A Survey of Indoor Inertial Positioning Systems for Pedestrians

TLDR

Miniaturised sensors and processors have made pedestrian dead‑reckoning (PDR) viable for indoor tracking, yet related research is dispersed across multiple communities. This survey develops a taxonomy of modern PDRs to contextualise contributions from different research areas. It reviews step‑detection, characterisation, inertial navigation, and step‑and‑heading dead‑reckoning techniques, compares particle‑filter map‑based and hybrid systems that use absolute fixes, and considers smartphone‑based PDR devices. The authors conclude that PDR alone provides adequate short‑ to medium‑term tracking, but regular absolute position fixes are required for long‑term accuracy, and they enumerate key challenges for future research.

Abstract

With the continual miniaturisation of sensors and processing nodes, Pedestrian Dead Reckoning (PDR) systems are becoming feasible options for indoor tracking. These use inertial and other sensors, often combined with domain-specific knowledge about walking, to track user movements. There is currently a wealth of relevant literature spread across different research communities. In this survey, a taxonomy of modern PDRs is developed and used to contextualise the contributions from different areas. Techniques for step detection, characterisation, inertial navigation and step-and-heading-based dead-reckoning are reviewed and compared. Techniques that incorporate building maps through particle filters are analysed, along with hybrid systems that use absolute position fixes to correct dead-reckoning output. In addition, consideration is given to the possibility of using smartphones as PDR sensing devices. The survey concludes that PDR techniques alone can offer good short- to medium- term tracking under certain circumstances, but that regular absolute position fixes from partner systems will be needed to ensure long-term operation and to cope with unexpected behaviours. It concludes by identifying a detailed list of challenges for PDR researchers.