Impact of Transmitter Positioning and Orientation Uncertainty on RSS-Based Visible Light Positioning Accuracy.

Area of Science:

• Wireless Communication
• Indoor Positioning Systems
• Optical Sensing

Background:

• Visible Light Positioning (VLP) systems offer a promising alternative for indoor localization.
• Received Signal Strength (RSS)-based VLP algorithms face challenges from multipath effects and setup uncertainties.
• Transmitter (Tx) position and orientation uncertainties are critical, yet often overlooked, factors impacting VLP accuracy.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of transmitter position and orientation uncertainty on VLP accuracy.
• To quantify the positioning error introduced by these uncertainties using statistical modeling.
• To explore the effectiveness of increasing transmitter density in mitigating these errors.

Main Methods:

• Simulation-based analysis of VLP system performance.
• Statistical modeling of transmitter position and orientation uncertainties.
• Evaluation of positioning error (average and standard deviation) under varying numbers of transmitters (4, 9, and 16).

Main Results:

• Transmitter uncertainties significantly increase VLP positioning errors.
• A position uncertainty of 5 cm resulted in average errors of 23.3, 15.1, and 13.2 cm for 4, 9, and 16 transmitters, respectively.
• An orientation uncertainty of 5° led to average errors of 31.9, 20.6, and 17 cm for 4, 9, and 16 transmitters, respectively.

Conclusions:

• Transmitter uncertainties pose a severe challenge to the accuracy of RSS-based VLP systems.
• Increasing the number of transmitters is an effective strategy to counteract the negative impact of Tx uncertainties.
• Careful consideration of transmitter placement and orientation is crucial for robust VLP system design.