Hardware-software integration of a practical mobile robot platform

In this research, we present a development of a mobile robot platform integrated with off-the-shelf sensors and equipment for disaster response. Unlike the applications including research and education or military and civil defense forces, it is expected that the platform can be utilized for practical use with small initial budget and less effort for development. The platform offers an opportunity for researchers and engineers to let their effort on developing more advanced methods, allowing for further development from R&D to practical or business purpose. In order to accomplish these challenges, we also construct an advantageous system for researchers and engineers in both academic and industry by means of disclosing and providing information about hardware and software as an open-source. Some experiments are also shown for validation of the basic functions of the platform.