| dc.description.abstract | In order to localize itself within an environment as well as navigate through an environment a mobile robot must have some idea of the layout of the environment. One useful method for storing relative information concerning the layout of an environment is through a process known as cognitive mapping.
Richard Dagan defines cognitive mapping as a “process composed of a series of psychological transformations by which an individual acquires, codes, stores, recalls, and decodes information about the relative locations and attributes of phenomena in their everyday spatial environment”. In order to create such a cognitive map, it is important that the robot have the ability to sense the environment around it, as well as be able to extract useful information about the size, position, and orientation of features within the environment.
This thesis will discuss an easy method to derive 3-D information from an environment utilizing a 2-D sensor (the highly popular SICK laser scanner). In addition, methods for determining size, position, and orientation information about features in the environment will be discussed. Combining several 3-D laser scans for the generation of a cognitive map will be discussed. Finally, the results derived from testing the cognitive map for localization and navigation purposes will be discussed. | |
