Jawad Al Masri
Development of a Bundle Adjustment algorithm for the navigation of an autonomous lunar drone.
Rel. Marcello Chiaberge. Politecnico di Torino, Master of science program in Mechatronic Engineering, 2025
Abstract
Accurate trajectory estimation for unmanned aerial vehicles is considered a formidable challenge, especially in environments where GPS signals are unavailable. This thesis focuses on developing a bundle adjustment algorithm for the Lunar Nano Drone (LuNaDrone), an autonomous spacecraft designed to explore possible entrances to lunar pits and lava tubes. The work centers on implementing a bundle adjustment pipeline that fuses visual and inertial measurements to enhance trajectory accuracy. The LuNaDrone already incorporates an Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) for real-time navigation. However, these filters suffer from accumulated drift and errors when employed for long distances. This will lead to poor trajectory estimation especially in lunar environments where the conditions can be harsh and unpredictable.
Therefore, an offline bundle adjustment can be used after each small flight to reconstruct the overall trajectory and obtain a more reliable overall path for the drone
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