Three‐dimensional localization system for small magnetic dipoles

We developed a system for localizing orthogonal triplets of small magnetic dipoles with an array of magnetometers. These triplets can be used to measure, in quasi‐real time, the position of an object. This system is particularly useful when used with superconducting biomagnetic multichannel detectors. We present here a complete numerical simulation of the system performances and the first experimental tests with a biomagnetic detector (an array of 37 superconducting magnetometers). This system can be operated at frequencies outside the range of interest for biomagnetic measurements (that is typically 10−2–103 Hz). It features an accuracy of ±0.3 cm driving the triplet at a field intensity ≊10−12 T. The speed of the algorithm allows for quasi‐real‐time operation (t ∼ 10−1 s).