A multi-modality ground-to-air cross-view pose estimation dataset for field robots

Abstract

High-precision localization is critical for intelligent robotics in autonomous driving, smart agriculture, and military operations. While Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) provides global positioning, its reliability deteriorates severely in signal degraded environments like urban canyons. Cross-view pose estimation using aerial-ground sensor fusion offers an economical alternative, yet current datasets lack field scenarios and high-resolution LiDAR support.This work introduces a multimodal cross-view dataset addressing these gaps. It contains 29,940 synchronized frames across 11 operational environments (6 field environments, 5 urban roads), featuring: 1) 144-channel LiDAR point clouds, 2) ground-view RGB images, and 3) aerial orthophotos. Centimeter-accurate georeferencing is ensured through GNSS fusion and post-processed kinematic positioning. The dataset uniquely integrates field environments and high-resolution LiDAR-aerial-ground data triplets, enabling rigorous evaluation of 3-DoF pose estimation algorithms for orientation alignment and coordinate transformation between perspectives.This resource supports development of robust localization systems for field robots in GNSS-denied conditions, emphasizing cross-view feature matching and multisensor fusion. Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR)-enhanced ground truth further distinguishes its utility for complex outdoor navigation research.