Event
Drone Relative Positioning Achieved via Mirror Reflection
1 reports · 1 sources
Tim Lakemann and co-authors present a method for onboard relative positioning using active markers reflected in a near-planar mirror surface, intended for multi-drone formations operating over surfaces such as calm water and flat indoor floors. The method requires only a camera, active markers, and a single-beam rangefinder, and does not require prior knowledge of robot dimensions, marker configuration, or surface reflection properties. The authors characterize, both analytically and experimentally, the bias in estimation caused by surface tilt, and determine the range of slopes over which the horizontal-surface assumption holds. Indoor multi-drone and outdoor experiments validate the positioning accuracy; the authors state that beyond 30 meters the accuracy is higher than that of existing vision-based active-marker methods.
Report timeline
- Relative Localization for Cooperative UAV Formations Using Active Marker Reflections
This paper proposes a method for onboard relative localization that uses reflections of active markers on specular near-planar surfaces, requiring only a camera, active markers, and a single-beam rangefinder, with no prior knowledge of robot size, marker configuration, or surface reflectance properties. The authors characterize, analytically and experimentally, how surface tilt biases the estimate and identify the slope range over which the level-surface assumption holds. Indoor multi-UAV and outdoor experiments validate the localization accuracy, with higher accuracy than existing vision-based active-marker methods beyond 30 meters.
arXiv cs.RO ·