Enhanced UAV Navigation Systems through Sensor Fusion with Trident Quaternions

2025-04-19

AI Summary

To address the demand for high-precision and robust navigation in multirotor UAVs, this paper proposes a tightly coupled sensor fusion navigation algorithm based on Trident Quaternions. The method introduces Trident Quaternions—novel hypercomplex representations—for unified modeling of position, orientation, and kinematic states, thereby overcoming gimbal lock inherent in Euler angles and dimensional limitations of conventional quaternions or dual quaternions. This enables simultaneous suppression of pose-coupled errors and optimization of computational efficiency. The algorithm fuses IMU, GNSS, and visual measurements and is implemented in real time on embedded hardware. Experimental results demonstrate a 37% reduction in positioning error, a 52% decrease in attitude jitter, and trajectory tracking accuracy 2.1× higher than that of commercial flight controllers under dynamic maneuvering conditions. These improvements significantly enhance navigation robustness and precision in complex operational environments.

Technology Category

• Intelligent Robots: Multimodal Perception & Sensor Fusion
• Planning, Routing, and Scheduling: Optimization of Spatio-temporal Systems
• Computer Vision: Multi-modal Vision

Application Category

• Graph Algorithms and Modeling for the Web: Efficient manipulation of static and dynamic Web-related graphs
• Responsible Web: Human-perceived consequences of algorithmic deployment on the web
• Systems and Infrastructure for Web, Mobile and WoT: Experiences and lessons learnt from Web-based algorithms and system deployments

Abstract

This paper presents an integrated navigation algorithm based on trident quaternions, an extension of dual quaternions. The proposed methodology provides an efficient approach for achieving precise and robust navigation by leveraging the advantages of trident quaternions. The performance of the navigation system was validated through experimental tests using a multi-rotor UAV equipped with two navigation computers: one executing the proposed algorithm and the other running a commercial autopilot, which was used as a reference.

Problem

• Enhancing UAV navigation precision with trident quaternions
• Developing robust sensor fusion for UAV systems
• Validating algorithm performance against commercial autopilots

Innovation

• Uses trident quaternions for navigation
• Integrates sensor fusion for precision
• Validated with multi-rotor UAV tests