Abstract:

Indoor positing system (IPS) had been an open topic for researchers for the past decade. IPS has many variations, this is because they are designed using multiple technologies and techniques or methods for localization. Depending on the environment, users and technology availability, certain indoor positing systems are used. A trade-off between accuracy, radio signal technology utilization, power consumption and localization method need to be done. In this research, an IPS was developed using two methods that will locate the user in the three-dimensional plane. The system was designed, and a prototype was developed that uses two methods for Wi-Fi Fingerprinting localization. The first method combines the barometer atmospheric pressure measurement for calculating the height above sea level and the Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) to achieve multi-floor localization. The second method uses the Channel State Information (CSI) to create a unique fingerprint that takes the Signal to Noise Ratio and the number of antennas that the signal was received by as coordinates. The system visualizes the building map as a web element using Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG). The designed system was tested on two environments at the Kingdom of Bahrain. A mall with two floors and the Information System (IS) Department building at the University of Bahrain. The results showed that the accuracy will be affected by the visitors count and the building interior design as more visitors inside will degrade the accuracy. It was also found that closed area will have more accuracy than open area. IS building had better localization with average error of 2.4m as compared to the mall which had a 3.2 m average localization error.