Author:
F. J. Smith
Affiliation:
Queen's University, United Kingdom
Keyword(s):
Polarization,Skylight, Navigation, Clouds, POL, Insect celestial map, Robot navigation.
Related
Ontology
Subjects/Areas/Topics:
Biomedical Engineering
;
Biomedical Signal Processing
;
Physiological Processes and Bio-Signal Modeling, Non-Linear Dynamics
Abstract:
Many insects can navigate accurately using the polarized light from the sky. A study of a large number of experiments on the behaviour and anatomy of insects has led to a simple algorithm for navigation by skylight, suitable for a robot or drone in lightly clouded skies The algorithm is based on the special ability of insect eyes to measure the position of the 4 points in the sky at which the polarization angle, i.e. the angle χ between the polarized E-vector and the meridian, equals ±π/4. The azimuths of these 4 points are almost invariant to variable cloud cover, provided that polarized light is still detectable below the clouds. It is shown that the sum of these 4 azimuths can be turned into a celestial compass in a few short steps and a simulation shows that the compass is accurate as well as simple and well suited for a robot or drone. It can also explain many of the experimental results published on insect navigation.