Efficient Multi-Channel Signal Strength Based Localization via Matrix Completion and Bayesian Sparse Learning

Fingerprint-based location sensing technologies play an increasingly important role in pervasive computing applications due to their accuracy and minimal hardware requirements. However, typical fingerprint-based schemes implicitly assume that communication occurs over the same channel (frequency) during the training and the runtime phases. When this assumption is violated, the mismatches between training and runtime fingerprints can significantly deteriorate the localization performance. Additionally, the exhaustive calibration procedure required during training limits the scalability of this class of methods. In this work, we propose a novel, scalable, multi-channel fingerprint-based indoor localization system that employs modern mathematical concepts based on the Sparse Representations and Matrix Completion theories. The contribution of our work is threefold. First, we investigate the impact of channel changes on the fingerprint characteristics and the effects of channel mismatch on state-of-the-art localization schemes. Second, we propose a novel fingerprint collection technique that significantly reduces the calibration time, by formulating the map construction as an instance of the Matrix Completion problem. Third, we propose the use of sparse Bayesian learning to achieve accurate location estimation. Experimental evaluation on real data highlights the superior performance of the proposed framework in terms of reconstruction error and localization accuracy.