A Survey of Indoor Inertial Positioning Systems for Pedestrians

doi:10.1109/SURV.2012.121912.00075

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A Survey of Indoor Inertial Positioning Systems for Pedestrians

Journal Article•DOI•

A Survey of Indoor Inertial Positioning Systems for Pedestrians

Robert Harle¹•Institutions (1)

University of Cambridge¹

09 Jan 2013-IEEE Communications Surveys and Tutorials (IEEE)-Vol. 15, Iss: 3, pp 1281-1293

TL;DR: It is concluded that PDR techniques alone can offer good short- to medium- term tracking under certain circumstances, but that regular absolute position fixes from partner systems will be needed to ensure long-term operation and to cope with unexpected behaviours.

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Abstract: With the continual miniaturisation of sensors and processing nodes, Pedestrian Dead Reckoning (PDR) systems are becoming feasible options for indoor tracking. These use inertial and other sensors, often combined with domain-specific knowledge about walking, to track user movements. There is currently a wealth of relevant literature spread across different research communities. In this survey, a taxonomy of modern PDRs is developed and used to contextualise the contributions from different areas. Techniques for step detection, characterisation, inertial navigation and step-and-heading-based dead-reckoning are reviewed and compared. Techniques that incorporate building maps through particle filters are analysed, along with hybrid systems that use absolute position fixes to correct dead-reckoning output. In addition, consideration is given to the possibility of using smartphones as PDR sensing devices. The survey concludes that PDR techniques alone can offer good short- to medium- term tracking under certain circumstances, but that regular absolute position fixes from partner systems will be needed to ensure long-term operation and to cope with unexpected behaviours. It concludes by identifying a detailed list of challenges for PDR researchers.

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Journal Article•DOI•

A Survey of Indoor Localization Systems and Technologies

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Faheem Zafari¹, Athanasios Gkelias¹, Kin K. Leung¹•Institutions (1)

Imperial College London¹

16 Apr 2019-IEEE Communications Surveys and Tutorials

TL;DR: This paper aims to provide a detailed survey of different indoor localization techniques, such as angle of arrival (AoA), time of flight (ToF), return time ofFlight (RTOF), and received signal strength (RSS) based on technologies that have been proposed in the literature.

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Abstract: Indoor localization has recently witnessed an increase in interest, due to the potential wide range of services it can provide by leveraging Internet of Things (IoT), and ubiquitous connectivity. Different techniques, wireless technologies and mechanisms have been proposed in the literature to provide indoor localization services in order to improve the services provided to the users. However, there is a lack of an up-to-date survey paper that incorporates some of the recently proposed accurate and reliable localization systems. In this paper, we aim to provide a detailed survey of different indoor localization techniques, such as angle of arrival (AoA), time of flight (ToF), return time of flight (RTOF), and received signal strength (RSS); based on technologies, such as WiFi, radio frequency identification device (RFID), ultra wideband (UWB), Bluetooth, and systems that have been proposed in the literature. This paper primarily discusses localization and positioning of human users and their devices. We highlight the strengths of the existing systems proposed in the literature. In contrast with the existing surveys, we also evaluate different systems from the perspective of energy efficiency, availability, cost, reception range, latency, scalability, and tracking accuracy. Rather than comparing the technologies or techniques, we compare the localization systems and summarize their working principle. We also discuss remaining challenges to accurate indoor localization.

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1,447 citations

Journal Article•DOI•

Wi-Fi Fingerprint-Based Indoor Positioning: Recent Advances and Comparisons

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Suining He¹, S.-H. Gary Chan¹•Institutions (1)

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology¹

21 Jan 2016-IEEE Communications Surveys and Tutorials

TL;DR: This survey overviews recent advances on two major areas of Wi-Fi fingerprint localization: advanced localization techniques and efficient system deployment.

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Abstract: The growing commercial interest in indoor location-based services (ILBS) has spurred recent development of many indoor positioning techniques. Due to the absence of global positioning system (GPS) signal, many other signals have been proposed for indoor usage. Among them, Wi-Fi (802.11) emerges as a promising one due to the pervasive deployment of wireless LANs (WLANs). In particular, Wi-Fi fingerprinting has been attracting much attention recently because it does not require line-of-sight measurement of access points (APs) and achieves high applicability in complex indoor environment. This survey overviews recent advances on two major areas of Wi-Fi fingerprint localization: advanced localization techniques and efficient system deployment. Regarding advanced techniques to localize users, we present how to make use of temporal or spatial signal patterns, user collaboration, and motion sensors. Regarding efficient system deployment, we discuss recent advances on reducing offline labor-intensive survey, adapting to fingerprint changes, calibrating heterogeneous devices for signal collection, and achieving energy efficiency for smartphones. We study and compare the approaches through our deployment experiences, and discuss some future directions.

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1,069 citations

Journal Article•DOI•

Location Fingerprinting With Bluetooth Low Energy Beacons

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Ramsey Faragher¹, Robert Harle¹•Institutions (1)

University of Cambridge¹

06 May 2015-IEEE Journal on Selected Areas in Communications

TL;DR: This work provides a detailed study of BLE fingerprinting using 19 beacons distributed around a ~600 m2 testbed to position a consumer device, and investigates the choice of key parameters in a BLE positioning system, including beacon density, transmit power, and transmit frequency.

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Abstract: The complexity of indoor radio propagation has resulted in location-awareness being derived from empirical fingerprinting techniques, where positioning is performed via a previously-constructed radio map, usually of WiFi signals. The recent introduction of the Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) radio protocol provides new opportunities for indoor location. It supports portable battery-powered beacons that can be easily distributed at low cost, giving it distinct advantages over WiFi. However, its differing use of the radio band brings new challenges too. In this work, we provide a detailed study of BLE fingerprinting using 19 beacons distributed around a $\sim\! 600\ \mbox{m}^2$ testbed to position a consumer device. We demonstrate the high susceptibility of BLE to fast fading, show how to mitigate this, and quantify the true power cost of continuous BLE scanning. We further investigate the choice of key parameters in a BLE positioning system, including beacon density, transmit power, and transmit frequency. We also provide quantitative comparison with WiFi fingerprinting. Our results show advantages to the use of BLE beacons for positioning. For one-shot (push-to-fix) positioning we achieve $30\ \mbox{m}^2$ ), compared to $100\ \mbox{m}^2$ ) and < 8.5 m for an established WiFi network in the same area.

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736 citations

Cites background from "A Survey of Indoor Inertial Positio..."

...fingerprints with other sources to form hybrid systems, many of which are based on the idea of Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) [10], [16] being applied to pedestrian dead reckoning [13]....
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Proceedings Article•

WiFi-SLAM Using G aussian Process Latent Variable Models

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Brian Ferris, Dieter Fox, Neil D. Lawrence¹•Institutions (1)

University of Sheffield¹

01 Jan 2007

TL;DR: In this paper, the Gaussian Process Latent Variable Model (GPLVM) is used to reconstruct a topological connectivity graph from a signal strength sequence, which can be used to perform efficient WiFi SLAM.

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Abstract: WiFi localization, the task of determining the physical location of a mobile device from wireless signal strengths, has been shown to be an accurate method of indoor and outdoor localization and a powerful building block for location-aware applications. However, most localization techniques require a training set of signal strength readings labeled against a ground truth location map, which is prohibitive to collect and maintain as maps grow large. In this paper we propose a novel technique for solving the WiFi SLAM problem using the Gaussian Process Latent Variable Model (GPLVM) to determine the latent-space locations of unlabeled signal strength data. We show how GPLVM, in combination with an appropriate motion dynamics model, can be used to reconstruct a topological connectivity graph from a signal strength sequence which, in combination with the learned Gaussian Process signal strength model, can be used to perform efficient localization.

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488 citations

Journal Article•DOI•

A Survey of Wearable Devices and Challenges

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Suranga Seneviratne¹, Yining Hu¹, Tham Nguyen¹, Guohao Lan¹, Sara Khalifa¹, Kanchana Thilakarathna¹, Mahbub Hassan¹, Aruna Seneviratne¹ - Show less +4 more•Institutions (1)

Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation¹

26 Jul 2017-IEEE Communications Surveys and Tutorials

TL;DR: The communication security issues facing the popular wearables is examined followed by a survey of solutions studied in the literature, and the techniques for improving the power efficiency of wearables are explained.

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Abstract: As smartphone penetration saturates, we are witnessing a new trend in personal mobile devices—wearable mobile devices or simply wearables as it is often called. Wearables come in many different forms and flavors targeting different accessories and clothing that people wear. Although small in size, they are often expected to continuously sense, collect, and upload various physiological data to improve quality of life. These requirements put significant demand on improving communication security and reducing power consumption of the system, fueling new research in these areas. In this paper, we first provide a comprehensive survey and classification of commercially available wearables and research prototypes. We then examine the communication security issues facing the popular wearables followed by a survey of solutions studied in the literature. We also categorize and explain the techniques for improving the power efficiency of wearables. Next, we survey the research literature in wearable computing. We conclude with future directions in wearable market and research.

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486 citations

Cites background from "A Survey of Indoor Inertial Positio..."

...[20] briefly surveyed the use of wearables as sensing units and similarly Harle [21] surveyed the use of wearables in indoor positioning applications....
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...While surveying mobile crowd sensing techniques, Zhang et al. [20] briefly surveyed the use of wearables as sensing units and similarly Harle [21] surveyed the use of wearables in indoor positioning applications....
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References

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Journal Article•DOI•

Survey of Wireless Indoor Positioning Techniques and Systems

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Hui Liu¹, Houshang Darabi¹, Pat Banerjee¹, Jing Liu²•Institutions (2)

University of Illinois at Chicago¹, General Motors²

01 Nov 2007

TL;DR: Comprehensive performance comparisons including accuracy, precision, complexity, scalability, robustness, and cost are presented.

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Abstract: Wireless indoor positioning systems have become very popular in recent years. These systems have been successfully used in many applications such as asset tracking and inventory management. This paper provides an overview of the existing wireless indoor positioning solutions and attempts to classify different techniques and systems. Three typical location estimation schemes of triangulation, scene analysis, and proximity are analyzed. We also discuss location fingerprinting in detail since it is used in most current system or solutions. We then examine a set of properties by which location systems are evaluated, and apply this evaluation method to survey a number of existing systems. Comprehensive performance comparisons including accuracy, precision, complexity, scalability, robustness, and cost are presented.

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4,123 citations

Journal Article•DOI•

Location systems for ubiquitous computing

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Jeffrey Hightower¹, Gaetano Borriello¹•Institutions (1)

University of Washington¹

01 Aug 2001-IEEE Computer

TL;DR: This survey and taxonomy of location systems for mobile-computing applications describes a spectrum of current products and explores the latest in the field to help developers of location-aware applications better evaluate their options when choosing a location-sensing system.

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Abstract: This survey and taxonomy of location systems for mobile-computing applications describes a spectrum of current products and explores the latest in the field. To make sense of this domain, we have developed a taxonomy to help developers of location-aware applications better evaluate their options when choosing a location-sensing system. The taxonomy may also aid researchers in identifying opportunities for new location-sensing techniques.

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3,237 citations

"A Survey of Indoor Inertial Positio..." refers background or methods in this paper

...With the possible exception of inertial systems such as those described here, comprehensive coverage is provided by Hightower and Borriello [1], Sun et al....
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...With the possible exception of inertial systems such as those described here, comprehensive coverage is provided by Hightower and Borriello [1], Sun et al. [2], Liu et al. [3], and Gu et al. [4]....
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...One solution to this has been to layer them above deployed communications systems such as GSM, WiFi, and Bluetooth [1], but this can result in sub-optimal positioning since the communications access points are rarely deployed to provide optimal location geometry and coverage overlap....
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...Examples include RFID systems and Bluetooth stations....
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...It seems likely we will see the emergence of hybrid systems with a variety of positioning modalities to augment PDR. Absolute position fixes will be obtained opportunistically from whatever is installed in the current building—be it WiFi, Bluetooth, GSM, RFID, or some future communications medium....
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Journal Article•DOI•

A survey of indoor positioning systems for wireless personal networks

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Yanying Gu¹, A. Lo¹, Ignas Niemegeers¹•Institutions (1)

Delft University of Technology¹

01 Jan 2009-IEEE Communications Surveys and Tutorials

TL;DR: A comprehensive survey of numerous IPSs, which include both commercial products and research-oriented solutions are given, and the trade-offs among these systems are outlined from the viewpoint of a user in a PN.

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Abstract: Recently, indoor positioning systems (IPSs) have been designed to provide location information of persons and devices. The position information enables location-based protocols for user applications. Personal networks (PNs) are designed to meet the users' needs and interconnect users' devices equipped with different communications technologies in various places to form one network. Location-aware services need to be developed in PNs to offer flexible and adaptive personal services and improve the quality of lives. This paper gives a comprehensive survey of numerous IPSs, which include both commercial products and research-oriented solutions. Evaluation criteria are proposed for assessing these systems, namely security and privacy, cost, performance, robustness, complexity, user preferences, commercial availability, and limitations.We compare the existing IPSs and outline the trade-offs among these systems from the viewpoint of a user in a PN.

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1,538 citations

Journal Article•DOI•

Pedestrian tracking with shoe-mounted inertial sensors

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Eric Foxlin

01 Nov 2005-IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications

TL;DR: The NavShoe device provides not only robust approximate position, but also an extremely accurate orientation tracker on the foot, which can greatly reduce the database search space for computer vision, making it much simpler and more robust.

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Abstract: A navigation system that tracks the location of a person on foot is useful for finding and rescuing firefighters or other emergency first responders, or for location-aware computing, personal navigation assistance, mobile 3D audio, and mixed or augmented reality applications. One of the main obstacles to the real-world deployment of location-sensitive wearable computing, including mixed reality (MR), is that current position-tracking technologies require an instrumented, marked, or premapped environment. At InterSense, we've developed a system called NavShoe, which uses a new approach to position tracking based on inertial sensing. Our wireless inertial sensor is small enough to easily tuck into the shoelaces, and sufficiently low power to run all day on a small battery. Although it can't be used alone for precise registration of close-range objects, in outdoor applications augmenting distant objects, a user would barely notice the NavShoe's meter-level error combined with any error in the head's assumed location relative to the foot. NavShoe can greatly reduce the database search space for computer vision, making it much simpler and more robust. The NavShoe device provides not only robust approximate position, but also an extremely accurate orientation tracker on the foot.

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1,432 citations

"A Survey of Indoor Inertial Positio..." refers background or methods in this paper

...A 15-state model is commonly used: three states each for position, velocity and attitude errors plus six states to model the accelerometer and gyroscope biases [27], [48]....
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...However, Foxlin noted that the large number of updates typically applied during a stance phase can bias the result strongly, and so used only a single magnetometer reading per step [27]....
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...ZUPTs were first used in a PDR context in the NavShoe project by Foxlin5, who reported good results in 2005 [27]....
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...used [21], [32], [36] and combinations have been trialed [27]....
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...However, the Earth’s magnetic field is relatively weak at its surface and modern buildings, filled with metal and conducting 5Foxlin’s article itself credits a 1996 DARPA project for the introduction of ZUPTs for a PDR. wires, can overpower the natural signal, leading to local ‘disturbances’....
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Proceedings Article•DOI•

Zee: zero-effort crowdsourcing for indoor localization

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Anshul Rai¹, Krishna Chintalapudi¹, Venkata N. Padmanabhan¹, Rijurekha Sen²•Institutions (2)

Microsoft¹, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay²

22 Aug 2012

TL;DR: Zee is presented -- a system that makes the calibration zero-effort, by enabling training data to be crowdsourced without any explicit effort on the part of users.

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Abstract: Radio Frequency (RF) fingerprinting, based onWiFi or cellular signals, has been a popular approach to indoor localization. However, its adoption in the real world has been stymied by the need for sitespecific calibration, i.e., the creation of a training data set comprising WiFi measurements at known locations in the space of interest. While efforts have been made to reduce this calibration effort using modeling, the need for measurements from known locations still remains a bottleneck. In this paper, we present Zee -- a system that makes the calibration zero-effort, by enabling training data to be crowdsourced without any explicit effort on the part of users. Zee leverages the inertial sensors (e.g., accelerometer, compass, gyroscope) present in the mobile devices such as smartphones carried by users, to track them as they traverse an indoor environment, while simultaneously performing WiFi scans. Zee is designed to run in the background on a device without requiring any explicit user participation. The only site-specific input that Zee depends on is a map showing the pathways (e.g., hallways) and barriers (e.g., walls). A significant challenge that Zee surmounts is to track users without any a priori, user-specific knowledge such as the user's initial location, stride-length, or phone placement. Zee employs a suite of novel techniques to infer location over time: (a) placement-independent step counting and orientation estimation, (b) augmented particle filtering to simultaneously estimate location and user-specific walk characteristics such as the stride length,(c) back propagation to go back and improve the accuracy of ocalization in the past, and (d) WiFi-based particle initialization to enable faster convergence. We present an evaluation of Zee in a large office building.

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1,114 citations

"A Survey of Indoor Inertial Positio..." refers background or methods in this paper

...The Zee system proposes positioning primarily through fingerprinting, but with a radio map that is crowd-sourced from the subset of users with SHScapable smartphones [23]....
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...Nonetheless, ZUPT-based INSs have been shown to give good medium-term tracking accuracies when combined with building maps (see Section VI)....
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...maps to choose an optimal length (see also Section VI) [23]....
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...This survey is structured as follows: Section II briefly reviews indoor positioning in general; Section II-B examines the invariants to be exploited in ambulatory motion; Section III surveys the different techniques that have been used to detect steps within sensor data; Section IV looks at the application of Inertial Navigation Systems (INS) research; Section V considers an alternative step-and-heading approach; Section VI surveys the use of particle filters and map-matching techniques to improve location estimates; Section VII considers the hybrid relative/absolute systems that have been proposed; and then Sections VIII and IX conclude by identifying open research areas and future research directions....
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...Where step counting is robust, it may even be possible to infer the characteristic step length by including it as a state variable within the particle filter as per [23]....
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