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The new signal tech guiding the way under China’s next megacity Xiongan
- A low-cost indoor navigation system promises accuracy to the size of a single parking space
- The technology has been created specifically for use in the sprawling network of tunnels underneath Xiongan New Area in northern China
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Zhang Tongin Beijing
In a network of 380km (236 miles) of tunnels that run through the sprawling expanse underneath Xiongan in northern China, researchers have unlocked a low-cost, high-precision, indoor navigation system.
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The team of researchers at Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications (BUPT), led by associate professor Lu Zhaoming, combined China’s BeiDou technology and indoor 5G networks to create a navigation system for what is set to be the world’s biggest underground city.
“This advanced system is a significant step forward for subterranean positioning and navigation,” a BUPT statement quoted Lu as saying.
Xiongan is a state-level smart city in Hebei province about 120km from Beijing. It was established in 2017 to house state-owned enterprises, government bodies, and research and development sectors relocated from Beijing.
From the design stage, an “underground maze” was planned to be built beneath the city.
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Engineering pipelines such as electricity, communications, gas and water supply are laid underground. Express corridors that measure 4 metres high and 16 metres wide have been built for logistics, and there are a large number of underground car parks for residential areas and shopping centres.
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