Simon: Autonomous Vegetation Traversal

Simon is a Unitree Go2-W that will be used for autonomous navigation for heavily vegetated environments. Unlike traditional perception-based methods that treat all vegetation as untraversable obstacles, Simon uses a novel approach that combines 2D and 3D perception with proprioceptive sensors to distinguish between traversable and untraversable vegetation.

This fusion of perception and proprioception enables Simon to navigate through dense vegetation more efficiently, rather than taking suboptimal paths around obstacles. By understanding the true traversability of different vegetation types, Simon can find optimal paths that maximize efficiency while maintaining safety.

Carrying on Patrick's Mission

Building upon the foundation laid by Patrick, Simon, a legged wheeled robot, will carry on Patrick's mission of autonomous environmental exploration.

Simon's added agility and capability from the legs will allow it to navigate through dense vegetation more effectively.