Advanced Navigation has mastered AI-underpinned wayfaring technology from space to the depths of the ocean, but a new development from the Sydney-based company is much more grounded, solving indoor positioning challenges where GPS may falter.
As a leading global player in navigation and autonomous systems, the company responded to a 'Hyperlocal Navigation Challenge' administered by the Office of the NSW Chief Scientist & Engineer, aimed at assisting commuters with vision impairments to navigate public transport interchanges.
Advanced Navigation's successful demonstration at Castle Hill Station in Sydney took place in conjunction with Transport for NSW, Sydney Metro and University of Technology Sydney.
"GPS helps people find their way, but it comes with limitations. In underground train stations, for example, its performance significantly drops," says Advanced Navigation co-founder and CEO Chris Shaw.
"These environments create challenges, particularly for commuters with vision impairments who rely on GPS-aided voice navigation.
"This pilot program is a powerful example of taking our core navigation technology and creatively applying it to a high-impact, real-world problem. It was rewarding to see its potential to break down barriers and improve accessibility where it's needed most."
As part of the trial, Advanced Navigation consulted with visually impaired individuals to help understand the unique navigation boundaries they face, and plot simulations were undertaken across UTS campus sites to refine the system in GPS-denied conditions.
The pilot program intended to demonstrate the potential of how uninterrupted, precise navigation can be delivered to commuters navigating underground environments using just their smartphones.
Eleven positioning systems were installed across the station’s concourse and platforms. Using phased array ultra-wideband (UWB) and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), the system accurately tracked smartphone locations within 10–30 centimetres, without relying on GPS.
By acting as a seamless replacement for GPS in these blackspot zones, the positioning systems ensure consistent location updates, enabling users to confidently move through complex station features such as escalators, lifts, and platforms, without losing their way.
To evaluate performance, the team conducted dual tests using a smartphone and LiDAR scanner mounted on a backpack. While the smartphone captured data from the positioning system, the UTS' LiDAR system generated a detailed 3D map of the station. By comparing both data sets, the team validated the system’s potential for real-world accuracy and responsiveness.
By replicating commuting conditions under a test environment, the team was able to successfully pinpoint a commuter’s smartphone within 10-30 centimetres from where they were standing, attesting to the technology‘s real-time accuracy and precision.
"Continuous research and development is key to driving innovative solutions to our most challenging problems," says NSW Chief Scientist & Engineer Hugh Durrant-Whyte.
"Advanced Navigation’s pilot indoor positioning technology offers real promise to improve equity and access to public spaces for the visually impaired community."
Another Sydney-based company, BindiMaps, has also sought to address this challenge with an indoor navigation app that has been utilised by the likes of Vicinity Centres (ASX: VCX), Mirvac (ASX: MGR), Brookfield Properties, and even Budapest Airport in Hungary.
Today's announcement from Advanced Navigation follows an entirely different breakthrough revealed last month that its Hydrus subsea drone had uncovered coral bleaching off the southern WA coast, providing a level of detail which a partner involved in the project described as "essential for informing conservation strategies and building the baseline needed for long-term reef recovery".
Meanwhile, Advanced Navigation's other co-founder Xavier Orr has been trialling an entirely different technology, developing an AI brain for humanoid robots with his new venture Anitron.
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