3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation

A special issue of ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information (ISSN 2220-9964).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2017) | Viewed by 99932

Special Issue Editors

Department of Infrastructure Engineering, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia
Interests: photogrammetry; 3D computer vision; remote sensing; machine learning; deep learning; automated interpretation of imagery and point clouds
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Division of Geomatics, School of Architecture and Planning and Geomatics, Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, University of Cape Town, Private Bag, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa
Interests: point cloud processing; indoor 3D mapping and modelling; 3D reconstruction

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Indoor environments and enclosed spaces have, in recent times, emerged as the next great frontier of mapping. These spaces present challenges that strain mapping technologies that, up until now, have been developed for mapping outdoor spaces. The challenges of mapping enclosed spaces arise from the fact that these spaces are confined, cluttered with people and furniture, and shielded from commonly used positioning systems like GPS, etc.

Today’s maps are commonly used in navigational aids, and the ubiquity of smart mobile devices and more pin-point commercial activity will in future drive a greater demand for indoor navigational aids. As with mapping technologies, indoor navigation is more demanding than its outdoor counterpart. For example, one reason for this is that visibility within indoor environments is limited and additional tools have to be offered to users to overcome this. Solving the challenges has meant that concepts, data models, and standards have had to be redefined to meet the requirements of 3D indoor spatial applications.

The aim of this Special Issue is to present current and state of the art research in the development of acquisition systems, mobile mapping systems, indoor data modelling and analysis, navigation and visualisation of indoor environments. Because of the multidisciplinary nature of the problem of 3D indoor mapping, contributions are expected from various fields including photogrammetry, computer vision and image analysis, laser scanning, data and information management, computer graphics, human–machine interaction and many others.

Topics that will be considered for this issue include (but are not limited to):

  • Indoor acquisition systems
  • Simultaneous localisation and mapping
  • Indoor data structures and models
  • Indoor positioning and localisation
  • Indoor navigation and guidance
  • Navigating between outdoor and indoor models
  • Visualisation and simulation
  • Evacuation and human activity monitoring
  • User requirements and best practices
  • Resolving privacy and legal concerns

Dr. Sisi Zlatanova
Dr. Kourosh Khoshelham
Dr. George Sithole
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Published Papers (15 papers)

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Research

11901 KiB  
Article
A Post-Rectification Approach of Depth Images of Kinect v2 for 3D Reconstruction of Indoor Scenes
by Jichao Jiao, Libin Yuan, Weihua Tang, Zhongliang Deng and Qi Wu
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2017, 6(11), 349; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6110349 - 13 Nov 2017
Cited by 33 | Viewed by 7780
Abstract
3D reconstruction of indoor scenes is a hot research topic in computer vision. Reconstructing fast, low-cost, and accurate dense 3D maps of indoor scenes have applications in indoor robot positioning, navigation, and semantic mapping. In other studies, the Microsoft Kinect for Windows v2 [...] Read more.
3D reconstruction of indoor scenes is a hot research topic in computer vision. Reconstructing fast, low-cost, and accurate dense 3D maps of indoor scenes have applications in indoor robot positioning, navigation, and semantic mapping. In other studies, the Microsoft Kinect for Windows v2 (Kinect v2) is utilized to complete this task, however, the accuracy and precision of depth information and the accuracy of correspondence between the RGB and depth (RGB-D) images still remain to be improved. In this paper, we propose a post-rectification approach of the depth images to improve the accuracy and precision of depth information. Firstly, we calibrate the Kinect v2 with a planar checkerboard pattern. Secondly, we propose a post-rectification approach of the depth images according to the reflectivity-related depth error. Finally, we conduct tests to evaluate this post-rectification approach from the perspectives of accuracy and precision. In order to validate the effect of our post-rectification approach, we apply it to RGB-D simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) in an indoor environment. Experimental results show that once our post-rectification approach is employed, the RGB-D SLAM system can perform a more accurate and better visual effect 3D reconstruction of indoor scenes than other state-of-the-art methods. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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3253 KiB  
Article
Towards an Affordance-Based Ad-Hoc Suitability Network for Indoor Manufacturing Transportation Processes
by Johannes Scholz and Stefan Schabus
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2017, 6(9), 280; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6090280 - 05 Sep 2017
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4437
Abstract
In manufacturing companies, productivity and efficiency are the main priorities, besides an emphasis on quality issues. The outcome of this research contributes to increasing production quality and efficiency in manufacturing. The article deals with indoor manufacturing environments and the transportation processes of production [...] Read more.
In manufacturing companies, productivity and efficiency are the main priorities, besides an emphasis on quality issues. The outcome of this research contributes to increasing production quality and efficiency in manufacturing. The article deals with indoor manufacturing environments and the transportation processes of production assets—referred to as smart transportation. The authors modelled the objects present in the indoor manufacturing environment with ontologies including their affordances and spatial suitability. To support flexible production and dynamic transportation processes have to be tailored towards the ‘needs’ of the production asset. Hence, the authors propose an approach utilizing an ad-hoc suitability network to support the “optimal” path computation for transportation processes. The objective is to generate a graph for routing purposes for each individual production asset, with respect to the affordances of the indoor space for each production asset, and measurements of a sensor network. The generation of the graph follows an ad-hoc strategy, in two ways. First, the indoor navigation graph is created exactly when a path needs to be found—when a production asset shall be transported to the next manufacturing step. Secondly, the transportation necessities of each production asset, as well as any disturbances present in the environment, are taken into account at the time of the path calculation. The novelty of this approach is that the development of the navigation graph—including the weights—is done with affordances, which are based on an ontology. To realize the approach, the authors developed a linked data approach based on manufacturing data and on an application ontology, linking the indoor manufacturing environment and a graph-based network. The linked data approach is finally implemented as a spatial graph database containing walkable corridors, production equipment, assets and a sensor network. The results show the optimal path for transportation processes with respect to affordances of the indoor manufacturing environments. An evaluation of the computational complexity shows that the affordance-based ad-hoc graphs are thinner and thus reduce the computational complexity of shortest path calculations. Hence, we conclude that an affordance-based approach can help to decrease computational efforts for calculating “optimal” paths for transportation purposes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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16379 KiB  
Article
Simulation-Based Evaluation of Ease of Wayfinding Using Digital Human and As-Is Environment Models
by Tsubasa Maruyama, Satoshi Kanai, Hiroaki Date and Mitsunori Tada
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2017, 6(9), 267; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6090267 - 26 Aug 2017
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 5574
Abstract
As recommended by the international standards, ISO 21542, ease of wayfinding must be ensured by installing signage at all key decision points on walkways such as forks because signage greatly influences the way in which people unfamiliar with an environment navigate through it. [...] Read more.
As recommended by the international standards, ISO 21542, ease of wayfinding must be ensured by installing signage at all key decision points on walkways such as forks because signage greatly influences the way in which people unfamiliar with an environment navigate through it. Therefore, we aimed to develop a new system for evaluating the ease of wayfinding, which could detect spots that cause disorientation, i.e., “disorientation spots”, based on simulated three-dimensional (3D) interactions between wayfinding behaviors and signage location, visibility, legibility, noticeability, and continuity. First, an environment model reflecting detailed 3D geometry and textures of the environment, i.e., “as-is environment model”, is generated automatically using 3D laser-scanning and structure-from-motion (SfM). Then, a set of signage entities is created by the user. Thereafter, a 3D wayfinding simulation is performed in the as-is environment model using a digital human model (DHM), and disorientation spots are detected. The proposed system was tested in a virtual maze and a real two-story indoor environment. It was further validated through a comparison of the disorientation spots detected by the simulation with those of six young subjects. The comparison results revealed that the proposed system could detect disorientation spots, where the subjects lost their way, in the test environment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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568 KiB  
Article
On Wi-Fi Model Optimizations for Smartphone-Based Indoor Localization
by Frank Ebner, Toni Fetzer, Frank Deinzer and Marcin Grzegorzek
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2017, 6(8), 233; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6080233 - 04 Aug 2017
Cited by 23 | Viewed by 4708
Abstract
Indoor localization and indoor pedestrian navigation is an active field of research with increasing attention. As of today, many systems will run on commercial smartphones, but most of them still rely on fingerprinting, which demands high setup and maintenance times. Alternatives, such as [...] Read more.
Indoor localization and indoor pedestrian navigation is an active field of research with increasing attention. As of today, many systems will run on commercial smartphones, but most of them still rely on fingerprinting, which demands high setup and maintenance times. Alternatives, such as simple signal strength prediction models, provide fast setup times, but often do not provide the accuracy required for use cases like indoor navigation or location-based services. While more complex models provide an increased accuracy by including architectural knowledge about walls and other obstacles, they often require additional computation during runtime and demand prior knowledge during setup. Within this work, we will thus focus on simple, easy to set up models and evaluate their performance compared to real-world measurements. The evaluation ranges from a fully-empiric, instant setup, given that the transmitter locations are well known, to a highly optimized scenario based on some reference measurements within the building. Furthermore, we will propose a new signal strength prediction model as a combination of several simple ones. This tradeoff increases accuracy with only minor additional computations. All of the optimized models are evaluated within an actual smartphone-based indoor localization system. This system uses the phone’s Wi-Fi, barometer and IMU to infer the pedestrian’s current location via recursive density estimation based on particle filtering. We will show that while a 100% empiric parameter choice for the model already provides enough accuracy for many use cases, a small number of reference measurements is enough to dramatically increase such a system’s performance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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3786 KiB  
Article
Robust Indoor Mobile Localization with a Semantic Augmented Route Network Graph
by Yan Zhou, Xianwei Zheng, Hanjiang Xiong and Ruizhi Chen
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2017, 6(7), 221; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6070221 - 19 Jul 2017
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 4136
Abstract
In recent years, using smartphones to determine pedestrian locations in indoor environments is an extensively promising technique for improving context-aware applications. However, the applicability and accuracy of the conventional approaches are still limited due to infrastructure-dependence, and there is seldom consideration of the [...] Read more.
In recent years, using smartphones to determine pedestrian locations in indoor environments is an extensively promising technique for improving context-aware applications. However, the applicability and accuracy of the conventional approaches are still limited due to infrastructure-dependence, and there is seldom consideration of the semantic information inherently existing in maps. In this paper, a semantically-constrained low-complexity sensor fusion approach is proposed for the estimation of the user trajectory within the framework of the smartphone-based indoor pedestrian localization, which takes into account the semantic information of indoor space and its compatibility with user motions. The user trajectory is established by pedestrian dead reckoning (PDR) from the mobile inertial sensors, in which the proposed semantic augmented route network graph with adaptive edge length is utilized to provide semantic constraint for the trajectory calibration using a particle filter algorithm. The merit of the proposed method is that it not only exploits the knowledge of the indoor space topology, but also exhausts the rich semantic information and the user motion in a specific indoor space for PDR accumulation error elimination, and can extend the applicability for diverse pedestrian step length modes. Two experiments are conducted in the real indoor environment to verify of the proposed approach. The results confirmed that the proposed method can achieve highly acceptable pedestrian localization results using only the accelerometer and gyroscope embedded in the phones, while maintaining an enhanced accuracy of 1.23 m, with the indoor semantic information attached to each pedestrian’s motion. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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2008 KiB  
Article
Integrating Decentralized Indoor Evacuation with Information Depositories in the Field
by Haifeng Zhao, Stephan Winter and Martin Tomko
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2017, 6(7), 213; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6070213 - 11 Jul 2017
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 4641
Abstract
The lonelier evacuees find themselves, the riskier become their wayfinding decisions. This research supports single evacuees in a dynamically changing environment with risk-aware guidance. It deploys the concept of decentralized evacuation, where evacuees are guided by smartphones acquiring environmental knowledge and risk information [...] Read more.
The lonelier evacuees find themselves, the riskier become their wayfinding decisions. This research supports single evacuees in a dynamically changing environment with risk-aware guidance. It deploys the concept of decentralized evacuation, where evacuees are guided by smartphones acquiring environmental knowledge and risk information via exploration and knowledge sharing by peer-to-peer communication. Peer-to-peer communication, however, relies on the chance that people come into communication range with each other. This chance can be low. To bridge between people being not at the same time at the same places, this paper suggests information depositories at strategic locations to improve information sharing. Information depositories collect the knowledge acquired by the smartphones of evacuees passing by, maintain this information, and convey it to other passing-by evacuees. Multi-agent simulation implementing these depositories in an indoor environment shows that integrating depositories improves evacuation performance: It enhances the risk awareness and consequently increases the chance that people survive and reduces their evacuation time. For evacuating dynamic events, deploying depositories at staircases has been shown more effective than deploying them in corridors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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4039 KiB  
Article
A Novel Semantic Matching Method for Indoor Trajectory Tracking
by Sheng Guo, Hanjiang Xiong and Xianwei Zheng
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2017, 6(7), 197; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6070197 - 01 Jul 2017
Cited by 17 | Viewed by 4690
Abstract
The rapid development of smartphone sensors has provided rich indoor pedestrian trajectory data for indoor location-based applications. To improve the quality of these collected trajectory data, map matching methods are widely used to correct trajectories. However, these existing matching methods usually cannot achieve [...] Read more.
The rapid development of smartphone sensors has provided rich indoor pedestrian trajectory data for indoor location-based applications. To improve the quality of these collected trajectory data, map matching methods are widely used to correct trajectories. However, these existing matching methods usually cannot achieve satisfactory accuracy and efficiency and have difficulty in exploiting the rich information contained in the obtained trajectory data. In this study, we proposed a novel semantic matching method for indoor pedestrian trajectory tracking. Similar to our previous work, pedestrian dead reckoning (PDR) and human activity recognition (HAR) are used to obtain the raw user trajectory data and the corresponding semantic information involved in the trajectory, respectively. To improve the accuracy and efficiency for user trajectory tracking, a semantic-rich indoor link-node model is then constructed based on the input floor plan, in which navigation-related semantics are extracted and formalized for the following trajectory matching. PDR and HAR are further utilized to segment the trajectory and infer the semantics (e.g., “Turn left”, “Turn right”, and “Go straight”). Finally, the inferred semantic information is matched with the semantic-rich indoor link-node model to derive the correct user trajectory. To accelerate the matching process, the semantics inferred from the trajectory are also assigned weights according to their relative importance. The experiments confirm that the proposed method achieves accurate trajectory tracking results while guaranteeing a high matching efficiency. In addition, the resulting semantic information has great application potential in further indoor location-based services. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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2085 KiB  
Article
A Multiple Ant Colony Optimization Algorithm for Indoor Room Optimal Spatial Allocation
by Lina Yang, Xu Sun, Axing Zhu and Tianhe Chi
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2017, 6(6), 161; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6060161 - 01 Jun 2017
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 5317
Abstract
Indoor room optimal allocation is of great importance in geographic information science (GIS) applications because it can generate effective indoor spatial patterns that improve human behavior and efficiency. However, few research concerning indoor room optimal allocation has been reported. Using an office building [...] Read more.
Indoor room optimal allocation is of great importance in geographic information science (GIS) applications because it can generate effective indoor spatial patterns that improve human behavior and efficiency. However, few research concerning indoor room optimal allocation has been reported. Using an office building as an example, this paper presents an integrative approach for indoor room optimal allocation, which includes an indoor room allocation optimization model, indoor connective map design, and a multiple ant colony optimization (MACO) algorithm. The mathematical optimization model is a minimized model that integrates three types of area-weighted costs while considering the minimal requirements of each department to be allocated. The indoor connective map, which is an essential data input, is abstracted by all floor plan space partitions and connectivity between every two adjacent floors. A MACO algorithm coupled with three strategies, namely, (1) heuristic information, (2) two-colony rules, and (3) local search, is effective in achieving a feasible solution of satisfactory quality within a reasonable computation time. A case study was conducted to validate the proposed approach. The results show that the MACO algorithm with these three strategies outperforms other types of ant colony optimization (ACO), Genetic Algorithm (GA), and particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithms in quality and stability, which demonstrates that the proposed approach is an effective technique for generating optimal indoor room spatial patterns. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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871 KiB  
Article
Indoor Fingerprint Positioning Based on Wi-Fi: An Overview
by Shixiong Xia, Yi Liu, Guan Yuan, Mingjun Zhu and Zhaohui Wang
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2017, 6(5), 135; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6050135 - 28 Apr 2017
Cited by 193 | Viewed by 13951
Abstract
The widely applied location-based services require a high standard for positioning technology. Currently, outdoor positioning has been a great success; however, indoor positioning technologies are in the early stages of development. Therefore, this paper provides an overview of indoor fingerprint positioning based on [...] Read more.
The widely applied location-based services require a high standard for positioning technology. Currently, outdoor positioning has been a great success; however, indoor positioning technologies are in the early stages of development. Therefore, this paper provides an overview of indoor fingerprint positioning based on Wi-Fi. First, some indoor positioning technologies, especially the Wi-Fi fingerprint indoor positioning technology, are introduced and discussed. Second, some evaluation metrics and influence factors of indoor fingerprint positioning technologies based on Wi-Fi are introduced. Third, methods and algorithms of fingerprint indoor positioning technologies are analyzed, classified, and discussed. Fourth, some widely used assistive positioning technologies are described. Finally, conclusions are drawn and future possible research interests are discussed. It is hoped that this research will serve as a stepping stone for those interested in advancing indoor positioning. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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2570 KiB  
Article
A Standard Indoor Spatial Data Model—OGC IndoorGML and Implementation Approaches
by Hae-Kyong Kang and Ki-Joune Li
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2017, 6(4), 116; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6040116 - 12 Apr 2017
Cited by 89 | Viewed by 10309
Abstract
With the recent progress in indoor spatial data modeling, indoor mapping and indoor positioning technologies, several spatial information services for indoor spaces have been provided like for outdoor spaces. In order to support interoperability between indoor spatial information services, IndoorGML was published by [...] Read more.
With the recent progress in indoor spatial data modeling, indoor mapping and indoor positioning technologies, several spatial information services for indoor spaces have been provided like for outdoor spaces. In order to support interoperability between indoor spatial information services, IndoorGML was published by OGC (Open Geospatial Consortium) as a standard data model and XML-based exchange format. While the previous standards, such as IFC (Industrial Foundation Classes) and CityGML covering also indoor space, aim at feature modeling, the goal of IndoorGML is to establish a standard basis for the indoor space model. As IndoorGML defines a minimum data model for indoor space, more efforts are required to discover its potential aspects, which are not explicitly explained in the standard document. In this paper, we investigate the implications and potential aspects of IndoorGML and its basic concept of the cellular space model and discuss the implementation issues of IndoorGML for several purposes. In particular, we discuss the issues on cell determination, subspacing and the hierarchical structure of indoor space from the IndoorGML viewpoint. Additionally, we also focus on two important issues: computation of indoor distance and the implementation of indoor context-awareness services based on IndoorGML. We expect that this paper will serve as a technical document for better understanding of IndoorGML throughout these discussions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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5066 KiB  
Article
Estimation of 3D Indoor Models with Constraint Propagation and Stochastic Reasoning in the Absence of Indoor Measurements
by Sandra Loch-Dehbi, Youness Dehbi and Lutz Plümer
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2017, 6(3), 90; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6030090 - 21 Mar 2017
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 5346
Abstract
This paper presents a novel method for the prediction of building floor plans based on sparse observations in the absence of measurements. We derive the most likely hypothesis using a maximum a posteriori probability approach. Background knowledge consisting of probability density functions of [...] Read more.
This paper presents a novel method for the prediction of building floor plans based on sparse observations in the absence of measurements. We derive the most likely hypothesis using a maximum a posteriori probability approach. Background knowledge consisting of probability density functions of room shape and location parameters is learned from training data. Relations between rooms and room substructures are represented by linear and bilinear constraints. We perform reasoning on different levels providing a problem solution that is optimal with regard to the given information. In a first step, the problem is modeled as a constraint satisfaction problem. Constraint Logic Programming derives a solution which is topologically correct but suboptimal with regard to the geometric parameters. The search space is reduced using architectural constraints and browsed by intelligent search strategies which use domain knowledge. In a second step, graphical models are used for updating the initial hypothesis and refining its continuous parameters. We make use of Gaussian mixtures for model parameters in order to represent background knowledge and to get access to established methods for efficient and exact stochastic reasoning. We demonstrate our approach on different illustrative examples. Initially, we assume that floor plans are rectangular and that rooms are rectangles and discuss more general shapes afterwards. In a similar spirit, we predict door locations providing further important components of 3D indoor models. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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7628 KiB  
Article
The Performance Analysis of Space Resection-Aided Pedestrian Dead Reckoning for Smartphone Navigation in a Mapped Indoor Environment
by Kai-Wei Chiang, Jhen-Kai Liao, Shih-Huan Huang, Hsiu-Wen Chang and Chien-Hsun Chu
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2017, 6(2), 43; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6020043 - 14 Feb 2017
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 5677
Abstract
Smartphones have become indispensable in our daily lives. Their various embedded sensors have inspired innovations in mobile applications—especially for indoor navigation. However, the accuracy, reliability and generalizability of navigation all continue to struggle in environments lacking a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). Pedestrian [...] Read more.
Smartphones have become indispensable in our daily lives. Their various embedded sensors have inspired innovations in mobile applications—especially for indoor navigation. However, the accuracy, reliability and generalizability of navigation all continue to struggle in environments lacking a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). Pedestrian Dead Reckoning (PDR) is a popular method for indoor pedestrian navigation. Unfortunately, due to its fundamental principles, even a small navigation error will amplify itself, step by step, generally leading to the need for supplementary resources to maintain navigation accuracy. Virtually all mobile devices and most robots contain a basic camera sensor, which has led to the popularity of image-based localization, and vice versa. However, all of the image-based localization requires continuous images for uninterrupted positioning. Furthermore, the solutions provided by either image-based localization or a PDR are usually in a relative coordinate system. Therefore, this research proposes a system, which uses space resection-aided PDR with geo-referenced images of a previously mapped environment to enable seamless navigation and solve the shortcomings of PDR and image-based localization, and evaluates the performance of space resection with different assumptions using a smartphone. The indoor mobile mapping system (IMMS) is used for the effective production of geo-referenced images. The preliminary results indicate that the proposed algorithm is suitable for universal pedestrian indoor navigation, achieving the accuracy required for commercial applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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4945 KiB  
Article
Indoor Multi-Dimensional Location GML and Its Application for Ubiquitous Indoor Location Services
by Qing Zhu, Yun Li, Qing Xiong, Sisi Zlatanova, Yulin Ding, Yeting Zhang and Yan Zhou
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2016, 5(12), 220; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi5120220 - 29 Nov 2016
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 7270
Abstract
The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) Geography Markup Language (GML) standard provides basic types and a framework for defining geo-informational data models such as CityGML and IndoorGML, which provide standard information models for 3D city modelling and lightweight indoor network navigation. Location information, which [...] Read more.
The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) Geography Markup Language (GML) standard provides basic types and a framework for defining geo-informational data models such as CityGML and IndoorGML, which provide standard information models for 3D city modelling and lightweight indoor network navigation. Location information, which is the semantic engine that fuses big geo-information data, is however, discarded in these standards. The Chinese national standard of Indoor Multi-Dimensional Location GML (IndoorLocationGML) presented in this study can be used in ubiquitous indoor location intelligent applications for people and robots. IndoorLocationGML is intended as an indoor multi-dimensional location information model and exchange data format standard, mainly for indoor positioning and navigation. This paper introduces the standard’s main features: (1) terminology; (2) indoor location information model using a Unified Modeling Language (UML) class diagram; (3) indoor location information markup language based on GML; and (4) use cases. A typical application of the standard is then discussed. This standard is applicable to the expression, storage, and distribution of indoor multi-dimensional location information, and to the seamless integration of indoor–outdoor location information. The reference and basis are therefore relevant to publishers, managers, users, and developers of indoor navigation and location-based services (LBS). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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14931 KiB  
Article
Indexing for Moving Objects in Multi-Floor Indoor Spaces That Supports Complex Semantic Queries
by Hui Lin, Ling Peng, Si Chen, Tianyue Liu and Tianhe Chi
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2016, 5(10), 176; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi5100176 - 27 Sep 2016
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 4760
Abstract
With the emergence of various types of indoor positioning technologies (e.g., radio-frequency identification, Wi-Fi, and iBeacon), how to rapidly retrieve indoor cells and moving objects has become a key factor that limits those indoor applications. Euclidean distance-based indexing techniques for outdoor moving objects [...] Read more.
With the emergence of various types of indoor positioning technologies (e.g., radio-frequency identification, Wi-Fi, and iBeacon), how to rapidly retrieve indoor cells and moving objects has become a key factor that limits those indoor applications. Euclidean distance-based indexing techniques for outdoor moving objects cannot be used in indoor spaces due to the existence of indoor obstructions (e.g., walls). In addition, currently, the indexing of indoor moving objects is mainly based on space-related query and less frequently on semantic query. To address these two issues, the present study proposes a multi-floor adjacency cell and semantic-based index (MACSI). By integrating the indoor cellular space with the semantic space, the MACSI subdivides open cells (e.g., hallways and lobbies) using space syntax and optimizes the adjacency distances between three-dimensionally connected cells (e.g., elevators and stairs) based on the caloric cost that extends single floor indoor space to three dimensional indoor space. Moreover, based on the needs of semantic query, this study also proposes a multi-granularity indoor semantic hierarchy tree and establishes semantic trajectories. Extensive simulation and real-data experiments show that—compared with the indoor trajectories delta tree (ITD-tree) and the semantic-based index (SI)—the MACSI produces more reliable query results with significantly higher semantic query and update efficiencies; has superior semantic expansion capability; and supports multi-granularity complex semantic queries. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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4938 KiB  
Article
WiGeR: WiFi-Based Gesture Recognition System
by Mohammed Abdulaziz Aide Al-qaness and Fangmin Li
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2016, 5(6), 92; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi5060092 - 14 Jun 2016
Cited by 95 | Viewed by 9994
Abstract
Recently, researchers around the world have been striving to develop and modernize human–computer interaction systems by exploiting advances in modern communication systems. The priority in this field involves exploiting radio signals so human–computer interaction will require neither special devices nor vision-based technology. In [...] Read more.
Recently, researchers around the world have been striving to develop and modernize human–computer interaction systems by exploiting advances in modern communication systems. The priority in this field involves exploiting radio signals so human–computer interaction will require neither special devices nor vision-based technology. In this context, hand gesture recognition is one of the most important issues in human–computer interfaces. In this paper, we present a novel device-free WiFi-based gesture recognition system (WiGeR) by leveraging the fluctuations in the channel state information (CSI) of WiFi signals caused by hand motions. We extract CSI from any common WiFi router and then filter out the noise to obtain the CSI fluctuation trends generated by hand motions. We design a novel and agile segmentation and windowing algorithm based on wavelet analysis and short-time energy to reveal the specific pattern associated with each hand gesture and detect duration of the hand motion. Furthermore, we design a fast dynamic time warping algorithm to classify our system’s proposed hand gestures. We implement and test our system through experiments involving various scenarios. The results show that WiGeR can classify gestures with high accuracy, even in scenarios where the signal passes through multiple walls. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Indoor Modelling and Navigation)
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