阅读说明：本技术 定位方法和系统 (Positioning method and system ) 是由 徐易扬 于 2019-03-28 设计创作，主要内容包括：本申请实施例公开了一种定位方法和系统。所述定位方法包括：发送定位请求以请求定位目标物体；通过探测元件接收所述目标物体响应于所述定位请求发出的电磁波；展示所述电磁波反映的所述目标物体位置的信息。本申请采用光电探测器技术,接收目标物体发出的电磁波,可以快速准确定位目标物体。(The embodiment of the application discloses a positioning method and a positioning system. The positioning method comprises the following steps: sending a positioning request to request positioning of a target object; receiving, by a detection element, an electromagnetic wave emitted by the target object in response to the positioning request; and displaying the information of the position of the target object reflected by the electromagnetic wave. The photoelectric detector technology is adopted, electromagnetic waves emitted by the target object are received, and the target object can be quickly and accurately positioned.)

1. A method of positioning, comprising:

sending a positioning request to request positioning of a target object;

receiving, by a detection element, an electromagnetic wave emitted by the target object in response to the positioning request;

and displaying the information of the position of the target object reflected by the electromagnetic wave.

2. The positioning method according to claim 1, wherein the information showing the position of the target object reflected by the electromagnetic wave comprises information showing the signal strength of the electromagnetic wave.

3. The positioning method according to claim 1, further comprising:

and judging whether the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave exceeds a set threshold value or not, and sending out a prompt in response to the fact that the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave exceeds the set threshold value.

4. The positioning method according to claim 1, further comprising:

determining a position of the target object on map data based on the electromagnetic wave;

the information showing the position of the target object reflected by the electromagnetic wave comprises:

and displaying the map data containing the position mark of the target object.

5. The positioning method according to claim 4, wherein the determining the position of the target object on the map data based on the electromagnetic wave comprises:

acquiring the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave detected by the detection element at least two different positions;

determining the position of the target object relative to the detection element according to the change of the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave when the position of the detection element changes;

determining a position of the probe element on the map data;

the position of the target object on the map data is determined based on the position of the detection element on the map data and the position of the target object relative to the detection element.

6. The positioning method according to claim 1, wherein the electromagnetic wave is invisible electromagnetic wave or invisible light.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the invisible electromagnetic wave is a radio wave, a microwave, an infrared ray, an ultraviolet ray, an x-ray or a gamma ray.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the detecting element comprises at least one semiconductor material, each semiconductor material being adapted to detect electromagnetic waves in a corresponding wavelength range.

9. The positioning method according to claim 1, wherein the target object is a vehicle.

10. A positioning system, comprising:

the sending module is used for sending a positioning request to request for positioning a target object;

the detection module is used for receiving electromagnetic waves sent by the target object in response to the positioning request through a detection element;

and the output module is used for displaying the information of the position of the target object reflected by the electromagnetic wave.

11. The location system of claim 10, wherein the output module is further configured to present information reflecting a signal strength of the electromagnetic wave.

12. The positioning system of claim 10, further comprising:

the processing module is used for judging whether the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave exceeds a set threshold value or not;

the output module is also used for responding to the fact that the signal intensity of the electromagnetic waves exceeds the set threshold value and sending out a prompt.

13. The positioning system of claim 10, further comprising:

a processing module for determining a position of the target object on map data based on the electromagnetic wave;

the presentation module is also for displaying map data including the target object location marker.

14. The positioning system of claim 13, wherein the processing module is further configured to:

acquiring the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave detected by the detection element at least two different positions;

determining the position of the target object relative to the detection element according to the change of the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave when the position of the detection element changes;

determining a position of the probe element on the map data;

the position of the target object on the map data is determined based on the position of the detection element on the map data and the position of the target object relative to the detection element.

15. The positioning system of claim 10, wherein the electromagnetic waves are invisible electromagnetic waves or invisible light signals.

16. The location system of claim 15, wherein the invisible electromagnetic waves are radio waves, microwaves, infrared rays, ultraviolet rays, x-rays, or gamma rays.

17. The positioning system of claim 10, wherein the detection element comprises at least one semiconductor material, each semiconductor material being configured to detect electromagnetic waves in a corresponding wavelength range.

18. The positioning system of claim 10, wherein the target object is a vehicle.

19. A positioning device comprising at least one storage medium and at least one processor;

the at least one storage medium is configured to store computer instructions;

the at least one processor is configured to execute the computer instructions to implement the positioning method according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

20. A computer readable medium, said storage medium storing computer instructions which, when executed by a processor, implement the positioning method according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

21. An object, comprising a controller, a communication module and an electromagnetic wave signal source;

the controller is in signal connection with the communication module and the electromagnetic wave signal source;

the communication module is used for receiving an instruction and transmitting the instruction to the controller;

the controller is used for controlling the electromagnetic wave signal source to emit electromagnetic waves based on the instruction.

22. The object of claim 21, wherein the object is a vehicle.

23. The object according to claim 21, wherein the electromagnetic wave signal source is an invisible electromagnetic wave signal source or an invisible light source.

24. The object according to claim 23, wherein the source of the invisible electromagnetic wave signal is a source of a radio wave signal, a source of a microwave signal, an infrared source, an ultraviolet source, an x-ray source, or a gamma ray source.

25. An object according to claim 21, characterized in that a photosensitive material is arranged on the object for converting invisible electromagnetic waves into visible light.

26. A method of positioning, comprising:

receiving a positioning request for positioning a target object;

and sending an instruction to the target object to instruct the target object to send out the electromagnetic wave.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the object is a vehicle.

28. The method according to claim 26, wherein the electromagnetic wave is invisible electromagnetic wave or invisible light.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the invisible electromagnetic wave is a radio wave, a microwave, an infrared ray, an ultraviolet ray, an x-ray, or a gamma ray.

30. A positioning system, comprising:

the receiving module is used for receiving a positioning request for requesting to position a target object;

and the instruction output module is used for sending an instruction to the target object and indicating the target object to send out electromagnetic waves.

31. The positioning system of claim 30, wherein the target object is a vehicle.

32. The positioning system of claim 30, wherein the electromagnetic waves are invisible electromagnetic waves or invisible light.

33. The location system of claim 32, wherein the invisible electromagnetic waves are radio waves, microwaves, infrared rays, ultraviolet rays, x-rays, or gamma rays.

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of positioning technology, and more particularly, to a method for positioning an object by receiving electromagnetic waves using a photodetector.

Background

With the rapid development of shared platforms such as shared vehicles, electric vehicles, shared automobiles and the like, more and more users use vehicles through the shared platforms, the operators of the shared platforms need to perform regular maintenance or other management on the shared vehicles, and sometimes, the operators need to perform maintenance or other treatment on the designated shared vehicles. For the operation manager of the shared platform, it is necessary to adopt a method and a system for quickly locating vehicles for the operation manager to quickly find the specified vehicle from a large number of shared vehicles.

Disclosure of Invention

One of embodiments of the present application provides a positioning method, where the positioning method includes: sending a positioning request to request positioning of a target object; receiving, by a detection element, an electromagnetic wave emitted by the target object in response to the positioning request; and displaying the information of the position of the target object reflected by the electromagnetic wave.

In some embodiments, presenting information of the target object location reflected by the electromagnetic wave may include presenting information reflecting a signal strength of the electromagnetic wave.

In some embodiments, the positioning method may determine whether the signal strength of the electromagnetic wave exceeds a set threshold, and issue a reminder in response to the signal strength of the electromagnetic wave exceeding the set threshold.

In some embodiments, the positioning method may further determine a position of the target object on the map data based on the electromagnetic wave; the information showing the position of the target object reflected by the electromagnetic wave may further include: and displaying the map data containing the position mark of the target object.

In some embodiments, determining the location of the target object on the map data based on the electrical signal may include: acquiring signal strengths of the electromagnetic waves detected by a detection element at least two different positions; determining the position of the target object relative to the detection element according to the change of the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave when the position of the detection element changes; determining a position of the probe element on map data; the position of the target object on the map data is determined based on the position of the detection element on the map data and the position of the target object relative to the detection element.

In some embodiments, the electromagnetic wave is invisible electromagnetic wave or invisible light.

In some embodiments, the invisible electromagnetic wave is a radio wave, a microwave, an infrared ray, an ultraviolet ray, an x-ray, or a gamma ray.

In some embodiments, the detection element comprises at least one semiconductor material, each semiconductor material being configured to detect electromagnetic waves within a certain wavelength range.

In some embodiments, the target object may be a vehicle.

One of the embodiments of the present application provides a positioning system, including: the sending module is used for sending a positioning request to request for positioning a target object; the detection module is used for receiving electromagnetic waves sent by the target object in response to the positioning request through a detection element; and the output module is used for displaying the information of the position of the target object reflected by the electromagnetic wave.

In some embodiments, the output module may also be used to present information reflecting the signal strength of the electromagnetic wave.

In some embodiments, the positioning system may further comprise: a processing module for determining a position of the target object on map data based on the electromagnetic wave; the display module can also be used for displaying the map data containing the position mark of the target object.

In some embodiments, the processing module may be further operable to: acquiring signal strengths of the electromagnetic waves detected by the detection element at least two different positions; determining the position of the target object relative to the detection element according to the change of the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave when the position of the detection element changes; determining a position of the probe element on the map data; the position of the target object on the map data is determined based on the position of the detection element on the map data and the position of the target object relative to the detection element.

In some embodiments, the electromagnetic wave is invisible electromagnetic wave or invisible light.

In some embodiments, the invisible electromagnetic wave may be a radio wave, a microwave, an infrared ray, an ultraviolet ray, an x-ray, or a gamma ray.

In some embodiments, the detection element comprises at least one semiconductor material, each semiconductor material being configured to detect electromagnetic waves within a certain wavelength range.

In some embodiments, the target object may be a vehicle.

One embodiment of the present application provides a positioning apparatus, including at least one storage medium and at least one processor; the at least one storage medium may be used to store computer instructions; the at least one processor may be configured to execute the computer instructions to implement any of the above-described positioning methods.

One of the embodiments of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores computer instructions, and when the computer instructions are executed by a processor, the computer instructions implement any one of the above positioning methods.

One embodiment of the present application provides an object, which includes a controller, a communication module, and an electromagnetic wave signal source; the controller is in signal connection with the communication module and the electromagnetic wave signal source; the communication module is used for receiving an instruction and transmitting the instruction to the controller; the controller is used for controlling the electromagnetic wave signal source to emit electromagnetic waves based on the instruction.

In some embodiments, the object may be a vehicle.

In some embodiments, the electromagnetic wave signal source is a non-visible electromagnetic wave signal source or a non-visible light source.

In some embodiments, the source of the invisible electromagnetic wave signal is a source of a radio wave signal, a source of a microwave signal, an infrared source, an ultraviolet source, an x-ray source, or a gamma ray source.

In some embodiments, a photosensitive material is disposed on the object for converting invisible electromagnetic waves into visible light.

Drawings

The present application will be further explained by way of exemplary embodiments, which will be described in detail by way of the accompanying drawings. These embodiments are not intended to be limiting, and in these embodiments like numerals are used to indicate like structures, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of modules that may be included or used in a vehicle according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of a mechanical configuration that may be included or used in a vehicle according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an exemplary mobile device for implementing a dedicated system of the subject technology;

FIG. 4 is an exemplary flow chart of a positioning method according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 5 is an exemplary block diagram of a positioning system according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 6 is an exemplary flow chart of a method of determining a location of a target object on map data according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 7 illustrates an exemplary flow chart of a positioning method according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 8 is an exemplary block diagram of a positioning system according to some embodiments of the present application; and

FIG. 9 illustrates an object according to some embodiments of the present application.

Detailed Description

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. It is obvious that the drawings in the following description are only examples or embodiments of the application, from which the application can also be applied to other similar scenarios without inventive effort for a person skilled in the art. Unless otherwise apparent from the context, or otherwise indicated, like reference numbers in the figures refer to the same structure or operation.

It should be understood that "system", "device", "unit" and/or "module" as used herein is a method for distinguishing different components, elements, parts, portions or assemblies at different levels. However, other words may be substituted by other expressions if they accomplish the same purpose.

As used in this application and the appended claims, the terms "a," "an," "the," and/or "the" are not intended to be inclusive in the singular, but rather are intended to be inclusive in the plural unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In general, the terms "comprises" and "comprising" merely indicate that steps and elements are included which are explicitly identified, that the steps and elements do not form an exclusive list, and that a method or apparatus may include other steps or elements.

Flow charts are used herein to illustrate operations performed by systems according to embodiments of the present application. It should be understood that the preceding or following operations are not necessarily performed in the exact order in which they are performed. Rather, the various steps may be processed in reverse order or simultaneously. Meanwhile, other operations may be added to the processes, or a certain step or several steps of operations may be removed from the processes.

The positioning method and the positioning system have wide application, and can be used for positioning various objects, such as vehicles, communication base stations, trolleys, pets and the like. In some cases it may also be used to locate personnel, for example in a field search and rescue to locate people in distress. It should be noted that although the positioning method and system of the present application are described in many places below in connection with a vehicle (particularly a bicycle), the positioning method and system of the present application are not limited to use with a vehicle.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of modules that may be included or used in a vehicle according to some embodiments of the present application. In some embodiments, the vehicle 100 may be applied to personal trips, shared transportation services, rental services, network appointment services, express services, take-away services, and the like. In some embodiments, vehicle 100 may include at least a machine configuration 110, a control module 120, a drive module 130, a detection/location module 140, a network/interaction module 150, and an energy module 160.

In some embodiments, the mechanical construct 110 may be various structural components including the body of the vehicle 100, such as a frame, wheels, seats, locks, lighting systems, speakers, dashboards, and the like. In some embodiments, the vehicle 100 may be an electric vehicle, an electric bicycle, an electric motorcycle, a balance car, an electric skateboard, an electric tricycle, a recreational vehicle, an unmanned vehicle, or the like. In some embodiments, control module 120, drive module 130, detection/location module 140, network/interaction module 150, and energy module 160 may be disposed on machine construct 110. In some embodiments, the server 170 may be a local server disposed on the machine structure 110 to interact with the access control module 120, the drive module 130, the detection/location module 140, the network/interaction module 150, and the energy module 160 via a wireless or wired network. In some embodiments, the server 170 may be located outside of the mechanical configuration 110, remotely accessing the control module 120, the drive module 130, the detection/location module 140, the network/interaction module 150, and the energy module 160 via a wireless or wired network.

In some embodiments, the control module 120 may be used to control other modules on the vehicle 100 to implement the use functions of the vehicle 100. In some embodiments, the manner of control may be centralized or distributed, either wired or wireless. In some embodiments, the control module 120 may execute program instructions in the form of one or more processors. In some embodiments, control module 120 may receive data and/or information sent by drive module 130, detection/location module 140, network/interaction module 150, energy module 160, and server 170, and in some embodiments, control module 120 may send instructions to drive module 130, detection/location module 140, network/interaction module 150, energy module 160, and server 170. For example, the control module 120 may acquire and process data and/or information collected by the detection/location module 140. In some embodiments, the control module 120 may receive the vehicle status information or signals reflecting user operations output by the detection/location module 140. The state information may be speed, positioning information, power level, on/off of a vehicle lock, on/off of a lighting system on the vehicle, a state of a brake on the vehicle, a state of an instrument panel on the vehicle, and the like. In some embodiments, the signal reflecting the user operation may be pressure data experienced by a portion of the vehicle, a user's power assist operation, or the like. For another example, the control module 120 may control the driving module 130 to enable activation or deactivation of the driving device. As another example, the control module 120 may control the energy module 160 to effect charging or discharging. In some embodiments, the control module 120 may communicate information with the network/interaction module 150, receive information from a user terminal, an extranet, or a remote server, or send information to a user terminal, an extranet, or a remote server. For example, the control module 120 may communicate with the network/interaction module 150 to implement human-computer interaction, such as obtaining user authentication or identification information, receiving user instructions, and feeding back information to the user. In some embodiments, the control module 120 may include one or more sub-controllers (e.g., a single core processing device or a multi-core processing device). By way of example only, the drive controller may include an Electronic Control Unit (ECU), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), an Application Specific Instruction Processor (ASIP), a Graphics Processor (GPU), a Physical Processor (PPU), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), a programmable logic circuit (PLD), a microcontroller unit, a Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC), a microprocessor, or the like, or any combination thereof.

In some embodiments, the drive module 130 may be used to power a vehicle. In some embodiments, the drive module 130 includes at least a drive device and a drive controller. In some embodiments, the drive means may comprise one or more sources of drive power. In some embodiments, the drive power source may be a hybrid drive that is one or a combination of fuel-powered, electrically powered, and human powered. In some embodiments, the driving force source may include a motor driven with electric power. In some embodiments, the motor may be one or a combination of dc motor, ac induction motor, permanent magnet motor, switched reluctance motor, and the like. In some examples, the drive module 130 may include one or more motors. In some embodiments, the drive controller is used to control the drive device. For example, the drive controller may control the turning on or off of the motor. For another example, the drive controller may control the output power of the motor. In some embodiments, the drive controller may include one or more sub-controllers (e.g., a single core processing device or a multi-core processing device). By way of example only, the driver controller may include a Central Processing Unit (CPU), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), an Application Specific Instruction Processor (ASIP), a Graphics Processor (GPU), a Physical Processor (PPU), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), a programmable logic circuit (PLD), a microcontroller unit, a Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC), a microprocessor, the like, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, the drive module 130 may interact with other modules of the vehicle 100 in signals. As an example, the driving controller in the driving module 130 can interact with the detection/positioning module 140 by signals, and receive the motion speed of the vehicle output by the detection/positioning module 140 to control the output power of the motor. Alternatively, the driving module 130 may perform signal interaction with the server 170, and receive an instruction from the server 170 or transmit a status signal of the driving device to the server 170.

In some embodiments, the detection/location module 140 is used to collect and detect operational data and/or information of the vehicle 100 to provide relevant data and/or information to the control module 120 and the drive module 130. In some embodiments, detection/location module 140 may include a detection device and/or a location device. In some embodiments, the detection device may include one or more sensors. In some embodiments, the sensor may include one or a combination of velocity sensors, acceleration sensors, displacement sensors, pedaling force sensors, torque sensors, pressure sensors, battery temperature sensors, and the like. In some embodiments, the detection device may further include a power detection device, a lock switch detection device, a communication detection device, a fault detection device, and the like to detect the operation state of the vehicle 100. In some embodiments, the positioning device may be used to determine positioning information related to the vehicle 100. For example, current position information, traveling route information, car rental point information, nearby car return point information, and the like. In some embodiments, the positioning device may be a Global Positioning System (GPS), global navigation satellite system (GLONASS), COMPASS navigation system (COMPASS), beidou navigation satellite system, galileo positioning system, quasi-zenith satellite system (QZSS), or the like. In some embodiments, the location device may send the information to the network/interaction module 150, the control module 120, the drive module 130, the energy module 160, and the server 170.

In some embodiments, the network/interaction module 150 may be a network module and/or an interaction module for the exchange of data and/or information. In some embodiments, one or more components in the vehicle 100 (e.g., the control module 120, the drive module 130, the detection/location module 140, the energy module 160) may interact with the outside world for information via the network/interaction module 150. In some embodiments, the network/interaction module may communicate with a user terminal, an extranet, or a remote server. In some embodiments, network/interaction module 150 may be used for the exchange of data and/or information during human-computer interaction. For example, the network/interaction module 150 may be used in a car rental service, acquiring user information (for performing authentication and identification), receiving a user instruction (e.g., unlocking a car lock and returning a car) or feeding back information to a user (e.g., notifying the user of the current speed and driving route), and so on. In some embodiments, the network/interaction module may receive instructions from the server 170 to turn on the detection/location module 140. In some embodiments, the network/interaction module 150 may be any type of wired or wireless network. For example, the network/interaction module 150 may include a cable network, a wired network, a fiber optic network, a telecommunications network, an intranet, the internet, a Local Area Network (LAN), a Wide Area Network (WAN), a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), a Metropolitan Area Network (MAN), a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), a bluetooth network, a ZigBee network, a Near Field Communication (NFC) network, the like, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, the network/interaction module 150 may include one or more network access points. For example, the network/interaction module 150 may comprise a wired or wireless network access point, such as a base station and/or an internet switching point. In some embodiments, the network/interaction module may also include output and input devices, such as a display screen, a microphone, a sound, and the like.

In some embodiments, energy source module 160 is used to provide energy to other modules in vehicle 100, such as providing power to other modules in vehicle 100. In some embodiments, the energy module 160 may provide the electrical power source via an energy storage device, an electrical generation device, or a combination of energy storage and electrical generation. In some embodiments, the energy storage device may include one or more batteries. In some embodiments, the energy storage device may be charged by an external power source or by a power generation device. In some embodiments, the power generation device may include one or more generators. In some embodiments, the generator may employ one or more of a combination of energy conversion devices such as manpower, light, heat conduction, wind, nuclear, etc. In some embodiments, the energy module 160 may detect the state of its charge, battery temperature, whether charging is required, whether charging is complete, etc. through the detection/location module 140, and receive instructions from the control module 120. In some embodiments, energy module 160 may interact with the outside world for data and/or information via network/interaction module 150. In some embodiments, the energy module 160 may also interact with the server 170 directly in signals or provide energy to the server 170.

In some embodiments, the server 170 can be used to process information and/or data related to the vehicle 100. The server 170 may be a stand-alone server or a group of servers. The set of servers can be centralized or distributed (e.g., server 170 can be a distributed system). The server 170 may be regional or remote in some embodiments. For example, the server 170 may access information and/or data stored in the control module 120, the drive module 130, the detection/location module 140, and the energy module 160 via the network/interaction module 150. In some embodiments, the server 170 may be directly connected to the control module 120, the drive module 130, the detection/location module 140, and the energy module 160 to access information and/or data stored therein. In some embodiments, the server 170 may execute on a cloud platform. For example, the cloud platform may include one or any combination of a private cloud, a public cloud, a hybrid cloud, a community cloud, a decentralized cloud, an internal cloud, and the like. In some embodiments, the server 170 may be a local server disposed on the vehicle 100 and may communicate information directly with the control module 120, the driving module 130, the detection/location module 140, and the energy module 160, and with the user via the network/interaction module 150. In some embodiments, server 170 may include a processing device or a storage device. The processing device may process data and/or information related to the vehicle 100 to perform one or more of the functions described herein. For example, the processing device may retrieve historical charging records and battery duration from the vehicle 100 to manage the battery. In some examples, the memory device may store data and/or instructions, such as user registration data, historical vehicle usage records, and the like. In some embodiments, the storage devices may store information and/or instructions for execution or use by server 170 to perform the example methods described herein. In some embodiments, the storage device may include mass storage, removable storage, volatile read-and-write memory (e.g., random access memory, RAM), read-only memory (ROM), the like, or any combination thereof.

In some embodiments, an electromagnetic wave emitting module may also be disposed on the vehicle 100 for emitting electromagnetic waves. The electromagnetic waves are used to allow the operation and maintenance personnel to find the vehicle 100. In some embodiments, the electromagnetic wave emitted by the electromagnetic wave emitting module may be received by the user terminal 180 having a certain distance from the user terminal and converted into an electrical signal. The farther the user terminal 180 is from the electromagnetic wave emitting module, the weaker the electromagnetic wave is received. In some embodiments, the electromagnetic wave transmitting module may transmit an omnidirectional electromagnetic wave, which may be received by the user terminal 180 in any direction. In some embodiments, the electromagnetic wave emitting module can emit an electromagnetic wave having a certain range of directions, for example, an outward emitted electromagnetic wave in a cone shape, and the user terminal 180 can only receive the electromagnetic wave within a certain range of directions. In some embodiments, the electromagnetic waves may be invisible electromagnetic waves or invisible light, such as radio waves, microwaves, infrared rays, ultraviolet rays, x-rays, gamma rays, and the like. The electromagnetic wave emitting module may be disposed at any suitable location of the vehicle 100, such as on a handlebar, a handlebar assembly, a front frame, a rear frame, a seat cushion assembly, etc.

The user may issue a location request through the user terminal 180 to request location of the vehicle 100. The user may also receive electromagnetic waves transmitted by the vehicle 100 through the user terminal 180. In some embodiments, the user terminal from which the user issues the positioning request is the same terminal as the user terminal receiving the electromagnetic waves. In other embodiments, the user terminal from which the user issues the positioning request and the user terminal receiving the electromagnetic waves are different user terminals that are located separately from each other. The user terminal 180 for receiving electromagnetic waves may include a detection element that may receive electromagnetic waves transmitted by the vehicle 100 (e.g., an electromagnetic wave transmission module) and convert the received electromagnetic waves into electrical signals. The detection element comprises at least one semiconductor material for detecting electromagnetic waves in different wavelength bands. In some embodiments, the user terminal 180 may include one or any combination of a mobile device 180-1, a tablet computer 180-2, a laptop computer 180-3, an automotive built-in device 180-4, and the like. In some embodiments, the mobile device 180-1 may include smart home devices, wearable devices, smart mobile devices, virtual reality devices, augmented reality devices, and the like, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, the smart furniture device may include a smart lighting device, a control device for a smart appliance, a smart monitoring device, a smart television, a smart camera, an intercom, or the like, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, the wearable device may include a smart bracelet, smart footwear, smart glasses, smart helmet, smart watch, smart clothing, smart backpack, smart accessory, or the like, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, the smart mobile device may comprise a smart phone, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a gaming device, a navigation device, a POS device, or the like, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, the metaverse device and/or the augmented reality device may include a metaverse helmet, metaverse glasses, metaverse eyewear, augmented reality helmets, augmented reality glasses, augmented reality eyewear, and the like, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, the user terminal 180 may include a device with location functionality to determine the location of the user and/or the user terminal 180.

It should be noted that the above description is merely for convenience and should not be taken as limiting the scope of the present application. It will be understood by those skilled in the art, having the benefit of the teachings of the present application, that various modifications and changes in form and detail may be made to the vehicle 100 described above without departing from such teachings. However, such changes and modifications do not depart from the scope of the present application. Specifically, each module may be distributed on different electronic components, or more than one module may be integrated on the same electronic component, or the same module may be distributed on more than one electronic component. For example, the driving module 130 and the control module 120 may be separate chips, or the electromagnetic wave emitting module may be split into a detecting module and a positioning module, or the network/interaction module may be split into a network module and an interaction module, or the detecting/positioning module 140 and the control module 120 are integrated on the same chip. In some embodiments, the control module 120, the driving module 130, the detecting/positioning module 140, the network/interaction module 150, the energy module 160, the server 170, and the electromagnetic wave emitting module may be respectively provided with a storage device, or several modules may share one storage device. Data in the storage device may be accessed between the various modules either directly or through the network/interaction module 150.

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of a mechanical configuration that may be included or used in a vehicle according to some embodiments of the present application. The vehicle 200 includes a body 210, and the body 210 may include a main frame 211, a front wheel assembly 212 coupled to the main frame 211, and a rear wheel assembly 213. The main frame 211 includes a front frame 2121 coupled to the front wheel assembly 212 and a rear frame 2131 coupled to the rear wheel assembly 213. In some embodiments, the body 210 may have disposed thereon a control module 220, a drive module 230, and an energy module 240. In some embodiments, a network/interaction module 250 is also provided on the body 210. In some embodiments, the network/interaction module 250 may be integrated on the control module 220 or on the drive module 230. In some embodiments, the body 210 may also be provided with a pedal mechanism 270, a lock device (not shown), a handlebar 280, a headlight (not shown), a tail lamp 285, a horn (not shown), a brake device 290, a meter 291, a basket 292, a seat 293, a shock absorbing device 294, and the like.

In some embodiments, any suitable location of the vehicle 200 may be provided with an electromagnetic wave emission source. For example, electromagnetic wave emitting sources may be provided at positions such as a handlebar, a main frame, a rear frame, a front frame, a cushion assembly, a pedal, and the like. The electromagnetic wave emitting source may emit an electromagnetic wave in response to a location request for the relevant person to locate the vehicle 200.

Fig. 3 is a block diagram of an exemplary mobile device 300 for implementing a dedicated system of the present technology.

As shown in fig. 3, the mobile device 300 may include a communication unit 310, a display unit 320, a Graphics Processor (GPU)330, a Central Processing Unit (CPU)340, an input/output unit 350, a memory 360, a storage unit 370, a sensor 380, and the like. The sensor 380 may include a detecting element, a positioning device, a sound sensor, an image sensor, a temperature and humidity sensor, a position sensor, a pressure sensor, a distance sensor, a speed sensor, an acceleration sensor, a gravity sensor, a displacement sensor, a moment sensor, a gyroscope, or any combination thereof. The various data collected by the sensors 380 may be used to determine the state of the mobile device 300, such as its location, orientation, ambient environmental conditions, and the like. For example, a current location and/or a movement trajectory of the mobile device 300 may be determined based on data collected by a positioning apparatus. As another example, the orientation of the mobile device 300 may be determined based on data collected by a gravity sensor and/or a gyroscope. The location of the target object may be determined based on the state of the mobile device 300. For example, based on the current location of the mobile device 300, the location of the target object may be determined. In some embodiments, operating system 361 (e.g., iOS, Android, Windows Phone, etc.) and application programs 362 may be loaded from storage unit 370 into memory 360 for execution by CPU 340. The applications 362 may include a browser or application for receiving imaging, graphics processing, audio, or other related information from the pick-up recommendation system 100. In some embodiments, the detecting element may detect the electromagnetic wave signal in the environment and output an electrical signal reflecting the intensity of the electromagnetic wave signal, and the central processor may process the electrical signal and control the display unit 320 to display the intensity of the electromagnetic wave signal to the user, and in some embodiments, the user may determine the location of the electromagnetic wave emitting source according to the intensity of the electromagnetic wave signal. In some embodiments, the central processor may further determine the position information of the electromagnetic wave emission source according to the electrical signal, and control the display unit 320 to output information indicating the position of the electromagnetic wave emission source to the user. The information displayed by the display unit includes, but is not limited to, a graphical interface, text information, and the like.

Fig. 4 is an exemplary flow chart of a positioning method according to some embodiments of the present application. In particular, the method 400 may be performed by the user terminal 180.

Step 401, sending a positioning request to request positioning of a target object. In many cases, it is difficult for people to quickly find the target object by naked eyes, so that the target object needs to be quickly positioned by the method and the system. For example, for a shared vehicle, maintenance personnel need to maintain a particular vehicle, which requires that the maintenance personnel be able to quickly locate the target vehicle. Various types of information may be included in the location request. In some embodiments, location type information (e.g., whether to locate in real time or at a fixed time) and location time information may be included in the location request. In some embodiments, the location request may include target object information to define the target object to be located. The target object information may be identification information, the identification may be represented as a number sequence, a graphic symbol, or the like, and each target object may have a unique identification, so that a unique target object may be determined by the identification. The target object information may also be batch information, and the batch may also be represented by a numerical sequence, a graphic symbol, and the like, and the same batch of target objects may be determined by a certain batch of information. For example, each vehicle in the same batch of vehicles provided by the shared single vehicle service provider has the same lot number on it from which the production lot of vehicles can be determined. In some embodiments, a location request may only request that a target object be located. In other embodiments, a location request may also request that two or more target objects be located.

The user terminal 180 may receive a positioning request input by a user. The user may enter the positioning request in a variety of ways including, but not limited to, one or any combination of typing, handwriting, selection, voice input, and the like. Specifically, the typing input may include english input, chinese input, and the like depending on the language. The selection input may include selection from a list, and the like. For example, the user terminal 180 may receive identification information of a group of vehicles to be maintained sent by the server 170, and display the identification information in a list manner on the interface, the user may select at least one identification from the group of identifications shown in the list, the vehicle corresponding to the at least one identification is a target vehicle, and the user initiates a positioning request for the target vehicle after clicking "confirm". In some embodiments, after receiving the positioning request input by the user, the user terminal 180 may send the positioning request to the server 170, and the server 170 sends an instruction to the target object according to the positioning request to instruct the target object to emit the electromagnetic wave. In other embodiments, the user terminal 180 may directly send an instruction to the target object to instruct the target object to emit an electromagnetic wave after receiving the positioning request input by the user. In some embodiments, for such a case that the user terminal 180 directly sends the instruction to the target object, a short-distance Communication technology may be adopted between the user terminal 180 and the target object, including but not limited to Near Field Communication (NFC), Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), Bluetooth (Bluetooth), Wifi, Zigbee, Ultra Wideband (UWB), Mesh network, Thread network, Z-Wave, visible Light wireless Communication (Light Fidelity, LiFi), and the like, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, the instructions sent by the user terminal 180 and/or the server 170 to the target object are used to instruct the target object to emit invisible electromagnetic waves or invisible light, such as radio waves, microwaves, infrared rays, ultraviolet rays, x-rays, gamma rays, and the like.

And 403, receiving electromagnetic waves sent by the target object in response to the positioning request through a detection element.

The target object transmits electromagnetic waves after receiving the electromagnetic wave transmission instruction generated according to the positioning request. Specifically, the target object is provided with a controller, a communication module and an electromagnetic wave signal source. In some embodiments, the target object may emit an omnidirectional electromagnetic wave, which may be received by the user terminal 180 in any direction. In some embodiments, the electromagnetic wave emitted by the target object has a certain range of directions, for example, a conical outward-emitted electromagnetic wave beam, and the user terminal 180 can only receive the electromagnetic wave within a certain range of directions. The power of the electromagnetic wave emitted by the target object can be a preset fixed value, and can also be adjusted according to actual conditions, wherein the larger the emitted power is, the larger the farthest distance that the electromagnetic wave can reach is, and the larger the range that the electromagnetic wave can be detected is. In some embodiments, the target object may transmit the electromagnetic wave for a set time after receiving the electromagnetic wave transmission instruction, and the electromagnetic wave is not transmitted after the set time, and if the target object is required to continue transmitting the electromagnetic wave, the user needs to input the positioning request again. In some embodiments, the electromagnetic waves generated by the target object are invisible electromagnetic waves or invisible light, such as radio waves, microwaves, infrared rays, ultraviolet rays, x-rays, gamma rays, and the like. The target object emits invisible electromagnetic waves or invisible light, so that the surrounding environment is not polluted by light, and the target object has good concealment and safety. For more on the emission of electromagnetic waves by the target object, reference is made to fig. 8 and its description.

The user terminal 180 includes a detecting element (e.g., the detector 380 of the mobile device 300 shown in fig. 3) therein, which can receive the electromagnetic wave emitted from the target object and determine the signal strength of the received electromagnetic wave. In some embodiments, the detection element may convert the received electromagnetic wave into an electrical signal, the greater the received electromagnetic wave signal strength, the greater the converted electrical signal strength. In some embodiments, the user terminal 180 can receive the electromagnetic wave emitted from the target object only within a certain distance range from the target object, and the farther the distance from the target object, the weaker the electromagnetic wave received by the user terminal 180. In some embodiments, the detection element comprises at least one semiconductor material, each semiconductor material being capable of detecting electromagnetic waves of a range of wavelengths. When electromagnetic waves enter a dielectric crystal of a semiconductor material in the detection element, energy exchange action is carried out between the electromagnetic waves and atoms in the crystal, the electromagnetic waves lose energy quickly, electrons of the atoms in the crystal jump to a conduction band from a full band after absorbing the energy consumed by the electromagnetic waves, extra electrons are generated on the conduction band, holes are left on the full band, namely, conductive electron-hole pairs are formed, under the action of a high enough external electric field, the electron-hole pairs drift towards two electrodes respectively, current is induced on the electrodes of the detection element, and therefore the received electromagnetic waves are converted into electric signals. The at least one semiconductor material includes, but is not limited to, cadmium sulfide, cadmium selenide, cadmium telluride, silicon, germanium, lead sulfide, indium gallium arsenic, lead selenide, indium antimonide, mercury cadmium tellurium doping (mercury 0.75 cadmium 0.25 tellurium), mercury cadmium tellurium doping (mercury 1-x cadmium x tellurium), antimony indium doping, tellurium, silicon doping, germanium doping, and the like. Specifically, semiconductor materials such as cadmium sulfide, cadmium selenide, cadmium telluride, silicon, germanium and the like can be used for detecting electromagnetic waves in a visible light wave band; lead sulfide, indium gallium arsenic, lead selenide, indium antimonide, mercury cadmium tellurium doping and other semiconductor materials can be used for detecting electromagnetic waves in near-infrared bands; the mercury cadmium tellurium doping (mercury 1-x cadmium x tellurium), antimony indium doping (antimony 1-x indium x), tellurium, silicon doping, germanium doping and other semiconductor materials can be used for detecting electromagnetic waves longer than 8 micron wave bands. Furthermore, the semiconductor heterostructure photoelectric detector is constructed by organic combination of different semiconductor materials, so that a wider detection wavelength range (for improving compatibility of a detection light source), higher light responsivity (for improving detection sensitivity of the light source) and lower equivalent noise ratio (for improving detection of an extremely weak light signal) can be obtained, light source detection of extreme environments such as dark night, rainy and snowy days and high-noise interference areas can be realized, and vehicle finding efficiency is further improved.

Step 405, displaying the information of the target object position reflected by the electromagnetic wave.

In some embodiments, the detection element, upon receiving electromagnetic waves emitted by the target object, may determine (e.g., convert into electrical signals) signal strength of the received electromagnetic waves, which may reflect location information of the target object. The user terminal 180 provided with the detecting element can visualize the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave and then present the visualized signal intensity to the user.

In some embodiments, the user can adjust the position and orientation of the user terminal 180 (i.e., the detecting element) according to the signal strength of the electromagnetic wave, thereby achieving the positioning of the target object. For example, when the orientation of the detecting element is unchanged, the closer the distance between the detecting element and the target object is, the stronger the signal intensity of the received electromagnetic wave is. Therefore, the user can keep the orientation of the user terminal 180 (i.e., the detecting element) unchanged, and move the user terminal 180 to find the position where the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave is the maximum (e.g., the converted signal intensity is the maximum), which is the position closest to the target object. For another example, when the distance between the detecting element and the target object is constant, the direction of the detecting element is different, and the signal intensity of the received electromagnetic wave is different. Therefore, the user can keep the position of the user terminal 180 unchanged, and rotate the user terminal 180 to find the direction in which the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave is the maximum (for example, the converted signal intensity is the maximum), where the direction corresponds to the direction in which the target object is located. The target object can be located by determining the position closest to the target object and the direction of the target object.

In some embodiments, the user terminal 180 may issue an alert when the signal strength of the electromagnetic wave received by the detection element exceeds a set threshold. As described above, the greater the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave received by the detecting element, the closer the distance between the detecting element and the target object is, or the closer the orientation of the detecting element is to the direction in which the target object is located. When the signal strength of the electromagnetic wave exceeds a set threshold, the user terminal 180 may issue a reminder to remind the user that the target object has been found or is about to be found at the current position and/or orientation. The user terminal 180 may issue the reminder in various manners, for example, relevant reminder text and/or images may be displayed on a display unit (e.g., the display unit 320 in fig. 3), a voice reminder may be issued, or a light-emitting element (not shown) may light up or flash, or vibrate to remind the user.

In some embodiments, the user terminal 180 may display a meter graphic reflecting the intensity of the electromagnetic wave. For example, a dashboard may be displayed with several intensity levels, from small to large, labeled thereon. And meanwhile, a pointer is arranged, and the pointer can point to an intensity level corresponding to the current intensity according to the detected electromagnetic wave intensity swing.

In some embodiments, the user terminal 180 may determine the location of the target object on the map data based on the electromagnetic waves received by the detection element, and present the map data containing the target object location marker to the user. For example, the user terminal 180 may include a camera sensitive to electromagnetic waves of a specific wavelength range, which can sense electromagnetic waves of a specific wavelength range emitted with respect to a target object, in addition to visible light, and an imaging unit. The user uses the camera to image the selected space region, and if the space region contains the target object which emits the electromagnetic wave in the wavelength range, the imaging unit can generate a map image which comprises the target object and the surrounding environment information. In the generated map image, the electromagnetic waves emitted by the target object appear as bright pixels on the image. The user can judge the position of the target object according to the map image and quickly find the target object. For another example, the user terminal 180 has a positioning function, and can acquire the current position of the user terminal 180 (i.e., the detecting element) on the map data, and then determine the position of the target object relative to the detecting element according to the change of the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave when the detecting element is at different positions, so as to determine the position of the target object on the map data according to the current position of the detecting element on the map data and the position of the target object relative to the detecting element. For more details regarding determining the location of a target object on map data, reference may be made to fig. 6 and its description.

It should be noted that the above description related to the flow 400 is only for illustration and explanation, and does not limit the applicable scope of the present application. Various modifications and changes to flow 400 may occur to those skilled in the art in light of the teachings herein. However, such modifications and variations are intended to be within the scope of the present application. For example, the terminal performing steps 401, 403 and 405 may not be a terminal, the terminal performing step 401 may be a terminal of a user's mobile phone, a computer, etc., and the terminal performing steps 403 and 405 may be a photodetector, a terminal of a mobile phone equipped with a photodetector, etc.

FIG. 5 is an exemplary block diagram of a positioning system according to some embodiments of the present application. The positioning system 500 may include a sending module 502, a detecting module 504, and an output module 506.

The sending module 502 is configured to send a positioning request to request positioning of the target object.

In some embodiments, the positioning request sent by the sending module 502 may include positioning type information (e.g., whether to position in real time or at a fixed time) and positioning time information. In some embodiments, the location request may include target object information to define the target object to be located. The target object information may be identification information, the identification may be represented as a number sequence, a graphic symbol, or the like, and each target object may have a unique identification, so that a unique target object may be determined by a certain identification. The target object information may also be batch information, and the batch may also be represented by a numerical sequence, a graphic symbol, and the like, and the same batch of target objects may be determined by a certain batch of information. In some embodiments, a location request sent by the sending module 502 may request that only one target object be located. In other embodiments, a positioning request sent by the sending module 502 may also request to position two or more target objects.

The detection module 504 may receive, via the detection element, electromagnetic waves emitted by the target object in response to the location request.

In some embodiments, the target object may emit an omnidirectional electromagnetic wave that may be received by detection module 504 in any direction by the detection elements. In some embodiments, the target object may emit electromagnetic waves having a range of directions, for example, a conical outward-emitting electromagnetic beam, and the detecting element may only receive electromagnetic waves within a specific range of directions. The power of the electromagnetic wave emitted by the target object can be a preset fixed value, and can also be adjusted according to actual conditions, wherein the larger the emitted power is, the larger the farthest distance that the electromagnetic wave can reach is, and the larger the range that the electromagnetic wave can be detected is. In some embodiments, the target object may transmit the electromagnetic wave for a set time after receiving the electromagnetic wave transmission instruction, and the electromagnetic wave is not transmitted after the set time, and if the target object is required to continue transmitting the electromagnetic wave, the user needs to input the positioning request again. In some embodiments, the electromagnetic waves emitted by the target object are invisible electromagnetic waves or invisible light, such as radio waves, microwaves, infrared rays, ultraviolet rays, x-rays, gamma rays, and the like.

The detection module 504 can detect the electromagnetic wave through a detection element (e.g., the detector 380 of the mobile device 300 shown in fig. 3), and the detection element can receive the electromagnetic wave emitted by the target object and convert the received electromagnetic wave into an electrical signal. In some embodiments, the detection module 504 can only receive the electromagnetic wave emitted from the target object when the detection element is within a certain distance from the target object, and the farther away from the target object, the weaker the electromagnetic wave received by the detection element. In some embodiments, the detection element comprises at least one semiconductor material, each semiconductor material being capable of detecting electromagnetic waves of a range of wavelengths. For example, semiconductor materials such as cadmium sulfide, cadmium selenide, cadmium telluride, silicon, germanium, and the like can be used to detect electromagnetic waves in the visible light band; lead sulfide, indium gallium arsenic, lead selenide, indium antimonide, mercury cadmium tellurium doping and other semiconductor materials can be used for detecting electromagnetic waves in near-infrared bands; the mercury cadmium tellurium doping (mercury 1-x cadmium x tellurium), antimony indium doping (antimony 1-x indium x), tellurium, silicon doping, germanium doping and other semiconductor materials can be used for detecting electromagnetic waves longer than 8 micron wave bands.

The output module 506 can be used to display the information of the target object position reflected by the electromagnetic wave. The detection module 504 may receive the electromagnetic waves emitted by the target object via the detection elements and determine a signal strength of the received electromagnetic waves (e.g., convert the received electromagnetic waves into electrical signals), which may reflect location information of the target object. The output module 506 may present the electrical signal to the user after visualizing the electrical signal through the user terminal 180.

In some embodiments, the output module 506 may send a prompt through the user terminal 180 when the intensity of the electromagnetic wave signal converted by the detection module 504 through the detection element exceeds a set threshold. The greater the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave, the closer the distance between the detecting element and the target object is, or the closer the orientation of the detecting element is to the direction in which the target object is located. When the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave exceeds the set threshold, the output module 506 may send a reminder through the user terminal 180 to remind the user that the current position and/or orientation of the target object can be found or is about to be found. The user terminal 180 may issue the reminder in various manners, for example, relevant reminder text and/or images may be displayed on a display unit (e.g., the display unit 320 in fig. 3), a voice reminder may be issued, or a light-emitting element (not shown) may light up or flash, or vibrate to remind the user. In some embodiments, the output module 506 may determine the position of the target object on the map data based on the electrical signal converted by the detection element, and present the map data containing the position mark of the target object to the user through the user terminal 180.

It should be understood that the system and its modules shown in FIG. 5 may be implemented in a variety of ways. For example, in some embodiments, the system and its modules may be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of software and hardware. Wherein the hardware portion may be implemented using dedicated logic; the software portions may be stored in a memory for execution by a suitable instruction execution system, such as a microprocessor or specially designed hardware. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the methods and systems described above may be implemented using computer executable instructions and/or embodied in processor control code, such code being provided, for example, on a carrier medium such as a diskette, CD-or DVD-ROM, a programmable memory such as read-only memory (firmware), or a data carrier such as an optical or electronic signal carrier. The system and its modules of the present application may be implemented not only by hardware circuits of semiconductors such as transistors or programmable hardware devices such as field programmable gate arrays, programmable logic devices, etc., but also by software executed by various types of processors, for example, and by a combination of the above hardware circuits and software (e.g., firmware).

It should be noted that the above description of the positioning system and its modules is merely for convenience of description and should not limit the present application to the scope of the illustrated embodiments. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that, given the teachings of the present system, any combination of modules or sub-system configurations may be used to connect to other modules without departing from such teachings. For example, in some embodiments, for example, the sending module 502, the detecting module 504 and the outputting module 506 disclosed in fig. 5 may be different modules in a system, or may be a module that implements the functions of two or more modules described above. For example, the sending module 502 and the detecting module 504 may be two modules, or one module may have functions of sending a positioning request and receiving an electromagnetic wave and converting the electromagnetic wave into an electrical signal. For example, each module may share one memory module, and each module may have its own memory module. Such variations are within the scope of the present application.

FIG. 6 is an exemplary flow chart of a method of determining a location of a target object on map data according to some embodiments of the present application. In particular, the method 600 may be performed by the user terminal 180.

Step 601, acquiring the current position of the detection element on the map data. Specifically, the user terminal 180 where the detecting element is located has a positioning function, and can determine the current position (e.g., longitude and latitude) of the detecting element. Positioning may be accomplished by a variety of positioning systems, including but not limited to the Global Positioning System (GPS), the global navigation satellite system (GLONASS), the COMPASS navigation system (COMPASS), the beidou navigation satellite system, the galileo positioning system, the quasi-zenith satellite system (QZSS), and the like. The user terminal 180 further stores map data, for example, the map data may be preset locally at the user terminal 180, or the user terminal 180 may obtain the map data in real time through a network. The corresponding position of the detection element in the map data can be determined in combination with the map data according to the positioning information of the detection element. The position of the detecting elements on the map data can be presented in various ways, for example as a pattern of marking points or the like.

Step 603, acquiring the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave detected by the detecting element at least two different positions.

The relative positions of the detecting element and the target object are different, and the signal intensity of the detected electromagnetic wave may also be different. For example, the orientation of the detecting element is unchanged, and the closer the detecting element is to the target object, the higher the signal intensity of the detected electromagnetic wave; alternatively, the position of the detecting element is not changed, and the closer the detecting element is to the target object, the higher the signal intensity of the detected electromagnetic wave is. In some embodiments, when the detecting element converts the detected electromagnetic wave into an electrical signal, the stronger the detected electromagnetic wave, the stronger the converted electrical signal. The position of the detecting element can be adjusted to obtain the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave at different positions, and the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave at different positions can be equal or different. In some embodiments, the orientation of the detecting element may be kept constant, and only horizontal movement (i.e., only movement) may be performed; alternatively, the horizontal position of the detecting element can be kept unchanged, and only the orientation of the detecting element is adjusted (i.e. only the detecting element is rotated); alternatively, the orientation and horizontal position (both movement and rotation) of the detecting element may be adjusted simultaneously.

Step 605, determining the position of the target object relative to the detecting element according to the change of the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave when the position of the detecting element changes.

As described above, the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave is inversely related to the distance between the detecting element and the target object, and the closer the distance therebetween, the stronger the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave. From this rule, the distance between the detecting element and the target object can be quantitatively determined according to the signal intensity of the electromagnetic wave. In some embodiments, the sensitivity of each orientation of the detecting elements is the same, the signal strength of the electromagnetic wave is represented as a current, and the magnitude of the current is related to the distance between the detecting elements and the target object as follows:

wherein I is current, k is constant, P is power of electromagnetic wave emitted from the electromagnetic wave emitting source, and D is distance between the detecting element and the target object. The distance between the detection element and the target object can be calculated according to the current as follows:

in the case where the sensitivities of the detecting elements in the respective orientations are the same, a circle on which the target object is located can be determined by taking the position of the detecting element as the center of the circle and the distance between the detecting element and the target object as the radius. After obtaining the electrical signals of the detecting element at least two different positions, at least two circles can be determined, and the intersection point of the circles is the position of the target object relative to the detecting element. For the case where there are only two electrical signals at different positions, two circles may be determined, which may have two intersection points, both of which may be tentatively set as the position of the target object relative to the detecting elements; alternatively, the user may further lock one of the intersections as the position of the target object relative to the detecting member by adjusting the position of the detecting member again.

In some embodiments, the sensitivity of the orientation of the detecting elements is different, and adjusting the orientation of the detecting elements at the same position can obtain different electromagnetic wave signal intensity. For this case, the direction in which the intensity of the electromagnetic wave signal is maximum in the process of the orientation change of the detecting element can be determined as the direction in which the target object is located relative to the detecting element.

Step 607, the position of the target object on the map data is determined based on the position of the detecting element on the map data and the position of the target object relative to the detecting element. The position of the target object on the map data may be presented in various forms. For example, for the case where a specific position of the target object relative to the detecting element can be determined, the position of the target object on the map data can be displayed as a marker point; for the case where the direction in which the target object is located relative to the detecting elements can be determined, the position of the target object on the map data can be displayed as an arrow indicating the direction. By displaying the target object on the map, the user can know the position of the target object more intuitively, and the user can find the target object conveniently.

Fig. 7 illustrates an exemplary flow chart of a positioning method according to some embodiments of the present application. In particular, the method 700 may be performed by the server 170.

Step 701, receiving a positioning request for positioning a target object.

The user terminal 180 may receive a user input positioning request requesting positioning of an object. In some embodiments, location type information (e.g., whether to locate in real time or at a fixed time) and location time information may be included in the location request. In some embodiments, the location request may include target object information to define the target object to be located. The target object information may be identification information, the identification may be represented as a number sequence, a graphic symbol, or the like, and each target object may have a unique identification, so that a unique target object may be determined by a certain identification. The target object information may also be batch information, and the batch may also be represented by a numerical sequence, a graphic symbol, and the like, and the same batch of target objects may be determined by a certain batch of information. In some embodiments, a location request may only request that a target object be located. In other embodiments, a location request may also request that two or more target objects be located. The user may enter the positioning request in a variety of ways including, but not limited to, one or any combination of typing, handwriting, selection, voice input, and the like.

Step 703, sending an instruction to the target object to instruct the target object to send out the electromagnetic wave.

In some embodiments, after receiving the positioning request input by the user, the user terminal 180 may send the positioning request to the server 170, and the server 170 sends an instruction to the target object according to the positioning request to instruct the target object to emit the electromagnetic wave. For example, the positioning request includes identification information, and the server 170 stores (or can obtain from a storage device) a mapping relationship between the identification and the target object, so that the server 170 can determine the target object according to the identification information in the positioning request. The server 170 may have a communication connection with a plurality of objects including the target object, and after the target object is determined according to the identification information, the server 170 may transmit an instruction to the target object through the communication connection to instruct the target object to emit the electromagnetic wave. In other embodiments, the user terminal 180 may directly send an instruction to the target object to instruct the target object to emit an electromagnetic wave after receiving the positioning request input by the user. In some embodiments, for such a case that the user terminal 180 directly sends the instruction to the target object, a short-distance Communication technology may be adopted between the user terminal 180 and the target object, including but not limited to Near Field Communication (NFC), Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), Bluetooth (Bluetooth), Wifi, Zigbee, Ultra Wideband (UWB), Mesh network, Thread network, Z-Wave, visible Light wireless Communication (Light Fidelity, LiFi), and the like, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, the target object may be a vehicle. In some embodiments, the server 170 and/or the user terminal 180 sends the target object an instruction for instructing the target object to emit invisible electromagnetic waves or invisible light, such as radio waves, microwaves, infrared rays, ultraviolet rays, x-rays, gamma rays, and the like.

FIG. 8 is an exemplary block diagram of a positioning system according to some embodiments of the present application. The positioning system 800 may include a receiving module 802 and an instruction output module 804.

The receiving module 802 is configured to receive a positioning request for positioning a target object.

In some embodiments, the receiving module 802 may be configured to receive a user input requesting to locate a target. In some embodiments, the location request may include location type information (e.g., whether to locate in real time or at a fixed time) and location time information. In some embodiments, the location request may include target object information to define the target object that needs to be located. The target object information may be identification information, the identification may be represented as a number sequence, a graphic symbol, or the like, and each target object may have a unique identification, so that a unique target object may be determined by a certain identification. The target object information may also be batch information, and the batch may also be represented by a numerical sequence, a graphic symbol, and the like, and the same batch of target objects may be determined by a certain batch of information. In some embodiments, a location request may only request that a target object be located. In other embodiments, a location request may also request that two or more target objects be located.

The instruction output module 804 is configured to send an instruction to the target object to instruct the target object to send out an electromagnetic wave.

In some embodiments, after receiving the positioning request input by the user, the receiving module 802 may send the positioning request to the server 170, and the server 170 sends an instruction to the target object through the instruction output module 804 according to the positioning request, so as to instruct the target object to emit the electromagnetic wave. In other embodiments, the instruction output module 804 may send the instruction directly to the target object, instructing the target object to emit the electromagnetic wave. In some embodiments, the target object may be a vehicle. In some embodiments, the server 170 and/or the instruction output module 804 may be configured to instruct the target object to emit invisible electromagnetic waves or invisible light, such as radio waves, microwaves, infrared rays, ultraviolet rays, x-rays, gamma rays, and the like.

FIG. 9 illustrates an object that can be located by emitting electromagnetic waves, according to some embodiments of the present application. The object 900 includes a controller 902, a communication module 904, and an electromagnetic wave signal source 906.

In some embodiments, controller 902 may be used to control other modules on object 900 to implement the functionality of use of object 900. In some embodiments, the manner of control may be centralized or distributed, either wired or wireless. In some embodiments, the controller 902 may execute program instructions in the form of one or more processors. In some embodiments, the controller 902 can receive data and/or information sent by the communication module 904 and the electromagnetic wave signal source 906, and in some embodiments, the controller 902 can send instructions to the communication module 904 and the electromagnetic wave signal source 906. For example, the communication module 904 may receive an electromagnetic wave emission instruction sent by the user terminal 180 or the server 170, and generate an emission control signal according to the instruction to be transmitted to the electromagnetic wave signal source 906, so as to control the electromagnetic wave signal source 906 to emit an electromagnetic wave. The communication module 904 may communicate with the server 170 and/or the user terminal 180 via various communication techniques, including, but not limited to, a cable network, a wired network, a fiber optic network, a telecommunications network, an intranet, the internet, a Local Area Network (LAN), a Wide Area Network (WAN), a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), a Metropolitan Area Network (MAN), a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), and the like, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, the communication module 904 may also communicate with the user terminal 180 through various short-range communication technologies, including but not limited to near field communication, radio frequency identification, bluetooth, Wifi, Zigbee, ultra wideband, Mesh network, Thread network, Z-Wave, visible light wireless communication, and the like, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, the controller 902 may communicate information with the communication module 904, receive information from a user terminal, an extranet, or a remote server, or send information to a user terminal, an extranet, or a remote server. In some embodiments, the controller 902 may include one or more sub-controllers (e.g., a single core processing device or a multi-core processing device). By way of example only, the controller 902 may include an Electronic Control Unit (ECU), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), an Application Specific Instruction Processor (ASIP), a Graphics Processor (GPU), a Physical Processor (PPU), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), an editable logic circuit (PLD), a microcontroller unit, a Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC), a microprocessor, the like, or any combination thereof.

In some embodiments, in the case where the electromagnetic wave signal source 906 is a non-visible electromagnetic wave signal source or a non-visible light source, a photosensitive material is further disposed on the object 900 for converting the non-visible electromagnetic wave into a visible light signal. The photosensitive material can absorb light energy under the irradiation of invisible light, visible light or other rays, and chemical or physical changes are induced in the photosensitive material to enable the photosensitive material to become visible. The photosensitive material may include selenium, zinc oxide, cadmium sulfide, organic photoconductors, and the like. By arranging the photosensitive material to convert the invisible electromagnetic waves into visible light information, a user can easily see the target object by naked eyes, and the target object can be found more quickly by assistance. In some embodiments, the target object may be a vehicle, a communications base station, a cart, a pet, or the like. It is to be understood that the present application may also be used for personnel location in some embodiments. Specifically, the object 900 shown in fig. 9 can be designed to be small in size and convenient to carry, and a relevant person can carry the object with him or set the object at a suitable position (for example, the back, the head, the arms, the chest, the legs, etc.) of the human body, and positioning of the person can be achieved by positioning the object.

The beneficial effects that may be brought by the embodiments of the present application include, but are not limited to: (1) the photoelectric detector is used for receiving electromagnetic waves emitted by a target object and converting the electromagnetic waves into electric signals, and more visual position information of the target object is determined according to the electric signals, so that the position of the target object is quickly and accurately found; (2) the emitted electromagnetic wave can be invisible electromagnetic wave, so that light pollution is avoided, and meanwhile, the concealment and the safety are higher; (3) the sensitivity and the detection distance of the photoelectric detector can be adjusted according to different requirements, and the photoelectric detector is not influenced by time and can be used in the day and at night. It is to be noted that different embodiments may produce different advantages, and in different embodiments, any one or combination of the above advantages may be produced, or any other advantages may be obtained.

Having thus described the basic concept, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the foregoing detailed disclosure is to be considered merely illustrative and not restrictive of the broad application. Various modifications, improvements and adaptations to the present application may occur to those skilled in the art, although not explicitly described herein. Such modifications, improvements and adaptations are proposed in the present application and thus fall within the spirit and scope of the exemplary embodiments of the present application.

Also, this application uses specific language to describe embodiments of the application. Reference throughout this specification to "one embodiment," "an embodiment," and/or "some embodiments" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with at least one embodiment of the present application is included in at least one embodiment of the present application. Therefore, it is emphasized and should be appreciated that two or more references to "an embodiment" or "one embodiment" or "an alternative embodiment" in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, some features, structures, or characteristics of one or more embodiments of the present application may be combined as appropriate.

Moreover, those skilled in the art will appreciate that aspects of the present application may be illustrated and described in terms of several patentable species or situations, including any new and useful combination of processes, machines, manufacture, or materials, or any new and useful improvement thereon. Accordingly, various aspects of the present application may be embodied entirely in hardware, entirely in software (including firmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.) or in a combination of hardware and software. The above hardware or software may be referred to as "data block," module, "" engine, "" unit, "" component, "or" system. Furthermore, aspects of the present application may be represented as a computer product, including computer readable program code, embodied in one or more computer readable media.

The computer storage medium may comprise a propagated data signal with the computer program code embodied therewith, for example, on baseband or as part of a carrier wave. The propagated signal may take any of a variety of forms, including electromagnetic, optical, etc., or any suitable combination. A computer storage medium may be any computer-readable medium that can communicate, propagate, or transport a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. Program code located on a computer storage medium may be propagated over any suitable medium, including radio, cable, fiber optic cable, RF, or the like, or any combination of the preceding.

Computer program code required for the operation of various portions of the present application may be written in any one or more programming languages, including an object oriented programming language such as Java, Scala, Smalltalk, Eiffel, JADE, Emerald, C + +, C #, VB.NET, Python, and the like, a conventional programming language such as C, Visual Basic, Fortran 2003, Perl, COBOL 2002, PHP, ABAP, a dynamic programming language such as Python, Ruby, and Groovy, or other programming languages, and the like. The program code may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through any network format, such as a Local Area Network (LAN) or a Wide Area Network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, through the Internet), or in a cloud computing environment, or as a service, such as a software as a service (SaaS).

Additionally, the order in which elements and sequences of the processes described herein are processed, the use of alphanumeric characters, or the use of other designations, is not intended to limit the order of the processes and methods described herein, unless explicitly claimed. While various presently contemplated embodiments of the invention have been discussed in the foregoing disclosure by way of example, it is to be understood that such detail is solely for that purpose and that the appended claims are not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, are intended to cover all modifications and equivalent arrangements that are within the spirit and scope of the embodiments herein. For example, although the system components described above may be implemented by hardware devices, they may also be implemented by software-only solutions, such as installing the described system on an existing server or mobile device.

Similarly, it should be noted that in the preceding description of embodiments of the application, various features are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure aiding in the understanding of one or more of the embodiments. This method of disclosure, however, is not intended to require more features than are expressly recited in the claims. Indeed, the embodiments may be characterized as having less than all of the features of a single embodiment disclosed above.

Numerals describing the number of components, attributes, etc. are used in some embodiments, it being understood that such numerals used in the description of the embodiments are modified in some instances by the use of the modifier "about", "approximately" or "substantially". Unless otherwise indicated, "about", "approximately" or "substantially" indicates that the number allows a variation of ± 20%. Accordingly, in some embodiments, the numerical parameters used in the specification and claims are approximations that may vary depending upon the desired properties of the individual embodiments. In some embodiments, the numerical parameter should take into account the specified significant digits and employ a general digit preserving approach. Notwithstanding that the numerical ranges and parameters setting forth the broad scope of the range are approximations, in the specific examples, such numerical values are set forth as precisely as possible within the scope of the application.

The entire contents of each patent, patent application publication, and other material cited in this application, such as articles, books, specifications, publications, documents, and the like, are hereby incorporated by reference into this application. Except where the application is filed in a manner inconsistent or contrary to the present disclosure, and except where the claim is filed in its broadest scope (whether present or later appended to the application) as well. It is noted that the descriptions, definitions and/or use of terms in this application shall control if they are inconsistent or contrary to the statements and/or uses of the present application in the material attached to this application.

Finally, it should be understood that the embodiments described herein are merely illustrative of the principles of the embodiments of the present application. Other variations are also possible within the scope of the present application. Thus, by way of example, and not limitation, alternative configurations of the embodiments of the present application can be viewed as being consistent with the teachings of the present application. Accordingly, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to only those embodiments explicitly described and depicted herein.