The term “navigation” is of Latin origin. The word “navigo” means “sailing on a ship”. That is, initially it was actually synonymous with shipping or navigation. But with the development of technologies that make it easier for ships to navigate the oceans, with the advent of aviation and space technology, the term has significantly expanded the range of possible interpretations.
Today, navigation is a process in which a person controls an object based on its spatial coordinates. That is, navigation consists of two procedures — it is directly controlled, as well as calculating the optimal path of the object.
Navigation systems in everyday life for us today have become something taken for granted for every person. For example, if you live in a big city or often travel outside it, then a GPS navigator is simply necessary for your car – without it, there is a high probability of turning the wrong way or at least spending extra time and gasoline. In addition, car navigators save you from having to carry bulky road maps with you, on which it is sometimes impossible to determine even your location.
But navigation has changed radically not so long ago because half a century ago we used maps, and only the military had more advanced devices for navigation. And now, if you look around, you will find the use of this technology everywhere. Today we will talk about the types of navigation and how much it facilitates our life.
Indoor and outdoor navigation – how to realize it?
Internal and external navigation is what helps us to go through the departments in the store or go from building to building with the services you need. But have you ever wondered how they work?
To build indoor and outdoor navigation, you will need two different technology systems. For example, when you are in nature or in the city and use your navigator (for example, from Google or Apple), the navigation system is represented by aerial photography, satellite images, and GPS signals.
Positioning in the GPS navigation system is carried out by measuring the distance from the receiver to several satellites, the location of which is known exactly at the current time. The distance to the satellite is measured by multiplying the signal delay by the speed of light.
Communication with the first satellite provides information only about the sphere of possible locations of the receiver. The intersection of two spheres will give a circle, three – two points, and four-the only correct points on the map. Our planet is most often used as one of the spheres, which allows us to position only three satellites instead of four. In theory, the accuracy of GPS positioning can reach 2 meters (in practice, the error is much greater).
However, the above technologies will not be able to cover the needs of the user in an enclosed space, because they are simply not designed for use there. To do this, you will need a completely different solution that can show you how to get to the buffet or how to get to another building of the university.
For such cases, indoor navigation uses special services that can shoot a room from the inside, build a digital model of it and scale it to your phone. After that, you will follow the guide with an accuracy of a few centimeters, which will lead you to the specified point.
On the basis of such a solution, during the COVID-19 pandemic, a new direction began to develop – virtual tours. They can help you with various tasks: from choosing real estate to sightseeing tours in different parts of the world. Virtual tours and tours with augmented reality are now recent trends in embedded systems.
Let’s go back to navigation in buildings. In order for users to determine their location and plot the necessary routes, you will need to combine your mapping and navigation service with an internal positioning system, such as BLE, Wi-Fi positioning, or magnetic fields. However, it is worth noting that after you need to create a convenient application or pair it with an existing one, so the creation of such embedded systems should be entrusted to responsible and qualified specialists who can, if necessary, develop the necessary application in addition to the system or adapt it to existing services.
Variety of navigation systems
The classification of navigation types is very extensive. Modern experts distinguish the following its main varieties:
- automotive;
- astronomical;
- bionavigation;
- aerial;
- cosmic;
- marine;
- radio navigation;
- satellite;
- underground;
- information system;
- inertial.
Some of the above types of navigation are closely related to each other — mainly due to the commonality of the technologies involved. For example, car navigation often uses tools that are typical for satellite navigation. And aerial navigation can include a drone navigation system or a manned solution. This is used in cases of control or orientation on private vast territories, such as agricultural land or outdoor warehouses.
There are mixed types in which several technological resources are used simultaneously, such as, for example, navigation and information systems. In them, the key resources of satellite communication can be as such. However, the ultimate goal of their involvement will be to provide the target groups of users with the necessary information.
Also, a combined navigation system with backup camera is often used for internal navigation. This allows you to specify the desired direction for the user (or for other systems, such as AI-based logistics loaders) in real-time.
Designing of your own navigation system
Internal and external navigation means that users can be directed directly from their homes to certain points of interest inside your facility. For example, a separate room in the office or a free parking space.
Would you like to learn more about internal navigation features? Learn more about ADUK or contact us – we will be happy to advise you on creating such useful navigation systems.
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