NavigAIte: 

AIoT On-Board Localization System for UAVs in GPS-Denied or Unreliable Environments

 

A grant of  Romanian Ministry of Education and Research in National Research, Development and Innovation Plan for 2022-2027, PNCDI IV project no PN-IV-P7-7.1-PED-2024-1573 in Innovation Partnerships Program/ Competitiveness Partnerships Sub-program (PED 2024)” (UEFISCDI), project period: February 2025- December 2026

 

NavigAIte is a research and development project focused on creating an on-board localization system for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), capable of operating in GPS-denied or communication-compromised environments. By leveraging AIoT (Artificial Intelligence of Things) and TinyML (Tiny Machine Learning), the system processes data from IMU, LiDAR, AHRS, and other sensors directly on low-power embedded platforms.

Project Objectives

  • Design an AIoT system architecture for GPS-free UAV localization using energy-efficient AI techniques.
  • Integrate UAV sensors (IMU, AHRS, altimeter, Pitot tube, LiDAR) with communication systems into a hybrid localization model.
  • Generate application-specific datasets using UAV flights in civil security risk scenarios.
  • Develop TinyML algorithms and a lightweight framework for accurate, real-time localization.
  • Test the full system on a real UAV platform to validate performance.

Research Focus

  • Edge AI / TinyML for autonomous aerial systems
  • Localization without GPS support
  • Integration of AIoT in UAV platforms
  • Applications in civil security and emergency response

Expected Outcomes

  • A functional AIoT-based localization system for UAVs without GPS
  • TinyML algorithms tailored for real-time aerial localization on embedded devices
  • Custom datasets and benchmarks for UAV operations in GPS-limited scenarios
  • Documentation and validation results for future adoption and deployment

The NavigAIte project supports UAV operations in emergency, security, and disaster-response missions by delivering robust, GPS-independent navigation solutions through advanced AIoT technologies.