Design of Robotic Games - A Serious Business

Professor Rafael Fierro

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

University of New Mexico

Abstract:

The proliferation of reliable, low-cost sensor networks and developments in autonomous vehicle technologies are producing advanced systems, where both the sensors and their platforms are characterized by a high degree of functionality and reconfigurability. However, coordinating such large heterogeneous sensor networks is extremely difficult and requires the development of novel methods of communication, motion control, computation, proactive estimation and sensing, and power management.

In this talk, we will give an overview of some analytical and computational tools that are being developed to facilitate the design of Robotic Games -- a class of pursuit-sensing systems in which the pursuers must detect and capture multiple mobile targets that are sensed intermittently, and with very limited information. The competing objectives exhibited by this problem arise in many civilian and military applications. The mobile sensor network consists of a team of robotic sensors that must track and capture mobile targets based on the information obtained through cooperative detections. Since the sensors are installed on robotic platforms and have limited range, the geometry of the platforms and of the sensors field-of-view play a key role in obstacle avoidance and target detection. We describe a cell decomposition approach to formulate the probability of detection and the cost of operating the robots based on the geometric properties of the network. Preliminary experimental results show the applicability of the proposed pursuit strategy.

Friday, March 21, 2008

3:30 – 4:30 p.m.

Rm. 1500 EECS