Janus

Abstract

Proximity detection is at the core of several mobile and ubiquitous computing applications. These include reactive use cases, e.g., alerting individuals of hazards or interaction opportunities, and others concerned only with logging proximity data, e.g., for offline analysis and modeling. Common approaches rely on Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) or ultra-wideband (UWB) radios. Nevertheless, these strike opposite tradeoffs between the accuracy of distance estimates quantifying proximity and the energy efficiency affecting system lifetime, effectively forcing a choice between the two and ultimately constraining applicability. Janus reconciles these dimensions in a dual-radio protocol enabling accurate and energy-efficient proximity detection, where the energy-savvy BLE is exploited to discover devices and coordinate their distance measurements, acquired via the energy-hungry UWB. A model supports domain experts in configuring Janus for their use cases with predictable performance. The latency, reliability, and accuracy of Janus are evaluated experimentally, including realistic scenarios endowed with the mm-level ground truth provided by a motion capture system. Energy measurements show that Janus achieves weeks to months of autonomous operation, depending on the use case configuration. Finally, several large-scale campaigns exemplify its practical usefulness in real-world contexts.