System and method for providing aided GPS positioning via satellite digital radio system

• US 20070103365A1
• Filed: 10/30/2006
• Published: 05/10/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/28/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CSR Technology Incorporated (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: SIRF Technology Incorporated (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Inventors: Pande, Ashutosh, Boeryd, Lars, Chang, Steve
• Granted Patent: US 7,719,464 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 342/357.310
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/05 providing aiding data
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/37 Hardware or software details of the signal processing chain

Abstract

A system and method for providing aiding information to a satellite positioning system (“SPS”) receiver. A digital satellite radio system satellite receives aiding information communicated from a positioning system. The digital satellite radio system broadcasts the aiding information in the data signals it broadcasts to its subscribers. The subscribers receive the aiding information at satellite radio receivers and communicate the aiding information to the SPS receiver. The data signals may also be communicated to terrestrial repeaters for re-broadcast at a higher power. The terrestrial repeaters may input a transmitter identifier to permit the satellite radio receiver to determine a geographical location of the terrestrial repeater as its own.

Claims

1. A method for providing aiding information to a satellite positioning system (“

SPS”

) receiver comprising;

receiving a first broadcasting data signal from a data service satellite;

extracting aiding information contained in the first broadcasting data signal, where the aiding information was provided to the data service satellite from an aiding satellite positioning system server; and

sending the aiding information to the SPS receiver to aid the SPS receiver in obtaining its location from the satellite positioning system.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving a second broadcasting data signal from a terrestrial repeater;

receiving a transmitter identifier contained in the second broadcasting data signal; and

searching for a repeater location corresponding to the transmitter identifier.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

sending the repeater location to the SPS receiver to set a current location of the SPS receiver.

4. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

receiving a broadcast data signal;

determining whether the broadcasting data signal was transmitted by the digital radio satellite or by the terrestrial repeater;

processing the broadcast data signal as the first broadcasting data signal if received from the digital radio satellite; and

processing the broadcast data signal as the second broadcasting data signal if received from the terrestrial repeater.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising the steps of:

if the broadcast data signal was the first broadcasting data signal, retrieving a current location from a last received broadcast data signal from the terrestrial repeater; and

sending the current location to the SPS receiver.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving a second broadcasting data signal from a terrestrial repeater;

extracting a repeater location contained in the second broadcasting signal.

7. A method for providing aiding information to a satellite positioning system (“

SPS”

) receiver comprising;

receiving aiding information over an uplink connection to an aiding satellite positioning system server;

combining the aiding information with data into a data signal, the data having subscription-based content for communication to a subscriber at a receiver terminal; and

continuously broadcasting the data signal to the receiver terminal, where the data signal is processed to obtain the aiding information to provide to the SPS receiver.

8. The method of claim 7 where the step of combining the aiding information comprises:

receiving the aiding information in at least one data packet; and

directing the data packet containing the aiding information to the downlink interface for transmission with data packets containing data.

9. A system for providing aiding information to a SPS receiver comprising:

a data service satellite configured to broadcast data and aiding information to a data service receiver; and

an SPS receiver interface operating in the data service receiver to retrieve the aiding information and to communicate the aiding information to the SPS receiver.

10. The system of claim 9 where the data service satellite is a digital radio satellite, the data service receiver is a satellite radio receiver, and the data comprises radio programming.

11. The system of claim 9 further comprising:

a terrestrial repeater operable to receive data signals from the data service satellite, and to input a transmitter identifier identifying the terrestrial repeater in the data signals, the terrestrial repeater being further operable to broadcast the data signals to the data service receiver.

12. The system of claim 11 where the data service receiver receives broadcast data signals and determines if the broadcast data signal is from the terrestrial repeater or from the data service satellite, the data service receiver being further operable to extract a transmitter identifier from the data signal if the signal was received from the terrestrial repeater and use the transmitter identifier to obtain a repeater location.

13. The system of claim 11 where the data service receiver receives broadcast data signals and determines if the broadcast data signal is from the terrestrial repeater or from the data service satellite, the data service receiver being further operable to extract a repeater location from the data signal if the signal was received from the terrestrial repeater.

14. A data service receiver in a satellite data service system comprising:

a satellite communications interface to receive data signals broadcast by a data service satellite, the data signals including aiding information;

a satellite positioning system interface to extract the aiding information from the data signals; and

an SPS receiver interface to communicate the aiding information to the SPS receiver.

15. The data service receiver of claim 14 operable to determine if the broadcast data signal is from a terrestrial repeater or from the data service satellite, the data service receiver being further operable to extract a transmitter identifier from the data signal if the signal was received from the terrestrial repeater and use the transmitter identifier to obtain a repeater location.

16. The data service receiver of claim 15 further comprising a data storage element to store the repeater location corresponding to the transmitter identifier.

17. The data service receiver of claim 16 where the data storage element includes a database containing at least one transmitter identifier and the repeater location corresponding to the transmitter identifier.

18. A data service satellite for providing broadcast data signals to a data service receiver, the data service satellite comprising:

an uplink interface to an aiding satellite positioning system server to receive aiding information;

a data combining function to process the aiding information as data to be transmitted in the broadcast data signals; and

a downlink interface to the data service receiver to transmit the broadcast data signals having the data and the aiding information.

19. The data service satellite of claim 18 where the data service satellite provides satellite radio programming and the data service receiver is a satellite radio receiver.

20. The data service satellite of claim 18 in which the uplink interface receives the aiding information in data packets, the data combiner being operable to direct the data packets containing the aiding information to the downlink interface for transmission with data packets containing the data.

21. A satellite radio receiver in a digital satellite radio system comprising:

means for receiving a first broadcasting data signal from a data service satellite;

means for extracting aiding information contained in the first broadcasting data signal, where the aiding information was provided to the data service satellite from an aiding satellite positioning system server; and

means for sending the aiding information to the SPS receiver to aid the SPS receiver in obtaining its location from the satellite positioning system.

22. The system of claim 21 further comprising:

means for receiving a second broadcasting data signal from a terrestrial repeater;

means for receiving a transmitter identifier contained in the second broadcasting data signal; and

means for searching for a repeater location corresponding to the transmitter identifier.

23. The system of claim 22 further comprising:

means for sending the repeater location to the SPS receiver to set a current location of the SPS receiver.

24. The system of claim 22 further comprising:

means for receiving a broadcast data signal;

means for determining whether the broadcasting data signal was transmitted by the digital radio satellite or by the terrestrial repeater;

means for processing the broadcast data signal as the first broadcasting data signal if received from the digital radio satellite; and

means for processing the broadcast data signal as the second broadcasting data signal if received from the terrestrial repeater.

25. The system of claim 24 further comprising the steps of:

if the broadcast data signal was the first broadcasting data signal, means for retrieving a current location from a last received broadcast data signal from the terrestrial repeater; and

means for sending the current location to the SPS receiver.

26. The system of claim 21 further comprising:

means for receiving a second broadcasting data signal from a terrestrial repeater;

means for extracting a repeater location contained in the second broadcasting signal.

28. The system of claim 26 where the means for combining the aiding information comprises:

means for receiving the aiding information in at least one data packet; and

means for directing the data packet containing the aiding information to the downlink interface for transmission with data packets containing data.

27. A system for providing aiding information to a satellite positioning system (“

SPS”

) receiver comprising;

means for receiving aiding information over an uplink connection to an aiding satellite positioning system server;

means for combining the aiding information with data into a data signal, the data having subscription-based content for communication to a subscriber at a receiver terminal; and

means for continuously broadcasting the data signal to the receiver terminal, where the data signal is processed to obtain the aiding information to provide to the SPS receiver.