An Architecture for Reactive Behavior

Complex problems, such as driving, can be solved by decomposing them into simpler sub-problems, solving each sub-problem, and then integrating the solutions. In the case of an autonomous vehicle, the integrated system should be able to "react" in real time to a changing environment and to "reason" about ways to achieve its goals. This paper describes the approach taken on the UMass Mobile Perception Laboratory (MPL) to integrate independent processes (each solving a particular aspect of the navigation problem) into a fully capable autonomous vehicle. 1 Introduction One of the goals of the autonomous vehicle effort at the University of Massachusetts is the development of a landmark-based navigation system capable of robust navigation both on-road and cross-country. While driving, the vehicle must exhibit classic driving behaviors, such as staying on the road or prescribed path, avoiding obstacles, etc., while using landmarks for determining the vehicle position. The Mobile Perception L..