SBIR Phase I: Accurate Indoor Location for Smartphones

这个小企业创新研究第一阶段项目将开发一个系统，用于非常准确地定位智能手机在建筑物内的位置，帮助用户在室内导航和找到感兴趣的物品，目前的系统无法实现。该系统以麻省理工学院的学术研究为基础，将利用现有的Wi-Fi信号，结合运动传感器和地图数据，估算出90个百分位精度为1-3米的距离。这比目前可用的系统要准确得多，目前的系统平均精度在5-10米以内，在第90个百分位数上更差。它使用现有的Wi-Fi信号，这意味着该系统在大多数建筑物中不需要额外的硬件。该系统结合了三种新技术：1)使用运动传感器和地图数据的新训练系统，与现有技术相比，大大减少了在新建筑中校准系统所需的时间；2)融合运动传感器和WiFi信号的新位置匹配算法，以提高从有限的训练数据中估计位置的准确性和可靠性；3)使用可用Wi-Fi接入点预测准确性的系统。确定是否需要新的硬件或额外的培训。这三种技术都是将这项技术推向市场所必需的关键竞争优势。该提案将开发一种基于wi - fi的室内定位系统，该系统不仅准确，而且易于部署且价格低廉。这个项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是，智能手机已经成为城市中建筑物和企业定位不可或缺的工具，现在也可以用来在室内地图上向用户显示他/她的位置，并引导他们在大型建筑物中找到他们要找的东西，而今天人们总是迷路——同时寻找感兴趣的点，如售票处、货架上的产品、航空登机口和商店。InFix使用现有WiFi信标的方法，在今天无处不在，最有可能实现规模和覆盖，实现“无处不在的精确定位”的愿景。这与以前的学术、研究和商业努力形成鲜明对比，这些努力都需要安装专门的硬件。Infix将把这项技术授权给空间所有者，集成到他们的智能手机应用程序中。随着地图和位置数据库的增长，该公司将允许第三方建立他们自己的创新应用程序。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will develop a systemfor locating a smartphone inside a building very accurately, helping usersnavigate and find items of interest indoors, where current systems do notfunction. Building on academic research from MIT, the system will useexisting Wi-Fi signals combined with motion sensors and map data to produceestimates with a 90th percentile accuracy of 1-3 m. This is significantlymore accurate than the currently available systems, which are accurate towithin 5-10 metres in the mean and worse in the 90th percentile. It usesexisting Wi-Fi signals, which means the system does not require additionalhardware in most buildings. The system incorporates three novel technologies:1) a novel training system that uses motion sensors and map data todramatically reduce the time it takes to calibrate the system in a newbuilding compared to existing technologies, 2) a new location matchingalgorithm that fuses motion sensors and WiFi signals to improve the accuracyand reliability of location estimates from limited training data, and 3) asystem to predict the accuracy using the available Wi-Fi access points, todetermine if new hardware or additional training is required. All threetechnologies are key competitive advantages essential to bring thistechnology to market. This proposal will develop a Wi-Fi-based indoorlocation system that is not only accurate, but also easy and cheap to deploy.The broader impact/commercial potential of this project is that smartphones,that have become indispensable tools for locating buildings and businesses in acity, can now also be used to show a user his/her location on an indoor map,and guide them to find what they are looking for inside large buildings wherepeople get lost all the time today --- while looking for points of interestlike ticket counters, products on shelves, airline gates, and stores. InFix'sapproach of using existing WiFi beacons, ubiquitous everywhere today, has thehighest potential to achieve scale and reach, and realize the vision of"precise location everywhere". This is in contrast to previous academic,research and commercial efforts that all require installing specializedhardware. Infix will license this technology to space owners, to integrate intotheir smartphone applications. As the map and location database grow, thecompany will allow third-parties to build their own innovative applications.