Abstract: An apparatus for compensating for a stick-slip of a Motor Driven Power Steering (MDPS) system may include: a column torque detection unit to detect column torque applied to a steering shaft as a driver operates a steering wheel; a vehicle speed sensor to detect vehicle speed; a steering angular velocity detection unit to detect a steering angular velocity of a steering wheel; a condition determination unit to determine whether at least one of the column torque, the vehicle speed and the steering angular velocity satisfies a preset compensation condition; a stick-slip compensation controller to output a compensation current for compensating the stick-slip using at least one of the steering angular velocity, the column torque and the vehicle speed; and a compensation unit to compensate for an output of an MDPS controller by applying the compensation current to the output of the MDPS controller.

Abstract: A robotically controlled system including a fence enclosure that can move and/or shape-shift itself autonomously and automatically without manual intervention. The system includes coils of electric fence wire that are spring-loaded or otherwise tensioned so that the length of electric fence wire between each post robot is able to contract or expand as the system of robots adapts to optimize the shape of the fence enclosure as the entire enclosure is moved by the robots around a field or other grazing pasture on an area of land.

Abstract: A method and a device for the mutual monitoring and/or control of a multiplicity of autonomous technical systems which are at least partially interconnected to one another via a communication network is provided. At least one of the autonomous technical systems is embodied as a monitoring autonomous technical system and monitors the operating behaviour of other autonomous technical systems. Since a specified first rule, the monitoring autonomous technical system detects an operating behavior, which is contrary to the rule, of a first autonomous technical system and generates a status message about the operating behavior which is contrary to the rule therefrom. Depending on the evaluation, a control rule is derived for the first autonomous technical system and communicated to a control module which is assigned to the first autonomous technical system. The operating behavior of the first autonomous technical system is controlled on the basis of the control rule.

Abstract: Routes may be presented to a vehicle operator with information about predicted autonomous driving levels. A road network route to a destination is received. The road network route is partitioned into segments. Indicia of the segments are provided to an inference engine. The inference engine predicts levels of autonomous driving for the respective segments generated by the inference engine based on the indicia of the segments. Based on the predicted levels of autonomous driving for the respective segments, a ratio of a level of autonomous driving for the road network route is computed. The ratio corresponds to a proportion of time and/or distance for the road network route during which a driver-system is predicted to be engaged at the level of autonomous driving. A user interface is displayed, which includes a graphic representation of the road network route and a graphic indication of the ratio.

Abstract: A map generating system for autonomous movement of a robot includes a three-dimensional (3D) point cloud map input device, a 3D point cloud map regeneration device that extracts only 3D point cloud data corresponding to an arbitrary reference height from the 3D point cloud map to regenerate the 3D point cloud map, an unoccupied area generation device that extracts ground point cloud data from the 3D point cloud map to set an unoccupied area into which the robot is able to move, an occupied area generation device that extracts obstacle point cloud data from the 3D point cloud map to set an occupied area into which the robot is unable to move, and a two-dimensional (2D) map generation device that adds the unoccupied area and the occupied area to an area on the 3D point cloud map to generate a 2D map.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a system for installing a floor finishing material using an autonomous driving robot. According to the present disclosure, there is provided a system for installing a floor finishing material using autonomous driving including: a floor surface cleaning and adhesive application robot that cleans a floor surface and applies adhesive while moving with autonomous driving; a finishing material installation robot that installs the floor finishing material on an upper side of the adhesive surface; a finishing material loading robot that loads the floor finishing material loaded in an installation site, on a pallet; a finishing material transport robot that transports and delivers the loaded floor finishing material to the finishing material installation robot; and a 3D positioning device that sets a position thereof as an origin and recognizes positions of a plurality of active markers installed in a work site.

Abstract: An emergency responder guidance system and method for directing emergency responder vehicles in a restricted area. The system includes a sensor device, an interface device, or both, disposed in the restricted area and operable to provide an indication of an emergency condition in the restricted area. The systems includes a visual indicators disposed at a different locations along pathway of the restricted area. The systems includes a response path generator communicatively coupled with the sensor device, the interface device, or both, and with the plurality of visual indicators. The response path generator determines a target path through the pathway to a location of the emergency condition.

Abstract: Methods and systems are described that enable world geodetic system (WGS) to cartesian coordinate conversion for driving. A path of a vehicle comprising lane-group segments (LGSs) is received. The LGSs comprise respective origins in WGS coordinates, respective path points in WGS coordinates; and respective groups of constants. For a first of the LGSs, global cartesian path coordinates are calculated, based on modified Bowring techniques, for the path points of the first LGS. The coordinates are calculated using the constants of the first LGS and respective differences between the path points of the first LGS and an origin of the first LGS. The vehicle can navigate along the path using the global cartesian path coordinates calculated for the first LGS. By using modified Bowring techniques and pre-calculated constants for each LGS of the path, accuracy can be maintained over long distances and across boundaries without requiring substantial computational overhead.

Abstract: The disclosure generally relates to method and system for autonomous vehicles management in an operating environment. The method may include sending a route plan in response to a request received by an autonomous vehicle from amongst a plurality of autonomous vehicles in an operating environment including one or more devices, wherein the one or more device comprises device or device space. The method may further include categorizing the route plan into path segments, the path segments including a first path segment including one or more nodes from the plurality of nodes being inside a device zone of the one or more devices and a second path segment including one or more nodes from the plurality of nodes being outside the device zone of the one or more devices.

Abstract: A robotically controlled system including a fence enclosure that can move and/or shape-shift itself autonomously and automatically without manual intervention. The system includes coils of electric fence wire that are spring-loaded or otherwise tensioned so that the length of electric fence wire between each post robot is able to contract or expand as the system of robots adapts to optimize the shape of the fence enclosure as the entire enclosure is moved by the robots around a field or other grazing pasture on an area of land. At least one of the post robots is able to provide an earth ground connection that is movable as the fence enclosure is moved.

Abstract: An autonomous tool including a multi-sensor package enabling identification of the position of the tool in a construction site so that the tool may navigate to locations where tasks are performed. The tool may include at least one sensor from the group of a drive system encoder, stereo camera, inertial measurement unit, optical flow sensor, and LiDAR. The tool may include a holonomic drive allowing at least one tool of the mobility platform to reach the extremities of a construction site. The platform may be used as part of a system that receives design information relating to the construction site and tasks to be performed by the tool and then generates commands that control the tool to navigate along a path generated to include landmarks within range of and therefore detectable by the sensors for a large percentage of the path.

Abstract: Among other things, techniques are described for driver data guided spatial planning. A spatial structure is generated comprising a plurality of nodes connected by edges. At least some of the nodes and edges represent a path to navigate a vehicle from a first point to a second point. Edges of the spatial structure are labeled as useful based on a distance metric. The spatial structure is pruned by removing one or more edges from the spatial structure according to a respective label of the edges, wherein an extent of the removal is based on a predetermined graph size, a predetermined performance, or any combinations thereof to obtain a pruned graph. A path from the first point to the second point on the pruned graph is identified and the vehicle is navigated in accordance with the path from the first point to the second point on the pruned graph.

Abstract: Improved mobile robots and systems and methods thereof, described herein, can enhance security and monitoring services of grounds and property. And, such mobile robots and systems and methods thereof can enhance policing as well as customer service and help desk functionality. In some embodiments, the mobile robots and systems and methods thereof can enhance exploration, such as space exploration.

Abstract: Described is a system for training a neural network for estimating surface normals for use in operating an autonomous platform. The system uses a parallelizable k-nearest neighbor sorting algorithm to provide a patch of points, sampled from the point cloud data, as input to the neural network model. The points are transformed from Euclidean coordinates in a Euclidean space to spherical coordinates. A polar angle of a surface normal of the point cloud data is estimated in the spherical coordinates. The trained neural network model is utilized on the autonomous platform, and the estimate of the polar angle of the surface normal is used to guide operation of the autonomous platform within the environment.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method for controlling a vehicle includes receiving, via a processor, from two or more IX control devices disposed at a two or more stationary positions having known latitudes longitudes and orientations, first sensory data identifying the position and dimensions of a feature in a mapped region. The processor generates a plurality of IX nodes based on the first sensory data received from the IX control devices, and receives LiDAR point cloud that includes LiDAR and other vehicle sensory device data such as Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) data received from a Vehicle (AV) driving in the mapped region. The LiDAR point cloud includes a simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) map having second dimension information and second position information associated with the feature in the mapped region. The processor generates, without GPS and/or real-time kinematics information, an optimized High-Definition (HD) map having Absolute accuracy using batch optimization and map smoothing.

Abstract: Distributed data sampling, including: receiving a sampling target; generating, based on one or more sensors, sampled data; determining, based on the sampling target, a value for the sampled data; and determining, based on the value for the sampled data, whether to provide the sampled data to a remotely disposed computing device.

Abstract: The present application comprises a system for controlling a plurality of autonomous vehicles on a mine site, the system comprising: a centralized platform configured to store an inventory list of vehicles travelling on the mine site and comprising a first communication interface configured to communicate missions to the vehicles; a plurality of autonomous vehicles, the autonomous vehicles comprising: a first communication interface configured to wirelessly communicate with the centralized platform for receiving a predetermined mission, a trajectory control system configured to autonomously control the autonomous vehicle according to the predetermined mission; and at least one portable device, the portable device comprising a second communication interface configured to wirelessly communicate with a second communication interface of the plurality of vehicles from the mine site.

Abstract: A controller of a machine determines jointly a sequence of control inputs defining a state trajectory of the machine and a desired knowledge of the environment by solving a multivariable constrained optimization of a model of dynamics of the machine relating the state trajectory with the sequence of control inputs subject to a constraint on admissible values of the states and the control inputs defined based on the desired knowledge of the surrounding environment represented by the state of the environment and the uncertainty of the state of the environment determined from the measurements of the environment. In such a manner, the controller performs joint but imbalance optimization of the control inputs and the sensing instructions to the sensor for learning the environment.

Abstract: Systems and methods for detecting degraded navigation sensors are based on a policy derived from a Partially Observable Markoff Decision Process (POMDP). Navigation parameters derived from the navigation sensors are provided to individual Kalman filters. A covariance of each of the filters is indicative of a probability of degradation of a sensor from which the navigation parameter is derived. Outputs of the Kalman filters are provided to a master filter. The master filter is compared to a criterion to determine whether there are indicia of a degraded sensor. If such an indicia are present, the Policy is consulted to determine which of the sensors are degraded. Consideration of degraded sensors when navigating a vehicle is inhibited.

Abstract: An electronic apparatus for providing a traversability map of a robot and a controlling method thereof are provided. The electronic apparatus includes a transceiver, a memory configured to store feature information of each of a plurality of robots, and at least one processor configured to receive sensing data obtained by sensing vicinity by at least one external device from the external device from the at least one external device, through the transceiver, generate at least one map with respect to a space where the at least one external device is positioned based on the received sensing data, generate a traversability map for traversal of a robot based on feature information of at least one robot among the plurality of robots and the generated at least one map, and control the transceiver to transmit the traversability map to the robot.