RTK and UWB Positioning: Real-World Applications in Safety, Healthcare, Rail, Logistics, and Construction
- adammiller961
- Jul 10
- 12 min read
Updated: Aug 8
RTK and UWB - Complementary Technologies for Precision Tracking
In the pursuit of safer, more efficient, and more automated operations, accurate location tracking has become a critical enabler across sectors from construction and logistics to healthcare and public infrastructure. Two technologies now dominate the high-precision positioning landscape: Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) GNSS and Ultra-Wideband (UWB).
Though both deliver centimetre-level accuracy, they excel in different environments and offer distinct advantages:
RTK GNSS enhances satellite navigation (GPS, Galileo, BeiDou, etc.) using real-time correction data from a base station or network. This enables absolute positioning accuracy of 1-2 cm in open-sky outdoor conditions - ideal for wide-area applications such as surveying, fleet tracking, or railway infrastructure.
UWB, in contrast, operates over short ranges (typically up to 20 m line-of-sight) using rapid, low-power radio pulses to calculate the distance between tags and fixed anchors. It functions reliably indoors or in GNSS-denied environments, offering precise relative location in complex, cluttered, or metal-dense settings such as warehouses, factories, or hospitals.
Where RTK GNSS provides absolute global coordinates, UWB shines in local, real-time movement tracking with ultra-low latency. This makes them highly complementary:
A rail worker may be geo-fenced using RTK while on open track, then seamlessly transition to UWB coverage while entering a tunnel.
A wearable tag could use RTK for construction site safety outdoors and UWB for indoor floor-level worker tracking during building fit-out.
As the following sections show, industries across Europe are adopting hybrid RTK and UWB systems to extend safety coverage, boost asset visibility, and improve operational control. With falling costs and maturing standards, these technologies are no longer experimental - they are fast becoming foundational.
Workplace Safety: Preventing Accidents with Real-Time Tracking
High-precision location technologies are being rapidly deployed to reduce risks and protect workers in industrial environments. From factories and logistics centres to construction sites and energy infrastructure, UWB and RTK positioning systems enable new forms of real-time awareness, proximity warnings, and geo-fencing that were previously impossible with traditional methods.
UWB for Forklift and Vehicle Collision Avoidance
One of the most prominent applications of UWB in workplace safety is forklift-pedestrian interaction prevention. In warehouses and production plants across Europe, UWB tags worn by staff and anchors installed on vehicles create dynamic "safety bubbles". If a worker comes too close to a moving forklift, the system can trigger instant alerts for both parties - visual, haptic, or audible, or even slow down the vehicle automatically.
SPARK Microsystems’ SR1020 transceivers, operating in beaconing mode, are ideally suited to such proximity warning systems. They offer adjustable detection zones from 25 cm to 20 m, operate at less than 5 µW active power, and enable battery-powered tags with multi-year lifespans on standard coin cells, crucial for deployment at scale.
These UWB RTLS deployments are proving effective. At Velux’s Danish factory, for example, a UWB system with 12 anchors and 59 tags not only improved worker safety but also boosted productivity by 10% through better logistics coordination.
RTK GNSS for Geo-Fenced Safety Zones
For large outdoor worksites such as construction yards, mines, and heavy industry, RTK-enabled GNSS wearables are used to establish precise virtual safety zones. Workers crossing into restricted or hazardous areas receive alerts in real time. The centimetre-level accuracy of RTK ensures minimal false alarms, enabling confident separation of personnel from operating machinery.
Neoway’s GN07-A1 and GN10-A1 GNSS modules support integrated RTK, with sub-10 second convergence and low current consumption. The GN07-A1 offers dual-band L1/L5 tracking and supports GPS, BeiDou, Galileo and GLONASS, while consuming as little as 22 mA during L1-only tracking. These modules are suitable for integration into ruggedised wearable devices, helmets, or asset trackers.
RTK-based geo-fencing is already in use across UK and EU industries. In rail maintenance, Network Rail’s geofencing solution has been successfully trialled to protect workers on live tracks. Wearables incorporating RTK GNSS warn the wearer and notify supervisors if boundaries are breached - with 1 cm accuracy enabling precise zone definition.
Emergency Mustering and Safety Analytics
Both UWB and GNSS systems also support emergency response. In the event of an evacuation or incident, UWB RTLS can pinpoint each worker’s last known position and track real-time movement to ensure no one is left behind. Outdoors, RTK GNSS modules provide the same visibility at scale. European chemical plants and energy facilities are using these capabilities to streamline drills and enhance rescue operations.
Furthermore, tracking near-misses and safety incidents, such as how often a worker came within a metre of a vehicle, enables organisations to analyse patterns and adapt training or layout accordingly. SPARK’s SR1020 tags, with low-latency detection and location logging, support this kind of data-driven improvement.
Healthcare: UWB RTLS for Patient, Staff and Asset Monitoring
In hospital environments, precise location data can be the difference between timely care and costly delays. Real-Time Location Systems (RTLS) built on UWB are being increasingly adopted across healthcare facilities in the UK and Europe to track patients, staff and critical assets with sub-metre accuracy.
Asset Tracking for Operational Efficiency
Medical equipment is often highly mobile; infusion pumps, ultrasound machines, defibrillators and wheelchairs are constantly on the move between wards, often disappearing just when they’re most needed. UWB-enabled RTLS tags allow these assets to be located instantly via a digital map, reducing the time staff spend searching and improving equipment utilisation.
Hospitals in Germany have already seen success implementing such systems, with measurable reductions in search times and improved care delivery. By tagging equipment with compact, low-power UWB modules such as SPARK’s SR1020, which consumes just microamps in beaconing mode, hospitals can track thousands of assets in real time with minimal impact on battery life or infrastructure cost.
Enhancing Patient and Staff Safety
UWB also plays a growing role in protecting vulnerable patients and frontline staff. In dementia care units, wearable tags establish digital safe zones. If a patient attempts to leave or enters a restricted area, alerts are triggered automatically. Similarly, infant security systems can detect unauthorised movement of new-borns from maternity wards.
For staff, wearable UWB duress buttons allow nurses and clinicians to request emergency assistance. Unlike Wi-Fi or BLE, UWB provides room-level or even bed-level location accuracy with far fewer false alarms - even in complex hospital environments with heavy radio interference.
SPARK’s presence detection platform enables these use cases with tags that can be integrated into ID badges or uniforms. With support for motion sensors and bidirectional communication, these tags can relay both location and status, enabling faster response and improving overall site safety.
Future Integration with Smartphones and Hybrid Systems
UWB radios are now appearing in smartphones - and the NHS has acknowledged their potential for patient-facing applications. In the near future, a patient’s own device could help guide them to the right clinic or diagnostic room via UWB-powered indoor wayfinding. Similarly, RTLS software platforms may begin to integrate hybrid architectures combining UWB, BLE and GNSS for seamless tracking indoors and out.
With trusts under pressure to digitise operations and reduce inefficiencies, UWB is emerging as the next logical step beyond traditional Wi-Fi or BLE-based systems. It offers the precision, reliability and low-latency tracking that modern healthcare workflows increasingly demand.
Rail: Trackside Worker Safety and Next-Gen Train Positioning
The rail industry faces a dual challenge: ensuring the safety of maintenance crews operating on or near live tracks, while also modernising train control systems for greater efficiency. Across Europe, both RTK GNSS and UWB are being deployed to meet these needs, often working in tandem.
Geo-Fencing for Trackside Worker Protection
Working near live rail lines poses obvious risks, particularly when visibility is low or train schedules are tight. To address this, rail operators are implementing RTK-based geofencing systems that create precise virtual boundaries around danger zones. Workers equipped with RTK-enabled wearables receive real-time alerts if they approach a hazardous area, such as an active track or restricted section.
In the UK, Network Rail has trialled such systems with promising results, using 1 cm-accurate GNSS receivers embedded in smart vests or helmet-mounted units. These systems are now being expanded across regions as part of broader safety initiatives. The ability to designate and update safe zones dynamically through software is a major leap forward compared to traditional signage or physical barriers.
UWB Coverage for Yards, Tunnels and Underground Sections
In areas where satellite reception is poor or unavailable such as tunnels, depots or underpasses, UWB-based local positioning systems provide the missing link. (For higher value assets - Epson's IMUs provide a phenomenal solution for high accuracy non-GPS conditions) Belgium’s Infrabel, for instance, has deployed a hybrid system combining RTK GNSS and UWB. Workers wear UWB tags that are tracked by anchors placed throughout the infrastructure. The system continues to function with 10 cm accuracy even when out of GNSS range.
This indoor-outdoor handoff ensures continuous tracking of all personnel, whether they are working along open tracks or inside enclosed maintenance facilities. UWB’s resistance to multipath and metal interference is particularly valuable in the steel-heavy environments typical of railway infrastructure.
High-Precision Train Localisation for Signalling and Traffic Control
Beyond worker safety, rail operators are also exploring how RTK GNSS can enhance train tracking for European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) upgrades. Traditional signalling systems rely on trackside infrastructure like balises and circuits. With RTK GNSS and sensor fusion, trains can calculate their exact position relative to digital maps, potentially replacing much of the physical signalling network.
Trials across Italy, Spain, France and Germany have demonstrated that dual-band GNSS receivers with RTK or PPP corrections can meet the stringent safety requirements for mainline rail operations. This could enable moving block signalling, reduce infrastructure costs, and improve timetable accuracy across entire networks.
Modules such as Neoway’s GN10-A1 or SIMCom’s SIM66MD - both offering compact dual-band RTK capabilities, are ideal candidates for on-board train positioning units, remote sensing equipment, or railway maintenance drones.
Logistics: Seamless Visibility from Yard to Warehouse
In modern logistics, knowing exactly where goods, vehicles and equipment are, at all times, is essential for operational efficiency and traceability. Both RTK GNSS and UWB are now central to building fully visible supply chains, with each technology filling a unique role in tracking across indoor and outdoor environments.
UWB for Indoor Asset Tracking and Warehouse Automation
Inside warehouses and distribution centres, UWB is becoming the standard for real-time indoor location tracking. With dense racking, steel structures and constant movement of goods and personnel, traditional positioning systems struggle to offer the required precision. UWB systems, by contrast, enable centimetre-level accuracy and high refresh rates, making them ideal for:
Locating inventory on pallets, shelves or trolleys
Monitoring forklift usage and traffic flow
Navigating autonomous guided vehicles (AGVs)
Preventing collisions between workers and machinery
SPARK Microsystems’ SR1020-based tags are widely suited to these environments. Their ultra-low power profile allows them to run for years on a coin cell, making them viable for tagging thousands of items or vehicles. Once deployed, a grid of UWB anchors can support hundreds of tags simultaneously, providing not just live location data but also movement analytics to optimise warehouse layout and routing.
Some European automotive plants using UWB in intralogistics have reported up to 10% productivity gains, with better coordination of stock flow and fewer delays in locating key components.
RTK GNSS for Fleet, Yard and Container Tracking
When goods leave the warehouse, RTK GNSS takes over. Delivery vehicles, trailers, yard tractors and shipping containers are increasingly equipped with RTK-enabled GNSS receivers to ensure precise routing, reduce theft, and enforce security perimeters. This is particularly important in large facilities such as logistics parks or ports, where incorrect parking or unauthorised movement can have knock-on effects.
Modules such as SIMCom’s SIM66MD provide dual-band L1 + L5 RTK in a compact LCC form factor with 2 cm positioning accuracy. Supporting GPS, Galileo, BeiDou, and QZSS, it offers reliable coverage across Europe, and at just 40 mA typical consumption, it is suitable for battery-powered trackers, mobile gateways or vehicle-mounted navigation units.
Geofences can be drawn with high confidence using RTK triggering alerts as trucks arrive at or depart from precise loading bays, gates or staging areas. This is increasingly being integrated into yard automation software to schedule arrivals, assign docks dynamically, and prevent bottlenecks.
Hybrid Handover for Multimodal Tracking
As logistics networks become more integrated, tags and tracking systems must operate across indoor and outdoor transitions. This has led to hybrid systems where the same asset, such as a pallet or cart, is tracked via GNSS while in transit, then handed over to UWB for precise location inside the warehouse.
This continuity supports accurate in-transit visibility, allowing logistics operators to follow high-value or time-sensitive goods from supplier to shelf without blind spots. It also improves traceability for audits, recalls or customer service.
Across Europe, this dual-technology approach is being piloted in sectors including automotive, retail, e-commerce fulfilment, and cold-chain logistics driven by increasing pressure to optimise lead times and maintain full chain-of-custody transparency.
Construction: Machine Control and Geo-Fenced Worker Protection
Construction sites present some of the most challenging environments for location technologies; dynamic, irregular, and often partially covered or obstructed. Yet across the UK and Europe, both RTK GNSS and UWB are proving indispensable for improving safety, increasing productivity, and supporting automation in the sector.
RTK GNSS for Machine Automation and Surveying
RTK GNSS is now widely adopted for machine control. Earthmoving equipment such as dozers, excavators, and graders can operate with centimetre precision using RTK correction data, reducing reliance on ground personnel and minimising rework. The machines align to digital terrain models in real time, executing cuts and fills to exact design levels.
RTK is also a staple of site surveying. Whether mounted on rovers, drones, or handheld devices, GNSS modules with RTK accuracy allow survey teams to mark out coordinates, verify build tolerances, and monitor progress live. Contractors using this tech report significant gains in both speed and quality control.
Neoway’s dual-band GN07-A1 module, with support for L1 and L5 signals across GPS, Galileo, BeiDou and GLONASS, delivers horizontal accuracy of 1 cm + 1 ppm with under 10 second convergence. Its compact size and power efficiency make it well suited to portable instruments and field devices - even in harsh outdoor conditions.
Geo-Fenced Safety Zones for Workers
Construction zones are full of moving machinery, elevated platforms, and restricted areas. To protect workers, many firms are introducing geo-fenced wearables that trigger alarms when personnel enter danger zones. For open-air sections of a site, RTK GNSS modules are used to maintain accurate position data, ensuring that alerts only occur when genuinely warranted.
These systems are particularly valuable in infrastructure and highway projects, where workers may operate near live lanes or railway lines. Alerts can be configured for both the wearer and the machine operator, enabling quick action before an incident occurs.
UWB for Enclosed Spaces and Tool Tracking
In interior fit-outs or dense scaffolding areas where GNSS signals degrade, UWB tracking systems provide reliable coverage. UWB tags can be used to locate workers within partially completed buildings or to monitor the usage and movement of tools and equipment.
SPARK’s SR1120 in Time-of-Flight mode enables fine-grained ranging between tags and anchors, with power consumption low enough to support all-day operation on compact batteries. UWB is also being trialled in collision avoidance systems for small plant and powered access equipment, alerting drivers or operators when a person is nearby in a blind zone.
In long-duration or high-value construction projects, such as data centres or industrial plants, UWB infrastructure can be semi-permanently installed to provide reliable tracking throughout the build. Combined with RTK coverage outdoors, this hybrid model enables full-site visibility even as the physical layout evolves over time.
While adoption is still emerging in small to mid-sized projects, regulators and industry bodies are increasingly recognising the value of digital safety monitoring and UWB and RTK are at the heart of this transformation.
Choosing the Right Technology: RTK or UWB or Both?
While both RTK GNSS and UWB deliver centimetre-level accuracy, they are designed for different environments and use cases. Selecting the right technology, or knowing when to combine them, is critical to balancing cost, coverage and complexity in real-world deployments.
RTK GNSS: Best for Outdoor, Wide-Area Tracking
RTK is the clear choice for applications that require:
Absolute global positioning (latitude/longitude)
Wide-area coverage across open sites or transport routes
Minimal infrastructure (corrections delivered via network or base station)
Compatibility with digital mapping, surveying, or machine control software
Construction, agriculture, transport, rail and drone operations all rely on RTK for its accuracy and reliability in open environments. Once a device is equipped with a GNSS receiver and correction service, it can operate anywhere with sky visibility, making it highly scalable across fleets and outdoor sites.
UWB: Best for Localised, High-Density, Indoor Scenarios
UWB excels in scenarios that require:
Indoor or GNSS-denied tracking (factories, warehouses, tunnels, enclosed sites)
High-resolution positioning in constrained environments
Real-time interaction with moving objects or people
Minimal latency for split-second decision-making (e.g. collision avoidance)
Because UWB requires fixed infrastructure (anchors) and works over short distances (typically 10-30 m), it is ideal for permanent or semi-permanent facilities where precision and responsiveness are paramount.
When to Combine: Hybrid Architectures for Seamless Coverage
In many sectors, the optimal solution is a hybrid system:
A logistics tag uses RTK GNSS for tracking across a yard or delivery route, then switches to UWB upon entering a warehouse
A construction worker is geo-fenced outdoors using RTK and tracked indoors using UWB during fit-out stages
A rail technician moves from an open track to a tunnel, seamlessly transitioning between GNSS and UWB coverage
Hybrid systems are already being deployed in logistics, rail and industrial safety, supported by evolving software platforms that can merge indoor and outdoor data into a unified view. This convergence allows companies to track assets or personnel continuously, regardless of environment.
Infrastructure and Cost Considerations
RTK GNSS requires receivers, antennas, and access to correction data (via local base stations or subscription services), but no fixed infrastructure on site.
UWB requires installation of anchors and calibration, but offers higher relative accuracy and responsiveness in localised environments.
The decision often comes down to the nature of the site (fixed or mobile), required accuracy, latency tolerance, and budget constraints. In general:
Use RTK for scalable, mobile outdoor deployments
Use UWB for high-precision local tracking indoors
Use both when seamless end-to-end visibility is critical
Conclusion: From Pilots to Deployment, RTK and UWB Enter the Mainstream
RTK GNSS and UWB are no longer niche innovations. They are now proven technologies driving tangible safety and efficiency gains across construction, healthcare, logistics, and transport. With compact, low-power modules from SPARK Microsystems, Neoway and SIMCom, it's never been easier to integrate high-precision positioning into your product or system.
You can view the full specifications for each module mentioned in this article in our technical document library following the links below.
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Neoway GNSS Modules | SIMCom SIM66MD module | Spark Micro SR1020 |
Contact Ineltek UK to discuss your tracking application, request samples, or book a technical consultation.
