Magnetic positioning
Magnetic positioning is an IPS (Indoor positioning system) solution based on magnetic sensor data from a smartphone used to wirelessly locate objects or people inside a building.[1]
There is currently no de facto standard for IPS, however magnetic positioning appears to be the most complete and cost effective[citation needed]. It offers accuracy without any hardware requirements and a relatively low total cost of ownership[citation needed]. According to Opus Research magnetic positioning will emerge as a “foundational” indoor location technology.[2]
Magnetic positioning was invented by Professor Janne Haverinen and Anssi Kemppainen.[3] Noticing that buildings' magnetic distortions were leading machines astray, they eventually turned the problem around and focused attention on the magnetic interferences caused by steel structures. What they found was that the disturbances inside them were consistent, creating a magnetic fingerprint unique to a building.[4]
Professor Janne Haverinen founded the company IndoorAtlas in 2012 to commercialize the magnetic positioning solution with dual headquarters in Mountain View, CA and Oulu, Finland.[5]
Issues
The local magnetic field is affected by moving metal objects like lifts or metal cabinets.[6]
References
- ^ Haverinen, Janne; Kemppainen, Anssi (31 October 2009). "Global indoor self-localization based on the ambient magnetic field". Robotics and Autonomous Systems. 57 (10): 1028–1035. doi:10.1016/j.robot.2009.07.018.
- ^ Miller, Dan. "Analysis & Expertise in Conversational Commerce". Opus Research. Retrieved 2014-08-02.
- ^ "Homepage of Janne Haverinen". Department of Computer Science and Engineering. University of Oulu. Retrieved 2014-08-02.
- ^ Truong, Alice (2013-09-25). "IndoorAtlas Hopes to Unlock the "Holy Grail of Advertising" With Magnetic-Field Mapping". Business + Innovation. Fast Company. Retrieved 2014-08-02.
- ^ Clark, Liat (9 July 2012). "Finnish startup can locate you indoors using magnetic field anomalies". Wired UK. Retrieved 2014-08-02.