Apparatus, and associated method, for testing a mobile terminal in test conditions that emulate an operating environment

• US 20070019769A1
• Filed: 06/30/2004
• Published: 01/25/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Wang, Shu-Shaw, Green, Marilynn
• Granted Patent: US 7,324,588 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 375/360
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/27 for locating or positioning the transmitter
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/391 Modelling the propagation channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/06 Testing, supervising or monitoring using simulated traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/90 Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/50 for emergency connections

Abstract

Testing apparatus, and an associated method, for testing operation of a mobile terminal. Testing is performed, e.g., to determine compliance of the mobile terminal to E911 Phase II positioning requirements. A network and radio channel emulator emulates network signals generated and communicated to the mobile terminal in an actual operating environment. Positioning measurements made by the mobile terminal are monitored and determinations of the operation of the mobile terminal are made therefrom.

Claims

1. A testing apparatus for testing a terminal under test pursuant to a control environment emulative of an operating environment, said apparatus comprising:

an operating environment emulator for generating emulated signals for application to the terminal under test, the emulated signals emulative of signals generated and communicated in the operating environment, emulation of the operating environment utilizing a modeled radio channel, modeled using a channel impulse response estimate formed of a combination of at least a first non-diffuse component and at least a diffuse component; and

a detector adapted to receive indications of responses made by the terminal under test in response to the application to the terminal under test of the emulated signals generated by said operating environment emulator.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the terminal under test selectably operates to calculate a positioning indication, wherein responses made by the terminal, and of which said detector is coupled to receive, comprise calculations made by the terminal under test of the positioning indication.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein the emulated signals generated by said operating environment emulator comprise position-determining signals that permit the terminal under test to calculate the positioning indication.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a storage element for storing values representative of the channel impulse response, the values stored at said storage element accessible by said operating environment emulator pursuant to generation of the emulated signals.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said operating environment emulator comprises a network emulator, said network emulator for emulating aspects of an 30 operating network with which the terminal under test is operable to communicate.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the operating network that said network emulator emulates comprises a plurality of base stations, each of which generates a pilot signal, and wherein said network emulator emulates the pilot signals generated by the plurality of base stations.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein the plurality of base stations, and pilot signals generated thereat, emulated by said network emulator comprise base stations operable in a code-division, multiple-access cellular communication system.

8. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said operating environment emulator further comprises a radio channel emulator for emulating a radio channel upon which signals are communicated to the terminal under test when operated in the operating environment, the radio channel emulated by said radio channel emulator forming the modeled radio channel, and the pilot signals formed by said network emulator are applied to said radio channel emulator.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said operating environment emulator comprises a radio channel emulator for emulating a radio channel upon which signals are communicated to the terminal under test when operated in the operating environment, the radio channel emulated by said radio channel emulator forming the modeled radio channel.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a position determination entity emulator adapted to receive the responses made by the terminal under test, said position determination entity for generating the indications of the responses.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein the terminal under test operates to perform advanced forward link trilateration measurements and wherein the responses made by the terminal under test comprises values of the advanced forward link trilateration measurements.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said detector logs the indications of the responses.

13. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a test controller, said test controller for controlling operation of said operating environment emulator and said detector.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein said test controller causes said operating environment emulator to generate emulated signals emulative of a first operating environment and of a second operating environment.

15. A method for testing a terminal under test pursuant to a control 10 environment emulative of an operating environment, said method comprising the operations of:

generating emulated signals for application to the terminal under test, the emulated signals emulative of signals generated and communicated in the operating environment, emulation of the operating environment utilizing a modeled radio channel, modeled using a channel impulse response estimate formed of a combination of at least a first non-diffuse component and at least a first diffuse component;

applying the emulated signals generated during said operation of emulating to the terminal under test; and

detecting indications of responses made by the terminal under test in response to application, during said operation of applying, of the emulated signals to the terminal under test.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising the operation, responsive to the application of the emulated signals during said operation of applying to the terminal under test, of calculating, at the terminal under test, a positioning indication, the indications detected during said operation of detecting indicative of the positioning indication.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein said operation of calculating comprises 30 calculating advanced forward link trilateration measurements responsive to the emulated signals applied during said operation of applying.

18. The method of claim 15 further comprising the operation, prior to said operation of generating, of storing values representative of the channel impulse response, the values stored during said operation of storing, accessible pursuant to said operation of generating.

19. The method of claim 15 wherein said operation of generating the emulated signals comprises emulating aspects of an operating network with which the terminal under test is operable.

20. An emulating system for determining positional coordinates of a mobile device comprising:

a network emulator for generating multiple test signals each test signal associated with a communication channel of a base transceiver station having geographic coordinates within the specific geographic area;

a channel emulator for processing each test signal using simulation data, and generating a channel response signal for each test signal indicating the effects of the simulation data, wherein the simulation data comprises interference parameters that represent the reflective, diffractive, path loss, diffusive, and Doppler effect properties created by selectable obstructions over a selectable distance d between the mobile device and the base transceiver station and the vector summation of these properties; and

a position detection emulator for calculating positional coordinates based on each channel response signal generated and the geographic coordinates of each base transceiver station.