{"id":18298,"date":"2025-02-14T19:21:09","date_gmt":"2025-02-14T19:21:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/?p=18298"},"modified":"2025-02-14T19:21:10","modified_gmt":"2025-02-14T19:21:10","slug":"empowering-drones-to-navigate-in-the-dark-indoors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/empowering-drones-to-navigate-in-the-dark-indoors\/","title":{"rendered":"Empowering Drones to Navigate in the Dark, Indoors"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-blockquote uagb-block-e7eb3fc3 uagb-blockquote__skin-border uagb-blockquote__stack-img-none\"><blockquote class=\"uagb-blockquote\"><div class=\"uagb-blockquote__content\">MIT engineers have unveiled MiFly, a state-of-the-art system empowering drones to navigate dark, indoor areas using millimeter-wave technology. This breakthrough could revolutionize logistics in low-visibility environments.<\/div><footer><div class=\"uagb-blockquote__author-wrap uagb-blockquote__author-at-left\"><\/div><\/footer><\/blockquote><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-content-justification-space-between is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-0dfbf163 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\"><div style=\"font-size:16px;\" class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-post-author\"><div class=\"wp-block-post-author__content\"><p class=\"wp-block-post-author__name\">The University Network<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share uagb-social-share__outer-wrap uagb-social-share__layout-horizontal uagb-block-ee584a31\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-ec619ce7\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"facebook\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 512 512\"><path d=\"M504 256C504 119 393 8 256 8S8 119 8 256c0 123.8 90.69 226.4 209.3 245V327.7h-63V256h63v-54.64c0-62.15 37-96.48 93.67-96.48 27.14 0 55.52 4.84 55.52 4.84v61h-31.28c-30.8 0-40.41 19.12-40.41 38.73V256h68.78l-11 71.69h-57.78V501C413.3 482.4 504 379.8 504 256z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-32d99934\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/share?url=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"twitter\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 512 512\"><path d=\"M389.2 48h70.6L305.6 224.2 487 464H345L233.7 318.6 106.5 464H35.8L200.7 275.5 26.8 48H172.4L272.9 180.9 389.2 48zM364.4 421.8h39.1L151.1 88h-42L364.4 421.8z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-1d136f14\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/shareArticle?url=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"linkedin\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\"><path d=\"M416 32H31.9C14.3 32 0 46.5 0 64.3v383.4C0 465.5 14.3 480 31.9 480H416c17.6 0 32-14.5 32-32.3V64.3c0-17.8-14.4-32.3-32-32.3zM135.4 416H69V202.2h66.5V416zm-33.2-243c-21.3 0-38.5-17.3-38.5-38.5S80.9 96 102.2 96c21.2 0 38.5 17.3 38.5 38.5 0 21.3-17.2 38.5-38.5 38.5zm282.1 243h-66.4V312c0-24.8-.5-56.7-34.5-56.7-34.6 0-39.9 27-39.9 54.9V416h-66.4V202.2h63.7v29.2h.9c8.9-16.8 30.6-34.5 62.9-34.5 67.2 0 79.7 44.3 79.7 101.9V416z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Researchers at MIT have developed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mit.edu\/~fadel\/papers\/mmDrone-infocom2025.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">MiFly<\/a>, a revolutionary system allowing autonomous drones to self-localize in dark and indoor environments using millimeter-wave technology. This promising breakthrough could pave the way for efficient drone-based operations in diverse commercial settings, including large warehouses.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Traditional navigation methods such as GPS falter indoors, while computer vision and lidar fail in low visibility or featureless areas. However, MiFly employs radio frequency (RF) waves and just one small, low-cost tag to achieve precise localization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Here, we\u2019ve looked beyond GPS and computer vision to millimeter waves, and by doing so, we\u2019ve opened up new capabilities for drones in indoor environments that were not possible before,&#8221; senior author Fadel Adib, an associate professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and director of the Signal Kinetics group at the MIT Media Lab, said in a <a href=\"https:\/\/news.mit.edu\/2025\/engineers-enable-drone-determine-its-position-dark-and-indoors-0213\" title=\"\">news release<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:21px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"MiFly: Indoor Drones that can Fly in the Dark\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/TyySRwsUpbY?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:15px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The system leverages two commercial radars mounted on the drone itself. These radars work in tandem with the drone\u2019s onboard sensors to estimate its six-degree-of-freedom pose \u2014 essential for accurate navigation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The setup includes a horizontal and a vertical radar, each sending signals in different orientations. The reflected millimeter-wave signals, modulated to different frequencies to avoid environmental clutter, are analyzed to determine the drone&#8217;s exact location.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cPolarized sunglasses receive a certain polarization of light and block out other polarizations. We applied the same concept to millimeter waves,\u201d co-lead author Maisy Lam, a research assistant, said in the news release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Early tests have shown remarkable precision, with the drones localizing within 7 centimeters even in completely dark or cluttered indoor environments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Now, the reflections from the surrounding environment come back at one frequency, but the reflections from the tag come back at a different frequency. This allows us to separate the responses and just look at the response from the tag,&#8221; added co-lead author and research assistant Laura Dodds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This new method, incorporating advanced radar and signal modulation techniques, opens up a range of potential applications. The flexibility and low-power requirements make it feasible for commercial implementation without extensive infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;The infrastructure and localization algorithms we build up for this work are a strong foundation to go on and make them more robust to enable diverse commercial applications,&#8221; Lam concluded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The research will be presented at the IEEE Conference on Computer Communications. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>MIT&#8217;s breakthrough signifies a significant leap in drone navigation, potentially transforming industries reliant on logistics and inventory management.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Researchers at MIT have developed MiFly, a revolutionary system allowing autonomous drones to self-localize in dark and indoor environments using millimeter-wave technology. This promising breakthrough could pave the way for efficient drone-based operations in diverse commercial settings, including large warehouses. Traditional navigation methods such as GPS falter indoors, while computer vision and lidar fail in [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"single-no-separators","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18298","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tech"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":false,"thumbnail":false,"medium":false,"medium_large":false,"large":false,"1536x1536":false,"2048x2048":false},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"The University Network","author_link":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/author\/funky_junkie\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Researchers at MIT have developed MiFly, a revolutionary system allowing autonomous drones to self-localize in dark and indoor environments using millimeter-wave technology. This promising breakthrough could pave the way for efficient drone-based operations in diverse commercial settings, including large warehouses. Traditional navigation methods such as GPS falter indoors, while computer vision and lidar fail in&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18298","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18298"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18298\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18416,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18298\/revisions\/18416"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18298"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18298"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18298"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}