Editorial: Special issue on ground robots operating in dynamic, unstructured and large-scale outdoor environments

Winfield, Alan; Lacroix, Simon; Schneider, Frank; Wildermuth, Dennis; Winfield, Alan F.T.

Abstract

Real-world outdoor applications of ground robots have, to date, been limited primarily to remote inspection of suspected explosive devices and, with less success, to the broader domain of remote survey and inspection in hazardous environments. Such robots have almost exclusively been tele-operated. Also notable as examples of outdoor ground robots are the planetary rovers, currently deployed with great success on the surface of Mars. But with the rapid development of autonomous (driverless) cars, and the emergence of robotic vehicles in agriculture, it is likely that there will be significant growth in both the numbers and scope of commercial ground robots in outdoor environments in the near future.

For this special issue we called for papers that present land robot systems deployed in the field in similar realistic challenges. We sought papers that focus on any aspect of robotic systems, from vehicle design to the overall system architecture and control, via terrain mapping, localization, mission planning and execution – with an emphasis on systems that fulfil a specific real world task. We specified that robot or system innovations must be supported by extensive field results. Also that field tests must be under realistic and challenging conditions with respect to the terrain type, the scenario to be achieved, and/or the conditions within which the scenarios must be achieved.

• Journal Article Type: Editorial
• Publication Date: Jan 1, 2015
• Deposit Date: Sep 14, 2015
• Publicly Available Date: May 11, 2016
• Journal: Journal of Field Robotics
• Print ISSN: 1556-4959
• Electronic ISSN: 1556-4967
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Not Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 32
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 445-446
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/rob.21604
• Keywords: field robotics, ground robots, large-scale outdoor environments
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/833630
• Publisher URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/rob.21604
• Additional Information: Additional Information : This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Lacroix, S., Schneider, F., Wildermuth, D. and Winfield, A. F. (2015) Editorial: Special issue on ground robots operating in dynamic, unstructured and large-scale outdoor environments. Journal of Field Robotics, 32 (4). pp. 445-446. ISSN 1556-4959, which has been published in final form at http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/rob.21604. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving.
• Contract Date: Apr 12, 2016