| Project Detail |
Navigating forests with ground robots
Forests, covering over 40 % of Europe, face increasing threats from climate change, including wildfires and bark beetle outbreaks. While aerial robots aid in monitoring, ground robots with heavier equipment struggle due to autonomous systems designed for obstacle-free scenarios. With the support of the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions programme, the RaCOON project - short for Radar Classification Of Obstacles in Nature - aims to empower ground robots in forests by utilising radar technology to classify vegetation as obstacles or non-obstacles. This groundbreaking approach enables autonomous trajectory planning and navigation in challenging terrains. Through proof-of-concept experiments and forest robotic dataset creation, RaCOON seeks to revolutionise forest management, fostering advancements in field robotics and expanding professional networks.
Forests cover more than 40% of Europe’s surface and are essential for biodiversity, provide fresh water, absorb carbon and prevent
erosion. Yet they face detrimental effects of climate change, such as wildfires or outbreaks of the bark beetle. The field of robotics
offers a pallet of tools to help manage and monitor forests, yet mainly by flying robots. Ground robots that could carry heavier
equipment and last longer struggle in vegetation since their autonomy systems have been developed for obstacle-free scenarios
(e.g. driving on roads). The research proposed here, “Radar Classification Of Obstacles in Nature (RaCOON)”, aims to enable the
deployment of ground robots in forests by giving them the ability to decide which vegetation can be safely driven through. The
applicant will deploy a new sensor modality, i.e. radar, and develop a novel sensor fusion system that will classify vegetation into the
obstacle and non-obstacle categories. This additional information will allow ground robots to autonomously plan trajectories and
navigate in vegetation. The problem will be approached first by exploring the possibilities of radars in a proof-of-concept experiment.
Then, a forest robotic dataset will be recorded in various types of vegetation. The experience from the proof-of-concept experiment
and the recorded data will motivate the design of the final sensor fusion system. The outcomes of RaCOON will be 1) dissemination of
the new system and dataset to the research community and professional networks, 2) training of the applicant in the deployment of
radars for mobile robots and 3) extending the applicant’s professional network and independent research capabilities, advancing him towards starting his own robust field robotics research group. |
