Methods and Apparatus for Extrapolating Person and Device Counts
First Claim
1. A method of processing active wireless device statistics, the method comprising:
- receiving statistics on the number of active wireless devices in at least one communications cell;
estimating the number of people in a geographic region of interest from the received statistics on the number of active wireless devices.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Methods and apparatus for providing statistics on the number, distribution and/or flow of people or devices in a geographic region based on active wireless device counts are described. Wireless devices may be of different types e.g., cell phones, PDAs, etc. Wireless communications centers report the number and type of active devices in the geographic region serviced by the wireless communications center and/or indicate the number of devices entering/leaving the serviced region. The active wireless device information is correlated to one or more targeted geographical areas. Population counts are extrapolated from the device information for the targeted geographic areas. Traffic and/or flow information is generated from changes in the device counts or population estimates over time and/or from information on the number of active devices entering/leaving a region. Reports may include predictions of crowd population characteristics based on information about the types and/or number of different wireless devices being used.
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Citations
19 Claims
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1. A method of processing active wireless device statistics, the method comprising:
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receiving statistics on the number of active wireless devices in at least one communications cell;
estimating the number of people in a geographic region of interest from the received statistics on the number of active wireless devices. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A method of generating a traffic flow report, the method comprising the steps of:
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collecting active wireless device statistics from a communications cell over a period of time; and
detecting changes in the collected active wireless device statistics; and
generating a report including traffic flow information based on detected changes in the collected active wireless device statistics. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16)
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17. An apparatus for estimating the number of people in a geographic region, the apparatus comprising:
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an interface for receiving an active wireless device count from at least one communications cell;
means for estimating based on the received active wireless device count the number of people in a geographic region including at least a portion of said communication cell. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19)
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Specification