Low‐cost visual localization and mapping for consumer robotics

One difficult problem in robotics is localization: the ability of a mobile robot to determine its position in the environment. Roboticists around the globe have been working to find a solution to localization for more than 20 years; however, only in the past 4‐5 years we have seen some promising results. In this work, we describe a first‐of‐a‐kind, breakthrough technology for localization that requires only one low‐cost camera (less than 50USD) and odometry to provide localization. Because of its low‐cost and robust performance in realistic environments, this technology is particularly well‐suited for use in consumer and commercial applications.