Development of an Autonomous Open-Source Inventory Performance Robot for the University of Tartu Library

Abstract

Inventory management is crucial for the successful functioning of a venue. Manual inventory management and asset tracking can be time-consuming, dull, and inefficient. In particular, in large-scale libraries, it can take personnel months to perform a single inventory round of all the books. Nowadays, using advanced robotics solutions, it is possible to automate the process and provide more accurate information on the availability and location of the desired book. This results in higher satisfaction for librarians and visitors, as they can successfully find the books of interest. This thesis aims to create an open-source solution that contains a radio frequency identification system for the University of Tartu library. The result is intended to use the Robotont project as a base platform. It should be able to autonomously navigate through library halls while scanning the bookshelves and adjusting the antenna height for it to be at the same level as the books. Simultaneously, it should document the book IDs and their location to produce a heat map containing the most probable location for each book.