Experiments on robust indoor localization of mobile devices using interval arithmetic

The lack of techniques and tools to estimate the position of mobile devices with high accuracy and robustness is one of the major causes that limit the provision of advanced location-based services in indoor environments. An algorithm to enable mobile devices to estimate their positions in known indoor environments is discussed in this paper under the assumption that fixed network nodes are available at known locations. The discussed algorithm is designed to allow devices to estimate their positions by actively measuring the distances from visible fixed nodes. In order to reduce the errors introduced by the arrangement of the fixed nodes in the environment, the discussed algorithm transforms the localization problem into an optimization problem, which is then solved using interval arithmetic. Experimental results on the use of the discussed algorithm with distance estimates obtained using ultra-wide band are presented to assess the performance of the algorithm and to compare it with a reference alternative. Presented experimental results confirm that the discussed algorithm provides an increased level of robustness with respect to the considered reference alternative with no loss of accuracy.