Human Detecting and Following Mobile Robot Using a Laser Range Sensor

https://www.fujipress.jp/jrm/rb/robot002600060718/
JRM Vol.26 No.6 pp. 718-734 doi: 10.20965/jrm.2014.p0718 (2014)
Jianzhao Cai*,** and Takafumi Matsumaru**
*South China University of Technology, Wushan RD., Tianhe District, Guangzhou 510641, China
**Graduate School of Information, Production and Systems, Waseda University, 2-7 Hibikino, Wakamatsu-ku, Kitakyushu, Fukuoka 808-0135, Japan
Received:April 28, 2014Accepted:October 20, 2014Published:December 20, 2014
Keywords:mobile robot, human detection, human following, laser range scanner, limited velocity
Abstract: To meet the higher requirements of human-machine interface technology, a robot with human-following capability, a classic but significant problem, is discussed in this paper. We first propose a human detection method that uses only a single laser range scanner to detect the waist of the target person. Second, owing to the limited speed of a robot and the potential risk of obstructions, a new human-following algorithm is proposed. The speed and acceleration of a robot are adaptive to the human-walking speed and the distance between the human and robot. Finally, the performance of the proposed control system is successfully verified through a set of experimental results obtained using a two-wheelmobile robot working in a real environment under different scenarios.