The University of Oslo is closed. The PhD defence and trial lecture will therefore be fully digital and streamed directly using Zoom. The host of the session will moderate the technicalities while the chair of the defence will moderate the disputation.
Ex auditorio questions: the chair of the defence will invite the audience to ask ex auditorio questions either written or oral. This can be requested by clicking 'Participants -> Raise hand'.
Trial lecture
Title: "Opportunities to make autonomous systems safe and trustworthy: State of the art and new frontiers"
Main research findings
Swarms of drones may greatly simplify tasks such as search-and-rescue, disaster relief, perimeter surveillance or even logistics. Using many small and simple agents that collaborate makes it possible to tackle tasks that are too big or complex for a single agent. This thesis presents a concept for a multi-function drone swarm - a swarm that can solve multiple tasks concurrently. Three tasks for drone swarms are explored: creating a communication network, exploring an area, and geolocating radio frequency emitters. Developing a multi-function swarm reduces the number of agents required, compared to operating three independent swarms each with a single task.
Through evolutionary optimization it is possible to automate behavior generation to generate a large repertoire of swarm behaviors. The repertoire of behaviors allows the operator to adapt the behavior in real-time to better suit their preferences. Part of the challenge of finding good swarm behaviors for a multi-function swarm is that tasks may conflict. For example, agents moving around a lot improve exploration, while agents standing still may provide a better, more stable network. This thesis demonstrates the viability of a real-world multi-function drone swarm capable of solving multiple tasks at once and change behavior on the fly.
Contact information to Department: Anniken R. Birkelund