This summer, we will certainly use the GPS to get somewhere by car, or to guide us through the streets of that unknown city where we will spend a few days sightseeing. Thanks to this technology we can find a hotel, a museum, or a restaurant. But once inside, how can we find our way around easily? That same GPS stops working and does not contain relevant information about these places. This is where indoor geolocation comes into play.
Geolocation is now everywhere and for multiple uses. This summer, it will be used at the Tokyo Olympics for athletes and reporters, although in this case for security reasons.
These solutions and their adaptability help us enjoy all kinds of spaces in an informed, simple, well-planned way. Read on to find out where you can find Situm’s indoor geolocation technology this summer, a company that has been named Travel Innovator of the year in Europe in 2018 by Phocuswright and selected as one of the “Hot 25 Startups 2019“.
Indoor location technology and mobility: a well-planned trip for the best journey experience
We all look forward to those relaxing days, but it is quite common to feel some anxiety before an important trip because there may be unforeseen events for which we are not prepared.
How early should I head for the airport? Will I have time to do some duty-free shopping? How long does it take to get to my gate? Where can I find an assistance point?
All these questions have answers if this summer you are going through any of the airports where Aena has already deployed AenaMaps, a guidance service through the Aena app where you can also have your tickets and information about your trip. First, it was deployed at Madrid and then Barcelona, Alicante, and Málaga. In it, you will find:
- Maps of the airports of Madrid, Barcelona, Alicante, and Malaga, although the service will be gradually extended to the rest of the network.
- Step-by-step guidance from your location to points of interest: your boarding gate, passport control, duty-free…
- Alternative routes and assistance services for people with reduced mobility (PRM).
- Information about stores and restaurants at these airports.
- Information about waiting times and queues.
In addition, indoor geolocation is also present in airports through service providers such as Ferrovial.
Indoor geolocation for large hotels and resorts: guests orienting themselves from the day they arrive
In a small hotel, there may not be a problem, but what happens in large holiday resorts? The first thing you must do when you arrive is to try to find your way around: find your room, how to get to the swimming pools or other areas, or find each of the places where the activities you have signed up for take place…
To avoid wasting valuable leisure time, some large hotels, resorts and even cruise ships have already implemented indoor positioning to be able to offer guests:
- Navigation through the facilities and maps.
- Possibility of making reservations for the multiple services or activities offered: restaurants, shows, sports, sightseeing tours.
- Obtain alternative routes for PRM around the place.
Location technology and culture: exhibition centres, museums, trade fairs and shows
High visitor flows are another decisive factor when implementing indoor location technology in a large building to enable efficient building management.
While Situm offers these visitors a service that enhances their experience, such as indoor navigation or interactive guides, for example, we also provide managers with a great organizational tool for their work teams.
The implementation of indoor geolocation means being able to have data on space usage:
- Heat maps representing hot spots in the building.
- Stay times in certain areas.
- Obtain personalized analytics on the use of the space.
In addition, building managers will also be able to manage their staff using the same technology:
- Organize and record security patrol routes or any other type of recurring activity.
- Geolocated security alarms, etc.
Situm’s technology is easy to integrate into third-party apps and management platforms through SDKs and REST APIs.
Shopping tourism in malls: indoor navigation and geomarketing
Shopping malls have also become major tourist centres in many cities worldwide: they are an additional leisure option, bringing together not only shopping areas but also activities for all audiences, restaurants, cinemas…
Indoor location not only facilitates implementing a navigation system to improve customer experience or help to locate the car in the parking lot but also developing geomarketing strategies.
Geolocation marketing seeks to impact the customer at the right time and place. To do this, you need to know where they are, and that is where indoor positioning comes in. Through a shopping mall’s app, a brand or store can send its potential customers the promotions they are interested in, avoiding notification overload while at the same time building customer loyalty.
Prepared for emergencies, even while on holidays: geolocation for hospital patients
Hospitals are not exactly what we would consider tourist centres. However, accidents sometimes happen, and it is not a bad thing to know where to go if something happens to you in another city or country. For these cases, indoor location is also a great help.
Many hospitals around the world have already implemented patient navigation and assistance in their apps. If going to the doctor is usually a stressful situation, it’s even more so when you’re not sure how to get to the right waiting or consultation room. Medrics, a digital solutions provider for hospitals in the U.S., Turkey, and the Middle East is a great example of how technology can help not only to cure diseases but also to bring a little peace of mind to patients during their medical visits.
This is just a summary of how indoor geolocation is taking the baton from GPS to continue navigation inside buildings as well. If you are interested in implementing it, either to guide your customers or visitors or to manage your work teams, we can help you.