Positional information providing apparatus communication terminal mobile communication terminal and positional information providing method

• US 20030109265A1
• Filed: 10/15/2002
• Published: 06/12/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 09/08/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Original Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Inventors: Menjo, Hiroyuki, Nakajima, Kaoru, Kosuge, Kazunori, Yamamoto, Hiroyuki, Iwamoto, Tsuyoshi, Murata, Katsutoshi
• Granted Patent: US 7,340,217 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/456.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/53 using third party service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/08 Mobility data transfer
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/10 between location register and external networks

Abstract

A positional information service server selects a measuring system most suitable for measuring quality conditions received from a terminal requesting measurement when able to measure position of a designated mobile unit to be measured by a plurality of measuring systems. The positional information service server acquires the positional information of the mobile unit based on the selected measuring system, and transmits it to the terminal designated as the one to be notified.

Claims

1. A positional information providing apparatus comprising:

a receiving means for receiving, from a terminal requesting measurement, identification information identifying a mobile communication terminal to be measured, and measuring quality conditions indicating conditions regarding the quality of the measurement;

a selecting means for selecting a measuring system suitable for said received measuring quality conditions from among a plurality of measuring systems able to measure position of the mobile communication terminal identified by said received identification information;

an acquiring means for acquiring the positional information of said mobile communication terminal based on the measuring system selected by said selecting means; and

a transmitting means for transmitting positional information acquired by said acquiring means to a terminal designated to be notified.

2. A positional information providing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein said acquiring means causes a measuring means for measuring a position of a mobile communication terminal to measure position of the mobile communication terminal identified by said identification information by a measuring system selected by said selecting means, and acquires positional information of said mobile communication terminal measured by said measuring means.

3. A positional information providing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein said acquiring means acquires positional information linked with a measuring system selected by said selecting means, and identification information received by said receiving means from a storage means, storing positional information acquired by measuring position of the mobile communication terminal, linked with the measuring system of positional information and identification information of said mobile communication terminal.

4. A positional information providing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein said mobile communication terminal is provided with a measuring means for measuring its own position;

and

wherein said acquiring means causes measuring means of said mobile communication terminal to measure its own position by a measuring system selected by said selecting means, and acquires positional information of said mobile communication terminal measured by the measuring means.

5. A positional information providing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein a responding means for transmitting the measuring system selected by said selecting means back to said terminal requesting measurement is further provided.

8. A positional information providing apparatus as set forth in claim 1 or 6,

wherein said measuring quality conditions are at least one of conditions relating to a range of measuring times, a condition relating to precision of measuring, a condition relating to a rate billed along with the measurement, and a condition relating to time required for measuring in any combination.

9. A positional information providing apparatus as set forth in claim 1 or 6,

wherein when there are a plurality of said measuring quality conditions, a priority order indicating the relative importance of the conditions is set.

10. A positional information providing apparatus as set forth in claim 1 or 6,

wherein the mobile communication terminal to be measured, is said terminal requesting the measurement.

11. A positional information providing apparatus as set forth in claim 1 or 6,

wherein the designated terminal to be notified is said terminal requesting the measurement.

12. A positional information providing apparatus as set forth in claim 1 or 6,

wherein the designated terminal as to be notified is a communication apparatus receiving positional information transmitted by said transmitting means, and providing position related information relating to the position indicated by the positional information, to said mobile communication terminal.

6. A positional information providing apparatus comprising:

a receiving step for receiving, from a terminal requesting measurement, identification information identifying a mobile communication terminal to be measured, and measuring quality conditions indicating conditions regarding the quality of the measurement;

a setting means for setting a priority order using measuring systems based on said received measuring quality conditions for a plurality of measuring systems able to measure the position of the mobile communication terminal identified by said received identification information;

an acquiring means for acquiring the positional information of said mobile communication terminal based on a measuring system in order from the measuring system with the highest priority order set by said setting means and, when the positional information cannot be acquired, acquiring the positional information of said mobile communication terminal based on the measuring system with the next highest priority order; and

a transmitting means for transmitting positional information acquired by said acquiring means, to a terminal designated to be notified.

7. A positional information providing apparatus as set forth in claim 6, wherein a responding means for transmitting the plurality of measuring systems able to measure the position of the mobile communication terminal and the priority order set by said setting means for the plurality of measuring systems back to said terminal requesting the measurement, is further provided.

13. A communication terminal for requesting the provision of positional information to a positional information providing apparatus providing positional information acquired by measuring the position of a mobile communication terminal, said communication terminal comprising:

an input means for inputting identification information identifying a mobile communication terminal to be acquired by positional information, and measuring quality conditions indicating conditions relating to the quality of measurement of positional information to which said positional information providing apparatus refers for selecting a measuring system to be used from among a plurality of measuring systems able to measure a position of said mobile communication terminal; and

a transmitting means for transmitting the identification information and measuring quality conditions input by said input means to said positional information providing apparatus.

14. A communication terminal as set forth in claim 13,

wherein the measuring quality conditions are at least one of conditions relating to a range of measuring times, a condition relating to precision of measuring, a condition relating to a rate billed along with the measurement, and a condition relating to time required for measuring in any combination.

15. A communication terminal as set forth in claim 13,

wherein when there are a plurality of said measuring quality conditions, a priority order indicating the relative importance of the conditions is set by input by said input means.

16. A mobile communication terminal for requesting provision of positional information of the mobile communication terminal to a positional information providing apparatus providing positional information acquired by measuring the position of the mobile communication terminal, said mobile communication terminal comprising:

an input means for inputting measuring quality conditions indicating conditions relating to the quality of the measurement of positional information of the mobile communication terminal requesting provision to said positional information providing apparatus;

a selecting means for selecting a measuring system suitable for the measuring quality conditions input by said input means from among a plurality of measuring systems able to measure the position of the mobile communication terminal and;

a transmitting means for transmitting the measuring system selected by said selecting means, and identification information identifying the mobile communication terminal to said positional information providing apparatus.

18. A mobile communication terminal as set forth in claim 16 or 17,

wherein the measuring quality conditions are at least one of conditions relating to a range of measuring times, a condition relating to precision of measuring, a condition relating to a rate billed along with the measurement, and a condition relating to time required for measuring in any combination.

19. A mobile communication terminal as set forth in claim 16 or 17,

wherein when there are a plurality of said measuring quality conditions, a priority order indicating the relative importance of the conditions is set by input from said input means.

17. A mobile communication terminal for requesting the provision of positional information of the mobile communication terminal to a positional information providing apparatus providing positional information acquired by measuring the position of the mobile communication terminal, said mobile communication terminal comprising:

an input means for inputting measuring quality conditions indicating conditions relating to the quality of measurement of the positional information of the mobile communication terminal requesting provision to said positional information providing apparatus;

a setting means for setting a priority order using measuring systems based on the measuring quality conditions input by said input means for a plurality of measuring systems able to measure the position of the mobile communication terminal; and

a transmitting means for transmitting the priority order of the measuring systems set by said setting means, and identification information identifying the mobile communication terminal to said positional information providing apparatus.

20. A positional information providing method comprising

a receiving step in which positional information providing apparatus receives, from a terminal requesting measuring, identification information identifying a mobile communication terminal to be measured, and measuring quality conditions indicating conditions regarding the quality of the measurement;

a selecting step in which said positional information providing apparatus selects a measuring system suitable for the measuring quality conditions received at said receiving step from among a plurality of measuring systems able to measure the position of the mobile communication terminal identified by the identification information received at said receiving step;

an acquiring step in which said positional information providing apparatus acquires the positional information of said mobile communication terminal based on the measuring system selected by said selecting step; and

a transmitting step in which said positional information providing apparatus transmits positional information acquired by said acquiring step to a terminal designated to be notified.

21. A positional information providing method comprising:

a receiving step in which a positional information providing apparatus receives, from a terminal requesting measuring, identification information identifying a mobile communication terminal to be measured, and measuring quality conditions indicating conditions regarding the quality of the measurement;

a setting step in which said positional information providing apparatus sets a priority order using measuring systems based on the measuring quality conditions received at said receiving step for a plurality of measuring systems able to measure the position of the mobile communication terminal identified by said received identification information;

an acquiring step in which said positional information providing apparatus acquires the positional information of said mobile communication terminal based on a measuring system in order from the measuring system with the highest priority order set by said setting step and, when the positional information cannot be acquired, acquiring the positional information of said mobile communication terminal based on the measuring system with the next highest priority order; and

a transmitting step in which said positional information providing apparatus transmits positional information acquired by said acquiring step to a designated terminal to be notified.