Motion control for autonomous vehicles in outdoor environment

The authors present a design for a motion control or piloting system for use with autonomous vehicle applications in outdoor conditions. The work is a part of an ESPRIT project (Panorama EP2483), whose goal is to develop a modular perception and navigation system for autonomous industrial vehicles in partially structured and known environments, like agriculture, forestry, open mines, and construction sites. The overall Panorama system is briefly introduced. Then the role and functions of the motion control or piloting system are discussed. A basic design is explained and some results with two different test vehicles are presented and discussed