System-Level Testing and Evaluation Plan for Field Robots: A Tutorial with Test Course Layouts

• Main Authors: William R. Norris, Albert E. Patterson
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2019-09-01
• Series: Robotics
• Subjects: field robotics; testing and evaluation; testing plan; robotic systems design
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2218-6581/8/4/83

Field robotics is a very important sub-field of robotic systems, focusing on systems which need to navigate in open, unpredictable terrain and perform non-repetitive missions while monitoring and reacting to their surroundings. General testing and validation standards for larger robotic systems, including field robots, have not been developed yet due to a variety of factors including disagreement over terminology and functional/performance requirements. This tutorial presents a generalized, step-by-step system-level test plan for field robots under manual, semi-autonomous/tele-operated, and autonomous control schemes; this includes a discussion of the requirements and testing parameters, and a set of suggested safety, communications, and behavior evaluation test courses. The testing plan presented here is relevant to both commercial and academic research into field robotics, providing a standardized general testing procedure.