# SafeNav: Safe Path Navigation using Landmark Based Localization in a GPS-denied Environment

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.01956 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.01956/

## Key facts

- No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 5 of its 20 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 4 May 2025.

## Builds on (most cited first, 5 of 5)

- [ORB-SLAM3: An Accurate Open-Source Library for Visual, Visual-Inertial and Multi-Map SLAM](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2007.11898/) (2020)
- [Past, Present, and Future of Simultaneous Localization And Mapping: Towards the Robust-Perception Age](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1606.05830/) (2016)
- [DeepLocalization: Landmark-based Self-Localization with Deep Neural Networks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1904.09007/) (2019)
- [Landmark Stereo Dataset for Landmark Recognition and Moving Node Localization in a Non-GPS Battlefield Environment](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.12320/) (2024)
- [Landmark-based Localization using Stereo Vision and Deep Learning in GPS-Denied Battlefield Environment](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.12551/) (2024)

## Abstract (arXiv)

In battlefield environments, adversaries frequently disrupt GPS signals, requiring alternative localization and navigation methods. Traditional vision-based approaches like Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) and Visual Odometry (VO) involve complex sensor fusion and high computational demand, whereas range-free methods like DV-HOP face accuracy and stability challenges in sparse, dynamic networks. This paper proposes LanBLoc-BMM, a navigation approach using landmark-based localization (LanBLoc) combined with a battlefield-specific motion model (BMM) and Extended Kalman Filter (EKF). Its performance is benchmarked against three state-of-the-art visual localization algorithms integrated with BMM and Bayesian filters, evaluated on synthetic and real-imitated trajectory datasets using metrics including Average Displacement Error (ADE), Final Displacement Error (FDE), and a newly introduced Average Weighted Risk Score (AWRS). LanBLoc-BMM (with EKF) demonstrates superior performance in ADE, FDE, and AWRS on real-imitated datasets. Additionally, two safe navigation methods, SafeNav-CHull and SafeNav-Centroid, are introduced by integrating LanBLoc-BMM(EKF) with a novel Risk-Aware RRT* (RAw-RRT*) algorithm for obstacle avoidance and risk exposure minimization. Simulation results in battlefield scenarios indicate SafeNav-Centroid excels in accuracy, risk exposure, and trajectory efficiency, while SafeNav-CHull provides superior computational speed.