Embodiments herein relate to ear-worn devices that can be used to locate other devices such as mobile electronic devices. In a first aspect, an ear-worn device is included having a control circuit, a microphone in electrical communication with the control circuit, an electroacoustic transducer for generating sound in electrical communication with the control circuit, a motion sensor in electrical communication with the control circuit, and a power supply circuit in electrical communication with the control circuit, wherein the ear-worn device is configured to issue a location command to a mobile electronic device and wherein the location command triggers the mobile electronic device to emit a locating signal. Other embodiments are also included herein.

The present invention discloses an indoor Electronic Traveling Aid (ETA) system for blind and visually impaired (BVI) people. The system comprises a headband, intuitive tactile display with myographic (EMG) feedback, controller, and server-based methods corresponding to three operation modalities. In 1.sup.st modality, sighted users mark routes, map navigational directions, and create semantic comments for BVIs. This information of routes is continuously collected and estimated in ETA servers. In the 2.sup.nd modality, BVIs choose the routes from servers, thereby, are supplied with real-time navigational guidance. Also, an EMG interface is used, where the user's facial muscles are enabled is to send commands to the ETA system. In the 3.sup.rd modality, BVIs receive real-time audio guidance in complex or unforeseen situations: ETA provides a crowd-assisted interface and real-time sensory (e.g., video) data, where crowd-assistants analyze the situation and help the BVI to navigate.

A software application and system may be configured to enable a smartphone or other device to be used by a visually impaired person to receive voice navigation guidance during a directed exploration of an area. Directed exploration uses combinations of location data, directional data, and orientation data from the configured device to determine a direction that user wishes to explore, and only providing narrated results for streets, businesses, and other points of interest in that direction. The system may also utilize sets of wireless indicators positioned within indoor areas to provide accurate positioning to particular locations and floors within buildings.

Embodiments are disclosed for a feature-based simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) system and method that generates radio maps for environments that are not accessible for surveying. More accurate radio maps are generated for an unsurveyed environment by determining a best estimate of a mobile device state from harvested traced data that maximizes a posterior probability of the mobile device state given measurements, landmarks and loop constraints.

Techniques and systems are described for generating and using a sound localization model. A described technique includes obtaining for a building a sound sensor map indicating locations of first and second sound sensor devices in respective first and second rooms of the building; causing an autonomous device to navigate to the first room and to emit, during a time window, sound patterns at one or more frequencies within the first room; receiving sound data including first and second sound data respectively from the first and second sound sensor devices that are observed during the time window; and generating and storing a sound localization model based on the sound sensor map, autonomous device location information, and the received sound data, the model being configured to compensate for how sounds travels among rooms in at least a portion of the building such that an origin room of a sound source is identifiable.

Autonomous carriers or totes that include vacuum units are provided. As the totes move or are moved through a warehouse carrying products, they collect debris. The debris can be analyzed at the tote, and actions can be performed based upon the analysis.

Aspects described herein may provide determination of a pedestrian route for a user to reach a seating area inside of a venue. Financial transaction data of the user may be reviewed to determine the user purchased one or more tickets to an event at the venue. Information regarding the event or the venue may be determined including seating charts for the venue and whether the tickets are for assigned or unassigned seats. Crowd densities inside and outside of the venue may be determined. The pedestrian route may be determined based on the crowd densities, number of tickets, and type of seating. The route may be updated as conditions change including any change to the crowd densities or change to seating availability. The route may increase a likelihood that the user reaches the seating area prior to a start of the event, and in a less stressful manner.

Systems, apparatuses and methods may provide for technology that generates a sequence of predictive maps based on a sequence of historical maps and overlays the sequence of predictive maps on one another to obtain a map overlay. The technology may also apply an attenuation factor to the map overlay. In one example, the map overlay includes a grid of cells and each cell includes an occupation probability in accordance with the attenuation factor.

Systems and methods provide technology for wayfinding assistance for visually-impaired passengers, including short-range transmitters distributed within a passenger cabin of an aircraft, a transit vehicle or a vessel, each short-range transmitter located proximate to a respective waypoint in the passenger cabin to transmit a signal identifying the respective waypoint in the passenger cabin, and a client application to, responsive to passing within a range of one of the plurality of short-range transmitters, receive a first transmission from the short-range transmitter and emit one or more of a first audible signal or a first haptic signal, based on the first transmission, as wayfinding assistance to a user of the client device. The technology can also include a mid-range transmitter located proximate to a service area in the passenger cabin, to transmit a signal providing at least one of a status of or a location of the service area.

A map establishment method and a map establishment system are provided. The map establishment method includes: detecting a physical motion performed by a user and generating motion sensing data by at least one motion sensor; obtaining spatial dimension information, in multiple directions, of a target place where the user is located and information of an obstacle in the target place by a deep learning model according to the motion sensing data; and generating map data according to the spatial dimension information and the information of the obstacle, wherein the map data reflects a contour of the target place where the user is located and a distribution status of at least one obstacle in the target place.