Geolocationing System Using Gateway Arrays for Spatial Awareness
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Employees in hospitality environments face increased personal security risks due to limited existing security measures in multi-room environments, necessitating improved systems and methods for providing awareness and safety.
Innovation Solution
A geolocationing system utilizing a vertical and horizontal array of gateway devices with wireless transceivers that receive beacon signals from personal locator devices, processing them to determine the estimated location of individuals within the environment and sending gateway signals to a server for enhanced safety and awareness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a geolocationing system with multiple gateway devices is deployed throughout the hospitality environment, then security awareness and safety monitoring are improved, but device complexity and system cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the hospitality environment into multiple zones with distributed gateway devices, each independently monitoring its local area. Gateway devices are placed in strategic locations throughout the building, creating segmented monitoring zones that collectively provide comprehensive coverage without requiring a single complex centralized system
Solution Approach 2:
Gateway devices are designed to perform multiple functions: monitoring employee locations, detecting emergencies, providing navigation assistance, and collecting operational data. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate systems while enhancing overall security awareness and operational efficiency
2Measurement precision
If gateway devices are placed in a vertical and horizontal array throughout the environment, then location determination accuracy is improved, but device complexity and installation difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from two-dimensional floor plan monitoring to three-dimensional spatial tracking by placing gateway devices in vertical arrays across multiple floors. This vertical dimension addition enables accurate location determination in multi-story buildings while maintaining standardized device configurations that simplify deployment
Solution Approach 2:
Gateway devices are pre-configured with standardized settings and protocols before deployment. The system performs preliminary calibration and establishes communication protocols in advance, reducing on-site configuration complexity and enabling rapid deployment across multiple locations
3Measurement precision
If time of arrival modeling is used to determine employee location, then location precision is improved, but processing time and computational requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses periodic beacon transmissions from employee wearables at standardized intervals rather than continuous monitoring. This periodic action provides sufficient location precision through time-of-arrival measurements while reducing computational processing time and energy consumption compared to continuous tracking
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system effectively provides enhanced awareness and safety by accurately determining the location of individuals within a multi-space environment, enabling timely notifications and alerts, thereby improving security in hospitality and similar settings.
Implementation Method 1
Each gateway device includes at least one wireless transceiver that receives a beacon signal from a proximate wireless-enabled personal locator device
Implementation Method 2
Gateway devices, in turn, send gateway signals to a server, which determine estimated location of the proximate wireless-enabled personal location device with time of arrival modeling
Data Source
AI summary
A geolocationing system and method for providing awareness in a multi-space environment, such as a hospitality environment or educational environment, are presented. In one embodiment of the geolocationing system, a vertical and horizontal array of gateway devices is provided. Each gateway device includes a gateway device identification providing an accurately-known fixed location within the multi-space environment. Each gateway device includes a wireless transceiver that receives a beacon signal from a proximate wireless-enabled personal locator device. The gateway devices, in turn, send gateway signals to a server, which determines estimated location of the wireless-enabled personal locator device with time of arrival modeling.