Multi-hop Localization Method Based on Tribes Algorithm

In many applications of Swarm Robotic Systems (SRS) or Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN), it is necessary to know the position of its devices. A straightforward solution should be endowing each device, i.e. a robot or a sensor, with a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver. However, this solution is often not feasible due to hardware limitations of the devices, or even environmental constraints present in its operational area. In the search for alternatives to the GPS, some multi-hop localization methods have been proposed. In this paper, it is proposed a novel multi-hop localization method based on Tribes algorithm. The results, obtained through simulations, shows that the algorithm is effective in solving the localization problem, achieving errors of the order of 0.01 m.u. in an area of 100x100 m.u.. The performance of the algorithm was also compared with a previous PSO-based localization algorithm. The results indicate that the proposed algorithm obtained a better performance than the PSO-based, in terms of errors in the estimated positions.