New indoor positioning technology for shoppers

This is new technology claiming to have the facility to locate a user of a smartphone to within one meter or less of where they are under cover.

The system makes use of existing phone hardware, like the camera and gyro sensors for location instead of Wi-Fi. This allows the system to work when the phone is in air-plane mode. Unlike Apple iBeacon, it is unnecessary for the venue to install transmitter hardware. The system employs a learning system to understand the movements of the user.

Shopcloud started in 2012, with private backing of $700k, and $1.3m it earned from licensing fees for an app designed for retailers.

For Inside to work, venues have to be mapped out. Location owners will not be charged for this as the startup wants to grow its user base before deciding on its business model.

The system works by finding objects in the mapped interior through the phone’s cameras, in the same way as the human eye looks for identifiable objects. It also makes use of the users’ gait, along with its own data processing.

The company is not willing to divulge detailed information about the system.