Augmenting mmWave localization accuracy through sub-6 GHz on off-the-shelf devices

Abstract

Millimeter-wave (mmWave) technology is an important element to increase the throughput and reduce latency of future wireless networks. At the same time, its high bandwidth and highly directional antennas allow for unprecedented accuracy in wireless sensing and localization applications. In this paper, we thoroughly analyze mmWave localization and find that it is either extremely accurate or has a very high error, since there is significant mmWave coverage via reflections and even through walls. As a consequence, sub-6 GHz technology can not only provide (coarse) localization where mmWave is not available, but is also critical to decide among multiple candidate antennas and APs for accurate mmWave localization. Based on these insights, we design a high-accuracy joint mmWave and sub-6 GHz location system. We enable CSI-based angle estimation and FTM-based ranging on off-the-shelf mmWave devices to implement our mechanism and carry out an extensive measurement campaign. Our system is the first to achieve 18 cm median location error with off-the-shelf devices under their normal mode of operation. We further release the location system (and in particular the CSI and FTM functionality) as well as the trace data from the measurement campaign to the research community.