An Open-Source UAV for Autonomous Visual-Inertial Navigation and Manipulation

Victor Matteus S. Souza, Luísa Francielle O. Fagundes, Gustavo M. Barros, Igor A. Cavalcante, Maria Eduarda S. Borba, Marcelo R. Jordão, Pedro Antônio M. Saraiva, Pedro L. S. Lobo, Danielle T. da Silva, Marcus W. S. Souza, Victor A. F. De Queiroz

Keywords: UAV, Autonomous Navigation, GPS-denied Environments, Object Detection, Manipulation

TL;DR: This paper presents Hermit, an open-source UAV developed by the Pequi Mecânico Robotics Group for autonomous navigation and manipulation in GPS-denied environments.

Abstract: This paper presents Hermit, an open-source UAV platform developed by the Pequi Mecânico Robotics Group at the Federal University of Goiás, designed for autonomous operation in GPS-denied environments. The system integrates a Jetson Orin Nano, Pixhawk 6x, and advanced sensors—Intel RealSense T265, D455, and ARK Flow—within a ROS2 and PX4 software stack. A YOLOv8-based vision pipeline with clustering enables robust target detection and 3D localization. The platform was validated through simulations, field trials, and at the RoboCup 2025 Flying Robots Demo, demonstrating stable positioning and reliable object detection. However, inconsistencies in position estimation limited high-precision autonomous landing and manipulation, highlighting future work on improved perception–control fusion. This work is also supported by the Advanced Knowledge Center for Immersive Technologies (AKCIT).

Submission Number: 45