Method and apparatus for locating mobile units tracking another or within a prescribed geographic boundary
First Claim
1. A communication system comprising:
- a portable mobile remote unit;
a network of communication units;
means to obtain the location of the portable mobile remote unit;
means to obtain geographic boundary information in order to disclose a global location at the network;
means to provide the location of the portable mobile remote unit to the network upon determination that the portable mobile remote unit is within the geographic boundary obtained at the network;
means to determine and report to the system upon request that, another mobile remote unit of the network has tracked the portable mobile remote over a period of time
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Accused Products
Abstract
A mobile location reporting communication system consists of a network of communication sources and targets managed by one or more control stations. In the system, a communication source may request for the location of a mobile communication target from the network. The target conveys its location to the network and that information is provided to the source. In the invention a mobile communication source request for the location of mobile communication targets that are present in a prescribed geographic boundary.The network provides to the source only remote targets that are present in the prescribed boundary. Also in the invention, a concealed or clandestine mobile portable target, close to the mobile portable source, may be tracking the source. The source may invoke a method that may result in the disclosure of mobile targets that have traveled a pre-specified distance with the source while maintaining proximity to the source.
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Citations
24 Claims
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1. A communication system comprising:
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a portable mobile remote unit;
a network of communication units;
means to obtain the location of the portable mobile remote unit;
means to obtain geographic boundary information in order to disclose a global location at the network;
means to provide the location of the portable mobile remote unit to the network upon determination that the portable mobile remote unit is within the geographic boundary obtained at the network;
means to determine and report to the system upon request that, another mobile remote unit of the network has tracked the portable mobile remote over a period of time - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
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4. ) A communication system for providing the location of portable mobile remote units in a geographic region to a wireless consumer requesting that information comprising:
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i) means to specify and forward to system, geographic boundary information describing the geographic region where the location of portable mobile remote units are required by the wireless consumer;
ii) means to locate from the system, portable mobile remote units that exist in the geographic boundary of (i), said mobile remote units capable of establishing a global location at the network;
iii) means to provide to the wireless consumer the location of a portable mobile remote unit that exist in the geographic boundary defined by the wireless consumer. - View Dependent Claims (5)
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6. ) A control unit of the system of 4, having means to receive a request for the location of portable mobile remote units situated in a geographic region of the system and having means to search for mobile remote units that are located in said geographic region.
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7. ) A method for providing the location of portable mobile remote units to a wireless consumer requesting the location of PRUs within a geographic region of a communication system comprising:
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i) obtaining from the wireless consumer, geographic boundary information indicating where a search should be undertaken for PRUs;
ii) providing the information defined in (i) to a control unit of the system;
ii) generating at said control unit a request for the location of PRUs within said geographic boundary;
iii) verifying after said request, whether a portable mobile remote unit in said geographic boundary responded with location information;
iv) providing to the wireless consumer, at least the identity and location of a portable remote unit after the verification of (iii);
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8. ) A method further employed in 7 to determine if a portable mobile remote unit is within a specific geographic boundary defined by the system comprising:
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i) receiving at the PRU geographic boundary information, within which the location of the PRU should be disclosed;
ii) establishing at the PRU if the PRU is within said geographic boundary and, if yes, forwarding the location of the PRU to the system;
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9. A method further employed in 7 to obtain the location of mobile remote units wherein said prescribed geographic boundary obtained from the wireless consumer is wider than normal, comprising;
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i) splitting the wider than normal geographic boundary into sub geographic regions to constitute the geographic boundary;
ii) requesting in the sub geographic region(s), the location of remote units that are present in each sub region;
iii) verifying after each request of (ii) in a sub region, whether at least a portable remote unit disclosed a global location in the region;
iv) maintaining a list of all remote units that disclosed their location after each request from the verification of step (iii);
v) providing to the system and from the list of (v) the location of at least a remote unit that revealed its location in the sub region - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19)
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12. A method for providing the location of a portable mobile remote unit in a geographic region of a wireless network to a wireless consumer requesting the location of portable mobile remote units that are maintaining close proximity to the wireless consumer in the geographic region comprising:
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i) obtaining the location of the wireless consumer at intervals over a period of time;
ii) requesting at each interval, at the network, that all mobile remote units within close proximity of the wireless consumer disclose their location to the network;
iii) maintaining a list of mobile remote units that provided their location at each interval after the request of (ii), iv) from the list of (iii), forwarding the location of at least a mobile remote unit to the mobile consumer upon determination that the remote unit maintained close proximity to the mobile consumer over the period of time of (i).
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17. A method for determining that a first portable remote unit associated with a network is being tracked by at least a second portable remote unit over a tracking period comprising;
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obtaining the location of the first portable remote unit or tracked unit;
obtaining the location of the at least a second communication unit or tracking unit that is within proximity or a pre-specified radius of the tracked unit;
verifying whether the tracking and tracked unit(s) have traveled a minimum pre-specified distance over the tracking period;
forwarding the result of the verification to the network at the end of the tracking period.
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20. A communication system comprising:
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a network of communication units;
at least a first communication unit and at least a second communication unit able to provide location information to the network;
the system able to determine and report that the at least second communication unit maintained close proximity to the at least first communication unit over a period of time. - View Dependent Claims (21)
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22. A method for providing the location of a portable remote unit that exists within a prescribed geographic boundary in a wireless network comprising.
i) providing geographic boundary information to the mobile remote unit in a geographic region to disclose their location; -
ii) further providing exclusion region information associated with said geographic boundary of (i) to the mobile remote unit in the geographic region;
iii) determining that a mobile remote unit is in the geographic boundary of (i) and not in the exclusion region of (ii) before providing the location of the mobile remote unit to the network.
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23. A method for providing the location of a portable remote unit that exists within a prescribed geographic boundary to a wireless network comprising:
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i) providing to remote units in the geographic boundary velocity information required in order to divulge location information, ii) estimating at the remote unit or network, the velocity at which the remote unit is moving;
iii) validating that the estimated velocity of the remote unit meets the velocity requirement provided by the network (i) if yes, forwarding the location of the remote unit to the network.
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24. ) A method for providing the location of a portable mobile remote unit to a network of communication units comprising:
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i) establishing the current location of the mobile remote unit within the system;
ii) obtaining a reference location and radii information pertaining to the current location (i) of the portable mobile remote unit from the system;
iii)verifying whether said current location of the portable mobile remote lies within the geographic boundary defined by said reference location and radii information in (ii) iv)if the result of verification (iii) determines that the portable mobile remote unit is not in said geographic boundary, then, providing the current location of the mobile remote unit to the network and replacing said reference location and/or radii information (i) with new information that is consistent with said current geographic location of the portable mobile remote unit;
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Specification