BLE-based Indoor Positioning Solution for Online Advertising

Solution

We offered a custom design of a beacon system that can be installed in numerous public places. Our team suggested using a common approach to provide effective interaction between the beacons and the mobile app. The system is able to support from one up to and exceeding 500 000 beacons.

Precise positioning requires at least three beacons, with one beacon set up at a 15-20 meter range. So the ideal density is three or four beacons per 200 m² for a square-shaped room. However, it depends on the type of building where the beacons are located, the noise, and signal absorption.

We built a mobile SDK with a background service that reads beacon data (its identifier and signal strength) and a mobile device ID. This information helps determine the user’s location. The beacon and device data are sent to the cloud. The data management platform (DMP) that we offered as a cloud solution is used for collecting, managing, and storing information.

The locations and the beacons are registered in the DMP and the staff members can add promotional information and any type of ads to the cloud platform for online advertising. With the beacon and device data available, push notifications can be sent at the right time and place.

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Scope of Work

Our software engineers built an SDK that can be easily integrated into any Android application with API level 18 or greater. An error in the SDK will not affect the app, so it can run without interruptions. The SDK is able to perform the following functions:

• receive signals from beacons using iBeacon protocol;
• collect the required information, such as a device ID and current time;
• receive information from the cloud for further presentation.

We provided options that allow the staff to set up the account and add beacons to the system.

We created a cloud-based DMP that converts the beacon signal to the data needed for ad targeting, such as the beacon position and the retailer's location. This cloud platform is used for data storage and management. The DMP dashboard deployed on the cloud displays the following information:

• Organizations
• Places
• Beacons
• Beacon configuration
• Analytics
• Users
• Orders
• Documentation

The beacons' geolocation is specified by the company's staff as exact satellite positioning data. It is further displayed on the dashboard with the help of Google Maps. 

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Technologies Used

• We used the iBeacon protocol for beacon communication.
• The beacon models used in the project are Sensoro SmartBeacon-4AA and Sensoro B0 Yunzi.
• Wireless communication is provided by Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology (Bluetooth 4.0 and later versions).
• The data management platform runs on Linux.
• We used the Android Studio IDE for the SDK and test application development.
• The SDK and the test application were written in Java/Kotlin.
• The cloud solution was implemented with the help of Amazon Web Services, such as AWS IoT, AWS Lambda, Amazon SNS.
• We used MEAN (MongoDB, Express.js, Angular.js, Node.js) stack to implement the cloud solution (DMP).

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Result

Integra developed an effective custom solution for online advertising that can be used in shops, restaurants, warehouses, and many other locations.

This is a plug-and-play system consisting of BLE beacons that any staff member can easily position in an appropriate place in their shop. Then you just sign in to your account and start using it.

The Android SDK integrated into the mobile application receives signals from the beacons and performs tasks afterwards. When the user passes a beacon, the SDK reacts to it and starts collecting information about the beacon and the user. 

All the information is sent and stored on the cloud-based data management platform that identifies the user location. Later, the users will get targeted ads about the places they approach or visit through their mobile app.

The indoor positioning accuracy depends on the signal strength, effect of signal reflection and absorption, and beacon density - the more beacons you set up, the better the accuracy achieved. Thus, the accuracy can reach up to 1 meter in the best-case scenario.