Larry's Blog

PROXIMITY DETECTION FOR ROBOTS

Here is an e-mail I just sent to my friend George Gallant
all about a new area for me:
OBJECT DETECTION AND AVOIDANCE FOR ROBOTS

hi George
Last night I was writing some notes in my
journal and when I headed back to bed I
was saying to myself
"Larry Keegan - welcome to the world
of object detection and avoidance,
distance measuring,
wall-following and room corner navigating!!"

What I suddenly had a vision of was endless
complexities of working with 1,2 or 3 or more sensors
and the possible motions of the robot in identifying
and avoiding objects.

Yesterday I had just received in the mail
4 Sharp GP2Y0D340K sensors. You may be familiar with
this. It goes active low when it encounters an
object less than 40 centimeters in front of it.
I soldered one to a PC board, added a couple of components
and it tested nicely (but not hooked up to a robot yet).

What you have already been dealing with is
the vast amounts of software and accompanying algorithms
that may be necessary to utilize the sensing signals
and determine on a course of action for the robot.

There is also the possibility of one rotating sensing element
and the corresponding calculations that would be necessary
to ascertain the existing environment.

It also occurred to me that this might be an excellent area
for pattern recognition and neural network technology
which I have dabbled in years past.

After all this I will probably start out with a single
sensor up front, but I foresee a more practical
arrangement will be 3 sensors in front pointed in different
directions.

Well, George, if you don't mind I am going to throw this whole letter
out onto my BLOG, to let people interested know where I am
with the robots these days

Maybe you will share with me just how big a deal this business
of sensing obstructions and walls and mazes has been for you
and your sophisticated robot.

Hoping to hear from you,

Larry Keegan in Stoneham,MA