Since it was released for civilian use by the US government, Global Positioning System (GPS) has had a reputation as the most reliable navigation system in comparison to its Russian, European, Indian and Chinese alternatives. For a long time, however, its glory has been blemished by its poor performance in indoor navigation. The main weakness lies in the attenuation and scattering of GPS satellites signals by obstructive objects such as walls and roofs. The effort to modify the navigation system for efficient indoor localization is, therefore, great news.
GPS Repeaters and Modified Positioning
Although the limitations of GPS signal penetration into an enclosed environment are still valid, latest technological innovations have reduced their effect. They involve a combination of an indoor position system utilizing GPS repeaters and positioning algorithm which has been modified to serve the purpose of processing of GPS data captured on real time. Moreover, the addition of certain hardware to the building as well as an update of the software is essential in enhancing the reception of signals by the GPS receiver.
Amplification of Signals
Since the efficiency in the use of GPS for indoors navigation is greatly affected by the weakening of the signals by physical barriers, much of the remedy lies in strengthening them. In this quest, you need more than two sets of GPS repeaters together with independent GPS directional antennas in order to pick the signals from different areas in the sky . This allows the strengthening and retransmission of the signals from different satellites into a specific building.
No Hardware Addition to the GPS Receiver
The positioning system only utilizes GPS signals. Therefore, all that is required is the modification of the software working with a standard GPS receiver. There should be no change to the receiver’s hardware in term of additions. However, you will need to come up with a system that includes antennas and GPS repeaters as the main features.
Keep in mind that the modification of the system is much simpler than of those which require installation of infrastructure. For instance, a patent application calls for the use of amplifiers in addition to antennas to enable repetition of indoor GPS signals. On the other hand, this system calls for much emphasis on the reception of the GPS signals from different areas of the sky, their amplification and their retransmission into an indoor space.
Conclusion
The use of GPS in such areas as provision of services including medical assistance in emergency situations and management of traffic is forever rising in popularity. Although it has not been the greatest of choices when it comes to using it with indoor maps for indoor localization, a lot of research aimed at improving its efficiency is on-going. Admittedly, it is fairly complicated, but the strengthening of the signals picked from different parts of the sky and their retransmission into the enclosed environment is a great way of getting through the barriers to their efficient use.
Submit a Comment Please be polite. We appreciate that.