Laser-based guidance of multiple mobile robots

This paper describes our research work towards the development of an optical guidance system for multiple mobile robots in an indoor environment. The guidance system operates with an environmental model, communicates with mobile robots and indicates their target positions by means of a light projection from a laser pointer onto the ground. Processing the image data from a CCD color camera mounted on the mobile robot allows it to detect the laser light beacon on the ground and estimate its relative coordinates. The robot´s control system ensures the accurate motion of the robot to the indicated target position. The guidance system subsequently indicates target positions corresponding to a desired route for a specified mobile robot in the fleet. The concept of the optical guidance system, its implementation and experimental results are discussed