A strategy for the docking of a mobile platform to some docking station is described. The vehicle used is non-holonomic and is restricted in it's movements to straight lines and arcs with a minimum radius of 1 meter. An infra-red based sensorial system was developed in such a way that, by triangulation, the position and orientation of the mobile platform relative to the docking station were estimated. Smooth trajectories were generated in order to do the docking of the non-holonomic vehicle
with the minimum curvature radius.
The docking trajectories were split into two distinct procedures: the approach, which drives the vehicle to the docking station neighbourhood, where the sensorial system is able to localise it relative to the docking station, and the docking, which manoeuvres the vehicle in order to dock inside a (0.5 cm, 0.5 cm, 1 deg) area around the docking spot. Two reflectors were used in the docking station. Two infra-red based sensors were
mounted on steppers, so that the infra-red sensors could sweep the space around and detect the reflected beam, and hence evaluate the angles to the reflectors; these angles are then used to determine the position and orientation of the platform, in a triangulation based procedure.
The whole sensorial system is controlled by a PIC Microcontroller (Microchip). The PIC receives commands from the platform on-board computer, executes them and returns the data back, by means of a dedicated
serial connection between the two of them.
