Electronic price tag positioning method, device and system

Abstract

The invention discloses an electronic price tag positioning method, device and system, and the method is applied to a positioning server, and comprises the steps: obtaining a neighbor relation list of all electronic price tags; determining at least one price tag group to be subjected to distance measurement according to the neighbor relation list of all the electronic price tags; after the distance measurement role in each price tag group to be subjected to distance measurement is marked, at least one price tag group to be subjected to distance measurement forms a plurality of distance measurement groups, and the distance measurement groups are sequentially sent to a price tag communication system, so that the price tag communication system issues a distance measurement instruction to the electronic price tags in the distance measurement groups after receiving the distance measurement groups; after the ranging results of all the ranging groups are received, the ranging results are fed back to the positioning server; distance measurement parameters in the distance measurement instruction are used for the electronic price tag to execute a distance measurement process to obtain a distance measurement result; after the distance measurement result is received, constructing a neighbor relation network; and calculating the position of the to-be-positioned electronic price tag according to the neighbor relation network and the position of the positioned electronic price tag. According to the invention, the electronic price tag can be efficiently and accurately positioned.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to an electronic price label positioning method, device and system. Background Art

[0002] This section is intended to provide a background or context to the embodiments of the invention recited in the claims. No admission is made that the description herein is prior art by inclusion in this section.

[0003] Currently, large supermarkets are undergoing digital upgrades. In digital applications, electronic shelf labels will replace traditional paper labels; in addition to displaying general information, electronic shelf labels can also be used for many other applications, such as fast picking, out-of-stock management, fast inventory, and human-computer interaction between users. Since each electronic price tag is bound to a certain product, locating the position of the electronic price tag is equivalent to locating the product, which is very practical for application scenarios such as fast picking, finding goods, and replenishing goods.

[0004] Currently, one of the electronic price tag positioning solutions is to install AOA base stations, but AOA base stations are expensive. To cover the entire venue, the number of base stations needs to be expanded by more than 4 times, and the installation and implementation are complicated.

[0005] Therefore, there is currently a lack of a solution that does not require an AOA base station and can efficiently and accurately locate electronic price tags. Summary of the invention

[0006] The embodiment of the present invention provides an electronic price tag positioning method, which can efficiently and accurately position the electronic price tag without an AOA base station. The method is applied to a positioning server and includes:

[0007] Obtaining a neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags to be analyzed, each neighbor relationship list contains multiple electronic price tags that can receive identity information from each other within a preset inspection time window, and each neighbor relationship list includes located electronic price tags and electronic price tags to be located;

[0008] Determine at least one price tag group to be measured based on the neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags, each price tag group to be measured includes multiple electronic price tags;

[0009] After marking the ranging role in each price tag group to be measured, at least one price tag group to be measured is formed into multiple ranging groups, and the ranging groups are sent to the price tag communication system in sequence, so that after receiving the ranging group, the price tag communication system issues a ranging instruction to the electronic price tags in the ranging group, and after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, it feeds back to the positioning server; the ranging parameters in the ranging instruction are used for the electronic price tag to execute the ranging process to obtain the ranging result, and each ranging group includes at least two electronic price tags;

[0010] After receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, a neighbor relationship network is constructed, wherein each node in the neighbor relationship network represents an electronic price tag, and the edges between the nodes represent the distance between the nodes;

[0011] The position of the electronic price tag to be located is calculated according to the neighbor relationship network and the position of the located electronic price tag.

[0012] The embodiment of the present invention provides an electronic price tag positioning device, which can efficiently and accurately position the electronic price tag without an AOA base station. The device is applied to a positioning server and includes:

[0013] A neighbor relationship list acquisition module is used to obtain neighbor relationship lists of all electronic price tags to be analyzed, each neighbor relationship list contains multiple electronic price tags that can receive identity information from each other within a preset inspection time window, and each neighbor relationship list includes located electronic price tags and electronic price tags to be located;

[0014] A module for determining a price tag group to be measured, used to determine at least one price tag group to be measured according to a neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags, each price tag group to be measured includes a plurality of electronic price tags;

[0015] The ranging module is used to mark the ranging role in each price tag group to be measured, form multiple ranging groups with at least one price tag group to be measured, and send the ranging groups to the price tag communication system in sequence, so that after receiving the ranging group, the price tag communication system issues a ranging instruction to the electronic price tags in the ranging group, and after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, feeds back to the positioning server; the ranging parameters in the ranging instruction are used for the electronic price tag to execute the ranging process to obtain the ranging result, and each ranging group includes at least two electronic price tags;

[0016] A neighbor relationship network construction module is used to construct a neighbor relationship network after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, wherein each node in the neighbor relationship network represents an electronic price tag, and the edges between the nodes represent the distances between the nodes;

[0017] The positioning module is used to calculate the position of the electronic price tag to be positioned according to the neighbor relationship network and the position of the positioned electronic price tag.

[0018] The embodiment of the present invention provides an electronic price tag positioning system, which can efficiently and accurately position the electronic price tag without an AOA base station. The system includes a price tag communication system, a base station, an electronic price tag, and an electronic price tag positioning device;

[0019] Price tag communication system for:

[0020] After receiving the distance measurement group, the base station sends a distance measurement instruction to the electronic price tag in the distance measurement group;

[0021] After receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, feedback is sent to the positioning server;

[0022] The electronic price tag is used to: execute the distance measurement process to obtain the distance measurement result according to the distance measurement parameters in the distance measurement instruction, and feed back the distance measurement result to the price tag communication system through the base station.

[0023] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer device, including a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, wherein the processor implements the above-mentioned electronic price label positioning method when executing the computer program.

[0024] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer-readable storage medium, wherein the computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, the electronic price label positioning method is implemented.

[0025] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer program product, which includes a computer program. When the computer program is executed by a processor, the electronic price label positioning method is implemented.

[0026] In an embodiment of the present invention, the positioning server can obtain a neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags to be analyzed, each neighbor relationship list includes multiple electronic price tags that can receive identity information from each other within a preset inspection time window, and each neighbor relationship list includes located electronic price tags and electronic price tags to be located; according to the neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags, at least one price tag group to be measured is determined, and each price tag group to be measured includes multiple electronic price tags; after marking the ranging role in each price tag group to be measured, at least one price tag group to be measured is formed into multiple ranging groups, and the ranging groups are sent to the price tags in sequence. The tag communication system is configured to send a distance measurement instruction to the electronic price tag in the distance measurement group after receiving the distance measurement group, and feedback to the positioning server after receiving the distance measurement results of all the distance measurement groups; the distance measurement parameters in the distance measurement instruction are used for the electronic price tag to execute the distance measurement process to obtain the distance measurement result; after receiving the distance measurement results of all the distance measurement groups, a neighbor relationship network is constructed, wherein each node in the neighbor relationship network represents an electronic price tag, and the edge between the nodes represents the distance between the nodes; the position of the electronic price tag to be located is calculated according to the neighbor relationship network and the position of the located electronic price tag. Through the above process, after obtaining the neighbor relationship list of the electronic price tag, the distance measurement of all the electronic price tags can be carried out according to the marked distance measurement role, and the ranging result can construct a neighbor relationship network, so as to quickly and accurately determine the position of the electronic price tag to be located. Compared with directly calculating the position of the electronic price tag to be located by the position of the located electronic price tag in the neighbor relationship list, the additional ranging greatly improves the accuracy of the electronic price tag positioning, and the whole process does not require an AOA base station, which is highly efficient. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the prior art descriptions. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative work. In the drawings:

[0028] Figure 1 Flow chart of the electronic price label positioning method in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an electronic price label positioning device in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the electronic price label positioning system in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a neighbor learning mechanism in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 5 The situation where the ranging command is issued at the same time;

[0033] Figure 6 This is a timing diagram of a single base station sending a ranging command in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0034] Figure 7 Schematic diagram of the structure of the distance measurement instruction in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0035] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of a channel detection procedure in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0036] Fig. 9 This is a flow chart of sending distance measurement instructions in the implementation of the present invention;

[0037] Fig.10 It is a schematic diagram of a one-to-one ranging mode in the implementation of the present invention;

[0038] Fig.11 It is a two-way channel detection process under multiple channels with a one-to-one ranging mode in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0039] Fig.12 A schematic diagram of a one-to-many ranging mode in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0040] Fig.13 This is a channel detection process for multiple channels in a one-to-many ranging mode in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0041] Fig.14It is a schematic diagram of ranging in which the ranging mode is many-to-many in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0042] Fig.15 This is a channel detection process for multiple channels in a many-to-many ranging mode in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0043] Fig.16 This is a flow chart of reporting ranging results in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0044] Fig.17 Schematic diagram of a computer device in an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0045] To make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention more clear, the embodiments of the present invention are further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Here, the exemplary embodiments of the present invention and their descriptions are used to explain the present invention, but are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0046] First, the terms mentioned in the embodiments of the present invention are explained.

[0047] ESL: Electronic Shelf Label;

[0048] AP: base station;

[0049] ESLW: Electronic Shelf Label Communication Control Software;

[0050] PCT: phase correction term;

[0051] RTT: signal round trip time;

[0052] PBR: Phase Based Ranging.

[0053] The inventor found that the electronic price tags can be located by using the neighbor relationship between price tags, but since the neighbor distance relationship between price tags cannot be measured very accurately, there is still a phenomenon that some shelf scenes are easy to be connected to the opposite side or the wrong channel. Therefore, it is necessary to further improve the positioning accuracy and realize the accurate positioning of electronic price tags.

[0054] Figure 1 The flowchart of the electronic price label positioning method in an embodiment of the present invention includes:

[0055] Step 101, obtaining a neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags to be analyzed, each neighbor relationship list containing multiple electronic price tags that can receive identity information from each other within a preset inspection time window, and each neighbor relationship list includes located electronic price tags and electronic price tags to be located;

[0056] Step 102, determining at least one price tag group to be measured based on the neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags, each price tag group to be measured includes multiple electronic price tags;

[0057] Step 103, after marking the ranging role in each price tag group to be measured, at least one price tag group to be measured is formed into multiple ranging groups, and the ranging groups are sent to the price tag communication system in sequence, so that after receiving the ranging group, the price tag communication system issues a ranging instruction to the electronic price tags in the ranging group, and after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, it is fed back to the positioning server; the ranging parameters in the ranging instruction are used for the electronic price tag to execute the ranging process to obtain the ranging result, and each ranging group includes at least two electronic price tags;

[0058] Step 104, after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, construct a neighbor relationship network, wherein each node in the neighbor relationship network represents an electronic price tag, and the edges between the nodes represent the distances between the nodes;

[0059] Step 105: Calculate the position of the electronic price tag to be located according to the neighbor relationship network and the position of the located electronic price tag.

[0060] Compared with the prior art, the present invention can perform ranging of all electronic price tags according to the marked ranging roles after obtaining the neighbor relationship list of the electronic price tags. The ranging results can construct a neighbor relationship network, so as to quickly and accurately determine the position of the electronic price tag to be located. Compared with directly calculating the position of the electronic price tag to be located by the position of the located electronic price tag in the neighbor relationship list, the additional ranging greatly improves the accuracy of the electronic price tag positioning. The entire process does not require an AOA base station and is highly efficient.

[0061] The embodiment of the present invention further provides an electronic price label positioning device, the principle of which is similar to that of the electronic price label positioning method.

[0062] Figure 2 The schematic diagram of the structure of the electronic price label positioning device in the embodiment of the present invention includes:

[0063] A neighbor relationship list obtaining module 201 is used to obtain neighbor relationship lists of all electronic price tags to be analyzed, each of which contains multiple electronic price tags that can receive identity information from each other within a preset inspection time window, and each of which includes located electronic price tags and electronic price tags to be located;

[0064] The module 202 for determining the price tag group to be measured is used to determine at least one price tag group to be measured according to the neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags, and each price tag group to be measured includes multiple electronic price tags;

[0065] The ranging module 203 is used to mark the ranging role in each price tag group to be measured, form multiple ranging groups with at least one price tag group to be measured, and send the ranging groups to the price tag communication system in sequence, so that after receiving the ranging group, the price tag communication system issues a ranging instruction to the electronic price tags in the ranging group, and after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, feeds back to the positioning server; the ranging parameters in the ranging instruction are used for the electronic price tag to execute the ranging process to obtain the ranging result, and each ranging group includes at least two electronic price tags;

[0066] A neighbor relationship network construction module 204 is used to construct a neighbor relationship network after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, wherein each node in the neighbor relationship network represents an electronic price tag, and the edges between the nodes represent the distances between the nodes;

[0067] The positioning module 205 is used to calculate the position of the electronic price tag to be positioned according to the neighbor relationship network and the position of the positioned electronic price tag.

[0068] Figure 3 The structure diagram of the electronic price label positioning system in an embodiment of the present invention includes:

[0069] Price tag communication system 301, base station 302, electronic price tag 303 and electronic price tag positioning device 304;

[0070] Price tag communication system for:

[0071] After receiving the distance measurement group, the base station sends a distance measurement instruction to the electronic price tag in the distance measurement group;

[0072] After receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, feedback is sent to the positioning server;

[0073] The electronic price tag is used to: execute the distance measurement process to obtain the distance measurement result according to the distance measurement parameters in the distance measurement instruction, and feed back the distance measurement result to the price tag communication system through the base station.

[0074] In addition, the electronic price label positioning system may also include a communication control center for connecting the positioning server and the base station to achieve communication management.

[0075] Each step in the electronic price label positioning method is described in detail below. The electronic price label positioning method is applied to a positioning server, and the electronic price label positioning device 304 corresponds to the positioning server.

[0076] In step 101, a neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags to be analyzed is obtained, each neighbor relationship list contains multiple electronic price tags that can receive identity information from each other within a preset inspection time window, and each neighbor relationship list includes located electronic price tags and electronic price tags to be located;

[0077] Specifically, the positioning server initiates a full-field positioning command, and sends messages to all base stations almost simultaneously through the communication control center. The base stations almost simultaneously broadcast and notify all price tags to start detecting neighbors through random sending and continuous receiving in the predetermined time window. The principle adopted is the neighbor learning mechanism. Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a neighbor learning mechanism in an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 4 In the process, when each electronic price tag looks for its neighbors, it needs to send its own identity information within a predetermined time window. When it does not send its own identity information, it is receiving and recording the identity information sent by other electronic price tags. All electronic price tags will use automatic avoidance rules to stagger the sending of their own identity information according to the signal sending time window to prevent conflicts in the sending time of a large number of electronic price tags. After each electronic price tag obtains the neighbor relationship list, it sends the neighbor relationship list to the communication control center through the base station in a time-divided manner, and then sends it to the positioning server. The positioning server builds a network diagram that can be connected to the entire network through the neighbor relationships of all price tags. Through this step, the positioning server obtains a preliminary neighbor relationship list for all electronic price tags.

[0078] In step 102, at least one price tag group to be measured is determined according to the neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags;

[0079] The positioning server determines the price tag group relationship that needs further ranging by analyzing the neighbor relationship list of the price tag. Each price tag group has a ranging initiator and at least a ranging feedback receiver.

[0080] In one embodiment, determining at least one price tag group to be measured based on the neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags includes:

[0081] If all electronic price tags are not located, multiple relationship weight division threshold ranges are determined according to the minimum number of price tag groups to be measured, and the electronic price tags with relationship weights in the same relationship weight division threshold range are divided into one price tag group to be measured;

[0082] Otherwise, for each electronic price tag, at a preset time interval, determine whether the change ratio of the electronic price tags in the neighbor relationship list of the electronic price tag exceeds a preset ratio, and if so, determine that the electronic price tag is a mobile electronic price tag;

[0083] Add the mobile electronic price tag and all the electronic price tags in the corresponding neighbor relationship list to a price tag group to be measured. If the mobile electronic price tag is in the neighbor relationship list of other electronic price tags, add the other electronic price tags to the price tag group to be measured where the mobile electronic price tag is located.

[0084] Specifically, if all electronic price tags are not located, it means that the store is in the stage of initializing the location of all electronic price tags. At this time, a minimum number of price tag groups to be measured can be determined first, and multiple relationship weight division threshold ranges can be determined. For example, if the minimum number of price tag groups to be measured is 3, then 3 relationship weight division threshold ranges need to be determined, and then the electronic price tags whose relationship weights fall within the same relationship weight division threshold range are divided into one price tag group to be measured. The relationship weight is configured for any two electronic price tags in the neighbor relationship list. If the two electronic price tags can still communicate under very low signal transmission power, it is determined that the two electronic price tags are close, and the two electronic price tags are given a larger relationship weight.

[0085] In order to make full use of the distance measurement information between price tags, the grouping process allows overlapping electronic price tags between different groups. Considering the efficiency, the number of price tag groups to be measured should be as small as possible, so an optimization problem can be established to achieve the grouping of electronic price tags by solving the corresponding optimization problem.

[0086] In one embodiment, the minimum number of price tag groups to be measured is determined by solving the following formula:

[0087] min G esl

[0088]

[0089] Among them, G esl is the number of price tag groups to be measured, For g esl The number of electronic price tags in the price tag group to be measured, g esl =1,…,G esl , N esl,min N is the number of electronic price tags that should be contained in each price tag group to be measured. esl,max The maximum number of electronic price tags in each price tag group to be measured, RSSI esl,min RSSI is the minimum received signal strength of the electronic price tag. esl,max is the maximum value of the received signal strength of the electronic price tag, For the g es The average value of the received signal strength of the electronic price tags in the l price tag groups to be measured.

[0090] It should be noted that These two conditions can be used together or separately.

[0091] If the store has completed the initialization of the positions of all electronic price tags and only performs position tracking periodically, for example, once a day, then it is only necessary to find the electronic price tags that have moved to the local position, and determine the price tag group to be assigned to by the neighbor measurement results of these electronic price tags; the embodiment of the present invention adjusts the grouping according to its movement, and then can simultaneously update the ranging information related to the moving price tags, while the one-to-one situation can only be measured one by one, which is less efficient. Therefore, the embodiment of the present invention can subsequently be used for one-to-many and many-to-many situations.

[0092] a) If the neighbor relationship list of an electronic price tag changes by a preset ratio (a ratio threshold can be preset here) compared with the last measurement, it can be determined that the electronic price tag is an electronic price tag that has moved, that is, a mobile electronic price tag. For example, the neighbor relationship list of electronic price tag A includes 10 electronic price tags. After a preset period of time, the neighbor relationship list of electronic price tag A includes 5 electronic price tags, and the change ratio is 50%. If the preset ratio is 40%, then the electronic price tag A is determined to be a mobile electronic price tag;

[0093] b) The neighbor relationship list CA measured by the mobile electronic price tag A will be assigned to a price tag group GA to be measured, and the mobile electronic price tag A enters the neighbor relationship list CB measured by another electronic price tag B (CB contains A), and this other electronic price tag B will also be assigned to a price tag group GA to be measured.

[0094] In step 103, after marking the ranging role in each price tag group to be measured, at least one price tag group to be measured is formed into multiple ranging groups, and the ranging groups are sent to the price tag communication system in sequence, so that after receiving the ranging group, the price tag communication system issues a ranging instruction to the electronic price tag in the ranging group, and after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, it feeds back to the positioning server; the ranging parameters in the ranging instruction are used for the electronic price tag to execute the ranging process to obtain the ranging result;

[0095] In this step, the positioning server sends the selected price tag groups to be measured in sequence to the price tag communication system, requesting the price tag to be measured. However, when sending, the sending method can be flexible.

[0096] In one embodiment, after marking the ranging role in each price tag group to be measured, at least one price tag group to be measured is formed into a plurality of ranging groups, and the ranging groups are sequentially sent to the price tag communication system, including:

[0097] Mark the ranging role in each price tag group to be measured, wherein the ranging role is a ranging initiator or a ranging feedback receiver. A price tag group to be measured includes a ranging initiator and at least one ranging feedback receiver, and each electronic price tag can only assume one ranging role;

[0098] Forming a plurality of distance measurement groups from at least one price tag group to be measured, wherein the distance measurement group is a price tag group to be measured or a pair of electronic price tags in a price tag group to be measured, wherein the pair of electronic price tags includes a distance measurement initiator and a distance measurement feedback receiver;

[0099] Send ranging packets to the price tag communication system in turn.

[0100] Specifically, two sending methods are provided above.

[0101] The first method: The positioning server can send a group of price tags to be measured at a time as a ranging group. For example, GA has 10 electronic price tags, and send them to the price tag communication system to request ranging. One of them can be designated as the ranging initiator, one or more ranging feedback receivers, and each price tag assumes one of the ranging roles.

[0102] The second method: the positioning server can only send a pair of electronic price tags in a price tag group to be measured at a time (as a ranging group), with one ranging initiator and one ranging feedback receiver. For example, GA has 10 electronic price tags, and sends two of them to the price tag communication system to request ranging. After multiple times, the ranging between the two electronic price tags in this price tag group to be measured is completed.

[0103] The positioning server repeats the first or second action until the ranging processes of all ranging groups are completed.

[0104] Specifically, if the electronic price tags in the distance measurement group are not registered under the same base station, there are two ways to send distance measurement instructions to the electronic price tags in the distance measurement group.

[0105] The first one, such as Figure 5 The timing diagram of multiple base stations sending ranging instructions in an embodiment of the present invention. Among them, multiple base stations can send ranging instructions at the same time or send ranging instructions in different time periods. Figure 5 In the case where the ranging instructions are issued simultaneously, it is sufficient as long as the ranging start time in the ranging instructions is the same.

[0106] In one embodiment, issuing a distance measurement instruction to the electronic price tag in the distance measurement group includes:

[0107] If the electronic price tags in the distance measurement group are not registered under the same base station, distance measurement instructions are sent to the electronic price tags in the distance measurement group through multiple base stations, and the distance measurement start time in the distance measurement instructions is the same, so that the electronic price tags in the distance measurement group start distance measurement at the same time.

[0108] The second type, such as Figure 6The timing diagram of a single base station sending a ranging instruction in an embodiment of the present invention. Among them, the base station needs to send a re-registration command to the current corresponding base station of the electronic price tag in the ranging group, specifying that the electronic price tag re-registers with the specified base station, and then starts to send the ranging instruction. Figure 6 In the example, base station 1 sends a re-registration command to electronic price tag m. Electronic price tag m receives the re-registration command, and the target registration base station is specified as l in the re-registration command. Then electronic price tag m sends a registration request instruction to base station l, that is, initiates registration with base station l. Subsequently, base station l can send ranging instructions to electronic price tags 0 and m at the same time.

[0109] In one embodiment, issuing a distance measurement instruction to the electronic price tag in the distance measurement group includes:

[0110] By sending a re-registration command to the current corresponding base station of the electronic price tag in the ranging group, after the designated electronic price tag is re-registered in the designated base station, the designated base station sends a ranging instruction to the electronic price tag in the ranging group, and the re-registration command includes the designated base station where the designated electronic price tag needs to be registered.

[0111] The ranging instruction in the embodiment of the present invention includes multiple ranging parameters. Figure 7 Schematic diagram of the structure of the distance measurement instruction in the embodiment of the present invention.

[0112] In one embodiment, the ranging parameters in the ranging instruction include at least the channel detection type, the identification and ranging role of the electronic price tag, the ranging cycle, the ranging mode, the ranging start time, the ranging frequency range, the signal transmission time window length, the signal transmission power, the signal reception time window length, the single ranging time length and the number of ranging times.

[0113] Each ranging parameter is explained below.

[0114] (1) Channel detection type

[0115] There are four main types of channel detection: mode0 for time-frequency calibration, mode1 for RTT measurement, mode2 for PBR measurement, and mode3 for RTT and PBR measurement. Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of a channel detection program in an embodiment of the present invention. The channel detection program includes multiple events, each event includes multiple sub-events, each sub-event includes multiple channel detection steps, and each channel detection step needs to be assigned a channel detection type. At the same time, each channel detection step corresponds to a certain frequency point.

[0116] (2) Electronic price tag identification

[0117] The identification of electronic price tags is generally an ID, which can be represented by a serial number.

[0118] (3) The role of electronic price tags in distance measurement

[0119] The ranging roles include the ranging initiator and the ranging reflector. A base station may be responsible for issuing ranging instructions for multiple ranging groups. According to the IDs of each group of price tags in the ranging instructions, the ranging roles of the price tags are assigned in turn. The ranging group may be coordinated by multiple base stations to issue ranging instructions. The coordination tasks of the base stations are pre-specified by the electronic price tag background server. Usually, there is only one ranging initiator for the electronic price tags to be measured in a ranging group, and the rest of the electronic price tags are ranging reflectors.

[0120] (4) Ranging period

[0121] There are multiple ranging cycles within a single ranging time, and each ranging cycle is greater than the sum of the signal sending time window length + the signal receiving time window length.

[0122] (5) Distance measurement mode

[0123] The distance measurement modes include one-to-one, one-to-many and many-to-many. In one-to-one, one electronic price tag acts as the distance measurement initiator and the other acts as the distance measurement feedback receiver; while in one-to-many and many-to-many, one electronic price tag acts as the distance measurement initiator and the rest act as distance measurement feedback receivers.

[0124] (6) Ranging start time

[0125] Generally, within a ranging group, the ranging start time is the same.

[0126] (7) Ranging frequency range

[0127] The ranging frequency range (or frequency sequence) determines the frequency channels on which ranging will be performed. At the kth frequency, the signal transmission time window is also called a time slot. For each electronic price tag, the entire ranging cycle can be divided into multiple time slots, which can be expressed as Slot_0, Slot_1...Slot_M. These signal transmission time windows are assigned to the electronic price tags ESL_0, ESL_1...ESL_M one by one. When ESL_m sends a signal in Slot_m, the remaining electronic price tags can maintain a signal receiving mode or a non-receiving mode within the Slot_m signal transmission time window. The specific division can be seen in the one-to-many and many-to-many ranging scenarios of electronic price tags described in the subsequent content.

[0128] (8) Signal transmission time window length

[0129] For example, after the ranging starts, electronic price tag A needs to send a channel detection signal to electronic price tag B, and the signal sending time window length is the corresponding time slot of electronic price tag A.

[0130] (9) Signal transmission power refers to the channel detection signal.

[0131] (10) Signal receiving time window length: When electronic price tag A needs to send a channel detection signal to electronic price tag B, electronic price tag B is in a signal receiving mode. The signal receiving time window length is the duration of this mode, which is the signal sending time window length corresponding to electronic price tag B.

[0132] (11) Single ranging duration refers to the total duration to complete a ranging, including multiple cycles.

[0133] (12) The number of ranging measurements refers to the number of ranging measurements allowed within a period of time.

[0134] After receiving the above distance measurement parameters completely, the multiple electronic price tags enter the distance measurement mode and start the distance measurement process according to the distance measurement start time.

[0135] Fig. 9 This is a flow chart of sending distance measurement instructions in the implementation of the present invention. Fig. 9 In the example, electronic price tag 0 and electronic price tag 1 are registered with base station L. Then base station L can send distance measurement instructions to electronic price tag 0 and electronic price tag 1. Electronic price tag 0 and electronic price tag 1 perform distance measurement. The distance measurement result of electronic price tag 0 is d 01 , the distance measurement result of electronic price tag 1 is d 10 , all need to be sent to base station L. Fig. 9 In the example, electronic price tag m and electronic price tag M need to perform distance measurement, but electronic price tag m is registered with base station l, and electronic price tag M is registered with base station 1. Then base station 1 can send a distance measurement instruction to electronic price tag m, and base station l can send a distance measurement instruction to electronic price tag M. A common distance measurement start time is agreed upon, and the distance measurement result of electronic price tag m is d mM , sent to base station 1, the distance measurement result of the electronic price tag M is d Mm , sent to base station l.

[0136] The ranging process of each ranging mode is introduced in detail below.

[0137] In one embodiment, when the ranging mode is one-to-one, the steps of the ranging process include:

[0138] In each ranging cycle, the ranging initiator sends a channel detection signal to the ranging feedback receiver at a fixed frequency point in the ranging cycle; and waits to receive the feedback channel detection signal to obtain a second phase correction item;

[0139] After receiving the channel detection signal, the ranging feedback party obtains the first phase correction term and feeds back the channel detection signal to the ranging initiator at a fixed frequency point within the period;

[0140] The ranging initiator and the ranging feedback receiver respectively calculate the distance according to the following steps: after completing the interaction of at least one ranging cycle, the distance between the ranging initiator and the ranging feedback receiver is determined according to the first phase correction item and the second phase correction item corresponding to at least one fixed frequency point, and the distance is used as the ranging result.

[0141] Fig.10 The present invention is implemented in a one-to-one ranging mode. This process can be called a two-way channel detection signal exchange, which is essentially a phase-based ranging. Fig.11 This is a two-way channel detection process under a one-to-one multiple channels ranging mode in an embodiment of the present invention. Fig.11 and Fig.10 correspond, Fig.11 The detection process of three detection cycles T_FC is given, see Fig.10 , electronic price tag A is the initiator of distance measurement, and electronic price tag B is the feedback of distance measurement. When the distance measurement starts, electronic price tag A first uses frequency f k Transmit narrowband signals, such as FSK signals, that is, channel detection signals, and the initial phase of the signal is φ A , the phase correction term when the electronic price tag B receives the channel detection signal is PCT R,k =Δφ k +φ A -φ B , where Δφ B is the initial phase of the channel detection signal fed back by the electronic price tag B, Δφ k is the phase change of the channel detection signal after the corresponding propagation distance d, expressed as Δφ k =2πf k τ, the time delay τ is τ = d / c, c is the propagation speed of electromagnetic waves. Similarly, after receiving the signal from electronic price tag A, electronic price tag B transmits the signal at the same frequency f k Signal is sent, and the corresponding phase correction item at the electronic price tag A is PCT I,k =Δφ k +φ B -φ A .

[0142] In one embodiment, after completing the interaction of at least one ranging cycle, determining the distance between the ranging initiator and the ranging feedback provider according to the first phase correction item and the second phase correction item corresponding to at least one fixed frequency point includes:

[0143] After completing a ranging cycle interaction, the distance d between the ranging initiator and the ranging feedback is determined using the following formula:

[0144]

[0145] PCT R,k =Δφ k +φ A -φ B

[0146] PCT I,k =Δφ k +φ B -φ A

[0147] Where c is the propagation speed of electromagnetic waves, φ A is the initial phase of the channel detection signal sent by the ranging initiator, φ B is the initial phase of the channel detection signal sent by the ranging feedback, Δφ k is the phase change of the channel detection signal after passing through distance d, f k For fixed frequency, PCT R,k and PCT I,k f k corresponding first phase correction term and second phase correction term;

[0148] Because f k The frequency point of the 2.4GHz frequency band, the direct interaction of a ranging cycle will cause distance ambiguity, so multiple frequency points will be used in the phase-based ranging process;

[0149] After completing the interaction of two ranging cycles, the distance d between the ranging initiator and the ranging feedback is determined using the following formula:

[0150]

[0151] Among them, f k-1 To distinguish from f k Fixed frequency, PCT R,k-1 and PCT I,k-1 f k-1 corresponding first phase correction term and second phase correction term;

[0152] After completing the interaction of more than two ranging cycles, the distance corresponding to each ranging cycle is obtained, and the distance between the ranging initiator and the ranging feedback is determined after linear fitting of multiple distances.

[0153] In the one-to-one situation, it can only perform one-to-one grouping and measurement separately. At the same time, there are many one-to-one situations. When issuing instructions, the base station can only issue instructions according to the situation of two price tags in a group. When reporting, it can only report the distance result between two price tags at a time, resulting in the inefficiency of the process of obtaining the distance information of all price tags (inefficient instruction issuance and inefficient distance acquisition). Therefore, the embodiment of the present invention supports one-to-many and many-to-many modes.

[0154] In one embodiment, when the ranging mode is one-to-many, the steps of the ranging process include:

[0155] In each ranging cycle, the ranging initiator sends a channel detection signal at a fixed frequency within the corresponding signal sending time window, and waits for receiving the channel detection signal within the signal sending time window corresponding to each ranging feedback receiver, and obtains the second phase correction item corresponding to each ranging feedback receiver. When the ranging mode is one-to-many, only one electronic price tag in the price tag group to be ranged is the ranging initiator, and the rest of the electronic price tags are ranging feedback receivers.

[0156] Each ranging feedback receiver waits for receiving a channel detection signal within a signal transmission time window length corresponding to the ranging initiator, obtains a first phase correction term, and feeds back a channel detection signal to the ranging initiator at a fixed frequency within a signal transmission time window length corresponding to each ranging feedback receiver;

[0157] The ranging initiator and the ranging feedback receiver respectively calculate the distance according to the following steps: after completing the interaction of at least one ranging cycle, for each ranging feedback receiver, according to the first phase correction item corresponding to at least one fixed frequency point and the second phase correction item corresponding to the ranging feedback receiver, the distance between the ranging initiator and the ranging feedback receiver is determined as the ranging result.

[0158] Fig.12 Schematic diagram of a one-to-many ranging mode in an embodiment of the present invention. Fig.13 This is a channel detection process for multiple channels in a one-to-many ranging mode in an embodiment of the present invention. Fig.13 and Fig.12 correspond, Fig.13 The detection process of three detection cycles T_FC is given. Fig.13 In the example, Slot_0, Slot_1…Slot_M are all signal transmission time windows. There is only one electronic price tag in the ranging group as the ranging initiator, and the other price tags are ranging feedbackers. There is no two-way channel detection signal exchange process between ranging feedbackers. The specific workflow is as follows: Fig.12As shown, in each T_FC ranging cycle, the initiator electronic price tag A first sends a channel detection signal within the signal transmission time window length Slot_0, and the other ranging feedback parties, namely the electronic price tags ESL_1,…,ESL_M, all maintain the receiving signal mode within Slot0. In the subsequent signal transmission time window length, the electronic price tags ESL_1,…,ESL_M will send channel detection signals in the corresponding allocated signal transmission time window length Slot_1,…,Slot_M in sequence. Note that the ranging feedback party only receives signals within Slot_0, while the electronic price tag A will always maintain the receiving signal mode within the signal transmission time window length Slot_1,…,Slot_M. In this way, the above process is completed in sequence on multiple available channels, so that the first phase correction item and the second phase correction item of the ranging initiator electronic price tag A and the other ranging feedback electronic price tags ESL_1,…,ESL_M can be obtained, and then the distance d between the electronic price tag A and the feedback electronic price tags ESL_1,…,ESL_M can be obtained. A1 ,…,d AM Similar to the one-to-one mode, the above process can be performed in multiple ranging cycles, so that d is calculated by using the first phase correction term and the second phase correction term corresponding to multiple fixed frequency points. A1 ,…,d AM , improving the accuracy of distance calculation.

[0159] During the signal transmission time window, the corresponding electronic price tag will continue to transmit the signal, while other electronic price tags in the signal receiving mode will continue to receive the signal. If no signal is received at this step or at this frequency point, there will be no measurement phase output at the corresponding frequency point, and the subsequent distance measurement solution will not use the phase measurement information of the corresponding price tag at this frequency point. If the corresponding electronic price tag fails to successfully receive the signal at all frequencies, there will be no measurement phase output, and the distance measurement value of the pair of price tags will remain empty.

[0160] In one embodiment, when the ranging mode is many-to-many, the steps of the ranging process include:

[0161] In each ranging cycle, the ranging initiator sends a channel detection signal at a fixed frequency within the corresponding signal transmission time window, and waits for the channel detection signal to be fed back within the signal transmission time window corresponding to each ranging feedback receiver, and obtains the second phase correction item corresponding to each ranging feedback receiver. When the ranging mode is many-to-many, only one electronic price tag in the price tag group to be ranged is the ranging initiator, and the rest of the electronic price tags are ranging feedback receivers.

[0162] Each ranging feedback receiver waits to receive a channel detection signal within the signal transmission time window length corresponding to the ranging initiator, obtains a first phase correction item, feeds back a channel detection signal to the ranging initiator at a fixed frequency within the signal transmission time window length corresponding to each ranging feedback receiver, and waits to receive a channel detection signal sent by other ranging feedback receivers within the signal transmission time window length corresponding to other ranging feedback receivers, and obtains a third phase correction item;

[0163] The ranging initiator and the ranging feedback receiver respectively calculate the distance according to the following steps: after completing the interaction of at least one ranging cycle, for each ranging feedback receiver, according to the first phase correction item corresponding to at least one fixed frequency point and the second phase correction item corresponding to the ranging feedback receiver, determine the distance between the ranging initiator and the ranging feedback receiver as the ranging result;

[0164] The distance between the distance measurement feedback parties is determined according to the following steps: the distance between the distance measurement feedback parties is determined according to the third phase correction item corresponding to at least one fixed frequency point as the distance measurement result.

[0165] Fig.14 Schematic diagram of a many-to-many ranging mode in an embodiment of the present invention. Fig.15 This is a channel detection process for multiple channels in a many-to-many ranging mode in an embodiment of the present invention. Fig.15 and Fig.14 correspond, Fig.15 The detection process of three detection cycles T_FC is given. In the many-to-many scenario, there is only one electronic price tag as the ranging initiator, and the other electronic price tags are ranging feedbackers. There is also a two-way channel detection signal exchange process between the ranging feedbackers. The specific workflow is as follows Fig.14 As shown, in each T_FC ranging cycle, first, the ranging initiator electronic price tag A sends a channel detection signal within the signal transmission time window length Slot_0 to obtain the first phase correction item, and the remaining ranging feedback parties, namely the electronic price tags ESL_1, ..., ESL_M, all maintain the signal receiving mode within Slot0. In the subsequent signal transmission time window length, the electronic price tags ESL_1, ..., ESL_M will sequentially send channel detection signals within the corresponding allocated signal transmission time window length Slot_1, ..., Slot_M to obtain the second phase correction item. In the corresponding signal transmission time window length, the remaining ranging feedback parties, including the ranging initiator electronic price tag A, will maintain the signal receiving mode. For example, when the electronic price tag ESL_m sends a channel detection signal within Slot_m, the electronic price tags in the ranging group except ESL_m all maintain the signal receiving mode, so that the electronic price tags in the ranging group except ESL_m obtain the third phase correction item. The above process is completed sequentially on multiple available channels, so that the phase correction items of all electronic price tags in the group can be obtained, and then the distance d between all electronic price tags can be obtained.A1 ,…,d AM ,d 12 ,…,d 1M ,…,d MM -1, similarly, similar to the one-to-one mode, the above process can be performed in multiple ranging cycles, so that d is calculated by the first phase correction term, the second phase correction term, and the third phase correction term corresponding to multiple fixed frequency points. A1 ,…,d AM ,d 12 ,…,d 1M ,…,d MM-1 , improve the accuracy of distance calculation. The first phase correction term and the second phase correction term are used to calculate the distance d between the electronic price tag A and other distance measurement feedback. A1 ,…,d AM The third phase correction term is used to calculate the distance d between the ranging feedback 12 ,…,d 1M ,…,d MM-1 .

[0166] After the electronic price tag completes the distance measurement, it needs to re-establish communication with the base station. The electronic price tag then reports its distance measurement results (i.e. all distances) to the price tag communication system through the base station, and the price tag communication system then reports all distance measurement results to the positioning server. Fig.16 This is a flow chart of reporting ranging results in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0167] In one embodiment, the method further comprises:

[0168] When the ranging groups are sent to the price tag communication system in sequence, adjacent ranging groups covered by different base stations are sent at intervals of a first preset time length;

[0169] After receiving the ranging group, the price tag communication system sends a ranging start time interval of the second preset duration in the ranging instruction to the adjacent ranging groups covered by different base stations; when there are adjacent ranging groups covered by the same base station, the ranging instruction is sent to one ranging group of the adjacent ranging groups, and after receiving the feedback ranging result, the ranging instruction is sent to the other ranging group of the adjacent ranging group.

[0170] Specifically, mainly in one-to-many and many-to-many modes, it is necessary to focus on the timing relationship of base station scheduling. In the ranging instruction issued by the base station, it contains the IDs of all price tags in the group price tag and the identity of the corresponding price tag. Therefore, when each price tag performs ranging in the subsequent agreed time slot, it is necessary to confirm whether all time slots are sufficient to accommodate the signal transmission time window required for ranging of all electronic price tags in the group. At the same time, in order to reduce interference in the ranging process, when the positioning server sends the ranging group to the price tag communication system in sequence, for adjacent ranging groups covered by different base stations, the interval is sent at a first preset time length; after receiving the ranging group, the price tag communication system sends the ranging start time interval in the ranging instruction issued to the adjacent ranging groups covered by different base stations for a second preset time length; when there is a same base station covering adjacent ranging groups, a ranging instruction is sent to one ranging group of the adjacent ranging group, and after receiving the feedback ranging result, a ranging instruction is sent to another ranging group of the adjacent ranging group, so that the adjacent ranging groups can be prevented from interfering with each other.

[0171] In addition, the base station can report multiple ranging results in a ranging group at one time, effectively ensuring the timeliness and integrity of the data.

[0172] In step 104, after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, a neighbor relationship network is constructed, wherein each node in the neighbor relationship network represents an electronic price tag, and the edges between the nodes represent the distances between the nodes;

[0173] In one embodiment, after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, a neighbor relationship network is constructed, including:

[0174] Determine an adjacency matrix of the electronic price tag to be located according to the ranging results of all ranging groups, wherein the adjacency matrix includes the distance between each electronic price tag to be located and each located electronic price tag;

[0175] According to the adjacency matrix, a neighbor relationship network is constructed;

[0176] According to the signal strength of the channel detection signals sent by the two electronic price tags, the distance between the two electronic price tags is corrected.

[0177] Specifically, for each electronic price tag P to be located u , the positioning server records the location of each electronic price tag P1, P2, ..., P N The distance measurement data is called the distance matrix.

[0178] Assume that there are N located electronic price tags, whose coordinates are (x1, y1), (x2, t2), ..., (x N ,y N ), the positioning server will get the following data set:

[0179] D u ={d1, d2, ..., d N}

[0180] Among them, d i Indicates that the electronic price tag P is not located u To the located electronic price tag P i distance.

[0181] At this time, the distance information between the electronic price tag to be located and the located electronic price tag forms an adjacency matrix;

[0182] The adjacency matrix has the following form:

[0183]

[0184] where d i，j Represents the distance between price tag i and price tag j.

[0185] According to the adjacency matrix, a neighbor relationship network can be constructed, such as Fig.14 is an example of a neighbor relationship network. Each node represents a price tag. The element A in the matrix ij Indicates the distance between price tag i and price tag j. If there is no direct distance measurement result between i and j, the value is set to infinity, indicating that they cannot be directly connected.

[0186] Subsequently, the distance between the two electronic price tags can be corrected according to the signal strength of the channel detection signals sent by the two electronic price tags.

[0187] In step 105, the position of the electronic price tag to be located is calculated based on the neighbor relationship network and the position of the located electronic price tag.

[0188] In one embodiment, calculating the position of the electronic price tag to be located according to the neighbor relationship network and the position of the located electronic price tag includes:

[0189] Determine the distance between each electronic price tag to be located and the located electronic price tag according to the neighbor relationship network;

[0190] According to the neighbor relationship network, based on the location reliability of the located electronic price tags, the located electronic price tags required for calculating the electronic price tags to be located are screened;

[0191] Use any of the following methods to calculate the position of the electronic price tag to be located according to the distance between the electronic price tag to be located and the desired located electronic price tag:

[0192] Triangulation positioning method, least squares method, weighted shortest path method.

[0193] (1) Triangulation positioning method

[0194] If the exact positions of the three apprentice price tags are known, and the distance between them and the unlocated electronic price tag is known, the position of the unknown price tag can be calculated by triangulation. This method uses the Euclidean distance formula to construct equations and obtains the coordinates of the unknown position by solving the system of equations.

[0195] (2) Least Squares Method

[0196] For multiple located electronic price tags, the least squares method can be used to minimize the measurement error. The least squares method calculates the most suitable coordinates of the unknown location price tag by optimizing the objective function. The objective function is in the form of:

[0197]

[0198] where d i is the distance measurement data between the known price tag and the unknown price tag, (x i ,y i ) are the coordinates of the known price tag.

[0199] (3) Weighted Shortest Path Method

[0200] For complex networks with multiple reference price tags and multiple candidate price tags, a weighted shortest path algorithm can be used to infer the unknown location price tags. The weighted path is calculated by graph theory algorithms (such as Dijkstra or Bellman-Ford). The calculation of the shortest path not only considers the distance, but also adds the weight of factors such as ranging accuracy and signal strength.

[0201] When positioning, the distance corresponding to the electronic price tag with higher positioning reliability is preferred for positioning. Specifically, for the located electronic price tags, the positioning reliability is 1, and the distance of such electronic price tags corresponding to the electronic price tags to be located is preferred for position solution, and the number is selected to be at least 3. When the number is less than 3, the distance of other electronic price tags can be used for supplementary calculation. The remaining electronic price tags here are located electronic price tags, and the positioning reliability of the located electronic price tags can be set to a higher value such as 0.8, and the confidence of the positions obtained by the remaining electronic price tags with different positioning reliability decreases in sequence.

[0202] In one embodiment, the method further comprises:

[0203] Based on the locations of all located electronic price tags, the electronic price tags are mapped to the actual store shelves through a map aggregation algorithm.

[0204] Specifically, after calculating the specific coordinates of the unknown price tag, the map collection algorithm can be used to locate these coordinates in the actual map. The map collection algorithm combines information including but not limited to shelf distribution, product category, historical location, etc. Through further processing of the location data, the calculated coordinates can be accurately mapped to the actual store shelves, thereby improving the accuracy and application value of the positioning system.

[0205] For example, you can use a variety of map collection algorithms, such as spatial clustering algorithm, nearest neighbor algorithm, particle filter algorithm, etc.:

[0206] Spatial clustering algorithm: Spatial clustering (such as K-means clustering algorithm) can be used to cluster similar coordinate points together and assign them to different shelf areas. This is particularly effective for stores with multiple areas with similar layouts.

[0207] Nearest neighbor matching algorithm: Through the nearest neighbor matching algorithm, you can quickly find the shelf area closest to the calculated coordinates and map the coordinates to the corresponding shelf. This is very useful for high-frequency changing products or stores with dynamic layouts.

[0208] Particle filter algorithm: The particle filter algorithm combines positioning accuracy and historical path information, and can correct and optimize position estimates in real time in dynamic environments (such as the movement of goods or changes in shelves).

[0209] In one embodiment, the module for determining the group of price tags to be measured is used to:

[0210] If all electronic price tags are not located, each electronic price tag and all the electronic price tags in the corresponding neighbor relationship list are assigned to a price tag group to be measured;

[0211] Otherwise, for each electronic price tag, at a preset time interval, determine whether the change ratio of the electronic price tags in the neighbor relationship list of the electronic price tag exceeds a preset ratio, and if so, determine that the electronic price tag is a mobile electronic price tag;

[0212] Add the mobile electronic price tag and all the electronic price tags in the corresponding neighbor relationship list to a price tag group to be measured. If the mobile electronic price tag is in the neighbor relationship list of other electronic price tags, add the other electronic price tags to the price tag group to be measured where the mobile electronic price tag is located.

[0213] In one embodiment, the ranging module is used to:

[0214] Mark the ranging role in each price tag group to be measured, wherein the ranging role is a ranging initiator or a ranging feedback receiver. A price tag group to be measured includes a ranging initiator and at least one ranging feedback receiver, and each electronic price tag can only assume one ranging role;

[0215] Forming a plurality of distance measurement groups from at least one price tag group to be measured, wherein the distance measurement group is a price tag group to be measured or a pair of electronic price tags in a price tag group to be measured, wherein the pair of electronic price tags includes a distance measurement initiator and a distance measurement feedback receiver;

[0216] Send ranging packets to the price tag communication system in turn.

[0217] In one embodiment, the ranging module is used to:

[0218] If the electronic price tags in the distance measurement group are not registered under the same base station, a distance measurement instruction is sent to the electronic price tags in the distance measurement group through multiple base stations, and the distance measurement start time in the distance measurement instruction is the same;

[0219] Or, by sending a re-registration command to the current corresponding base station of the electronic price tag in the ranging group, after the designated electronic price tag is re-registered in the designated base station, the designated base station sends a ranging instruction to the electronic price tag in the ranging group, and the re-registration command includes the designated base station where the designated electronic price tag needs to be registered.

[0220] In one embodiment, the neighbor relationship network construction module is used to:

[0221] Determine an adjacency matrix of the electronic price tag to be located according to the ranging results of all ranging groups, wherein the adjacency matrix includes the distance between each electronic price tag to be located and each located electronic price tag;

[0222] According to the adjacency matrix, a neighbor relationship network is constructed, wherein each node in the neighbor relationship network represents an electronic price tag, and the edges between the nodes represent the distances between the nodes;

[0223] According to the signal strength of the channel detection signals sent by the two electronic price tags, the distance between the two electronic price tags is corrected.

[0224] In one embodiment, the positioning module is used to:

[0225] Determine the distance between each electronic price tag to be located and the located electronic price tag according to the neighbor relationship network;

[0226] According to the neighbor relationship network, based on the location reliability of the located electronic price tags, the located electronic price tags required for calculating the electronic price tags to be located are screened;

[0227] Use any of the following methods to calculate the position of the electronic price tag to be located according to the distance between the electronic price tag to be located and the desired located electronic price tag:

[0228] Triangulation positioning method, least squares method, weighted shortest path method.

[0229] In one embodiment, the apparatus further comprises a mapping module, configured to:

[0230] Based on the locations of all located electronic price tags, the electronic price tags are mapped to the actual store shelves through a map aggregation algorithm.

[0231] In summary, the method, device, and system proposed in the embodiments of the present invention have the following beneficial effects:

[0232] The positioning server can obtain a neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags to be analyzed, each neighbor relationship list contains multiple electronic price tags that can receive identity information from each other within a preset inspection time window, and each neighbor relationship list includes located electronic price tags and electronic price tags to be located; according to the neighbor relationship lists of all electronic price tags, at least one price tag group to be measured is determined; after marking the ranging role in each price tag group to be measured, at least one price tag group to be measured is formed into multiple ranging groups, and the ranging groups are sent to the price tag communication system in sequence, so that after receiving the ranging group, the price tag communication system issues a ranging instruction to the electronic price tags in the ranging group, and after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, it is fed back to the positioning server; the ranging parameters in the ranging instruction are used for the electronic price tags to execute the ranging process to obtain the ranging results; after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, a neighbor relationship network is constructed, wherein each node in the neighbor relationship network represents an electronic price tag, and the edge between the nodes represents the distance between the nodes; according to the neighbor relationship network and the position of the located electronic price tag, the position of the electronic price tag to be located is calculated. Through the above process, after obtaining the neighbor relationship list of the electronic price tag, the ranging of all the electronic price tags can be performed according to the marked ranging role. The ranging results can build a neighbor relationship network, so as to quickly and accurately determine the position of the electronic price tag to be located. Compared with directly calculating the position of the electronic price tag to be located through the position of the located electronic price tag in the neighbor relationship list, the additional ranging greatly improves the accuracy of the electronic price tag positioning. The whole process does not require an AOA base station and is highly efficient.

[0233] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer device, Fig.17 17 is a schematic diagram of a computer device in an embodiment of the present invention. The computer device 1700 includes a memory 1710, a processor 1720, and a computer program 1730 stored in the memory 1710 and executable on the processor 1720. When the processor 1720 executes the computer program 1730, the above-mentioned electronic price tag positioning method is implemented.

[0234] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer-readable storage medium, wherein the computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, the electronic price label positioning method is implemented.

[0235] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer program product, which includes a computer program. When the computer program is executed by a processor, the electronic price label positioning method is implemented.

[0236] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that embodiments of the present invention may be provided as methods, systems, or computer program products. Therefore, the present invention may take the form of a complete hardware embodiment, a complete software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware. Moreover, the present invention may take the form of a computer program product implemented on one or more computer-usable storage media (including but not limited to disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, etc.) containing computer-usable program code.

[0237] The present invention is described with reference to flowcharts and / or block diagrams of methods, devices (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of the present invention. It should be understood that each process and / or block in the flowchart and / or block diagram, as well as the combination of processes and / or blocks in the flowchart and / or block diagram, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, an embedded processor, or other programmable data processing device to produce a machine, so that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing device generate instructions for implementing the processes in the flowchart and / or block diagram. Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A device that provides the functions specified in a block or multiple blocks.

[0238] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory capable of directing a computer or other programmable data processing device to operate in a specific manner, so that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture comprising an instruction device, which implements the process Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A function specified in one or more boxes.

[0239] These computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing device so that a series of operating steps are executed on the computer or other programmable device to produce a computer-implemented process, thereby providing instructions for implementing the process. Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 The steps for the functions specified in one or more boxes.

[0240] The specific embodiments described above further illustrate the objectives, technical solutions and beneficial effects of the present invention in detail. It should be understood that the above description is only a specific embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc. made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included in the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for locating an electronic price label, characterized in that: Applied to positioning servers, including: Obtaining a neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags to be analyzed, each neighbor relationship list contains multiple electronic price tags that can receive identity information from each other within a preset inspection time window, and each neighbor relationship list includes located electronic price tags and electronic price tags to be located; Determine at least one price tag group to be measured based on the neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags, each price tag group to be measured includes multiple electronic price tags; After marking the ranging role in each price tag group to be measured, at least one price tag group to be measured is formed into multiple ranging groups, and the ranging groups are sent to the price tag communication system in sequence, so that after receiving the ranging group, the price tag communication system issues a ranging instruction to the electronic price tags in the ranging group, and after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, it feeds back to the positioning server; the ranging parameters in the ranging instruction are used for the electronic price tag to execute the ranging process to obtain the ranging result, and each ranging group includes at least two electronic price tags; After receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, a neighbor relationship network is constructed, wherein each node in the neighbor relationship network represents an electronic price tag, and the edges between the nodes represent the distance between the nodes; The position of the electronic price tag to be located is calculated according to the neighbor relationship network and the position of the located electronic price tag.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that According to the neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags, at least one price tag group to be measured is determined, including: If all electronic price tags are not located, multiple relationship weight division threshold ranges are determined according to the minimum number of price tag groups to be measured, and the electronic price tags with relationship weights in the same relationship weight division threshold range are divided into one price tag group to be measured; Otherwise, for each electronic price tag, at a preset time interval, determine whether the change ratio of the electronic price tags in the neighbor relationship list of the electronic price tag exceeds a preset ratio, and if so, determine that the electronic price tag is a mobile electronic price tag; Add the mobile electronic price tag and all the electronic price tags in the corresponding neighbor relationship list to a price tag group to be measured. If the mobile electronic price tag is in the neighbor relationship list of other electronic price tags, add the other electronic price tags to the price tag group to be measured where the mobile electronic price tag is located.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that Determine the minimum number of price tag groups to be measured by solving the following formula: minG esl Among them, G es l is the number of price tag groups to be measured, For g es The number of electronic price tags in the l price tag group to be measured, g esl =1,...,G esl , N es l,min is the number of electronic price tags that should be contained in each price tag group to be measured, N es l,max is the maximum number of electronic price tags in each price tag group to be measured, RSSI es l,min is the minimum received signal strength of the electronic price tag, RSSI es l,max is the maximum value of the received signal strength of the electronic price tag, For the g esl The average value of the received signal strength of the electronic price tags in the price tag group to be measured.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that After marking the ranging role in each price tag group to be measured, at least one price tag group to be measured is formed into a plurality of ranging groups, and the ranging groups are sent to the price tag communication system in sequence, including: Mark the ranging role in each price tag group to be measured, wherein the ranging role is a ranging initiator or a ranging feedback receiver. A price tag group to be measured includes a ranging initiator and at least one ranging feedback receiver, and each electronic price tag can only assume one ranging role; Forming a plurality of distance measurement groups from at least one price tag group to be measured, wherein the distance measurement group is a price tag group to be measured or a pair of electronic price tags in a price tag group to be measured, wherein the pair of electronic price tags includes a distance measurement initiator and a distance measurement feedback receiver; Send ranging packets to the price tag communication system in turn.

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that Sending distance measurement instructions to the electronic price tags in the distance measurement group includes: If the electronic price tags in the distance measurement group are not registered under the same base station, distance measurement instructions are sent to the electronic price tags in the distance measurement group through multiple base stations, and the distance measurement start time in the distance measurement instructions is the same, so that the electronic price tags in the distance measurement group start distance measurement at the same time.

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that Sending distance measurement instructions to the electronic price tags in the distance measurement group includes: By sending a re-registration command to the current corresponding base station of the electronic price tag in the ranging group, after the designated electronic price tag is re-registered in the designated base station, the designated base station sends a ranging instruction to the electronic price tag in the ranging group, and the re-registration command includes the designated base station where the designated electronic price tag needs to be registered.

7. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The ranging parameters in the ranging instruction include at least the channel detection type, the identification and ranging role of the electronic price tag, the ranging cycle, the ranging mode, the ranging start time, the ranging frequency range, the signal transmission time window length, the signal transmission power, the signal reception time window length, the single ranging time length and the number of ranging times.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that When the ranging mode is one-to-one, the steps of the ranging process include: In each ranging cycle, the ranging initiator sends a channel detection signal to the ranging feedback receiver at a fixed frequency point in the ranging cycle; and waits to receive the feedback channel detection signal to obtain a second phase correction item; After receiving the channel detection signal, the ranging feedback party obtains the first phase correction term and feeds back the channel detection signal to the ranging initiator at a fixed frequency point within the period; The ranging initiator and the ranging feedback receiver respectively calculate the distance according to the following steps: after completing the interaction of at least one ranging cycle, the distance between the ranging initiator and the ranging feedback receiver is determined according to the first phase correction item and the second phase correction item corresponding to at least one fixed frequency point, and the distance is used as the ranging result.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that After completing the interaction of at least one ranging cycle, determining the distance between the ranging initiator and the ranging feedback provider according to the first phase correction item and the second phase correction item corresponding to at least one fixed frequency point includes: After completing a ranging cycle interaction, the distance d between the ranging initiator and the ranging feedback is determined using the following formula: PCT R,k =Df k +φ A -f B PCT I,k =Df k +φ B -f A Where c is the propagation speed of electromagnetic waves, φ A is the initial phase of the channel detection signal sent by the ranging initiator, φ B is the initial phase of the channel detection signal sent by the ranging feedback, Δφ k is the phase change of the channel detection signal after passing through distance d, f k For fixed frequency, PCT R,k and PCT I,k f k corresponding first phase correction term and second phase correction term; After completing the interaction of two ranging cycles, the distance d between the ranging initiator and the ranging feedback is determined using the following formula: Among them, f k-1 To distinguish from f k Fixed frequency, PCT R,k-1 and PCT I,k-1 f k-1 corresponding first phase correction term and second phase correction term; After completing the interaction of more than two ranging cycles, the distance corresponding to each ranging cycle is obtained, and the distance between the ranging initiator and the ranging feedback is determined after linear fitting of multiple distances.

10. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that When the ranging mode is one-to-many, the steps of the ranging process include: In each ranging cycle, the ranging initiator sends a channel detection signal at a fixed frequency within the corresponding signal sending time window, and waits for receiving the channel detection signal within the signal sending time window corresponding to each ranging feedback receiver, and obtains the second phase correction item corresponding to each ranging feedback receiver. When the ranging mode is one-to-many, only one electronic price tag in the price tag group to be ranged is the ranging initiator, and the rest of the electronic price tags are ranging feedback receivers. Each ranging feedback receiver waits for receiving a channel detection signal within a signal transmission time window length corresponding to the ranging initiator, obtains a first phase correction term, and feeds back a channel detection signal to the ranging initiator at a fixed frequency within a signal transmission time window length corresponding to each ranging feedback receiver; The ranging initiator and the ranging feedback receiver respectively calculate the distance according to the following steps: after completing the interaction of at least one ranging cycle, for each ranging feedback receiver, according to the first phase correction item corresponding to at least one fixed frequency point and the second phase correction item corresponding to the ranging feedback receiver, the distance between the ranging initiator and the ranging feedback receiver is determined as the ranging result.

11. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that When the ranging mode is many-to-many, the steps of the ranging process include: In each ranging cycle, the ranging initiator sends a channel detection signal at a fixed frequency within the corresponding signal transmission time window, and waits for the channel detection signal to be fed back within the signal transmission time window corresponding to each ranging feedback receiver, and obtains the second phase correction item corresponding to each ranging feedback receiver. When the ranging mode is many-to-many, only one electronic price tag in the price tag group to be ranged is the ranging initiator, and the rest of the electronic price tags are ranging feedback receivers. Each ranging feedback receiver waits to receive a channel detection signal within the signal transmission time window length corresponding to the ranging initiator, obtains a first phase correction item, feeds back a channel detection signal to the ranging initiator at a fixed frequency within the signal transmission time window length corresponding to each ranging feedback receiver, and waits to receive a channel detection signal sent by other ranging feedback receivers within the signal transmission time window length corresponding to other ranging feedback receivers, and obtains a third phase correction item; The ranging initiator and the ranging feedback receiver respectively calculate the distance according to the following steps: after completing the interaction of at least one ranging cycle, for each ranging feedback receiver, according to the first phase correction item corresponding to at least one fixed frequency point and the second phase correction item corresponding to the ranging feedback receiver, determine the distance between the ranging initiator and the ranging feedback receiver as the ranging result; The distance between the distance measurement feedback parties is determined according to the following steps: the distance between the distance measurement feedback parties is determined according to the third phase correction item corresponding to at least one fixed frequency point as the distance measurement result.

12. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that Also includes: When the ranging groups are sent to the price tag communication system in sequence, adjacent ranging groups covered by different base stations are sent at intervals of a first preset time length; After receiving the ranging group, the price tag communication system sends a ranging start time interval of the second preset duration in the ranging instruction to the adjacent ranging groups covered by different base stations; when there are adjacent ranging groups covered by the same base station, the ranging instruction is sent to one ranging group of the adjacent ranging groups, and after receiving the feedback ranging result, the ranging instruction is sent to the other ranging group of the adjacent ranging groups.

13. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that After receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, a neighbor relationship network is constructed, including: Determine an adjacency matrix of the electronic price tag to be located according to the ranging results of all ranging groups, wherein the adjacency matrix includes the distance between each electronic price tag to be located and each located electronic price tag; According to the adjacency matrix, a neighbor relationship network is constructed, wherein each node in the neighbor relationship network represents an electronic price tag, and the edges between the nodes represent the distances between the nodes; According to the signal strength of the channel detection signals sent by the two electronic price tags, the distance between the two electronic price tags is corrected.

14. The method according to claim 1, wherein: Calculating the position of the electronic price tag to be located according to the neighbor relationship network and the position of the located electronic price tag includes: Determine the distance between each electronic price tag to be located and the located electronic price tag according to the neighbor relationship network; According to the neighbor relationship network, based on the location reliability of the located electronic price tags, the located electronic price tags required for calculating the electronic price tags to be located are screened; Use any of the following methods to calculate the position of the electronic price tag to be located according to the distance between the electronic price tag to be located and the desired located electronic price tag: Triangulation positioning method, least squares method, weighted shortest path method.

15. The method according to claim 1, wherein: Also includes: Based on the locations of all located electronic price tags, the electronic price tags are mapped to the actual store shelves through a map aggregation algorithm.

16. An electronic price label positioning device, characterized in that: Applied to positioning servers, including: A neighbor relationship list acquisition module is used to obtain neighbor relationship lists of all electronic price tags to be analyzed, each neighbor relationship list contains multiple electronic price tags that can receive identity information from each other within a preset inspection time window, and each neighbor relationship list includes located electronic price tags and electronic price tags to be located; A module for determining a price tag group to be measured, used to determine at least one price tag group to be measured according to a neighbor relationship list of all electronic price tags, each price tag group to be measured includes a plurality of electronic price tags; The ranging module is used to mark the ranging role in each price tag group to be measured, form multiple ranging groups with at least one price tag group to be measured, and send the ranging groups to the price tag communication system in sequence, so that after receiving the ranging group, the price tag communication system issues a ranging instruction to the electronic price tags in the ranging group, and after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, feeds back to the positioning server; the ranging parameters in the ranging instruction are used for the electronic price tag to execute the ranging process to obtain the ranging result, and each ranging group includes at least two electronic price tags; A neighbor relationship network construction module is used to construct a neighbor relationship network after receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, wherein each node in the neighbor relationship network represents an electronic price tag, and the edges between the nodes represent the distances between the nodes; The positioning module is used to calculate the position of the electronic price tag to be positioned according to the neighbor relationship network and the position of the positioned electronic price tag.

17. An electronic price label positioning system, characterized in that: include: A price tag communication system, a base station, an electronic price tag, and an electronic price tag positioning device as claimed in claim 16; Price tag communication system for: After receiving the distance measurement group, the base station sends a distance measurement instruction to the electronic price tag in the distance measurement group; After receiving the ranging results of all ranging groups, feedback is sent to the positioning server; The electronic price tag is used to: execute the distance measurement process to obtain the distance measurement result according to the distance measurement parameters in the distance measurement instruction, and feed back the distance measurement result to the price tag communication system through the base station.

18. A computer device comprising a memory, a processor and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, characterized in that: When the processor executes the computer program, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 15 is implemented.

19. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 15 is implemented.

20. A computer program product, characterized in that The computer program product comprises a computer program, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 15 is implemented.

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