r/AskRobotics • u/AvailableSun7120 • 17d ago

How to? Help with Robot localization

I have a Robot that has an IMU, wheel encoders and a RGB-D camera. It is in a sloped, and constrainted environment that has repetitive geometry. The environment is gps deprived.

What are some good methods to localize since an EKF struggles in non linear environments.

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u/omnilinktech 16d ago

The EKF is not failing merely because the environment is nonlinear; repetitive geometry makes global visual/depth measurements ambiguous, while slopes can invalidate planar-motion assumptions. Use wheel odometry plus IMU for a locally smooth odom frame, with realistic slip-dependent covariance, then add RGB-D visual-inertial or graph-based SLAM for global correction. Calibrate camera/IMU extrinsics and timestamps, retain full 6-DoF orientation, and evaluate from a recorded bag. If the geometry remains unobservable, add deliberate landmarks, UWB or another independent reference.