[February 11, 2016] |
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Mitsubishi Electric Develops Indoor Positioning System Using Wireless Communication and Acoustic Ranging
Mitsubishi
Electric Corporation (TOKYO:6503) has developed an indoor
positioning system utilizing wireless LAN communication and acoustic
ranging to achieve accuracy within less than one meter. The system is
expected to be used for applications such as walking navigation or
warehouse management in underground locations where GPS signals are not
reliably available. Commercial use is expected by April 2017.
The new system positions the target device based on the round trip times
for sound waves traveling between the device and surrounding wireless
WLAN APs equipped with positioning capability. The positioning trigger
and other required data are exchanged via a WLAN. The system can be
installed with as few as three, or more, positioning-capabl WLAN APs.
In structures that already have WLAN infrastructure, especially
cost-effective installation is possible by simply appending the
positioning of the existing WLAN APs. Mitsubishi Electric's (News - Alert) new system
also provides WLAN infrastructure, in addition to positioning.
In the case of certain existing indoor-positioning methods, users must
purchase positioning-specific hardware, such as RF tags. Mitsubishi
Electric's system only requires WLAN communication and sound-wave
transmission. Since smartphones are usually equipped for WLAN and sound,
such as microphones and speakers, most users will simply need to install
the positioning application in their smartphones.
As an example of using the system for walking navigation in an
underground parking lot, the position of a car could be detected and
stored when it is parked, and then the information could be used later
to guide the user back to the car.
There are many practical needs for accurate positioning inside buildings
or underground facilities where GPS signals are not available, such as
walking navigation, worker administration, warehouse logistics, asset
management and more. So far, accurate, cost-effective positioning
methods have not been possible.
For the full text, please visit: http://www.mitsubishielectric.com/news
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160211006570/en/
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