Mobility Map Computations for Autonomous Navigation using an RGBD Sensor

Abstract: In recent years, the numbers of life-size humanoids as well as their mobile capabilities have steadily grown. Stable walking motion and control for humanoid robots are active fields of research. In this scenario an open question is how to model and analyse the scene so that a motion planning algorithm can generate an appropriate walking pattern. This paper presents the current work towards scene modelling and understanding, using an RGBD sensor. The main objective is to provide the humanoid robot iCub with capabilities to navigate safely and interact with various parts of the environment. In this sense we address the problem of traversability analysis of the scene, focusing on classification of point clouds as a function of mobility, and hence walking safety.