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ControlBit UWB

Indoor positioning that works like GPS — but inside buildings. GPS signals don't reach indoors, so you can't tell where things are. This system fixes that.

System overview — ceiling anchors + tag + dashboard

How does it work? — one sentence

Anchors mounted on the ceiling or walls each measure their distance to the tag that a person is carrying; combine those distances and you know where the tag is.

       Anchor B
        ●
       /│\
      / │ \
     /  │  \    Each anchor measures its distance to the tag.
    /   │   \   With 3 distances you can pinpoint one location.
   /  Tag    \
  ●----●----●
Anchor A   Anchor C

A handful of small boxes on the building act as the GPS satellites would.

What's in the system?

Part Role Where it lives
Anchor boards Measure distance to tag, ship readings over Wi-Fi/Ethernet Mounted on ceiling/walls. Usually 3–8 of them
Tag The thing being located Carried by a person, attached to an asset
Dashboard app Reads the anchor readings and draws the tag on a map Runs on a PC, phone, or browser
MQTT broker Relays messages between anchors and the dashboard A company server or a public broker

📷 [image placeholder] A photo of one anchor board next to one tag, showing the size difference. Filename: assets/anchor_and_tag.png

Where can you use it?

  • Warehouses / logistics — track forklifts, workers, carts in real time
  • Factories — safe-zone access control, equipment tracking
  • Hospitals / care homes — patient, medical-device, wheelchair location
  • Retail / exhibitions — visitor flow, VIP routing
  • Construction sites — personnel positioning, safety
  • Labs — anti-loss for expensive equipment

Anywhere indoor that GPS doesn't reach.

Accuracy and range

Item Value
Position accuracy 10–30 cm with 4+ anchors
Anchor ↔ tag range tens of metres with line-of-sight
Update rate about 1 reading per second (tunable)
Concurrent tags up to 64 (firmware setting)

Accuracy depends on anchor geometry and the site (walls, metal). More anchors that surround the tag = better accuracy.

Getting started

If this is your first time, follow these in order:

  1. Quick Start — from unboxing to seeing your first dot in 5 steps
  2. Dashboard App — how to view positions on screen
  3. Detailed Setup — MQTT / Wi-Fi / OTA / button options
  4. DIP Switch Reference — how to give each anchor a unique ID