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Intelligent Systems Group
Department of Electrical and Information Engineering P.O.Box 4500
FIN-90014 University of Oulu
Finland
Tel. +358-8-553 1011
Fax. +358-8-553 2612

8/2009  
New Scientist covered ISG´s newest research result

Prof. Janne Haverinen has published an article together with Anssi Kemppainen in one of the top journals of the field, Robotics and Autonomous Systems. The article presents a new Monte Carlo Localization (MCL) based technique for global indoor self-localization of a mobile robot, which uses the magnetic field fluctuations inside buildings. They arise from both natural and man-made sources, such as steel and reinforced concrete structures, electric power systems, electric and electronic appliances and industrial devices.

Robot locates itself by magnetic fingerprints

There is evidence that animals utilize local anomalies of Earth's magnetic field for navigation. Some animals are not only able to detect the direction of Earth's magnetic field (compass heading), but are able to derive positional information from local cues arising from the local anomalies of Earth's magnetic field.

Similarly, the magnetic field inside buildings can be very irregular. Assuming that the anomalies of the magnetic field inside a building are almost static and they vary enough locally, the anomalies provide a unique magnetic fingerprint that can be utilized in global self-localization.

Can be extended into human self-localization

The experiment setup consists of a mobile robot instrumented with a 3-axis magnetometer and a computer. In addition to global robot self-localization experiments, person self-localization experiments by using a wireless, wearable magnetometer were also successful.

This new research result was spotted by NS reporter and he wrote a story called Indoor robots learn lobster's magnetic map trick.

New Scientist is a UK-based weekly magazine with a circulation of over 160 000 and a global readership of more than 800 000. The online version of the magazine receives around 14 million page impressions a month with over three million individual users.

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