We have seen that  calibrating (or fingerprinting) is the process of recording the WiFi / BLE signals that Situm needs to operate in a building. Situm Mapping Tool is the application that allows any user to perform the calibration process:  the user has to walk around the building, pinpointing where he is every few meters in the app screen.



Calibration configuration: WiFi, BLE, or both


First of all, you should configure whether you want to record WiFi, BLE, or both signals when you calibrate. By default, both WiFi and BLE are enabled, but we encourage you to read this article to understand the recommended options for your case.  


Please take into account:




The Calibration Screen


First of all, you should go to the Calibration Screen. To do this, (1) open the application drawer by clicking on the hamburger menu. Then, (2) click on "Calibration" (right image).  At this point, you will be on the Calibration Screen. You will be able to:

  1. Visualize all your buildings on top of the floorplan and search for them using the Search Bar.
  2. Visualize all the floorplans of each building.
  3. Use the Calibration View Selector to visualize:
    1. The paths that have been calibrated.
    2. The WiFi signals that have been captured in previous calibrations.
    3. The BLE signals that have been captured in previous calibrations.
  4. Modify the Calibration Path width.




Starting the calibration


In order to start a calibration, you should click over your current location on the floorplan and start walking straight at a steady pace.  From time to time, you should click again on the map. Typically:

  1. At every turn.
  2. At every recognizable point.
  3. At least, every few dozen meters 10-20 meters (although experimented "calibrators" usually perform calibrations with segments of up to 100 meters).  


As you can see in the following figure, Situm Mapping Tool connects all the calibration points with straight lines and interpolates all the meassurements between them.  Please read the following guide on how to perform a good calibration.




You can see in the previous image that, at any time, you can: 

  • Save your calibration. This will stop the data recording process and upload all the data to Situm cloud. 
  • Delete the last calibration point. In case you misplaced your position in the map, you can undo it. This will also stop the data recording, and allow you to decide whether to save or erase the calibration. 
  • Delete the calibration. In case you are not happy with your calibration session, you can just delete it. This will not delete previously saved calibrations from the cloud. 


Saving the calibration


When you (1) click on the "Save" (floppy disk) button, the calibration session will be stopped. Then, (2) a summary of the calibration session results will appear, indicating:

  1. The number of marked points: too few points marked will trigger a warning sign.
  2. The distance covered during the calibration session.
  3. The total number of WiFi APs and scans received.
  4. The total number of BLE beacons and BLE scans received.  


Based on this information, you can decide whether to save or discard this calibration. If you click on Save, the calibration will be saved on the device (3). The cloud icon (3) indicates that the calibration is being uploaded to the cloud; you may also click on this button to upload the calibration manually. When the upload finishes (4), a message will be shown accordingly and you will be able to proceed with the next calibration session.  





Visualizing the calibration data


Once the calibration is saved, you will be able to see the results, just like in the Dashboard. On the Calibration View Selector, click on (1) the Paths selector to see the areas that have already been calibrated. You may also click on (2) the WiFi/BLE selector to see how many WiFi/BLE signal points have been captured: green stands for a high signal data density and red for a low one.  You should aim to cover most of your building "in green". Please read the following article on how to maximize the quality of your calibrations.