Operating Multiple Semi-autonomous UGVs: Navigation, Strategies, and Instantaneous Performance

摘要

There is an interest in using multiple unmanned ground vehicles (UGV). The Swedish Army Combat School has evaluated an UGV called SNOOKEN II in a number of field studies. To investigate the possibility to handle multiple vehicles in a simulated setting was set up where the operator simultaneous managed one, two, or three UGVs with limited autonomy. The task was to navigate the UGVs to designated inspection points as fast as possible. The results showed that more inspections were made with multiple UGVs (p ＜ 0.05), but also that that there was no difference between using two or three UGVs (p ＞ 0.05). Analysis of use of autonomous mode, route selection, and interviews also show that the subject managed to operate two vehicles with increased performance but that a third vehicle does not provide any extra benefits.