Build Autonomous Mobile Robot from Scratch using ROS: Simulation and Hardware

Start from scratch and build a variety of features for autonomous mobile robots both in simulation and hardware. This book will show you how to simulate an autonomous mobile robot using ROS and then develop its hardware implementation.

You'll start by gaining an understanding of the basic theoretical concepts underlying the development of autonomous robots, including history, mathematics, electronics, mechanical aspects, 3D modelling, 3D printing, Linux, and programming. In subsequent chapters, you will learn how to describe kinematics, simulate and visualize the robot, how to interface Arduino with ROS, tele-operate the robot, perform mapping, autonomous navigation, add additional sensors, sensor fusion, laser scan matching, web interface, and more. Not only will you learn theoretical aspects, you’ll also review the hardware realization of mobile robots.

Projects start with a very basic two-wheeled mobile robot and progress to complex features such as mapping, navigation, sensor fusion, autodocking, and web interface. Upon completing this book, you’ll have incorporated important robot algorithms including SLAM, Path Finding, Localization, and Kalman Filters – and you will be ready to start designing and building your own autonomous robots.

What You Will Learn

• Design and build your customized physical robot with autonomous navigation capability
• Create a map of your house using the robot’s lidar scanner
• Command the robot to go to any accessible location on the map
• Interact with the robot using a mobile app, joystick, keyboard, push-button, or remote computer
• Monitor robot updates via LCD, a mobile app, sound, and status LEDs
• Automate delivery of small payloads and return to home base
• Utilize autodocking to home base for battery charging
• Leverage sensor fusion to improve accuracy
• Interface with the robot via the Web to monitor and control it remotely

Who This Book Is For

Complete beginners who want to build customized robots from scratch. No experience is expected, although basic programming knowledge could be handy.

About the Author

Rajesh Subramanian is a robotics engineer by profession and founder of ThunDroids LLP (a robotics manufacturing and service firm). He has more than 7 years of experience in the industry and research area. He holds a post-graduate degree from the University of Queensland, Australia and a research degree from Edith Cowan University, Australia. Rajesh has worked with humanoid service robots, mobile robots, robot arms, and modular robots as part of both industry and academics, and published a research paper on modular robots at the IEEE TENCON 2013 international conference. He also works as a robotics educator and has published courses on autonomous robots.