LiDAR SLAM Research Articles

Scene Measurement Method Based on Fusion of Image Sequence and Improved LiDAR SLAM

To address the issue that sparse point cloud maps constructed by SLAM cannot provide detailed information about measured objects, and image sequence-based measurement methods have problems with large data volume and cumulative errors, this paper proposes a scene measurement method that integrates image sequences with an improved LiDAR SLAM. By introducing plane features, the positioning accuracy of LiDAR SLAM is enhanced, and real-time odometry poses are generated. Simultaneously, the system captures image sequences of the measured object using synchronized cameras, and NeRF is used for 3D reconstruction. Time synchronization and data registration between the LiDAR and camera data frames with identical timestamps are achieved. Finally, the least squares method and ICP algorithm are employed to compute the scale factor s and transformation matrices R and t between different point clouds from LiDAR and NeRF reconstruction. Then, the precise measurement of the objects could be implemented. Experimental results demonstrate that this method significantly improves measurement accuracy, with an average error within 10 mm and 1°, providing a robust and reliable solution for scene measurement.

LIVS: a tightly coupled LiDAR, IMU, and camera-based SLAM system under scene degradation

In increasingly complex environments, single-sensor-based SLAM systems face scene degradation problems such as strong light, dynamic obstacle interference, and lack of structural features in the environment, which severely constrain the localization accuracy and mapping effectiveness of SLAM systems. To address this problem, this paper proposes a tightly coupled laser-IMU-visual SLAM system (LIVS) based on factor graph optimization. LIVS consists of two subsystems: the laser inertial system (LIS) and the visual inertial system (VIS). The pose estimation of the LIS can provide an initialization for the VIS; LiDAR suffers scene degradation in environments lacking structural features, while the VIS provides better constraints for Lidar in this environment. Firstly, a method of selecting keyframes based on ORB features and the relative motion of the mobile robot is proposed as a means of improving the positioning accuracy and tracking ability of the system in the case of strenuous motion, and a strategy of local sliding window optimization is adopted to effectively improve the real-time performance and robustness of the system. Meanwhile, in order to further improve the global map consistency and positioning accuracy, a hybrid closed-loop detection method based on laser and vision is proposed, which utilizes the geometrical features of laser and the image features of vision to accomplish the hybrid closed-loop detection. Secondly, the laser inertia factor, IMU pre-integration factor, vision inertia factor, and closed-loop factor are globally optimized in a factor map framework to achieve accurate estimation of the robot pose. Finally, this paper presents experimental evaluations on both public and homemade datasets and compares the performance of the proposed algorithm with that of other algorithms. Experimental results show that the algorithm in this paper exhibits better performance in both localization accuracy and mapping effectiveness.

A LiDAR SLAM Algorithm Considering Dynamic Extraction of Feature Points in Underground Coal Mine

Abstract. To address the absence of GNSS signals in underground coal mines and the susceptibility of mainstream LiDAR SLAM to degradation due to insufficient feature constraints, this paper proposes a tightly-coupled SLAM algorithm incorporating LiDAR and IMU for use in such environments. The paper initially introduces a dynamic feature point extraction strategy, where the number of corner feature points can be dynamically adjusted based on the occurrence of degradation in the underground coal mine environment. This approach constructs a constraint matrix with rich and robust feature information, enhancing pose estimation accuracy in environments with inadequate feature constraints, mitigating degradation effects, and reducing global cumulative error. Subsequently, the consistent building of the underground coal mine environment is achieved through back-end factor graph optimization. Finally, to validate the effectiveness of the method, experimental analysis is conducted in an underground coal mine. The results demonstrate that LeGO_LOAM exhibits poor robustness in underground coal mines and fails to construct a globally consistent pose estimation and map. Conversely, the pose estimation error of the proposed method in this paper is 50.93% lower in the plane direction and 42.13% lower in the elevation direction compared to LIO_SAM. This underscores the method's significance as crucial technical support for the intelligent perception and positioning of robots in underground coal mines.

Ground Constrained 3D Lidar SLAM Design and Implementation

Abstract. Synchronized positioning and mapping techniques based on multi-line LIDAR are mainly used for mobile platforms that require high-precision positioning, such as UAVs and self-driving cars. However, multi-line LiDAR is limited by vertical field of view and vertical angular resolution, which can affect the vertical accuracy of attitude estimation. In this paper, we aim to extract the ground information in the environment and fuse it into a factor map to constrain the vertical accuracy of the attitude. Different from the traditional geometric information-based ground plane segmentation, this paper utilizes point cloud distribution information to extract the ground cloud and uses high-confidence ground features to constrain the attitude drift by considering their distribution weights. Finally, the laser range factor, ground constraint factor and closed-loop factor are integrated under the factor graph optimization framework. The effectiveness of the method is validated on a self-constructed dataset.

Robust and accurate visual geo-localization using prior map constructed by handheld LiDAR SLAM with camera image and terrestrial LiDAR point cloud

ABSTRACT Visual geo-localization using prior map of known environments has extensive applications in the fields such as self-driving, augmented reality and navigation. Currently, such prior maps are usually constructed by visual SLAM or SFM. However, the recent advances in LiDAR SLAM technology with RGB camera demonstrate great potential in efficient and accurate prior map construction and visual geo-localization. In this research, we developed a novel prior map construction approach which seamlessly integrates a handheld LiDAR SLAM system, a global LiDAR localization algorithm and a sparse set of terrestrial LiDAR scans as accurate control within a factor graph optimization framework. The developed LiDAR SLAM system augmented by terrestrial LiDAR scans achieves an improved mapping accuracy of 8 cm under GNSS-denied conditions in the areas over 50,000 m2 while the state-of-art FAST-LIO2 alone fails and produces a mapping error over 30 m. The results show that a competitive accuracy of visual geo-localization on a mobile phone using the constructed prior map is achieved (i.e. 60 and 76 cm in two tests respectively). Finally, this work also demonstrates a novel LiDAR point cloud fusion method that produces optimized and consistent coarse-to-fine 3D reconstruction in large and complex scenes.

Laser-inertial tightly coupled SLAM system for indoor degraded environments

Purpose To address the issues of low localization and mapping accuracy, as well as map ghosting and drift, in indoor degraded environments using light detection and ranging-simultaneous localization and mapping (LiDAR SLAM), a real-time localization and mapping system integrating filtering and graph optimization theory is proposed. By incorporating filtering algorithms, the system effectively reduces localization errors and environmental noise. In addition, leveraging graph optimization theory, it optimizes the poses and positions throughout the SLAM process, further enhancing map accuracy and consistency. The purpose of this study resolves common problems such as map ghosting and drift, thereby achieving more precise real-time localization and mapping results. Design/methodology/approach The system consists of three main components: point cloud data preprocessing, tightly coupled inertial odometry based on filtering and backend pose graph optimization. First, point cloud data preprocessing uses the random sample consensus algorithm to segment the ground and extract ground model parameters, which are then used to construct ground constraint factors in backend optimization. Second, the frontend tightly coupled inertial odometry uses iterative error-state Kalman filtering, where the LiDAR odometry serves as observations and the inertial measurement unit preintegration results as predictions. By constructing a joint function, filtering fusion yields a more accurate LiDAR-inertial odometry. Finally, the backend incorporates graph optimization theory, introducing loop closure factors, ground constraint factors and odometry factors from frame-to-frame matching as constraints. This forms a factor graph that optimizes the map’s poses. The loop closure factor uses an improved scan-text-based loop closure detection algorithm for position recognition, reducing the rate of environmental misidentification. Findings A SLAM system integrating filtering and graph optimization technique has been proposed, demonstrating improvements of 35.3%, 37.6% and 40.8% in localization and mapping accuracy compared to ALOAM, lightweight and ground optimized lidar odometry and mapping and LiDAR inertial odometry via smoothing and mapping, respectively. The system exhibits enhanced robustness in challenging environments. Originality/value This study introduces a frontend laser-inertial odometry tightly coupled filtering method and a backend graph optimization method improved by loop closure detection. This approach demonstrates superior robustness in indoor localization and mapping accuracy.

Multi-Vehicle Cooperative Simultaneous LiDAR SLAM and Object Tracking in Dynamic Environments

Multi-Vehicle Cooperative Simultaneous LiDAR SLAM and Object Tracking in Dynamic Environments

Pose Estimation Based on Bidirectional Visual–Inertial Odometry with 3D LiDAR (BV-LIO)

Due to the limitation of a single sensor such as only camera or only LiDAR, the Visual SLAM detects few effective features in the case of poor lighting or no texture. The LiDAR SLAM will also degrade in an unstructured environment and open spaces, which reduces the accuracy of pose estimation and the quality of mapping. In order to solve this problem, on account of the high efficiency of Visual odometry and the high accuracy of LiDAR odometry, this paper investigates the multi-sensor fusion of bidirectional visual–inertial odometry with 3D LiDAR for pose estimation. This method can couple the IMU with the bidirectional vision respectively, and the LiDAR odometry is obtained assisted by the bidirectional visual inertial. The factor graph optimization is constructed, which effectively improves the accuracy of pose estimation. The algorithm in this paper is compared with LIO-LOAM, LeGO-LOAM, VINS-Mono, and so on using challenging datasets such as KITTI and M2DGR. The results show that this method effectively improves the accuracy of pose estimation and has high application value for mobile robots.

Lidar pose estimation method based on factor graph optimization

Abstract In the realm of computer vision and robotics, lidar SLAM is an important technical means. Lidar SLAM frequently serves to ascertain the spatial coordinates and orientation of mobile robots amidst their surroundings. In this paper, an adaptive factor graph optimization of the lidar pose estimation method using only point-to-line constraints is proposed. The algorithm only employs the measure of distance between a point and a line to construct the constraint problem and solves the pose through point-to-line ICP and the pose with higher accuracy by optimizing the factor graph. The robustness of mobile robots in indoor scenes is improved. According to different application scenarios, including street and gate, comparative experiments are carried out on the open-source data set M2DGR containing lidar data. Empirical findings demonstrate that the algorithm put forth enhances the precision of the lidar odometer when confronted with outdoor scenarios, thereby bolstering the resilience of mobile robots traversing urban thoroughfares.

VA-LOAM: Visual Assist LiDAR Odometry and Mapping for Accurate Autonomous Navigation.

In this study, we enhanced odometry performance by integrating vision sensors with LiDAR sensors, which exhibit contrasting characteristics. Vision sensors provide extensive environmental information but are limited in precise distance measurement, whereas LiDAR offers high accuracy in distance metrics but lacks detailed environmental data. By utilizing data from vision sensors, this research compensates for the inadequate descriptors of LiDAR sensors, thereby improving LiDAR feature matching performance. Traditional fusion methods, which rely on extracting depth from image features, depend heavily on vision sensors and are vulnerable under challenging conditions such as rain, darkness, or light reflection. Utilizing vision sensors as primary sensors under such conditions can lead to significant mapping errors and, in the worst cases, system divergence. Conversely, our approach uses LiDAR as the primary sensor, mitigating the shortcomings of previous methods and enabling vision sensors to support LiDAR-based mapping. This maintains LiDAR Odometry performance even in environments where vision sensors are compromised, thus enhancing performance with the support of vision sensors. We adopted five prominent algorithms from the latest LiDAR SLAM open-source projects and conducted experiments on the KITTI odometry dataset. This research proposes a novel approach by integrating a vision support module into the top three LiDAR SLAM methods, thereby improving performance. By making the source code of VA-LOAM publicly available, this work enhances the accessibility of the technology, fostering reproducibility and transparency within the research community.

GNSS-Based Narrow-Angle UV Camera Targeting: Case Study of a Low-Cost MAD Robot.

One of the key challenges in Multi-Spectral Automatic Diagnostic (MAD) robot design is the precise targeting of narrow-angle cameras on a specific part of the equipment. The paper shows that a low-cost MAD robot, whose navigation system is based on open-source ArduRover firmware and a pair of low-cost Ublox F9P GNSS receivers, can inspect the 8 × 4 degree ultraviolet camera bounding the targeting error within 0.5 degrees. To achieve this result, we propose a new targeting procedure that can be implemented without any modifications in ArduRover firmware and outperforms more expensive solutions based on LiDAR SLAM and UWB. This paper will be interesting to the developers of robotic systems for power equipment inspection because it proposes a simple and effective solution for MAD robots' camera targeting and provides the first quantitative analysis of the GNSS reception conditions during power equipment inspection. This analysis is based on the experimental results collected during the inspection of the overhead power transmission lines and equipment inspections on the open switchgear of different power plants. Moreover, it includes not only satellite, dilution of precision, and positioning/heading estimation accuracy but also the direct measurements of angular errors that could be achieved on operating power plants using GNSS-only camera targeting.

SOHD-LOAM: Suppress odometry height drift lidar odometry and mapping on undulating road

In the process of mapping outdoor undulating and flat roads, existing LiDAR SLAM systems often encounter issues such as map distortion and ghosting. These problems arise due to the low vertical resolution of multi-line LiDAR, which easily leads to the occurrence of odometry height drift during the mapping process. To address this challenge, this study propose a novel LiDAR SLAM system named SOHD-LOAM, designed specifically to suppress odometry height drift. This system encompasses several critical components, including data preprocessing, front-end LiDAR odometry, back-end LiDAR mapping, loop detection, and graph optimization. SOHD-LOAM leverages the road gradient limitation algorithm and the height smoothing algorithm as its core, while also integrating the Kalman filter, loop detection, and graph optimization techniques. To evaluate the performance of SOHD-LOAM, the comprehensive experiments are conducted with using KITTI datasets and real-world scenes. The experimental results demonstrate that SOHD-LOAM achieves superior accuracy and robustness in global odometry compared to the state-of-the-art LEGO-LOAM. Specifically, the height error of the sequences 00, 05 experiment was found to be 40.62% and 61.92% lower than that of LEGO-LOAM. Additionally, the maps generated by SOHD-LOAM exhibit no distortion or ghosting, thereby significantly enhancing map quality.

DCL-SLAM: A Distributed Collaborative LiDAR SLAM Framework for a Robotic Swarm

DCL-SLAM: A Distributed Collaborative LiDAR SLAM Framework for a Robotic Swarm

An Indoor 2-D LiDAR SLAM and Localization Method Based on Artificial Landmark Assistance

An Indoor 2-D LiDAR SLAM and Localization Method Based on Artificial Landmark Assistance

Design and Verification of Observability-Driven Autonomous Vehicle Exploration Using LiDAR SLAM

Design and Verification of Observability-Driven Autonomous Vehicle Exploration Using LiDAR SLAM

PIN-SLAM: LiDAR SLAM Using a Point-Based Implicit Neural Representation for Achieving Global Map Consistency

PIN-SLAM: LiDAR SLAM Using a Point-Based Implicit Neural Representation for Achieving Global Map Consistency

DL-SLOT: Tightly-Coupled Dynamic LiDAR SLAM and 3D Object Tracking Based on Collaborative Graph Optimization

DL-SLOT: Tightly-Coupled Dynamic LiDAR SLAM and 3D Object Tracking Based on Collaborative Graph Optimization

An Efficient LiDAR SLAM With Angle-Based Feature Extraction and Voxel-Based Fixed-Lag Smoothing

An Efficient LiDAR SLAM With Angle-Based Feature Extraction and Voxel-Based Fixed-Lag Smoothing

Fast and Accurate Deep Loop Closing and Relocalization for Reliable LiDAR SLAM

Fast and Accurate Deep Loop Closing and Relocalization for Reliable LiDAR SLAM

Indoor Robot SLAM with Multi-Sensor Fusion

Abstract In order to solve the problem of large positioning error and incomplete mapping of SLAM based on two-dimensional lidar in indoor environment, a multi-sensor fusion SLAM algorithm for indoor robots was proposed. Aiming at the mismatch problem of the traditional ICP algorithm in the front end of the lidar SLAM, the algorithm adopts the PL-ICP algorithm that is more suitable for the indoor environment, and uses the extended Kalman filter to fuse the wheel odometer and IMU to provide the initial motion estimation value. Then, during the mapping phase, the pseudo 2D laser data converted from the 3D point cloud data obtained by the depth camera is fused with the data obtained from the 2D lidar to compensate for the lack of vertical field of view in the 2D lidar mapping. The final experimental results show that the fusion odometer data has improved the positioning accuracy by at least 33% compared to a single wheeled odometer, providing a higher initial iteration value for the PL-ICP algorithm. At the same time, fusion mapping compensates for the shortcomings of a single two-dimensional lidar mapping, and constructs an environmental map with more complete environmental information.