IPS or indoor positioning systems use multiple signals to determine a device’s position, indoors.
Your smartphone, for example is considered an asset which can be tracked. This can be equated to a GPS device in communication with satellites. Only, the technology is different based on which company is supplying it. Devices in the future will use more and more signals to assist in measuring the “assets” position indoors.
Tracking systems can measure position based on various technologies such as Bluetooth, sound wave analysis, WiFi Hotspots and new chips within phones. These technologies work differently than Global Positioning Systems as GPS can’t read indoor locations effectively.
The applications for IPS technology are immense. Some no-brainer uses include map direction assistance to shipping container tagging and indoor coupon advertising. For example, coupons could appear on your phone when you are nearby a coffee shop or other retailer, prompting phones with a discounted quick cup of coffee.
Google will likely integrate this technology within their product suite which means some form of indoor advertising. It’s too early to know exactly how this will all be connected but IPS is definitely a logical extension of the Google Maps product. The company may currently be using some newly acquired patents in the field of indoor wireless location technology to track assets in airports and other heavily trafficked locations.
It will be interesting to see how these IPS technologies can create new mediums to display highly relevant advertising as well as other mass-market consumer and business applications. Learn more about the technical patent information here.
