A Tactile Perception System for Biomimetic Whisker Robots Using SNNs

Traditional robotic navigation systems often struggle in low-visibility or complex environments due to their reliance on visual or LiDAR inputs. To address this, we propose a novel bionic whisker tactile mapping and navigation system inspired by rodent whisker sensing. Our framework mimics the tactile processing of the barrel cortex, utilizing spiking neural networks (SNNs) and a central pattern generator (CPG) to control rhythmic whisker movements for active environmental exploration. The SNNs-based tactile system extracts precise object positions, while a grid mapping algorithm integrates filtered tactile data to construct environmental maps and enable path planning. Simulations demonstrate that our system outperforms traditional methods in adaptability and navigation efficiency within complex environments.