“We present the first algorithm capable of efficiently computing certifiably optimal solutions to range-aided simultaneous localization and mapping (RA-SLAM) problems. Robotic navigation systems are increasingly incorporating point-to-point ranging sensors, leading state estimation which takes the form of RA-SLAM. However, the RA-SLAM problem is more difficult to solve than traditional pose-graph SLAM … a single range measurement does not uniquely determine the relative transform between the involved sensors, and RA-SLAM inference is highly sensitive to initial estimates.”

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