Environment-Aware Indoor Localization using Magnetic Induction

The Magnetic Induction (MI) communication techniques have enabled or enhanced many wireless applications in the indoor environments where line-of-sight (LOS) links usually do not exist. The position information of each wireless device in such complex environment can also be derived by the same MI systems without additional hardware or infrastructure. However, while MI signals can penetrate most transmission media without significant attenuation and phase shifting, the conductive objects in the indoor environment (e. g., metallic pipelines, beams, and human bodies) can still dramatically influence the MI signals, which can cause significant estimation errors in the MI-based indoor localization. To date, no analysis/solution has been provided to address such problem. In this paper, an environmentaware indoor localization mechanism is proposed for MI-based wireless networks in complex non-LOS environments without preinstalled infrastructures. First, the influence of conductive objects on the MI-based wireless network in indoor environment is investigated. Then based on the influence analysis, a joint device localization and conductive-object tomography algorithm is developed to estimate the position of each wireless devices as well as distribution of objects. The simulation evaluation shows the proposed mechanism can accurately localize each device in a MI-based networks in a complex floor plan with multiple conductive walls and obstructions.