mlsanityData to 7 Oct 2026

LSPnet: A 2D Localization-oriented Spacecraft Pose Estimation Neural Network

arXiv 2104.09248 ↗First posted 19 Apr 2021cs.CV cs.LGcited by 10

Not on the map. Why?

Abstract (arXiv)

Being capable of estimating the pose of uncooperative objects in space has been proposed as a key asset for enabling safe close-proximity operations such as space rendezvous, in-orbit servicing and active debris removal. Usual approaches for pose estimation involve classical computer vision-based solutions or the application of Deep Learning (DL) techniques. This work explores a novel DL-based methodology, using Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), for estimating the pose of uncooperative spacecrafts. Contrary to other approaches, the proposed CNN directly regresses poses without needing any prior 3D information. Moreover, bounding boxes of the spacecraft in the image are predicted in a simple, yet efficient manner. The performed experiments show how this work competes with the state-of-the-art in uncooperative spacecraft pose estimation, including works which require 3D information as well as works which predict bounding boxes through sophisticated CNNs.

Key facts. Cited by 10 papers in the map (data through 7 Oct 2026). Builds on 13 of its 29 references that are in the map. First posted on arXiv 19 Apr 2021.

Builds on

13 of 29 references.

References · 13

  1. 2015Deep Residual Learning for Image Recognitioncited by 51,809
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  7. 2019Satellite Pose Estimation Challenge: Dataset, Competition Design and Resultscited by 62
  8. 2019Satellite Pose Estimation with Deep Landmark Regression and Nonlinear Pose Refinementcited by 56
  9. 2019Deep Learning for Spacecraft Pose Estimation from Photorealistic Renderingcited by 54
  10. 2019Towards Robust Learning-Based Pose Estimation of Noncooperative Spacecraftcited by 27
  11. 2021Real-Time, Flight-Ready, Non-Cooperative Spacecraft Pose Estimation Using Monocular Imagerycited by 15
  12. 2021SPARK: SPAcecraft Recognition leveraging Knowledge of Space Environmentcited by 6
1 more
  1. 2020Assistive Relative Pose Estimation for On-orbit Assembly using Convolutional Neural Networkscited by 4

Built on by

Cited by year (2026 to 7 Oct)

Citing papers per year: 2021: 1; 2022: 0; 2023: 2; 2024: 4; 2025: 2; 2026: 1.

10 papers.

  1. 2023A Survey on Deep Learning-Based Monocular Spacecraft Pose Estimation: Current State, Limitations and Prospectscited by 30
  2. 2021ChiNet: Deep Recurrent Convolutional Learning for Multimodal Spacecraft Pose Estimationcited by 11
  3. 2024FLARE up your data: Diffusion-based Augmentation Method in Astronomical Imagingcited by 7
  4. 2024Bridging the Domain Gap for Flight-Ready Spaceborne Visioncited by 6
  5. 2024Multi-Objective Hardware Aware Neural Architecture Search using Hardware Cost Diversitycited by 5
  6. 20233D-Aware Object Localization using Gaussian Implicit Occupancy Functioncited by 2
  7. 2025Improved 3D Gaussian Splatting of Unknown Spacecraft Structure Using Space Environment Illumination Knowledgecited by 2
  8. 2024SpY: A Context-Based Approach to Spacecraft Component Detectioncited by 0
  9. 2025GKNet: Graph-based Keypoints Network for Monocular Pose Estimation of Non-cooperative Spacecraftcited by 0
  10. 2026AutoMCU: Feasibility-First MCU Neural Network Customization via LLM-based Multi-Agent Systemscited by 0