[ros-users] [jobs] - Postdoctoral Position @Le2i - Polarimetric Vision Applied to Robotics Navigation

[Ralph SEULIN]

Dear ROS users,

Our laboratory is hiring a postdoc to work on computer vision for mobile robotics.
Please find hereafter the job description.

Thanks for your interest !

Best,

Ralph SEULIN

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Postdoctoral Position

Polarimetric Vision Applied to Robotics Navigation

Position details:
• Starting date: January 2016
• Duration: 12 months renewable
• Salary: around 2000 euros/month net
• Location: Le2i UMR CNRS 6306 - Le Creusot (France)

Context:
The ability of robots to move and navigate autonomously in an unknown environment is directly related to their faculty to extract information surrounding them. Polarization information is used by many animals but remains unused in the fields of robotics. For instance, the sky produces a polarization pattern that is used by bees to orient themselves[1]. The main goal of the VIPeR (Polarimetric Vision Applied to Robotics Navigation) project is to prove by developing an experimental platform that polarization can be efficiently used for navigation tasks. This project is a two years project funded by the French National Research Agency.
The first task will consist in embedding a commercial polarimetric camera on the terrestrial vehicle (Summit XL) to illustrate the ability to avoid puddles or ice hazards on the road[2]. The polarization effect by reflection will be used since after reflection, natural light that is unpolarized becomes partially linearly polarized.
The second application will consist in embedding the polarimetric sensor on a UAV (ASTEC Pellican) to exploit the polarization properties of the scattering light. The attitude estimation task will be developed by using the polarization pattern of the sky. Indeed, depending on the sun position, the sky provides a useful compass for orientation in space and can be an efficient tool to compensate the drift that frequently appear in inertial measurement unit after a long term running[3].

[1] Pomozi, I.; Horvath, G. & Wehner, R. “How the clear-sky angle of polarization pattern continues underneath clouds: full-sky measurements and implications for animal orientation” The Journal of Experimental Biology, 2001, 204, 2933-2942
[2] Rankin, A. L. & Matthies, L. H. “Passive sensor evaluation for unmanned ground vehicle mud detection” J. Field Robotics, 2010, 473-490
[3] Shabayek, A. E. R.; Demonceaux, C.; Morel, O. & Fofi, D. “Vision Based UAV Attitude Estimation: Progress and Insights” ICUAS 2011 - Int Conf on Unmanned Aircraft Systems, 2011

Team:
Researchers involved in the project: O. Morel, D. Sidibé, C. Demonceaux, D. Fofi, R. Seulin

Required qualifications :
• Ph.D. in Computer Vision (polarization skill is not required)
• Strong programming skill in C++ and/or Python under Linux (ROS experience would be a
plus)

Application procedure:
• Applications must be sent by email to Olivier Morel (olivier.morel at u-bourgogne.fr <mailto:olivier.morel at u-bourgogne.fr>)
quoting "VIPeR postdoc position" in the email subject, and they must contain a motivation
letter, a CV including a list of publications, and the contact information of two referees.
• Review of applications will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled,
but for full consideration please apply before November 1st, 2015.




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