Methods and Apparatus for Providing Services Information with a Femtocell Wireless Base Station
First Claim
1. A femtocell base station, comprising:
- a radio module configured for wireless communication with mobile stations according to at least one wireless telecommunication standard;
a data network interface module operative to provide a data connection between the radio module and a wide-area network, via a local broadband connection; and
a configuration module operative to store site-specific services data and to configure the radio module to broadcast the site-specific services data on a common channel to the mobile stations.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A femtocell base station is configured to transmit site-specific services data to in-range wireless devices, using a common broadcast channel. The site-specific services data identifies available services including, but not limited to, alternate radio signals available in the vicinity, such as FM radio signals, wireless local-area network (WLAN) signals, and the like; location-related services, including the availability of location beacon signals and/or location assistance data for use in position determination using assisted-GPS technology; and physical resources available to the device user, such as printers, copy machines, vending services, and the like. An exemplary mobile station is configured to extract site-specific services data from the femtocell base station signal, and to access a second radio signal using the site-specific services data. In some embodiments, the second radio signal may comprise a low-power FM radio signal, a wireless local-area network (WLAN) signal, a location beacon, or a radio-navigation signal.
86 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A femtocell base station, comprising:
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a radio module configured for wireless communication with mobile stations according to at least one wireless telecommunication standard; a data network interface module operative to provide a data connection between the radio module and a wide-area network, via a local broadband connection; and a configuration module operative to store site-specific services data and to configure the radio module to broadcast the site-specific services data on a common channel to the mobile stations. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. A method for acquiring services information with a portable communications device, comprising:
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receiving a wireless telecommunications signal broadcast by a femtocell base station; extracting site-specific services data from the signal; and accessing a second radio signal using the site-specific services data. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A portable communications device, comprising:
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a first radio section configured to receive a wireless telecommunications signal broadcast by a femtocell base station; a second radio section; and a control processor configured to extract site-specific services data from the wireless telecommunications signal and to control the second radio section to access a second radio signal, using the site-specific services data. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification