Height error correction based on shoe-mounted pedestrian navigation systems

Pedestrian navigation system based on inertial sensors with low cost and small size, can realize independent positioning and do not need to install infrastructure in advance. Therefore, it receives extensive concerns both at home and abroad. While there has been little discussion about height error correction. When searching and rescuing in large buildings, vertical accuracy may seem to be more important than horizontal accuracy. In this paper, we study the detection of stance phase and present a floor matching algorithm to realize the height error correction. Firstly, we will distinguish floor phase from stair phase. A floor altitude database is built using prior knowledge and it can determine which floor the pedestrian is walking on for each given horizontal walking motion by matching altitude of each horizontal walking and the floor altitudes contained in the database. Finally, correct height error during the stance phase intervals when pedestrian is doing a horizontal walking motion. The experimental results show that the method can estimate which floor the pedestrian locates on and provide accurate height information, which can be applied in the actual rescue.