Heading estimation for determining a user's location

One or more machine-readable storage media comprising a plurality of instructions stored thereon that, in response to execution by a mobile computing device, cause the mobile computing device to:

• detect, based on sensed inertial characteristics of the mobile computing device, that a user of the mobile computing device has taken a physical step in a direction;
• determine a directional heading of the mobile computing device in the direction and a variation of an orientation of the mobile computing device relative to a previous orientation of the mobile computing device at a previous physical step of the user based on the sensed inertial characteristics;
• apply a Kalman filter to determine a heading of the user based on the determined directional heading of the user and the variation of the orientation of the mobile computing device;
• and
• determine an estimated location of the user based on the determined heading of the user, an estimated step length of the user, and a previous location of the user at the previous physical step.

A method for determining a user's location on a mobile computing device, the method comprising:

• detecting, by the mobile computing device and based on sensed inertial characteristics of the mobile computing device, that a user of the mobile computing device has taken a physical step in a direction;
• determining, by the mobile computing device, a directional heading of the mobile computing device in the direction and a variation of an orientation of the mobile computing device relative to a previous orientation of the mobile computing device at a previous physical step of the user based on the sensed inertial characteristics;
• applying, by the mobile computing device, a Kalman filter to determine a heading of the user based on the determined directional heading of the user and the variation of the orientation of the mobile computing device;
• and
• determining, by the mobile computing device, an estimated location of the user based on the determined heading of the user, an estimated step length of the user, and a previous location of the user at the previous physical step.