SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR VEHICLE POSITION CALIBRATION USING RACK LEG IDENTIFICATION

Aspects of the invention relate to a materials handling vehicle (102). The materials handling vehicle (102) includes: a camera (304), an odometry module (29), a vehicle position calibration processor (502), and a drive mechanism configured to move the materials handling vehicle (102) along an inventory transit surface (106). The camera (304) is configured to capture images of (i) an aisle entry identifier (302) for a racking system aisle (70') of a multilevel warehouse racking system (12) and (ii) at least a portion of a rack leg (408) positioned in the racking system aisle (70'). The odometry module (29) is configured to generate materials handling vehicle odometry data. The vehicle position calibration processor (502) is configured to: use the aisle entry identifier (302) to generate racking system information indicative of at least (i) a position of an initial rack leg (408) of the racking system aisle (70') along the inventory transit surface (106) and (ii) rack leg spacing in the racking system aisle (70'), generate an initial position of the materials handling vehicle (102) along the inventory transit surface (106) using the position of the initial rack leg (408), generate an odometry-based position of the materials handling vehicle (102) along the inventory transit surface (106) in the racking system aisle (70') using the odometry data and the initial position of the materials handling vehicle (102), detect a subsequent rack leg (408) using a captured image of at least a portion of the subsequent rack leg (408), correlate the detected subsequent rack leg (408) with an expected position of the materials handling vehicle (102) in the racking system aisle (70') using rack leg spacing from the racking system information, generate an odometry error signal based on a difference between the expected position and the odometry-based position, and update the odometry-based position of the materials handling vehicle (102) using the odometry error signal.