Automatic control of robotic systems in unstructured environments

The US Department of Energy´s Office of Technology Development has sponsored the development of generic robotics technologies for application to a wide range of remote systems. Of primary interest is the development of technologies which enable faster, safer, and cheaper cleanup of hazardous waste sites than is possible using conventional human contact or remote manual approaches. The development of model-based sensor-directed robot control approaches supports these goals by developing modular control technologies, which reduce the time and cost of development by allowing reuse of control system software. In addition, the use of computer models improves the safety of remote site cleanup by allowing automated error detection and recovery while reducing the time for technology development