A mobile robot named KURT3D was developed at the Fraunhofer Institute for Autonomous Intelligent Systems during the last three years. The key innovation of this system lies in the capability for autonomous or operatorassisted 6D SLAM (simultaneous localization and mapping) and 3D map generation of natural scenes. Hence, KURT3D already meets the basic requirement regarding urban search and rescu...

In the 2006 RoboCup Virtual Rescue Robots competition, teams from different research labs developed methods for controlling teams of mobile robots in a simulated urban search and rescue scenario. The scoring procedure used in this inaugural competition rewards participants for the number of victims found, the amount of area explored in the environment, the quality of the maps created by the rob...

We propose Robot Wireless Sensor Networks (RWSNs) management method for maintaining wireless communication connectivity for a mobile robot teleoperation with considering a distance between sensor nodes. Recent studies for reducing disaster damage focus on a disaster area information gathering in underground spaces. Since information gathering activities in such post disaster underground spaces ...

Advancements in microprocessor-based systems have revolutionized robotics, enabling single-robot and multi-robot (MRS) to excel various applications such as search rescue, forest fire detection, mining, disaster management. MRS amplify robot capabilities, complex tasks distributed operations. Effective communication between robots is crucial for optimal performance. This paper explores architec...

This special issue collects some of the best papers from the 2009 IEEE International Workshop on Safety, Security and Rescue Robotics held at the University of Denver in late 2009. This single-track workshop, in its seventh year, has become the premier venue for search and rescue robotics research and related technologies the world over. Hopping from continent to continent each year, this stop ...

In this work we introduce a new concept of a search and rescue robotic system that is composed of a hyper-redundant robot (HRR) which is mounted on a mobile base. This system is capable not only of inspecting areas reachable by the mobile base, but also of inspecting unreachable areas such as small cracks and pipes, using the camera and sensors mounted on its end-effector. The HRR is composed o...

Rescuers have lost their lives in events requiring them to go into dangerous areas that have unstable structures, gases and environments. Robots are necessary for search and rescue purposes, to access concealed places and environments that fire fighters and rescue personnel cannot gain entry to. The contractible arms elevating search and rescue (CAESAR) robot was designed and developed to assis...

It is not unusual for the registration area at an academic conference to include several desks. Usually those attendees with names beginning A–L are encouraged to line up behind one desk, and M–Z line up behind another. However, the 2002 National Conference on Artificial Intelligence included another desk: Robots! Some robots at the 2002 American Association for Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) M...

In urban search and rescue situations, a 3D map obtained using a 3D range sensor mounted on a rescue robot is very useful in determining a rescue crew’s strategy. Furthermore, thermal images captured by an infrared camera enable rescue workers to effectively locate victims. The objective of this study is to develop a 3D thermography mapping system using a 3D map and thermal images; this system ...

After the second place in RoboCup Rescue 2004, a new version of the mobile robot Kurt3D was developed in our groups during the last year [1]. The key innovation of this system lies in the capability for autonomous or operator-assisted 6D SLAM (simultaneous localization and mapping) and 3D map generation of natural scenes. Hence, Kurt3D already meets the basic requirement regarding urban search ...