{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,9]],"date-time":"2025-10-09T16:47:10Z","timestamp":1760028430303,"version":"build-2065373602"},"reference-count":29,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,5]],"date-time":"2025-02-05T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1738713600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (Funda\u00e7\u00e3o para a Ci\u00eancia e a Tecnologia)","award":["SFRH\/BD\/06944\/2020","UIDB\/00319\/2020"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["SFRH\/BD\/06944\/2020","UIDB\/00319\/2020"]}]},{"name":"Portuguese Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education and the European Social Fund","award":["SFRH\/BD\/06944\/2020","UIDB\/00319\/2020"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["SFRH\/BD\/06944\/2020","UIDB\/00319\/2020"]}]},{"name":"FCT\u2014Funda\u00e7\u00e3o para a Ci\u00eancia e a Tecnologia within the R&amp; D Units Project Scope","award":["SFRH\/BD\/06944\/2020","UIDB\/00319\/2020"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["SFRH\/BD\/06944\/2020","UIDB\/00319\/2020"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["AI"],"abstract":"<jats:p>In environments like the RoboCup Middle Size League (MSL), precise and rapid localisation of robots is crucial for effective autonomous interaction. This study addresses the limitations of conventional localisation approaches\u2014often based on single-camera systems or sensors such as LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) and infrared\u2014by developing a robust Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based multi-camera system solution. This method uses multiple neural networks, breaking down the problem while taking advantage of both classification and regression methods. The solution includes a classification neural network to detect field markers, such as line intersections, and two regression neural networks: one for calculating the position of the markers, and another for determining the robot\u2019s position in real-time. It takes advantage of both approaches while maintaining the desired performance, accuracy, and robustness, simplifying the training process and adapting it to different scenarios. Designed specifically to meet MSL robotics\u2019s high-speed demands and precision requirements, the system employs data augmentation techniques to ensure resilience against lighting, angles, and position variations. The results show that this optimised approach improves spatial awareness and accuracy, promising robot football advancements. Beyond MSL applications, this method has the potential for broader real-world uses that require dependable, real-time localisation in dynamic settings.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ai6020027","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,5]],"date-time":"2025-02-05T04:15:41Z","timestamp":1738728941000},"page":"27","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Multi-Neural Network Localisation System with Regression and Classification on Football Autonomous Robots"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"6","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0005-7550-1533","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Carolina Coelho","family":"Lopes","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Industrial Electronics Department, University of Minho, 4800-058 Guimar\u00e3es, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0006-0720-0883","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ant\u00f3nio","family":"Ribeiro","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Industrial Electronics Department, University of Minho, 4800-058 Guimar\u00e3es, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5909-0827","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Tiago","family":"Ribeiro","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Industrial Electronics Department, ALGORITMI Centre, 4800-058 Guimar\u00e3es, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9475-9020","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Gil","family":"Lopes","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"LIACC & ISEP, Polytechnic Institute of Porto, 4249-015 Porto, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6438-1223","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"A. Fernando","family":"Ribeiro","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Industrial Electronics Department, ALGORITMI Centre, 4800-058 Guimar\u00e3es, Portugal"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,5]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Kitano, H. (1998). RoboCup-97: Robot Soccer World Cup I, Springer Science & Business Media.","DOI":"10.1007\/3-540-64473-3"},{"key":"ref_2","unstructured":"Stone, P. (2023, October 12). Will Robots Triumph over World Cup Winners by 2050?. Available online: https:\/\/spectrum.ieee.org\/robocup-robot-soccer."},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Ribeiro, A.F.A., Lopes, A.C.C., Ribeiro, T.A., Pereira, N.S.S.M., Lopes, G.T., and Ribeiro, A.F.M. (2024). Probability-Based Strategy for a Football Multi-Agent Autonomous Robot System. Robotics, 13.","DOI":"10.3390\/robotics13010005"},{"key":"ref_4","unstructured":"Fernando Alc\u00e2ntara Ribeiro, A. (2024, February 01). Probability-Based Strategy for Football Cooperative Multi-Agent Autonomous Robots. Available online: https:\/\/repositorium.sdum.uminho.pt\/handle\/1822\/93742."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Ribeiro, T., Gon\u00e7alves, F., Garcia, I.S., Lopes, G., and Ribeiro, A.F. (2021). CHARMIE: A Collaborative Healthcare and Home Service and Assistant Robot for Elderly Care. Appl. Sci., 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/app11167248"},{"key":"ref_6","unstructured":"MSL Technical Committee 1997\u20132024 (2024, May 05). Middle Size Robot League Rules and Regulations for 2024, Version-25.1. Available online: https:\/\/msl.robocup.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Rulebook_MSL2024_v25.1.pdf."},{"key":"ref_7","unstructured":"Deogan, A.S., Kempers, S.T., Hameeteman, D.M.J., Beumer, R.M., van der Stoel, J.P., Olthuis, J.J., Aangenent, W.H.T.M., van Brakel, P.E.J., Briegel, M., and Bruijnen, D.J.H. (2024, March 28). Tech United Eindhoven Team Description Paper 2023. Available online: https:\/\/msl.robocup.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/TDP_TechUnited2023.pdf."},{"key":"ref_8","unstructured":"Ribeiro, A., Lopes, C., Ribeiro, C., Costa, J., Martins, J., Oliveira, P., Silva, R., Lima, R., Martins, R., and Pereira, R. (2024, March 01). LAR@ MSL Description Paper 2024. Available online: https:\/\/lar.dei.uminho.pt\/images\/downloads\/LAR@MSL_TDP_2024.pdf."},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"110","DOI":"10.5772\/55718","article-title":"A Survey on Visual Perception for RoboCup MSL Soccer Robots","volume":"10","author":"Li","year":"2013","journal-title":"Int. J. Adv. Robot. Syst."},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"799","DOI":"10.1080\/01691864.2013.785473","article-title":"Robust and real-time self-localization based on omnidirectional vision for soccer robots","volume":"27","author":"Lu","year":"2013","journal-title":"Adv. Robot."},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"340","DOI":"10.3182\/20060906-3-IT-2910.00058","article-title":"Mobile robot localization: Revisiting the triangulation methods","volume":"39","author":"Font","year":"2006","journal-title":"IFAC Proc. Vol."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"111","DOI":"10.1016\/0031-3203(81)90009-1","article-title":"Generalizing the Hough transform to detect arbitrary shapes","volume":"13","author":"Ballard","year":"1981","journal-title":"Pattern Recognit."},{"key":"ref_13","first-page":"96","article-title":"A Localization Method for a Soccer Robot Using a Vision-Based Omni-Directional Sensor","volume":"Volume 2019","author":"Stone","year":"2001","journal-title":"RoboCup 2000: Robot Soccer World Cup IV"},{"key":"ref_14","unstructured":"Dellaert, F., Fox, D., Burgard, W., and Thrun, S. (1999, January 10\u201315). Monte Carlo localization for mobile robots. Proceedings of the 1999 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (Cat. No.99CH36288C), Detroit, MI, USA."},{"key":"ref_15","unstructured":"Hong, W., Zhou, C., and Tian, Y. (2009, January 14\u201317). Robust Monte Carlo Localization for humanoid soccer robot. Proceedings of the 2009 IEEE\/ASME International Conference on Advanced Intelligent Mechatronics, Singapore."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Luo, R., and Min, H. (2009, January 19\u201321). A New Omni-vision Based Self-localization Method for Soccer Robot. Proceedings of the 2009 WRI World Congress on Software Engineering, Xiamen, China.","DOI":"10.1109\/WCSE.2009.326"},{"key":"ref_17","first-page":"142","article-title":"Calculating the Perfect Match: An Efficient and Accurate Approach for Robot Self-localization","volume":"Volume 4020","author":"Bredenfeld","year":"2006","journal-title":"RoboCup 2005: Robot Soccer World Cup IX"},{"key":"ref_18","unstructured":"Carlos Oliveira Martins, J. (2024, September 30). Omnidirectional Vision: Self-Localization and Object Detection with YOLO. Available online: https:\/\/repositorium.sdum.uminho.pt\/handle\/1822\/93744."},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Guohua, L., Xiandong, X., Xiang, Y., Yadong, W., and Tianwei, Q. (2015, January 18\u201320). An Indoor Localization Method for Humanoid Robot Based on Artificial Landmark. Proceedings of the 2015 Fifth International Conference on Instrumentation and Measurement, Computer, Communication and Control (IMCCC), Qinhuangdao, China.","DOI":"10.1109\/IMCCC.2015.394"},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Sharma, A., Wadhwa, I., and Kala, R. (2015, January 24\u201326). Monocular camera based object recognition and 3D-localization for robotic grasping. Proceedings of the 2015 International Conference on Signal Processing, Computing and Control (ISPCC), Waknaghat, Solan, India.","DOI":"10.1109\/ISPCC.2015.7375030"},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"237","DOI":"10.1007\/s11263-006-0023-y","article-title":"Monocular Vision for Mobile Robot Localization and Autonomous Navigation","volume":"74","author":"Royer","year":"2007","journal-title":"Int. J. Comput. Vis."},{"key":"ref_22","unstructured":"Van Lith, P., van de Molengraft, M., Dubbelman, G., and Plantinga, M. (2023, December 03). A Minimalistic Approach to Identify and Localize Robots in RoboCup MSL Soccer Competitions in Real-Time. Available online: https:\/\/www.techunited.nl\/uploads\/Minimalist%20MSL%20Robot%20Location%205.0.pdf."},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Luo, S., Lu, H., Xiao, J., Yu, Q., and Zheng, Z. (2017, January 20\u201322). Robot detection and localization based on deep learning. Proceedings of the 2017 Chinese Automation Congress (CAC), Jinan, China.","DOI":"10.1109\/CAC.2017.8244056"},{"key":"ref_24","unstructured":"Schreuder, E., Feitsma, J., Kouters, E., and Vos, J. (2023, November 29). Falcons Team Description Paper 2019. Available online: https:\/\/www.falcons-robocup.nl\/images\/Qualification-2019\/falcons_team_description_2019.pdf."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3655","DOI":"10.3390\/s100403655","article-title":"Localization of Mobile Robots Using Odometry and an External Vision Sensor","volume":"10","author":"Pizarro","year":"2010","journal-title":"Sensors"},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Kendall, A., Grimes, M., and Cipolla, R. (2015, January 7\u201313). Posenet: A convolutional network for real-time 6-dof camera relocalization. Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Computer Vision, Santiago, Chile.","DOI":"10.1109\/ICCV.2015.336"},{"key":"ref_27","first-page":"375","article-title":"CNN-based visual localization for autonomous vehicles under different weather conditions","volume":"41","author":"Ghintab","year":"2023","journal-title":"Eng. Technol. J."},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Ayala, A., Cruz, F., Campos, D., Rubio, R., Fernandes, B., and Dazeley, R. (2020, January 26\u201330). A comparison of humanoid robot simulators: A quantitative approach. Proceedings of the 2020 Joint IEEE 10th International Conference on Development and Learning and Epigenetic Robotics (ICDL-EpiRob), Valparaiso, Chile.","DOI":"10.1109\/ICDL-EpiRob48136.2020.9278116"},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"83535","DOI":"10.1007\/s11042-024-18872-y","article-title":"YOLO-based Object Detection Models: A Review and its Applications","volume":"83","author":"Vijayakumar","year":"2024","journal-title":"Multimed. Tools Appl."}],"container-title":["AI"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2673-2688\/6\/2\/27\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,9]],"date-time":"2025-10-09T16:26:59Z","timestamp":1760027219000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2673-2688\/6\/2\/27"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,5]]},"references-count":29,"journal-issue":{"issue":"2","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,2]]}},"alternative-id":["ai6020027"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/ai6020027","relation":{},"ISSN":["2673-2688"],"issn-type":[{"type":"electronic","value":"2673-2688"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,5]]}}}