Multi-Ray Modeling of Ultrasonic Sensors and Application for Micro-UAV Localization in Indoor Environments

Due to its payload, size and computational limits, localizing a micro air vehicle (MAV) using only its onboard sensors in an indoor environment is a challenging problem in practice. This paper introduces an indoor localization approach that relies on only the inertial measurement unit (IMU) and four ultrasonic sensors. Specifically, a novel multi-ray ultrasonic sensor model is proposed to provide a rapid and accurate approximation of the complex beam pattern of the ultrasonic sensors. A fast algorithm for calculating the Jacobian matrix of the measurement function is presented, and then an extended Kalman filter (EKF) is used to fuse the information from the ultrasonic sensors and the IMU. A test based on a MaxSonar MB1222 sensor demonstrates the accuracy of the model, and a simulation and experiment based on the T h a l e s I I MAV platform are conducted. The results indicate good localization performance and robustness against measurement noises.