Mobile device

Indoor positioning system

Turn-by-turn navigation

Robot

Engineering

Artificial intelligence

Robot control

Telecommunications

Augmented reality

Bluetooth

Structural engineering

Dead reckoning

Hybrid positioning system

Mobile robot

Positioning system

Wireless

Radio-frequency identification

Global Positioning System

Human–computer interaction

Operating system

Computer science

World Wide Web

Navigation system

Real-time computing

Mobile robot navigation

Accelerometer

Computer security

Node (physics)

Human-centric Computing and Information Sciences

Navigation systems help users access unfamiliar environments. Current technological advancements enable users to encapsulate these systems in handheld devices, which effectively increases the popularity of navigation systems and the number of users. In indoor environments, lack of Global Positioning System (GPS) signals and line of sight with orbiting satellites makes navigation more challenging compared to outdoor environments. Radio frequency (RF) signals, computer vision, and sensor-based solutions are more suitable for tracking the users in indoor environments. This article provides a comprehensive summary of evolution in indoor navigation and indoor positioning technologies. In particular, the paper reviews different computer vision-based indoor navigation and positioning systems along with indoor scene recognition methods that can aid the indoor navigation. Navigation and positioning systems that utilize pedestrian dead reckoning (PDR) methods and various communication technologies, such as Wi-Fi, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) visible light, Bluetooth and ultra-wide band (UWB), are detailed as well. Moreover, this article investigates and contrasts the different navigation systems in each category. Various evaluation criteria for indoor navigation systems are proposed in this work. The article concludes with a brief insight into future directions in indoor positioning and navigation systems.

Indoor positioning and wayfinding systems: a survey