RAIL: An Accurate and Fast Angle-inferred Localization Algorithm for UAV-WSN Systems

Location information is a fundamental requirement for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and other wireless sensor networks (WSNs). However, accurately localizing sensor nodes with diverse functionalities remains a significant challenge, particularly in a hardware-constrained environment. To address this issue and enhance the applicability of artificial intelligence (AI), this paper proposes a localization algorithm that does not require additional hardware. Specifically, the angle between a node and the anchor nodes is estimated based on the received signal strength indication (RSSI). A subsequent localization strategy leverages the inferred angular relationships in conjunction with a bounding box. Experimental evaluations in three scenarios with varying number of nodes demonstrate that the proposed method achieves substantial improvements in localization accuracy, reducing the average error by 72.4% compared to the Min-Max and RSSI-based DV-Hop algorithms, respectively.