Practical server-side WiFi-based indoor localization: Addressing cardinality & outlier challenges for improved occupancy estimation

National Research Foundation (NRF) Singapore under International Research Centres in Singapore Funding Initiativ

GNSS precise point positioning :the enhancement with GLONASS

PhD ThesisPrecise Point Positioning (PPP) provides GNSS navigation using a stand-alone receiver with no base station. As a technique PPP suffers from long convergence times and quality degradation during periods of poo satellite visibility or geometry. Many applications require reliable realtime centimetre level positioning with worldwide coverage, and a short initialisation time. To achieve these goals, this thesis considers the use of GLONASS in conjunction with GPS in kinematic PPP. This increases the number of satellites visible to the receiver, improving the geometry of the visible satellite constellation. To assess the impact of using GLONASS with PPP, it was necessary to build a real time mode PPP program. pppncl was constructed using a combination of Fortran and Python to be capable of processing GNSS observations with precise satellite ephemeris data in the standardised RINEX and SP3 formats respectively. pppncl was validated in GPS mode using both staticsites and kinematic datasets.In GPS only mode,one sigma accuracy of 6.4mm and 13mm in the horizontal and vertical respectively for 24h static positioning was seen. Kinematic horizontal and vertical accuracies of 21mm and 33mm were demonstrated. pppncl was extended to assess the impact of using GLONASS observations in addi- tion to GPS instatic and kinematic PPP. Using ESA and Veripos Apex G2 satel- lite orbit and clock products,the average time until 10cm 1D static accuracy was achieved, over arange of globally distributed sites, was seen to reduce by up to 47%. Kinematic positioning was tested for different modes of transport using real world datasets. GPS/GLONAS SPPP reduced the convergence time to decimetre accuracy by up to a factor of three. Positioning was seen to be more robust in comparison to GPS only PPP, primarily due to cycle slips not being present on both satellite systems on the occasions when they occurred,and the reduced impact of undetected outliersEngineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, Verip os/Subsea

VLBL autonomous underwater vehicle navigation using a single transponder

This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.Thesis (Nav. E. and S.M. in Ocean Systems Management)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 2006.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 73-75).(cont.) Therefore, accurate underwater navigation using a single location transponder would provide dramatic time and cost savings for underwater vehicle operations. This thesis presents a simulation of autonomous underwater vehicle navigation using a single transponder to create a virtual long baseline (VLBL). Similarly to LBL systems, ranges in a VLBL are calculated between the vehicle and the transponder, but the vehicle position is determined by advancing multiple ranges from a single transponder along the vehicles dead reckoning track. Vehicle position is then triangulated using these successive ranges in a manner analogous to a 'running fix' in surface ship navigation. Navigation data from bottom survey operations of an underwater vehicle called the Autonomous Benthic Explorer (ABE) were used in the simulation. The results of this simulation are presented along with a discussion of the benefits, limitations, and implications of its extension to real-time operations. A cost savings analysis was also conducted based both on the idea that a single surveyed beacon could be deployed for underwater navigation and on the further extension of this problem that the 'single beacon' used for navigation could be located on the ship itself.Acoustic long baseline (LBL) navigation systems are often used for precision underwater vehicle navigation. LBL systems triangulate the position of the vehicle by calculating the range between the vehicle and multiple transponders with known locations. A typical LBL system incorporates between two and twelve acoustic transponders. The vehicle interrogates the beacons acoustically, calculates the range to each beacon based on the roundtrip travel time of the signal, and uses the range data from two or more of the acoustic transponders at any point in time to determine its position. However, for accurate underwater navigation, the location of each deployed transponder in the array must be precisely surveyed prior to conducting autonomous vehicle operations. Surveying the location of the transponders is a costly and time-consuming process, especially in cases where underwater vehicles are used in mapping operations covering a number of different locations in succession. During these extended mapping operations, the transponders need to be deployed, surveyed, and retrieved in each location, adding significant time and, consequently, significant cost to any operation.by Cara E.G. LaPointe.Nav.E.and S.M.in Ocean Systems Managemen

A parallel hypothesis method of autonomous underwater vehicle navigation

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution June 2009This research presents a parallel hypothesis method for autonomous underwater vehicle navigation that enables a vehicle to expand the operating envelope of existing long baseline acoustic navigation systems by incorporating information that is not normally used. The parallel hypothesis method allows the in-situ identification of acoustic multipath time-of-flight measurements between a vehicle and an external transponder and uses them in real-time to augment the navigation algorithm during periods when direct-path time-of-flight measurements are not available. A proof of concept was conducted using real-world data obtained by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Deep Submergence Lab's Autonomous Benthic Explorer (ABE) and Sentry autonomous underwater vehicles during operations on the Juan de Fuca Ridge. This algorithm uses a nested architecture to break the navigation solution down into basic building blocks for each type of available external information. The algorithm classifies external information as either line of position or gridded observations. For any line of position observation, the algorithm generates a multi-modal block of parallel position estimate hypotheses. The multimodal hypotheses are input into an arbiter which produces a single unimodal output. If a priori maps of gridded information are available, they are used within the arbiter structure to aid in the elimination of false hypotheses. For the proof of concept, this research uses ranges from a single external acoustic transponder in the hypothesis generation process and grids of low-resolution bathymetric data from a ship-based multibeam sonar in the arbitration process. The major contributions of this research include the in-situ identification of acoustic multipath time-of-flight measurements, the multiscale utilization of a priori low-resolution bathymetric data in a high-resolution navigation algorithm, and the design of a navigation algorithm with a exible architecture. This flexible architecture allows the incorporation of multimodal beliefs without requiring a complex mechanism for real-time hypothesis generation and culling, and it allows the real-time incorporation of multiple types of external information as they become available in situ into the overall navigation solution

Sensorimotor content of multi-unit activity in the paramedian lobule of the cerebellum

Based on Center for Disease Control and Prevention report 2016, around 39.5 million people in the United States suffer from motor disabilities. These disabilities are due to traumatic conditions like traumatic brain injury (TBI), neurological diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or congenital conditions. One of the approaches for restoring the lost motor function is to extract the volitional information from the central nervous system (CNS) and control a mechanical device that can replace the function of a paralyzed limb through systems called Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCI). One of the major challenges being faced in BCIs and also in general neural recording field is the limitations of the microelectrodes. In this study, as the first aim, a custom-made micro-electrode array (MEA) using carbon fibers is developed. After ex vivo testing, they are implanted into the paramedian lobule (PML) of the rat cerebellum to record the multi-unit activity from its cortex. Following animal termination, tissue samples are examined with histological techniques for the assessment of tissue damage caused by the electrodes. Another challenge in the BCI field is extracting the control information regarding the intended motor function from the CNS. The way the cerebellar cortex encodes sensorimotor information and contributes to motor coordination has been a topic of discussion for decades. Recent studies have revealed high correlations between Purkinje cell simple spikes and the forelimb kinematics in experimental animals. However, tracking single spike activity in long-term implants with multi-channel electrodes has well-known challenges. Therefore, as the second aim of this study, the correlation of multi-unit neural signals from the paramedian lobule (PML) of the cerebellar cortex to the forelimb muscle activities (EMG) in rats during behavior was investigated. Linear regression is performed to predict the EMG signal envelopes using the cerebellar activity for various time shifts of the data (±10, ±50, ±100, and ±200 ms) to determine if the neural signals are primarily motor or sensory. The highest correlations (~0.6 on average) between neural and EMG envelopes are observed when the EMG signals are either shifted only about ±10 ms or not shifted at all with respect to the neural signals. There were however still correlations above the chance level for larger shifts in time. The results suggest that PML cortex contains both motor and sensory information in relation to the forelimb activity, and also that the extraction of motor information is feasible from multi-unit neural recordings from the cerebellar cortex. Increased prediction success was observed in reaching and retrieval phases compared to grasping phase when predictions were tested on three phases of the behavior separately. When EMG and neural signal envelopes were clustered, they showed patterns of surges of activity in all three phases. The neural signals showed higher activity in the reaching phase. The 300-1000Hz components of neural signals contributed to the predictions more than the other frequency bands. The results of this study supports the feasibility of a BCI based on MUA extracted from the cerebellar cortex using MEAs

Enhancement of the accuracy of single epoch positioning for long baselines with application to structure deformation monitoring

Phd ThesisUsing single-epoch GPS positioning has many advantages, especially when monitoring dynamic targets (e.g. structural movements). In this technique, errors occurring in previous epochs cannot affect the current epoch’s accuracy. However, careful processing is required. This research uses the GPS Ambiguity Search Program (GASP) single-epoch software. Resolving the phase ambiguities is essential in this technique. Some statistical ambiguity resolution functions have been introduced to estimate the best values of these ambiguities. The function inputs are the base station position, the approximate roving receiver position, and the shared GPS phase measurements at both receivers. This work investigates different GPS pseudorange solutions to find the optimal ambiguity function inputs. The noise level in an undifferenced pseudorange coordinate solution is less than in the double-differenced case; thus, using it in the ambiguity function improves the results. Regional correlation between the pseudorange-computed positioning errors exists; therefore, applying a regional filter reduces their effects. Multipath errors approximately repeat themselves every sidereal day in the case of static or quasi-static receivers and applying a sidereal filter mitigates their effects. The IGS ionospheric model reduces the effect of the ionosphere on the GPS phase measurements. Also, a local code-based ionospheric correction model can be generated. Applying these models improves the quality of the phase measurements, which leads to improvement of the ambiguity function outputs. A Kalman filter applied to the code-based ionospheric model further improves the corrected phase measurements. There is a correlation between the ambiguity function outputs’ quality and the phase measurement residuals’ . Applying a threshold filter reduces the probability of obtaining inaccurate results. Data for various baseline lengths, with synthetic displacements added, indicate that the improved GASP results are reliable for monitoring movements exceeding 10 cm for baselines up to 60 km.Aleppo University, Syria, Postgraduate Research Studentship

Zur GNSS-basierten Bestimmung von Position und Geschwindigkeit in der Fluggravimetrie

Das weltumspannende Satelliten-Navigationssystem GNSS spielt eine wichtige Rolle für die Fluggravimetrie. Gegenstand dieser Arbeit ist die Entwicklung zuverlässiger GNSS-Algorithmen und Software für die hochgenaue GNSS-Datenanalyse in der Fluggravimetrie. Ausgehend von den Anforderungen für praktische Anwendungen der Fluggravimetrie lassen sich die Beiträge und Schwerpunkte dieser Dissertation wie folgt zusammenfassen: Ausgleichs- bzw. Schätzungs-Algorithmen: Ausgehend von den Genauigkeitsanforderungen an die GNSS-basierte Positionsbestimmung in der Fluggravimetrie werden in einer kinematischen GNSS-Daten-Auswertung eine Schätzung nach kleinsten Quadraten einschließlich der Eliminierung von Störparametern sowie ein Zwei-Wege-Kalman-Filter angewendet. Das Ziel der beiden Ausgleichsverfahren ist es, an jedem Messzeitpunkt zunächst globale Parameter (wie System-Fehler und Trägerwellen-Ambiguities) und anschließend lokale Parameter (wie Position und Geschwindigkeit der bewegten Messplattform) zu bestimmen. Die angewandten Methoden sind sehr effizient und ergeben hochpräzise Resultate für die GNSS-Datenanalyse. Analyse von Genauigkeit und Zuverlässigkeit: Die Genauigkeit und Zuverlässigkeit der Resultate der präzisen kinematischen GNSS-Positionsbestimmung werden untersucht. Dabei wird eine besondere Methode zur Bewertung der Genauigkeit der kinematischen GNSS-Positionsbestimmung vorgeschlagen, wo bekannte Entfernungen zwischen mehreren GNSS-Antennen als Genauigkeits-Maßstab genommen werden. Weiterhin wird der Einfluss der Uhrenfehler der GNSS-Empfänger auf die Genauigkeit der kinematischen Positionsbestimmung für die Hochgeschwindigkeits-Plattform untersucht. Für dabei auftretende Probleme wird eine Lösung vorgeschlagen. Algorithmen der kinematischen Positionsbestimmung die auf mehreren Referenzstationen beruhen: Um das Problem der im Falle langer Basislinien abnehmenden Genauigkeit in der relativen kinematischen GNSS-Positionsbestimmung zu bewältigen, wird ein neuer Algorithmus vorgeschlagen. Er beruht auf der apriori Einführung von Exzentrizitäts-Bedingungen für mehrere Referenzstationen. Dieser Algorithmus erhöht die Genauigkeit und Zuverlässigkeit der Ergebnise in der kinematischen Positionsbestimmung für große Regionen resp. lange Basislinien. Präzise GNSS-Positionsbestimmung, beruhend auf robuster Schätzung: Das Vorhandensein von groben Fehlern in den GNSS-Beobachtungen verursacht das Auftreten von Ausreißern in den Ergebnissen der Positionsbestimmung. Um dieses Problem zu überwinden, wird ein robuster Ausgleichungs-Algorithmus angewendet, der die Auswirkungen von gro-ben Fehlern in den Ergebnissen der kinematischen GNSS-Positionsbestimmung beseitigt. Kinematische Positionierung auf der Basis mehrerer bewegter Stationen: In der Fluggravimetrie werden in der Regel mehrere GNSS-Antennen auf einer bewegten Plattform installiert. In diesem Zusammenhang wird deshalb erstens ein kinematisches GNSS-Positionsbestimmungsverfahren vorgeschlagen, das auf mehreren gleichzeitig bewegten GNSS-Stationen basiert. Aus den bekannten, konstanten Distanzen zwischen den GNSS-Antennen werden dabei apriori Exzentrizitäts-Bedingungen abgeleitet und in die Positions-schätzung eingeführt. Dies verbessert die Zuverlässigkeit des Messsystems. Zweitens wird solch ein Ansatz auch zur Bestimmung eines gemeinsamen Refraktionsparameters aller GNSS-Antennen der Plattform für den feuchten Teil der Atmosphäre verwendet. Dieses Verfahren reduziert nicht nur die Menge der geschätzten Parameter, sondern verringert auch die Korrelation zwischen den atmosphärischen Parametern. Kinematische Positionierung basierend auf der Kombination verschiedener GNSS-Systeme: Um die Zuverlässigkeit und Genauigkeit der kinematischen Positionsbestimmung zu verbessern, werden die Signale mehrerer GNSS-Systeme (d.h. GPS und GLONASS) gemeinsam registriert und ausgewertet (sog. GNSS-Integration). Zur Optimierung des relativen Gewichts zwischen den Daten der verschiedenen GNSS-Systeme wird die Helmertsche Varianz-Komponenten-Schätzung angewandt. Der auf dieser Basis entwickelte Kombinationsalgorithmus ermöglicht die Verbesserung der Beiträge von mehreren GNSS-Systemen. Geschwindigkeitsbestimmung mit GNSS-Doppler-Daten: Die Auswertung der Schwere-Messdaten in der Fluggravimetrie verlangt die hochgenaue Bestimmung des Geschwindigkeitsvektors der bewegten Plattform. Deshalb werden rohe GNSS-Doppler-Beobachtungen verwendet, um die Geschwindigkeit der bewegten Plattform im Falle hoch-dynamischer Flugbedingungen kinematisch zu bestimmen. Darüberhinaus werden aus der Trägerphase abgeleitete Doppler-Beobachtungen verwendet, um präzise Geschwindigkeitsschätzungen im Falle weniger dynamischer Flugbedingungen zu erhalten. Die Kombination verschiedener GNSS-Systeme wird auch bei der Doppler-Geschwindigkeitsbestimmung angewandt. Hierzu wird die Anwendung der Helmertschen Varianzkomponenten-Schätzung und einer robusten Schätzung untersucht. Software Entwicklung und Anwendung: Um die aktuellen Anforderungen der GNSS-basierten Positionsbestimmung in der Flug- sowie Schiffsgravimetrie zu erfüllen, wurde ein Software-System (HALO_GNSS) für die präzise kinematische GNSS-Flugbahn- und Geschwindigkeitsberechnung kinematischer Plattformen entwickelt. Die in dieser Arbeit vorgeschlagenen Algorithmen wurden in diese Software integriert. Um die Effizienz der vorgeschlagenen Algorithmen und der HALO_GNSS Software zu prüfen, wurde diese Software sowohl in Flug- als auch in Schiffsgravimetrie-Projekten des GFZ Potsdam angewandt. Alle Ergebnisse werden verglichen und geprüft und es wird gezeigt, dass die angewandten Methoden die Zuverlässigkeit und Genauigkeit der kinematischen Positions- und Geschwindigkeitsbestimmung effektiv verbessern. Die Verwendung der Software HA-LO_GNSS ermöglicht kinematische Positionsbestimmung mit einer Genauigkeit von 1-2 cm sowie Geschwindigkeitsbestimmung mit einer Genauigkeit von ca. 1 cm/s mit Roh- und etwa 1 mm/s mit aus der Trägerphase abgeleiteten Doppler-Beobachtungen.The Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) plays a significant role in the fields of airborne gravimetry. The objective of this thesis is to develop reliable GNSS algorithms and software for kinematic highly precise GNSS data analysis in airborne gravimetry. Based on the requirements for practical applications in airborne gravimetry and shipborne gravimetry projects, the core research and the contributions of this thesis are summarized as follows: Estimation Algorithm: Based on the accuracy requirements for GNSS precise positioning in airborne gravimetry, the estimation algorithms of least squares including the elimination of nuisance parameters as well as a two-way Kalman filter are applied to the kinematic GNSS data post-processing. The goal of these adjustment methods is to calculate non-epoch parameters (such as system error estimates or carrier phase ambiguity parameters) using all data in the first step, followed by the calculation of epoch parameters (such as position and velocity parameters of the kinematic platform) at every epoch. These methods are highly efficient when dealing with massive amounts of data, and give the highly precise results for the GNSS data analyzed. Accuracy Evaluation and Reliability Analysis: The accuracy evaluation and reliability analysis of the results from precise kinematic GNSS positioning is studied. A special accuracy evaluation method in GNSS kinematic positioning is proposed, where the known distances among multiple antennas of GNSS receivers are taken as an accuracy evaluation index. The effect of the GNSS receiver clock error in the accuracy evaluation for GNSS kinematic positioning results of a high-speed motion platform is studied and a solution is proposed. Kinematic Positioning Based on Multiple Reference Stations Algorithms: In order to overcome the problem of decreasing accuracy in GNSS relative kinematic positioning for long baselines, a new relative kinematic positioning method based on a priori constraints for multiple reference stations is proposed. This algorithm increases the accuracy and reliability of kinematic positioning results for large regions resp. long baselines. GNSS Precise Positioning Based on Robust Estimation: In order to solve the problem of outliers occurring in positioning results which are caused by the presence of gross errors in the GNSS observations, a robust estimation algorithm is applied to eliminate the effects of gross errors in the results of GNSS kinematic precise positioning. Kinematic Positioning Based on Multiple Kinematic Stations: In airborne gravimetry, multiple antennas of GNSS receivers are usually mounted on the kinematic platform. Firstly, a GNSS kinematic positioning method based on multiple kinematic stations is proposed. Using the known constant distances among the multiple GNSS antennas, a kinematic positioning method based on a priori distance constraints is proposed to improve the reliability of the system. Secondly, such an approach is also used for the estimation of a common atmospheric wet delay parameter among the multiple GNSS antennas mounted on the platform. This method does not only reduce the amount of estimated parameters, but also decreases the correlation among the atmospheric parameters. Kinematic Positioning Based on GNSS Integration: To improve the reliability and accuracy of kinematic positioning, a kinematic positioning method using multiple GNSS systems integration is addressed. Furthermore, a GNSS integration algorithm based on Helmert’s variance components estimation is proposed to adjust the weights in a reasonable way. This improves the results when combining data of the different GNSS systems. Velocity Determination Using GNSS Doppler Data: Airborne gravimetry requires instantaneous velocity results, thus raw Doppler observations are used to determine the kinematic instantaneous velocity in high-dynamic environments. Furthermore, carrier phase derived Doppler observations are used to obtain precise velocity estimates in low-dynamic environments. Then a method of Doppler velocity determination based on GNSS integration with Helmert’s variance components estimation and robust estimation is studied. Software Development and Application: In order to fulfill the actual requirements of airborne as well as shipborne gravimetry on GNSS precise positioning, a software system (HALO_GNSS) for precise kinematic GNSS trajectory and velocity determination for kinematic platforms has been developed. In this software, the algorithms as proposed in this thesis were adopted and applied. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm and the HALO_GNSS software, this software is applied in airborne as well as shipborne gravimetry projects of GFZ Potsdam. All results are compared and examined, and it is shown that the applied approaches can effectively improve the reliability and accuracy of the kinematic position and velocity determination. It allows the kinematic positioning with an accuracy of 1-2 cm and the velocity determination with an accuracy of approximately 1 cm/s using raw and approximately 1 mm/s using carrier phase derived Doppler observations

Engineered ferritin for lanthanide binding

Ferritin H-homopolymers have been extensively used as nanocarriers for diverse applications in the targeted delivery of drugs and imaging agents, due to their unique ability to bind the transferrin receptor (CD71), highly overexpressed in most tumor cells. In order to incorporate novel fluorescence imaging properties, we have fused a lanthanide binding tag (LBT) to the C-terminal end of mouse H-chain ferritin, HFt. The HFt-LBT possesses one high affinity Terbium binding site per each of the 24 subunits provided by six coordinating aminoacid side chains and a tryptophan residue in its close proximity and is thus endowed with strong FRET sensitization properties. Accordingly, the characteristic Terbium emission band at 544 nm for the HFt-LBT Tb(III) complex was detectable upon excitation of the tag enclosed at two order of magnitude higher intensity with respect to the wtHFt protein. X-ray data at 2.9 Å and cryo-EM at 7 Å resolution demonstrated that HFt-LBT is correctly assembled as a 24-mer both in crystal and in solution. On the basis of the intrinsic Tb(III) binding properties of the wt protein, 32 additional Tb(III) binding sites, located within the natural iron binding sites of the protein, were identified besides the 24 Tb(III) ions coordinated to the LBTs. HFt-LBT Tb(III) was demonstrated to be actively uptaken by selected tumor cell lines by confocal microscopy and FACS analysis of their FITC derivatives, although direct fluorescence from Terbium emission could not be singled out with conventional, 295–375 nm, fluorescence excitation