Murray State University
Robot Dispersion: An Algorithm for the Dispersion of Miniature Robots
Institution
Murray State University
Faculty Advisor/ Mentor
James Hereford
Abstract
In this study, we investigate the best way to scatter or “disperse” particles around a room. Our intended application is for many small, mobile robots to search for a “hot spot” such as a bomb or a fire in a room. There are search techniques that are good for coordinating the movements of robots in a cluster to search for hot spots. However, most of these search techniques assume that the robots are randomly distributed around the search space. For our robot application, it is more likely that the robots will be placed in a room or space at a common point (such as a door or window) and thus they will need to spread throughout the space. Once the robots are spread throughout the space, then a search algorithm can be initiated. We developed a dispersal algorithm to spread a group of robots throughout a search space. We simulated the algorithm and showed that it works in several different cases. Once the robots are dispersed throughout the space, the final search for the hot spot is begun.
Robot Dispersion: An Algorithm for the Dispersion of Miniature Robots
In this study, we investigate the best way to scatter or “disperse” particles around a room. Our intended application is for many small, mobile robots to search for a “hot spot” such as a bomb or a fire in a room. There are search techniques that are good for coordinating the movements of robots in a cluster to search for hot spots. However, most of these search techniques assume that the robots are randomly distributed around the search space. For our robot application, it is more likely that the robots will be placed in a room or space at a common point (such as a door or window) and thus they will need to spread throughout the space. Once the robots are spread throughout the space, then a search algorithm can be initiated. We developed a dispersal algorithm to spread a group of robots throughout a search space. We simulated the algorithm and showed that it works in several different cases. Once the robots are dispersed throughout the space, the final search for the hot spot is begun.