Localization system in GPS-denied environments using radar and IMU measurements: Application to a smart white cane

Abstract

This paper presents the development of a localization system in GPS-denied environments using an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) and a Pulse-Doppler radar. A ground speed estimation from radar measurements is first proposed. This estimation is combined with noisy measurements from an IMU in a Luenberger observer, allowing accurate deadreckoning. The methodology proposed provides short-term position of the sensors embedded in a white cane, the ultimate goal being obstacle detection through the computation of a model of the surroundings. The results show that this solution gives an error growth rate of the position estimation of 0.026m/s, which is a hundred times better than the one obtained with the naive double integration of the accelerometer data.

All-Weather, sub-50-cm, Radar-Inertial Positioning

“…We extend inertial-aiding to sensors that can operate under harsh weather conditions. Recently, radar measurements have been applied to constrain IMU position drift in [Barra et al, 2019]. Radar-inertial odometry for indoor robots has been proposed in [Almalioglu et al, 2019, Kramer et al, 2020.…”