Deployment and Connectivity Repair of a Sensor Net with a Flying Robot

We consider multi-robot systems that include sensor nodes and aerial or ground robots networked together. Such networks are suitable for tasks such as large-scale environmental monitoring or for command and control in emergency situations. We present a sensor network deployment method using autonomous aerial vehicles and describe in detail the algorithms used for deployment and for measuring network connectivity and provide experimental data collected from field trials. A particular focus is on determining gaps in connectivity of the deployed network and generating a plan for repair, to complete the connectivity. This project is the result of a collaboration between three robotics labs (CSIRO, USC, and Dartmouth.)

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2004
• Where: ISER
• Authors: Peter I. Corke, Stefan Hrabar, Ronald A. Peterson, Daniela Rus, Srikanth Saripalli, Gaurav S. Sukhatme
• Keywords: Autonomous Aerial Vehicles, ISER 2004, Large-scale Environmental Monitoring, Robotics, Sensor Network Deployment