Indoor Locating Using Beacons in Nursing Care

The new paper Relabeling for Indoor Localization Using Stationary Beacons in Nursing Care Facilities by Christina Garcia and Sozo Inoue from the Graduate School of Life Science and Systems Engineering, Kyushu Institute of Technology, Japan, presents a study on enhancing machine learning for indoor localisation in caregiving, specifically in nursing homes, using Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology.

The study addresses the challenge of limited data available for training machine learning models in indoor localisation, which is critical for monitoring staff-to-patient assistance and managing workload in caregiving environments. The authors propose a data augmentation method that repurposes the Received Signal Strength (RSSI) from various beacons by re-labeling them to locations with fewer data samples, thus resolving data imbalances. This method uses standard deviation and Kullback–Leibler divergence to measure signal patterns and find matching beacons for re-labeling. Two variations of re-labeling are implemented: full and partial matching.

The performance of this method is evaluated using a real-world dataset collected over five days in a nursing care facility equipped with 25 Bluetooth beacons.

Overall, the study highlights the effectiveness of the proposed re-labelling method in enhancing indoor localisation accuracy in nursing care facilities, providing a valuable contribution to the field of caregiving and workload management.

Sensor Beacon List Updated

We offer a range of sensor beacons but what each beacon actually senses or detects is buried deep in the respective beacon descriptions.

As we have recently added new sensor beacons, we have updated our downloadable pdf showing what each beacon can detect.

If you want to know how you might use these beacons, take a look at our articles on Beacon Proximity and Sensing for the Internet of Things (IoT)Using Bluetooth LE and Using Bluetooth LE Sensors.

Why is There a Bluetooth Beacon in My Hotel Room?

The presence of a Bluetooth beacon in your hotel room is likely part of the hotel’s efforts to enhance guest experience and operational efficiency. These beacons are used for various purposes.

These beacons can help in providing location-based services. For example, if the hotel has a mobile app, it might send you notifications about special offers or events based on your location within the hotel.

In larger hotels, these beacons can assist guests in navigating to facilities like the gym, restaurant, or conference rooms. They can help the hotel staff in monitoring and managing room status, like whether the room is occupied or needs cleaning, thus improving efficiency.

In the context of health and safety, especially post-COVID-19, such technology can facilitate contactless check-ins and check-outs, or even contactless room service. Hotels may use these beacons to collect data on guest movements and preferences to improve their services and tailor their offerings.

A Summary of Bluetooth Attacks

A recent study with the strange title SoK: The Long Journey of Exploiting and Defending the Legacy of King Harald Bluetooth (pdf) provides a comprehensive analysis of the security and privacy issues surrounding Bluetooth technology. Authored by Jianliang Wu, Ruoyu Wu, Dongyan Xu, Dave (Jing) Tian, and Antonio Bianchi from Purdue University and Simon Fraser University, it explores the evolution of Bluetooth security over 24 years, focusing on both attacks and defences.

The paper begins by summarising the evolution of Bluetooth security features since its first version, discussing the introduction of Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and Mesh protocols. It then looks into a systematisation of 76 attacks and 33 defences, categorising them based on their affected layers in the Bluetooth stack, the protocols they target, and their threat models.

Key observations include the increasing number of privacy attacks during the BLE device discovery phase, challenges in pairing security due to user mistakes and a mismatch between the assumptions of Bluetooth specifications and their real-world implementations on modern operating systems. The authors also highlight that while Bluetooth’s security has improved over time, there remain significant gaps in both security and privacy features that need addressing.

The document further explores attacks and defences in detail, divided into different layers of the Bluetooth stack: the physical layer, firmware layer, and host layer. Each layer faces unique challenges, from signal eavesdropping and injection at the physical layer to firmware exploitation and host exploitation attacks. The authors categorise these attacks based on their goals, affected protocol, phase, and attack model, providing a comprehensive overview of the current state of Bluetooth security.

Wireless Quarter Magazine

Nordic Semiconductor, the manufacturer of the System on a Chip (SoC) in most beacons and number one supplier of SoCs for Bluetooth LE solutions, has published the latest online issue of Wireless Quarter Magazine. It showcases the many uses of Nordic SoCs.


The latest issue of the magazine highlights the use of the Nordic SoCs in the following Bluetooth solutions:

  • AirSuite hazardous indoor conditions monitor
  • NNOXX health and fitness performance wearable
  • Wevolver perishable goods transport solution
  • GreaseBoss machinery lubrication management sensor
  • Coral Sense connected construction module using Bluetooth Mesh

There are also in-depth articles on Cellular IoT, how AI and machine learning are transforming IoT, Cellular IoT and DECT NR+, Smart Power Grids and Connected Construction.

Improved RSSI Indoor Localisation Using AI Algorithms

The article titled Improved RSSI Indoor Localization in IoT Systems with Machine Learning Algorithms by Ruvan Abeysekera and Ruvan Abeysekera focuses on enhancing indoor localisation in Internet of Things (IoT) systems using AI machine learning algorithms. The paper addresses the limitations of GPS in indoor environments and explores the use of Bluetooth low-energy (BLE) nodes and Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) values for more accurate localisation.

GPS is ineffective indoors so the paper emphasises the need for alternative methods for indoor localisation, which is crucial for various applications like smart cities, transportation and emergency services.

The study uses machine learning algorithms to process RSSI data collected from Bluetooth nodes in complex indoor environments. Algorithms like K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN), Support Vector Machine (SVM, and Feed Forward Neural Networks (FFNN) are used, achieving accuracies of approximately 85%, 84%, and 76% respectively.

The RSSI data is also processed using techniques like weighted least-squares method and moving average filters. The paper also discusses the importance of hyperparameter tuning in improving the performance of the machine learning models.

The research claims to provide significant advancement in indoor localisation, highlighting the potential of machine learning in overcoming the limitations of traditional GPS-based systems in indoor environments.

How Princess Cruises’ Medallion Revolutionises Hospitality

Princess Cruises has made a significant leap with its Medallion. This innovative device, a Bluetooth beacon, is transforming the cruise experience for passengers and the company.

A Bluetooth Beacon at Sea

The Medallion is a small, wearable device that uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology. This beacon interacts seamlessly with sensors placed throughout the ship. As passengers move around the ship, the Medallion’s signal is picked up by these sensors, allowing for a range of interactive and personalised experiences. Unlike classic Bluetooth devices that need to be paired, they use Bluetooth LE to automatically work with the ship’s network, offering a hands-free experience.

Enhancing the Passenger Experience

The Medallion has significantly enhanced the cruising experience for passengers. Firstly, it eases the boarding process, making it quicker and more efficient as the medallion is the passenger’s identity. Once on board, it serves as a digital key, unlocking the passenger’s room as they approach.

The Medallion enables the crew to provide a highly personalised service, greeting passengers by name and being aware of their preferences and needs. It also powers an on-board navigation system, helping passengers find their way around the large cruise ships and even locate their friends and family on board.

Entertainment and purchasing are also streamlined. The medallion can be used to make cashless payments for services and products on the ship and it interacts with various digital screens on the ship to provide personalised content and offers.

Advantages for Princess Cruises

For Princess Cruises, the Medallion represents a significant investment in improving operational efficiency and customer service. The data collected from these devices offer valuable insights into passenger behaviour and preferences, allowing for more targeted marketing and service improvements. It also streamlines onboard operations, such as crowd management and service delivery, making the cruise experience smoother and more efficient for everyone involved.

Broader Applications in Hospitality

The principles behind the Medallion are being adopted in other sectors of the hospitality industry. Hotels, resorts, and theme parks are increasingly using similar technology to enhance guest experiences. For example, wearable devices at theme parks can act as entry tickets, payment methods and fast-pass tickets to rides. In hotels, they offer keyless room access and personalised room settings, such as adjusting the temperature or lighting based on the guest’s preferences.

The Medallion by Princess Cruises is more than just a technological novelty; it’s a glimpse into the future of hospitality. By leveraging the power of a Bluetooth beacon, it creates a seamless, personalised, and more enjoyable travel experience.

The Risk of SaaS-based Beacon Solutions

Beacons have emerged as a crucial tool for businesses, especially in retail, logistics and asset tracking. However, the issue regarding how beacons are managed is becoming increasingly pertinent. We advocate for the use of generic beacons over those tied to specific Software as a Service (SaaS) platforms for a multitude of reasons, primarily centred around risk mitigation.

Some platform vendors have a vested interest in locking you into their proprietary beacons and subscription platforms. This approach may seem convenient at first, but it comes with a host of limitations and risks. For instance, you’re tied to a particular platform, often with a paid subscription that is subject to price changes. Moreover, if the vendor is a venture capital-funded company there’s always the risk, as we have witnessed, that they might not be around next year, leaving you stranded with unsupported hardware.

Opting for generic OEM beacons liberates you from the constraints of a single platform. You’re not tied to a paid subscription for a specific service, giving you the flexibility to adapt as your business needs change. Generic beacons don’t limit you to the advertising types and sensors provided by a particular locked beacon. You can mix and match different beacon types and manufacturers to suit your physical environment. This flexibility also allows you to second or even third source beacons, thereby reducing longer-term risk.

When you’re not limited by the technical constraints of a proprietary platform, you have the freedom to innovate. You can host the platform yourself or choose a hosting provider that aligns with your business needs. This means you can keep your business data away from a shared server, enhancing security and compliance.

Using generic beacons means you’re not dependent on the service level of a shared platform. If a cloud-managed service experiences downtime or other issues, it can have a cascading effect on your operations. Self-managed beacons offer a level of reliability that cloud solutions may not be able to guarantee.

Lastly, when you opt for generic beacons, you don’t have to lock your code to use a particular proprietary beacon app SDK. This gives you the freedom to develop your applications without worrying about compatibility issues down the line.

In conclusion, while cloud-managed solutions may offer a quick and easy entry point, the long-term risks and limitations can make them a less attractive option. Self-managed, generic beacons offer flexibility, security and independence.

Simple Indoor iBeacon Positioning Method

New research Using iBeacon Components to Design and Fabricate Low-energy and Simple Indoor Positioning Method (PDF) focuses on developing an effective indoor positioning system using iBeacon. The authors propose an enhanced triangulation technique using signal strength signatures for improved indoor positioning precision.

This system integrates a ‘blind’ device and multiple base stations using iBeacon components to form virtual digital electronic fences, effectively receiving signals from moving devices or tags in a targeted area. The proposed method divides the positioning area into rectangular or triangular subareas and establishes a loss value database for improved location estimation.

The system shows high accuracy, with an average error of less than 0.5 m in the worst-case scenario, making it suitable for various environments. The paper covers the architecture of the system, development phases and experimental results demonstrating the system’s effectiveness. The research offers significant insights into low-cost, high-precision indoor positioning methods suitable for diverse applications such as healthcare, smart cities, and industrial settings.

Using Beacons with Smartphone Apps

Bluetooth beacons are a powerful tool for creating personalised experiences through mobile apps. They work by transmitting signals that can be detected by all smartphones. When a user comes within range, the app detects the beacon’s signal and identifies the user’s proximity to a specific location.

This enables the delivery of contextually relevant content, such as detailed information or reviews when a customer approaches a product in a retail store. It also allows for personalised recommendations based on a user’s location and past behaviour, offering tailored suggestions that match their interests.

Interactive experiences are another feature made possible by Bluetooth beacons. They can trigger app-specific actions based on user location, such as providing wait times and virtual queuing options in an amusement park. Additionally, they assist in wayfinding and navigation within large venues by providing directions and highlighting points of interest.

Utilising Bluetooth beacons for personalised experiences benefits businesses in numerous ways. They enable enhanced engagement with customers by delivering timely content, fostering a stronger connection and loyalty. They improve customer satisfaction by providing tailored information and recommendations, making customers feel more valued. Sales and conversion rates are also boosted by offering targeted promotions when customers are near specific products.

Bluetooth beacons gather valuable data that provides insights into customer preferences and behaviour, helping businesses optimise operations and make data-driven decisions to enhance their offerings and marketing strategies.

Android and iOS use included operating system APIs to detect Bluetooth beacons. When an Android application detects a beacon, it gets a callback to a function including the signal level (RSSI), where developers can specify the app’s operation. On iOS the framework includes classes to represent beacons and beacon regions, enabling monitoring and ranging, i.e., determining the approximate distance to a beacon. When an app registers to monitor a specific beacon region, iOS notifies the app if the device enters or exits that region. This happens even if the app isn’t running at the time. Furthermore, if the app is currently in use, it can continually receive updates about nearby beacons and their relative distance.

In both Android and iOS, the apps don’t connect with the beacons. Instead, they detect the Bluetooth signals that the beacons broadcast. Also, both systems require the user’s permission for the app to access Bluetooth and location services.