According to research, the average annual growth rate of the global RTLS market from 2018 to 2024 was 14.7%. Experts believe these figures will continue to rise in the future. The Asia-Pacific region is projected to become the fastest-growing market in the near future, demonstrating a growth rate of 17.5% annually
After a slight stagnation in 2020-2021 caused by the pandemic Covid-19, the demand for RTLS technologies started to grow again. These systems are rather popular in production, healthcare, and education. They are actively used for tracking vehicles and assets. At the same time, one can observe the decline in prices for software and hardware for the RTLS system implementation, which ensures further growth of this market.
Nowadays in the world, many problems are easier to solve by applying RTLS technologies. One of them is breaking the disruption of supply chains, which impedes the timely transportation of goods.
Various methods are used to determine object location in RTLS systems. The most common ones include:
- RSSI – helps determine coordinates by measuring the signal strength sensors emit on tracked objects. It is among the most common methods used for Bluetooth beacons, Wi-Fi tags, or RFID.
- AOA – utilizes both signal strength (RSSI) and the angle at which the signal reaches the antenna. The object’s location can be precisely determined by measuring angles from multiple devices.
- TDOA – calculates the object’s location by determining the time difference in receiving signals from the tag on two sensors. Since the pulses travel at a constant speed, comparing the data allows for calculating the relative distance of the tag from each sensor and then determining its location.
Learn more in our blog: Blog | What is RTLS? 2024 Guide to Real-Time Locating Systems