GreenZoner egypt: indoormaps

Cambridge Consultants develops indoor tech

<div dir="rtl" style="text-align: right;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;"> <img alt="DNP Cambridge Consultants develops indoor tracking tech that picks up where GPS drops off" data-src-height="400" data-src-width="620" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2013/03/cc-indoor-nav.jpg" /></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">Indoor navigation<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7080182682816192337"> isn't a new concept, but it often requires wireless signals or custom infrastructure, neither of which are entirely reliable. Cambridge Consultants  has come up with an as-yet-unnamed technology that purports to solve  the issue by utilizing low-power sensors along with a custom formula  that don't require an existing framework. According to the Cambridge,  UK-based company, all you need are its special Bayesian algorithm and  run-of-the-mill smartphone components like accelerometers, gyroscopes  and magnetometers to do the job. It has already built a concept chipset  (seen above) that could be embedded in existing devices -- you can  either map your location directly on it or send that info off to a  remote system. The firm says the technology will be useful for  firefighters and hospital workers, though we wouldn't complain if it's  implemented in trade shows either. For more information on the tech, check the press release after the break.</a></div><div class="open" dir="ltr" id="pr_box" style="text-align: left;"> <div id="pr_box_button">Hide Press Release</div><div id="pr_text">     <strong>The inside track to safety</strong><br />   Cambridge Consultants unveils cost-effective and accurate indoor locator system<br />      New technology from innovative product development firm Cambridge  Consultants can accurately detect someone's location indoors when GPS  drops out. A number of sensors and a custom algorithm determine the  location, with an accuracy of within approximately 1% of the distance  travelled. Yet the technology uses low-power, low-cost sensors and the  device concept is small enough to clip on a belt. It also doesn't need  any existing internal infrastructure.<br />     "We are excited about  the many possibilities this cutting-edge technology opens up and the  impact it can have in many different situations," said Geoff Smithson,  technology director, sensing systems, at Cambridge Consultants. "It  could be used to help locate firefighters in smoke-filled buildings, for  example, or to pinpoint the closest doctor in a hospital during an  emergency – or to track offenders during home curfews. We are just  starting to see the potential of this approach and the diverse demand  for this type of low-energy, highly accurate system."<br />     Indoor  tracking systems which process data from one or more sources of location  information to estimate where a person or object is located are not  new. But they often rely on RF signals from wi-fi access points or  custom infrastructure, poor-quality GPS signals or expensive,  high-quality sensors. The availability of low-cost smartphone components  – including accelerometers, gyroscopes, magnetometers and pressure  sensors – has enabled a new generation of location devices and  applications, when combined with a tailored Bayesian algorithm to fuse  the information.<br />     The new technology platform can be embedded  in an existing design or operate as a stand-alone unit, with options to  compute the location locally or transmit the information to a remote  system which can process the data before visualising it on a smartphone  app.<br />     "Our biggest challenges were developing an algorithm  which optimally combines the data from GPS and the other sensors, and  overcoming the issues of using such low-cost sensors in a system without  any absolute location reference," said Smithson.<br />     Cambridge  Consultants specialises in developing low-cost, low-power connected  devices for clients – with a team of experts with sensing, wireless and  software engineering expertise. The latest technology builds on the  company's tracking and location systems experience in a variety of  market sectors ranging from defence and security to consumer,  industrial, and oil and gas.<br /> </div></div></div>