Particle filter design for mobile robot localization based on received signal strength indicator

Abstract

This paper presents a particle filter design to improve the accuracy of received signal strength indicator (RSSI)-based localization algorithms for localizing mobile robots that move in an environment with an 802.15.4 ZigBee wireless sensor network. In this study, the RSSI of transmission signals is adopted to estimate the location of a mobile robot by applying the trilateration algorithm. However, the interference and reflection effects of transmission signals and the orientation effects of the antenna can significantly affect the RSSI signals and result in serious localization errors. This study analyses the characteristics of RSSI signals and the orientation effects of the antenna and then develops a particle filter design with the fusion of the current states of the mobile robot to improve localization accuracy. A static localization experiment shows that the developed localization algorithm can significantly improve the localization accuracy, and a maximum rate of improvement of up to 85% is achieved in the test environment. A dynamic localization experiment demonstrates that the developed algorithm is suitable for localizing a mobile robot.