Finland team uses Earth's magnetic field for phone indoor positioning system
Tuesday, July 10, 2012 - 04:30
in Astronomy & Space
(Phys.org) -- Finland-based engineers have worked up a novel approach toward an indoor positioning system (IPS) inspired by the way certain animals--from homing pigeons to spiny lobsters--navigate their way with the help of cues that arise from local anomalies of the earths magnetic field. The researchers have formed a company with seed capital investment to commercialize their approach. Namely that approach has resulted in a smartphone app that uses magnetic fluctuations to map indoor locations. Aptly named IndoorAtlas, the company is a spinoff from their University of Oulu beginnings.