High-accuracy positioning system using visible LED lights and image sensor

We propose a new positioning system using visible LED lights and image sensor. GPS is widely used, but its measurement error gets dozens meters worse at indoor or urban canyon where radio wave is hard to reach. On the other hand, visible light can reach users easily since visible light devices are established at indoor and urban canyon. Our proposed system can determine the receiver’s position where each LED in a lighting sends differential three dimensional space coordinate and image sensor can receive the signal. We show the availability of our proposed method by numerical analysis.

I. Introduction

Nowadays, Global Positioning System (GPS) is used to measure the current position on the earth. This positioning system is a method to measure the current position based on the distance from its orbit, by measuring how much time radio wave takes to reach the reception point. Radio wave is radiated by a satellite which is launched 20,000km away from surface of the earth. In recent years, the positioning system with GPS has been used widely as car navigation systems, mobile-phones, laser detectors, ships, planes, surveying of public works, and so on. Car navigation system was loaded car of 30% in 2004, and the total number of shipments of mobile-phones loaded GPS was over 20 millions in October 2006 in Japan. As above, it seems that GPS becomes more and much closer to people in the future.