Indoor Navigation via WiFi and Machine-Readable Tags
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional GPS receivers fail to function properly in indoor areas due to signal attenuation and reflection by building structures, necessitating alternative methods for accurate location determination and navigation within facilities.
Innovation Solution
A method utilizing a portable electronic device with a local navigation app that employs WiFi signals, machine-readable tags (such as QR codes or RFID), and a server to provide navigation information, allowing users to select and store return locations, and display maps to facilitate item selection and navigation within facilities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional GPS receivers are used for location determination, then outdoor navigation is achieved, but indoor location accuracy deteriorates due to signal attenuation and reflection
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces WiFi access points and machine-readable tags as intermediary objects within the facility environment. These intermediaries emit or display location-identifying signals that the portable device can detect, replacing the direct satellite-GPS receiver connection with an indirect localization method suitable for indoor environments.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the GPS satellite-based electromagnetic signal system with alternative localization mechanisms including WiFi signal triangulation and machine-readable tag recognition. This substitution enables location determination to function effectively in indoor environments where satellite signals are blocked.
2Measurement precision
If WiFi signals and machine-readable tags are used for indoor navigation, then indoor location accuracy is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the portable electronic device multi-functional by enabling it to operate with multiple localization methods (GPS for outdoor, WiFi for indoor, machine-readable tags for precise item location). The device automatically or manually switches between these modes based on environment, eliminating the need for separate specialized devices.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables the portable device to automatically detect the environment type and select appropriate localization methods without user intervention. The device self-manages the complexity of multiple positioning systems by autonomously determining which method to employ based on available signals and environmental context.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple return locations are stored and managed, then navigation flexibility is improved, but information management complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary action by automatically storing the current location as a return location whenever the user enters a facility or visits a new area. This pre-storing of locations eliminates the need for manual location management later, as the system has already captured and organized these destinations for quick recall and navigation.
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
Enables accurate indoor navigation and item location within facilities by leveraging WiFi signals and machine-readable tags, overcoming GPS limitations and providing users with efficient path calculation and item selection tools.
Implementation Method 1
WiFi signals from access points presently located within many buildings can be used to locate a modern smartphone at an accuracy within 2.5 meters
Implementation Method 2
a camera, and many users of smartphones have downloaded an app for reading QR codes (a trademark taken from 'quick response'), which are of a particular type of matrix (two-dimensional) bar code
Implementation Method 3
RFID (radio frequency identification) tags have also been used to provide indoor, as well as outdoor, location information
Data Source
AI summary
A portable electronic device connected over a network to a server is used to guide a person using the device to return to a location he chooses and to find one or more selected items within a facility, with the location of the device being tracked using radio frequency signals generated within the facility or GPS signals from satellites. The process of connecting to the server may be started when a bar code is photographed using a camera within the device, or when an RFID tag is read by a reader within the device. Location processes are provided for finding a vehicle left in a parking area, and for locating items that are additionally described in messages displayed on the electronic device.