Indoor Location Server Using WiFi and Bluetooth Mediators
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing location-based services struggle to provide accurate and reliable positioning in indoor environments due to limitations of satellite-based systems and the need for venue-specific data that is often proprietary and not widely available.
Innovation Solution
A method and system for providing location services using a location server that receives requests for location information, processes venue-specific identifications, and sends responses, including analytics reports, using a combination of WiFi and Bluetooth signals, and supports trigger and group conditions for mobile devices within specific areas.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If satellite-based positioning systems are used, then outdoor location services are enabled, but indoor positioning accuracy deteriorates due to signal blockage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary positioning system using WiFi access points and Bluetooth signals as mediators between mobile devices and the positioning server. These intermediaries relay positioning signals through indoor environments where satellite signals are blocked, enabling accurate indoor positioning by measuring signal characteristics from these intermediary sources.
Solution Approach 2:
The positioning system achieves universality by supporting both satellite-based positioning for outdoor environments and WiFi/Bluetooth-based positioning for indoor environments through a unified location server. This multi-functional approach allows the same system to provide reliable positioning services across different environments without requiring separate specialized systems.
2Measurement precision
If venue-specific data is used to improve indoor positioning accuracy, then measurement precision improves, but device complexity increases due to proprietary data requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables self-service by allowing venue operators to contribute their own WiFi access point locations and Bluetooth beacon data to the location server. This self-provisioning mechanism reduces the burden on the system to pre-collect all venue-specific data, as venues can independently add and update their own positioning infrastructure information.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-configuring venue-specific positioning data including WiFi access point locations, Bluetooth beacon positions, and floor plan geometries before mobile devices enter the venue. This pre-provisioning of positioning infrastructure data enables accurate positioning to be achieved without real-time complexity, as the foundational data is already in place.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple identification systems are supported, then adaptability improves, but information loss increases due to proprietary format incompatibility
Solution Approach 1:
The location server acts as an intermediary that receives venue-specific identification data in various proprietary formats from different venues and converts them into a unified standardized format. This intermediary translation layer preserves the original venue-specific information while enabling consistent processing and querying across diverse venue types, preventing information loss due to format incompatibility.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of providing location services at a location server for a venue includes: receiving a request for location service, where the request for location service comprises at least one of a first identification of at least one mobile device or an identification of a target area; and sending a response, where the response comprises at least one of a second identification of at least one mobile device or an identification of a geographic area, where at least one of the first identification of at least one mobile device, the second identification of at least one mobile device, the identification of the target area, or the identification of the geographic area comprises a venue-specific identification.