Temporally Scalable Visual SLAM using a Reduced Pose Graph

In this paper, we demonstrate a system for temporally scalable visual SLAM using a reduced pose graph representation. Unlike previous visual SLAM approaches that use keyframes, our approach continually uses new measurements to improve the map, yet achieves efficiency by avoiding adding redundant frames and not using marginalization to reduce the graph. To evaluate our approach, we present results using an online binocular visual SLAM system that uses place recognition for both robustness and multi-session operation. To allow large-scale indoor mapping, our system automatically handles elevator rides based on accelerometer data. We demonstrate long-term mapping in a large multi-floor building, using approximately nine hours of data collected over the course of six months. Our results illustrate the capability of our visual SLAM system to scale in size with the area of exploration instead of the time of exploration.