A vision for supporting autonomous navigation in urban environments

The autonomous navigation systems (ANS), such as autonomous ground vehicles (AGVs), unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and unmanned submersible vehicles (USVs), and modern vehicles with actuators, sensors, and computer control perform three basic functions: context gathering using sensors, processing, and action. Most researchers have put all three functions into the ANS or the robot itself to overcome occlusions and handle the environment's dynamics. However, this causes the ANS and robotic systems to be bulky and expensive. It also impedes the introduction of vehicles with ANS in urban environments, where they must coexist with existing cars and highways. The approach presented distributes the context-gathering and processing functions using sensor networks and wireless communications technologies to reduce costs and make ANS widespread. The system uses sensors mounted on moving vehicles and stationary objects such as lampposts, traffic lights, toll plazas, and buildings to gather information at different levels.