VR-Guided Remote Control for a Mobile Sensor Gimbal

A Viewpoint Interface for Mobile Robots

This project built a teleoperated sensor gimbal for mobile robotic platforms. The goal was to make viewpoint control more natural than keyboard or joystick commands: an operator wearing a VR headset can control the pitch-yaw gimbal direction, while the robot carries the sensing payload for inspection, data collection, and SLAM-oriented experiments.

The system was developed at HITSZ nROS-Lab between October 2022 and September 2023. My work covered the mechanical model, embedded control, human-computer interaction framework, VR application, and integration with a multi-sensor SLAM platform.

Gimbal Hardware and Embedded Control

The gimbal was designed as a two-axis module for mobile robots. The mechanical layout provides pitch-yaw actuation while keeping the sensor payload compact enough for robot mounting. The CAD model includes the sensor mounting plate, actuation structure, and supporting frame for the rotating module.

On the control side, the system required real-time embedded actuation rather than offline visualization. The embedded controller receives operator commands, drives the gimbal axes, and keeps the sensor viewpoint synchronized with the intended teleoperation input.

VR Interaction and SLAM Platform Use

The interaction layer maps VR headset motion to the mobile gimbal viewpoint. This gives the operator a more direct way to inspect the environment and steer the sensing direction, especially when the robot itself is operating remotely.

The gimbal was also used as part of a multi-sensor SLAM platform. In that setting, the controllable viewpoint is not only an operator interface, but also a way to support data acquisition and sensor placement during robotic navigation experiments.