On the Connection Between Magnetic-Field Odometry Aided Inertial Navigation and Magnetic-Field SLAM

Abstract: Magnetic-field simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) using consumer-grade inertial and magnetometer sensors offers a scalable, cost-effective solution for indoor localization. However, the rapid error accumulation in the inertial navigation process limits the feasible exploratory phases of these systems. Advances in magnetometer array processing have demonstrated that odometry information, i.e., displacement and rotation information, can be extracted from local magnetic field variations and used to create magnetic-field odometry-aided inertial navigation systems. The error growth rate of these systems is significantly lower than that of standalone inertial navigation systems. This study seeks an answer to whether a magnetic-field SLAM system fed with measurements from a magnetometer array can indirectly extract odometry information -- without requiring algorithmic modifications -- and thus sustain longer exploratory phases. The theoretical analysis and simulation results show that such a system can extract odometry information and indirectly create a magnetic field odometry-aided inertial navigation system during the exploration phases. However, practical challenges related to map resolution and computational complexity remain significant.