Title: A Study for Development of Autonomous Paddy-weeding Robot System –An experimentation for autonomously straight-running based on compass-compensation

Issue Number: Vol. 8, No. 4
Year of Publication: Dec - 2018
Page Numbers: 186-197
Authors: Masashi SUGIMOTO, Yasuhiro INOKI, Tomoki SHIRAKAWA, Kanta TAKEUCHI, Daiki YOSHIOKA, Haruki FUKITA, Toshiyuki YAMAJI, Mio ENDO, Patchara NAMEEYA, Hiroyuki INOUE, Manabu KATO, Shiro URUSHIHARA, Kazunori HOSOTANI, Hitoshi SORI
Journal Name: International Journal of New Computer Architectures and their Applications (IJNCAA)
- Hong Kong
DOI:  http://dx.doi.org/10.17781/P002540

Abstract:


In the agricultural field of Japan, there is two is-sues are facing; population aging and labor short-age are progressing, rapidly. In order to solve these problems, it is indispensable to create a method that improves productivity and labor-saving technology in agricultural works. A weeding robot is one of an approach for achievement of these problems, it can be considered that labors will be re-leased from tough or dangerous works. In this study, autonomously controlling the weeding robot will be focused on. To achieve this, an algorithm will be proposed that autonomously constructs a state-action space based on various sensor information and can apply it to actually work. The main contribution of this paper is in the development of vision-based navigation and integrated control system for straight-running or turning behavior to guarantee performance during of the working. The presented system benefits from a magnetic compass, a fixed camera, and a P-control module. An estimation method of boundary of the workspace distance obtains view of in-front-of the robot using a monocular camera to enable detect edges of the workspace. Moreover, an obstacle detection method obtains in-front-of view of the robot using the camera. In this method is ap-plied a deep-learning module to detect and cognition an obstacle. A rotation controller is developed to counter-rotation turn the robot such that at the target boundary point, to avoid the robot reach out of the workspace, or avoid an obstacle. In addition, the P-control module provides that command for straight-run to prevent the robot get stuck or undesirable change a course in the mud of paddy-field. In verification experiment, a state-action space, including the position of the obstacle was constructed and can avoid an obstacle, in each work. Further, we have been confirmed that the robot can counter rotation turn 90 degrees (spin-turn) at the boundary point of workspace