Simultaneous Localisation and Mapping and Dense Stereoscopic Seafloor Reconstruction using an AUV

Authors: Ian Mahon, Stefan Williams, Oscar Pizarro, Matthew Johnson-Roberson and Paul Rigby.

Time: 16:00-16:25

This talk will reviews current work being undertaken at the University of Sydney's Australian Centre for Field Robotics on efficient, stereo based Simultaneous Localisation and Mapping and dense scene reconstruction suitable for creating detailed maps of seafloor survey sites. Techniques for three dimensional scene reconstruction, visualisation, novelty detection and classification are also discussed. A suite of tools have been developed for creating and visualising accurate models of the seafloor, thereby providing marine scientists with a method for assessing the spatial distribution of various organisms of interest. The Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Sirius has been operated on a number of cruises in 2007 and 2008 as part of the establishment of an AUV Facility associated with the Australia's Integrated Marine Observing System (IMOS). Preliminary outcomes of these cruises are described, illustrating how advances in SLAM techniques are facilitating the construction of very large scale seafloor maps.