Information processing apparatus for reception and processing of a positioning signal

• US 10,082,582 B2
• Filed: 09/06/2012
• Issued: 09/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/20/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Takaoka, Tomohisa
• Primary Examiner(s): Issing, Gregory C.
• Application Number:
  US13/604,917
• Publication Number:
  US 20130099971A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,210 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/24 Acquisition or tracking or demodulation of signals transmitted by the system synchronisation aspects of direct sequence spread spectrum modulation H04B1/7073
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/34 Power consumption
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/48 by combining or switching between position solutions derived from the satellite radio beacon positioning system and position solutions derived from a further system

Abstract

There is provided an information processing apparatus including a satellite positioning unit, an environment information acquiring unit, a reception information acquiring unit and an operation condition setting unit. The satellite positioning unit performs positioning based on a positioning signal received from a positioning satellite. The environment information acquiring unit acquires environment information unique to a current location. The reception information acquiring unit acquires reception information indicating a state of the positioning signal at the current location based on the environment information The operation condition setting unit sets an operation condition of the satellite positioning unit based on the reception information.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus, comprising:

a satellite positioning unit configured to determine a position of the information processing apparatus based on a plurality of positioning signals, wherein a positioning signal of the plurality of positioning signals is received from a positioning satellite; and

a system control unit configured to;

acquire environment information, wherein the environment information specifies a current location of the information processing apparatus;

acquire reception information from a server based on the environment information and terminal information, wherein the terminal information identifies the information processing apparatus;

set an operation condition of the satellite positioning unit based on the reception information, wherein the satellite positioning unit is further configured to search for the positioning satellite based on the operation condition;

generate a notification comprising the environment information and set the satellite positioning unit in a sleep state for a second time period based on a lapse of a first time period in which the satellite positioning unit fails to determine the position of the information processing apparatus; and

activate the satellite positioning unit based on a lapse of the second period time.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the reception information includes information associated with an azimuth at which the positioning signal is receivable at the current location, and

wherein the satellite positioning unit is further configured to search for the positioning satellite at the azimuth based on the operation condition.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the reception information includes information associated with an elevation angle at which the positioning signal is receivable at the current location, and

wherein the satellite positioning unit is further configured to search for the positioning satellite at the elevation angle based on the operation condition.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the system control unit is further configured to set the operation condition based on a determination that a state of the positioning signal varies at the current location, and

wherein the operation condition is set based on information that indicates at least one of positioning accuracy or power consumption.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the system control unit is further configured to set the operation condition to control the satellite positioning unit, and

wherein the satellite positioning unit is further configured to determine the position based on the reception information that indicates the current location is a location at which the positioning signal is receivable.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the system control unit is further configured to set the operation condition to control the satellite positioning unit,

wherein the satellite positioning unit is further configured to search the positioning signal with a first intensity, and wherein the positioning signal is searched based on the reception information that indicates the current location is a location at which the positioning signal with the first intensity is receivable.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 6,

wherein the satellite positioning unit is further configured to re-search the positioning satellite based on the reception information that indicates the current location is a location at which the positioning signal with the first intensity is receivable.

8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 6,

wherein the satellite positioning unit is further configured to search for the positioning signal with a second intensity for a time interval, wherein the second intensity is lower than the first intensity, wherein the positioning signal is searched with a second intensity based on the reception information that indicates the current location is a location at which the positioning signal with the first intensity is receivable.

9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the system control unit is further configured to set the operation condition to control the satellite positioning unit, and

wherein the satellite positioning unit is further configured to execute a strong-signal search for the positioning signal, wherein the strong-signal search is executed with an intensity based on the reception information that indicates the current location is a location at which the positioning signal with the intensity is receivable.

10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the system control unit is further configured to acquire the reception information based on one of a name or version of the information processing apparatus as the terminal information, and

wherein the terminal information identifies the information processing apparatus.

11. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a reception information collecting unit configured to collect the environment information and the reception information, wherein the reception information indicate a state of the positioning signal at a time of acquisition of the environment information.

12. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the system control unit is further configured to acquire the reception information collected by the information processing apparatus.

13. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the satellite positioning unit is further configured to determine the position under a standard operation condition based on the operation condition that is set.

14. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the satellite positioning unit is further configured to:

wait for the first time period before the determination of the position, and

determine the position after the operation condition based on the reception information that is set.

15. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the system control unit is further configured to acquire the reception information based on the environment information, wherein the environment information is a key stored in the information processing apparatus.

16. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the environment information is acquired based on at least one of a Wi-Fi signal, radio frequency identification (RFID) signal, a television signal or a frequency modulation (FM) signal.

17. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the system control unit is further configured to control a reception information collecting unit to store the reception information in the information processing apparatus.

18. An information processing method, comprising:

in an information processing apparatus;

acquiring environment information, wherein the environment information specifies a current location of the information processing apparatus;

acquiring reception information, stored in a server, based on the environment information and terminal information, wherein the environment information is a key to specify the reception information and wherein the terminal information identifies the information processing apparatus;

setting an operation condition of a satellite positioning unit to search for a positioning satellite based on the reception information;

determining a position of the information processing apparatus by the satellite positioning unit based on a plurality of positioning signals, wherein a positioning signal of the plurality of positioning signals is received from the positioning satellite under the set operation condition;

generating a notification comprising the environment information and setting the satellite positioning unit in a sleep state for a second time period based on a lapse of a first time period in which the satellite positioning unit fails to determine the position of the information processing apparatus; and

activating the satellite positioning unit based on a lapse of the second period time.

19. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon, computer-executable instructions which when executed by an information processing apparatus, cause the information processing apparatus to execute operations, the operations comprising:

determining a position of the information processing apparatus based on a plurality of positioning signals, wherein a positioning signal of the plurality of positioning signals is received from a positioning satellite;

acquiring environment information, wherein the environment information specifies a current location of the information processing apparatus;

acquiring reception information from a server based on the environment information and terminal information, wherein the terminal information identifies the information processing apparatus;

setting an operation condition of a positioning apparatus, wherein searching for the positioning satellite is executed based on the reception information;

generating a notification comprising the environment information and setting a satellite positioning unit in a sleep state for a second time period based on a lapse of a first time period in which the satellite positioning unit fails to determine the position of the information processing apparatus; and

activating the satellite positioning unit based on a lapse of the second period time.