System and method for optimizing placement and number of radio-frequency beacons to achieve better indoor localization
US10771983B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 1, 2018 |
| Grant date | Sep 8, 2020 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 1, 2038 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04W48/12
- WIPO fieldDigital communication
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A novel solution to generate an optimal spatial placement map of Radio Frequency (RF) beacons, such as Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons, which can be used for indoor localization. A described embodiment solves for both generating optimal number of beacons required in a given environment and optimizing their location. The solution also incorporates behavior of RF signal due to various environmental factors such as signal reflection and absorption due to static and dynamic obstacles. In one embodiment, the framework is built upon Genetic Algorithm (GA) for optimization of beacon placement. The experimental results achieved using one implementation of the described method reduced the number of beacons by 50% as compared to beacons placed using expert knowledge. Furthermore, the overall localization error increased by ˜0.4 m when the results using the RF/BLE map generated by the described system were compared with the RF/BLE map generated using expert knowledge.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.