Passive Indoor Occupancy Detection Using Mobile Beacon Tracking
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current building automation systems face challenges in accurately tracking individuals within a building while minimizing user impact, as existing methods such as WiFi triangulation, GPS, QR codes, and Bluetooth beacons either require user participation, are power-intensive, or are not suitable for indoor environments with multiple users.
Innovation Solution
A passive indoor location tracking system using mobile computing devices that receive beacon signals from distributed beacons, transmitting encoded alpha-numeric strings via Bluetooth and WiFi/3G/4G to a building automation system for occupancy detection and location tracking, allowing for environmental adjustments based on user presence.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If WiFi triangulation is used to track user positions, then location tracking capability is improved, but infrastructure cost and maintenance burden increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses mobile devices as intermediaries to carry out tracking functions. Instead of deploying complex WiFi triangulation infrastructure, the system leverages existing mobile devices with Bluetooth capabilities to receive beacon signals and report locations, thereby avoiding direct investment in expensive tracking infrastructure while maintaining location tracking capability
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses copies of beacon identifiers transmitted by mobile devices to determine location. Rather than directly measuring physical signals for triangulation, the system uses copied beacon codes from multiple beacons that mobile devices report back, simplifying the infrastructure requirements while preserving location tracking functionality
2Measurement precision
If GPS signals are used to determine user location, then outdoor location accuracy is improved, but power consumption increases and indoor penetration fails
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the location tracking function into two parts: GPS for outdoor coarse location and Bluetooth beacons for indoor precise location. This segmentation allows the system to use the appropriate method for each environment, reducing power consumption by not continuously using GPS and achieving accurate indoor tracking through beacon segments distributed throughout the building
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the operational parameters of location tracking by switching from satellite-based GPS to ground-based Bluetooth beacons for indoor environments. This parameter change enables the system to adapt to different environments (outdoor vs. indoor) and maintain tracking accuracy while significantly reducing power consumption in indoor settings
3Measurement precision
If QR codes are scanned to communicate user location, then occupancy detection is achieved, but explicit user participation is required
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements self-service tracking where mobile devices automatically scan and report beacon identifiers without requiring user action. The tracking function serves itself by utilizing the mobile device's existing Bluetooth capability to passively receive beacon signals and automatically transmit location data, eliminating the need for explicit user participation while maintaining accurate occupancy detection
4Measurement precision
If Bluetooth beacons are used for location tracking, then indoor location capability is improved, but user notification disruptions occur
Solution Approach 1:
The system inverts the traditional beacon approach by having beacons transmit location data passively to mobile devices rather than actively notifying users. Instead of beacons pushing notifications to users, the mobile device pulls location information by scanning beacon identifiers and reporting them, thereby eliminating unwanted user notifications while preserving indoor location tracking capability
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
An approach to determine occupancy of a space passively with smart devices (300), where the smart device (300) detects a beacon (270a) associated with a room or area in a building.