Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2025

DOI

10.3390/s25216524

Publication Title

Sensors

Volume

25

Issue

21

Pages

6524 (1-25 pp.)

Abstract

Navigating autonomous robots in confined channels is inherently challenging due to limited space, dynamic obstacles, and energy constraints. Existing sensor fusion strategies often consume excessive power because all sensors remain active regardless of environmental conditions. This paper presents an energy-aware adaptive sensor fusion framework for channel robots that deploys RGB cameras, laser range finders, and IMU sensors according to environmental complexity. Sensor data are fused using an adaptive Extended Kalman Filter (EKF), which selectively integrates multi-sensor information to maintain high navigation accuracy while minimizing energy consumption. An energy management module dynamically adjusts sensor activation and computational load, enabling significant reductions in power consumption while preserving navigation reliability. The proposed system is implemented on a low-power microcontroller and evaluated through simulations and prototype testing in constrained channel environments. Results show a 35% reduction in energy consumption with minimal impact on navigation performance, demonstrating the framework’s effectiveness for long-duration autonomous operations in pipelines, sewers, and industrial ducts.

Rights

© 2025 by the authors.

This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) License.

Data Availability

Article states: "Data are contained within the article."

Original Publication Citation

Shili, M., Chaoui, H., & Nouri, K. (2025). Energy-aware sensor fusion architecture for autonomous channel robot navigation in constrained environments. Sensors, 25(21), Article 6524. https://doi.org/10.3390/s25216524

ORCID

0000-0001-8728-3653 (Chaoui)

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