2021
Authors
Amado, M; Lopes, F; Dias, A; Martins, A;
Publication
2021 IEEE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON AUTONOMOUS ROBOT SYSTEMS AND COMPETITIONS (ICARSC)
Abstract
The detection and extraction of individual pylons and power lines from high-density point cloud (PC) LiDAR data are a relevant tool for evaluating the power lines utility corridors. Moreover, the presence of high vegetation and hilly terrain is a research challenger in the available methods. The paper presents a novel method for the extraction of pylons and power lines. Two steps compose the proposed approach: a pylon detection step based on top view projection, denoted by DFSS - Detect Filled Square Shapes, and a pylon arms detection step with the DPA Detect Pylon Arm algorithm. The results show that the proposed method could accurately and automatically extract pylons and the associated power lines, even if the dataset has low quality with downsampling, to reduce the processing time. Field tests were performed with a ground static LiDAR and a point cloud affected by downsampling voxel grid and Gaussian noise to simulate the expected LiDAR data from a UAV.
2021
Authors
Bernabeu, AM; Plaza Morlote, M; Rey, D; Almeida, M; Dias, A; Mucha, AP;
Publication
MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN
Abstract
When an oil spill occurs, a prompt response reduces significantly the impact. The preparedness and contingency plans are essential to identify the most appropriate technologies. Unmanned and autonomous vehicles (UAVs) is emerging as a powerful tool of strategic potential in the observation, oil tracking and damage assessment of an oil spill. The SpilLess project explored the suitability of these devices to be the first-line response to an oil spill. This work analyses the operational requirements related to environmental parameters following a two steps approach: 1) Environmental characterization from long wind and waves time series and modelling; 2) Definition of the optimal periods for operating each UAVs. We have defined the periods in which each of these facilities acts best, confirming that the operational limits of UAVs are not significantly more restrictive than the traditional operations. UAVs should be included in contingency plans as available tools to fight against oil spills.
2021
Authors
Teixeira, B; Silva, H;
Publication
U.Porto Journal of Engineering
Abstract
Achieving persistent and reliable autonomy for mobile robots in challenging field mission scenarios is a long-time quest for the Robotics research community. Deep learning-based LIDAR odometry is attracting increasing research interest as a technological solution for the robot navigation problem and showing great potential for the task. In this work, an examination of the benefits of leveraging learning-based encoding representations of real-world data is provided. In addition, a broad perspective of emergent Deep Learning robust techniques to track motion and estimate scene structure for real-world applications is the focus of a deeper analysis and comprehensive comparison. Furthermore, existing Deep Learning approaches and techniques for point cloud odometry tasks are explored, and the main technological solutions are compared and discussed. Open challenges are also laid out for the reader, hopefully offering guidance to future researchers in their quest to apply deep learning to complex 3D non-matrix data to tackle localization and robot navigation problems.
2021
Authors
Veloso, B; Gama, J; Malheiro, B;
Publication
Encyclopedia of Information Science and Technology, Fifth Edition - Advances in Information Quality and Management
Abstract
2021
Authors
Tuluc, C; Verberne, F; Lasota, S; de Almeida, T; Malheiro, B; Justo, J; Ribeiro, C; Silva, MF; Ferreira, P; Guedes, P;
Publication
EDUCATING ENGINEERS FOR FUTURE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTIONS, ICL2020, VOL 1
Abstract
Waste is one of the biggest problems on Earth today. In the spring of 2020, a team of students enrolled in the European Project Semester at Instituto Superior de Engenharia decided to contribute with the design of an ethically and sustainability-oriented autonomous cleaning robot named MopBot. The project started with the research on similar solutions, ethics, marketing and sustainability to define a concept and create a functional, ethical and sustainability driven design, including the complete control system. Finally, given the undergoing pandemic, the operation of the MopBot was simulated using CoppeliaSim. MopBot is a medium-sized vacuum cleaner, with two vertical brushes, intended to clean autonomously large areas inside buildings such as shopping malls or corridors. It is shipped with a sustainable packaging solution which can be re-purposed as a disposal box for electrical components.
2021
Authors
Tinoco, V; Malheiro, B; Silva, MF;
Publication
APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL
Abstract
Featured Application This work describes the design, modeling, and simulation of a free-rotating wing sail solution for an autonomous environmental land yacht probe. The adopted method involves the application of land sailing principles for the design, the usage of Fusion 360 tool for 3D modeling, and the integration of Gazebo with the Robotic Operating System (ROS) framework for the simulation of the land yacht. Autonomous land yachts can play a major role in the context of environmental monitoring, namely, in open, flat, windy regions, such as iced planes or sandy shorelines. This work addresses the design, modeling, and simulation of a land yacht probe equipped with a rigid free-rotating wing sail and tail flap. The wing was designed with a symmetrical airfoil and dimensions to provide the necessary thrust to displace the vehicle. Specifically, it proposes a novel design and simulation method for free rotating wing sail autonomous land yachts. The simulation relies on the Gazebo simulator together with the Robotic Operating System (ROS) middleware. It uses a modified Gazebo aerodynamics plugin to generate the lift and drag forces and the yawing moment, two newly created plugins, one to act as a wind sensor and the other to set the wing flap angular position, and the 3D model of the land yacht created with Fusion 360. The wing sail aligns automatically to the wind direction and can be set to any given angle of attack, stabilizing after a few seconds. Finally, the obtained polar diagram characterizes the expected sailing performance of the land yacht. The described method can be adopted to evaluate different wing sail configurations, as well as control techniques, for autonomous land yachts.
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