial robots to perform surface inspec- tion missions. Our approach is based on a model of ... [more ▼]

The goal of the work presented in this paper is to facilitate the cooperation between human opera- tors and aerial robots to perform surface inspec- tion missions. Our approach is based on a model of human collaborative control with a mixed ini- tiative interaction. In the paper, we present our human-robot cooperation model based on the combination of a supervisory mode and an as- sistance mode with a set of interaction patterns. We developed a software system implementing this interaction model and carried out several real flight experiments that proved that this ap- proach can be used in aerial robotics for sur- face inspection missions (e.g., in vision based indoor missions). Compared to a conventional tele-operated inspection system, the solution pre- sented in this paper gives more autonomy to the aerial systems, reducing the cognitive load of the operator during the mission development. [less ▲]

A fully-autonomous aerial robotic solution for the 2016 International Micro Air Vehicle competition

in 2017 International Conference on Unmanned Aircraft Systems (ICUAS) (2017, June)

A robust real-time path planner for the collision-free navigation of multirotor aerial robots in dynamic environments

in 2017 International Conference on Unmanned Aircraft Systems (ICUAS) (2017, June)

A reliable open-source system architecture for the fast designing and prototyping of autonomous multi-uav systems: Simulation and experimentation

in Journal of Intelligent and Robotic Systems (2016), 84(1-4), 779-797

During the process of design and development of an autonomous Multi-UAV System, two main problems appear. The first one is the difficulty of designing all the modules and behaviors of the aerial multi ... [more ▼]

During the process of design and development of an autonomous Multi-UAV System, two main problems appear. The first one is the difficulty of designing all the modules and behaviors of the aerial multi-robot system. The second one is the difficulty of having an autonomous prototype of the system for the developers that allows to test the performance of each module even in an early stage of the project. These two problems motivate this paper. A multipurpose system architecture for autonomous multi-UAV platforms is presented. This versatile system architecture can be used by the system designers as a template when developing their own systems. The proposed system architecture is general enough to be used in a wide range of applications, as demonstrated in the paper. This system architecture aims to be a reference for all designers. Additionally, to allow for the fast prototyping of autonomous multi-aerial systems, an Open Source framework based on the previously defined system architecture is introduced. It allows developers to have a flight proven multi-aerial system ready to use, so that they can test their algorithms even in an early stage of the project. The implementation of this framework, introduced in the paper with the name of ``CVG Quadrotor Swarm'', which has also the advantages of being modular and compatible with different aerial platforms, can be found at \url{https://github.com/Vision4UAV/cvg_quadrotor_swarm} with a consistent catalog of available modules. The good performance of this framework is demonstrated in the paper by choosing a basic instance of it and carrying out simulation and experimental tests whose results are summarized and discussed in this paper. [less ▲]

UBRISTES: UAV-based building rehabilitation with visible and thermal infrared remote sensing

in Robot 2015: Second Iberian Robotics Conference (2016, November)

Thermal monitoring of facades by UAV: applications for building rehabilitation

in Dyna (2016), 91(5), 571--577

Natural user interfaces for human-drone multi-modal interaction

in 2016 International Conference on Unmanned Aircraft Systems (ICUAS) (2016, June)

Historical evolution of the unmanned aerial vehicles to the present

in Dyna (2016), 91(3), 282--288

Fuseon: A low-cost portable multi sensor fusion research testbed for robotics

in Robot 2015: Second Iberian Robotics Conference (2015, November)

A vision based aerial robot solution for the Mission 7 of the International Aerial Robotics Competition

in 2015 International Conference on Unmanned Aircraft Systems (ICUAS) (2015, June)

The International Aerial Robotics Competition (IARC) aims at pulling forward the state of the art in UAV. The Mission's 7 challenge deals mainly with GPS/Laser denied navigation, Robot-Robot interaction ... [more ▼]

The International Aerial Robotics Competition (IARC) aims at pulling forward the state of the art in UAV. The Mission's 7 challenge deals mainly with GPS/Laser denied navigation, Robot-Robot interaction and obstacle avoidance in the setting of a ground robot herding problem. We present in this paper our UAV which took part in the 2014 competition, in the China venue. This year, the mission was not completed by any participant but our team at Technical University of Madrid (UPM) were awarded with two special prizes: Best Target Detection and Best System Control. The platform, hardware and the developed software used in this top leading competition are presented in this paper. This software has three main components: the visual localization and mapping algorithm; the control algorithms; and the mission planner. A statement of the safety measures integrated in the drone and of our efforts to ensure field testing in conditions as close as possible to the challenger's are also included. [less ▲]