Technology
Technology has become a part of every aspect of our lives, even in the places we least expect. The grocery store has a mobile app. The local bank has a chatbot.
RTAB-map
RTAB-Map (Real-Time Appearance-Based Mapping) is a RGB-D SLAM (Simultaneous Localization and Mapping) library for 2D and 3D mapping of environments. It is designed for robotic mapping and localization, and supports real-time mapping and localization for a variety of platforms. It is widely used in robotics research and development and is supported by the ROS (Robot Operating System) framework.
Odometry
to estimate its position and orientation relative to a starting location given in terms of an x and y position and an orientation around the z (upward) axis.
Gazebo
an open-source 3D robotics simulator. It integrated the ODE physics engine, OpenGL rendering, and support code for sensor simulation and actuator control. Gazebo can use multiple high-performance physics engines, such as ODE, Bullet, etc. (the default is ODE).
Manipulator
A manipulator robotic with ROS (Robot Operating System) refers to a robot arm that is integrated with the ROS framework for control and communication. This integration enables the robot arm to perform various tasks and movements through ROS nodes and packages, which provide a flexible and powerful toolset for robotic manipulation. The use of ROS in manipulator robotics allows for easy integration with other ROS-based systems and provides a standardized communication interface for the robot arm, enabling the development of complex robotic systems and applications.
Gmapping
Gmapping is a 2D simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) algorithm for mobile robots. It is used to build a map of an unknown environment by a robot while it is exploring the environment. Gmapping uses a range sensor such as a laser rangefinder or a depth camera to measure the distance to obstacles in the environment, and combines this information with the robot's odometry data to estimate its position and orientation within the environment. The algorithm updates its map as the robot moves and gathers new sensor data, and also updates its estimate of the robot's pose. The resulting map can be used for navigation and other tasks by the robot.
Adaptive Monte Carlo Localization
AMCL stands for "Adaptive Monte Carlo Localization". It is a robot localization algorithm that uses Monte Carlo methods to estimate the state of a robot in an environment based on its sensor measurements and control inputs. It is widely used in robotics for self-localization tasks, such as determining the position and orientation of a robot relative to a known map. AMCL provides a probabilistic approach to localization, enabling the robot to handle uncertainty in its measurements and motion.
Path planning A*
A* (A-star) is an algorithm used in path planning and graph search that is commonly used in robotics. It is an informed search algorithm, meaning it uses additional information to make informed decisions about the best path to follow. The algorithm works by calculating a value, called the "heuristic," for each node in the graph that estimates the cost of reaching the goal from that node. The A* algorithm uses this heuristic in addition to the actual cost of moving from one node to another to determine the most efficient path from the start to the goal. This makes A* a popular choice for path planning in robotics, as it provides a fast and effective way to find the shortest path in a large and complex environment.