ISO 17438-1:2016

Overview

ISO 17438-1:2016 - "Intelligent transport systems - Indoor navigation for personal and vehicle ITS station - Part 1: General information and use case definition" defines the architecture, scope and use cases for delivering indoor navigation services within the ITS ecosystem. It introduces the additional system components and data flows required to provide indoor positioning and routing for personal and vehicle ITS stations (P/V ITS stations), covering drivers, passengers and pedestrians. The document sets the foundation for Parts 2–4, which specify data formats and interface requirements.

Key topics and technical requirements

• Indoor navigation system architecture
  • Extends existing ITS components (Vehicle, Personal, Roadside, Central stations) with indoor-specific elements: indoor data servers, indoor data registry server, indoor positioning infrastructure, and indoor navigation modules.
• Indoor map data
  • Described content includes indoor geometry, network topology and POI (points of interest) data that reflect indoor space characteristics.
• Indoor positioning reference data
  • Reference data needed for positioning technologies (examples: WiFi AP, RFID readers, Bluetooth AP) used by P/V ITS stations and central ITS station positioning functions.
• Data provisioning and registry
  • Roles of indoor map data providers, indoor positioning reference data providers, and an indoor data registry server that supplies URLs and metadata for locating indoor data servers.
• Interfaces and functionality
  • Defines interaction between P/V ITS station and central ITS station for exchanging map and positioning reference data, and supports indoor-outdoor seamless navigation.
• Use cases and requirements
  • Part 1 enumerates use case clusters (service, data, registry) and high-level requirements for map data, positioning reference data, provisioning and indoor navigation services.

Practical applications

• In-vehicle and mobile navigation apps that provide route guidance inside complex buildings (airports, shopping malls, transit hubs)
• Seamless indoor–outdoor navigation for drivers switching to pedestrian mode
• Location-aware services: routing to gates, parking, platform guidance, or indoor accessibility routing
• Indoor positioning system deployment planning (WiFi/Bluetooth/RFID infrastructure mapping)
• Integration of indoor maps into central ITS platforms and vehicle head units

Who should use this standard

• Automotive OEMs and telematics vendors implementing in‑vehicle navigation
• Mobile app developers and PND providers offering indoor guidance
• Indoor map and positioning data providers
• Transport authorities, airport/building operators and ITS integrators
• Standards bodies and system architects planning ITS extensions for indoor navigation

Related standards

• ISO/TR 10992 (nomadic/portable devices for ITS)
• ISO 14825 (geographic data files)
• OGC CityGML and OGC indoor navigation work (OGC 10‑191r1, 12‑019)
• ISO 24099 (navigation data delivery)
• CEN/TS 00278207

Keywords: indoor navigation, ITS, indoor map data, indoor positioning reference data, P/V ITS station, indoor data registry, indoor positioning infrastructure.