Determine location using IR transmitters and receiver
Decades ago, I built a logarithmic AC_coupled amplifier to handle 60KHz IR squarewaves detection. We could measure angles out to 10meters (that is, the NE567 tone decoder provided YES/NO behavior out to 10 meters), with just a 5 milliamp drive to the TX LED, and a standard TO-92 lense-atop-case phototransistor detector.

To handle a wide dynamic range input to receiver, the phototransistor was adaptively biased to null out sunlight and most of the 60Hz/120Hz of incandescents.
Modern electronics-ballast flourescents (with 80,000Hz photon switching) will be a problem for you.

The post-phototransistor amplifier was a bipolar common-emitter, biased with DC_low_pass feedback to about 4 volts (approx. 50% of the 9volt VDD). The AC feedback was (DC_blocked) 470Kohm in parallel with back-to-back diodes in series with 10Kohm and also in parallel with back-to-back diodes in series with 1Kohm.