Positioning system, terminal apparatus, control program for terminal apparatus, and computer readable recording medium having recorded therein control program for terminal apparatus

• US 20060044184A1
• Filed: 08/31/2005
• Published: 03/02/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/02/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: Kimura, Akira
• Application Number:
  US11/214,776
• Publication Number:
  US 20060044184A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 342/357.640
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/23 Testing, monitoring, correcting or calibrating of receiver elements
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/25 involving aiding data received from a cooperating element, e.g. assisted GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/28 Satellite selection
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0036 of measured values, i.e. measurement on mobile and position calculation on base station

Abstract

A positioning system including a terminal apparatus that acquires positioning positional information from a positioning apparatus that performs positioning calculations based on position related signals from a plurality of positional information satellites, and a supplementary information providing apparatus that is capable of communicating with the terminal apparatus and provides the terminal apparatus with supplementary information for receiving the position related signals, wherein the supplementary information includes Doppler frequency information is provided. The positioning system is configured to acquire information indicating drift even if the positioning system is a server positioning type positioning system.

Claims

1. A positioning system comprising:

a terminal apparatus being configured to acquire positioning positional information from a positioning apparatus performing positioning calculations based on position related signals from a plurality of positional information satellites; and

a supplementary information providing apparatus being configured to communicate with said terminal apparatus and to provide said terminal apparatus with supplementary information to receive position related signals, said supplementary information including Doppler frequency information indicating a Doppler frequency being a change in a frequency of the position related signals due to relative movement of said positional information satellites and said terminal apparatus, said terminal apparatus including,

a supplementary information acquiring unit being configured to acquire

said supplementary information from said supplementary information providing apparatus,

a signal receiving unit being configured to receive said position related signals from said positional information satellites on the basis of said supplementary information,

a reception frequency information generating unit being configured to generate reception frequency information indicating a reception frequency when said position related signals are received,

a frequency difference information generating unit being configured to generate frequency difference information indicating a frequency difference between a transmission frequency being a frequency when said positional information satellites transmit said position related signals, and said reception frequency,

a drift frequency information generating unit being configured to generate drift frequency information indicating a drift frequency being shift of said reception frequency due to a factor inside said terminal apparatus on the basis of said Doppler frequency information included in said supplementary information and said frequency difference information generated by said terminal apparatus,

a positioning-requiring-number-of-position-related-signals receiving unit being configured to receive as many of said position related signals as required for positioning calculations by said positioning apparatus on the basis of said transmission frequency information indicating said transmission frequency of said position related signals from said positional information satellites, said Doppler frequency information corresponding to said positional information satellites, and said drift frequency information,

a positioning basis information generating unit being configured to generate positioning basis information to be used by said positioning apparatus for positioning calculations on the basis of said received respective position related signals, and

a positioning basis information transmitting unit being configured to transmit said positioning basis information to said positioning apparatus.

2. The positioning system according to claim 1, wherein said terminal apparatus is configured to communicate with said positioning apparatus via a communication base station and a network.

3. The positioning system according to claim 2, wherein said network is the Internet.

4. The positioning system according to claim 1, wherein said terminal apparatus is a cellular phone, a personal handy-phone system, or a personal digital assistant.

5. The positioning system according to claim 1, wherein said supplementary information providing apparatus includes,

a bus,

storage connected to said bus,

a CPU configured to perform processing of a predetermined program and to control said storage, said CPU is connected to said bus,

external storage connected to said bus,

an input device connected to said bus and configured to input information,

a server communication device configured to communicate with said terminal apparatus,

a server SPS device configured to receive signals from said positional information satellites, and

a server display device configured to display information.

6. The positioning system according to claim 5, wherein said terminal apparatus includes,

a bus,

storage connected to said bus,

a CPU configured to perform processing of a predetermined program and to control said storage, said CPU is connected to said bus,

an input device connected to said bus and configured to input information,

a terminal communication device configured to communicate with said terminal apparatus,

a terminal SPS device configured to receive signals from said positional information satellites, and

a terminal display device configured to display information.

7. The positioning system according to claim 6, wherein said terminal SPS device has a quartz oscillator that generates a signal forming a basis of a synchronizing signal that is necessary for said terminal SPS device to acquire signals from said positional information satellites.

8. A terminal apparatus being configured to acquire positioning positional information from a positioning apparatus that performs positioning calculation based on position related signals from a plurality of positional information satellites, the terminal apparatus comprising:

a supplementary information acquiring unit being configured to acquire supplementary information having Doppler frequency information indicating a Doppler frequency being a change in a frequency of the position related signals due to relative movement of the respective positional information satellites and the terminal apparatus from a supplementary information providing apparatus being configured to communicate with the terminal apparatus;

a signal receiving unit being configured to receive the position related signals from the positional information satellites on the basis of the supplementary information;

a reception frequency information generating unit being configured to generate reception frequency information indicating a reception frequency when the position related signals are received;

a frequency difference information generating unit being configured to generate frequency difference information indicating a frequency difference between a transmission frequency being a frequency when the respective positional information satellites transmit the position related signals, and the reception frequency;

a drift frequency information generating unit being configured to generate drift frequency information indicating a drift frequency being a shift of the reception frequency due to a factor inside the terminal apparatus on the basis of the Doppler frequency information included in the supplementary information and the frequency difference information generated by the terminal apparatus;

a positioning-requiring-number-of-position-related-signals receiving unit being configured to receive as many position related signals as required for positioning calculation by the positioning apparatus on the basis of the transmission frequency information indicating the transmission frequency of the position related signals from the respective positional information satellites, the Doppler frequency information corresponding to the respective positional information satellites, and the drift frequency information;

a positioning basis information generating unit being configured to generate positioning basis information to be used by the positioning apparatus for the positioning calculation on the basis of the received respective position related signals; and

a positioning basis information transmitting unit being configured to transmit the positioning basis information to the positioning apparatus.

9. A terminal apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the drift frequency information generating unit generates the drift frequency information on the basis of at least one set of the Doppler frequency information and the frequency difference information.

10. A terminal apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising,

a preliminary-positioning-positional-information generating unit that performs preliminary positioning calculation on the basis of a plurality of position related signals received by the signal receiving unit to generate preliminary positioning positional information indicating a preliminary positioning position, and

a preliminary-positioning-positional-information-with-minimum-error selecting unit that selects preliminary positioning positional information with minimum error that is the preliminary positioning positional information with a minimum positioning error from a plurality of pieces of the preliminary positioning positional information generated by the preliminary-positioning-positional-information generating unit, wherein

the reception frequency information generating unit generates the reception frequency information indicating a frequency at which the position related signals corresponding to the preliminary positioning positional information with minimum error are received.

11. A terminal apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising,

a preliminary-positioning-positional-information generating unit that performs preliminary positioning calculation on the basis of a plurality of position related signals received by the signal receiving unit to generate preliminary positioning positional information indicating a preliminary positioning position, and

a preliminary-positioning-positional-information-with-minimum-error selecting unit that selects preliminary positioning positional information with minimum error that is the preliminary positioning positional information with a minimum positioning error from a plurality of pieces of the preliminary positioning positional information generated by the preliminary-positioning-positional-information generating unit, wherein

the reception frequency information generating unit generates the reception frequency information indicating a frequency at which the position related signals corresponding to the preliminary positioning positional information with minimum error are received.

12. A terminal apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising a drift information storing unit that stores the drift frequency information, wherein

the signal receiving unit uses the drift frequency information to receive the position related information to acquire the positioning positional information from the positioning apparatus for the following time period.

13. A terminal apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising,

a drift-frequency-transition-information storing unit that stores drift frequency transition information indicating transition of the drift frequency due to temperature change,

a temperature-information-at-drift-information-generation-time generating unit that generates temperature information at the time of drift information generation indicating temperature at the time when the drift frequency information is generated, and

a drift-frequency-transition-information correcting unit that corrects the drift frequency transition information on the basis of the drift frequency information and the temperature information at the time of drift information generation.

14. A control program for a terminal apparatus adapted to run on a computer, comprising:

computer code for acquiring positioning positional information from a positioning apparatus performing positioning calculation based on position related signals from a plurality of positional information satellites by a terminal apparatus, acquiring supplementary information including Doppler frequency information indicating a Doppler frequency being a change in a frequency of the position related signals due to relative movement of the respective positional information satellites and said terminal apparatus by said terminal apparatus from a supplementary information providing apparatus being configured to communicate with said terminal apparatus;

computer code for receiving said position related signals from said positional information satellites on the basis of said supplementary information by said terminal apparatus;

computer code for generating reception frequency information indicating a reception frequency when said position related signals are received by said terminal apparatus;

computer code for generating by said terminal apparatus generates frequency difference information indicating a frequency difference between transmission frequency and said reception frequency;

computer code for generating by said terminal apparatus drift frequency information indicating a drift frequency being a shift of said reception frequency due to a factor inside said terminal apparatus on the basis of said Doppler frequency information included in said supplementary information and said frequency difference information generated by said terminal apparatus;

computer code for receiving by said terminal apparatus as many of said position related signals as required for positioning calculation by said positioning apparatus on the basis of said transmission frequency information indicating transmission frequency of said position related signals from said positional information satellites, the Doppler frequency information corresponding to said information satellites, and the drift frequency information;

computer code for generating by said terminal apparatus positioning basis information to be used by said positioning apparatus for said positioning calculation on the basis of said position related signals having been received; and

computer code for transmitting by said terminal apparatus said positioning basis information to said positioning apparatus.

15. A computer recording medium having recorded therein a control program for a terminal apparatus according to claim 14.