Seamless Mobile Indoor Navigation with VLP-PDR

Abstract

This study unveils a mobile app-based indoor positioning system (IPS) tailored for seamless museum navigation. Leveraging smartphone inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensors, it incorporates a pedestrian dead reckoning (PDR) algorithm and a visible light positioning (VLP) beacon-based angle of arrival (AoA) algorithm for precise user positioning relative to smart light sources. In standalone mode, the VLP AoA-based algorithm demonstrates reliability with a mean error of 10.64 cm, while the PDR algorithm, operating independently, exhibits mean error of 3 m influenced by environmental factors. Integration of both algorithms proves crucial in mitigating cumulative errors. By updating PDR deviations with the precision provided by the VLP AoA-based solution, the entire system minimizes its mean error to 0.85 m. The user-friendly interface not only enriches visitor experiences with contextual information but also enables intuitive navigation without continuous internet connectivity. This innovative solution caters to the critical demand for precise indoor navigation, particularly in museum environments, fostering increased user acceptance and utilization.