TY - JOUR
T1 - Performance evaluation of ibeacon deployment for location-based services in physical learning spaces
AU - Kwok, Coco Yin Tung
AU - Wong, Man Sing
AU - Griffiths, Sion
AU - Wong, Fiona Yan Yan
AU - Kam, Roy
AU - Chin, David C.W.
AU - Xiong, Guanjing
AU - Mok, Esmond
N1 - Funding Information:
Funding: This project was supported in part by “New Mobile Learning Scenarios Enabler—Development of Location-based Driven Application for Innovative and Technology-assisted Teaching and Learning Using iBeacon Technology” from the eLearning and Blended Learning Development Fund 2014–17, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong; and “Augmenting Physical Learning Spaces with Location-based Services Using iBeacon Technology for Engaging Learning Experiences”, UGC Funding Scheme for Teaching and Learning Related Proposals (2016–19 Triennium), University Grants Committee, Hong Kong.
Funding Information:
This project was supported in part by ?New Mobile Learning Scenarios Enabler?Development of Location-based Driven Application for Innovative and Technology-assisted Teaching and Learning Using iBeacon Technology? from the eLearning and Blended Learning Development Fund 2014?17, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong; and ?Augmenting Physical Learning Spaces with Location-based Services Using iBeacon Technology for Engaging Learning Experiences?, UGC Funding Scheme for Teaching and Learning Related Proposals (2016?19 Triennium), University Grants Committee, Hong Kong.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
PY - 2020/10/2
Y1 - 2020/10/2
N2 - Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) is a wireless network technology used for transmitting data over short distances. BLE maintains a data transmission range comparable to the regular Bluetooth transmission, but consumes less energy and cost. iBeacon technology refers to BLE mobile devices, which allow mobile applications to receive signals from iBeacons in both indoor and outdoor environments. It is commonly used nowadays for positioning, location services, navigation and marketing, for the sustainable development of smart cities. The applications, however, can be further enhanced for use in many disciplines, such as education, health sector, and exhibitions for disseminating information. This study performed a set of robustness and performance tests on BLE-based iBeacons in the teaching and learning environments to evaluate the performance of iBeacon signals for positioning. During robustness testing, positioning accuracy, signal availability and stability were assessed under different environmental conditions, and the findings suggested pedestrian traffic blocking the line of sight between iBeacon and receiver, causing the most signal attenuations and variation in RSSI. In performance testing, a series of tests was conducted to evaluate the deployment of the iBeacons for positioning; leading to recommendations of iBeacon deployment location, density, transmission interval, fingerprint space interval and collection time in physical learning spaces for sustainable eLearning environments.
AB - Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) is a wireless network technology used for transmitting data over short distances. BLE maintains a data transmission range comparable to the regular Bluetooth transmission, but consumes less energy and cost. iBeacon technology refers to BLE mobile devices, which allow mobile applications to receive signals from iBeacons in both indoor and outdoor environments. It is commonly used nowadays for positioning, location services, navigation and marketing, for the sustainable development of smart cities. The applications, however, can be further enhanced for use in many disciplines, such as education, health sector, and exhibitions for disseminating information. This study performed a set of robustness and performance tests on BLE-based iBeacons in the teaching and learning environments to evaluate the performance of iBeacon signals for positioning. During robustness testing, positioning accuracy, signal availability and stability were assessed under different environmental conditions, and the findings suggested pedestrian traffic blocking the line of sight between iBeacon and receiver, causing the most signal attenuations and variation in RSSI. In performance testing, a series of tests was conducted to evaluate the deployment of the iBeacons for positioning; leading to recommendations of iBeacon deployment location, density, transmission interval, fingerprint space interval and collection time in physical learning spaces for sustainable eLearning environments.
KW - Bluetooth Low Energy
KW - IBeacons
KW - Physical learning space
KW - Positioning accuracy
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85092755310&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/app10207126
DO - 10.3390/app10207126
M3 - Journal article
AN - SCOPUS:85092755310
SN - 2076-3417
VL - 10
SP - 1
EP - 22
JO - Applied Sciences (Switzerland)
JF - Applied Sciences (Switzerland)
IS - 20
M1 - 7126
ER -
