Broadband ultrasonic location systems for improved indoor positioning

Ultrasonic location systems are a popular solution for the provision of fine-grained indoor positioning data. Applications include enhanced routing for wireless networks, computer-aided navigation, and location-sensitive device behavior. However, current ultrasonic location systems suffer from limitations due to their use of narrowband transducers, This paper investigates the use of broadband ultrasound for indoor positioning systems. Broadband ultrasonic transmitter and receiver units have been developed and characterized. The utilization of these units to construct two positioning systems with different architectures serves to highlight and affirm the concrete, practical benefits of broadband ultrasound for locating people and devices indoors.