New room scouting robot to assist in scanning potential threats

A new robotic system is being developed by engineering students at Arizona State University (ASU) in the US, which they claim would assist rescue workers to inspect buildings for potential risks before entering a room.

Being built with and for Sandia National Laboratories, a research facility of the US Department of Energy, the room mapping robotic system incorporates a laser sensor connected to a motor that snoops around the room, capturing 700-800 individual scans and renders a 3-D picture of scenarios within the room.

The generated information would then be transferred to a computer programme that generates an overall picture of the room and all its elements, further assisting the monitors to have a look at and analyse the obtained data in real-time, when being collected.

Arizona State University College of Technology and Innovation student Travis Marshall said the room-mapping system, currently under development, can be used to map rooms in three-dimensional space.

"It could be useful for surveillance, or pretty much anywhere a person couldn’t go, or wouldn’t want to go," Marshall added.

"The ultimate goal is for this to be very much separated from the user."

With the system still being under development, the prototype has some limitations including lack of ability to scan reflective surfaces or have a look around objects in the room.

Marshall added: "After we get a blank room mapped, they want us to progressively be able to map more and more complex rooms."

With the project scheduled for submission by end of the semester, the new system would assist firefighters and rescue workers in their risky missions.

Image: Look of the room when being scanned via laser compared to the original room. Photo: Courtesy of Arizona Board of Regents.