Improving Detection Accuracy and Reducing Energy Consumption for Alerting Pedestrian Mobile Phone Users In Crowded Area

Abstract

Mobile phone use while walking cause head down and not focusing on the scenery in front of mobile phone user, the potential for disaster unfolds. To avoid colliding with obstacles and to avoid hazards related to the surface change, a focus has to be taken off the screen at regular intervals. Proposed innovation UltraAlert, a Pedestrian safety android application that notifies pedestrian about the upcoming obstacle and abrupt changes of surface like the manhole, staircase etc. through beep alarm. UltraAlert augments Smartphone with a small ultrasonic sensor which measures the distance of the ground surface from the sensor. The temporal variation of distance can provide information about the changes of ground surface ahead in the crowded and non-crowded area. Various sensors of the Smartphone are used with GPS for more accuracy. Accelerometer, gyroscope, magnetometer gives the orientation angles and values; pedometer provides the walk step coordinates. Walking speed estimation, GPS-based Trilateration and Haversine Formula algorithms are collaborate with sensors value to leverages the detection accuracy and to avoid unnecessary alarm. Using the Ultrasonic sensor as per necessity and minimum requirement of hardware interface unit may reduce the energy consumption; reliably identifies the awareness of Smartphone user.