Widespread Easy and Subtle Tracking with Wireless Identification Networkless Devices -- WEST WIND: an Environmental Tracking System
Kenton Michael Lyons, Cory D. Kidd, Thad E. Starner · 2000
In this paper we introduce and describe a radio frequency-based system for location identification and tracking. The basic design of the system consists of transmitters in the environment, transceivers on the person or object for which location information is desired, and a receiver in the environment. Each of these three pieces of hardware and their associated software are discussed in this paper. We also talk about system design considerations, privacy concerns, and current and future applications of the system. Background This system was initially designed as a person tracking and location system in the Aware Home Residential Laboratory [1]. In that paper we discuss the need for a system that allows us to determine where in the home a person or object is located. The West Wind system is designed to meet that need. The Aware Home is a two-story house plus a basement and attic. Each floor is approximately 1,400 square feet, giving a total finished size of over 5,000 square feet. We wanted a system that would allow us to track people and objects in at least the two main floors. The construction of the house is a normal wood frame, allowing radio frequency signals to easily pass between floors and rooms. The design for this system was inspired by the work done on the Locust system [4]. This system uses infrared (IR) beacons in the environment to transmit unique IDs. Each beacon has a limited transmit range creating a small cell. A receiver could then pick up the IR signal when in that cell and interpret the ID as location information. The basic idea is the same for our system only using RF transmitters. The transmitters placed in the environment send out unique IDs. A badge worn by the person then interprets the ID as location information. This part of the system was originally developed for the location system in the augmented-audio game Guided by Voices [2]. We have further extended the system in West Wind so that the badge on the person can selectively retransmit the