Multi-tasking SLAM

The problem of simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) is one of the most studied in the robotics literature. Most existing approaches, however, focus on scenarios where localization and mapping are the only tasks on the robot's agenda. In many real-world scenarios, a robot may be called on to perform other tasks simultaneously, in addition to localization and mapping. These can include target-following (or avoidance), search-and-rescue, point-to-point navigation, refueling, and so on. This paper proposes a framework that balances localization, mapping, and other planning objectives, thus allowing robots to solve sequential decision tasks under map and pose uncertainty. Our approach combines a SLAM algorithm with an online POMDP approach to solve diverse navigation tasks, without prior training, in an unknown environment.