Location watching

• US 10,415,973 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2017
• Issued: 09/17/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 11/04/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Shen, Guo Bin, Zhang, Zheng
• Primary Examiner(s): Liu, Harry K
• Application Number:
  US15/459,956
• Publication Number:
  US 20170188196A1
• Time in Patent Office: 916 Days
• Field of Search: 342518
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/005 with correlation of navigation data from several sources, e.g. map or contour matching G01C21/30 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/42 Determining position
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/017 Detecting state or type of motion
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/02 using radio waves using satellite radio beacon systems for determining position G01S19/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0205 Details
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/042 Public Land Mobile systems, e.g. cellular systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

Techniques for watching a location of a device with respect to a destination target include obtaining a current location of a device from a localization operation, calculating an interval, and performing a next localization operation after the interval has expired. The interval may be calculated based on a velocity and a distance from the current location to a destination target. The techniques may also include calculating a displacement distance from the current location and adjusting the interval based on the displacement distance to thereby adjust a time for performing the next localization operation. The techniques may include performing state detection to determine a motion state of the device and performing the next localization operation based on the determined motion state.

Claims

1. A computing device comprising:

one or more processors;

a first sensor;

a second sensor; and

one or more computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform acts comprising;

performing, using the first sensor and at a first time, a first localization operation to identify a first location of the computing device, the first localization operation including at least one of a satellite-based localization, a cellular-based localization, or a wireless access point-based localization;

calculating an interval based at least in part on a distance from the first location to a destination location and a first motion state of the computing device;

obtaining data from the second sensor at a second time subsequent the first time;

determining a second motion state of the computing device based at least in part on the data from the second sensor;

modifying the interval based at least in part on the second motion state to create a modified interval; and

based at least in part on detecting an end of the modified interval, performing, using the first sensor, a second localization operation to identify a second location of the computing device.

2. The computing device as recited in claim 1, wherein the first sensor comprises a Global Positioning System (GPS) sensor and the second sensor comprises an accelerometer.

3. The computing device as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the first motion state comprises a moving state;

the second motion state comprises a still state; and

modifying the interval based at least in part on the second motion state comprises lengthening the interval to create the modified interval.

4. The computing device as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the second motion state comprises a moving state; and

modifying the interval based at least in part on the second motion state comprises shortening the interval to create the modified interval.

5. The computing device as recited in claim 1, the acts further comprising:

after performing the first localization operation, setting the first sensor to a sleep mode or a suspended mode;

detecting the end of the modified interval; and

based at least in part on detecting the end of the modified interval, waking the first sensor from the sleep mode or the suspended mode to perform the second localization operation.

6. The computing device as recited in claim 1, the acts further comprising:

calculating a total interval based at least in part on the distance from the first location to the destination location, the total interval comprising an estimate of a total time to travel from the first location to the destination location, and

wherein calculating the interval comprises setting the interval to be shorter than the total interval.

7. The computing device as recited in claim 1, the acts further comprising:

determining that the interval is less than a predefined interval threshold; and

based at least in part on determining that the interval is less than the predefined interval threshold, determining to (i) obtain the data from the second sensor at the second time and (ii) determine the second motion state of the computing device based at least in part on the data.

8. The computing device as recited in claim 1, wherein determining the second motion state of the computing device comprises determining that the computing device is in a still state;

and

the acts further comprising, based at least in part on determining that the computing device is in the still state;

periodically obtaining additional data from the second sensor to determine whether the computing device remains in the still state or is in a motion state;

determining, based at least in part on the additional data, that the computing device has switched from the still state to the motion state; and

based at least in part on determining that the computing device has switched from the still state to the motion state, performing the second localization operation.

9. A system comprising:

one or more processors;

a first sensor communicatively coupled to the one or more processors;

a second sensor communicatively coupled to the one or more processors; and

memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform acts comprising;

performing, using the first sensor, a first localization operation to identify a first location of the system, the first localization operation including at least one of a satellite-based localization, a cellular-based localization, or a wireless access point-based localization;

calculating an interval based at least in part on a distance from the first location to a destination location and a first motion state of the system;

obtaining data from the second sensor;

determining, based at least in part on the data, at least one of a displacement distance or a motion state of the system;

modifying the interval based on at least one of the displacement distance or the motion state of the system to create a modified interval; and

based at least in part on the modified interval, scheduling a second localization operation based at least in part on the modified interval.

10. The system as recited in claim 9, the acts further comprising:

determining that the interval is greater than an interval threshold; and

based at least in part on determining that the interval is greater than the interval threshold, setting the first sensor to a sleep mode or a suspended mode after performing the first localization operation.

11. The system as recited in claim 9, wherein:

performing the first localization operation includes receiving a first cell reading;

obtaining the data from the second sensor comprises receiving a second cell reading from the second sensor; and

determining the at least one of the displacement distance or the motion state of the system comprises determining the displacement distance based at least in part on the first cell reading and the second cell reading; and

the acts further comprising;

determining that the displacement distance is less than a threshold displacement distance;

based at least in part on determining that the displacement distance is less than the threshold displacement distance;

determining to modify the interval; and

setting the first sensor to a sleep mode or a suspended mode.

12. The system as recited in claim 9, wherein the first sensor comprises at least one of a Global Positioning System (GPS) sensor or a cellular system sensor, and the second sensor comprises an accelerometer.

13. The system as recited in claim 9, wherein:

the motion state of the system comprises a second motion state;

the first motion state comprises a moving state;

the second motion state comprises a still state; and

modifying the interval comprises lengthening the interval to create the modified interval.

14. The system as recited in claim 9, wherein:

the motion state of the system comprises a second motion state;

the first motion state comprises a still state;

the second motion state comprises a moving state; and

modifying the interval comprises shortening the interval to create the modified interval.

15. One or more computer-readable storage media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform acts comprising:

performing, using a first sensor associated with a computing device, a first localization operation to identify a first location of the computing device, the first localization operation including at least one of a satellite-based localization, a cellular-based localization, or a wireless access point-based localization;

calculating an interval based at least in part on a distance from the first location to a destination location and a first motion state of the computing device;

obtaining data from a second sensor associated with computing device;

determining, based at least in part on the data, a second motion state of the computing device; and

performing, using the first sensor, a second localization operation based at least in part on the interval and the second motion state of the computing device.

16. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 15, wherein the first sensor comprises a Global Positioning System (GPS) sensor or a cellular system sensor and the second sensor comprises an accelerometer.

17. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 15, the acts further comprising:

determining that the interval is greater than a threshold interval;

based at least in part on determining that the interval is greater than the threshold interval, setting the first sensor to a sleep mode or a suspended mode; and

in response to detecting the end of the interval, waking the first sensor from the sleep mode or the suspended mode to perform the second localization operation.

18. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 15, wherein the second motion state comprises a still state;

and

the acts further comprising;

determining that the interval is less than a threshold interval;

based at least in part on determining that the computing device is in the still state, periodically obtaining additional data from the second sensor to determine whether the computing device remains in the still state or is in a motion state;

determining, based at least in part on the additional data, that the computing device has switched from the still state to the motion state; and

based at least in part on determining that the computing device has switched from the still state to the motion state, performing the second localization operation.

19. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 15, the acts further comprising:

determining, based at least in part on the first location of the computing device and the destination location, whether the computing device is within a predetermined proximity to the destination location;

based at least in part on determining that the computing device is not within the predetermined proximity to the destination location, determining to calculate the interval.

20. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 15, wherein:

the first motion state comprises a moving state;

the second motion state comprises a still state; and

the acts further comprise;

modifying the interval by lengthening the interval to create a modified interval,

wherein the performing the second localization is based at least in part on detecting an end of the modified interval.