A differential drive mobile robot controlled by using the robotics operational system (ROS)

Abstract

Considering that the working of mobile robots is facilitated by using distributed embedded systems capable of working cooperatively and that managing these systems requires distributed software applications generally written in C++ or Python, it can be argued that ROS (Robotics Operational Systems) can be considered as a useful tool in undertaking robotic projects as it facilitates the integration of software drivers for installed devices. With ROS, software devices can be kept separate but communicate data to achieve distributed control. This paper describes partial results of a currently ongoing research project, which employs a fuzzy controller to maintain a differential drive mobile robot in a path between crops rows, which are detected using LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) and IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit) sensors. Python programs are used to read sensors and control robot DC motors using a fuzzy controller working in a team on the ROS platform. This paper provides a general overview of our robot, including its structure, hardware, software, reached results and future works.

Keywords

• crop rows following
• differential drive mobile robot prototype
• fuzzy control
• imu
• lidar
• ros