Navigation Technology Tracks People Indoors
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The Sentrix System atop a firefighter’s gear. CREDIT: TRX Systems |
This ScienceLives article was provided to LiveScience in partnership with the National Science Foundation.
Firefighters, dismounted soldiers, miners, and security personnel are often in areas where GPS coverage is not available, or plagued by errors. Currently available indoor tracking technologies depend on installed infrastructure that cannot be made available in a burning building, in urban battlefield environments, or in caves. TRX Systems, with support from NSF, has developed technology to deliver precise, infrastructure-free tracking of personnel in these harsh environments. To do this, TRX has developed a set of motion classification algorithms that continuously monitor and analyze the movement of personnel to characterize motions that are unique to people. A set of algorithms then intelligently fuses this motion information with available and inferred map information and a broad range of sensor data including compass, GPS, ranging, and inertial sensor data. By isolating sparse areas in which estimates from a degraded sensor (such as a compass or GPS) are accurate and eliminating the rest, it is possible to precisely locate personnel even in environments with plagued sensor-data errors. Carole Teolis, TRX’s Chief Technology Officer and an early member of the TRX Systems research and development team, answers ScienceLives’ questions below.
Name: Carole Teolis
Age: 45
Institution: TRX Systems
Field of Study: Electrical Engineering
What inspired you to
choose this field of study?
In high school, I loved physics and math and was beginning
to learn about computers. My dad and I used to build electronics for fun –
oscilloscopes, even TVs. Electrical engineering combined all of the things I
liked and more.
What is the best
piece of advice you ever received?
When I was in graduate school my advisor thought I was
putting in the minimum effort to do well but that I had the potential to do
better. He told me that he thought I could do okay skating by on my intellect
or I could spend some time finding what I loved to do and believed in - and
then put my whole heart and mind into it. I came away from that conversation
focused on the fact that this is was what it would take to do something that
really made a difference…and that I would be happier too. (He did add that I
would be crushed by people who weren’t as smart but were more passionate about
what they were doing if I didn’t get my butt in gear!). I still live by that
philosophy - you have to love what you are doing and believe you will succeed.
What was your first
scientific experiment as a child?
I was more of an engineer than a scientist as a kid. My
first engineering project was to build a Radio Shack transistor radio with my
dad…I must have been about 6 or 7.
The first experiment I did that actually followed scientific process was for the high school science fair. I was fascinated with solar houses and I did an experiment with cardboard models to show that very simple changes that blocked direct sunlight in the summer and allowed sunlight in during the winter would make a huge difference in heating and cooling.
What is your favorite
thing about being a scientist or researcher?
I enjoy learning new things, solving problems, and working
with others who enjoy the same things. As a researcher I am always learning
something new and I work on things that I enjoy thinking about. This was enough
early on, but after some time I realized that this alone was not enough. Now I
like to know that the research will be applied in ways that make a difference. This
is why we started TRX, to commercialize our research in tracking systems.
What is the most
important characteristic a scientist must demonstrate in order to be an
effective scientist?
Always be skeptical of your own results and open to critical
evaluations of your work. Be resilient to the criticism because sometimes it is
the harshest criticisms that can make us open our eyes and learn something new,
something important.
What are the societal
benefits of your research?
The tracking technology we are developing will let
commanders remotely monitor where their people are when they are in GPS-denied
environments. This information could be used to save the lives of firefighters,
police officers, soldiers, miners or other personnel in occupations where they
put their lives in danger on a daily basis. Eventually, we see location-enabled
applications functioning everywhere regardless of GPS availability – in part
enabled by TRX technology.
Who has had the most
influence on your thinking as a researcher?
That would have to be my husband Tony, who is also an
electrical engineer. He is always around to talk things through when I need him.
We met in graduate school – we were homework buddies.
What about your field
or being a scientist do you think would surprise people the most?
I think most people think of research as hours and hours of
grueling work in the lab but research is actually very rewarding and a lot of
fun – especially when you see your research deployed in commercial products and
impacting people’s lives.
If you could only
rescue one thing from your burning office or lab, what would it be?
The only thing irreplaceable in our lab is the team. Assuming
they are all safe, if I could grab one inanimate object, it would be my laptop.
Even though it is backed up, I feel like I have my whole life on there.
What music do you
play most often in your lab or car?
I don’t actually tend to listen to a lot of music. Our
office is an open environment, conducive to discussion and collaboration and I
live very close to the office, so my commute is very short. After a busy and
focused day at the office I actually look forward to a quiet trip in the car on
my short ride home.
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