Team Commando Tutorial/Explanation of Methods

Requirements

• iRobot Create
• Command Module
• Virtual walls
• PC with Windows OS
• RoboRealm
• MATLAB
• webcam
• flashlight
• reflective tape

Guide

Navigation

Our general navigation algorithm is as follows:

• Find checkpoint
• Move along the wall a preset distance
• Now the robot is at a door. Face the door.
• Drive at maximum speed to clear threshold. Once threshold is clear, resume normal speed
• If door is open, then enter room, wait until image processing is done, turn around and leave
• Find the next checkpoint... etc.

Checkpoints can be a virtual wall, or the real wall immediately next to the room the robot has just left. The first checkpoint is just the robot's starting point. The robot follows the wall whenever it is measuring distance because the wall keeps the robot going straight ahead, which helps precision.

Detecting Windows

• Method
  • attach laptop to iRobot
  • receive signal from robot when it has arrived in room via command module serial ports => matlab
  • webcam pans and roborealm scans for magenta
    • matlab checks to see if roborealm has found magenta at every degree of the pan
      • if found, places a one in the vector entry corresponding to that room

• Matlab script:
  • Media:RoboRealmControl.m.txt
• RoboRealm filters:
  • for at night with lights on
  • for at night with lights off and flashlight

Communicating between navigation and detection

• created motion sensing filter
• MATLAB starts window detection filter when motion sensor determines that robot has stopped moving