Mobile WiFi CSI-Based Object Detection: A Bistatic Approach for Enhanced Sensing in Enclosed Environment

This paper presents a novel approach for passively detecting the presence of objects within enclosed spaces using WiFi-based sensing integrated with autonomous mobile robots. Utilizing the Quanser Car (QCar), a 1/10-scale vehicle equipped with WiFi Channel State Information (CSI) sniffers, we investigate scenarios where robots non-intrusively determine whether a closed container contains an object. This detection is achieved passively from outside the box, in the absence of any line of sight. The study examines the influence of robot movement and velocity on the accuracy of this non-invasive detection approach. Our findings highlight the feasibility of employing mobile robots and WiFi sensing with CSI for passive inspection tasks, showcasing its potential in scenarios requiring object presence detection without direct interaction.