Human Following on a Mobile Robot by Low-cost Infrared Sensors

Abstract

We report on the sensory setup, algorithm development of motion generation with obstacle avoidance, and system-level integration for a mobile robot that follows a human. The target's direction and distance are detected with a low-cost, compact and coded infrared (IR) transmitter/receiver pair and a range finder, free from environmental lighting conditions. Based on the characteristics that the human would avoid obstacles while moving, instead of using a complex algorithm suitable for autonomous navigation by mobile robots, a simple obstacle avoidance algorithm with low computation power is developed. The robot implemented with the developed sensor and algorithm can reactively track and follow the target at various distances, and moves in a complex environment. In addition, the added odometry navigation allows the robot to continue track the target when its transmitting signal is occasionally obstructed. Experimental validation of following humans is executed to evaluate the performance of the proposed system setup.