The PIRATE is a Pipe Inspection Robot for AuTonomous Exploration currently being developed at the Robotics & Mechatronics (RaM) research group at the University of Twente. For efficient inspection of pipelines, operating the PIRATE has to be straightforward, such that the operator can mainly focus on examining the condition of the pipe. Therefore, a certain degree of autonomy of the robot is required, i.e. autonomous movement through pipe bends and obstacle detection and avoidance.
The objective of this assignment is to create a system that will enable the PIRATE to detect pipe-junctions and obstacles in front of it and navigate these autonomously, so without need for the operator. Some key requirements are to obtain a wide Field of View (FoV) and accurate sensor data, that can easily be interpreted by a proper planning algorithm to navigate pipelines as efficiently possible.