Feasibility Analysis of Self-oriented Antennas for Indoor Positioning based on Direction-of-Arrival and Bluetooth-Low-Energy

Indoor positioning systems have typically relied on static anchors, such as beacons or WiFi routers, and static environmental conditions, such as magnetic fields. On the other way around, it is also common to have fixed sensing devices, such as cameras, monitoring the environment, or passive receivers collecting relevant measurements from devices being tracked (signal strength, time/direction of arrival, among others). In one form or in another, we can usually find a static device. Furthermore, the evaluation of Radio Frequency-based positioning systems has commonly relied on measurements from static evaluation locations, being a continuous evaluation less frequent in solutions relying on, for instance, fingerprinting or based on signal strength. However, there is a need for a paradigm shift in indoor positioning systems as dynamic conditions are being slowly introduced. This paper introduces an exploratory analysis of a novel approach to be integrated into existing indoor positioning solutions based on Bluetooth Low Energy-based Direction-of-Arrival solutions. The core idea is to allow the infrastructure sensing the environment to adjust the orientation of the antennas, enhance the coverage, and provide better positioning of the devices being tracked. i.e., this approach will enable the system to evolve over time, continuously adapting to current environmental conditions. We describe the low-cost infrastructure needed to enable self-orientation for a commercial Bluetooth Low Energy board providing Direction-of-Arrival measurements.