Home

Ekahau Site Survey User Guide for Deploying Ekahau RTLS

1. 5 3 Real Time Testing of Accuracy ESS can calculate the current location of your Wi Fi device using the same location tracking algorithm as in Ekahau Positioning Engine To activate tracking click the Track icon or go to Positioning gt Track 43 Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking Accuracy Use the Tracking Window for real time testing of positioning accuracy If the displayed location is significantly far from your actual location you may want to start troubleshooting the accuracy 5 4 Location Quality Filter Ekahau Positioning Engine filters out low quality location estimates based on the configured Loc ation Quality Filter level Ekahau Site Survey will use only the location data that has made it through the filter The data that has been filtered out is not visible in Ekahau Site Survey but the failed location estimates are still available from Ekahau Positioning Engine See the Ekahau Positioning Engine user guide for details You can adjust the Location Quality Filter from Positioning gt Location Quality Filter A higher filtering level usually provides higher overall accuracy but the higher the filtering level the less location estimates will be produced and thus reduces real timeness Setting the filtering too high may cause all location estimates to be filtered in some areas The default setting for the Location Quality Filter is 0 no filtering Before adjusting Location Quality Filter observe the
2. Deploying Ekahau RTLS with Ekahau Site Survey Ekahau the Ekahau logo Ekahau Site Survey Ekahau Location Survey Ekahau Engine Ekahau Positioning Engine Ekahau Manager Ekahau Activator Ekahau Finder Ekahau Tracker Ekahau Logger Ekahau T201 Ekahau T301 Ekahau NIC 54 Ekahau NIC 300 Ekahau Client and Ekahau Positioning Client are trademarks or registered trademarks of Ekahau Other product and company names may be trademarks or trade names of their respective owners The enclosed software contains implementations of Ekahau s patent pending inventions This manual and the Ekahau software described in it are copyrighted with all rights reserved This manual and the Ekahau software described in it may not be copied except as otherwise provided in your software license The contents of this document are provided as is Except as may be required by applicable law no warranties of any kind either express or implied including but not limited to the implied war ranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose are made in relation to the accuracy reliability or contents of this document Ekahau reserves the right to revise this document or withdraw it at any time without prior notice Export of this technology may be controlled by the United States Government Diversion contrary to U S law prohibited Your use of the Ekahau software described in this user manual and its doc
3. In the Ekahau Positioning Engine user interface go to Tags and select the tag you will use for the surveying In the Manual Commands text box type the following wsc 1 6 11 116 wsm 1 wcs 1 012345678901 NOTE that you will need to replace 1 6 11 with the channels used on 2 4GHz frequency with your infrastructure For example if you re using channels 1 4 8 and 11 the first line would be 1 4 8 11 NOTE that your tag will be now in survey mode and to return the tag to a normal mode you will need to reset the tag When the tag is scanning the amber light will start blinking quick blink once every 1 2 seconds Click the Blue button again to pause the Survey Mode to conserve battery A light will flash in the tag to indicate that the survey mode is started stopped 7 Start Ekahau Site Survey 8 Click Device gt Devices 9 1 oar Select Ekahau Positioning Engine 0 Configure Engine IP port login password and the MAC address of the tag you will use for surveying Click Activate 11 Ensure your laptop is connected to the Wi Fi network 12 You should now see signals measured by the access points updating in the real time signal view and you re now ready to perform site surveys See above for details When surveying with a tag operating in Blink Mode ensure that you stay connected to the wireless network throughout the survey process 4 4 5 Surveying with Ekahau T201 Location Tag If you are locating Ekahau T201
4. Exporting and Printing 7 2 Exporting and Printing Images To export or print the currently displayed image click File gt Export Image or File gt Print Image Note Your current selections will impact the image For example if you have selected a visualization for Selected Access Points the exported or printed image will be constructed with the same settings What you see in the user interface is what will be exported or printed Chapter 7 Reporting Exporting and Printing 66 67 Index Index E exporting images 63 printing images 63 R reporting 63 S setting scale 24 strongest AP 53 survey inspector 46
5. Use the features in the RTLS tab to enable the Site Survey Project to be used with RTLS Description Define Tracking Rails Indicate the logical paths of movement of the tracked persons or devices Open Space Define Open Spaces Indicate open areas where the paths of movement of the tracked devices are not known You can draw a rectangular Open Space or a free form polygon Define Zones Define areas of interest that need to be used in the location tracking application You can draw a rectangular Zone or a free form polygon Zone Inspection Tool Zone Inspection Tool With the Zone Similarity visualization investigate the visualization in more detail by clicking an area on the map Chapter 3 User Interface Overview 16 Description Track Track the W Fi device See the location of your laptop or Wi Fi tag on the map Location Beacon Deploy Location Beacons Place Location Beacons into rooms where high room accuracy is required 3 5 Menus Selection Use the menus to access file operations site specific operations Zooming and more Description Create a new Project File Open Open an existing Project File Save Save the Project using the existing file name File Save As Save the Project using a different file name Export as XML Export the Project as an XML file F
6. and the default password is admin The default communication port is 8550 Figure 4 13 Opening Positioning Models from Ekahau Positioning Engine e Open from Engine Models ELS Positioning model 12 41 Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking Accuracy 5 Analyzing Location Tracking Accuracy 5 1 Accuracy Variables The accuracy of a Wi Fi RTLS system is dependent on several factors The factors below should be considered when designing or improving a location aware 802 11 network VETIENIOE Description Access Points Number of The more APs the better the accuracy Access Points Locations Accuracy is typically good near the access points place the APs near the areas of interest Barely audible APs do not usually improve the accuracy APs should be scattered around the site in a zig zag pattern rather than placing several APs close together or placing them on a straight line The APs should not be placed very high typically no more than 15 feet 4 meters Environment Type The accuracy is better indoors closed space than outdoors open space Generally the more walls and other material causing signal attenuation the better the accuracy Environment Stability The accuracy may be degraded if the environment is very dynamic Usually closing and opening doors does not have a noticeable impact in accuracy but moving shipping containers does Environment Rai
7. Allows the user to see the results averaged for each zone For example when looking at Signal Strength in Zone Visualization Mode the average signal strength for each Zone is displayed Does not allow adjusting the amount of extrapolation of data Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking 58 Accuracy Figure 5 12 Visualization options ya Example Project Pro_X esx Ekahau Site Survey jx File Edit View Site Positioning Device Help ia H SE al S I Use GPS Access Points lol Surveys i Zones E Building E x Show Signal Strength x for my Access Points x Se rl Quick Select Actions m Detailed Zone Visualization Mode P sE a Positioning Use Signal Prediction we aruba ap we 7 gmim 00 0b 86 ac a1 10 1 iristb nl n Furnitui Ba 1 My feb Bi IV Use Signal History Iv My cisco Bl we ofi2 wen ofi3 wea testissid2 wo 7 GD __00 1196 84 2081 _ un ithistb ro furnitul a Fy so D pet mi ofi2 wenz ofi3 wea testissid2 we COLUI ED nisde n purrs i i istb4 Ao Furnitul R Vv My eisco A307 Bal d mi TI ofizueo ofiuen testissid2 we sad Ri Co 00 1f 9e 8d 1c 6c 3 tin furnitu fe RM sos Bj ERPE PE T ofiZ wena ofi3 wea testissid2 we 7 1 00 1f 9e 8d 20 8c 3 11n ikistb nb Ro Furnitui Alignment Point2 Vv My fcisco A327 Bi apt lofiz we
8. List click on the MAC address of the access point and select Replace MAC and type in the MAC address of the new access point to the Replacing MAC field to maintain the highest possible accuracy without recalibration Figure 6 1 When replacing access points remember to select the correct Vendor setting if not selected by default to ensure that the multi MAC access points are replaced correctly Replaced Access Points Ed Original MAC 00 15 70 27 2d 78 Replacing MAC 00 15 70 35 3e 78 I Vendor Symbol iy If the access point is not replaced by an identical AP Deselect the access point form the My Access Points using the Surveys list This will cause only slightly degraded accuracy in the model Note If an access point breaks down always indicate this to the model using either of the above option If you do not do either the location accuracy will be degraded near the broken access point Remember to save the model to Engine after making the change 6 1 1 Replacing Single MAC and Multi MAC Access Points When replacing access points distributing just one MAC address use the Generic one MAC replaced Vendor option In case of Multi MAC access points APs that are sending out one MAC per SSID ensure that the vendor has been selected correctly to apply the changes to the whole MAC range of the AP If your vendor has not been listed there are several options Change the MAC addresses of the replaced AP
9. RTLS you can use the location tags in two modes This section is only relevant if Blink Mode is going to be used In Client Based Mode default the signal measurements are taken by the tracked device The tracked device then sends the signal measurements to Ekahau Positioning Engine 35 Chapter 4 Creating a Project Figure 4 10 Location Tracking using Client Based Mode 1 At specified intervals 4 Engine server or upon motion button calculates tag press etc Tag sends position sends probes to whichever position to 2 4GHz channels the application layer APs are on in this case 16 11 i TT AP on Channel 1 D i 2 APs respond to tags with probe responses A gt 3 Tag calculates signal DA strengths from probe responses sends the AP on Channel 6 results to Engine server AP on Channel 11 e InBlink Mode the tracked device just blinks a single packet which is captured by the access points This packet is then transmitted to Ekahau Positioning Engine by the access points perhaps via the Wi Fi controller Figure 4 11 Location Tracking using Blink Mode 2 APs pick 3 APs send the 1 At specified intervals up the blink signal or upon motion button packets measurements AP press etc Tag blinks MAC tag MAC on whichever 2 4GHz signal strength channels the APs are continuously to on in this case 1 6 11 Engine Server 4 Engine sacra TT AP on Channel 1 Server se calcula
10. Signal Strength visualziation displays the highest measured signal strength for the selected access points Low signal strength may lead to network connectivity problems as well as low location tracking accuracy 55 Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking Accuracy Figure 5 10 Signal Strength visualizes just that signal strength a High signal strength X MQ dal Click to adjust value range colors Note The lowest signal strength that is visualized is 80dBm Signal stregth readings lower than that will not be displayed 5 6 7 Location Coverage Is the Network Sufficient for RTLS Location Coverage estimates how well the wireless network is expected to perform in location tracking The estimate is done by looking at a combination of signal strength and signal overlap Location coverage is displayed with colors ranging from red to green If there is not enough cov erage in the Wi Fi network to start with achieving high accuracy will not be likely Explanation Excellent 1 AP at least 50dBm or 1 AP at least 55dBm and 2 APs at least 75dBm Good At least one AP audible at 62dBm and two other APs at 75dBm Moderate At least three APs audible at 75dBm Low Less that 3 APs audible at 75dBm Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking 56 Accuracy Figure 5 11 Location Coverage shows if the Wi Fi network lacks the coverage for high accuracy RTLS Show ication Coverage 2 for ration
11. continue using a third party wireless utility If you wish to stop using the program and thus also the customized network adapter driver simply run the Wi Fi Adapter Driver Installer from the Start menu again and select Uninstallation Note Even if you re planning to use a Wi Fi tag for the surveying you will need a supported cardbus adapter as well as the updated Ekahau network adapter driver to be able to communicate with the Wi Fi tag 2 2 2 Upgrading the Ekahau Site Survey License The first time you start the software you will be prompted for a license key If you are evaluating the software you do not need a license If you have purchased the product you should have received the license key via e mail When prompted type in the license key as well as your name and company The software license will be tied to a selected network adapter When starting the software you will need to select the network adapter you wish to pair the license key with The network adapter does not need to be a Wi Fi adapter you can pair the license with a fixed Ethernet adapter also the network adapter just needs to be present when the software is started The adapter you select at this point does not limit what Wi Fi cards can be used with the tool After inserting the license the tool will register the MAC address and the license key on line For this an internet connection is required when starting the software for the first time If
12. cranico ie aaa ni Lal NOS capriate iena 3 121 OVETVIOWI ccp ia shia lotasenectvaes saatecedsde asueels liete Dili agiata 3 1 2 2 PEAS allea oliena 3 1 3 Technical SUpport pria a iano 4 t 4Backward Compatibility aegile laden 4 1 4 1 Ekahau Site Survey 2 2 eSS ennn 4 1 4 2 Ekahau Positioning Engine Ekahau Manager 3 1 edb 5 1 4 3 Ekahau RTLS 4 x OSX Li 5 2 Installation scarn aaa 7 2 1 System Requirements and Software Limitations i 7 2 1 1 Supported Wi Fi Adapters i 7 De RISE Re a E O RAT 9 2 2 1 Wi Fi Network Adapter Driver Update i 9 2 2 2 Upgrading the Ekahau Site Survey License in 10 3 User Interface Overview cc titre ieri ieri eee 13 3 lMap iViewW sislhoia ile valigia laico ata 13 3 2 Visualization Selections sic lola oe aaa iaia 14 3 3 Toolbal gt iorle aci ilaele lele eE ao iea 14 3 4 S rvyey and RILS TOS lai ile er 14 Soi Mensile Ar ioni 16 3 6 Toolbar ira ealblala 18 S Ine Access Pont List core iaia aa 19 3 7 1 Selecting Access Points strilla Aa ale ani 19 3 7 2 Searching for Access PONS rtl irene 20 3 7 3 Limiting the Access Points to Visualize ee eee ee eeteneeeeeeeeeeeeteneeeeeeeeees 20 3 7 4 Selecting My Access POIntS ini ccicneescecinee cued ec deeecenceceweeeiginne se ceteneeredntneee 21 3 7 5 Renaming Access POIMS 3ss rire sare sesertobstantategtsb
13. danger Tip If some of the functionality described in this document is not available in the user interface ensure that RTLS Features are enabled in File gt Preferences 1 1 Ekahau RTLS Award Winning Concept The wireless networks that are used for data and voice today provide an excellent platform for building accurate location tracking systems Unlike other proprietary systems Ekahau s system relies on standard 802 11 wireless networks to deliver a comprehensive real time location system RTLS for locating your valuable equipment and people in real time Because the existing wireless network infrastructure is used deployment is more cost effective where a wireless network is already in use This provides additional justification for installing new networks Deployment of Ekahau RTLS does not interrupt network activities or affect other network communications With Ekahau RTLS the positions of equipment and people are automatically updated and can be delivered to other systems and personnel that call for this information The fact that information about the needed equipment or persons is readily available leads to cost savings because the assets are utilized more efficiently and the workflow is optimized Moreover the system enables new processes such as the automatic routing of security personnel to the location where a tag alarm button was pressed or a tamper switch was activated Chapter 1 Introduction 2 pig Ek
14. into a single Project Warning Windows Vista cannot be used for Calibration with a Wi Fi tag or with Ekahau Activator Thus do not use a Windows Vista based laptop for deploying RTLS 2 1 1 Supported Wi Fi Adapters Ekahau Site Survey supports most common 802 11 Wi Fi network adapters for conducting surveys A wireless network adapter is not required if you do not wish to record signal data The following external ExpressCard and Cardbus adapers are supported for Windows XP Windows 2000 and Windows Vista Brand Model 802 11a 802 11b g 802 11n CardBus 3COM 3CRPAG175B X X Belkin F6D3010 X ExpressCard Chapter 2 Installation Brand Model 802 11a 802 11b g 802 11n CardBus ExpressCard Cisco CB 21AG X X X D Link DWL AG650 X X X D Link DWL AG660 X X X D Link DWA 642 X X X D Link DWA 643 X X X D Link DWA 645 X X X D Link DWA 652 X X X D Link DWL G650 Revisions B5 C3 C4 X X Fluke Net Etherscope WLAN Card CB9 X X X works Fluke Net 802 11 a b g n Wireless Network X X X works Analyzer IO DATA WN WAG CBH X X X LANCOM AirLancer MC 54ag X X X Linksys WPC55AG v1 1 v1 3 X X X NEC Aterm WL300NC X X X X NEC Aterm WL54SC X X X NetGear WAG511 X X X NetGear WAG511v2 X X X NetGear WG511U X X X Nortel Net 2201 802 11a b only X X X works Nortel Net 2202 X X X works Proxim Orinoco 8460 802 11a b only X X Proxim Ori
15. mining environments it is highly recommended to change the map type This allows the location tracking algorithm to adjust its parameters accordingly providing optimal location accuracy in different environments By default the parameters are optimized for indoor use To adjust the type of the currently selected map select Site gt Change Active Map Type Using the custom map type allows you to customize the Rail Width parameter See chapter Rail Width How is the Surveyed Data Used on the Rail for details 4 1 3 Grouping Maps into Buildings in Multi Building Environ ments To optimize the visualization performance in large environments more than one building it is recommended to group the maps into buildings This allows for the location accuracy visualizations to work faster and consume less memory Note Grouping the maps into buildings is only available in Ekahau Site Survey Professional version To group the maps into buildings e Insertall the maps into the Project e Go to the Building View only available in Ekahau Site Survey Professional e Click Actions gt New Building and optionally rename the building Chapter 4 Creating a Project 26 e Select the maps to add to the building Hold down the Ctrl key to select multiple maps Click add floors e Repeat the previous steps for all the buildings Note Despite the warnings the maps do not need to be aligned or in the correct order unless 3D network planni
16. one by one using the Generic one MAC Replaced vendor option Chapter 6 Maintaining the Project 62 Use the Generic Up to 16 Virtual MACs Replaced option to replace all the MAC addresses automatically This option should be used if the last hex number 4 bits of the MAC address changes between different SSIDs Use the Generic Up to 64 Virtual MACs Replaced option to replace all the MAC addresses automatically This option should be used if the last 6 bits of the MAC address change between different SSIDs 63 Chapter 7 Reporting Exporting and Printing 7 Reporting Exporting and Printing With Ekahau Site Survey you can easily output the network performance and positioning inform ation by either generating a comprehensive report or by exporting or printing the images one by one 7 1 Generating Reports Generating a report constructs a comprehensive report in RTF or PDF format To generate a report go to File gt Report From the dialog choose the visualizations you want to be reported and make the following selections Selection Description Folder The output location of the report File The file name of the report followed by the extension rtf or pdf Paper The paper type of the report Document Format Choose Adobe PDF or easily customizable and MS Word compatible RTF Report title The title of the report Cover page image Choose an Image file such as a company logo to be included in t
17. order to avoid the recorded data from associating to an unwanted Rail By default the rail is 8 feet wide meaning that survey data will be associated to the rail if it is closer than 4 feet 51 Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking Accuracy perpendicular from the rail With this setting in most indoor environments majority of the data collected on hallways and small rooms will be associated to the rail In some large environments such as some warehouses and airports you may need to associate data to the rail from further away simply because the hallways or other paths of movement are larger For this you will need to increase the width of the Rail To set the Rail width go to Posi tioning gt Model Settings Alternatively you can use one the predefined Rail widths for different environments by choosing Site gt Change Active Map Type Figure 5 6 Use the Calibration Quality visualization to see if the survey data has been associated correctly to the Rail Rail width is optimal Survey data is associated Calration Qualty for All Access Ports SERE with the rail Rail too narrow Survey daat is not associated with the Rail 5 6 3 Zone Similarity Can the RTLS Identify the Zones Note Zone Similarity can be investigated in more detail using the Zone Inspection Tool If you have defined Zones use the Zone Similarity visualization to investigate if the signal environ ment is unique for each Zone
18. the higher the accuracy but the more estimates are filtered Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking 44 Accuracy Location Quality Filter Location Quali 7 Filter ia Hd Quality Filt Location Quality ion estimates while letting higher quality locations through Filter Value Average 90 vei 0 aefaultyno ge are blocked The higher the filter level the less location estimates will be let through and the higher the expected accuracy of Zone and Map ning estimatefV4 be accuracy Map errors VS Fiter Level SO Accepted Estimates 507 Rejected Estimates 70 Total Estimates 577 Quality level Map Errors Uny Error and Estimates vs Quality level The filtered estimates are marked with red and accepted estimates 0 10 20 30 40 50 cow 70 80 90 100 Accepted Estimates om with blue Average Error Zone Accuracy 2 20 90 Error Map Accuracy 0 125m w we o re 7 PA passe 20 E 5m 10 25m 2 Right 8 o Wrong a7 WY OMOx 10 20 30 40x SOx COX 70 90 00 100 o o 20 30 0 so co 70 O O 100 Estimates R Quality Cx Estimate share vs Location error In this example 70 of the accepted estimates blue will be more accurate than 2 5 meters 5 5 Analyzing and Troubleshooting Accuracy Prior to effectively analyzing troubleshooting the accuracy it is required that you have conducted separate test surveys in addition to the calibr
19. the project file from to a disk open save the file directly from to Ekahau Positioning Engine Using wired connection when performing the operation is preferred View Calibration Show Hide Calibration Surveys only View Test Show Hide Test Surveys only View Zones Show Hide Zones View Error Vectors Show Hide Error Vectors disabled by default Site Replaced Access Indicate the changes for the access points that have been replaced Points Positioning Track Track the local Wi Fi device whether a Wi Fi adapter or a Wi Fi tag Positioning Accuracy Statistics Numerical accuracy statistics Positioning Location Quality Fil Adjust the Location Quality Filter ter Positioning Model Settings Adjust Positioning Model settings such as Rail Width 3 6 Toolbar The toolbar includes the icons for the most common actions Icon Name Description 7 Open Open a Project H Save Save the Project Report Generate a Report in PDF or RTF R Zoom In Zoom in to see an area in more detail a Zoom Out Zoom out to see a wider area of the map at once a Zoom to Fit Fit the map into the window a Zoom 1 1 Zoom to see the map in its actual pixel size O Accuracy Statist Display statistical analysis about the accuracy ics 19 Chapter 3 User Interface Overview 3 7 The Access Point List The access points that are not My will be disregarded in location tracking Thus it is essential to select only the access points in your network as My If incorr
20. 7 51 testis 00 19 07 05 87 52 ofi2 00 19 07 05 89 51 testis 00 19 07 05 89 52 ofi2 00 1b 11 69 f9 8d Unkn 00 1b 11 e5 b2 93 Unkn 00 1b 11 eS b3 c1 Unkn a D n a N 14 40 20 14 40 25 14 40 30 14 40 35 Time i IP i Center 30 seconds Signal behaviour over time for the selected access points These signals were heard at the highlighted point on the graph The time window shown in the graph Move to next signal measurement PON gt Tip Use the Measurements View in combination with Error Vectors for troubleshooting Wherever large errors occur long Error Vectors you can investigate the root cause for the inaccuracy missing access points signal readings significantly different between Calibration and Test Data Simply compare the signal measurements near the erroneous locations between Calibaration and Test Surveys to track down the problem 5 6 Visualizing Accuracy and RF Signals There are several accuracy visualizations that help in the analysis of location tracking accuracy and RF signals Note that the accuracy visualizations are only available when Positioning mode for visualizations is selected fpa z Show Calibration Quality X For my Access Points z The visualizations are based on the Access Point and Survey selections you make from the Access Point and Survey lists and the Access Point selection you mak
21. A unique signal environment is required in order for the Zones to be distinguishable from each other The upside of Zone Similarity is that it will allow you to display the potentially inaccurate zones without having any Test Surveys recorded However Zone Sim ilarity can only estimate the potentially inaccurate zones the Zone Accuracy visualization should be used for analyzing measured accuracy of the zones If the the zones are similar and the AP infrastructure cannot be modified one solution is to define bigger zones that are further away from each other Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking 52 Accuracy First select the Zone Similarity Visualization The potentially problematic signal similar zones will be highlighted If there are potentially problematic zones you can drill down to analyze which zones theyare conflicting with e Select the Inspection Tool from the RTLS tab e Click a zone on the map that has been highlighted e The selected Zone will be highlighted If no other zones are highlighted the location tracking is likely to work correctly in the selected Zone If other zones are highlighted the tracked device may be erroneously located to the other highlighted zones when physically located in the selected Zone Figure 5 7 Zone Similarity shows zones that may be too signal similar to be distinguishable The device may not be located correctly in the yellow zones Use the Zone Similarity Tool to inves
22. Location Quality visualization in combination with Error Vectors If Location Quality is low mostly in the locations where large errors occur long error vectors are displayed set the filter slightly over the Location Quality Filter values observed in the areas where significant location errors are observed After changing the value observe the changes in Accuracy Statistics and also Location Accuracy and Zone Accuracy visualizations increasing the filter should produce less estimates but improved overall accuracy You can visualize the impact of the Location Quality Filter in several ways e Use the Location Quality visualization to see the Location Quality values on a map per location In every location where you want location updates to occur the Location Quality visualization should show a value higher than the filter level you want to set The more test surveys you have per location the more confidence you have to set the filtering level correctly e If the Location Quality Filter value has been set use the Location Accuracy visualization in Detailed Mode and the Error Vectors to see where location estimates were produced The estimates were filtered in the areas where test surveys have been performed but where Location Accuracy and Error Vectors are not displayed e Use the Location Quality Filter tool to see how adjusting the filter level would impact on location estimates You can easily see that the higher the filter level usually
23. To set the scale you need to know the distance between two points on the map It is recommended to use a measuring tape to measure the distance between the points Once measuring the real world distance set the scale in ESS e Select the scale tool e Indicate the distance between the two points by clicking the first point and holding down the left mouse button while moving the mouse pointer to the second point e You will see a line between the two points and a tooltip indicating the number of pixels Click on the tooltip on the ft m field and type in the distance between the two points in feet or meters Figure 4 2 Setting the scale using a door as a reference distance Escape torevert 1 In this example the door width is three feet Tip To set the length unit between feet and meters go to File gt Preferences 25 Chapter 4 Creating a Project Note It is highly important to set the correct scale Otherwise some visualizations and simulations may not be shown correctly 4 1 1 Changing the Map Image In some cases the underlying map image used needs to be changed without losing all the infro mation about the surveys or about the predictive design To change the underlying map image go to Site gt Change Map Image Note The replacing map image needs to be of the same size and scale as the original map image 4 1 2 Changing the Map Type in Outdoor or Mining Environments When working in outdoor or
24. aeees 57 5 6 9 1 Visualization Modes i ai 57 56 9 2 Signal PUISIONY acini silla a 58 5 6 9 3 Refreshing the Visualization ui 59 6 Maintaming the Project ilaria pri 61 6 1 Replacing Access Points ei aaan kk EnD saioliguesanteviceerthadecey 61 6 1 1 Replacing Single MAC and Multi MAC Access Points 61 7 Reporting Exporting and Printing cccceeceseseseeeeeeeeeeeeeeeseneeseeeeesessecceeeeeeeeensnees 63 7 1 Generaling Repors i ssc rie dai ieri 63 7 2 Exporting and Printing Images iene alia 65 Index f ireraie reiterata ni 67 1 Chapter 1 Introduction 1 Introduction Welcome to Ekahau Site Survey ESS a tool for calibrating Ekahau Real Time Location System and verifying its accuracy This user guide helps you to understand how to use Ekahau Site Survey for deploying Ekahau Real Time Location System and how it is related to the other components of Ekahau RTLS Ekahau Site Survey is also used for designing deploying and managing Wi Fi networks however this user guide focuses on deploying and Real Time Location Systems See Ekahau Site Survey User Guide to learn more about Wi Fi design deployment and management using Ekahau Site Survey Note Do not operate Ekahau Site Survey and drive or carelessly walk at the same time Stop using ESS and switch off the Wi Fi device when it is forbidden to use radio equipment or when it may cause interference or
25. ahau Positioning Engine after making the necessary adjustments The surveys perfomed with Ekahau Site Survey 2 2 are selected as Calibration Surveys bv default in ESS Chapter 1 Introduction 1 4 2 Ekahau Positioning Engine Ekahau Manager 3 1 edb Ekahau Positioning Engine 3 1 calibration data has been collected at certain points sample points instead of conducting constant surveys When importing each Ekahau Positioning Engine sample point will be converted into a single survey Ekahau Positioning Engine Positioning Models do not include Open Spaces You can add Open Spaces to Ekahau Positioning Engine 3 1 Models using ESS The Logical Areas in 3 1 Models are automatically converted into Zones Positioning Models were previously created with Ekahau Manager Ekahau Site Survey fully replaces Ekahau Manager A few differences ramain e Whereas Ekahau Manager used sample points as the calibration data Ekahau Site Survey uses continously recorded survey data e Open areas where no known paths of movement can be defined were defined with a grid of Rails in Ekahau Manager In Ekahau Site Survey these are replaced by Open Spaces e In Ekahau Manager Engine was needed for the Merge feature In Ekahau Site Survey no Engine is needed The Ekahau Manager calibration Sample Points are imported as Calibration Surveys and the Accuracy Analysis test cases are imported as Test Surveys by default in ESS Note The access points tha
26. ahau Tracker Ekahau Vision 3rd Party Application HTTP Y XML HTTP WA Image Location and s Tag Configuration and Floor plan and zone Event Stream Locatlan Query Maintenance definitions Image Render Ekahau Positioning Application API Engine Device API Survey API Software Event Handler Location Tracking Tag Manager Site Survey Data Ekahau Location Protocol WA wA Ekahau Maintenance Protocol wA XML Wi Fi 3 lafrastructure 802 11 a b g n gt Ekahau Site Survey wA Site Survey Floor plan s Wi Fi Devices Ekahau Tags Wi Fi Modems BIO Product Components Ekahau RTLS is a whole tracking solution for asset and people tracking It consists of the following integrated components Component Description Supported Platforms Ekahau Positioning Engine Server software for location tracking Windows XP Windows 2003 Wi Fi tag configuration and manage Server ment HTTP XML API for applica tions Ekahau Site Survey Application for creating and editing Windows XP Windows 2000 positioning models Ekahau Vision End user application for grouping Windows XP Windows 2003 locating and viewing the location of Server people and assets in real time monitor events and invoke notifica tions or alarms Ekahau Wi Fi Tags Wi Fi location tag Chapter 1 Introduction Component Description Supported P
27. ation surveys You will only be able to analyze the accuracy at the locations where you have conducted test surveys At least the key areas where certain accuracy requirements exist should be covered with Test Surveys Performing test surveys at 20 of the location tracking area is good practice If you have not conducted test surveys you can still estimate the location readiness of your network by using the Location Coverage view However this is a rough estimate only based on access point signal strengths and overlap If you have specific areas of interest where you want to achieve high accuracy Zones are defined use the Zone Accuracy View to visualize the accuracy at which a correct zone is identified In other words zone accuracy shows how often the location estimate is located in the correct zone Use the Location Accuracy visualization to display the accuracy throughout the areas where both Calibration and Test surveys have been performed For real time testing of location accuracy use the Track feature If the location accuracy do not meet your requirements 1 Double check that your requirements for accuracy are realistic Set the requirements so that they reflect the lowest tolerable level of accuracy required for the application High accuracy is usually not required throughout the site 2 Ensure that you have defined the topology correctly The location tracking area should be covered with Rails and Open Spaces The scale m
28. be included in the heat map visualizations from the drop down menu next to the Visualization Selection menu e Showing the visualization for All Access Points displays the visualization heat map using the information from all the access points For example if you want to see the total number of access points on a given map select Show Number of APs for All Access Points e f My Access Points is selected the visualizations will only be shown using the data of the access points checked as My from the AP List For example if you want to see the coverage area of your network select Show Signal Strength for My Access Points Selecting All Access Points instead of My Access Points would include neighboring and rogue access points and thus overly optimistic results would be displayed e Having Other Access Points selected is the exact opposite for selecting My Access Points For example if you want to show the signals from access points that are not in your network select Show Signal Strength for Other Access Points e f Selected Access Points is selected only the access points that have been selected in the Access Points list will be taken into account into the visualization For example if you wanted to see the coverage area of a single access point first highlight that access point from the AP list and then select Show Signal Strength for Selected Access Points See the example picture below 21 Chapter 3 User Interface Overview F
29. ble the Scan Current feature in the Tag command line interface this cannot be configured with ELS Using Scan Current also requires setting the SSID of the network Chapter 4 Creating a Project 38 4 4 6 Merging Two Projects as One If several persons are surveying the areas at one time the results need to be merged as one in the end The Merge feature imports surveys access points walls everything in the Project To merge two or more files as one Open the first Project Select File gt Merge Browse for the second Project which needs to be merged with the first one If more than two surveyors have been on the field repeat the previous step for all the Projects Warning In many cases some access point locations are lost in Merge Always check the AP locations of the Merged file and make the necessary corrections Note The Merge feature does not Merge surveys within the same map The surveyors need to operate on different floors maps for the Merge to work properly 4 5 Defining Zones Optionally you may define Zones Zones represent areas of interest that are communicated via Ekahau Positioning Engine to the applications Zones create human understandable names for locations on the map For example you may want zones to represent restricted areas and create an alarming system on the application layer Zones are created using the Zone tool in the RTLS tab After selecting the tool draw the polygon on the map and ri
30. cccsesseeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeseeeeeeneneeseeeeeeesenenaes 41 Dl AGGUIAOY VAM ADIOS sir alone iatale ast cua hana a a d iaia ia 41 D2 ACCUPACY Statisties 5 66 02 ira aaa 42 5 3 Real Time Testing of Accuracy ccccecccccetecceeteedeteedecteeceneecesbecceneecaeteesesseceneeeeenee 42 5 4 Location Quality Fiter iraran ere eis i did 43 5 5 Analyzing and Troubleshooting Accuracy 44 5 5 1 In depth Accuracy Analysis Using Error Vectors 45 5 5 2 Analyzing Survey Measurements eceeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeenneeeeeeeeeeetenneeeeeeeeees 46 5 6 Visualizing Accuracy and RF Signals 47 5 6 1 Accuracy How Accurate is the RTLS 48 5 6 2 Calibration Quality Have Enough Surveys Been Performed 49 5 6 2 1 Rail Width How is the Surveyed Data Used on the Rail 50 5 6 3 Zone Similarity Can the RTLS Identify the Zones eee 51 5 6 4 Number of Access Points How Much Signal Overlap is there 53 5 6 5 Strongest Access Point With which AP does the Client Associate 53 5 6 6 Signal Strength How is the Signal Coverage n 54 5 6 7 Location Coverage Is the Network Sufficient for RTLS 55 5 6 8 Location Quality inet toast ate secession ca oh oe igs ascot sina etnia chet eee tele elena Me 56 5 6 9 Visualization Options and Refreshing ccccsceeceeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeena
31. ces Optionally define Zones Conduct a Survey and optionally place access points Perform real time testing of location accuracy Analyze and optimize the location tracking accuracy Save the Project to Ekahau Positioning Engine Activate the tags and start tracking your assets using Ekahau Positioning Engine Figure 4 1 An example of a project with Rails Open Spaces Zones Survey Data and Access Points Flo 9 Survey Y N TO TT Zones can be used ne Select amp amp map ly for alarming etc EC i VES PT at Er r ls ETI indicate the possible 4 ie i es of movement i po al Survey routes rar AVE should cover the whole rae E Open space indicates ca an area where paths of Ny Access Point on Channel 1 4 1 Setting the Map and Scale The functionality of the program mostly relies on the floor plan s of the facility You will need to insert at least one map and set its scale For multi floor buildings add multiple maps one for each floor Chapter 4 Creating a Project 24 Note Maps larger than 5000 x 5000 pixels are not recommended to be used as this slows down the software For optimal performance please use maps smaller than 2500 x 2500 pixels To insert a map click Site gt Add Map or click the sign next to the map selector The following image formats are supported for maps BMP WBMP JPG JPEG PNG GIF You also need to set the scale for each map
32. cord Survey button e Click your current location on the map e Start walking at a slow steady speed Click the map whenever you start or stop walking and whenever you change your speed or direction e Right click the map when you want to finish the current survey and continue from another location e Release the Record button when finished surveying The data is recorded continuously during a Survey not just when you click on the map The data will be interpolated on the map between two mouse clicks If you do not stop at any point but rather continue walking when reaching a given point you only need to click on the map once at every turn If you stop somewhere for more than one second you should click on the map when you arrive and click again on the same location as you leave The upside of the continuous recording is that you gather more data during your survey In addition you only need to click twice at the beginning and at the end when walking a straight line such as a hallway If SSID Broadcast has been disabled in the access points the SSID will not be detected by ESS However the MAC address and other information of the AP will still be detected Enabling at least one SSID to be broadcast for the duration of the site survey may help in organizing and selecting the access points Tip You will see the signal strength of the strongest access point red low green high on the survey route while performing the survey If
33. d to Select baud rate Click OK If the tag is correctly detected the dialog will close and the tag will be activated If there s another supported adapter present that adapter will be de activated If the Tag is not correctly detected the dialog will not close Several retries are encouraged as the tag may be busy during the first connection attempts If the tag is not detected after several retries ensure the tag parameters are correct and that the tag is connected to the computer properly and that the tag firmware is 1 0 7 or newer 9 Ensure you are receiving signal data from the tag 10 Start surveying or tracking with the tag 11 When finished surveying or tracking exit ESS or activate another Wi Fi device in ESS The tag will reboot and your original settings will be returned Do not disconnect or reboot the tag or save the tag configuration settings when using the tag with ESS ONAN Note Limit the amount of channels to scan by selecting Scan Configuration from the Devices window to speed up the calibration process Limiting the number of channels allows the tag to perform scans faster which allows the user to walk faster during the surveys For example if your 802 11 network has been deployed to channels 1 6 and 11 select only those channels to be scanned Note Surveying a network with a non broadcasting SSID Use the Scan Current mode in the T201 to survey a Wi Fi network that is not broadcasting You need to manually ena
34. e from the drop down menu In order to see any visualization at least Calibration Surveys need to be recorded For visualizing Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking 48 Accuracy accuracy Test Surveys need to be recorded also The following table lists the visualizations and whether Calibration or Test data is used as the reference data for the visualization Visualization Calibration Test Calibration Quality ra Location Accuracy ve Td Location Coverage sa Location Quality Va A Z Number of APs gi Signal Strength y Strongest Access Point z Zone Accuracy gt vd Zone Similarity Va Note Only signal visualizations relevant to location tracking are showed here For details on other visualizations refer to the Ekahau Site Survey User Guide Note The Accuracy and Location Quality visualizations use the Calibration Data to calibrate the Project Test data is used to calculate the location estimates and the accuracy and Location Quality value of the estimates 5 6 1 Accuracy How Accurate is the RTLS The Accuracy visualizations use the Ekahau Positioning Engine algorithm to calculate and display the location tracking accuracy The visualization uses Calibration Surveys as the reference data that is used to teach the location tracking Model Test Surveys are used to represent the data sent by the tracked device For each Test Survey the location tracking algorithm calculates device positions as if
35. e site use the Accuracy Statistics Accuracy Statistics provides an averaged numerical results of location accuracy To use Accuracy Statistics you will need to have performed Test Surveys Select Positioning Accuracy Statistics to access the statistics Accuracy Statistics provides the following information Column Desciption Unit Map The name of the map Name Survey The name of the survey Name Avg Error Average Location Error The average of all errors of all Meters Feet 90 Error location estimates 90 Location Error 9 out of 10 location estimates are Meters Feet below this distance Map Accuracy The percentage of location estimates that were located Percent into the correct map Zone Accuracy The percentage of location estimates that were located Percent inside the correct zone Filtered Locations The percentage of location estimates that were filtered out Percent by the Location Quality Filter Only applicable if Location Quality Filter has been enabled Figure 5 1 Accuracy Statistics provides a numerical report of the accuracy ys Accuracy Statistics 2 01 18 PM EET Map Survey avgerror 90 Error Map Accuracy Filtered Locations 0 im 2 5m 1 1m 2 8 m 1m 2 2m 1 3m 2 8m 2 1m im 2 3m 0 6m 1 2m 1 3m 0 8m 2m 0 8m 2m 1m 2 6m 0 9m 2 5m 0 6m 1 2m 0 9m 1 4m 1 1m 2 5m 0 9m 2 3m Refresh Close
36. eahetue sl egoactelselel Gteotsonts 21 3 7 6 One AP several MAC addresses Joining APS 21 d 8 Survevbistrorae lella lata 22 BO ZOMG Lislsrcilla alal 22 A Creating a Project iii ini iranica 23 4 1 Setting the Mapa idSCAl r ail ao errata inerte ilaria iatale 23 4 1 1 Changing the Map Image ci alii peeettaenedegietes 25 4 1 2 Changing the Map Type in Outdoor or Mining Environments 25 4 1 3 Grouping Maps into Buildings in Multi Building Environments 25 4 2 Creating Ralls oecneio lena nada ola liana 26 4 3 Creating Open Spaces reet 29 4 4 Performing SUIVeys ara dala hei aa 29 4 4 1 Moving and Deleting Survey Points 31 4 4 2 Placing Access Points on the Map i 31 4 4 3 Configuring the Wi Fi device cette eeeeeeeeee steer eeeeeaaaeeeeeeeeeeeaaa 32 4 4 4 Surveying with Ekahau T301 A Location Tag n 33 4 4 4 1 Surveying with Tags Operating in Blink Mode 34 4 4 5 Surveying with Ekahau T201 Location Tag i 36 4 4 6 Merging Two Projects as One 38 4 9 Defining Z0N6s ilaria feasted cot oli asi 38 4 6 Improving Room Accuracy with Location Beacons ii 39 Ekahau Site Survey User Guide for De iv ploying Ekahau RTLS 4 7 Communicating with Ekahau Positioning Engine i 40 5 Analyzing Location Tracking Accuracy
37. ect access points are left selected as My the location accuracy may be degraded Note Only the access point operations that are relevant for RTLS deployments are listed here To see a list of the other access point operations refer to the Ekahau Site Survey User Guide 3 7 1 Selecting Access Points There are several methods to select which access points to visualize edit or select as My APs APs can be selected one by one either from the map or from the AP list e To select APs on the map simply click on the AP to be selected Click on the AP again to de select it The selected AP will be highlighted on the map and in the AP list e To select APs on the AP List click on the handle on the left hand side of the AP list to select an AP an orange color will indicate that the AP has been selected Click on the handle again to de select You will also see the AP being highlighted on the map Simulated APs can be selected in the same way as measured APs However simulated multi radio APs can be selected one radio at a time e To select radios on the map click on the rectangle on the right hand side of the AP The rectangle will become highlighted with orange when it is selected On e To select radios on the AP List click on the handle on the left hand side of the radio prop erties field Figure 3 2 Selecting one radio at a time JV My customized dual radio AP To select multiple access points at once you have two op
38. ed access Ponts possa gy ime IR Daf TD Ug Wi Fi coverage has potential for accuratel location tracking may y IAY di H a a7 na xI ma w i Wi Fi coverage not sufficient for accurate location tracking i Note Location Coverage makes assumptions about the expected accuracy based on signal strength and signal overlap Other factors such as access point placement and environment have a major impact on location tracking accuracy Thus the location coverage visualization should not be used instead of the accuracy visualizations Whereas the accuracy visualizations show the actual measured accuracy Location Coverage 5 6 8 Location Quality In Ekahau RTLS sometimes the reported location of a Wi Fi device may be inaccurate This can be due to low signal coverage in a given point or due to the fact that the signal strength readings of the tracked device do not match the Positioning Model for example To eliminate the obivously bad location estimates Ekahau RTLS provides Location Quality Filter The higher the filter value 57 Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking Accuracy the more locations will be filtered Each location handed out by the Ekahau Positioning Engine contains the Location Quality value To visualize the Location Quality values throughout the per formed test surveys use h
39. ee an indication that the rails will connect Tip The Rails and Open Spaces can also be drawn after performing surveys Note Rails or Open Spaces see below need to cover the whole area that will be used for location tracking When working with Projects consisting of multiple floors you need to indicate where it is possible to change the floor To indicate these locations e Start drawing the rail from the location where the floor can be changed an elevator stairwell or escalator Select another floor plan where the user will arrive from the previous floor On the floor plan click on the location where the user will arrive from the previous floor Figure 4 4 Indication of a location where the floor can be changed Tip Chapter 4 Creating a Project 28 Rails and Survey Data should be close to each other and Calibration Survey data should be collected wherever rails or open spaces exist Use the Calibration Quality visualization to see if enough Surveys have been performed on the rails and open spaces Below is an example of how to draw Rails and Open Spaces Notice how the rails have been kept simple and open spaces have only been defined for the largest areas and meeting rooms In Wi Fi networks that are not very dense not especially designed for VoIP or location tracking regular sized office rooms or patient rooms in a hospital should generally not be defined as open spaces a single rail drawn into the r
40. es Note Areas smaller in size than 250 square feet 25 square meters would typically not be defined as open spaces However if you are aiming for the highest possible room level accuracy and location coverage is Excellent in those areas you should define each room as an Open Space 4 4 Performing Surveys During the survey signal readings from all the audible access points are measured and all the audible access points will be discovered and added to the AP list In addition to the access points in your network you are likely to discover other access points as well some may be audible from Chapter 4 Creating a Project 30 the neighboring office or even the neighboring building and some may be rogue access points placed in your environment without authorization To perform a Survey e Ensure that your network card has been enabled in your laptop Check the Miniature Signal View to see if the network adapter is successfully scanning access points Figure 4 6 The Miniature Signal View should show signals updating before starting the survey piatti lt P e f you are using an inappropirate driver with your external adapter a warning will be given To achieve the optimal accuracy use the driver provided by Ekahau For information on how to update the driver see chapter Wi Fi Network Adapter Driver Update Figure 4 7 A warning will be given if an inappropriate driver is used duri SP e Click the Re
41. ey Professional version only However these features do not concern RTLS deployment Please see Ekahau Site Survey User Guide for details 1 3 Technical Support Ekahau provides technical support free of charge for all customers for 30 days Customers who have purchased Ekahau Support will receive Ekahau Support services for 12 months from the date of purchase Ekahau Support includes e All upgrades and patches for the product s and documentation purchased e Free of charge support via e mail preferred and telephone during regular business hours PST EST GMT 2 Bug fix patches are free of charge for all customers To renew your Ekahau Support please contact your Ekahau representative or sales ekahau com 1 4 Backward Compatibility Ekahau Site Survey is backwards compatible with the following Ekahau products 1 4 1 Ekahau Site Survey 2 2 ess In ESS you can use Ekahau Site Survey 2 2 survey data for calibrating the Positioning Model However in many cases the existing site survey may not provide optimal location accuracy In some cases the site survey data does not cover the whole location tracking area It is also always recommended to calibrate the Positioning Model using the Wi Fi device that will be used in the location tracking Ekahau Site Survey 2 2 Projects do not include Rails Open Spaces or Zones In order to use Ekahau Site Survey 2 2 Projects with RTLS 4 open them in ESS first and then save them to Ek
42. g the survey by clicking on the map indicates the exact location of the device Error Vectors allow you to see where exactly the device was located during the Test Surveys and how far it was from the actual location of the device at that time The vector starts from a point in the Test Survey route where the signal strength readings were received from the Wi Fi device The vector ends in the position where the Location Tracking Algorithm located the device Thus the longer the vector the more error To view the error vectors select View gt Error Vectors Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking 46 Accuracy Figure 5 2 Error Vectors blue lines and Individual Measurements orange dots displayed on the map a officei esx Ekahau Site Survey oj x ile Edit View Site Positioning Device Help ir H LS Jajal a Access Points ial Surveys Pi Zones Show Empty x for m Access Points _ostons RC ee e pe ln BA e RD a Ji I Automatically Place APs After Survey PEN d P uan Tallber __e f sce e NES DO PSI smd CRD CI I Test Surveys need to be assigned in order I to see eror vector __ The Sher the dette CRA or accuracy visualizations salise LA A MZA PNA I fl The longer the blue DD The orange dot indicates the bigger the error where the device actually was CT HS during the survey le X 5 5 2 Analyzing Survey Measurement
43. ght click to end the drawing Thereafter name the Zone in the Zones list You can choose to draw either Free Form Zones or Rectangular Zones To draw Rectangular Zones click on the down arrow next to the Zone tool to select the Rectangular Zone tool The Zones will be displayed in red if they are not valid If this is your case make sure that there are no overlapping Zones 39 Chapter 4 Creating a Project Note Generally zones should not be smaller than 250 square feet 25 square meters in size In addition in open areas the zones should be at least 10 feet 3 meters apart 4 6 Improving Room Accuracy with Location Beacons There are applications that may require high room level accuracy This is the case especially with process optimization applications It is not always reasonable to use additional Wi Fi access points to achieve very high room level accuracy Instead cost effective Location Beacons can be used to achieve this The Location Beacons provide extra location information to some Ekahau tags allowing precise tracking in the areas covered with Location Beacons The Location Beacon sends infrafred beams at four second intervals When the Ekahau tag receives the infrared IR beam the Positioning Engine can use that information to improve room level accuracy The Positioning Engine uses both IR and Wi Fi to calculate the location If one is not available only the other will be used Chapter 4 Creating a Pro
44. hau Wireless Utility see below for details PON 2 2 1 Wi Fi Network Adapter Driver Update Note Updating the Wi Fi adapter driver only applies for external Wi Fi adapters not if the built in Wi Fi adapter in the Intel Centrino is used The Wi Fi adapter driver needs to be updated in order to collect signal measurements unless the integrated Wi Fi adapter in Intel Centrino is used for surveying The Wi Fi adapter driver will be updated automatically during the installation Make sure you have a supported Wi Fi adapter inserted when installing the product Skip driver installation if you do not wish to conduct Surveys or do not have a supported external wireless network adapter available at the time of the installation Chapter 2 Installation 10 Note If you did not have a supported adapter at the time of the installation or if you chose to install the driver later for some other reason you can install the WLAN adapter driver and the wireless connection utility later by selecting the Wi Fi Adapter Driver Installer from the program folder in the Start menu For Windows XP the driver installation will also install the Wireless Utility for managing the wireless connectivity The Wireless Utility can be started from the Start menu For more information please use the help features in the Wireless Utility user interface You may also choose to only install the driver and skip the Wireless Utility installation if you want to
45. he front page of the report Chapter 7 Reporting Exporting and 64 Printing Figure 7 1 Generating reports Ye Report x Ekahau Site Report MW toimisto4_no_furniture IV Coverage and Performa MW Number of APs IV toimisto_simulated IV Signal Strength Strongest Access Point IV Positioning IV Calibration Quality IV Location Accuracy IV Location Coverage Access Points KM Surveys JV Accuracy Statistics Access Points Without Position Paper Document Format A4 RIF LETTER C PDF Folder C Documents and Settings User My Documents File Example Project Pro_X Report OK Cancel Renameable title of the report Customizable cover page image Click to change the image Select the maps that should be included in the report Select the visualizations that should be included in the report Select whether survey routes discovered APs and their locations and Accuracy Statistics should be included in the report or not Choose the paper type and document format Type the name of the report file and select where the report should be saved BRUN SO The report includes Access point configurations as a table Access point locations on the map Access Point Notes Network coverage and performance visualizations overlaid on a map Network Requirements Survey routes marked on the map Optionally an image in the front page 65 Chapter 7 Reporting
46. he second SSID can be used if access points need to be scanned from another SSID Enable Broadcast Scan mode if you wish to scan all the SSIDs that are broadcasting their network names If you want to slow down the scan speed of the tag increase the Delay between survey scans option Then choose the appropriate channels to scan Finally after setting the appropriate Survey Mode and Scan Settings click Activate In Survey Mode Once you get an OK message from the tag stop the activation Close Ekahau Activator and start ESS Go to Device Devices Select Connect T301 A Type in the MAC address of the tag and the channel you chose for communication in Ekahau Activator Click Connect The tag should appear in the devices list You should also be able to see a tag icon in next to the Miniature Signal View indicating that the tag is connected Ensure that the tag is scanning for signal stregnths using the Live Signal View Click the blue button on the T301 A tag to start Survey Mode this will be started automatically after the activation This will allow the tag to scan for the network and send the scan results to the Engine When the tag is scanning the amber light will start blinking quick blink once every 1 2 seconds Click the Blue button again to pause the Survey Mode to conserve battery A light will flash in the tag to indicate that the survey mode is started stopped 4 4 4 1 Surveying with Tags Operating in Blink Mode With Ekahau
47. igure 3 3 Visualizing only selected access points iw H SJS gajal Access Points ial Surveys J Building Showing 56 56 dimisto4_no_furniture z pA Cisco AP1250 Kitchen B im gt OD ee DE te ARREN ab en FM esconpizso neo Bb il gad fo OBE ia D E Edt LI sal nina 3 7 4 Selecting My Access Points During the site survey all the audible access points will be detected It is important to segregate the access points in your network from the other access points such as the APs radiating from the nextdoor building The My checkbox in the AP list indicates whether an AP is in your network or not You can select My APs either one by one or by selecting multiple access points first and then selecting or de selecting the My checkbox to select or de select multiple APs to from My APs For example if you have Nortel APs and there are no other Nortel APs around 1 De selectall the APs from My selection Click Actions gt Select AII and uncheck the My selection from one of the APs Now none of the APs are selected as My 2 Next type Nortel into the Search text box 3 then click Actions gt Select All to select all the Nortel APs 4 To select all the searched Nortel APs as My simply check the My box in one of the Nortel APs and all the Nortel APs will now be selected as My 3 7 5 Renaming Access Points By default the measu
48. ile Export Image Export the currently displayed map image and visualization File Print Image Print the currently displayed map image and visualization File Report Generate a report of the network File Merge Merge another Project with the cur rent Project File Preferences Change the product preferences such as the length unit File Exit Exit the program Edit Undo Undo the previous action Edit Redo Redo the undone action View Zoom In Zoom in to see an area in more detail View Zoom Out Zoom out to see a wider area of the map at once View Zoom to Fit Fit the map into the window View Zoom 1 1 Zoom to see the map in its actual pixel size 17 Chapter 3 User Interface Overview Menu Selection Description View Surveys Show or hide the survey routes View GPS Reference Points Show or hide the GPS Reference Points View Access Points Show or hide the access point icons View Access Point Names Show or hide the access point names View Floor Alignment Points Show or hide the Floor Alignment Points View Walls Show or hide the Walls Site Add Map Add a map to the Project Site Duplicate Map Make a duplicate of the currently displayed map Site Change Map Image Change the currently displayed map image Site Remove Map Remove a map from the Project Site Active Map Select the currently displayed map Site Edit Requirements Edit the network requirements S
49. ions to items on the map such as move and delete Ty Scale Indicate Scale Indicate the scale of the map Can also be used as a distance measurement tool 15 Chapter 3 User Interface Overview Icon Name Description D Record Perform Surveys Record signal measurements around the facility Enable Survey the tool and walk around the map while clicking on your current location when you stop start walking or change direction If you check the Auto Place APs After Survey checkbox the access points will be automatically located after the survey The GPS Record button is used for performing GPS assisted outdoor surveys A Survey Inspect surveyed data in detail Click on the tool and you will see the Inspector surveyed measurements on the map Double click on the measurement to see measurement details 4 GPS Place GPS Reference Points on the map Without the reference points Refer the GPS coordinates cannot be converted to map coordinates and thus ence the GPS information cannot be displayed on the map Point Tool PRATI Mini Displays the currently measured signal strength green and noise ature red values Click to access the Live Network Status view Shows No Signal Devices if no devices are present View GP Network Change Network Adapter Settings Click on the network adapter to Adapter change its settings or to select a different adapter to be used Setting The RTLS Tab
50. is unique In Ekahau RTLS Ekahau Positioning Engine must be aware of these signal and site characteristics to accurately locate Wi Fi devices Ekahau Site Survey is used to record signal measurements define the environment and commu nicate them to Ekahau Positioning Engine In Ekahau Site Survey you create what is called a Project which includes all the surveyed signal data as well as the information about the environ ment such as Tracking Rails When a Project is saved it becomes a Positioning Model Ekahau Site Survey is a software only tool that typically runs on a laptop computer Ekahau Site Survey replaces what was previously called Ekahau Location Survey and before that Ekahau Manager 1 2 2 Features The main features of ESS are Opening Ekahau Manager and ESS files Recording signal measurements by performing a survey Defining the Environment Open Spaces and Rails and Zones Analyzing and optimizing location accuracy Saving the Project to Ekahau Positioning Engine Tracking the local Wi Fi device Wi Fi tag or Wi Fi Network Adapter Merging several Projects as one file support for multiple simultaneous surveyors Chapter 1 Introduction 4 e Full site survey and network planning capabilities see Ekahau Site Survey User Guide for details With its support for large maps and multiple floors ESS is suitable for large scale deployments Note Some of the features of Ekahau Site Survey are available in Ekahau Site Surv
51. ite Place Access Points Automatically Automatically place the access points that were detected during the survey on the map Site Clear All Access Point Locations Clear all AP locations from the map Site Auto Detect Multi MAC APs Automatically detect access points distributing multiple MAC addresses Site Replaced Access Points View Replaced Access Points Site Edit Project Notes Edit text notes about the Project Device Live Network Status View the currently audible Wi Fi signals and quickly troubleshoot issues without a map Device Devices Shows the currently connected Wi Fi devices Help Quick Guide Open the Quick Guide Help User Guide Open the User Guide Help About See product information upgrade license Chapter 3 User Interface Overview 18 In addition to the previous the RTLS featured Ekahau Site Survey also includes the following menu options that are not present in Ekahau Site Survey that has RTLS features disabled Menu Item Description File Open Save Open and Save Projects Open save project to a file on a disk The project file extension esx contains all the relevant project information maps survey data route access points signal readings Topology and Zones Using wired connection when performing the operation is preferred File Open Save to from Open and Save to from Ekahau Positioning Engine Instead of open Engine ing saving
52. ive scan or multi scan is set in the tag In all other scenarios do not disable Signal History use the default setting 59 Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking Accuracy 5 6 9 3 Refreshing the Visualization The visualizations are not refreshed automatically in all cases If changes are made to the Topology My AP selections or Survey groupings the visualization needs to be refreshed to see up to date results The Refresh button will illuminate whenever the visualization is not up to date You can enable automatic refreshing by checking the checkbox next to the Refresh button Figure 5 13 Refresh button and automatic refresh checkbox Positioning Show signal Strength v for My Access Points v Tip For explanations about the other visualization options see Ekahau Site Survey User Guide Note Automatic refresh option refreshes the visualization automatically when changes are made Automatic refresh works well for small and medium sized projects If you are working with a large project you may want to disable the automatic refresht to keep the software running smoothly and only refresh the visualization when needed Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking Accuracy 60 61 Chapter 6 Maintaining the Project 6 Maintaining the Project 6 1 Replacing Access Points If an access point breaks down there are two options If the access point is replaced by another identical AP in the same location In the AP
53. ject 40 Note Receiving data from Location Beacons is not supported in all Ekahau tags Only Ekahau T301 B and T301 BD tags support Location Beacons To deploy Location Beacons 1 Place one Location Beacon per room where high room accuracy is required 2 Turn on the Location Beacon using the switch on the back 3 Mountthe Location Beacon into ceiling in a far corner from the room entrance with the emitters pointing down toward the floor 4 Open the Ekahau Site Survey and go to RTLS tab 5 Inthe RTLS tab choose the Location Beacon tool and type the identifier of the Location Beacon into the ID field DS AS ra Planning Survey Ras 6 Place the Location Beacon on the map into a Zone that covers the room Note Each room where you have the Location Beacons deployed need to be defined as a Zone 4 7 Communicating with Ekahau Positioning Engine In order for the Ekahau Positioning Engine to work the Project must be saved and activated Use File gt Save To Engine to save the Model to the Ekahau Positioning Engine If you wish to start using the new Project in the Engine leave the Activate checkbox checked Use File gt Open From Engine to open a previously stored Model from the Engine If there is more than one Model stored in the Engine you will see a list of all the available models You need to insert the Engine IP address login information prior to connecting to the Engine The default user name is admin
54. latforms Ekahau Client Software based solution to provide location tracking capabilities for Wi Fi enabled devices Reference implementation and Ekahau Tag Protocol documents available to Windows Vista Windows XP Windows 2000 Windows Mobile 6 Windows Mobile 2005 Win dows Pocket PC 2003 Windows CE 4 2 Windows CE 5 0 Located by Ekahau partners What Is RTLS A Real Time Location System RTLS is a fully automated system that continually monitors the location of assets or personnel in real time An RTLS provides real time information to authorized users via a corporate network through application software or application programming interfaces Typically an RTLS consists of tags a wireless data network server software and end user application software Ekahau RTLS uses signal strength measurements from existing Wi Fi 802 11 a b g access points for location tracking which lowers the total cost of ownership and makes deployment straightforward compared to other RTLS solutions that require proprietary wireless infrastructure 1 2 Ekahau Site Survey 1 2 1 Overview Ekahau Site Survey is a tool for creating a Positioning Model to enable accurate location tracking In addition it is used for analyzing the wireless network and location tracking accuracy Using ESS you can also track a local Wi Fi device such as a laptop or a Wi Fi tag In terms of wireless LAN signal behaviour every site
55. ls and Open Spaces Define Rails and Open Spaces so that they cover the whole location tracking area Keep the Project simple Define only as much Open Spaces and Rails as is necessary Do not define Open Spaces on areas where a Rail is a more accurate description of the underlying topology e g tunnels and hallways Amore simple Project generally results in a better location accuracy However always survey as much as possible Surveyed Data Amount The more survey data you collect the better the accuracy Surveyed Data Quality The more accurate and stable signal readings the Survey device Wi Fi tag adapter can provide the better the accuracy Use only Supported Adapters or Tags for calibration and do not cover the device while surveying Tracked Device Data Quality The more accurate and stable signal readings the tracked device can provide the better the accuracy Use only Supported Adapters or Tags for tracking do not cover the device while tracking Maintaining the same device orientation while surveying and while tracking is very highly recommended To generalize a positioning error at a given point is caused by the fact that the Calibration Data stored to the Model is different from the current signal readings obtained from the tracked device Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking 42 Accuracy 5 2 Accuracy Statistics To quickly understand what the location accuracy is throughout th
56. ls setting is selected e Wait time per channel Set the number of milliseconds to wait on each channel for 802 11 packets probe responses or beacons The smaller the channel wait time the less time the access point has to send packets to the network adapter but the faster you can survey the facility If your wireless network is extremely crowded increase the wait time If broadcast SSID is disabled in your access points increase the wait time to 100ms or more Chapter 4 Creating a Project Figure 4 8 The Scanning Configuration Tab e Scanning configuration for Atheros AR5008 Wireless Networ E3 Device Atheros 4R5008 Wireless Network Adapter Packet Scheduler Miniport bl Custom channels Enea z Available channels Selected channels Add all gt gt Remove Wait time on channel 105 X Ok Cancel Note The scan settings cannot be configured for all Wi Fi devices For example the scan settings in the built in Wi Fi adapter of an Intel Centrino cannot be configured 4 4 4 Surveying with Ekahau T301 A Location Tag If you are locating Ekahau T301 A tags it is recommended calibrate using a T301 A tag and to verify the accuracy by performing test surveys with a T301 A tag also You can ensure the accuracy by using the Location Accuracy Map Accuracy and Zone Accuracy visualizations Figure 4 9 Ekahau T301 A Wi Fi Location Tag Unlike the T201 tag the T301 A tags communicate wirelessl
57. na ofi3 wea testissid2 we a in A GHD 00 19 07 c5 58 11 3 ist Lab furnitul m eaa Lata 5 6 9 2 Signal History In Ekahau Positioning Engine the location accuracy is generally better if several signal strength updates are received from the tracked device within a short period of time This is because Ekahau Positioning Engine utilizes information of the signal strength readings received in the past as well as the currently reported signal strength readings to pinpoint the current device location accurately Thus the usage of Signal History has an impact to Accuracy as well Location Quality You can disable the usage of Signal History from the Visualization Options You may want to disable the usage of Signal History if you want to simulate a scenario where the device is waking up infrequently and upon wakeup the device only scans for signal strength updates once In more detail disable the signal history when all the following three statements are true e The tracked devices such as Wi Fi tags are not set to wake up during motion and e The tracked devices are set to wake up at very infrequent intervals wakeup interval more than 10 minutes and or the tracked devices are only set up to wake up upon button press and or the device is set to aftermotion only and the tag is only being moved rarely and e Upon periodic or button or aftermotion wakeup the tracked device is only scanning the signal strengths once no iterat
58. ne the Environment Rails and Open Spaces and Zones e Analyze location accuracy and RF measurements The map can be zoomed using the zooming buttons in the toolbar or from the View menu You can also zoom by right clicking on the map when using the Edit Simulated Access Point and Wall tools Chapter 3 User Interface Overview 14 3 2 Visualization Selections You can select the visualization by adjusting the two drop down menus at the top of the screen one selects the visualization and the other selects the access points to show the visualization for More about visualizations in Chapter Visualizing Location Accuracy and RF Signals 3 3 Toolbar The toolbar includes the icons for the most common actions Description Open a Project Save the Project Generate a Report in PDF or RTF Zoom in to see an area in more detail Zoom out to see a wider area of the map at once Zoom to Fit Fit the map into the window Zoom 1 1 Zoom to see the map in its actual pixel size 3 4 Survey and RTLS Tools Use the Survey and RTLS tabs to access the most commonly used tools Note Planning Tab is additionally available in ESS Pro version To see more about network planning see ESS User Guide The Survey Tab Survey These tools are needed when performing site surveys or troubleshooting the network Description N Edit Edit items on the map Allows you to perform various funct
59. ng will be used Grouping the maps without aligning or setting the floor order is enough to optimize the location tracking system Figure 4 3 Using the Building view for large RTLS Projects a 3D Planning Add Remove Status Indicator Buildi Disregard if 3D planning ulldings is not used TTT Nan planning not used lA Disregard if 3D planning is not used Office US 30dB m 4 2 Creating Rails After the map has been added and scale has been set you will need to define the tracking Envir onment Rails and Open Spaces Rails indicate the possible paths of movement of the tracked devices The rails improve the location accuracy by indicating which routes will be more likely than others For example the rails indicate that it is much more likely for the device to walk through the doorway than to move through the walls The rails do not force the tracked device to be located on the rails and they do not completely 27 Chapter 4 Creating a Project disallow the tracked device to take paths that are not indicated by the rails Instead the rails just indicate that some paths are more likely than others To draw rails select the Rail tool Create rail intersections with the left mouse button Once finished double click the left mouse button or click the right mouse button If you want to connect a rail to another rail move the mouse pointer on an existing rail and you will s
60. noco 8480 X X X SMC EZ Connect Universal X X X SMC2336W AG TP Link TL WN610G 802 11g only X X Ubiquiti SRX X X X Ubiquiti SRC X X X Tip If your laptop only includes a slot for PC Express Card and not for Cardbus you can use an Expresscard Cardbus adapter with any Cardbus adapter such as Ekahau NIC 54 and NIC Chapter 2 Installation 300 Wi Fi adapters These Expresscard Cardbus adapters are available via Addonics www addonics com for example Warning Do not use the Intel Centrino Wi Fi chipset for calibrating Ekahau RTLS as this may have an impact to location tracking accuracy Instead Ekahau NIC 54 and NIC 300 Wi Fi adapters are highly recommended to be used for calibrating Ekahau RTLS In addition to wireless network adapters Ekahau T201 and T301 Wi Fi tags can be used for per forming surveys recording signal data Using the T201 requires a Splitter Cable the cable that connects the tag to a serial port If your laptop does not have a serial port you may need a con nector that connects the serial port to a USB port Surveying with T301 requires a supported Wi Fi adapter 2 2 How to Install 1 Make sure you have a supported network adapter inserted into your laptop see above for a list of supported adapters Double click the executable file to start installation Follow the on screen instructions to install ESS Follow the on screen instructions to install Wi Fi adapter driver and Eka
61. oom is usually enough If you are dealing with a dense WI Fi network APs placed every 60 feet or closer and are aiming for very high room level accuracy each room of interest can be defined as an open space When creating rails do not e Make the Rails and Open Spaces more complex than necessary e Draw the Rails inside Open Spaces Open Spaces and Rails should never overlap Figure 4 5 An example of Rails and Open Spaces 29 Chapter 4 Creating a Project 4 3 Creating Open Spaces In some areas the typical walking paths are not known and the tracked device may reside any where within that area This is the case for example in large meeting rooms inside a cafeteria or a hotel lobby These relatively large open spaces are defined as polygons and are called Open Spaces in ESS To create Open Spaces select the Open Space tool and keep left clicking the map to define the Open Space polygon Once finished double click the left mouse button or click the right mouse button You can choose to draw either Free Form Open Spaces or Rectangular Open Spaces To draw Rectangular Open Spaces click on the down arrow next to the Open Space tool to select the Rectangular Open Space tool The Open Space will be displayed in red until it is valid If this is your case make sure that there are no overlapping Open Spaces Rails drawn over Open Spaces or Open Spaces that are not connected by any Rails Rails drawn over Open Spac
62. red access points are named by the AP brand such as Nortel Cisco or Siemens The simulated APs are named using running numbers by default To rename the APs simply click on the name field and type in a custom AP name 3 7 6 One AP several MAC addresses Joining APs Many modern access points can be configured to advertise several MAC addresses from a single physical access point This may happen when and AP is configured for multiple SSIDs for example In order for Ekahau Site Survey to work properly in multi MAC environments the MAC addresses coming from a single AP should be joined together Chapter 3 User Interface Overview 22 There s two ways to join MAC addresses Automatic and Manual Automatic Detection of Multi MAC Access Points The light weight enterprise access points working on a multi SSID mode from Cisco Aruba Symbol Nortel Trapeze Siemens Extreme and Colubris are automatically joined together by default This option can be removed from Site gt Auto Detect Multi MAC Access Points You can also adjust the auto detection to only automatically join only selected brands of access points Manual Joining of MAC Adresses If the access points are not joined together automatically they can be joined manually 1 Select all the MACs distributed from a single access point 2 Select Actions gt Join Selected Access Points The two MAC addresses are now treated as a single access point For optimal location accuracy do no
63. s When performing surveys signal measurements are continously collected and attached to the survey route In some cases where unexplained location errors or connection problems occur it may be helpful to analyze the measurement data in more detail During the survey the network adapter keeps constantly scanning the network for signal readings from the access points To see the individual signal measurements on the map select the Survey Inspector tool To view the individual measurements and analyze the survey data in more detail double click on the position of the survey route you want to inspect or right click on a Survey in the Surveys list and select Inspect A window will open displaying the recorded signal readings in the point nearest to the clicked location An orange dot on the map will indicate which measure ment point is currently analyzed The window will also show the recorded data over time for a given survey Use the Next and Pre vious buttons to move to the next and previous survey point along the survey path To analyze the measurement data for select access point s highlight the APs on the AP list in the dialog 47 Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking Accuracy Figure 5 3 Survey Inspector allows you to analyze the signal behaviour in more detail ye Survey Inspector x 2008 01 25 14 41 Device Atheros Wireless Network Adapter Packet Scheduler Miniport 00 13 64 31 ec d1 deddi4 00 19 07 05 8
64. s Points to allow Ekahau Site Survey to find the AP locations Verify that the access points are placed to their true locations Move APs to Chapter 1 Introduction their proper locations if the positions estimated by Ekahau Site Survey are significantly incorrect 5 Save the Project to Ekahau Positioning Engine and activate it The advantage of performing the previous actions is that the Project is now in the latest format which delivers improved performance with the latest Ekahau Positioning Engine 7 Chapter 2 Installation 2 Installation 2 1 System Requirements and Software Limitations The following hardware and operating system are required to run the program Windows XP 2000 or Vista Operating System 1GB RAM 2GB or more recommended for Projects larger than 300 000 square feet 1GB free hard disk space A supported Wi Fi device see below Laptop computer required for recording surveys a desktop computer is sufficient planning and analysis e Screen resolution of 1024 x 768 or higher 32 bit color quality recommended Please consider the following limitations that apply to the program e The software may become unstable if a single Project file contains more than 5000 access point MAC addresses e The software may become unstable if images larger than 5000 x 5000 pixels are used a maximum image size of 2500 x 2500 is recommended e The software may become unstable if more than 50 hours of survey data is recorded
65. ss points inaccurately To place an AP that has not been automatically placed just drag and drop the AP from the AP list to the map To find the position of a single AP click on the Drag on the map to place text in the AP list and select Automatically Place Access Point Warning The access point placement on the map has an impact to location accuracy If the APs are placed correctly on the map the accuracy is typically better but significantly erroneous locations may degrade the location accuracy Thus if the APs are placed on the map the correctness of the AP locations should be ensured prior to starting the location tracking 4 4 3 Configuring the Wi Fi device To configure your Wi Fi device go to Device gt Devices From the Devices Window you can see the connected Wi Fi devices their status and device information To activate a different Wi Fi device select the adapter from the Devices list and click Activate To configure the scan settings of the selected Wi Fi adapter click Scanning Configuration This allows you to configure e Bands Select to scan either 2 4GHz or 5GHz frequency Scanning just one band reduces the overall scan time which allows more data to be collected over time which in turn allows faster surveys e Channels Select which channels to scan on 2 4GHz by adding it to the Selected Channels list Limiting the number of channels allows faster surveys Channels will only be limited if Custom channe
66. t bind 802 11a and 802 11b g radios together 3 8 Survey List Surveys are listed in the Surveys list There are two types of Surveys 1 Calibration Surveys are used to train the Positioning Engine about the measured signal environment throughout the site Thus your calibration surveys should cover the whole area where location tracking will be used 2 Test Surveys are used for analyzing the location accuracy If you have assigned data as a Test Survey the system will use the location algorithms to post calculate the location accuracy throughout the areas covered with Test Surveys Test Surveys replace the Accuracy Analysis Test Cases in Ekahau Manager By default all the Surveys you perform are defined as Calibration surveys for Ekahau Positioning Engine Before visualizing the location tracking accuracy you need to define some surveys as Test Surveys Note A single survey can be defined as both Calibration and Test but this is not recommended as it may result in overly optimisic results in the accuracy visualizations 3 9 Zone List The Zones list shows the zones and the respective map You can edit the Zone names by double clicking on the Zone name in the list 23 Chapter 4 Creating a Project 4 Creating a Project The following steps need to be taken before location tracking can take place Add map s and set the scale Optionally group the maps into buildings Define the Environment Create Rails and Open Spa
67. t have been disabled from location tracking in Ekahau Manager will not be imported into Ekahau Site Survey 1 4 3 Ekahau RTLS 4 x esx When updating from the previous 4 x versions the following will apply e Ekahau Positioning Engine v4 0 4 1 and Ekahau Location Survey v4 0 4 1 Projects are different from Ekahau Site Survey 4 4 Projects e The latest version of Ekahau Positioning Engine is compatible with Projects from previous 4 x versions esx files however Projects created with the latest version of Ekahau Site Survey do offer optimized performance and consume less memory e Ekahau Site Survey 4 4 is compatible with previous Ekahau Location Survey 4 x Projects esx files e Ekahau Site Survey 4 4 always handles and saves the Projects in Ekahau Site Survey 4 4 format regardless of the file format version of the opened Project As a general rule update both Ekahau Site Survey and Ekahau Positioning Engine at the same time to avoid incompatibility issues When updating to the latest Ekahau Positioning Engine from versions Ekahau Positioning Engine 4 0 or 4 1 it is recommended to perform the following actions to the Positioning Model 1 Open your old Project in Ekahau Site Survey 4 4 2 Select Site gt Auto Detect Multi MAC Access Points 3 Select Automatic Binding of Access Points and ensure all the AP brands in use will be checked it is OK to have them all checked Click OK 4 Select Site gt Automatically Place Acces
68. tags you should calibrate with one The T201 tag communicates with the laptop computer running ESS via a serial cable Figure 4 12 Ekahau T201 Wi Fi Location Tag Chapter 4 Creating a Project In addition to a Ekahau T201 tag you will need Ekahau Splitter Cable The tag firmware needs to be version 1 0 7 or higher The latest Tag firmware version is stored in the firmwares folder under the installation directory Please see Ekahau T201 Tag user manual for more details on Firmware updates To configure a T201 tag 1 Connect the Ekahau T201 tag to the laptop using the Ekahau Splitter Cable 2 Turn on the tag 3 Make sure your tag firmware is version 1 0 7 or higher If not update firmware To check the tag firmware Use MS HyperTerminal or a similar communications program to access the tag CLI Type info and hit enter Check what the Software version is Refer to the T201user guide for details regarding tag firmware upgrade 4 Make sure your tag console speed is set to 57600 To check access the tag command line interface and type console speed lt enter gt To set the console speed to 57600 type console speed 57600 lt enter gt After the speed has been set re connect to the tag CLI using the 57600 console speed and type save lt enter gt For details on the tag command line interface please see the T201 user guide Start Ekahau Site Survey Go to Device Devices Select Connect T201 Select the serial port the tag is connecte
69. te Location Quality visualization This will assist in setting the proper Location Quality Filter value 5 6 9 Visualization Options and Refreshing In Ekahau Site Survey the visulizations are highly configurable However in most cases the default settings do not need to be adjusted To adjust the visualization options click the Options button next to the visualization selections Note Only the visualization options relevant to RTLS are considered here The other visualization options need not to be changed when deploying RTLS 5 6 9 1 Visualization Modes The visualization heatmaps are overlaid on the map using some amount of extrapolation because not survey every inch of the facility can be surveyed To adjust the amount of extrapolation click the Options button next to the visualization selection If the Topology Rails and Open Spaces has been defined the visualization heatmaps will be based on the rails and open spaces There are three Visualization Modes in the Ekahau Site Survey e Detailed The extrapolation is based on the width of the Rail By default the Detailed Extra polation provides low extrapolation and accurate results Does not allow adjusting the amount of extrapolation of data Use Detailed mode when in depth analysis is needed Recommended to be used with the Accuracy visualizations e Smooth Adjustable amount of detail as the user can set the extrapolation in feet or meters e Zone Zone based analysis
70. tes D eenen tag position m en sends position to application layer AP on Channel 11 Client Based Mode works with any infrastructure whereas Blink Mode saves tag battery The Blink Mode does not work with all access point brands Please refer to Ekahau Positioning Engine to see which wireless infrastructure vendors are supported When using Blink Mode it is highly recommended to survey the area with a Wi Fi tag that is operating in Blink Mode For this you will need the following e Ekahau Site Survey version 4 4 or later e Ekahau Positioning Engine version 4 4 or later e Supported wireless infrastructure contact support ekahau com for details Chapter 4 Creating a Project 36 e Wi Fi tag with a firmware version 2 0 or later e Ekahau Activator version 2 2 10 101 or later To start surveying in Blink Mode 1 Install Ekahau Positioning Engine on a desktop computer connected to your wireless network See the Ekahau Positioning Engine user guide for details 2 Ensure your wireless infrastructure is properly configured for Blink Mode see the infrastructure user guide for details 3 Ensure that you have a T301 A tag with firmware version 2 0 or higher and that you have a supported Wi Fi adapter with the appropriate Ekahau drivers installed Activate the Wi Fi tag to connect to Ekahau Positioning Engine using Ekahau Activator Configure your Ekahau Positioning Engine to receive Blink data from the wireless infrastructure
71. the location tracking was activated during these surveys For Zone Accuracy and Location Accuracy average accuracy is displayed For Map Accuracy even one incorrect location estimate will be taken as an error no averaging occurs There are two types of accuracy to visuallize e Zone Accuracy displays the accuracy inside the zones wherever Test Surveys have been conducted The Zone Accuracy is indicated as a percentage number How many percent of 49 Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking Accuracy the location estimates were calculated inside the zone when physically inside the zone during the Test survey e Location Accuracy displays the accuracy anywhere on the map wherever Review Surveys have been conducted The Location Accuracy displays also floor errors with red blue circles The miscalculated floor estimate is marked with red blue rectangle respectively Figure 5 4 The accuracy visualizations such as Location Accuracy will only be visualized where Test Surveys the yellow lines in the picture have been performed Ekahau Site Survey te Positioning Device Help q HEY al El Map Error The tracked device Map Error The tracked device was actually on this map but was mistakenly located on another map 5 6 2 Calibration Quality Have Enough Surveys Been Performed Use the Calibration Quality visualization to ensure you have recorded enough Surveys to start using location tracking The Calibra
72. tigate the expected accuracy at the Zones The Wi Fi device is expected to be located correctly when inside this zone Note Calculating the Zone Similarity takes a lot of processing power 53 Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking Accuracy 5 6 4 Number of Access Points How Much Signal Overlap is there The visualization displays the number of audible access points in each location Signal overlap is generally required for achieving high location tracking accuracy but does not quarantee high accuracy by itself Figure 5 8 Number of APs visualizes the AP overlap 7 audible ars 5 6 5 Strongest Access Point With which AP does the Client Associate The client devices have a tendency of associating with the access point with the strongest signal strength by default To visualize which AP is the strongest in each location use the Strongest AP visualization Strongest access point can thus be used for load balancing purposes and to predict roaming pattern of client devices Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking 54 Accuracy Figure 5 9 Strongest Access Point visualization Floor 1 z Alignment Point 1 Alignment Point 2 No audible access points Red color shows where this AP is the strongest one Orange color shows where this AP is the strongest one The area where each AP is the strongest is color coded per AP e ON 5 6 6 Signal Strength How is the Signal Coverage The
73. tion Quality visualization shows how well the surveyed data covers the Rails and Open Spaces The surveyed data needs to be close to the Rails and Open Spaces in order to be used as a part of the model If the surveyed data is too far from the Rail the Calibration Quality will be low Some signal prediction will occur so that every inch of the facility does not need to be calibrated Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking 50 Accuracy Figure 5 5 Calibration Quality shows if enough Calibration Surveys have been recorded 7_N Zi C Moderately calibrated gt i 7 A I Well Calibrated Meaning High Calibration Quality Survey Data fully covers the Rail or Open Space No need to perform more surveys in the area Moderate Calibration Quality Survey Data covers the Rail or Open Space but more Surveys may be required for high accuracy Low Calibration Quality Survey Data does not cover the Rail or Open Space More Surveys are required for location tracking to work Tip If Calibration Quality is low even though you have collected enough data ensure that the Rails and Open Spaces are drawn close to the Survey routes 5 6 2 1 Rail Width How is the Surveyed Data Used on the Rail When the location tracking is started the surveyed signal data is associated to the nearest Rails and Open Spaces However Survey data that is located far from any Rail or Open Space will not be used in
74. tions e To select all the access points choose Actions gt Select All Please note that if a search is used this action will only select all the searched access points To deselect all access points select Actions gt Select None e To quickly select the APs with a given SSID channel or band click Quick Select and click on the SSID channel or band to select only the appropriate APs You can also select only simulated or measured access points If you select multiple criteria such as SSID and band only the access points matching all the criteria will be selected Chapter 3 User Interface Overview 20 3 7 2 Searching for Access Points Use the Search text box to search one or more APs Only the APs matching the search criteria will be displayed To display all access points either delete the search field or click on the X button next to the search field The following search options are available Example Search Terms Description 00 17 0f 00 17 0f 12 ab a1 Search by a partial or complete MAC address Nortel Siemens Simulated AP 4 Search by the name of the AP The name is defaulted to the vendor with measured access points guest tsunami Search by the SSID the AP is on 802 11a 802 11b Search by the 802 11 standard the AP supports my Search only the APs selected as My other Search only the APs not selected as My 3 7 3 Limiting the Access Points to Visualize You can limit the access points to
75. umentation are governed by the terms set forth in your license agreement Your use of this Ekahau software contrary to the terms of this User Manual may void the warranty if any described in your license agreement Under no circumstances shall Ekahau be responsible for any loss of data or income or any special incidental punitive consequential or indirect damages howsoever caused You may not use any Ekahau software or hardware products in hazardous environments such as operation of nuclear facilities aircraft navigation or control environments containing high levels of dust or mines or in Life Critical Solutions unless you have advised Ekahau that they will be used in a hazardous environment or in a Life Critical Solution and Ekahau has had an opportunity to evaluate further whether and on what terms and conditions the software or hardware products may be licensed for your intended use The term Life Critical Solution means an application software package or hardware device whose functioning or malfunctioning may result directly or indirectly in physical injury or loss of human life Ekahau tags must always be used in compliance with the user environment and instructions con tained in the User Manual for the tags Copyright Ekahau Inc 2000 2008 All rights reserved iii Ekahau Site Survey User Guide for De ploying Ekahau RTLS Table of Contents L INMPOGNICHON lariana 1 AIRES ON 1 1 2 ERAN AU Site SUC Vi nia ele
76. urvey points perhaps because the location was not clicked properly in some locations To move or delete Survey Points right click on a survey point and select Move Survey Point or Delete Survey Point When you delete a Survey point from a survey the Survey will be split into two 4 4 2 Placing Access Points on the Map Ekahau Site Survey is able to place access points on the map automatically after the survey These are estimated locations You can disable the feature by unchecking the Automatically Place APs After Survey checkbox during the survey If you have disabled the Automatic Placement you can manually force the automatic on demand placement of access points from Site gt Place Access Points Automatically The AP locations guessed by ESS may not be exact You can move the AP to its exact location by simply dragging the AP to the desired location when using the Edit tool After an AP has been manually moved the Auto Locate features will not try to locate the AP any more Also if you exit the program or re open the project the current AP locations will be fixed and the Auto Locate Chapter 4 Creating a Project 32 features will not try to locate those APs any more However all the newly discovered APs will still be automatically located The Automatic Placement will only try to locate the access points that are well audible surveyed signal strength has exceeded 50dBm in one or more locations This is to avoid locating the acce
77. ust be set 45 Chapter 5 Analyzing Location Tracking Accuracy 3 Use the Calibration Quality visualization to ensure that you have surveyed throughout the tracking area 4 Use the Location Coverage and Number of APs visualizations to identify the locations that may not have enough signal overlap If no such locations are found you can jump directly to step 8 5 The next step is to find out if the errors are random or constant Random errors can be taken out of the equation by conducting more surveys Conduct more surveys at least two more surveys in each location in the erroneous areas 6 Select some of the new surveys as Calibration surveys and some as Test Surveys Deselect all the old surveys 7 Analyze the results using the Accuracy views If the errors still occur in the same locations the errors are constant If not the errors were random and resurveying the area helped 8 Ifthe errors are constant you will need to move or add more access points and recalibrate after changing the infrastructure As a general rule move or preferably add an access point to an area where intolerable location errors occur 5 5 1 In depth Accuracy Analysis Using Error Vectors In RTLS whenever the Wi Fi device is able to measure signal strength readings the Location Tracking Algorithm calculates a position a location estimate for the device When analyzing the accuracy in ESS the Test Survey route that the user has indicated durin
78. y with the laptop computer running ESS To survey with the T301 A tags you will need Chapter 4 Creating a Project 34 Revision D or later T301 A A tag with firmware version 2 1 0 or higher By default the tags shipped together with this version of ESS are revision D or later You can ensure the revision by Activating the tag to the Ekahau Positioning Engine and going to the tag properties page of Ekahau Positioning Engine The Type must be 7301D or later Also check that the Firmware Version field is 2 1 0 or later A supported external Wi Fi adapter Ekahau Activator version 2 0 or later To configure a T301 A tag 1 2 Oo OND Ensure that you have a Revision D T301 A tag with firmware version 2 1 0 or higher and that you have a supported Wi Fi adapter with the appropriate Ekahau drivers installed Activate the tag to Survey Mode using Ekahau Activator Start Ekahau Activator make sure you ve exited ESS before using Ekahau Activator Choose the Survey Activation tab Generally you do not need to modify the Survey Mode settings The Destination MAC Address is the MAC address of the wireless adapter you wish to use while surveying with the tag The Destination Channel is the channel used for communicating between the wireless adapter and the tag The network and scanning information is inserted in the Scan Settings tab First SSID is the primary SSID that will be used for communication between the tag and the Location Server T
79. you do not see anything on the survey route while performing the survey check your network adapter and network adapter driver Tip 31 Chapter 4 Creating a Project Keep the surveys fairly short to allow more flexibility for deleting and modifying the survey data An optimal survey length varies from a few rooms to a wing of a building Right click to end the survey every now and then and continue surveying by simply left clicking on the map again There is no need to manually create a new survey the current survey is ended with a right click and a new survey is created automatically when you continue surveying Warning Do not insert or remove network adapters or other devices during the survey Tip For accurate location tracking it is important that you record surveys throughout all the areas where the location tracking is expected to be used These areas should also be covered with Rails or Open Spaces For maximal location tracking accuracy it is recommended to collect as much survey data as possible Surveying all areas carefully is recommended for optimal system calibration For hallways Ekahau recommends a two way calibration In addition to caliration surveys it is recommended to collect test surveys Test surveys should cover about 25 of the area and these surveys should be assigned as Test from the surveys table 4 4 1 Moving and Deleting Survey Points After the survey it may be necessary to move or delete S
80. you wish to continue in the evaluation mode and upgrade the license later go to Help gt About and select Upgrade License 11 Chapter 2 Installation After registering the software the network adapter will be checked every time the software is started If the network adapter is removed or disabled the software will not start The evaluation mode has the following limitations e The software will expire after 30 days e Several visualizations have been disabled Chapter 2 Installation 12 13 Chapter 3 User Interface Overview 3 User Interface Overview The main elements of the user interface are shown in the image below Figure 3 1 The main elements of the user interface xample Project _X esx Ekahau Site Survey Edit View Site Positioning Device Help SBEBB 00 0b 86 ac a1 10 1 C _00 1f 9e 8d 1c 61 3 in 7 ho_Furritui OST we A bio toimisto4_h _fumitul M Toolbar and Menus Visualization selections AP Survey and Zone lists Building View available in Pro version but not relevant when only deploying RTLS 4 Survey and RTLS tabs Planning tab available in Pro version but not relevant when only deploying RTLS 5 Map View uNa 3 1 Map View The map view is the most commonly used view in ESS Use the map view to e Perform Surveys click on your current location frequently on the map to associate the signal measurements with a location e Defi

Ekahau Site Survey User Guide for Deploying Ekahau RTLS

Contents

Download Pdf Manuals

Related Search

Related Contents