Cyber-Physical Platform with Miniature Robotic Vehicles for Research and Development of Autonomous Mobile Systems.

The paper presents a cyber-physical platform that enables development and evaluation of algorithms for autonomous driving of mobile robots. The platform consists of three main parts: a vision system for object tracking, a small-scale physical model of an environment with miniature mobile robots and a system for simulating soft sensors. The vision system consists of a single camera above the platform, that enables global tracking of all objects in real time. The small-scale models of the environment are presented as drawings on a flat surface on which the miniature mobile robots with wheels can drive. Two physical models developed are presented: a town with miniature wheeled mobile robots and an industrial hall with miniature automated guided vehicles. Since not all essential sensors are available in a suitable, small form, an approach that enables soft sensors is presented. Different modular systems are integrated together using the framework provided by the Robot Operating System. The proposed platform can be deployed quickly and is easy to use. It is also very affordable, customisable and expandable.