The calculation of the position of a mobile device in an indoor setting can be accomplish following several approaches. A very common approach uses Wireless devices, since this kind of infrastructure is already present in many buildings and has low implementation and maintenance costs. However, the usage of these devices is based on the strength of the received signal broadcasted by the access points which can deteriorate with walls, furniture and other electronic equipment. In certain contexts, such as hospitals and homes, there is the need to have more precise and reliable products to perform indoor localization than the alternatives nowadays available. This project aims at improving the low reliability underlying the existent methods as well as determining optimal routes inside buildings for fast medical assistance.

 Research at LCM

The objective of this project is to fast track patients or elderly patients in the case of a medical situation, like, for exemple, the patient's fall.

This project's proposal consists in correlating a set of three independent mechanisms:

1. Wi-Fi trilateration (802.11b- 1999) based on RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indicator) with the use of probabilistic models;
2. Storage of direction and distance walked by the person carrying the deceive, with the use of an accelerometer and a magnetometer;
3. The use of a geographical information system applied to the context of a building, so that barriers and ways of access can be considered in the calculation of trajectories.