Paris – April 14, 2014 – Researchers at Telecom SudParis, a part of the Institut Mines-Telecom, a world-leading education and research institution in the fields of information and communication technology, are working on a solution to provide indoor continuity for GNSS positioning. The idea is to deploy a minimal transmission infrastructure in order to allow a standard receiver to measure pseudo-ranges and carrier phases, thus leading to an indoor accurate positioning. The infrastructure consists of a few antennas fed through optical fibers with a GNSS-like signal.
In order to achieve positions accurate to a few decimeters, the locations of the various indoor antennas had to be accurately known. This was achieved with the Spectra Precision FOCUS 8 total station in a local reference frame. In addition, in order to calculate the indoor positioning in WGS84 format, to achieve full compatibility with current outdoor GPS, a Spectra Precision ProMark 800 GNSS receiver was used to link the local reference frame and the GPS. “ The accuracies of the FOCUS 8 and the ProMark 800 and their ease of use were invaluable to us,” said Nel Samama, lead researcher and Professor at the Institut Mines-Telecom.
The International Conference on Indoor Positioning and Indoor Navigation (IPIN) 2012 and 2013 published the first results of the research, and the latest results will soon be published in a paper, “Repealite Based Indoor Positioning System Performance.” The papers propose a new approach to indoor positioning: the repealite system. It aims at providing continuity of the positioning service through the use of GNSS-like signals, thus leading to a single technological means: a GNSS receiver, for both outdoors and indoors. A few error sources have been dealt with in order to reach sub-meter accuracy indoors, among which one has to cite multipath and near-far effects. The paper describes a way to reach indoor sub-meter accuracy and the practical current implementation of the system.
About Telecom SudParis
Telecom SudParis is a leading graduate school of engineering and part of Institut Mines-Telecom, the reference Institute for Information and Communication Technology in France. Telecom SudParis focuses primarily on Information and Communication Technology and provides a generalist and rigorous scientific training to prospective engineers and future managers. With the presence of a management school on the same campus, Telecom SudParis is a pioneer among Grandes Ecoles in combining scientific and management education in France.
About Spectra Precision Brand
Spectra Precision offers a complete product portfolio focusing on the needs of the mainstream surveying and construction markets. The Spectra Precision portfolio includes Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receivers, mechanical and robotic total stations, theodolites, autolevels, data collection hardware, field and office software, as well as a wide range of construction tools and accessories. Spectra Precision surveying equipment uses proven technologies to deliver value, reliability and ease-of-use to customers worldwide. The Spectra Precision brand is backed with the strong technical support that users have come to expect from a quality name in surveying and construction.