Efficient 2D LIDAR-Based Map Updating For Long-Term Operations in Dynamic Environments

Long-time operations of autonomous vehicles and mobile robots in logistics and service applications are still a challenge. To avoid a continuous re-mapping, the map can be updated to obtain a consistent representation of the current environment. In this paper, we propose a novel LIDAR-based occupancy grid map updating algorithm for dynamic environments taking into account possible localisation and measurement errors. The proposed approach allows robust long-term operations as it can detect changes in the working area even in presence of moving elements. Results highlighting map quality and localisation performance, both in simulation and experiments, are reported.