Mobile Intelligent Autonomous Systems

Going beyond the traditional field of robotics to include other mobile vehicles, Mobile Intelligent Autonomous Systems describes important theoretical concepts, techniques, approaches, and applications that can be used to build truly mobile intelligent autonomous systems (MIAS). It offers a comprehensive treatment of robotics and MIAS, as well as related disciplines, helping readers understand the subject from a system-theoretic and practical point of view. Organized into three sections, the book progresses from conceptual foundations to MIAS and robotics systems and then examines allied technologies. With an emphasis on recent research and developments, experts from various fields cover key aspects of this rapidly emerging area, including:

• Path and motion planning
• Obstacle avoidance in a dynamic environment
• Direct biological-brain control of a mobile robot
• Sensor and image data fusion
• Autonomous decision making and behavior modeling in robots
• Hydro-MiNa robot technology
• Adaptive algorithms for smart antennas
• Control methods for autonomous micro-air vehicles
• Neuro-fuzzy fault-tolerant auto-landing for aircraft
• H-infinity filter based estimation for simultaneous localization and mapping

Where relevant, concepts and theories are illustrated with block/flow diagrams and numerical simulations in MATLAB^R. An integrated exploration of the theory and practice of MIAS and robotics, this is a valuable reference and recipe book for research and industry.

Jitendra R. Raol, Ph.D., is retired from the National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL), where he was Scientist-G and head of the Flight Mechanics and Control Division (FMCD). He was elected a fellow of the IEE (UK), was a senior member of the IEEE (US), is a life-fellow of the Aeronautical Society of India, and a life member of the System Society of India. Dr. Raol has published 110 research papers and several reports and has guest-edited two special issues each of Sadhana and the Defense Science Journal. He is a reviewer of several national and international journals and has served as a chairman and member of several technical and examination committees. He is the (co-) author of Modelling and Parameter Estimation for Dynamic Systems, (IEE/IET, 2004), Flight Mechanics Modeling and Analysis (CRC Press, 2008) and Multi-Sensor Data Fusion with MATLAB (CRC Press, 2009). He has also written collections of poems: Poetry of Life, Sandy Bonds, Timeless Quest, and Naked Emotions.

Ajith K. Gopal, Ph.D., is currently an engineering manager at Land Systems South Africa, where he is responsible for new technology strategy and development for the company. In 2007, Dr. Gopal established the MIAS (Mobile, Intelligent, Autonomous Systems) research group at the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in South Africa, where he served as the research leader for 2007 and 2008. He has published four papers relating to composite and smart materials in the Journal of Composite Materials and International Conferences on Composite Science and Technology. He has also published a paper on path planning in the Defense Science Journal and a book chapter on data fusion in robotics in Multi-Sensor Data Fusion with MATLAB (CRC Press, 2009) and has guest-edited a special issue of the Defense Science Journal on MIAS.