Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
REVERSE-BEACON INDOOR POSITIONING SYSTEM USING EXISTING
DETECTION FIELDS
[001]
1
Date Recue/Date Received 2020-12-11
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
[002] This disclosure pertains to the field of location-based services.
Description of the Related Art
[003] Wireless communication devices cOmptise one or more nodes which receive
and
transmit signals according to their programming. Such nodes may transmit
infOrmation to a
computer server through traditional communication means and any wireless
technology or
protocol. Most: -relevant to the disclosure herein are wireless
communications, traditionally
complying to some. form of communication standard, including but not limited
to Wi-Fl and
Bluetoothm. Two types of such wireless communication information are becoming
of high
interest: those that aid in location determination and presence sensing.
[004] Wireless communication technologies are gaining popularity in the
commercial market.
There is a plethora of existing technologies that address location
determination of fixed assets,
such as helping a person find car keys or tracking said person inside a
building. But in order to
ftmetion, these existing technologies all. have numerous requirements that
must be õfulfilled,
Existing technologies commonly comprise a system consisting of a number of
specialized
nodes. Each node is a special transceiver that is associated with the object
of interest (e.g., the
person, car keys, or mobile device), and the other nodes that may also act as
transceivers being
fixed assets of known location to the system. The nodes serve as "beacons."
and the special
transceiver takes signals from -the fixed nodes, and passes said signals to a
computing element
to process said signals into a more usable form. Said processed information
may then be
displayed through a computer or utilized in another system including but not
limited to location
determination.
[005] Signals from nodes are traditionally sent through a network consisting
of WWI or
Bluetoothm based communication elements, where the information would be
relayed to a
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computer server typically using a Wi-Fl router or a smart phone. of some.
kind. Existing.
technologies typically utilize such signals to estimate distance to each
transceiver and. utilize
said distance estimates from each transceiver through some. means of
triangulation tO estimate
the location of the device being tracked.
[0061 In both commercial and residential establishments, indoor positioning
systems are
constantly developed to become more efficient and cost etlective These
services are starting
to perform duties including but not limited to location determination,
location tracking, geo-
fencing, security, and navigation. Many of the services are also generally
augmented by third-
party devices used as ground truth. and references, Previous systems require
modifying existing
hardware, whether it be through obtaining new circuitry, hardware, Or
programming or using
an add-on or extension to change existing circuitry, hardware, or programming.
To be valuable
to the user, such location-sensing systems typically must have beacons fixed
at known locations
in the system to provide the triangulation relative to known points, as
otherwise the
triangulation or similar algorithms may be able to locate the special node
relative the detecting
nodes, but cannot place any nodes in a location relative to a fixed
coordinatesystem.
[NM To function properly, current indoor positioning systems essentially
require lame
quantities of specialized "beacons"-which are effectively the fixed nodes to
be installed at each
facility. The installation and establishment process of such beacons at every
individual facility
is both a costly and exhaustive process. These beacons then act as the fixed
triangulation points
to locate the special node whose location is of interest. As should be
apparent, as triangulation
algorithms require the knowledge of two beacons interacting with the special
node, it is
necessary in existing indoor detection systems to make sure that every point
in the region of
interest for detection is capable of communicating with two beacons.
[00.11 Developed positioning system products in the commercial and industrial
sectors rarely
penetrate the home technology sector. The cost-sensitive consumer shows
especially cognizant
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concerns regarding location-based services. The lack of established .adoption
of indoor
positioning systems is often driven by a couple of main concerns, mainly in
the realms of cost
and convenience. Simply, it is expensive and eumberSome to install enough
beacons in a
residence to make the system operate properly while still being eost-
,effective.
[0091 The first problem is the high cost of purchasing the quantity of beacons
and the-software
required tbr substantially all indoor positioning. systems. Research shows
that virtually no
current system may currently operate without beacons. The idea of a beaconless
system has.
been presented, but no one has actually implemented such. &system because such
a system fails
on the triangulation algorithms. Given the expense of individual, beacons and
the quantity
required for operation of the system., typically cost-sensitive consumers are
hesitant to adopt
such a system. A second problem is convenience in terms of the installed base.
Substantially
all indoor positioning systems include stationary beacons affixed to various
locations in said
system. Due to the specificity of particularly designed beacons to be
communicating a specific
signal for a receiver, such a system may not be easily replaced and the
original setup must be
completely translocated. By example and not limitation, if a household were to
move, they
would be forced to remove all the beacons in every room of the house, travel
to the new
residence, and then re-establish a brand new environment and system. This is
extremely time-
consuming and forces the onus of system maintenance and translocation on the
consumer.
Further, they may not have the right number or type of beacons for the new
location, and
therefore also have to invest in Amber infrastructure to make the system
viable in the new
location.
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.SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
10101 The following is a summary of the invention in order to provide a basic
understanding
of some aspects of the invention. This. summary is tiot intended to identify
key or critical
-elements of the invention or to delineate the scope of the invention. The
sole purpose of this
section is to present some concepts of the invention in a simplified form as a
prelude to the
more detailed description that is presented later.
10111 Because of these and other problems in the art, described herein, among
other things,
is a reverse-beacon system designed to estimate its position, relative to a
set of nodes which
create a detection field. Generally speaking, a reverse-beacon analyzes one or
more sets of
signals generated by one or more wireless devices in. a detection field,
analyzes patterns in
those signals over time, and estimates its location relative to those nodes.
Communications are
not necessarily established directly between the reverse-beacon and the nodes
in a detection
field (e.g., protocol-based. communications, in which the reverse-beacon
participates in the
transfer of application data on the network), but the signals from nodes in a
detection field can
still be utilized for relative location within an environment. The ability to
use trends and not
require protocol-based communication with the nodes in the detection field
allow a wide range
of diftent devices on different protocols to be used by the reverse-beacon to
estimate its
location relative to those nodes.
[0121 In principle, such a system may operate by storing the locations of
nodes in a detection
field in a third-party service accessible to the reverse-beacon, the reverse-
beacon then
analyzing the identifiers provided by each of the devices from which it can
detect
communications, and locating itself relative to those devices within the
context of the third
party service. Without the requirement of direct protocol-based communications
with the nodes
in the detection field, the reverse-beacon can utilize existing infrastructure
to estimate its
position, and does not need access to the network provided by nodes in the
detection .field so
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long as the physical radios within the reverse-beacon can monitor the
communications ongoing
within that network.
[013] Also described herein, among other things; is a method for locating a
reverse-beacon in
a detection field comprising: providing a reverse-beacon comprising
atransceiver; a computer;
providing a plurality of system nodes deployed to faml a detection field;
moving the reverse-
beacon into the detection field; receiving first system node signals from a
first system node in
the plurality of system nodes at the transceiver; receiving second system node
signals from a
second -system node in the plurality of system nodes at the transceiver;
receiving third system
node signals from a third system node in the .plurality of system nodes at the
transceiver;
-converting at the computer the first system node signals, the second system
node signals, and
the third system node signals to a historical dataset -comprising: a first
system node identifier
and a first system node distance metric associated with the first system node;
and a second
system node identifier and a second system node distance metric associated
with the second
system node; a third system node identifier and a third system node distance
metric associated
with the third. system node; repeating the receiving first system node signals
step the receiving
second system node signals step, the receiving third system node signals
steps, and the
converting steps a plurality of times to form a plurality of the historical
datasets; determining
at the computer a location of the reverse-beacon relative to the first system
node, the second
system node, and the third system node, based upon comparing each of the
historical datasets
in the plurality of historical datasets to calculate a location of the reverse-
beacon in the
detection field.
[014] In an embodiment ofthe method, the reverse-beacon comprises a mobile
device.
1.0151 in another embodiment of the method, the reverse-beacon comprises a
smart phone or
tablet computer.
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[0161 In another embodiment of the method, the reverse-beacon comprises a.
wearable
computer device.
[017] in another embodiment of the method, the first system node is selected
from the group
consisting, of: a computer; a network device; and a smart appliance.
[018] In another embodiment of the method, the method further comprises
determining at the
computer a location determination status of the reverse-beacon with respect to
the detection
[0191 in another embodiment of the method, the location determination status-
is selected from
the group consisting of: approaching;. departing; in. room; static; and
mobile.
[020] In another embodiment of the method, the computer comprises a local
network
computer.
[021] In another embodiment of the method, the reverse-beacon includes the
local network
computer.
[022] In another embodiment of the method, the computer comprises a wireless
computer
server communicably coupled to the transceiver over a telecommunications
network.
[023] In another embodiment of the method, the method further comprises:
providing a third
party system; operating the third. party system based at least in part on the
location of the
reverse-beacon determined in the determining step.
10241 In another embodiment of the method, the third party system is selected
from the group
consisting of: an electrical system; a lighting system; a heating, venting,
and cooling (HVAC)
system; a security system; a home automation system; an industrial automation
system.
[0251 in another embodiment of the method, the detection field is formed by
wireless
communications using a protocol selected from the group consisting of:
Bluctoothtm,
Bluetoothrm Low Energy, ANT, ANT+, WWI, Zigbee, Thread, and 1-Wave.
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[026] In another embodiment of the method, at least one the system node in the
plurality of
system nodes is configured to communicate using a different communication
protocol than at
least one other system node in the plurality of system nodes.
[0271 In another embodiment of the. method, the detection field is disposed.
within an indoor
space and the determining step further comprises determining at the computer a
location of the
reverse-beacon relative to the-first system node, the second system node, and
the third system
node, based upon comparing each of the, historical datasets in the plurality
of historical datasets
to triangulate a location of the reverse-beacon in the detection field.
[028] In another embodiment of the method, the method i.s performed by the
reverse-beacon
-only passively receiving wireless communication signals from the plurality of
system nodes.
[029] In another embodiment of the method, the method is performed. by the
reverse-beacon
actively receiving wireless communication signals from the.plutality of system
nodes.
[030] Also described herein, among other things, is a system for locating a
reverse-beacon in
a. detection field, comprising: a computer; a plurality of system nodes
deployed to form a
-detection .field; a. reverse-beacon, comprising a. transceiver, a computer,
and a non-volatile
computer-readable storage medium having program instructions thereon which,
when executed
by the computer, cause the reverse-beacon to perform the steps of: receiving
first system node
signals from a first system node in the plurality of system nodes at the
transceiver; receiving
second system node signals from a second system node in the plurality of
system nodes at the
transceiver; receiving third system node signals from a third system node in
the plurality of
system nodes at the transceiver; convening at the first system node signals,
the second system
node signals, atuithe third system node signals to a historical dataset
comprising; a first system
node identifier and a first system node distance metric associated with the
first system node:
and a second system node identifier and a second system node distance metric
associated with
the second system node: a third system node identifier and a third system node
distance metric
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associated with the third system node; repeating the receiving first system
node signals step,
the receiving second system node signals step, the receiving, third system
node signals steps,
and the converting steps a plurality Of times to form a plurality of the
historical datasets;
determining a location of the reverse-beacon relative:to the first system
node, the second system
node, and the third system node, based upon comparing each of the historical
datasets in the
plurality of historical datasets to calculate a !made') of the reverse-beacon
in the detection
field.
[030 In an embodiment of, the system further comprises: a third-party system;
a computer
server; wherein the program instructions thereon which, when executed by the
computer,
further cause the reverse-beacon to pertbnn the steps. of transmitting the
determined location
of the reverse-beacon to the computer server; wherein the computer server
comprises a non-
volatile computer-readable medium having program instructions thereon which,
when
executed by the computer server, cause the computer server to operate the
third party system
based at least in part on the determined location of the reverse-beacon.
[032] In another embodiment of the system, the third party system is selected
from the group
consisting of an electrical system; a lighting system; a heating, venting, and
cooling (HVAC)
system; a security system; a home automation system; an industrial automation
system.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF 'ME DRAWINGS
10341 FIG. 1(a) provides a general block diagram of an embodiment of a reverse-
beacon in a
detection field.
[0351 Fla .1(b) illustrates-an embodiment of a positioning system with the
general blocks of
FIG. 1(a) replaced with embodiments of the various elements.
10361 FIG. 2 provides an illustration of how location determinations can be
made based on
movement in relation to a detection area.
[0371 Fla 3 provides a flosvehart of an embWimentof a method for positioning
which starts
at signal transmission from the nodes and ending with an intbmiation display
or utilization by
a remote server or computer.
[038) FIG. 4 provides a general block diagram of a smartphone which can be
used as a reverse-
beacon.
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DESCRIPTION OF ThEPREFERRED EMBODIMENT(S)
10391 The following detailed description and disclosure illustrates by way of
example and not
by way of limitation. This description will clearly enable one skilled in the
art to make and use
the disclosed systems and methods, and describes several embodiments,
adaptations,
variations, alternatives and uses of the disclosed systems .and methods. As
various changes
could be made in the above constructions without departing from the scope of
the disclosures,
it is intended that all matter contained in the description or shown in the
accompanying
drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.
[001 The systems and methods described herein provide an indoor positioning
system in the
film of a reverse-beacon which may be used for location determination and
presence sensing
technology. As used herein, a "reverse-beacon" is any device comprising a
transceiver and a
computer operating with system nodes and will generally be in the form of a
smartphone or
other mobile computer. The systems and methods described herein utilize
wireless signals of
any device that adheres to a communication protocol, including but not limited
to BluetoothTM
and to provide
for location-based services such as location determination and acting as
a ground-truth field for presence sensing systems by placing technology within
a single receiver
node and listening to any pre-existing wireless communications systems already
present in the
given. environment.
10411 Distinct, from traditional location tracking systems that rely upon
networks formed from
equipment. specifically designed for location determination, the systems and
methods of the
present disclosure monitor wireless communications within a detection field
formed from the
nodes of any generic and pre-existing wireless communication networks,
generally through
some external configuration system. The reverse-beacon comprises a transceiver
and computer,
while the detection field comprises preferably at least three existing
wireless communications
devices of virtually any type.. The existing wireless communication devices
form a detection
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field that transmits signals that the reverse-beacon rozeives. The reverse-
beacon processes
wireless signals to create usable location informafion from the existing nodes
around it. The
information may then be used in a variety of ways, including but not limited
to display on a
computer or as additional information for external systems such as presence
sensing. This type
of system is generally more cost-efficient, adaptable, and convenient than
existing technologies
because it utilizes pre-existing wireless communication devices where such
devices need not
be part of a self-contained communication network, nor must said pro-existing
devices
necessarily utilize the same communication protocols.
[0421 The systems and methods described herein provide an indoor positioning
system in the
form of a reverse-beacon which may beused for location determination and
presence sensing
technology. Distinct from traditional location tracking systems, which use pre-
setup and
dedicated location determination equipment in the environment to fbitn the
network for
detecting, the present systems and methods may form a detection field from and
subsequently
operate within any set of nodes acting as existing wireless communication
devices, whether or
not said devices are on. the same network and operate as beacons in a
traditional sense.
[04.3] Throughout this disclosurer the term "computer" describes hardware
which generally
implements functionality provided by digital computing technology,
particularly computing
fimctionality associated with microprocessors. The term "computer" is not
intended to be
limited to any specific type of computing device, but it is intended to be
inclusive of all
computational devices including, but not limited to: processing devices,
microprocessors,
personal computers, desktop computers, laptop computers,. workstations,.
terminals, servers,
clients, portable computers, handheld computers, smart phones, tablet,
computers, mobile
devices, server farms, hardware appliances, minicomputers, mainframe
computers, video game
consoles, handheld video game products, and wearable computing devices
including but not
limited to eyewear, wrist-wear, pendants, and clip-on devices.
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[044] As used herein, a "computer" is necessarily an abstraction of the
functionality provided
by a single computer device outfitted with the hardware and accessories
typical of computers -
in a particular role. By way of example and not limitation, the term
"computer" in reference to
a laptop computer would: be understood by one. of ordinary skill in the art to
include the
functionality provided by pointer-based input devices, such as a mouse or
track pad, whereas
the term "computer" used in reference to an enterprise-class server would be
understood by
one of ordinary skill in the art to include the functionality provided by
redundant systems, such
as RAID drives and dual power supplies,
[045] It is also well known to those of ordinary skill in theart that the.
functionality ofa single
computer may be distributed across a number of individual machines. This
distribution may be
functional, as where specific machines perform specific tasks; or balanced, as
where each
machine is capable of perfonning most or all functions of any other machine
and is assigned
tasks based on its available resources at a point in time. Thus, the term
"computer," as used
herein, may refer to a single, standalone, self-contained device or to a
plurality of machines
working together or independently, including without limitation: a network
server farm,
"cloud" computing system, software-as-a-service or other distributed or
collaborative:
computer networks.
[046] Those of ordinary skill in the art also appreciate that some devices
which are not
conventionally thought: of as "computers" nevertheless exhibit the
characteristics- of a
"computer" in certain contexts. Where such a device is performing the
functions of a
"computer" as described herein, the term "computer" includes such devices to
that extent.
Devices of this type include but are not limited to: network hardware, print
servers, file servers,
NAS and SAN, load balancers, and any other hardware capable of interacting
with the systems
and methods described herein in the matter of a conventional "computer."
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[047] Throughout this disclosure, the term "software" refers to code objects,
program logic,
command structures, data structures and -definitions, source code, executable
and/or binary
files, machine code, object code, compiled libraries, implementations,
algorithms, libraries, or
any instruction or set of instructions capable of being executed by a computer
processor, or
capable of being converted into a tbnn capable of being executed by a computer
processor,
including without limitation virtual processors,, or by the use of run-time
environments, virtual
machines, and/or interpreters. Those of ordinary skill in the art recognize
that software may be
wired or embedded into hardware, including without limitation onto a
microchip, and still be
considered "software" within the meaning of this disclosure. For purposes of
this disclosure,
software includes without limitation: instructions stored or storable in RAM,
ROM, -flash
memory BIOS, CMOS, mother and daughter board circuitry, hardware controllers,
USB
controllers or hosts, peripheral devices and controllers, video cards, audio
controllers, network
cards. Bluetoot:hTM and other wireless communication devices, virtual memory,
storage devices
and associated controllers, firmware, and device drivers. The systems and
methods described
here are contemplated to use computers and computersoftware typically stored
in a computer-
or machine-readable storage medium or memory.
[048] Throughout. this disclosure, the term "network" generally refers to a
voiee,data, or other
wireless communication network over which computers communicate with each
other. The
term "server" generally refers to-a computer providing a service over a.
network, and a "client"
generally refers to a computer accessing or using a service provided by a
server over a network.
Those having ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the terms "server"
and "client" may
refer to hardware, software, and/or a combination of hardware and software,
depending on
context Those having ordinary skill in the art will further appreciate that
the terms"server"
and "client" may refer to endpoints of a network communication or network
connection,
including but not necessarily limited to a network socket connection. Those
having ordinary
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skill in the art will further appreciate that a "server" may comprise
aplurality of software andior
hardware servers delivering a service or set of services. Those having
ordinary skill in the art
will further appreciate that the term "host" may, in noun form, refer to an
endpoint of a network
communication or network (e.g, "a remote- host"), or may, in verb kirm, refer
to a server
providing a service over a network ("hosts a website"), or an access point for
a service over a
network.
19491 Throughout this disclosure, the term "transceiver" refers to equipment,
or a set of
equipment, having the hardware, circuitry, and/or software to generate- and
transmit
electromagnetic waves carrying. messages signals, data, or other information.
A transceiver
may also comprise the componen try to receive electric signals containing
such. messages,
signals, data, or other information, and convert them to. such electromagnetic
waves. The term
"receiver refers to equipment, or a set of equipment, having the hardware,
circuitry, and/or
software to receive such transmitted electromagnetic waves and convert them
into signals,
usually electrical, from which the message, signal, data, or other information
may be extracted.
The term "transceiver" generally refers to a device or system that comprises
both a transceiver
and receiver, such as, but not necessarily limited to, a-two-way radio, or
wireless networking
router or access point. For purposes of this disclosure, all three terms
should-be understood as
interchangeable unless otherwise indicated; for example, the term
'transceiver" should be
understood to imply the presence of a receiver, and the term "receiver should
be understood
to imply the presence of a transceiver.
[0501 Throughout this disclosure., the term "node" refers to a start or end
point for a network
communication, generally a device having a. wireless transceiver and being a
part of a
communication network. Nodes arc generally .standalone, self-contained
networking devices,
such as wireless routers, wireless access points, short-range beacons, and so
forth. Anode may
be a general-purpose device or a special-purpose device configured for use in
a detection
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network as. described herein. By way of example and not limitation, a .node
may be a device
that has the -wireless transmission capabilities of an. off-the-shelf wireless
networking device
with a unique identification and a fixed known location. Within a network,
each nodemay act
as both a transceiver and receiver of network signals. This disclosure will
typically refer to
nodes as "system nodes," which are intended to be nodes that. exist ins fixed
location with a
known identity that generally will not require any additional sped alized
hardware, circuitry,
comtxinentry, or programming for implementing the systems and methods
described herein
and also might not necessarily be communicating on the same wireless
communication network
Its other system nodes in the. same system. For clarity, reverse-beacon node
is different from
the ""system nodes" in that it requires some combination of specialized
hardware, circuitry,
componentry, or programming for implementing the systems and methods described
herein.
Generally, at least three system nodes, which need not be part of the same
wireless
communication network, will be used by the reverse-beacon to determine its
location.
10511 Throughout this disclosure, the term "detection field" refers to a space
that is being
utilized for location based services. Generally, this field will be populated
by various nodes
that may broadcast signals to be-received by a reverse-beacon. Detection
fields are preferably
standalone, selkontained locations, such as a room or a house. Detection
fields may be
general-purpose or specialized, including but not limited to functions such as
location tracking,
presence sensing, geo-fencing, and security. By way of example and not
limitation, a detection
field may be a room containing a computational device such as a computer, a
speaker set, and
a cotTe.emaker that all broadcast BluetoothTM 2.4 Gliz and which may be
connected to by a
reverse-beacon in the form of a wearable. Connections between such devices in
a detection
field and the reverse-beacon need not be hilly established insomuch as the
data transferred
between the devices in the detection field need not be decrypted by the
reverse-beacon, but
rather that the transceiver(s) within the reverse-beacon can detect the
existence of network
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traffic and identify the origin of that traffic. Detection fields may be all
encompassing and
whole, such as a. single field for any entire building, or they may be
fragmented. and
individualized, such as. one sub-field for each room, but collectively
identifiable as one
main parameter of the detection field is that of a physical space that
comprises system.
nodes for location based services as discussed in this disclosure.
10521 Substantially all current systems are limited because they require large
quantities of
specially designed beacons, often numbering in the tens and twenties. The
present:systems and
methods do not require many (if any at all) specialized beacons-because they
use signals from
every day, off-the-shelf devices that pre-exist in a facility. For example,
existing wireless
routers, hot-spots, and any other device which communicates. wirelessly may be
used as a
"system node" in the reverse-beacon systems and methods discussed herein. This
makes the
present systems much more afibrdable and provides greater ease-of-installation
than
substantially all current systems, as much of the infrastructure is already
present in many
facilities. .By way of example and not limitation, a reverse-beacon system.
may .be setup by
logging media access control (MAC) address locations at. least one time, and
storing them via
a third-party service such that said MAC address and associated location may
be retrieved and
utilized by other reverse-beacon devices.
[053] System nodes in the present systems and methods are simply wireless
communication
-devices that may self-identify and maintain a known location relative to a
fixed coordinate
system (e.g., not relative to each other) or which may report their position
in the same fixed
coordinate system. From each system node, the reverse-beacon receives one or
more of the
following: signal strength, bit error rate, latency, or other signal
properties. A computer, which
may be at the reverse-beacon or elsewhere, then processes the signal into
usable information;
specifically, it can determine a distance, artgle,or other variable related to
the reverse-beacon's
position relative to the system node. Said information may then be utilized by
the reverse-
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beacon, or transmitted to a local computer or an external computer server for
display or
utilization in another system. The number of nodes does not. rely upon
household size, the
number of rooms,or the number of transceivers a user desires to track or
locate. Cost-sensitive
consumers would be much more inclined towards a singular purchase than
numerous purchases
fora system that requires an exhaustive installation.
10541 Essentially, the systems and methods discussed herein allow for
detection. by
-eliminating the need for the fixed beacons that are specialized to handle the
processing of
algorithms in location determination. Instead, the nodes in the present system
simply behave.
as normal. They communicate with each other or other systems in the network
wirelessly as
they are designed to do. As they do so, the reverse-beacon is able to
determine the relative
location of the nodes. with respect to itself from the interference, signal
strength, or other
defining factors. This relative location can then be provided to a processor
which knows the
locations of the nodes in real space and from that the location of the reverse-
beacon in real
space can be determined.
E0551 The present systems can also provide improved convenience. System
installation
involves simply placing wireless communication devices, such as a desktop or a
wireless
speaker set, in user-configured locations within an environment. In certain
embodiments, such
location information may be made available via a third-party service. There is
no need to
purposefully position wireless communication devices in fixed locations, as it
is generally
presumed that the average user will have a relatively large number of wireless
nodes in the
room. Further, it does not matter it' a particular node is not useful in
position detection, as its
purposeis primarily to provide wireless services outside of the position
detection. The position
detection is secondary. Thus, a wireless speaker and adapter on a stereo
system both act as
nodes in the present system. However, each has the primary purpose to transmit
sound signals
wireiessly to the speakers for reproduction; the detection is secondary.
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[056] The reverse-beacon may be a single piece of hardware that will generally
be in the form
of a wearable or mobile device, and requires less hardware to be additionally
obtained and
installed than the traditional beacon setups. However, it will also generally
be. a device
associated with the object to be tracked or detected. in many eases, as the
object of interest is
a person that would be carrying. a smart phone on their person or wearing a
wearable, the
connection is generally immediately apparent. Thus, existing wireless
communication systems
can be utilized tbr location referencing which requires little to no
additional effOrt.
Furthermore, the systems and methods of the present: disclosure are adaptable
because they
may be augmented with and receive signals from newly added system nodes,
regardless of
communication protocol.
[057] Because node data need .only compared to itself (that is, each node
preferably only
knows how to determine the necessary variables for triangulation only from
itself), differing
magnitudes of signal from different, nodes resulting from varying protocols,
devices, etc. do
not affect reverse-beacon outputs. Each node instead determines the specific
variable between
itself and the reverse-beacon (for instance, distance) by any means. The node
then provides
this common variable (distance, in this example) to a central controller that
can locate the
reverse-beacon from those variables. This means that detection fields may
comprise virtually
any hybrid of various system nodes, using different communication methods such
as Wi-Fi and
Bluetooth" within the reverse-beacon system. "Distance" as used above may be
an absolute
distance between devices, or a relative distance indication wherein a
collectiOn of "distances"
from nodes in a detection field may be analyzed to estimate the .position of
the reverse-beacon
relative and/or absolute terms. A "distance metric" includes, but is not
necessarily limited to,
indications of signal strength, calculations estimating distance, and
calculations estimating the
change in distance between the reverse-beacon and a given node in a detection
field. A
"calculated location" may be either an absolute or relative location of the
reverse-beacon in a
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detection field wherein the reverse-beacon calculates its position based on
knowledge of
distance metrics to the nodes in said detection field.
[058) By example and not by way of liinitation, if a new communication
protocol were to be
invented, the systems and methods discussed herein would stilt remain relevant
and functional
given that a system node following the new communication protocol may self-
identify and
maintain a new location to the reverse-beacon, which can still interact with
the remaining nodes
in the system in the same manner it has previously. These systems and methods
may thus be
easily installed and be easily adapted to new locations or system nodes
regardless of changes
occurring in underlying communication technologies. or protocols. .1t should
be recognized that
in a still further embodiment, existing beacons could also interact with the
reverse-beacon to
provide still further variables and data points to improve accuracy.
[059] The following embodiments may be built around a physical device 108,
hereby referred
to as the reverse-beacon 108, that comprises a transceiver 105 and a computer
106 such as,
without limitation, depicted in. FIG. 4. The reverse-beacon 108 may have the
transceiver 10$
and computer 106 combined in one physical entity or -separated. The
transceiver 105
communicably coupled with a computer 106 provides .for system nodes 103 within
the
detection fields 109. The transceiver 105 receives signals from the system
nodes 103 that
comprise the detection field. 109. For the reverse-beacon 108 to operate, the
detection field 109
must comprise at least three system nodes 103 which transmit signals to be
received by the
transceiver 105 of the reverse-beacon 108.
1060.1 The system nodes 103 may each follow different communication protocols,
including
but not limited to: Bluetoothm, Wi-fl, or other known now or later discovered.
Because of
this, and because the system nodes 103 are: typically fixed, the user is
granted extreme
flexibility in what constitutes a detection field .109 as shown in FIGS. la
and lb. In contrast,
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other systems require the user to install dedicated devices (beacons), an
unappealing option for
the cost-sensitive consumer.
[061] In FIG. In there is provided an abstraction of the reverse-beacon 108 in
the detection
field 109 which in FIG. lb is expanded by way of example and not by way of
limitation, to
show -specific instances olsysteni nodes .103.
1.0621 The transceiver 105 converts the signals into data that the computer
element 106
processes. Each data packet will generally include at least a system node.
identifier and the
strength of the system node 103 broadcast signal at that time.
[0631 The computer 106 receives, and processes the data, returning one of five
possible
location determinations of the reverse-beacon.-1.08 in relation to the target
AMR 1.09. The five
possibilities are: approaching, departing, in room, static, and mobile, as
shown in FIG. 2. To
determine presence, prior systems comprising standardized beacons make
decisions on the
most recent data available from the perspective of magnitude. In contrast, the
present systems
and methods make decisions by comparing historical data on a per-node basis
.from the
perspective of directional motion and/or distance, estimates, thus making. it
independent of
magnitude. In this fashion, these systems and methods may be used for system
nodes 103 with
a variety of communication protocols. Barring ensuring the data packets
conform to standard
communication protocols, this also eliminates the need for additional
configuration,
equipment, or calibration, all of which incur additional time and monetary
cost.
[064] FIG. 2 provides an illustration of an algorithm embodiment 201 of
location
determinations based on movement in relation to detection field. FIG. 3
provides an illustration
of a method 301 for location, starting at signal transmission from the nodes
103 and ending
with information display or utilization by another server or computer.
[065] To determine the outputs for location determination an embodiment
utilizes a flow such
as that shown in FIG. 3. First, a. transceiver 105 receiving 303 one or more
signals from each
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of the three or more system nodes 103.; second, said transceiver converts 305
said signals into
data about said signals; third, said data is passed 304 from said transceiver
105 to a computer
106; fourth, the computer 106 runs the data thrOugh some analysis process to
determine the
relative location of there verse-beacon to the set of system nodes; wherein
the system nodes
need not be modified specifically for use with the reverse-beacon..
10661 The computer .106 that determines the actual location or other real
space value of the
reverse-beacon 108 may either be a local network computer ore wireless
computer server M.
The local network computer 106 may either be physically attached or separate
from. the
transceiver 105. The local network computer 106 output may be displayed to
users, providing.-
them. information for decision-making. The local network computer 106 output
may also be
used to inform the actions of local mechanisms, including hut not limited to
smart lights,
heating systems, or cooling systems. The wireless computer server 106 may
utilize the
information for remote or network-based mechanisms, including but not limited
to a system
that may operates on cloud computing. Each system node .103 signal strength is
preferably
given by its RSS1 (received signal strength indicator).
1067] in an embodiment of the reverse-beacon 108, a transceiver 105 may be
attached to a
computer 106, in which the transceiver 105 may receive signals and process
said signals into
data, and the computer 106 processes the data into usable information. The
computer 106 may
utilize wireless communications to coordinate with other systems inside the
household,
including but not limited tO lighting systems, or it may be limited to display
the information
directly for the user. Said communication method is preferred to be Bluetoothm
Low Energy
2.4 Gliz; however, that is not required. Any available wireless communication
protocol may
be used.
1:068] in an embodiment of the reverse-beacon 108, the reverse-beacon 108
comprises a
wearable which comprises a transceiver 105 and computer 106, in which received
signals may
??
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be processed into usable information all within the same reverse-beacon device
108. The
information may be displayed visually to the user via a small monitor. The
wearable may also
interface with other communication protocols to communicate with other systems
inside the
household, including but not limited to lighting systems. In an alternative
embodiment, the data
may be passed through an external network for processing into intimation.
10691 In embodiment of the reverse-beacon 108,4 smartphone 108 or other mobile
device 108
such as that shown in FIG, 4 which includes the necessary transceiver 105 and
computer 106
elements may be loaded with special software allowing it. to process collected
signals from the.
three or more system nodes 103 within a detection field 109 and determine its
108 location
relatively the system nodes 103 as described herein. The stnartphone 108 would
receive signals.
and process the signals into usable information, and the information may be
displayed to the
user through the smartp.hone's screen. The phone 108 may also interface with
BluetoothTM or
Wi-Fi to communicate with other systems inside the household, including but
not limited to
lighting systems to allow for tracking of' the reverse-beacon 108 to act as a
control for such
additional systems.
10701 In an embodiment of the reverse-beacon 10$, a device 108 comprising of a
transceiver
105 and a small computer .106 may be attached to an inanimate object in which
signals will be
received. The on-board computer 106 will process said signal into dam.The on-
board computer
106 may be used to process data into usable information, or said data may be
passoithrough a
wireless network and processed remotely. The device 108 may then interface
with Bluetooth
to-communicate with other systems inside the household, including but not
limited to opening
doors such as, but not limited, to garage doors, or turning on- electrical
systems, lights, and/or
-a heating, ventilation, and/or air conditioning. ("HVAK.7) system.
10711 in an embodiment of the detection field 109, the detection field 109
comprises any
quantity of system nodes 103. The system nodes 103 may all utilize the same.
communication
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protocol, or they may utilize different communication protocols. A
heterogeneous field 109
-
will be more often the case, as households commonly hold devices of different
communication
methods, such as a Wi-Fl wireless router and a i3iuetoothTM speaker set.
[0721 In an embodiment of thedeteetion field 109, multiple detection fields
109 may be set
up to track various individual rooms within a household,.
[073] In an embodiment of the monitor, a smartphone may be outfitted with an
app that acts
as a user interface to the system. Processed information may be displayed from
the app, and
the user may customize settings, view statistical data, and manually interact
with the system.
[0741 In an embodiment of the monitor, the. display may be done aurally or
tactilely instead
of visually. After data is processed into usable information, the reverse-
beacon 108 may send
cues to the user when the user has entered a detection field 109. This sort of
cue includes but
is not limited to vibrating different patterns for the different statuses a
user may have or playing
different tunes depending on the status of the user, in which tunes would be
played upon status
change.
[075] In an embodiment of the mortitor,n system. of monitors may be set up
around the house
to display information to one or more users; Various monitors may be connected
to the wireless.
network, and each. one may display different information depending on its
location in the house
or whomever views it the most. All monitors could be configured by a
smartphone app or some
other user interface.
[076] in an embodiment of the algorithm, the detection field 109 would be
calibrated upon set
up and periodically re-calibrated to maintain accuracy of the system. The
algorithm would keep
certain variables subject to change in order to adapt to calibrations, such as
thresholds or sample
sizes. in an alternative embodiment, the algorithm may incorporate machine
learning or
evolutionary aspects such that it may adjust to changing environments.
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[077] In an embodiment of the algorithm, the algorithm exists on the same
device 108 as the
transceiver 105, as firmware on a computer. It may boduplicated to allow for
multiple detection
fields 109 to exist within a household. In an alternative embodiment, the
algorithm may be
detached from the rest of the system and exist on a computer server, such as
the cloud. Data
could be transmitted via a wireless network to the algorithm, which will
process the data and
transmit usable information Welt to the user. The communication method may be
done in a
variety of ways, including but not limited to Wi-Fl and t3luetoothTM.
(0711 in an embodiment of the algorithm, the reverse-beacon 108 may be
augmented by
additional sensing devices 110, including, but not limited to, inertial
measurement units 110
such as gyroscopes, global positioning system MPS") systems, and range-findem
which may
Increase the accuracy of the outputs by allowing the reverse-beacon 108 to
more effectively
handle noise and outliers within the wireless signals. Said device 11.0 may be
attached as an
accessory to the reverse-beacon 108, and its data may he parallelized as
needed. Its status or
outputs may be integrated with the reverse-beacon's outputs in a second layer
decision tree to
come up with more precise information based on a combination of the data. from
wireless
signals and the data from the sensors 110.
[079] In an embodiment of the network, the existing detection field 109
interfaces with the
reverse-beacon 108, which may transmit data or usable information through a
wireless network
for processing, distribution, or storage.
[080] in an embodiment of the network, data may be visualized on an external
system known
to the network through an encryption protocol.
[081] In an embodiment of the network, the reverse-beacon 108 may detect new
system nodes
103 based on new signal transmissions. Said system nodes 103 may be added to a
detection
field 109 and incorporated into the algorithm given user input.
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[082] As described herein, the reverse-beacon 108 may use existing wireless
communication
devices to determine whether the reverse-beacon 108 is within the area defined
by a set of
wirelessly communicating devices. 13y way of example and not limitation, given
an area
defined by nodes 103 around the perimeter of said area, a reverse-beacon 108
with knowledge
of such area may discern whether it is located within the perimeter of said
given area or outside
of said given area based upon signal strength trends from each of the nodes
103. This means
that the reverse-beacon 108 does not require. calibration and can operate
using nodes 103
communicating via different protocols.
1:0831 In one potential exemplary use caS.e. for this technology, existing
wireless
communication devices in a shopping mall environment may be used to determine
which store
a person may be in. Stores typically have wireless cameras, point of sale
devices, and/or
wireless routers, and it is possible to use the interior space defined by such
nodes 103 to define
a detection field 109 for the store. When a customer using a smartphone as a
reverse-beacon
108 is travelling in the mall, the smartphone 108 can determine whether it is
approaching that
store, moving away from that store, within that store, or out of range of that
store (e,g., if
devices from the store are not visible to the smartphone in question). Such a
system uses
existing infrastructure to provide beacon-like functionality in a purely
software deployment
that does not require additional hardware or retrofits/upgrades, which are
required for other
beacon-based proximity marketing activities. Through a software platfOrm
integrated on a
reverse-beacon device 108, existing wireless communication infrastructure may
be utilized for
indoor location capability.
[084] In another exemplary use case, feedback may be provided to advanced
occupancy
detection systems, where the accuracy of a reverse-beacon-based approach may
be higher than
that of an advanced occupancy detection system. Said system may again utilize
existing
wireless communication devices to determine if a person is Within or outside
of a space,
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providing feedback to an advanced occupancy system, which could use
information gathered
during the time when a person is known to be in said space to enhance its
functionality in future
detections. Because the reverse-beacon 108 can operate with a variety of
different wireless
communication devices without. requiring said devices to be configured for use
with the-
reverse-beacon 108, such a system can be deployed more easily and
inexpensively, and to a
wider variety of existing systems, than prior art solutions, which require
configuration of the
devices included in the system.
1085] A.s described, the reverse-beacon 108 differs from current beacons on
the market today,
such its AppkTM beacons. Prior art beacons require that the device actively
interacts/communicates with the beacon. in the present -disclosure, however,
the reverse-
beacon .108 acts as a passive listener to communication signals occurring
independently of the
reverse-beacon. The reverse-beacon 108 requires no other interaction with
these other nodes
103 to determine its position relative to them, and imposes no significant
additional
communication load on the system.
[086] It should be noted that the methods described herein are descriptive,
and anyone of
ordinary skill in the art of basic trigonometric mathematics is capable of
deriving a location
solution.
[087] It should be noted that RSSI is usually measured by receivers in any
communication
system. Depending upon the bandwidth of the receiver, the transmission
frequency, and the
antenna gain, RSSI can be a very exact measure of distance and differential
distance from the
transmitter. For some systems, such as BLE (Bluetoothim Low Energy), it may
not be a precise
measure, and may become less accurate as distance increases. A specific
methodology will
account for the accuracies of the communication system upon which it is
dependent.
[088] The described reverse-beacon system allows for the use of existing
wireless nodes in a
system where the reverse-beacon may locate itself relative to the interior
spate created by said
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devices without requiring any configuration from those devices. This allows
for one to set up
a reverse-beacon based location system Ming the reverse-beacon itself and not
requiring
changes one the nodes the reverse-beacon is. using for location. The reverse-
beacon can then
use its determination of location for a variety of purposes, including indoor
GPS, advanced
occupancy sensor system feedback, proximity marketing, and more without
needing to change
the infrastructure already in place at a facility.
[0$9] It will be understood that any of the ranges, values, properties, or
characteristics given
tilt any single component of the present disclosure can be used
interchangeably with any
ranges, values, properties, or characteristics given for any of the other
components of the
disclosure, where compatible, to form an embodiment- having, defined values
for each of the
components, as given herein throughout. Further, ranges provided for a genus
or a category
can also be applied to species within the genus or members of the category
unless otherwise
noted.
[090] While the invention has been disclosed in. conjunction with a
description of certain
embodiments, including those that are currently believed, to be the preferred
embodiments, the
detailed description is intended to be illustrative and should not be
understood to limit the scope
of the present disclosure. As would be understood by one of ordinary skill in
the art,
embodiments other than those described in detail herein are encompassed by the
present
invention. Modifications and variations of the described embodiments may be
made without
departing from the spirit and scope (Witte invention.
