Newsgroups: comp.robotics
Path: brunix!sgiblab!swrinde!cs.utexas.edu!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!news.claremont.edu!jarthur.claremont.edu!bgribble
From: bgribble@jarthur.claremont.edu (Bill Gribble)
Subject: Re: Global Positioning Question
Message-ID: <CELLz2.LH1@news.claremont.edu>
Sender: news@news.claremont.edu (The News System)
Organization: Harvey Mudd College, Claremont, CA 91711
References: <CEKvLD.Duo.2@cs.cmu.edu> <1993Oct8.130037.29996@amoco.com>
Date: Fri, 8 Oct 1993 21:49:49 GMT
Lines: 22

In article <1993Oct8.130037.29996@amoco.com> zjoc01@hou.amoco.com writes:
>At a robo-fest in Austin TX earlier this year, some folks from Univ. of Texas
>at Austin were doing research on not having maps, but having robots map a
>'house' itself using a topographic description rather than a geographic
>description of distances and directions.  The topo description was mainly of
>'interesting' points (corners, doors, etc).  After wandering a while (and
>only being able to 'see' 20" or so to each side, the robot was able to come
>up with a fairly good description of the house.
>
>Putting this in practice would make an intresting project for a sr robotics
>work, or even a masters.

Funny you should mention that -- I am just hammering out the details of my
master's thesis research in robotics here at the University of Texas at
Austin :-).  I'm doing just what you mentioned -- implementing the cognitive
mapping research that has been going on here over the last little while.
Only I'm going to use on-board video in addition to sonar to find the
``distinctive places.'' 

Should be fun...

Bill Gribble
