Wheel encoder odometry drift on maze bot, how to correct?

HC-SR04, MPU6050, IMUs, GPS, LiDAR — distance, motion, and position sensing.
Post Reply
jm_robotics
Posts: 14
Joined: Tue May 05, 2026 10:51 am

Micromouse-style maze bot. Quadrature encoders on both wheels for position tracking. Straight-line: accurate. But after 10+ turns, position estimate drifts 5-10cm off actual.

Sources I identified:
  • Wheel slip on turns (encoders count but wheel spins)
  • Wheel diameter tolerance (nominal 40mm, actual 39.7mm compounds over distance)
  • Wheelbase measurement error affects turn angle
Adding an MPU6050 for heading fusion helps turns. But encoder distance still drifts.

Anyone run encoder + IMU fusion on AVR? Or is a maze bot better served by wall-following sensors than dead reckoning?
Post Reply