Double Deep Q-Learning and Faster R-CNN-Based Autonomous Vehicle Navigation and Obstacle Avoidance in Dynamic Environment

Razin Bin Issa, Modhumonty Das, Md. Saferi Rahman, Monika Barua, Md. Khalilur Rhaman, Kazi Shah Nawaz Ripon, Md. Golam Rabiul Alam

Autonomous vehicle navigation in an unknown dynamic environment is crucial for both supervised- and Reinforcement Learning-based autonomous maneuvering. The cooperative fusion of these two learning approaches has the potential to be an effective mechanism to tackle indefinite environmental dynamics. Most of the state-of-the-art autonomous vehicle navigation systems are trained on a specific mapped model with familiar environmental dynamics. However, this research focuses on the cooperative fusion of supervised and Reinforcement Learning technologies for autonomous navigation of land vehicles in a dynamic and unknown environment. The Faster R-CNN, a supervised learning approach, identifies the ambient environmental obstacles for untroubled maneuver of the autonomous vehicle. Whereas, the training policies of Double Deep Q-Learning, a Reinforcement Learning approach, enable the autonomous agent to learn effective navigation decisions form the dynamic environment. The proposed model is primarily tested in a gaming environment similar to the real-world. It exhibits the overall efficiency and effectiveness in the maneuver of autonomous land vehicles.