Enhancing the search-and-rescue capabilities of the DJI robomaster

Abstract

Search-and-rescue robots play an essential role in disasters because of their ability to map these environments and move faster (as compared to humans) in them. While these scenarios are hard to replicate, search-and-rescue robots can be developed and tested for their effectiveness – one of these ways is through the usage of the commercially available DJI Robomaster EP Core Robot.

In this project, we will control the robot using a raspberry pi on which the Robomaster Software Development Kit (SDK) is downloaded. Following which, we connect the Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) sensor to the robot via the raspberry pi. Then, we implement a Simultaneous Localisation and Mapping (SLAM) algorithm to generate the map of the actual environment. This will transform the DJI Robomaster into a semi-autonomous robot which is able to map its environment – a key feature of search-and-rescue robots.

The results of the project implementation and possible future work are then discussed.