A Study of Capsule Endoscopy Orientation Estimation Using Received Signal Strength

Comprehensive study of wireless communication for ingestible electronics is a very challenging task. To initiate the study on wireless capsule endoscopy, an innovative immersive platform containing an enhanced 3D human body model has been developed. This platform allows for flexible placement of a capsule inside the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and multiple receivers around the abdomen area. It is shown that any directionality (or equivalently null) in the antenna radiation pattern can be exploited to sense changes in the orientation of the capsule through observation of the S
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vector at a set of on-body receivers. Two methodologies i.e. complex cross-correlation and Minkowski distance were used to assess capsule orientation estimation with respect to a reference position. The study was performed within the Ultra-Wide Band frequency range as this technology is considered to be an attractive candidate for the next generation of wireless capsule endoscopy.