Context and Problem Statement:

Cooperative transportation using multiple mobile robots enables the handling of large or heavy objects that cannot be carried by a single robot. In such scenarios, the robots must move in a coordinated formation while maintaining a defined relative position to each other. Reliable perception of neighboring robots is therefore essential for safe and stable cooperative motion.
Many multi-robot systems rely on external localization systems, communication-based position sharing, or expensive sensor setups to estimate the relative positions of other robots. However, these solutions may not always be available or reliable in practical environments. Laser scanners (LiDAR), which are commonly available on mobile robots for navigation and obstacle detection, provide an opportunity to detect and track nearby robots using onboard sens-ing alone.

Task:

Bisher gibt es keine VDA5050 basierte Steuerung von Kranen und entsprechend auch keine standardisierte Kooperation mit mobilen Robotern. Ziel ist es, Konzepte für eine nahtlose und automatisierte Übergabe von Transportgütern - konkret Gitterboxen - zwischen einem kranbasierten Transportsystem und einem mobilen Roboter zu ermöglichen. Zudem besteht die Möglichkeit die Konzepte umzusetzen und zu testen.

What we offer:

We provide a practical and innovative research environment for this thesis. Weekly check-ins for discussion, feedback, and exchange about the student’s progress. The concepts developed can be implemented and evaluated in our test area using several mobile robots of different drive types. The thesis can be written in German or English.