Advanced Triggers for Location-Based Service Applications in a Wireless Location System

• US 20100227628A1
• Filed: 05/18/2010
• Published: 09/09/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/08/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Skyhook Holding, Inc. (Liberty Broadband Corp.)
• Original Assignee: TruePosition Incorporated
• Inventors: Ginter, Thomas Stephen, Czarnecki, Paul Matthew, Anderson, Robert J., Ward, Matthew L., Bull, Jeffrey F.
• Granted Patent: US 8,509,805 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/456.300
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0205 Details
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/025 using location based information parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• 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 60/04 using triggered events
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/003 locating network equipment

Abstract

Methods and systems are employed by a wireless location system (WLS) for locating a wireless device operating in a geographic area served by a wireless communications system. An exemplary method includes monitoring a set of signaling links of the wireless communications system, and detecting at least one predefined signaling transaction occurring on at least one of the predefined signaling links. Then, in response to the detection of the at least one predefined network transaction, at least one predefined location service is triggered.

Claims

1. A method for use in a wireless location system (WLS) that estimates the geographic location of a mobile station (MS), comprising:

passively monitoring communications between at least one base transceiver station (BTS) and at least one base station controller (BSC) of the wireless communications system;

extracting MS information from the monitored communications, wherein the extracted MS information comprises at least one of;

a mobile station identification (MSID), a called number dialed by the user of the MS, or contents of messages sent to the MS or from the MS; and

using the extracted MS information to trigger location processing.

2. A method for use in a wireless location system (WLS) that estimates the geographic location of a mobile station (MS), wherein the wireless communications system includes base transceiver station (BTS) equipment connected to base station controller (BSC) equipment, comprising:

passively monitoring communications between at least one BTS and at least one BSC, wherein the monitored communications contain indications of a call origination or call termination, and wherein the monitoring includes monitoring messages containing the identity of the mobile station and indications of an emergency call origination; and

using the monitored information to trigger location processing for said MS.

3. A method for use in a wireless location system (WLS) that estimates the geographic location of a mobile station (MS), wherein the wireless communications system includes base transceiver station (BTS) equipment connected to base station controller (BSC) equipment, comprising:

passively monitoring communications between at least one BTS and at least one BSC, wherein the monitored communications contain indications of a call origination or call termination, and wherein the monitoring includes monitoring messages containing the identity of the mobile station and comparing the identify of the MS to a table of mobile stations of interest; and

using the monitored information to trigger location processing for said MS.

4. A system for use in a wireless location system (WLS) that estimates the geographic location of a mobile station (MS), comprising:

means for passively monitoring communications between at least one base transceiver station (BTS) and at least one base station controller (BSC) of the wireless communications system;

means for extracting MS information from the monitored communications, wherein the extracted MS information comprises at least one of;

a mobile station identification (MSID), a called number dialed by the user of the MS, or contents of messages sent to the MS or from the MS; and

means for using the extracted MS information to trigger location processing.

5. A system for use in a wireless location system (WLS) that estimates the geographic location of a mobile station (MS), wherein the wireless communications system includes base transceiver station (BTS) equipment connected to base station controller (BSC) equipment, comprising:

means for passively monitoring communications between at least one BTS and at least one BSC, wherein the monitored communications contain indications of a call origination or call termination, and wherein the monitoring includes monitoring messages containing the identity of the mobile station and indications of an emergency call origination; and

means for using the monitored information to trigger location processing for said MS.

6. A system for use in a wireless location system (WLS) that estimates the geographic location of a mobile station (MS), wherein the wireless communications system includes base transceiver station (BTS) equipment connected to base station controller (BSC) equipment, comprising:

means for passively monitoring communications between at least one BTS and at least one BSC, wherein the monitored communications contain indications of a call origination or call termination, and wherein the monitoring includes monitoring messages containing the identity of the mobile station and comparing the identify of the MS to a table of mobile stations of interest; and

means for using the monitored information to trigger location processing for said MS.

7. A method for use by a wireless location system (WLS) for locating a wireless device operating in a geographic area served by a wireless communications system, comprising:

monitoring a set of signaling links of the wireless communications system, wherein said signaling links include at least one radio link between a wireless device and a base transceiver station, wherein said monitoring of said radio link comprises receiving messages on at least one of RACH (Random Access Channel), AGCH (Access Grant Channel), and SDCCH (Standalone Dedicated Control Channel) channels, and wherein said monitoring comprises passively monitoring said set of links such that the operation of said wireless communications system is unaffected by said monitoring;

detecting at least one predefined network transaction involving a predefined trigger occurring on at least one of said predefined signaling links; and

in response to the detection of said at least one predefined network transaction involving a predefined trigger, initiating at least one predefined location service.

8. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein said predefined signaling links further comprises at least one of:

an Abis link between a base transceiver station (BTS) and a base station controller (BSC), an A link between a base station controller (BSC) and a mobile switching center (MSC), a GSM-MAP link;

an Iub link;

an Iu-PS link; and

an Iu-CS link.

9. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein said method is performed by said WLS, and said WLS is overlaid on said wireless communications system.

10. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein said at least one predefined location service is a high accuracy service comprising locating said wireless device with a high accuracy.

11. The method as recited in claim 10, wherein said high accuracy service comprises the use of at least one of the following:

plural location measuring unit (LMUs) and uplink time difference of arrival (TDOA) algorithms;

at least one location measuring unit (LMU) and uplink angle of arrival (AoA) algorithms; and

plural location measuring units (LMUs) and hybrid uplink time difference of arrival (TDOA) and angle of arrival (AoA) algorithms.

12. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein said at least one predefined location service is a low accuracy service comprising locating said wireless device with a low accuracy.

13. The method as recited in claim 12, wherein said low accuracy service comprises the use of at least one of the following:

a radio network monitor (RNM) and a cell global identity (CGI)-based location method for determining the geographic location of said mobile device;

a radio network monitor (RNM) and a cell global identity plus Timing Advance (CGI+TA) method to locate the mobile device;

a radio network monitor (RNM) and a Network Measurement Report (NMR) in an enhanced cell ID (ECID, or CGI+TA+NMR) method to locate the mobile device; and

a method employing a mapping of a serving cell-ID, serving sector, or a combination of serving cell, sector and handover candidate measurements (Enhanced Cell ID, or ECID).

14. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein said at least one predefined network transaction comprises at least one of an identity request transaction, a network measurement transaction, a short message service (SMS) transaction, an SMS origination transaction, an SMS termination transaction, a mobile origination transaction, and a mobile termination transaction.

15. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein said at least one predefined trigger comprises at least one of a dialed digit trigger, a MSID trigger, an historical cell trigger, a cell ID trigger, a wide area localization trigger, a smart proximity location trigger, and a calling number trigger.

16. A system for use in or by a wireless communications system, comprising:

a monitoring subsystem for monitoring a set of signaling links of the wireless communications system, wherein said signaling links include at least one radio link between a wireless device and a base transceiver station, wherein said monitoring of said radio link comprises receiving RACH and AGCH messages, and wherein said monitoring comprises passively monitoring said set of links such that the operation of said wireless communications system is unaffected by said monitoring; and

a mechanism for detecting at least one predefined network transaction involving a predefined trigger occurring on at least one of said predefined signaling links.

17. A system as recited in claim 16, further comprising means responsive to the detection of said at least one predefined network transaction for triggering at least one predefined location service.

18. The system as recited in claim 17, wherein said predefined signaling links further comprises at least one of:

an Abis link between a base transceiver station (BTS) and a base station controller (BSC);

an A link between a base station controller (BSC) and a mobile switching center (MSC);

a GSM-MAP link;

an Iub link;

an Iu-PS link; and

an Iu-CS link.

19. The system as recited in claim 17, wherein said method is performed by said WLS, and said WLS is overlaid on said wireless communications system.

20. The system as recited in claim 17, wherein said at least one predefined location service is a high accuracy service comprising locating said wireless device with a high accuracy.

21. The system as recited in claim 20, wherein said high accuracy service comprises the use of at least one of the following:

plural location measuring unit (LMUs) and uplink time difference of arrival (TDOA) algorithms;

at least one location measuring unit (LMU) and uplink angle of arrival (AoA) algorithms; and

plural location measuring units (LMUs) and hybrid uplink time difference of arrival (TDOA) and angle of arrival (AoA) algorithms.

22. The system as recited in claim 16, wherein said at least one predefined location service is a low accuracy service comprising locating said wireless device with a low accuracy.

23. The system as recited in claim 22, wherein said low accuracy service comprises the use of the following:

a radio network monitor (RNM) and a cell global identity (CGI)-based location method for determining the geographic location of said mobile device;

a radio network monitor (RNM) and a cell global identity plus Timing Advance (CGI+TA) method to locate the 35 mobile device;

or a radio network monitor (RNM) and a Network Measurement Report (NMR) in an enhanced cell ID (ECID, or CGI+TA+NMR) method to locate the mobile device; and

a method employing a mapping of a serving cell-ID, serving sector, or a combination of serving cell, sector and handover candidate measurements (Enhanced Cell ID, or ECID).

24. The system as recited in claim 16, wherein said at least one predefined network transaction comprises at least one of an identity request transaction, a network measurement transaction, and a short message service (SMS) transaction.

25. The system as recited in claim 24, wherein said SMS transaction comprises an SMS origination transaction or an SMS termination transaction.

26. The system as recited in claim 24, wherein said at least one predefined network transaction comprises a mobile origination transaction or a mobile termination transaction.

27. The system as recited in claim 24, wherein said at least one predefined trigger comprises at least one of a dialed digit trigger, an MSID trigger, an historical cell trigger, a cell ID trigger, a wide area localization trigger, a smart proximity location trigger, and a calling number trigger.