An apparatus, and method of operating the same, include a system for indoor positioning and localization. The apparatus includes a first beacon having a beacon optical detector to receive an optical signal, and a beacon microcontroller. The apparatus includes a zone-positioning unit (ZPU) having an optical source configured to transmit the optical signal, and a ZPU microcontroller. The beacon microcontroller is configured to identify and decode the optical signal after receipt by the beacon optical detector to determine data related to a position of the ZPU. The beacon microcontroller is further configured to wirelessly communicate with the ZPU microcontroller to convey information to the ZPU including the data related to a position of the ZPU and a known position of the first beacon. The ZPU microcontroller is configured to determine a position of the ZPU based on the information received from the first beacon.

A method and system for detecting a position of an animal in laboratory conditions based on ultrasonic tracking is disclosed. The animal has an attached mobile device comprising an ultrasonic receiver. Ultrasonic signals emitted from ultrasonic emitters either have an envelope with a shape that is chosen with the first derivative restricted by condition |dE/dt|<A/T and/or with the second derivative restricted by condition |d.sup.2E/dt.sup.2|<A/T.sup.2, wherein E(t) is the envelope curve, t is time, A is the maximum amplitude of the ultrasonic signals and T is the period of the base frequency of the ultrasonic signals; or oscillations of voltage or current of ultrasonic emitters during signal transmission have envelopes described by a special function for amplitude of the oscillations. The mobile device receives an optical or radio synchronization signals from signal sources connected with the ultrasonic emitters. Analog or digital filters are used to separate ultrasonic signals from animal's vocalization. In some embodiments coordinates are obtained by using optical scanning sources with ultrasonic emitter placed at the axes of rotation of one or two emitted rotating planar scanning light beams. Tracking for multiple animals is disclosed.

A system for a remotely controlled device to determine its location and orientation is disclosed. The system includes a remotely controlled device, at least one sensor connected to the remotely controlled device, the at least one sensor comprising a processor, and at least one emitter, wherein the at least one sensor is configured to receive the signal from the at least one emitter and the processor is configured to determine the location and orientation of the remotely controlled device.

Methods and apparatuses are provided for use in monitoring product placement within a shopping facility. Some embodiments provide an apparatus configured to determine product placement conditions within a shopping facility, comprising: a transceiver configured to wirelessly receive communications; a product monitoring control circuit coupled with the transceiver; a memory coupled with the control circuit and storing computer instructions that when executed by the control circuit cause the control circuit to: obtain a composite three-dimensional (3D) scan mapping corresponding to at least a select area of the shopping facility and based on a series of 3D scan data; evaluate the 3D scan mapping to identify multiple product depth distances; and identify, from the evaluation of the 3D scan mapping, when one or more of the multiple product depth distances is greater than a predefined depth distance threshold from the reference offset distance of the product support structure.

Methods and apparatuses are provided for use in monitoring product placement within a shopping facility. Some embodiments provide an apparatus configured to determine product placement conditions within a shopping facility, comprising: a transceiver configured to wirelessly receive communications; a product monitoring control circuit coupled with the transceiver; a memory coupled with the control circuit and storing computer instructions that when executed by the control circuit cause the control circuit to: obtain a composite three-dimensional (3D) scan mapping corresponding to at least a select area of the shopping facility and based on a series of 3D scan data; evaluate the 3D scan mapping to identify multiple product depth distances; and identify, from the evaluation of the 3D scan mapping, when one or more of the multiple product depth distances is greater than a predefined depth distance threshold from the reference offset distance of the product support structure.

A method for detection of an emitter mobile device (B) equipped with a light by a receiver mobile device (A) equipped with a camera, comprising: the emitter mobile device (B) emits a light-modulated signal to advertise its identity or state; the receiver mobile device (A) captures a series of frames with said camera; the modulated signal is detected from said frames; the pixel position of the emitter mobile device on a within the camera frame of the receiver mobile device is detected.

A method and system for determining a position and orientation of a receiver relative to a transmitter includes transmitted positioning signals having different frequency components that define a common period. One or more of the transmitted positioning signal have identifiable phase characteristics relative to the start of the common period. The positioning signals are received at the receiver. A time point corresponding to the start of the common period is determined from the received positioning signals. The polarities of the received signals can then be determined based on properties of the positioning signals relative to the start of the common period and relative to properties of the transmitted positioning signals. These polarities can be used to track a signed position and uniquely associated orientation of the receiver relative to the transmitter.

Embodiments described herein relate to a magnetic positioning system and method that allows the position of a receiver to be determined in environments containing conducting material such as concrete. A number of transmitters create modulated magnetic fields which are distorted as they propagate through the conducting materials. A finite difference time domain (FDTD) simulation of the environment is used to generate an accurate model of the fields within the environment. A receiver is used to measure the field strength of each transmitter. The receiver position is determined by evaluating the misfit between the received fields and the values in the FDTD model.

A method for object tracking. The method includes capturing a sequence of images of a scene, detecting, by a hardware processor based on a pattern of local light change across the sequence of images, a light source in the scene, comparing, by the hardware processor in response to detecting the light source, a location of the light source in at least one image of the sequence of images and a target position within the at least one image to generate a result, and generating, by the hardware processor based on the result, a control signal for changing a field-of-view of a camera device such that the light source substantially aligns with the target position within the field-of-view, wherein the light source is configured to produce an object-identifying code.

The present invention discloses a system for measuring the mechanical properties of sea floor sediments at full ocean depth. The system includes an overwater monitoring unit and an underwater measurement device, where the underwater measurement device includes an observation platform and a measuring mechanism; the observation platform includes a frame-type body and a floating body, a wing panel, a floating ball cabin, a leveling mechanism, a counterweight, and a release mechanism mounted on the frame-type body; the floating ball cabin seals a circuit system; the leveling mechanism adjusts the underwater measurement device horizontally on the sea floor when the frame-type body reaches the sea floor; the release mechanism discards the counterweight for recovery of the unit after the underwater measurement device completes the underwater operation; the measuring mechanism includes at least one of a cone penetration measuring mechanism, a spherical penetration measuring mechanism, and a vane shear measuring mechanism, or a sampling mechanism.