Self-organizing maps for visually guided collision-free navigation

A control system for navigation and obstacle avoidance of a visually guided mobile robot is proposed. The robot uses self-organizing principles to adapt its actions to the visual information, minimizing the need of human guidance during learning and operating. The robot is able to adjust itself to new situations and unknown environments, because no a priori knowledge about the locations or shapes of the obstacles are needed; only local camera information and a direction to the goal are required. A simulated robot is used to demonstrate the efficiency of this approach.