Indoor Navigation Map Processing Using Directed Graphs
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Solution Overview
Problem
GPS technology is ineffective for providing directions in indoor locations due to signal penetration issues, requiring laborious manual processing that is often ineffective for providing routes to specific locations within indoor environments.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method processes an indoor space map to generate a directed graph, distinguishing navigable areas from non-navigable areas, and constructs a navigation table to identify the shortest route between locations, enabling efficient navigation guidance through a mobile-accessible map.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If GPS technology is used for providing directions, then outdoor navigation is effective, but indoor navigation becomes ineffective due to signal penetration issues
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary system consisting of indoor beacons and mobile device sensors that mediate between the user and navigation information. Instead of relying on GPS satellites that cannot penetrate buildings, the system uses local indoor beacons that emit signals detectable by mobile devices, creating a intermediary communication layer that enables indoor positioning and navigation guidance.
2Ease of operation
If manual processing is used to identify routes to indoor locations, then directions can be provided along specific routes, but the process becomes laborious and ineffective for comprehensive location coverage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the manual mechanical process of route identification with an automated computational system. The mobile device automatically captures images of the environment, processes them through image recognition algorithms to identify landmarks and navigation elements, and generates turn-by-turn directions without human intervention, dramatically improving both efficiency and comprehensiveness of route coverage.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-service navigation where the mobile device autonomously performs image capture, processing, landmark identification, and route calculation. The device serves itself by using its own camera, processor, and sensors to navigate without requiring manual route planning or external assistance, making the navigation process both efficient and scalable to any location.
3Adaptability or versatility
If a detailed map of the entire indoor space is processed to enable navigation to any location, then comprehensive route coverage is achieved, but processing time and computational resources increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-processing the map during an initial phase to identify and extract key landmarks, navigation elements, and spatial relationships before actual navigation begins. This preliminary processing creates a simplified structural representation of the indoor space that can be quickly queried during navigation, avoiding the need to process the entire detailed map every time a route is needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the detailed indoor map into discrete, meaningful units such as landmarks, navigation elements, and spatial zones. Instead of processing the continuous detailed map as a whole, the system divides it into segmentable components that can be independently identified and referenced, reducing computational complexity while maintaining the ability to provide comprehensive navigation to any location.
Data Source
AI summary
Directions are provided to a location in an indoor space in response to receiving a request from a mobile device. First, a map of the indoor space is processed to identify navigable areas in the indoor space. A distance transform is then executed on the map as part of a process to generate a directed graph. The directed graph includes nodes that correspond to points in the indoor space and paths that correspond to routes between the nodes. Next, a navigation table is generated based on the directed graph to identify a shortest route from each node to at least one other node. In response to a request for directions to a location in the indoor space, the navigation table is accessed to identify a route to the requested location. The identified route is then provided to a mobile device such that an end user may navigate to the location.