Apparatus And Method For Use In Location Determination

• US 20080316042A1
• Filed: 06/22/2007
• Published: 12/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 06/22/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Scales, James
• Granted Patent: US 8,160,617 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/686.1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/21 Interference related issues ; Issues related to cross-correlation, spoofing or other methods of denial of service
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/45 by combining measurements of signals from the satellite radio beacon positioning system with a supplementary measurement
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/063 using wireless information transmission between the vehicle and a fixed station identification of vehicles G08G
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements

Abstract

An apparatus is provided that includes circuitry configured for location determination arranged to obtain a geographic location of the apparatus; circuitry configured receiving connection point identification data, the connection point identification data useable in providing a wireless communication path to a remote circuitry providing a connection point, and wherein the connection point identification data is associated with a geographic location of the remote circuitry; and circuitry configured for associating one or more instances of the geographic location of the apparatus, as provided by the circuitry configured for location determination, with corresponding instances of the connection point identification data. This associating may be used to cross-check/validate the geographical location provided by the circuitry configured for location determination.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising

circuitry configured for location determination arranged to obtain a geographic location of the apparatus;

circuitry configured for receiving connection point identification data, the connection point identification data useable in providing a wireless communication path to a remote circuitry providing a connection point, and wherein the connection point identification data is associated with a geographic location of the remote circuitry; and

circuitry configured for associating one or more instances of the geographic location of the apparatus, as provided by the circuitry configured for location determination, with corresponding instances of the connection point identification data.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the remote circuitry is usable to provide one or more onward communication paths.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the circuitry for receiving connection point identification data comprises circuitry for providing wireless communication with the remote circuitry to provide one or more onward communication paths.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the remote circuitry comprises a cellular network element.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the remote circuitry comprises a WLAN access point, and the connection point identification data comprises one or both of an IP address and a MAC address of the WLAN access point.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 comprising processing circuitry operable to compare the geographic location of the apparatus, as provided by the circuitry configured for location determination, with corresponding instances of the geographic location, as provided by the connection point identification data, to perform a cross-check operation.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein the processing circuitry is arranged to determine whether or not the geographic location of the apparatus, as provided by the circuitry configured for location determination, is within a predetermined range of the geographic location of the remote circuitry, as provided by the connection point identification data, in order to perform the cross-check operation.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the circuitry configured for location determination is arranged to use a satellite source to obtain the geographic location of the apparatus.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the circuitry configured for location determination is arranged to use a land-based source to obtain the geographic location of the apparatus.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the land-based source comprises one or more of a cellular telecommunications network, a WLAN, a Bluetooth network, and a radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag reader.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the circuitry configured for location determination is arranged to use dead reckoning circuitry to obtain the geographic location of the apparatus.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the remote circuitry comprises one or more of a cellular telecommunications network, a WLAN, a Bluetooth network, and a radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag reader.

13. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the circuitry configured for location determination is arranged to obtain the geographic location of the apparatus by receiving the geographic location from an external source.

14. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the circuitry configured for location determination is arranged to obtain the geographic location(s) and associated connection point identification data at one or more repeated time intervals.

15. The apparatus of claim 14 arranged to log the geographic location(s) and associated connection point identification data within the apparatus.

16. The apparatus of claim 14 arranged to upload the geographic location(s) and associated connection point identification data to a remote server in real time.

17. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus is arranged to use received connection point identification data relating to a plurality of connection points in associating one or more instances of the geographic location of the apparatus, as provided by the circuitry configured for location determination, with corresponding instances of the connection point identification data

18. An apparatus comprising

means for obtaining a geographic location of the apparatus;

means for receiving connection point identification data, the connection point identification data useable in providing a wireless communication path to a means for providing a connection point, and wherein the connection point identification data is associated with a geographic location of the means for providing a connection point; and

means for associating one or more instances of the geographic location of the apparatus, as provided by the means for obtaining a geographic location of the apparatus, with corresponding instances of the connection point identification data.

19. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable components comprising

a first component arranged to receive a geographic location of an apparatus;

a second component arranged to receive connection point identification data useable in providing a wireless communication path to a remote circuitry providing a connection point, and wherein the connection point identification data is associated with a geographic location of the remote circuitry; and

a third component arranged to associate one or more instances of the geographic location of the apparatus, as provided by the first component, with corresponding instances of the connection point identification data.

20. A method comprising

obtaining a geographic location of an apparatus;

receiving connection point identification data, the connection point identification data useable in providing a wireless communication path to a remote circuitry providing a connection point, the connection point identification data being associated with a geographic location of the remote circuitry; and

associating one or more instances of the geographic location of the apparatus, as provided by obtaining the geographical location of the apparatus, with corresponding instances of the connection point identification data.

21. A method comprising

the step of obtaining a geographic location of the apparatus;

the step of receiving connection point identification data, the connection point identification data useable in providing a wireless communication path to a remote circuitry providing a connection point, the connection point identification data being associated with a geographic location of the remote circuitry; and

the step of associating one or more instances of the geographic location of the apparatus, as provided by the step of obtaining a geographical location of the apparatus, with corresponding instances of the connection point identification data.

22. An apparatus comprising

circuitry configured for location determination arranged to obtain a geographic location of the apparatus;

circuitry configured for interfacing arranged to interface with circuitry configured for wireless communications arranged to undertake wireless communications with remote circuitry to provide one or more onward communication paths using the remote circuitry, by obtaining connection point identification data of the remote circuitry, the connection point identification data being associated with a geographic location of the remote circuitry, the circuitry configured for interfacing being arranged to receive connection point identification data from the circuitry configured for wireless communications; and

circuitry configured for associating one or more instances of the geographic location of the apparatus, as provided by the circuitry configured for location determination, with corresponding instances of the connection point identification data.

23. An apparatus comprising

circuitry configured for location determination arranged to obtain a geographic location of the apparatus;

circuitry configured for indicating movement of the apparatus;

circuitry configured for determining that a static geographic location of the apparatus as obtained by the circuitry configured for location determination is false in the case that the circuitry configured for indicating movement indicates movement of the apparatus.

24. A method of assembly of an apparatus, the apparatus comprising

circuitry configured for location determination arranged to obtain a geographic location of the apparatus;

circuitry configured for wireless communications arranged to undertake wireless communications with remote circuitry to provide one or more onward communication paths using the remote circuitry, by obtaining a connection point identification data of the remote circuitry, the connection point identification data being associated with a geographic location of the remote circuitry; and

circuitry configured for associating one or more instances of the geographic location of the apparatus, as provided by the circuitry configured for location determination, with corresponding instances of the connection point identification data, the method comprising assembling together the circuitry configured for location determination, circuitry configured for wireless communications and circuitry configured for associating.