OECD NEA Research Fellowship

The project focuses on enhancing the manipulability and operability of a robotic arm by presenting a localized virtual robot model and a 3D map using visual simultaneous localization and mapping (VSLAM). The system is based on real-world captured images and aims to improve the situational awareness of remote robot operators without requiring a complex or computationally demanding setup. The deliverable is a fully integrated digital twin that combines ROS-RVIZ configuration and Unity simulation to visualize robot joint states alongside the 3D point cloud map generated by the ORB-SLAM2 ROS package, using a low-cost USB camera.

I completed a 4-week research secondment funded by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development - Nuclear Energy Agency (OECD-NEA) through the Nuclear Education, Skills and Technology (NEST) Framework at the Naraha Centre for Remote Control Technology (NARREC) in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. During this time, I worked closely with the Spatial Information Creation and Control System Research Group, led by Dr. Kuniaki Kawabata, and collaborated with JAEA/CLADS researchers. My contributions included integrating the digital twin setup and ensuring seamless functionality between the ROS-RVIZ configuration and Unity simulation. This work helped deliver a practical and low-cost solution to improve situational awareness for remote robot operators of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.