LQR control use for robotic navigation control in agricultural fields

• Grant number: 22/03339-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: August 01, 2022
• End date: November 30, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Mechanical Engineering
• Principal Investigator: Marcelo Becker
• Grantee: Francisco Affonso Pinto
• Host Institution: Escola de Engenharia de São Carlos (EESC). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Carlos , SP, Brazil
• Associated scholarship(s): 23/17678-1 - Learning-Based NMPC for uncertainty mitigation for agricultural rover path tracking, BE.EP.IC

Abstract

This project approaches the implementation of an algorithm in the TerraSentia robot to control its navigation in agricultural fields, which represent remote and challenging environments, owing to their irregular terrains with abundant plantations. For that, the LQR control developed by mathematician Rudolf Kalman was chosen, as it governs a minimum cost function, keeping the robot's purpose of having a low computational cost. So, this function allows determining which parameters should be prioritized through a logic of weights, allowing the designer to choose greater navigation accuracy or battery life, prioritizing one over the detriment of the other. In this aspect, the project will develop the TerraSentia dynamic model and analyze the changes caused by the change in the controller weights. To, finally, find a combination that satisfies the robot's navigation in this environment of difficult access and movement.(AU)