Scale-Corrected Monocular-SLAM for the AR.Drone 2.0

This paper describes an open source software package in the Robot Operating System (ROS) framework for conducting robotics research with the Parrot AR.Drone 2.0. The software builds upon existing tools by adapting the ORB-SLAM library with a ROS driver for the drone so that a scaled monocular-SLAM based map and accurate pose estimate is available for navigation and control processes. A focus of the discussion is on robust scale estimation for the monocular SLAM generated map using sensor data from the drone’s onboard sensors. The purpose of this package is to provide an easy to use platform for experimental testing of autonomous navigation and control techniques for micro aerial vehicles.

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