UW Computer Science Department Swarm Robotics at the University of Wyoming Dr. William M. Spears Dr. Diana F. Spears Computer Science Department University of Wyoming

UW Computer Science Department Traditional Robotics Traditionally, robotics researchers focus on the development of highly capable and expensive robots. Only a few are made. –Predator airplanes With swarm robotics, the emphasis is on having lots of relatively inexpensive robots. –Micro-air vehicles

UW Computer Science Department Advantages Swarms of robots are effective: –They can perform tasks that one expensive robot cannot. Swarms are robust: –Even if some robots fail, the swarm can still achieve the task.

UW Computer Science Department Goal The UW Distributed Robotics Laboratory serves as an environment for prototyping and demonstration of proof-of-principle for swarm robotics. Our goal is to design methods for enabling groups of robots to perform important real- world tasks…

UW Computer Science Department Tasks Search and Rescue Surveillance Convoy / Formation Movement –Organizing into a Formation –Movement Toward a Goal –Avoiding Obstacles –Chemical Plume Source Tracing

UW Computer Science Department Search and Rescue Project Graduate Student: Wesley Kerr

UW Computer Science Department Search and Rescue Simulation Task: Robots must avoid obstacles and each other while reaching the rescue area. Rescue Area

UW Computer Science Department Surveillance Project Funded by Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Graduate Students: Wesley Kerr Suranga Hettiarachchi Dimitri Zarzhitsky

UW Computer Science Department Scenario: Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Cooperate To Detect Targets Terrain detector Target detector UAV

UW Computer Science Department Surveillance Simulation UAVs forest Task: UAVs must detect as many of the moving targets as possible, while avoiding each other.

UW Computer Science Department Convoy / Formation Movement Project Graduate Student: Suranga Hettiarachchi

UW Computer Science Department Formation Organization Task 1: Robots must organize themselves into formation.

UW Computer Science Department Formation Movement Task 2: Robots must organize themselves into formation and then move toward a light source.

UW Computer Science Department Formation Movement Simulation Task 3: Robots must organize themselves into formation and then move toward a goal, while avoiding obstacles. goal

UW Computer Science Department Chemical Plume Tracing Project Portions of this work to be funded by the Joint Robotics Program. Testing to take place at Camp Guernsey. Graduate Student: Dimitri Zarzhitsky

UW Computer Science Department Plume Tracing Simulation Robots must organize themselves into a formation, and then locate the source of a chemical hazard, while avoiding obstacles. source

UW Computer Science Department Plume Tracing Experiments

UW Computer Science Department Ultrasonic Localization for Swarms of Robots Portions of this work to be funded by the Joint Robotics Program. Testing to take place at Camp Guernsey. Graduate Students: Paul Maxim Thomas Kunkel

UW Computer Science Department Hardware implementation Swarm robot technology equipped with a localization system Use trilateration method for local positioning system Robot prototype

UW Computer Science Department Project Participants FACULTY –Jerry Hamann, Cameron Wright (Electrical and Computer Engineering) –M. P. Sharma (Chemical Engineering) –John Schabron (Chemist, Western Research Institute) –Dave Walrath, Doug Smith, Dimitri Mavriplis (Mechanical Engineering) –Dan Stanescu (Mathematics) –David Thayer (Physics and Astronomy) GRADUATE STUDENTS –Rodney Heil –Suranga Hettiarachchi –Wesley Kerr –Lee Frey –Thomas Kunkel –Paul Maxim –Mark Patterson –Yi Shi –Dimitri Zarzhitsky UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS –Paul Hansen –Kurt Lawton –Ben Palmer –David Weiser –Ella Wellman –Brian Zuelke

UW Computer Science Department Questions and Robot Demonstration