Cooperative indoor exploration on affordable robots
Maria Victoria Diaz, Sergio Robaudo, Mercedes Marzoa, Facundo Benavides · 2022
This paper addresses the problem of exploration and mapping an unknown environment using a fleet of cooperative robots. The exploration algorithm is distributed to each fleet member, implicitly coordinating the robots' actions through frequently exchanging localization and mapping information. Furthermore, coordination minimizes the exploration duration by spreading out robots and minimizing sensory overlapping as much as possible. Performance assessment was conducted for the task identification and motion planning algorithms. Finally, the techniques have been tested extensively in simulations, and a proof of concept was carried out in an actual workspace. The results demonstrate the benefits of the chosen algorithms and their deployment feasibility on affordable robotic platforms.