LASER NAVIGATION FOR TACTICAL ROBOTIC VEHICLES

RELIABLE AND ASSURED MEANS OF POSITION DETERMINATION IS NEEDED FOR TACTICAL ROBOTIC VEHICLES. ROBOTIC PILOTAGE TECHNIQUES SUCH AS LASER SCANNING CN ACCOMPLISH OBSTACLE AVOIDANCE AND SHORT RANGE PATH PLANNING. DEAD RECKONING TECHNIQUES CAN HANDLE DLONGER TERM NAVIGATION, HOWEVER, DRIFT AND ERROR BUILDUP DEVELOP OVER TIME WHICH CAN CAUSE LOSS OF THE CRITICAL POSITION REFERENCE. THIS STUDY WILL INVESTIGATE THE USE OF TERRAIN CORRELATION USING LASER RANGEFINDER INPUTS AS A MEANS OF UP-DATING ON-BOARD NAVIGATION SYSTEMS FOR TACTICAL ROBOTIC VEHICLES. PHASE I WILL DEVELOP AND TEST COMPUTER SIMULATIONS, AND ASSESS THE FEASIBILITY AND CONCEPT FOR A PHASE II HARDWARE DEMONSTRATION.