Sensing and Sensor Fusion for the 2005 Desert Buckeyes DARPA Grand Challenge Offroad Autonomous Vehicle

This paper describes the sensor suite and the sensor fusion algorithms used for external environment sensing in the Ohio State University Desert Buckeyes 2005 DARPA Grand Challenge autonomous off-road vehicle entry. The external environment sensor suite included laser rangefinders, a stereo vision system, a radar system, and ultrasonic rangefinders. The positioning and orientation sensor suite included a precision GPS receiver, a vertical gyroscope, a digital compass, and dead reckoning wheel speed sensors. Sensor fusion was accomplished on a cell-based map using multiple confidence measures and estimated object height. Issues arising from terrain and the estimation of a ground profile ahead of the vehicle are also discussed