Verti-Arena: A Controllable and Standardized Indoor Testbed for Multi-Terrain Off-Road Autonomy

2025-08-11

AI Summary

Existing research is hindered by the absence of controllable, standardized real-world multi-terrain testbeds, impeding systematic evaluation of off-road navigation algorithms in high-risk applications such as disaster response and planetary exploration. To address this, we present the first indoor, reconfigurable experimental platform featuring remote terrain modulation and high-precision motion capture. The platform integrates multi-sensor fusion, real-time data acquisition, and a web-based remote interaction interface, enabling parameterized terrain configuration and full-experiment automation. It supports reproducible validation of navigation algorithms across complex vertical terrains—including slopes, stairs, and gravel—and facilitates standardized, cross-team algorithm benchmarking. By ensuring experimental repeatability and enhancing collaborative research efficiency, our platform establishes a novel paradigm for robustness assessment of off-road autonomous navigation systems.

Technology Category

• Intelligent Robots: Localization, Mapping, and Navigation
• Planning, Routing, and Scheduling: Replanning and Plan Repair
• Search and Optimization: Algorithm Configuration

Application Category

• Systems and Infrastructure for Web, Mobile and WoT: Experiences and lessons learnt from Web-based algorithms and system deployments
• Responsible Web: Human-perceived consequences of algorithmic deployment on the web
• Search and Retrieval-Augmented AI: Web evaluation methodologies and metrics

Abstract

Off-road navigation is an important capability for mobile robots deployed in environments that are inaccessible or dangerous to humans, such as disaster response or planetary exploration. Progress is limited due to the lack of a controllable and standardized real-world testbed for systematic data collection and validation. To fill this gap, we introduce Verti-Arena, a reconfigurable indoor facility designed specifically for off-road autonomy. By providing a repeatable benchmark environment, Verti-Arena supports reproducible experiments across a variety of vertically challenging terrains and provides precise ground truth measurements through onboard sensors and a motion capture system. Verti-Arena also supports consistent data collection and comparative evaluation of algorithms in off-road autonomy research. We also develop a web-based interface that enables research groups worldwide to remotely conduct standardized off-road autonomy experiments on Verti-Arena.

Problem

• Lack of controllable testbed for off-road robot navigation
• Need standardized environment for reproducible terrain experiments
• Remote accessibility for global off-road autonomy research

Innovation

• Reconfigurable indoor facility for off-road autonomy
• Repeatable benchmark with precise ground truth measurements
• Web-based interface for remote standardized experiments