u-blox NINA-B41 Bluetooth 5.1 modules with u-connect SW User Guide

: June 9, 2024
: u-blox

Table of Contents

Abstract
Document information
Introduction
System overview
Installation of C211 anchor points
Setup and configuration
Using the system with a local floor plan
Using the system with Traxmate integration
Appendix
Limitations
Documents / Resources

Indoor positioning demo system
Bluetooth indoor positioning
User guide

NINA-B41 Bluetooth 5.1

Abstract

Including installation, configuration and setup instructions, this document describes the u-box XPLR-AOA-2 kits and explains how to use them for indoor positioning. It also describes how the local positioning engine is used with floor plans and integrated into Tripmate platforms. The document is aimed for any developers involved in the development of applications using Aloe technology.

Document information

Title	Indoor positioning demo system
Subtitle	Bluetooth indoor positioning
Document type	User guide
Document number	UBX-21006395
Revision and date	R04
Disclosure restriction	C1 – Public

This document applies to the following products:
Product name
NINA-B4
XPLR-AOA-2
u-blox or third parties may hold intellectual property rights in the products, names, logos and designs included in this document. Copying, reproduction, modification or disclosure to third parties of this document or any part thereof is only permitted with the express written permission of u-blox.
The information contained herein is provided “as is” and u-blox assumes no liability for its use. No warranty, either express or implied, is given, including but not limited to, with respect to the accuracy, correctness, reliability and fitness for a particular purpose of the information. This document may be revised by u-blox at any time without notice. For the most recent documents, visit www.u-blox.com.
Copyright © u-blox AG.

Introduction

This document describes the u-blox XPLR-AOA-2 kits and explains how to use them for indoor positioning. The kits build on the Bluetooth indoor direction- finding technology from u-blox [7] and include a positioning algorithm and web-based GUI for configuring the system and tracking beacons. To understand the technology underlying direction-finding systems, see also the XPLR-AOA user guide [7]. The user guide also gives guidance on the configuration of the anchor nodes and beacons in an XPLR-AOA-1 system.

System overview

The XPLR-AOA-2 kits consists of four u-blox C211 anchor nodes that can be positioned in most room areas. The kits are connected to the Local Positioning Engine using an USB cable and run on a Windows PC. A typical setup of the demo system is shown in Figure 2.
Out of the box, the system anchor nodes track u-blox C209 tags but can also be configured to track other tags that emit CTEs (Constant Tone Extension) and advertise Bluetooth content using Eddy stone beacon messages. See also the XPLR-AOA Explorer kits user guide [7].

Figure 1: u-blox local positioning demo system
The position of the tracked tags can be visualized locally on the PC, using the system with a local floorplan or integrated into the Tripmate® cloud-based tracking platform.

Installation of C211 anchor points

3.1 Placement and configuration of anchors
Anchors can be connected by default through the UART interface using USB cables but can also connect over Wi-Fi/UDP. To connect anchors over UDP, the UDP server must be started in the “Utils” tab. To learn how the anchor nodes can be configured to connect to the Local Positioning Engine over UDP, see also the XPLR-AOA kits user guide [7].
☞ UDP is a connectionless, which means that the delivery or ordering of sent packets cannot be guaranteed.
The Local Positioning Engine provides best results when the anchors are placed in a rectangular shape, but it is also possible to place them in other geometrical shapes – on a straight line for example.
After having placed the anchors, it is important to keep note of which anchor (MAC address) is situated in each corner of the tracking area. The easiest way is to make a note of this and draw a map as they are placed in the area.

The MAC address of a C211 anchor can be found in several ways:

Scan the barcode situated on the module mounted on the C211.
Connect the anchor using USB and connect a terminal emulator to the COM and issue the command AT+UMLA=1.
Connect just one anchor and check the +UUDF events for the MAC address in the field (one tag needs to be active).

Figure 2 shows an example of the anchor positioning with the appropriate 45° angles for a square layout. The angles should be calculated in accordance with a mathematical “unit circle”, where the angles are based on the positive x-axis.
☞ Although not strictly required from the positioning engine, it is good practice to point the normal of the anchors towards the center of the room.

Figure 2: Anchor placement and angles in a square layout
If your layout is not square but rectangular for example, you can calculate the angles using the normal trigonometry formulas. Figure 3 shows the mathematical calculation of the angle, but you can also use a protractor to measure the angles if you prefer.

It is also perfectly fine to just place the anchors in alignment with the corner with angles in multiples of 45°.

Setup and configuration

4.1 Installation
The positioning engine is delivered as a zip container file that includes:
• The server executable
• Some example floor plans
To install the engine, extract and then run the server.exe file.
To access the positioning engine, open a web browser tab with the address http://localhost.5000, where the user interface for configuration and running the local positioning engine can be found. Google Chrome is the preferred browser for the web-based user interface.

4.2 Anchor connection
The C211 anchor nodes can be connected to the PC using either a serial connection through the USB/UART interface (default) or wireless connection over UDP.
If the anchors are connected over UDP it is necessary to start the UDP server from the “Utile” tab in the user interface. Figure 4 shows the IP address and UDP port that is used.
☞ Your choice of connection method is saved between sessions, so the UDP server only needs to be started once.

Figure 4: UDP server started. Note port and IP address for setting up the anchors
The system confirms how many connected anchors have been detected in subsequent dialogs.
☞ To detect anchors connected over UDP at least one tag needs to be active and transmitting.

4.3 Tracking in local UI or Traxmate cloud
Figure 5 shows a login prompt for the Traumata cloud, where you can sign up for a Traumata account. This is the first dialog that is shown when starting the system. To use the cloud, log in here and follow the procedures described in Using the system with Traumata integration.

Figure 5: System start dialog

Using the system with a local floor plan

5.1 Floor plans
The package that includes the u-blox local positioning engine comes with several preconfigured floor plans, but other custom floor plans can also be added. The preconfigured floor plans are stored in the floorplans folder of the installation.
☞ Your chosen demo area must be arranged in close accordance with the scale and dimensions of the current floor plan. It is necessary to set up the size of used area shown in the Floorplan tab.
The size is configured using the metric system.
To upload a new plan select “Upload new floorplan” in your browser, as shown in Figure 6.

Figure 6: Uploading a floor plan

5.2 Anchor configuration
Having uploaded your floor plan, you must then place the anchors in the model. Follow the placement and configuration of anchors you chose earlier and configure the anchors one-by-one as, as shown in Figure 7. The connected anchor points are automatically detected and listed in the drop-down list in the Anchor configuration view.

Figure 7: Anchor configuration
The minimum and maximum angles set in Figure 7 are used to restrict errors when the tags move close to the border of the surveyed area and act as a constraint for the reported angle.
The parameters to set are:

X: X coordinate of anchor, related to map. Set in meters.
Y: Y coordinate of anchor. Set in meters.
Z: Z coordinate, that is height of anchor over the floor. Set in meters.
Azimuth: Angle of anchor relative the unit circle positive x-axis. See also Placement and configuration of anchors.
Altitude: The angle of the tilt of the anchor relative to the floor. Negative angle is downwards, positive angle upwards.

5.3 Running the system
After the floor plan is configured and the anchors have been set the system is ready to run. Press the Run button in the UI and verify that the floor plans and anchors are placed as expected.

Figure 8: Floor plan with anchors placed
The “Map View” has three buttons in the lower edge:

Play – starts the tracking of the tags
Down arrow – for internal use only
Tracing – adds a trace the tag movements

Clicking an anchor in the system displays an arrow to show the angle reported by this anchor, as shown in Figure 9.

Figure 9: Floor plan with angle arrows activated for all anchors

Using the system with Traxmate integration

When using the u-blox indoor positioning solution together with Traxmate, the positions calculated by the u-blox local positioning engine are sent to the Traxmate system for analysis and display.

6.1 Setting up the Traxmate cloud
The workflow for using the u-blox indoor positioning solution with Traxmate requires:

Adding a building. Use the building set up example in the Traxmate system or add a new one. See also Adding a building in Traxmate.
Adding a building model. The building model includes information about the anchors in the location, which can be automatically uploaded from this dialog.
Configuring the Building model in Traxmate
Publishing the building model

Use the following procedure to setup the system in Traxmate.

Create an account in the Traxmate cloud. To get the correct account type this must be done from within the local positioning GUI. Select the Traxmate tab and then the sign-up link, as shown in Figure 5.
After successful account creation and login, you are directed to the Traxmate setup dialog, as shown in Figure 10. Figure 10: Traxmate panel in u-blox local positioning engine
Select “Add new building model…” to upload the building model for your model. Note that this step is also necessary for the default building.
☞ It may take some time (allow for a minute or two) before the uploaded building model is visible in Traxmate.
Press the Traxmate link in the setup dialog, and then log in to the Traxmate cloud using the credentials you provided in step 1.
Select “Places” and then your preconfigured building to configure your anchors. “Smart Warehouse” is the preconfigured building shown in Figure 11. Figure 11 Traxmate places view
From the chosen preconfigured building dialog, configure your anchors by dragging the anchors to the desired location.
Select the model and press the EDIT button to move your anchors to the desired position. As all anchors are initially placed on top of each other in one corner, you need to move the top anchor to see the others.
Set the properties of each anchor. Select the anchor and press the information symbol in the subsequent pop-up dialog, as shown in Figure 12. Figure 12: Anchor configuration in Traxmate
Set the Floor in the General tab
In the Aloe tab, set the angles and height over the floor for the anchor.
☞ All the anchors must be configured on the same floor.
When all anchor settings are complete, publish your building model, as shown in Figure 13. Figure 13 Publishing configured building model
The system is now ready. Select “Run Positioning Engine…” in the u-blox local positioning engine GUI and then start some tags to track the movements in the Traxmate cloud.

6.2 Adding a building in Traxmate
6.2.1 Preparation
Prepare floor plan images for the indoor spaces you want to track the C209 tags. The same images can be reused for several floors. The images must be rendered in png, jpg or gif format.

6.2.2 Adding a building

From the “Places” menu, look up an address in the Traxmate GUI and add the building you want to track as a “Place”. Search for the address or mark the place in the map, as shown in Figure 14. Figure 14: Adding a new place in Traxmate
Use the polygon tool to draw the building shape and then SAVE the building. Figure 15: Using the polygon tool to draw building shape
Enter the “Floors” tab and add your floors and floor plans for the building. Select the cloud icon for the chosen floor to upload your prepared floor plan. Figure 16 Adding floors and floor plans to a building
From the drop-down ellipsis menu, add the same floor plan to other floors – if needed. Figure 17: Reusing floor plan between floors
When the floor plan for the “Place” is complete, select SAVE.
Add a building model. Reload the view in the u-blox local positioning interface. The place saved in the previous step is now shown as an added place.
Select “Add a new building model…” The model can now be configured in the same way as it is in Setting up the Traxmate cloud.
☞ As an alternative to uploading the model from the u-blox local positioning engine a model can be created and the Bluetooth Aloe anchors added in the Traxmate UI.

Appendix

A Glossary

Abbreviation	Definition
Aloe	Angle of Arrival
Ad	Angle of Departure
CTE	Constant Tone Extension

Table 1: Explanation of the abbreviations and terms used.

Limitations

Related documentation

Bluetooth SIG white paper on direction finding: https://www.bluetooth.com/bluetoothresources/bluetooth-direction-finding/
NINA-B41 product page, https://www.u-blox.com/en/product/nina-b41-series-u-connect
u-connectXpress AT commands manual, UBX-14044127
NINA-B4 system integration manual, UBX-19052230
s-center, https://www.u-blox.com/en/product/s-center
u-blox webinars, https://www.u-blox.com/en/webinar
XPLR-AOA Explorer kits, user guide, UBX-21004616
u-connect Locate product page, https://www.u-blox.com/en/product/u-connectlocate
Traxmate, https://traxmate.io

☞ For product change notifications and regular updates of u-blox documentation, register on our website, www.u-blox.com.
Revision history

Revision	Date	Name	Comments
R01	1-Sep-21	mape	Initial release
R02	13-Sep-21	mape	Corrected port number in Setup and configuration.
R03	1-Nov-21	mape	Included new section to describe using the system with

Traxmate integration, and added information about how to connect anchors with UDP.
R04| 19-Jan-22| mape| Removed open-source licenses and moved to new document.

Contact
For complete contact information, visit us at www.u-blox.com. u-blox Offices

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UBX-21006395 – R04
Contact
C1 – Public

Documents / Resources

| u-blox NINA-B41 Bluetooth 5.1 modules with u-connect SW [pdf] User Guide
NINA-B41 Bluetooth 5.1 modules with u-connect SW, NINA-B41, Bluetooth 5.1 modules with u-connect SW, modules with u-connect SW
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