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Communications Technology Laboratory

Public Safety Communications Research Division

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Location-Based Services

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PSCR LBS Research Portfolio icon

The Location-Based Services (LBS) portfolio focuses on advancing infrastructure-free indoor mapping, tracking, and navigation technologies for first responders. By leveraging various technologies like lidar, high-speed motion capture, and 3D tracking systems, the portfolio aims to provide reliable, real-time situational awareness during emergencies.

Portfolio Problem Statement: First responders lack trusted, accurate indoor location, mapping, and navigation capabilities, creating operational blind spots during emergency response.​

Location-Based Services Portfolio Mission:

Accelerate the pace of technological development in the fields of indoor mapping, tracking, and navigation for the public safety community and remove barriers to adopting these technologies.

Location-Based Services Portfolio Vision:

Position PSCR to transition the innovative technologies, approaches, and research capacity created in this portfolio to products, standards, and public safety systems. 

Featured Project

Improving Measurement Techniques and Algorithms for Indoor Tracking​

Project Goal: Accelerate the development of effective indoor localization solutions for public safety by developing and enhancing world class measurement capabilities at NIST while revising an international standard on indoor localization testing (ISO/IEC 18305) and developing new algorithms and simulation tools to improve the accuracy of indoor localization systems.

Why it's hard

Public safety stakeholders need an infrastructure-free indoor localization system, and existing systems rely on GNSS (GPS) or other infrastructure. It remains technically challenging due to the public safety requirements for the system to operate without access to GNSS (GPS) or in-building infrastructure and to be accurate to a meter or better.​

Technical capabilities/approach

  • Enhance and validate z-axis testbed by calibrating the system, installing geodetic reference marks, and verifying end-to-end accuracy to support rigorous, traceable performance evaluation ​

  • Design and execute formal accuracy tests and produce authoritative documentation that quantifies measurement capabilities and establishes technical credibility​

  • Identify and test candidate indoor localization systems, releasing data to establish baseline of existing technologies​

  • Lead the revision of ISO/IEC 18305 which identifies appropriate performance metrics and test & evaluation scenarios for localization and tracking systems​

  • Pursue intellectual property where appropriate and rigorously document algorithm performance to support technology transition and standards adoption.

Outcomes

  • Deliver a calibrated, standards-aligned z-axis testbed that enables objective, repeatable evaluation of indoor localization systems reporting in both local and geodetic coordinates​

  • Publish baseline performance results for existing indoor localization technologies​

  • Advance ISO/IEC 18305 with updated methods and metrics​

  • Provide simulation tools and validated algorithmic approaches​

  • Support industry and research adoption through documented performance, potential patents, and alignment with international standards

Publications

Quick Resources

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Advanced communications, Information technology and Public safety
Created September 20, 2017, Updated June 8, 2026
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