Fuzzy logic control for an automated guided vehicle

This paper describes the use of fuzzy logic control for the high level control systems of a mobile robot. The advantages of the fuzzy logic system are that multiple types of input such as that from vision and sonar sensors as well as stored map information can be cased to guide the robot. Sensor fusion can be accomplished between real time sensed information and stored information in a manner similar to a human decision maker. Vision guidance is accomplished with a CCD camera with a zoom lens. The data is collected through a commercial tracking device, communicating to the computer the X,Y coordinates of a lane marker. Testing of these systems yielded positive results by showing that at five miles per hour, the vehicle can follow a line and avoid obstacles. The obstacle detection uses information from Polaroid sonar detection system. The motor control system uses a programmable Galil motion control system. This design, in its modularity, creates a portable autonomous controller that could be used for any mobile vehicle with only minor adaptations.