Systems, methods, and apparatus to determine physical location and routing within a field of low power beacons

• US 10,151,590 B2
• Filed: 07/03/2017
• Issued: 12/11/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intermec IP Corporation (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Intermec IP Corporation (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Inventors: Hansen, Michael, White, Allen, Van Der Putten, Ronald
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Tan Q
• Application Number:
  US15/640,846
• Publication Number:
  US 20170299395A1
• Time in Patent Office: 526 Days
• Field of Search: 701526
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/206 specially adapted for indoor navigation
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/02523 Details of interaction of receiver with radio-map

Abstract

A non-time of flight or time of arrival position location system for accurate determination of a user'"'"'s location in an enclosed, indoor, or covered environment can include a number of beacons mounted in an arrangement within the environment. Each of the beacons is mounted in a known location and transmits a broadcast signal containing a unique identifier that identifies the originating beacon. A handheld electronic device including a receiver and a communicably coupled processor can receive broadcast signals from at least some of the number of beacons, iteratively determine a vector quantity corresponding to each of the received signals, and sum the resultant vector quantities to determine an updated position. The iterative process can be repeated until consecutive iterations yield an updated position that falls within a defined threshold.

Claims

1. A position location system of a handheld electronic device, comprising:

a receiver to receive a plurality of broadcast signals, wherein one or more of the plurality of received signals contain data identifying at least one of a plurality of beacons;

a processor communicably coupled to the receiver, wherein the processor;

receives user input indicative of a desired object location of a desired object to which the user would like to travel;

determines preferred routing to the desired object location of the desired object inputted by the user based on the plurality of broadcast signals;

outputs guidance to the desired object location using the determined preferred routing;

determines updated locations of the user by periodically or intermittently updating the location of the user, based on directional vector quantities associated with the plurality of received broadcast signals, while the user is attempting to follow the determined preferred routing;

determine updated routing based on the updated location of the user; and

identify when the location of the handheld electronic device is within a defined distance of the location of the desired object.

2. The position location system of claim 1, wherein the preferred routing includes only the location of a first or of a geographically closest object inputted by the user.

3. The position location system of claim 1, wherein the preferred routing is based on at least one of:

minimizing travel time to the location,

minimizing travel distance to the location, and

avoiding congestion or obstructions along a route to the desired object location.

4. The position location system of claim 1, wherein the preferred routing is determined collaboratively with position location systems operated by other users.

5. The position location system of claim 1, wherein the updated location of the user is determined based on a resultant vector obtained by summing the plurality of the directional vector quantities.

6. The position location system of claim 5, wherein the determined updated location of the user falls within a defined threshold.

7. The position location system of claim 6, wherein the defined threshold corresponds to one of a percentage of magnitude of the resultant vector determined using the directional vector quantities, a magnitude of the resultant vector determined using the vector quantities, a change in an updated position of a handheld electronic device associated with the user, or one or more external factors.

8. A method comprising:

receiving a plurality of broadcast signals, wherein one or more of the plurality of received signals contain data identifying at least one of a plurality of beacons;

receiving user input indicative of a desired object location of a desired object to which the user would like to travel;

determining preferred routing to the desired object location of the desired object inputted by the user based on the plurality of broadcast signals;

outputting guidance to the desired object location using the determined preferred routing;

determining updated locations of the user by periodically or intermittently updating the location of the user, based on directional vector quantities associated with the plurality of received broadcast signals, while the user is attempting to follow the determined preferred routing;

determining updated routing based on the updated location of the user; and

identifying when the location of the handheld electronic device is within a defined distance of the location of the desired object.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the preferred routing includes only the location of a first or of a geographically closest object inputted by the user.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the preferred routing is based on at least one of:

minimizing travel time to the location,

minimizing travel distance to the location, and

avoiding congestion or obstructions along a route to the desired object location.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the preferred routing is determined collaboratively with position location systems operated by other users.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the updated location of the user is determined based on a resultant vector obtained by summing the plurality of the directional vector quantities.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the determined updated location of the user falls within a defined threshold.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the defined threshold corresponds to one of a percentage of magnitude of the resultant vector determined using the directional vector quantities, a magnitude of the resultant vector determined using the vector quantities, a change in an updated position of a handheld electronic device associated with the user, or one or more external factors.