That brings it in fine form as a major boost to indoor navigation — Android 15 now supports Wi-Fi Ranging, which is the technology that enables more precise location tracking for mobile devices. In the past, indoor navigation was based on satellite GPS signals. However, GPS is not reliable indoors due to obstacles such as walls and indoor structures, which causes imprecise locations with high variance estimates in particularly larger areas such as shopping centers, airports, and parties. Wi-Fi Range seeks to solve those limitations and provide a new level of accuracy in determining position with Android 15.
How Wi-Fi Ranging enhances location accuracy in Android 15
The first step in Wi-Fi location tracking was based on signal strength readings from multiple access points to approximate position. This older method, while useful, only gave you about 10 to 15 meters of accuracy – which is not precise enough for precession needs. With the introduction of the Wi-Fi Round Trip Time (RTT) standard, 802.11mc, more accurate tracking to within 1-2 meters became possible by measuring how long it takes signals to traverse from devices to Wi-Fi access points.
Android 15 supports this with the latest 802.11az standard, ‘Wi-Fi Ranging.’ This technology can get even more accurate, unearthing error margins of 0.4 meters. Via Wi-Fi Ranging, Fine Timing Measurement (FTM) technology computes the ToF of Wi-Fi signals between multiple access points and devices to estimate the location with accuracy far beyond prior capabilities. It also supports the 6GHz frequency band, doubles bandwidth, and has a dynamic measurement rate for varying conditions.
In Android 15, developers can use this powerful localization technology by integrating Wi-Fi Ranging to power various use cases. For instance, indoor mapping apps would provide an easy way for inboxes to navigate complicated spaces, such as malls and airports, and specific areas, like stores, products, or exits. In smart homes, applications could tailor functionality to a user’s position relative to the house itself, like automatically turning the lights in the user’s room on.
However, adopting Wi-Fi Ranging in Android devices will take a while. This technology isn’t fully supported at the moment, but it is supported on only a few devices and those only with Qualcomm FastConnect 7900 chip models in the newer devices. Additionally, to enable the Wi-Fi ranging, Wi-Fi access points that are Wi-Fi 6 capable but still do not support the 802.11az standard will require firmware updates to be brought up to speed. Although Android 15’s support for Wi-Fi Ranging will enable indoor positioning support for new generations of synchronized devices, it is highly unlikely that we will see significant applications of accurate indoor location unless manufacturers continue releasing compatible devices and the Wi-Fi infrastructure improves.
Image credit: Google
