Scanning Camera and Augmented Reality Based Localization of Omnidirectional Robot for Indoor Application

The aim of this paper is to develop an absolute visual localization system of an Omni wheeled robot for indoor navigation. Omni wheeled based robots have omni directional drive capacity. Conventional localization technique like odometry is not suitable for such drives due to wheel slippage. An omni robot platform with 4 omni-directional wheels powered by dynamixel motor and a scanning platform has been developed. We have implemented a localization technique using camera as visual sensor and multiple markers based on 'ArToolKiT' an augmented reality application. Various camera related distortion were reduced using 2nd order surface fit of camera calibration data. To increase the accuracy of the system, fusion of results from multiple markers has been implemented. Performance of the proposed localization has been verified by studying different pattern based movement of the system in a test area of 5m X 5m. Novelty of this paper is in development of an omni wheeled robotic wheelchair and proposing a robust absolute visual based localization set up with single camera and multiple fused markers for indoor navigation.