GuideLoc: UAV-Assisted Multitarget Localization System for Disaster Rescue

Abstract

Locating trapped targets using the signals of wireless devices such as mobile phones carried by targets is increasingly becoming the preferred scheme for disaster rescue. However, the accuracy of radio-localization technology currently adopted in the rescue is not high enough. To solve such problems, researchers proposed the approaches of Warwalking or Wardriving. However, both approaches are all limited by application scenarios. This paper proposes GuideLoc, a highly efficient aerial wireless localization system, which uses the target guiding technology based on region division. GuideLoc allows an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to fly over a target device and provide position coordinates of the UAV as the target location information. During the process of positioning targets, based on the result of regional division, GuideLoc uses a number of fixed antennas to get the received signal strength indicator (RSSI) and angle of arrival (AOA) information of the target and estimates the target location using the information and correspondingly controls the UAV to fly towards the target. Averaging method is also applied for determining coordinates of the target. Experiment results show that GuideLoc can in short time achieve 2.7-meter positioning accuracy in average. Compared with other wireless localization methods using UAVs proposed in the literature, it shortened the flight distance by more than 50%. In addition, energy efficiency is also improved significantly.