Location detection system and method with fingerprinting

摘要

A location detection system and method with fingerprinting including defining nodes in an area, the area being associated with field devices and a target device; determining expected signal strengths from the field devices at the nodes; measuring actual signal strengths from the field devices at the target device for each of the field devices in communication with the target device; designating as valid nodes the nodes having the expected signal strength for a particular field device that is greater than or equal to the actual signal strength for a particular field device; and determining at least one of the valid nodes for which the actual signal strengths for the field devices agree with the expected signal strengths for the field devices at the at least one of the valid nodes.

主权项

1. A method for detecting a location of a target device, the method comprising acts of:
providing a plurality of field devices configured to communicate with each other using signals having signal strength, in an area having a plurality of nodes and the target device; determining an expected signal strength of signals from each of the plurality of field devices at each of the plurality of nodes; associating each determined expected signal strength at each of the plurality of nodes with one of the plurality of field devices; for each of the plurality of field devices in communication with the target device:
measuring a first actual signal strength from the field device at the target device;designating a portion of the nodes as valid nodes; andidentifying one of the nodes designated as a valid node at which the measured first actual and the determined expected signal strengths agree as the location of the target device, wherein the portion of the nodes designated as valid nodes are only nodes having the expected signal strength for each of the field devices in communication with the target device being greater than or equal to the actual signal strength measured from the respective field device.