Claims:WE CLAIM

1. A system for locating an asset in an environment divided into two or more zones, the system comprising:
a transmitter associated with the asset and having a unique transmitter identifier (transmitter ID), the transmitter configured to emit a first signal including the transmitter ID;
one or more emitters installed in the two or more zones, each of the one or more emitters having a unique emitter identifier (emitter ID) and being configured to emit a second signal including the emitter ID;
at least one movable receiver, the at least one movable receiver is mobile and configured to:
receive the first signal from the transmitter, and
receive the second signal from the one or more emitters; and
at least one display, the at least one display configured to:
display a zone location for the transmitter with respect to the two or more zones and a detailed position for the transmitter separately with the detailed position being located within the zone location, the zone location and the detailed position being determined based on the received first signal, the received second signal and information about location of the corresponding emitter with respect to the two or more zones, and
update the zone location if a first condition or a second condition is met and update the detailed position if the first condition is met, each of the first condition and the second condition including a determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter, and a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver is determined based on a number of emitters from which the at least one movable receiver receives the second signals.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is determined by at least one of a strength of the received first signal and a time of flight of the first signal between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the first condition provides that the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is shorter than a first distance and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver is a first position accuracy, and the second condition provides that the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is shorter than the first distance and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver is a second position accuracy, or the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is longer than the first distance, and shorter than a second distance and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver is a second position accuracy, wherein a position of the at least one movable receiver with the first position accuracy is determined more accurately than a position of the at least one movable receiver with the second position accuracy.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein in case of the at least one display displaying a first zone as the zone location and a first detailed position in the first zone as the detailed position, the at least one display is configured to retain the first detailed position as the detailed position if the at least one display updates the zone location from the first zone to the first zone based on the second condition being met and the at least one movable receiver being located in the first zone.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein in case of the at least one display displaying a first zone as the zone location and a first detailed position as the detailed position, the at least one display is configured to remove the first detailed position as the detailed position if the at least one display updates the zone location from the first zone to a second zone which is different from the first zone based on the second condition being met and the at least one movable receiver being located in the second zone.

7. The system according to claim 5, wherein the second condition further provides that a predefined time duration is passed from a time when the detailed position was updated to the first detailed position.

8. The system according to claim 5, wherein the at least one movable receiver includes at least two movable receivers, and the at least one display is configured to remove the first detailed position as the detailed position if the at least one display updates the zone location from the first zone to the second zone based on the second condition being met in serial by each of the at least two movable receivers being located in the second zone.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein the at least one display is further configured to display time stamps associated with the zone location and the detailed position, the time stamp associated with the zone location is updated when the zone location is updated and the time stamp associated with detailed position is updated when the detailed position is updated.

10. The system according to claim 4, wherein in case of the at least one display displaying a first zone as the zone location and a first detailed position as the detailed position, the at least one display is configured to remove the first detailed position if a third condition is met and the at least one movable receiver is located at the first detailed position, wherein the third condition provides that the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is longer than the second distance and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver is the first position accuracy.

11. The system according to claim 4, wherein the first distance is defined as a distance of 1 meter or less between the transmitter and the at least one movable receiver having received the first signal, and the second distance is defined as a distance from 1 meter up to 10 meters between the transmitter and the at least one movable receiver having received the first signal.

12. The system according to claim 4, wherein the first position accuracy is defined as a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver being determined by receiving the second signals from at least three emitters of the one or more emitters, and the second position accuracy is defined as a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver being determined by receiving the second signals from two emitters of the one or more emitters.

13. The system according to claim 4, wherein the first position accuracy is defined as a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver receiving the second signals being within a circle with a radius of a distance of 5 meters or less, and the second position accuracy is defined as a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver receiving the second signals being within a circle with a radius of a distance of between 5 meters and 20 meters.

14. The system according to claims 1 further comprises at least one fixed receiver installed in a center of one zone from the two or more zones, wherein the at least one fixed receiver is configured to receive the first signal from the transmitter.

15. The system according to claims 14, wherein the zone location is further determined based on the received first signal by the at least one fixed receiver, and information about location of the at least one fixed receiver with respect to the two or more zones, and each of the first condition and the second condition further include a determined distance between the at least one fixed receiver and the transmitter.

16. A method for locating an asset in an environment divided into two or more zones, the method comprising:
associating, with the asset, a transmitter having a unique transmitter identifier (transmitter ID) and emitting a first signal including the transmitter ID;
installing, in the two or more zones, one or more emitters having a unique emitter identifier (emitter ID) and emitting a second signal including the emitter ID;
providing at least one receiver to receive the first signal from the transmitter and the second signal from the one or more emitters;
determining the zone location and the detailed position based on the received first signal with the corresponding transmitter ID, the received second signal with the corresponding emitter ID and information about location of the corresponding emitter with respect to the two or more zones;
displaying a zone location for the transmitter with respect to the two or more zones and a detailed position for the transmitter separately with the detailed position being located within the zone location; and
updating the zone location if a first condition or a second condition is met and updating the detailed position if the first condition is met, each of the first condition and the second condition including a determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter, and a position accuracy of the at least one receiver.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein in case of displaying a first zone as the zone location and a first detailed position in the first zone as the detailed position, the method further comprises retaining the first detailed position as the detailed position if the zone location is updated as the first zone based on the second condition being met and the at least one receiver being located in the first zone.

18. The method according to claim 16, wherein in case of displaying a first zone as the zone location and a first detailed position as the detailed position, the method further comprises removing the first detailed position as the detailed position if the zone location is updated as a second zone which is different from the first zone based on the second condition being met and the at least one receiver being located in the second zone.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the second condition further provides that a predefined time duration is passed from a time when the detailed position was updated to the first detailed position.

20. The method according to claim 18, wherein the at least one movable receiver includes at least two movable receivers, and wherein the method further comprises removing the first detailed position as the detailed position if the at least one display updates the zone location from the first zone to the second zone based on the second condition being met in serial by each of the at least two movable receivers being located in the second zone.

Description:SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR LOCATING ASSET IN ENVIRONMENT

FIELD OF THE PRESENT DISCLOSURE
[0001] The present disclosure generally relates to wireless tracking devices, and more particularly to a system and a method for locating an asset in an environment which may be divided into multiple zones using wireless tracking devices.

BACKGROUND
[0002] Many situations require that a location of an asset (e.g. a person, piece of equipment, material and the like) is continuously known in an environment, such as an office space or an industrial setting. However, the environment in which the asset may be located may present many challenges. For example, in the office environment, where tens or hundreds of IT assets, such as, laptops, telephones, and other electronic devices may be in use, traditionally RFID based tags are attached to each of the IT assets for asset management and corresponding readers are installed typically at entrance and exits of various spaces in the environment. With such system, it may be possible to locate in which space of the office environment the asset may be located at any given time, but it does not provide any information about the detailed position of the asset within that space. Further, traditional remote positioning systems such as satellite based Global Positioning Systems (GPS) or cell-phone based systems which use triangulation as reception of signals may face challenges as the signals may be inhibited by the structure of the building or other environmental shielding. Further, such remote positioning systems have no insight into the interior layout of the environment and may only provide latitude and longitude rather than insight into an asset's location within the environment.
[0003] Some solutions have been proposed to facilitate locating assets in an indoor environment. For example, US Patent Publication Number 20160026837A1 (’837 publication) provides an example method which includes receiving messages collected by a badge in an environment, the messages including signal strength and a timestamp. The example method also includes assigning a location in the environment to the badge based on a first subset of the messages. The example method also includes identifying an asset in a second subset of the messages. The example method also includes updating a current location associated with the asset based on a relative proximity of the asset to the badge, wherein the current location corresponds to a first time and the updated location corresponds to a second time, and wherein a change in location between the current location and the updated location indicates movement of the asset in the environment.
[0004] The disclosed example method of ’837 publication uses Bluetooth signal which may fluctuate. While when the signal is strong, the determination about asset’s location based on the signal may be reliable; however, when the signal is medium or weak, the determination may be unreliable. In the example method of ’837 publication, when the determination of the asset’s location has been made by, for example, a signal with medium strength, such determination is considered as the updated asset’s location and overwrite the last determined asset’s location, even if such last determined asset’s location had been made from reliable strong signal. This may possibly lead to inaccurate update of the asset’s location, which is certainly undesirable, and in some case may even result in some form of loss.
[0005] The present disclosure has been made in view of such considerations, and it is an object of the present disclosure to provide systems and methods for locating an asset in an indoor environment which is reliable and which update the asset’s location only when the conditions related to the signals provide sufficient reliability.

SUMMARY
[0006] In an aspect, a system for locating an asset in an environment divided into two or more zones is disclosed. The system comprises a transmitter associated with the asset and having a unique transmitter identifier (transmitter ID). The transmitter is configured to emit a first signal including the transmitter ID. The system also comprises one or more emitters installed in the two or more zones. Each of the one or more emitters having a unique emitter identifier (emitter ID) and being configured to emit a second signal including the emitter ID. The system further comprises at least one receiver. The at least one receiver is configured to receive the first signal from the transmitter and receive the second signal from the one or more emitters. The system further comprises at least one display. The at least one display is configured to display a zone location for the transmitter with respect to the two or more zones and a detailed position for the transmitter separately with the detailed position being located within the zone location, the zone location and the detailed position being determined based on the received first signal with the corresponding transmitter ID, the received second signal with the corresponding emitter ID and information about location of the corresponding emitter with respect to the two or more zones. The at least one display is further configured to update the zone location if a first condition or a second condition is met and update the detailed position if the first condition is met, each of the first condition and the second condition including a determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter, and a position accuracy of the at least one receiver.
[0007] In one or more embodiments, the position accuracy of the at least one receiver is determined based on a number of emitters from which the at least one receiver receives the second signals and the strength of the received second signals.
[0008] In one or more embodiments, the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is determined by at least one of a strength of the received first signal and a time of flight of the first signal between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter.
[0009] In one or more embodiments, the first condition provides that the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is shorter than a first distance and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver is a first position accuracy, and the second condition provides that the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is shorter than the first distance and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver is a second position accuracy, or the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is longer than the first distance, and shorter than a second distance and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver is a second position accuracy, wherein a position of the at least one movable receiver with the first position accuracy is determined more accurately than a position of the at least one movable receiver with the second position accuracy.
[0010] In one or more embodiments, in case of the at least one display displaying a first zone as the zone location and a first detailed position in the first zone as the detailed position, the at least one display is configured to retain the first detailed position as the detailed position if the at least one display updates the zone location as the first zone based on the second condition being met and the at least one receiver being located in the first zone.
[0011] In one or more embodiments, in case of the at least one display displaying a first zone as the zone location and a first detailed position as the detailed position, the at least one display is configured to remove the first detailed position as the detailed position if the at least one display updates the zone location as a second zone which is different from the first zone based on the second condition being met and the at least one receiver being located in the second zone.
[0012] In one or more embodiments, the second condition further provides that a predefined time duration is passed from a time when the detailed position was updated to the first detailed position.
[0013] In one or more embodiments, the at least one receiver includes at least two receivers, and wherein the second condition further provides that the second condition is met in serial by the at least two receivers with the at least two receivers being located in the second zone.
[0014] In one or more embodiments, the at least one display is further configured to display time stamps associated with the zone location and the detailed position, the time stamp associated with the zone location is updated when the zone location is updated and the time stamp associated with detailed position is updated when the detailed position is updated.
[0015] In one or more embodiments, in case of the at least one display displaying a first zone as the zone location and a first detailed position as the detailed position, the at least one display is configured to remove the first detailed position if a third condition is met and the at least one receiver is located at the first detailed position, wherein the third condition provides that the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is longer than the second distance and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver is the first position accuracy.
[0016] In one or more embodiments, the first distance is defined as a distance of 1 meter or less between the transmitter and the at least one movable receiver having received the first signal, and the second distance is defined as a distance from 1 meter up to 10 meters between the transmitter and the at least one movable receiver having received the first signal.
[0017] In one or more embodiments, the first position accuracy is defined as a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver being determined by receiving the second signals from at least three emitters of the one or more emitters, and the second position accuracy is defined as a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver being determined by receiving the second signals from two emitters of the one or more emitters.
[0018] In one or more embodiments, the first position accuracy is defined as a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver receiving the second signals being within a circle with a radius of a distance of 5 meters or less, and the second position accuracy is defined as a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver receiving the second signals being within a circle with a radius of a distance of between 5 meters and 20 meters.
[0019] In one or more embodiments, the system further comprises at least one fixed receiver installed in a center of one zone from the two or more zones. The at least one fixed receiver is configured to receive the first signal from the transmitter.
[0020] In one or more embodiments, the zone location is further determined based on the received first signal by the at least one fixed receiver, and information about location of the at least one fixed receiver with respect to the two or more zones, and each of the first condition and the second condition further include a determined distance between the at least one fixed receiver and the transmitter.
[0021] In another aspect, a method for locating an asset in an environment divided into two or more zones is disclosed. The method comprises associating, with the asset, a transmitter having a unique transmitter identifier (transmitter ID) and emitting a first signal including the transmitter ID. The method further comprises installing, in the two or more zones, one or more emitters having a unique emitter identifier (emitter ID) and emitting a second signal including the emitter ID. The method further comprises providing at least one receiver to receive the first signal from the transmitter and the second signal from the one or more emitters. The method further comprises determining the zone location and the detailed position based on the received first signal with the corresponding transmitter ID, the received second signal with the corresponding emitter ID and information about location of the corresponding emitter with respect to the two or more zones. The method further comprises displaying a zone location for the transmitter with respect to the two or more zones and a detailed position for the transmitter separately with the detailed position being located within the zone location. The method further comprises updating the zone location if a first condition or a second condition is met and updating the detailed position if the first condition is met, each of the first condition and the second condition including a determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter, and a position accuracy of the at least one receiver.
[0022] In one or more embodiments, in case of displaying a first zone as the zone location and a first detailed position in the first zone as the detailed position, the method further comprises retaining the first detailed position as the detailed position if the zone location is updated as the first zone based on the second condition being met and the at least one receiver being located in the first zone.
[0023] In one or more embodiments, in case of displaying a first zone as the zone location and a first detailed position as the detailed position, the method further comprises removing the first detailed position as the detailed position if the zone location is updated as a second zone which is different from the first zone based on the second condition being met and the at least one receiver being located in the second zone.
[0024] In one or more embodiments, the second condition further provides that a predefined time duration is passed from a time when the detailed position was updated to the first detailed position.
[0025] In one or more embodiments, the at least one movable receiver includes at least two movable receivers. The method further comprises removing the first detailed position as the detailed position if the at least one display updates the zone location from the first zone to the second zone based on the second condition being met in serial by each of the at least two movable receivers being located in the second zone.
[0026] The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments, and features described above, further aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by reference to the drawings and the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
[0027] For a more complete understanding of example embodiments of the present disclosure, reference is now made to the following descriptions taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:
[0028] FIG. 1 illustrates a system that may reside on and may be executed by a computer, which may be connected to a network, in accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0029] FIG. 2 illustrates a diagrammatic view of a server, in accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0030] FIG. 3 illustrates a diagrammatic view of a user device, in accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0031] FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic illustration of an architecture of the system for locating an asset in an environment divided into two or more zones, in accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0032] FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of an interface provided by a display showing an exemplary environment divided into two or more zones with emitters installed therein, in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0033] FIG. 6 is a depiction of an exemplary table providing location of various assets in the exemplary environment, in accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0034] FIG. 7 is a depiction of an exemplary graph to depict a relationship between a range of the determined distance and the strength of received signal/a time of flight (TOF) of signal, in accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0035] FIG. 8 is a depiction of an exemplary graph to depict a relationship between a range of position accuracy of the movable receiver and number of emitters from which the movable receiver receives signal, in accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0036] FIGS. 9-18 provide different exemplary scenarios for locating the asset in implementation of the system, in accordance with another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0037] FIG. 19 is a schematic illustration of an interface provided by a display showing an environment divided into two or more zones with emitters installed therein and having two or more receivers, in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure; and
[0038] FIG. 20 is a flowchart listing steps involved in a method for locating an asset in an environment divided into two or more zones, in accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0039] In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art that the present disclosure is not limited to these specific details.
[0040] Reference in this specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present disclosure. The appearance of the phrase “in one embodiment” in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment, nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of other embodiments. Further, the terms “a” and “an” herein do not denote a limitation of quantity, but rather denote the presence of at least one of the referenced items. Moreover, various features are described which may be exhibited by some embodiments and not by others. Similarly, various requirements are described which may be requirements for some embodiments but not for other embodiments.
[0041] Furthermore, in the following detailed description of the present disclosure, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. However, it will be understood that the present disclosure may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, components, and circuits have not been described in detail so as not to unnecessarily obscure aspects of the present disclosure.
[0042] Referring now to the example implementation of FIG. 1, there is shown a system 100 that may reside on and may be executed by a computer (e.g., computer 12), which may be connected to a network (e.g., network 14) (e.g., the internet or a local area network). Examples of computer 12 may include, but are not limited to, a personal computer(s), or a computing cloud(s).
[0043] In some implementations, the instruction sets and subroutines of system 100, which may be stored on storage device, such as storage device 16, coupled to computer 12, may be executed by one or more processors (not shown) and one or more memory architectures included within computer 12. In some implementations, storage device 16 may include but is not limited to: a hard disk drive; and a read-only memory (ROM).
[0044] In some implementations, network 14 may be connected to one or more secondary networks (e.g., network 18), examples of which may include but are not limited to: a local area network; a wide area network; or an intranet, for example.
[0045] In some implementations, system 100 may be a component of the data store, a standalone application that interfaces with the above noted data store and/or an applet/ application that is accessed via client applications 22, 24, 26, 28. In some implementations, the above noted data store may be, in whole or in part, distributed in a cloud computing topology. In this way, computer 12 and storage device 16 may refer to multiple devices, which may also be distributed throughout the network.
[0046] In some implementations, computer 12 may execute application 20 for locating an asset in an environment divided into two or more zones (as discussed later in more detail). In some implementations, system 100 and/or application 20 may be accessed via one or more of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28. The instruction sets and subroutines of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28, which may be stored on storage devices 30, 32, 34, 36, coupled to user devices 38, 40, 42, 44, may be executed by one or more processors and one or more memory architectures incorporated into user devices 38, 40, 42, 44.
[0047] In some implementations, one or more of users 46, 48, 50, 52 may access computer 12 and system 100 (e.g., using one or more of user devices 38, 40, 42, 44) directly through network 14 or through secondary network 18. Further, computer 12 may be connected to network 14 through secondary network 18, as illustrated with phantom link line 54. System 100 may include one or more user interfaces, such as browsers and textual or graphical user interfaces, through which users 46, 48, 50, 52 may access system 100.
[0048] In some implementations, the various user devices may be directly or indirectly coupled to communication network, such as communication network 14 and communication network 18, hereinafter simply referred to as network 14 and network 18, respectively. For example, user device 38 is shown directly coupled to network 14 via a hardwired network connection. Further, user device 44 is shown directly coupled to network 18 via a hardwired network connection. User device 40 is shown wirelessly coupled to network 14 via wireless communication channel 56 established between user device 40 and wireless access point (i.e., WAP) 58, which is shown directly coupled to network 14. WAP 58 may be, for example, an IEEE 802.11a, , and/or BluetoothTM (including BluetoothTM Low Energy) device that is capable of establishing wireless communication channel 56 between user device 40 and WAP 58. User device 42 is shown wirelessly coupled to network 14 via wireless communication channel 60 established between user device 42 and cellular network / bridge 62, which is shown directly coupled to network 14.
[0049] The system 100 may include a server (such as server 200, as shown in FIG. 2) for locating an asset in an environment divided into two or more zones (as will be described later in more detail). Herein, FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example of the server 200 capable of implementing embodiments according to the present disclosure. In one embodiment, an application server as described herein may be implemented on exemplary server 200. In the example of FIG. 2, the server 200 includes a processing unit 205 (hereinafter, referred to as CPU 205) for running software applications (such as, the application 20 of FIG. 1) and optionally an operating system. As illustrated, the server 200 further includes a database 210 (hereinafter, referred to as memory 210) which stores applications and data for use by the CPU 205. Storage 215 provides non-volatile storage for applications and data and may include fixed disk drives or any optical storage devices. An optional user input device 220 includes devices that communicate user inputs from one or more users to the server 200 and may include keyboards, and etc. A communication or network interface 225 is provided which allows the server 200 to communicate with other computer systems via an electronic communications network, including wired and/or wireless communication and including an Intranet or the Internet. In one embodiment, the server 200 receives instructions and user inputs from a remote computer through communication interface 225. Communication interface 225 can comprise a transmitter and receiver for communicating with remote devices. An optional display device 250 may be provided which can be any device capable of displaying visual information in response to a signal from the server 200. The components of the server 200, including the CPU 205, memory 210, and etc., may be coupled via one or more data buses 260.
[0050] In the embodiment of FIG. 2, a graphics system 230 may be coupled with the data bus 260 and the components of the server 200. The graphics system 230 may include a physical graphics processing unit (GPU) 235 and graphics memory. Graphics memory may include a display memory 240 (e.g., a framebuffer) used for storing pixel data for each pixel of an output image. In another embodiment, the display memory 240 and/or additional memory 245 may be part of the memory 210 and may be shared with the CPU 205. Each additional GPU 255 generates pixel data for output images from rendering commands. It is to be understood that the circuits and/or functionality of GPU as described herein could also be implemented in other types of processors, such as general-purpose or other special-purpose coprocessors, or within a CPU.
[0051] The system 100 may also include a user device 300 (as shown in FIG. 3). In embodiments of the present disclosure, the user device 300 may embody a standalone physical remote control, a smartphone or a virtual assistant (as discussed later in more detail). Herein, FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an example of the user device 300 capable of implementing embodiments according to the present disclosure. In the example of FIG. 3, the user device 300 includes a processing unit 305 (hereinafter, referred to as CPU 305) for running software applications (such as, the application 20 of FIG. 1) and optionally an operating system. A user input device 320 is provided with devices that communicate user inputs from one or more users and may include keyboards, microphones and etc. Further, a network interface 325 is provided which allows the user device 300 to communicate with other computer systems (e.g., the server 200 of FIG. 2) via an electronic communications network, including wired and/or wireless communication and including the Internet. The user device 300 may also include a decoder 355 may be any device capable of decoding (decompressing) data that may be encoded (compressed). A display device 350 may be provided which may be any device capable of displaying visual information, including information received from the decoder 355. In particular, as will be described below, the display device 350 may be used to display visual information received from the server 200 of FIG. 2. The components of the user device 300 may be coupled via one or more data buses 360.
[0052] Referring now to FIG. 4, illustrated is an exemplary architecture of a system 400 (which may be similar to or part of the system 100) for locating an asset (referenced by the numeral 401) in an environment (such as, environment 500 as discussed later in reference to FIG. 5), in accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. In the associated drawings, the asset 401 has been represented by circular (O) shape; although, it may be appreciated that the asset 401 may have any shape without any limitations.
[0053] As illustrated in FIG. 4, the system 400 includes a server 402 (similar in functionality and configuration to the server 200 of FIG. 2). The server 402 is generally configured to process data related to beacon signals (as discussed later in the description) to determine the location of the asset 401 in the environment. The system 400 also includes a database 404 (similar in functionality and configuration to the database/memory 210 of FIG. 2) and in signal communication with the server 402 to receive data about location of the asset 401 therefrom. The database 404 is generally configured to store records for location of the asset 401. Further, as illustrated, the system 400 includes at least one display 406 (similar in functionality and configuration to the display device 250) which may also be in signal communication with the server 402. The display 406 is generally configured to show a current location of the asset 401 (or one or more selected assets 401 in case of multiple assets 401) in the environment. In one example, the at least one display 406 may include single display 406 to show a current location of one of the selected assets 401 in the environment. In another example, the at least one display 406 may include multiple displays 406 to show current locations of multiple assets 401 in the environment. The display 406 may further be configured to display record(s) of past location of the asset 401, as and when required.
[0054] Herein, the server 402 may be any computer or hardware on which the services that clients use reside. In one example, the server 402 may be an RTLS (Real-Time Location System) server as known in the art. Services available on the server 402 are transmitted from the server software to the client software over communication lines in packets of data according to defined protocols. Generally, the term "server" means a discrete host computer in a network, and it provides services to other computers or devices, termed "clients". For purposes of the example embodiments described herein, the term “server” includes machines that can be essentially any interconnected computer systems. Herein, the server 402 can be a local server, a cloud-based server or a crowd-based server without any limitations. The use of terms such as “server” is not meant to imply that any particular machine can only be performing host function, or that any particular machine cannot be acting as a client computing platform in any particular circumstance. Further, the term “database” may denote a data organization, a collection of data records, in which data may be organized in rows and columns in one or more tables. Typically, this may be done in a relational database. Further, the term "display" refers to a part for the physical screen for the output of location of the asset(s) 401 to an administrator of the environment or the like.
[0055] Referring to FIG. 5, illustrated is a depiction of an exemplary environment 500 in which an asset (such as the asset 401) may be required to be located. In particular, FIG. 5 provides an interface provided by the display 406 showing the exemplary environment 500. Herein, the environment 500 is an indoor environment. In particular, the environment 500 corresponds to a layout of an indoor area in which the asset 401 is to be tracked. As illustrated, the environment 500 is divided into two or more zones 502. In the exemplary illustration, the environment 500 is shown to be divided into six zones 502, namely ‘Zone 1’, ‘Zone 2’, ‘Zone 3’, ‘Zone 4’, ‘Zone 5’ and ‘Zone 6’. Although in the exemplary depiction of FIG. 5, the environment 500 is shown to be generally symmetrical with rectangular shape, and the zones 502 therein have also been symmetrically divided therein; in other examples, the environment 500 may be asymmetrical and the zones 502 therein may also be asymmetrical without departing from the spirit and the scope of the present disclosure. Further, as illustrated, the environment 500 is divided by means of grid lines into various virtual sections 504 (hereinafter, simply referred to as “sections 504”) formed in each of the zones 502. Herein, each such section 504 provides a reference for a detailed position (such as a detailed position 608 as shown in in FIG. 6) within the corresponding zone 502. In the present illustration with the exemplary rectangular environment 500, the sections 504 along one axis of the environment 500 are labelled as ‘a to z’, and along other axis as ‘1 to 10’. Thus, each section 504 in the environment 500 may be provided with a coordinate, such as (a,1), (n,6), (z,10) and the like. It may be appreciated that although herein the zones 502 have been divided into generally symmetric sections 504. In FIG. 5, the ‘zone 1’ has been divided into symmetric sections 504, such as sections (a ~ m, 1), (a ~ m, 2) and (a ~ m, 3), ‘zone 2’ has been divided into symmetric sections 504, such as sections (n ~ z, 1), (n ~ z, 2) and (n ~ z, 3), ‘zone 3’ has been divided into symmetric sections 504, such as sections (a ~ m, 4), (a ~ m, 5) , (a ~ m, 6) and (a ~ m, 7), ‘zone 4’ has been divided into symmetric sections 504, such as sections (n ~ z, 4), (n ~ z, 5), (n ~ z, 6) and (n ~ z, 7), ‘zone 5’ has been divided into symmetric sections 504, such as sections (a ~ m, 8), (a ~ m, 9) , and (a ~ m, 10), ‘zone 6’ has been divided into symmetric sections 504, such as sections (n ~ z, 8), (n ~ z, 9), and (n ~ z, 10). In other examples, the sections 504 may be asymmetric without any limitations. It may be appreciated the information about the zones 502 and the sections 504 in the environment 500 may be pre-fed into the server 402 and/or a movable receiver 412 of FIG. 4.
[0056] Referring back to FIG. 4, as illustrated, the system 400 also includes a transmitter 408. In the system 400, the transmitter 408 is associated with the asset 401. In an example, the transmitter 408 is physically associated with the asset 401. Herein, the transmitter 408 is in the form of a physical tag which may be attached, glued or fastened to the asset 401. In one or more embodiments, the one or more transmitters 408 are BluetoothTM Low Energy (BLE) based beacons configured to emit the corresponding beacon signals as BLE signals. The term “transmitter”, as used herein, refers to wireless proximity devices incorporating a BLE unit (not shown) to transmit data packets of fixed length and format and including identifying information, which can be received by a compatible BLE-enabled receiving device, such as a suitable smartphone or tablet (among others) and used to determine relative proximity between the proximity device and the receiving device. The BLE unit comprises a microchip and antenna configured to transmit the data packet as a BLE-compliant low power radio signal. Such transmitters 408 are also known as “beacons” in the art, and the two terms have been interchangeably used hereinafter. One skilled in the art will be familiar with the applicability of BLE and its current specification to beacon technology. In another example, the transmitter 408 may be a virtual transmitter in the form of an app installed on a smartphone or any other form of computing device, which in itself may be the asset 401 or is physically associated with the asset 401. For example, the asset 401 to be tracked may be a person. In such case, the smartphone associated with the person may have the app installed therein, to enable the smartphone to act as the transmitter 408. Herein, the transmitter 408 has a unique transmitter identifier (hereinafter, referred to as “transmitter ID”). The transmitter ID for the transmitter 408 may be in the form of a MAC address, a unique user identification (UUID), a URL or the like. The transmitter 408 is configured to emit a first signal including the transmitter ID. In the present embodiments, the transmitter 408 may implement Bluetooth® Low Energy (BLE) standard, also known as Bluetooth Smart technology, for transmission of the first signals. BLE was introduced as part of the Bluetooth 4.0 specification, and is designed to enable low power wireless communication by devices which must rely on a small battery for an extended period of time. In other examples, the transmitter 408 may implement other types of wireless communication standard, such as Zigbee or the like, without any limitations. It may be appreciated the information about the transmitter 408 such as the transmitter ID, MAC address, UUID a URL or the like may be pre-fed into the server 402 and/or the movable receiver 412.
[0057] It may be appreciated that the transmitter 408, in the form of a physical tag, may have any suitable shape, such as circular, triangular, rectangular, cubical, or the like without any limitations. In the associated drawings, the transmitter 408 has been represented by triangular (?) shape. Further, transmitter 408 may have any suitable size depending on the shape and size of the asset 401 to which it is to be associated. For instance, the transmitter 408 may have dimensions of any suitable extension, such as sides with length from about 2 to 6 centimeters or less; and a thickness from about 2 to 6 millimeter or less. For example, the transmitter 408 suitable for use to be attached to an IT asset, such as a laptop, may have the dimensions of about 4 by 4 square centimeters. It may be appreciated that the given shapes and dimensions are exemplary only and shall not be construed as limiting to the present disclosure in any manner. As discussed, the transmitter 408 may be adapted as a tag that attaches or affixes to a personal effect. Such a tag may be fabricated from any suitable material such as a plastic, a metal, a ceramic, a cloth, a natural plant-based material, a composite material, or any combination thereof.
[0058] The system 400 further includes one or more emitters 410. In one or more embodiments, the one or more emitters 410 are BluetoothTM Low Energy (BLE) based beacons configured to emit the corresponding beacon signals as BLE signals. The term “emitter”, as used herein, refers to wireless proximity devices incorporating a BLE unit (not shown) to transmit data packets of fixed length and format and including identifying information, which can be received by a compatible BLE-enabled receiving device, such as a suitable smartphone or tablet (among others) and used to determine relative proximity between the proximity device and the receiving device. The BLE unit comprises a microchip and antenna configured to transmit the data packet as a BLE-compliant low power radio signal. Such emitters 410 are also known as “beacons” in the art, and the two terms have been interchangeably used hereinafter. One skilled in the art will be familiar with the applicability of BLE and its current specification to beacon technology. By placing the emitters 410 in particular fixed locations, real-time position awareness can be provided to receiving devices, independently of other systems, such as the Global Positioning Systems (GPS), cell-based triangulation and the like. In the associated drawings, the emitter 410 has been represented by rectangular (?) shape.
[0059] In the present system 400, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the one or more emitters 410 are installed in the two or more zones 502 in the environment 500. For example, the emitters 410 may be fixed to walls or ceilings of the zones 502 in the environment 500. Herein, the emitters 410 may be fastened or glued to the walls or ceiling of the zones 502 in the environment 500. In some examples, each of the two or more zones 502 has at least one emitter 410 installed therein. In other examples, some of the two or more zones 502 may not have any emitter 410 installed therein, and the asset 401 may be located in such zones 502 of the environment 500 utilizing the emitter(s) 410 installed in a neighboring zone 502 or the like. As may be seen, the common boundary between two zones 502 in the environment 500 may have the emitters 410 installed only on one side thereof. Further, as may be seen, the emitters 410 on opposing sides in each of the zones 502 may be arranged in a staggered manner along the sections 504, i.e. at alternative sections 504 along one of the sides of the zone 502. For example, in ‘Zone 1’, the emitters 410 are arranged at (a,3), then (b,1), next at (c,3) and so on. Such staggered arrangement of emitters 410 allow to cover the entire zone 502 by using a lesser number of emitters 410. It may be understood that the illustrated arrangement of the emitters 410 as shown in the environment 500 of FIG. 5 is exemplary only and shall not be construed as limiting to the present disclosure in any manner.
[0060] Further, in the present system 400, each of the one or more emitters 410 has a unique emitter identifier (hereinafter, referred to as “emitter ID”). Similar to the transmitter 408, the transmitter ID for the transmitter 408 may be in the form of a MAC address, a unique user identification (UUID), a URL or the like. Each of the one or more emitters 410 is configured to emit a second signal including the emitter ID. Similar to the transmitter 408, each of the one or more emitters 410 may implement BLE standard for communication, i.e. for transmission of the second signals; however, in other examples, the emitters 410 may implement other wireless communication standard as may have been implemented by the transmitter 408, without any limitations. In general, it may be understood that in the present implementations the emitters 410 and the transmitter 408 may be similar devices and could be used interchangeably in some examples, with the emitters 410 being fixed to walls in the zones 502 in the environment 500 and the transmitter 408 being mobile in the zones 502 in the environment 500. It may be appreciated that the information about the emitter 410 such as the transmitter ID, MAC address, UUID a URL or the like, and its position such a coordinate (e.g., coordinate (a, 3)), may be pre-fed into the server 402 and/or the movable receiver 412.
[0061] Referring again to FIG. 4, as illustrated, the system 400 further includes at least one movable receiver 412. Herein, the movable receiver 412 is a mobile wireless bridge that facilitates mobile tracking by “listening” and receiving signals (beacon messages) broadcast or emitted by the transmitter 408 and the emitters 410. In another example, the movable receiver 412 may be a virtual receiver in the form of an app installed on a smartphone, tablet or any other form of computing device. In such case, the smartphone associated with the person may have the app installed therein, to enable the smartphone to act as the movable receiver 412. The movable receiver 412 is configured to receive the first signal from the transmitter 408, and the second signal from the one or more emitters 410. For this purpose, the movable receiver 412 may include a BLE controller (not shown) to receive connection-less beacon messages broadcast or emitted by the transmitter 408 and the emitters 410. The movable receiver 412 may also include a Wi-Fi controller to establish communication with the server 402. The movable receiver 412 may passively collect the first and second signals from the transmitter 408 and the emitters 410 respectively, and communicate information related to the first and second signals to the server 402 at the backend of the system 400. In some examples, the movable receiver 412 collects a number (e.g., a predetermined number) of the first and second signals, and waits a period (e.g., a predetermined period of time) prior to communicating the information related to the first and second signals. In the present examples, the information communicated by the movable receiver 412 related to the first and second signals, in addition to including the transmitter ID and the emitter ID, may also include timestamps identifying when the corresponding signal was received. In the associated drawings, the movable receiver 412 has been represented by diamond (?) shape.
[0062] The movable receiver 412 is configured to determine a distance (determined distance) between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 or/and emitters 410. For this purpose, the movable receiver 412 is configured to determine strength of the received first signal and strength of the received second signal. The movable receiver 412 may determine received signal strength indicator (RSSI) (e.g., a power ratio in decibels of the measured power to one milli-watt (dBm)) for each of the received first signal and second signal. The techniques for determining RSSI may be contemplated by a person skilled in the art and thus have not been disclosed herein for the brevity of the present disclosure. In general, the strength (specifically RSSI) of the received signal by the movable receiver 412 can be used to estimate a determined distance of the corresponding transmitter 408 and/or emitter 410 therefrom. FIG. 7 shows a depiction of an exemplary graph 700 to depict a relationship between a range of the determined distance and the strength of received signal/a time of flight (TOF) of signal. Referring to FIG. 7, in an example implementation, the strength of the received first signal is categorized as “strong”, “medium” and “weak”. In particular, herein, the strength of the first signal is considered as “strong” when the RSSI of the first signal indicates a short distance, i.e. the determined distance of 1 meter or less between the transmitter 408 and the movable receiver 412 having received the first signal, as “medium” when the RSSI of the first signal indicates a determined distance somewhere between short and long (i.e. medium distance), i.e. the determined distance of 1 meter to 10 meters between the transmitter 408 and the movable receiver 412 having received the first signal, and as “weak” when the RSSI of the first signal indicates a long distance, i.e. the determined distance of more than 10 meters between the transmitter 408 and the movable receiver 412 having received the first signal. Accordingly, a first strength 706 is defined as the RSSI of the first signal being indicative of a distance of 1 meter or less (for this example implementation, 1 meter) between the transmitter 408 and the movable receiver 412 having received the first signal (i.e. when the strength of the received first signal is ‘strong’). When the movable receiver 412 determines that the strength of the first signal is stronger than the first strength 706, the movable receiver 412 determines that the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is shorter than a first distance 702 (for this example implementation, 1 meter). And a second strength 708 is defined as the RSSI of the first signal being indicative of a distance from 1 meter up to 10 meters (for this example implementation, 10 meters) between the transmitter 408 and the movable receiver 412 having received the first signal (i.e. when the strength of the received first signal is ‘medium’). When the movable receiver 412 determines that the strength of the first signal is stronger than the second strength 708, the movable receiver 412 determines that the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is shorter than a second distance 704 (for this example implementation, 10 meters).
[0063] In the aforementioned description, the strength of the first signal, and the first and second strengths 706, 708 are defined as RSSI of the first signal. These definitions may apply to the second signal as well, because the emitter 410 and transmitter 408 are almost the same and exchangeable in the present implementation. However, this does not always hold true, and in some embodiments, the strength of the first signal may be different from that of the second signal, and the first and second strengths 706, 708 (as discussed in the proceeding paragraphs) may be different between the first signal and the second signal.
[0064] In some implementations, the movable receiver 412 may compare the RSSI of the received signals to one or more predefined thresholds and if the RSSI satisfies the corresponding threshold (e.g., the RSSI is greater than the corresponding predefined threshold), the movable receiver 412 identifies the corresponding emitter 410 as proximate thereto. In this way, the movable receiver 412 can determine which of the emitters 410 are proximate (e.g., near or closely located) thereto, and as the movable receiver 412 also receives the first signals from the transmitter 408, therefrom the movable receiver 412 may indirectly determine which of the emitter 410 may be proximate (closest) to the transmitter 408. Herein, the software executed on the movable receiver 412 may be configured to receive and process the first and second signals from the transmitter 408 and the emitter(s) 410, respectively, to determine relative proximity of the transmitter 408 to those emitter(s) 410, and further may be configured to perform predetermined actions upon detecting specified proximity to particular emitter(s) 410.
[0065] In this implementation, the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is determined by the strength of the received first signal. The determined distance may further be determined by a time of flight (TOF) of the first signal between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 or a combination of the strength of the received first signal and the time of flight of the first signal. The techniques for determining the time of flight may be contemplated by a person skilled in the art and thus have not been disclosed herein for the brevity of the present disclosure. Time of flight is a positioning method based on two way ranging. That means the movable receiver 412 sends and receives the first signal of the transmitter 408 for several times and then the flight time of the first signal between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 can be measured; and since the first signal travels at the speed of light, it is possible to calculate the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408. For example, when the movable receiver 412 determines that the time of flight (TOF) of the first signal between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is shorter than a first duration 710, the movable receiver 412 determines that the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is shorter than the first distance 702 (for this example implementation, 1 meter). When the movable receiver 412 determines that the time of flight (TOF) of the first signal between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is shorter than a second duration 712, the movable receiver 412 determines that the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is shorter than the second distance 704 (for this example implementation, 10 meter).
[0066] The movable receiver 412 is further configured to determine a position accuracy thereof with respect to the emitter(s) 410 identified being proximate thereto. Herein, the position accuracy is an indicator of certainty of determined relative position of the movable receiver 412 with respect to the emitter(s) 410. The positional accuracy is a value that represents a radius of a circle where the uncertainty of the location of any point in a survey relative to any other point in the same survey is at the 95 percent confidence level (according to one national standard, such as NSSDA). In one or more embodiments, the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 is determined based on a number of emitters 410 from which the movable receiver 412 receives the second signals. The position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 may be further determined based on the strength of the received second signals. Herein, the strength of the received second signals may be compared with a threshold, and only those second signals with strength above the second strength 708 may be considered for determining the position accuracy. The position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 may be further determined based on the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and each of the emitters 410. Herein, in general as the determined distance is longer, the position accuracy may be lower.
[0067] FIG. 8 shows a depiction of an exemplary graph 800 to depict a relationship between a range of position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 and number of emitters 410 from which the movable receiver 412 receives second signal. Referring to FIG. 8, in an example implementation, the position accuracy is categorized as “high”, “medium” and “low”. In particular, herein, the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 is considered as “high” when the movable receiver 412 receives the second signals with strength above the second strength 708 from at least three emitters 410, as “medium” when the movable receiver 412 receives the second signals with strength above the second strength 708 from two emitters 410, and as “low” when the movable receiver 412 receives the second signals with strength above the second strength 708 from one or zero emitter 410. Accordingly, a first position accuracy 802 is defined as the movable receiver 412 receiving the “strong” or “medium” second signals from at least three emitters 410 (i.e. when the receiver position accuracy is ‘high’), and a second position accuracy 804 is defined as the movable receiver 412 receiving the “strong” or “medium” second signals from two emitters 410 (i.e. when the receiver position accuracy is ‘medium’) ), and a third position accuracy 806 is defined as the movable receiver 412 receiving the “strong” or “medium” second signals from one or zero emitters 410 (i.e. when the receiver position accuracy is ‘low’). In more concrete example, the first position accuracy 802 is defined as a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver receiving the second signals which is present within a circle with a radius of a distance of 5 meters or less (in this implementation, 5 meters). And the second position accuracy 804 is defined as a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver receiving the second signals which is present within a circle with a radius of a distance of between 5 meters and 20 meters (in this implementation, 20 meters). These ranges are one example and may vary depending on an implementation.
[0068] In the present system 400, the server 402 is configured to determine a zone location 604 for the transmitter 408 with respect to the two or more zones 502 and a detailed position 608 for the transmitter 408 separately with the detailed position 608 being located within the zone location 604. In the present examples, the zone location 604 is indicative of the zone 502 in the environment 500 in which the transmitter 408, and thus the asset 401 associated therewith, is located. Further, the detailed position 608 is indicative of one of the sections of the zone 502 in the environment 500 in which the transmitter 408, and thus the asset 401 associated therewith, is located. In the present embodiments, the zone location 604 and the detailed position 608 are determined based on the received first signal with the corresponding transmitter ID, the received second signal with the corresponding emitter ID and information about location of the corresponding emitter 410 with respect to the two or more zones 502. In particular, the zone location 604 and the detailed position 608 are determined based on the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408, and the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 with respect to the emitters 410 from which the second signals are received, as discussed above. More specifically, in the present example, the server 402 determines the zone location 604 and the detailed position 608 for the transmitter 408 with respect to the two or more zones 502. The movable receiver 412 may determine the zone location 604 and the detailed position 608 for the transmitter 408 with respect to the two or more zones 502 after the movable receiver 412 receives the first signal from the transmitter 408 and second signals from the emitter 410. The movable receiver 412 communicates information of the zone location 604 and the detailed position 608 for the transmitter 408 to the server 402 at the backend of the system 400. In the present implementation, the zone location 604 and the detailed position 608 for the transmitter 408 with respect to the two or more zones 502 is determined using triangulation technique. Herein, based on the received signal strength or the time of flight, once the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and each of the emitters 410 may have been estimated, the detailed position 608 for the transmitter 408 with respect to the two or more zones 502 may be determined by a section having an intersected point by circles with each of centers being emitter 410 and each of radius being the determined distance. And then the zone location 604 for the transmitter 408 with respect to the two or more zones 502 is determined to be the zone where the section is located.
[0069] The server 402 may then store the zone location 604 for the transmitter 408 and the detailed position 608 for the transmitter 408 in the database 404. Such information may be stored in the database 404 in the form of one or more tables. One such exemplary table 600 has been depicted in FIG. 6. As shown, the table 600 includes information about the transmitter ID 602, corresponding zone location 604 (as determined), time stamp 606 for the zone location 604, corresponding detailed position 608 (as determined) and time stamp 610 for the detailed position 608. It may be noted that blank fields in the table 600 may indicate that the corresponding entry may not be available. In some examples, the table 600 may also include information about the asset (such as, asset ID) (not shown) which may be correlated to the transmitter ID 602 of the transmitter 408 associated therewith. In one or more embodiments, the table 600 may also include a “Map” 612 column providing links (e.g., in the form to URLs or the like) to interface of the display 406 which renders the corresponding zone location 604 and detailed position 608 (as available) on a map of the environment 500 (for example, the environment 500 as shown in FIG. 5), to facilitate visualization of the asset’s location in the environment 500 for an administrator or the like.
[0070] Further, in the present system 400, the display 406 is configured to display the zone location 604 for the transmitter 408 with respect to the two or more zones 502 and the detailed position 608 for the transmitter 408. As discussed, the display 406 may render the zone location 604 and the detailed position 608 (as available) on a map of the environment 500 to facilitate visualization of the location of the asset 401 in the environment 500 for an administrator or the like. It may be appreciated that as the asset 401 may move within the environment 500. The server 402 is configured to correspondingly update the zone location 604 and the detailed position 608 of the transmitter 408 (associated with the asset 401), as the asset 401 may move within the environment. Accordingly, in the present embodiment, the display 406 is also configured to update the zone location 604 and the detailed position 608 for the transmitter 408, as per the determination of the updated zone location 604 and the updated detailed position 608 for the transmitter 408.
[0071] According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the display 406 is configured to update the zone location 604 if a first condition or a second condition is met and update the detailed position 608 if the first condition is met. In other words, both the zone location 604 and the detailed position 608 may be updated when the first condition is met, and only the zone location 604 may be updated when the second condition is met. As would be better understood from explanation in proceeding paragraphs, this is done as the first condition generally provides more certainty in terms of exact location of the transmitter 408, and thereby the asset 401, in the environment 500, as compared to the second condition. The zone location 604 may be updated more frequently than the detail position 608 may be done, because the condition of updating the zone location 604 is broader or more loosen than a condition of updating the detailed position 608.
[0072] Herein, each of the first condition and the second condition include the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408, and a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver 412. In an embodiment, the display 406 is further configured to display time stamps 606, 610 associated with the zone location 604 and the detailed position 608. Herein, the time stamp 606 associated with the zone location 604 is updated when the zone location 604 is updated and the time stamp 610 associated with detailed position 608 is updated when the detailed position 608 is updated. As may be contemplated, the time stamps 606, 610 associated with the zone location 604 and the detailed position 608 may correspond to the two columns of “time stamps” in the table 600 of FIG. 6.
[0073] In an embodiment, the first condition provides that the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is shorter than the first distance 702 (i.e. 1 meter, for example) and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver 412 is the first position accuracy 802. That is, the first condition is considered to be met when the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is ‘short’ and the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 is ‘high’. As may be appreciated that with ‘short’ determined distance and ‘high’ position accuracy, the movable receiver 412 may assume to have high certainty of location of the asset 401 in the environment 500, not just up to which zone 502 therein but also to which section 504 of the zone 502 thereof, and thus may allow updating of both the zone location 604 and the detailed position 608 of the transmitter 408. Further, the second condition provides that a first set of condition that the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is shorter than the first distance 702 (i.e. 1 meter, for example) and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver 412 is the second position accuracy 804, or a second set of condition that the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is longer than the first distance 702 (i.e. 1 meter, for example) and is shorter than the second distance 704 (i.e. 10 meters, for example), and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver 412 is a second position accuracy 804. That is, the second condition is considered to be met when in one case, the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is ‘short’ and the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 is ‘medium’; and in other case, the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is ‘medium’ and the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 is ‘high’. As may be appreciated that with ‘strong’ first signal and ‘medium’ position accuracy, or ‘medium’ first signal and ‘high’ position accuracy, the movable receiver 412 may assume to only have certainty of location of the asset 401 in the environment 500 just up to which zone 502 therein, and may not to which section 504 of the zone 502 thereof, and thus may allow updating only the zone location 604 of the transmitter 408. In other embodiments, the second condition may include a third set of condition that the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is longer than the first distance 702 (i.e. 1 meter, for example) and is shorter than the second distance 704 (i.e. 10 meters, for example), and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver 412 is the second position accuracy 804. In other words, the second condition is considered to be met when in other case, the determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is ‘medium’ and the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 is ‘medium’.
[0074] FIGS. 9-18 provide some of the different scenarios for displaying the zone location and/or the detailed position for the transmitter 408 in view of satisfaction of different combinations of the first condition and the second condition, due to varying locations of the transmitter 408 at different times.
[0075] In an embodiment, in case of the display 406 displaying a first zone as the zone location 604 and a first detailed position in the first zone as the detailed position 604, the display 406 is configured to retain the first detailed position as the detailed position 608 if the display 406 updates the zone location 604 from the first zone to the first zone based on the second condition being met and the movable receiver 412 being located in the first zone. Referring to FIGS. 9-12 in combination, considering a scenario in which at time 2:00 PM, the transmitter 408 is placed at a position (i, 1) in ‘Zone 1’ and a person who holds the movable receiver 412 approaches to very close (less than 1 meter) to the transmitter 408. The movable receiver 412 may receive the first signal from the transmitter 408 and the second signals from the emitters 410 at positions (f,1), (h,1) and (j,1) (as shown in the form of an exemplary map of the environment 900 in FIG. 9). The movable receiver 412 receives the ‘strong’ first signal from the transmitter 408, which is above the first strength 706. The determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is shorter than 1 meter. Because a distance between each of the three emitters 410 at positions (f,1), (h,1) and (j,1) and the movable receiver 412 is longer than 1 meter and shorter than 10 meters, the movable receiver 412 receives the ‘medium’ second signals from three emitters 410 at positions (f,1), (h,1) and (j,1). Therefore, the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 is the first position accuracy. That is, the first condition is met. The movable receiver 412 may receive the second signals from the emitter 410 other than these three emitters 410, such as the emitter 410 at position (i, 3). However, because each of the second signal from the emitters 410 at positions (f,1), (h,1) and (j,1) is stronger than that from the other emitters 410, the detailed position 608 is determined as (i,1) based on the second signal from these three emitters 410, by a method of identifying a location, for example the triangulation (as discussed above). And then the zone location 604 is determined as ‘Zone 1’, because the section (i, 1) is in ‘Zone 1’. In such case, the display 406 would display the zone location 604 as ‘Zone 1’ for the transmitter 408 and the detailed position 608 as (i,1) for the transmitter 408 with the time stamp 610 as 2:00 PM (as shown in the form of table 1000 in FIG. 10).
[0076] Subsequently, at time 2:05 PM, while the transmitter 408 is placed in the same position, the person with the movable receiver 412 walks apart (longer than 1 meter and shorter than 10 meters) from the transmitter 408 and to a position (f, 1) in ‘Zone 1’. The movable receiver 412 may receive the ‘medium’ first signal from the transmitter 408 and the second signals from the emitters 410 at close to position (f,1), like (f,1), (d,1) and (h,1) (as shown in the form of an exemplary map of the environment 1100 in FIG. 11). The movable receiver 412 receives the ‘medium’ first signal, which is below the first strength 706. The determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is longer than 1 meter and shorter than 10 meters. Because the distance between each of the three emitters 410 at positions (f,1), (d,1) and (h,1) and the movable receiver 412 is longer than 1 meter and shorter than 10 meters, the movable receiver 412 receives the ‘medium’ second signals from three emitters 410 at positions (f,1), (d,1) and (h,1). Therefore, the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 is the first position accuracy. That is, the second condition is met. In such case, the display 406 updates (although displayed the zone location 604 does not change) and displays the zone location 604 as ‘Zone 1’ for the transmitter 408 with the time stamp 606 as 2:05 PM and retains the detailed position 608 as (i,1) for the transmitter 408 with the time stamp 610 2:00 PM (despite the second condition being met) (as shown in the form of table 1200 in FIG. 12). Although the detail position 608 is retained while the zone location 604 is updated, this detail position information may be helpful for a user who looks for the asset 401 with the transmitter 408.
[0077] In an embodiment, in case of the display 406 displaying a first zone as the zone location 604 and a first detailed position as the detailed position 608, the display 406 is configured to remove the first detailed position as the detailed position 608 if the display 406 updates the zone location 604 from the first zone to a second zone which is different from the first zone based on the second condition being met and the movable receiver 412 being located in the second zone. Referring now to FIGS. 9-10 and 13-14 in combination, again the scenario as explained in reference to FIGS. 9-10 in the preceding paragraphs for time 2:00 PM is considered. Subsequently, at time 2:05 PM, the asset 401 with the transmitter 408 is moved to position at (o, 2) in ‘Zone 2’ and a person with the movable receiver 412 is present at position (p, 1) in ‘Zone 2’. The movable receiver 412 may receive the first signal from the transmitter 408 and the second signals from the emitters 410 at positions close to (p,1), like (p,1), (n,1) and (o,3) (as shown in the form of an exemplary map of the environment 1300 in FIG. 13).The determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is determined to be longer than 1 meter (i.e. the first distance 702) and shorter than 10 meters (i.e. the second distance 704), because the movable receiver 412 receives the ‘medium’ first signal, which is below the first strength 706, and above the second strength 708. The distance between each of the three emitters 410 at positions (p,1), (n,1) and (o,3) and the movable receiver 412 is longer than 1 meter (the first distance 702) and shorter than 10 meters (the second distance 704). The movable receiver 412 receives the ‘medium’ second signal from three emitters 410 at positions (p,1), (n,1) and (o,3). Therefore, the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 is ‘high’, which is the first position accuracy. That is, the second condition is met. In such case, the display 406 updates and displays the zone location 604 as ‘Zone 2’ for the transmitter 408 with the time stamp 606 as 2:05 PM, and remove the detailed position 608 and the time stamp 610 (i.e. keep the entry ‘blank’) for the transmitter 408 (as shown in the form of table 1400 in FIG. 14). Herein, the detailed position 608 is removed, while the time stamp 610 may be updated to 2:05PM in order to display the time when the detailed position 608 is removed. In this scenario, because the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 is ‘high’, a position of the movable receiver 412 can be determined as a position (p,1) with high accuracy. However, because the movable receiver 412 does not receive the ‘strong’ first signal, but receives the ‘medium’ first signal, the detailed position 608 of the transmitter 408 cannot be determined with high accuracy. Thus, the detailed position 608 is removed and only the zone location 604 is updated from ‘Zone 1’ to ‘Zone 2’, because the position (p,1) belongs to ‘Zone 2’.
[0078] In the present embodiments, as described with reference to FIGS. 11-12 and 13-14, in some implementations, the second condition further provides that a predefined time duration is passed from a time when the detailed position 608 was updated to the first detailed position. That is, in the present embodiment, the display 406 when updating the zone location 604 and removing the detailed position 608 in case of the second condition being met, also considers that the predefined time duration has been passed. In case, when the predefined time duration has not been passed, the display 406 may not update the zone location 604 and/or remove the detailed position. In an example, the predefined time duration may be 2 minutes. Therefore, in the above discussed example, if the first set of signals are received by the movable receiver 412 at 2:00 PM (as discussed previously) and second set of signals are received by the movable receiver 412 at 2:01 PM (and not at 2:05 PM, as discussed previously), in such case the display 406 may not update the zone location 604 to ‘Zone 2’ and may further retain the detailed position 608 as (i,1) (rather than removing it). This may be true even when the movable receiver 412 is in ‘Zone 2’ and may receive first signal from the transmitter 408 and the second signals from the emitters 410 at positions close to, for example, (p,1) at 2:01 PM, with the first signal being below the first strength 706 and above the second strength 708, and the second signals providing that the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 is the first position accuracy 802 (i.e. the second condition is being met). In case, if the movable receiver 412 receives the first set of signals at past 2:02PM, the display 406 may update the zone location 604 to ‘Zone 2’ and may remove the detailed position 608. As discussed, the detailed position 608 is useful for a user who looks for the asset 401. The detailed position 608 is updated only if the first condition is met. Because the second condition is more often met than the first condition is met, the detailed position 608 is removed more often than it is updated. In order to prevent the detailed position 608 from removing frequently, the display 406 keeps on displaying the detailed position 608 at least for the predefined time duration, which may be considered reasonable as the asset 401 is unlikely to move very frequently.
[0079] Further in the present embodiments, as described with reference to FIGS. 9-10 and 15-16, in some implementations, the at least one movable receiver includes at least two movable receivers (e.g., two movable receivers 412-1, 412-2), and the display 406 removes the first detailed position as the detailed position 608 if the display updates the zone location 604 from the first zone to the second zone based on the second condition being met in serial by each of the at least two movable receivers (i.e. the two movable receivers 412-1, 412-2) being located in the second zone. That is, herein, the system 400 includes mechanisms for verification (confirmation) that whether the second condition has been met. This is achieved by utilizing another (second) movable receiver (e.g., movable receiver 412-2), such that the two movable receivers 412-1, 412-2 are set-up to receive the set of signals (concurrent or one after the another) which are processed by the server 402. The scenario as explained in reference to FIGS. 9-10 in the preceding paragraphs for time 2:00 PM is considered. Subsequently, at time 2:02 PM, the asset 401 with the transmitter 408 is moved to position at (o, 2) in ‘Zone 2’ and a person with the movable receiver 412-1 is present at position (p, 1) in ‘Zone 2’. The movable receiver 412-1 may receive the first signal from the transmitter 408 and the second signals from the emitters 410 at positions close to (p,1), like (p,1), (n,1) and (o,3) (as shown in the form of an exemplary map of the environment 1300 in FIG. 13). Even though the set of first and second signals provides that the second condition has been met and the zone location 604 is determined as ‘Zone 2’, the zone location 604 is not updated at this time. Further subsequently, at time 2:05 PM, another person who holds another movable receiver 412-2 walks to a position (p,3), the movable receiver 412-2 receives the first signal from the transmitter 408 at position (o, 2) and the second signals from the emitters 410 at positions close to (p,3), like (o,3), (q,3) and (p,1) (as shown in the form of an exemplary map of the environment 1500 in FIG. 15). The set of first and second signals which the movable receiver 412-2 receives provides that the second condition has been met and the zone location 604 is determined as ‘Zone 2’. In this way, when the zone location 604 is determined as ‘Zone 2’ in serial based on the set of first and second signals received by two different movable receivers 412-1, 412-2, the zone location 604 is updated from ‘Zone 1’ to ‘Zone 2’ and its time stamp 604 is updated from 2:00 PM to 2:05 PM. At the same time, the detailed position 608 and its time stamp 610 are removed. The change in the zone location 604 and removal of the detailed position 608 are confirmed by two different movable receivers 412-1, 412-2 and a position accuracy of the transmitter 408 will increase.
[0080] In an embodiment, in case of the display 406 displaying a first zone as the zone location and a first detailed position as the detailed position 608, the display 406 is configured to remove the first detailed position if a third condition is met and the movable receiver 412 is located at the first detailed position. Herein, the third condition provides that the strength of the received first signal is below a second strength 708 and the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 is the first position accuracy 802. Referring now to FIGS. 9-10 and 17-18 in combination, again the scenario as explained in reference to FIGS. 9-10 in the preceding paragraphs for time 2:00 PM is considered. Subsequently, at time 2:05 PM, a person who holds the movable receiver 412 still stays in the same position and the transmitter 408 is moved apart (more than 10 meters away from the movable receiver 412) to a position (r, 2). The movable receiver 412 may receive the first signal from the transmitter 408 and the second signals from the same emitters 410 at positions close to (i,1) (as shown in the form of an exemplary map 1700 in FIG. 17). The determined distance between the movable receiver 412 and the transmitter 408 is determined to be longer than 10 meters (i.e. the second distance 704), because the strength of the first signal is below the second strength 708. Further, a distance between each of the three emitters 410 at positions (f,1), (h,1) and (j,1) and the movable receiver 412 is longer than 1 meter (i.e. the first distance 702) and shorter than 10 meters (the second distance 704). The movable receiver 412 receives the ‘medium’ second signals from each of three emitters 410 at positions (f,1), (h,1) and (j,1). Therefore, the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 is the first position accuracy 802. That is, the third condition is met. In such case, the display 406 removes the detailed position 608 and its time stamp 610 (i.e. keep the entry ‘blank’) for the transmitter 408 (as shown in the form of table 1800 in FIG. 18), as it may be understood that the transmitter 408 would (likely) be away from the previous detailed position. In the present embodiment, the third condition requires the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412 being the first position accuracy 802. However, in another embodiment, the third condition may require the second position accuracy 804 for the position accuracy of the movable receiver 412.
[0081] Referring to FIG. 19, illustrated is a depiction of an exemplary environment 1900 divided into multiple zones 1902 with at least one movable receiver 1904. In one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, as illustrated in FIG. 19, the system 400 further includes at least one fixed receiver 1906 in the environment 1900. Herein, the two receivers 1904 and 1906 are of different types (and not just two receivers of the same type, as discussed above). In the associated drawings, the movable receiver 1904 has been represented by diamond (?) shape, and the fixed receiver 1906 has been represented by star (?) shape. In particular, herein, the at least one movable receiver 1904 is mobile, i.e. the movable receiver 1904 can be moved around in the environment 1900; and the fixed receiver 1906 is installed in the two or more zones 1904.
[0082] Specifically, herein, the fixed receiver 1906 is installed in a center of one zone from the two or more zones 1902. As may be seen from FIG. 19, the fixed receivers 1906 are installed in the center of each of the zones 1902. In an example, the movable receiver 1904 may be in the form of a smartphone with a particular application installed to enable such smartphone to act as the movable receiver (with functionality as described in the preceding paragraphs) and can be moved with a person who holds the smartphone. Further, in an example, the fixed receivers 1906 may be physically installed in the center of one of the zones 1902, such as on ceilings (e.g., along with a fan or the like) or some pillar. A position of the fixed receiver 1906 is pre-fed into the server 402 or the fixed receiver 1906. Therefore, the zone location 604 and detailed position 608 can be determined by the fixed receiver 1906 receiving the first signal from the transmitter 408 without receiving the second signal from the emitter 410 and information about location of the fixed receiver 1906.
[0083] The display 406 updates the zone location 604 if the strength of the received first signal by the fixed receiver 1906 is above the second strength 708, and the determined distance between the fixed receiver 1906 and the transmitter 408 is determined to be shorter than the second distance 704 (i.e. 10 meters, for example). The display 406 updates the detailed position 608 if the strength of the received first signal by the fixed receiver 1906 is above the first strength 706, and the determined distance between the fixed receiver 1906 and the transmitter 408 is determined to be shorter than the first distance 702 (i.e. 1 meter, for example). The fixed receivers 1906 at the center of the zones 1902 may allow it to reach to the entirety of respective zone with less than 10 meters. In other words, the fixed receivers 1906 can receive the ‘strong’ or at least “medium” first signal from the transmitter 408 located anywhere in the respective zone. Because the fixed receiver 1906 is installed in the center of each zone 1902, the zone location 604 can be determined in real-time by the fixed receiver 1906 receiving the first signal from the transmitter 408. However, it may be appreciated that the fixed receivers 1906 may not be able to provide detailed position 608 of the transmitter 408, and thereby the asset 401, as may be possible with the movable receivers 1904. In this embodiment, one fixed receiver 1906 is installed in each zone 1902. However more than one fixed receiver 1906 may be installed in each zone, or one fixed receiver 1906 may be installed in each of some zones 1906 and none of the fixed receiver 1906 may be installed in the other zones 1906. In this implementation, the movable receiver 1904 and the fixed receiver 1906 have the same functions except that the movable receiver 1904 is mobile and the fixed receiver 1906 is not mobile, but fixed. In another implementation, the movable receiver 1904 and the fixed receiver 1906 have different functions, such that the fixed receiver 1906 has higher sensitivity to the first signal than the movable receiver 1904.
[0084] The present disclosure further provides a method for locating an asset in an environment divided into two or more zones. FIG. 20 provides a flowchart 2000 listing steps involved in the said method for locating an asset in an environment divided into two or more zones. Various embodiments and variants disclosed above, with respect to the aforementioned system 400, apply mutatis mutandis to the present method for locating an asset in an environment divided into two or more zones as described hereinafter.
[0085] At step 2002, the method includes associating, with the asset, a transmitter having a unique transmitter identifier (transmitter ID) and emitting a first signal including the transmitter ID. At step 2004, the method includes installing, in the two or more zones, one or more emitters having a unique emitter identifier (emitter ID) and emitting a second signal including the emitter ID. At step 2006, the method includes providing at least one receiver to receive the first signal from the transmitter and the second signal from the one or more emitters. At step 2008, the method includes determining the zone location and the detailed position based on the received first signal with the corresponding transmitter ID, the received second signal with the corresponding emitter ID and information about location of the corresponding emitter with respect to the two or more zones. At step 2010, the method includes displaying a zone location for the transmitter with respect to the two or more zones and a detailed position for the transmitter separately with the detailed position being located within the zone location. At step 2012, the method includes updating the zone location if a first condition or a second condition is met and updating the detailed position if the first condition is met, each of the first condition and the second condition including a determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter, and a position accuracy of the at least one receiver.
[0086] In one or more embodiments, the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver is determined based on a number of emitters from which the at least one movable receiver receives the second signals.
[0087] In one or more embodiments, the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is determined by at least one of a strength of the received first signal and a time of flight of the first signal between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter.
[0088] In one or more embodiments, the first condition provides that the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is shorter than a first distance and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver is a first position accuracy. And the second condition provides that the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is shorter than the first distance and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver is a second position accuracy, or the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is longer than the first distance, and shorter than a second distance and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver is a second position accuracy. A position of the at least one movable receiver with the first position accuracy is determined more accurately than a position of the at least one movable receiver with the second position accuracy.
[0089] In one or more embodiments, in case of displaying a first zone as the zone location and a first detailed position in the first zone as the detailed position, the method further comprises retaining the first detailed position as the detailed position if the zone location is updated as the first zone based on the second condition being met and the at least one receiver being located in the first zone.
[0090] In one or more embodiments, in case of displaying a first zone as the zone location and a first detailed position as the detailed position, the method further comprises removing the first detailed position as the detailed position if the zone location is updated as a second zone which is different from the first zone based on the second condition being met and the at least one receiver being located in the second zone.
[0091] In one or more embodiments, the second condition further provides that a predefined time duration is passed from a time when the detailed position was updated to the first detailed position.
[0092] In one or more embodiments, the at least one movable receiver includes at least two movable receivers, and the method further comprises removing the first detailed position as the detailed position if the at least one display updates the zone location from the first zone to the second zone based on the second condition being met in serial by each of the at least two movable receivers being located in the second zone.
[0093] In one or more embodiments, the at least one display is further configured to display time stamps associated with the zone location and the detailed position. The time stamp associated with the zone location is updated when the zone location is updated and the time stamp associated with detailed position is updated when the detailed position is updated.
[0094] In one or more embodiments, in case of the at least one display displaying a first zone as the zone location and a first detailed position as the detailed position, the at least one display is configured to remove the first detailed position if a third condition is met and the at least one movable receiver is located at the first detailed position. Herein, the third condition provides that the determined distance between the at least one movable receiver and the transmitter is longer than the second distance and the position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver is the first position accuracy.
[0095] In one or more embodiments, the first distance is defined as a distance of 1 meter or less between the transmitter and the at least one movable receiver having received the first signal. And the second distance is defined as a distance from 1 meter up to 10 meters between the transmitter and the at least one movable receiver having received the first signal.
[0096] In one or more embodiments, the first position accuracy is defined as a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver being determined by receiving the second signals from at least three emitters of the one or more emitters. And the second position accuracy is defined as a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver being determined by receiving the second signals from two emitters of the one or more emitters.
[0097] In one or more embodiments, the first position accuracy is defined as a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver receiving the second signals being within a circle with a radius of a distance of 5 meters or less. And the second position accuracy is defined as a position accuracy of the at least one movable receiver receiving the second signals being within a circle with a radius of a distance of between 5 meters and 20 meters.
[0098] The solutions proposed by the present system 100 and the method (as per the flowchart 2000) provide reliable means for locating an asset in an environment, even when the Bluetooth signal may fluctuate. In particular, the proposed solutions consider the fluctuation in reception of signals from the transmitter and the emitters, while determining the zone location and the detailed position of the asset in the environment. In case, when the signals may not have sufficient strength and/or the position of the receiver may not be accurately known, the proposed solution provides different conditions in which either the last known zone location and/or the detailed position may be used, or in other cases the detailed position may be discarded. Such change in either of the zone location and the detailed position is recorded with time stamps for providing a proper timeline or history of the location of the asset in the environment.
[0099] The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the present disclosure have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present disclosure to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching. The exemplary embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the present disclosure and its practical application, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the present disclosure and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.