2DLIW-SLAM:2D LiDAR-inertial-wheel odometry with real-time loop closure

Abstract

Due to budgetary constraints, indoor navigation typically employs two-dimensional (2D) LiDAR rather than 3D LiDAR. However, the utilization of 2D LiDAR in simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) frequently encounters challenges related to motion degeneracy, particularly in geometrically similar environments. To address this problem, this paper proposes a robust, accurate, and multi-sensor-fused 2D LiDAR SLAM system specifically designed for indoor mobile robots. To commence, the original LiDAR data undergoes meticulous processing through point and line extraction. Leveraging the distinctive characteristics of indoor environments, line–line constraints are established to complement other sensor data effectively, thereby augmenting the overall robustness and precision of the system. Concurrently, a tightly-coupled front-end is created, integrating data from the 2D LiDAR, inertial measurement unit, and wheel odometry, thus enabling real-time state estimation. Building upon this solid foundation, a novel global feature point matching-based loop closure detection algorithm is proposed. This algorithm proves highly effective in mitigating front-end accumulated errors and ultimately constructs a globally consistent map. The experimental results indicate that our system fully meets real-time requirements. When compared to cartographer, our system not only exhibits lower trajectory errors but also demonstrates stronger robustness, particularly in degeneracy problem. We open source our methods here: https://github.com/LittleDang/2DLIW-SLAM.