Global Bag Tag Tracking for GNSS-Denied Luggage Rerouting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Families traveling with luggage face challenges in handling and securing their luggage items, especially when multiple items need to be transported together and when left unattended during excursions, and existing luggage tracking systems are limited to airport infrastructure and require costly upgrades.
Innovation Solution
A global bag tag system that includes a tracking device affixed to luggage items, capable of communicating via various protocols, and a computing system that processes information from baggage source messages to track and reroute luggage items, even in GNSS-denied environments, providing location data and delivery instructions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a global bag tag system with tracking devices is implemented, then luggage tracking capability and security are improved, but device complexity and infrastructure requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the tracking functionality into independent tracking devices attached to individual luggage items, each capable of autonomous operation. This segmentation allows the overall system to achieve high reliability through distributed tracking while managing complexity by making each component self-contained and modular.
Solution Approach 2:
The tracking devices are designed to work across multiple transportation modes (air, land, sea) and communicate through various protocols (cellular, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, satellite). This multi-functionality enables a single device design to serve universal tracking needs, improving reliability across different contexts without proportionally increasing complexity.
2Adaptability or versatility
If tracking devices communicate via multiple protocols including satellite, then coverage in GNSS-denied environments is improved, but energy consumption and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The tracking device dynamically selects and switches between communication protocols based on environmental conditions and availability. The system adapts its communication strategy in real-time, using satellite communication when needed but falling back to lower-power protocols like cellular or Wi-Fi when available, thereby maintaining environmental adaptability while managing energy consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The device changes its operational parameters including communication protocol selection, transmission power levels, and sampling intervals based on environmental conditions. This allows the system to maintain adaptability across different environments while optimizing energy usage by adjusting parameters rather than always operating at maximum capability.
3Reliability
If real-time location monitoring is provided independent of mobile devices, then luggage security and tracking reliability are improved, but system cost and infrastructure requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The tracking device operates autonomously without requiring the passenger's mobile device to function. It independently determines its location using multiple protocols and communicates status to authorized parties. This self-service capability ensures tracking reliability even when mobile devices are unavailable, while the use of commercial off-the-shelf communication hardware helps manage infrastructure complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a global bag tag system and method of use, the method including: assigning, by at least one of at least one processor, a tracking device to a luggage item of a passenger; loading, by at least one of the at least one processor, information from a baggage source message (BSM) into the tracking device; and sending, by the tracking device, location information to a network interface of a computing system associated with the at least one processor, wherein the location information comprises location coordinate data of the tracking device and the information from the BSM.