[Alan Anderson]

We tested using optical tracking of robot position a decade ago, using an optical mouse with the equivalent of a telephoto lens. When the distance from the sensor to the carpet is perfectly consistent, the results are great. But any variation in height changes the field of view, and that changes the relationship between motion of the image and physical motion of the robot. We couldn't eliminate vibration and bounce from the system, and eventually abandoned the project as unworkable on a real-world FRC robot. (It might have been worth trying for Lunacy, with the super-smooth floor and very low accelerations, but the trailer still caused some variations in tilt that would have to be compensated for somehow.)

If the carpet had a pattern on it that could be detected and measured, keeping the horizontal distances calibrated, I think it would be a good idea to revisit the concept.