Indoor Wayfinding Based on Wireless Sensor Networks for Individuals with
  Multiple Special Needs
Authors: Yao-Jen Chang and Tsen-Yung Wang

Wayfinding systems are an assistive technology targeting disabled patients
who are mobile and need to travel in both indoor and outdoor environments,
thus increasing workplace and life independence. Such a personal guidance
system can improve the quality of life and minimize risks such as wandering
behavior, which has been previously observed in patients with acquired brain
injury. The proposed system called AssistMote is a full-ledged navigation
solution using wireless sensor networks (WSN) for ambient condition
detection, routing engines for navigation, and PDAs as the user interface, to
assist with indoor wayfinding for individuals with multiple special needs.
Ambient intelligence such as inadequate illumination and wet floors can be
critical to wayfinding for the targeted population. The routing algorithm is
based on the innovative use of Dijkstra's shortest path with the special
requirements of navigation applications taken into account. The study reports
the prototype design, experiments, and detailed performance evaluation based
on computer simulations and field trials of eight human subjects with
multiple disabilities who participated in pedestrian navigation in a
five-floor building with 91 sensor nodes. AssistMote achieved 95% success
compared with 37.5% in a controlled study that used verbal instructions and
paper maps. 

In order to access this article you must be a subscriber or you need to
purchase the article. 

PDF:
http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/ftinterface~db=all~content=a922533138~fulltext=713240930

HTML:
http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/ftinterface~db=all~content=a922533138~fulltext=713240928

Submitted by Rich Simpson