Centralized task offloading on distributed remote robot agent(s) : simultaneous localization and mapping

This thesis contributes to an ongoing initiative aimed at providing a comprehensive hardware and software solution for routine radiation surveying in nuclear facilities. The proposed Minibot system is a robotic application featuring a server computer that coordinates multiple mobile agents to collaboratively map hazardous indoor environments. The robot agents, designed to be small, low-powered, and cost-effective, strategically offload computational tasks to a central computer, facilitating the execution of complex algorithms for Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM). This work explores the unique improvements and limitations associated with using small, wheeled robotic platforms, the feasibility of running computationally complex applications through a distributed structure, and the real-world deployment conditions that may affect mapping performance and system scalability.