2005 Reports

A Hybrid Approach to Topological Mobile Robot Localization

Blaer, Paul S.; Allen, Peter K.

We present a hybrid method for localizing a mobile robot in a complex environment. The method combines the use of multiresolution histograms with a signal strength analysis of existing wireless networks. We tested this localization procedure on the campus of Columbia University with our mobile robot, the Autonomous Vehicle for Exploration and Navigation of Urban Environments. Our results indicate that localization accuracy is significantly improved when five levels of resolution are used instead of one in color histogramming. We also find that incorporating wireless signal strengths into the method further improves reliability and helps to resolve ambiguities which arise when different regions have similar visual appearances.