Screening Information for a Coverage Model

• US 20110307428A1
• Filed: 03/04/2009
• Published: 12/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/04/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Wirola, Lauri Aarne Johannes, Laine, Tommi Antero, Raitoharju, Matti Samuli, Sirola, Niilo Torsten
• Granted Patent: US 9,497,638 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 706/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/145 involving simulating, designing, planning or modelling of a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/18 Network planning tools
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services

Abstract

It is disclosed to determine whether information useable for a generating/updating process that comprises generating and/or updating at least one model for a coverage area of a communication node shall be discarded or made available to said generating/updating process.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a processor, and

a memory, said memory storing a program comprising program code,

said program configured to cause said apparatus, when said program is executed on said processor, to perform determining whether information useable for a generating/updating process that comprises generating and/or updating at least one model for a coverage area of a communication node shall be discarded or made available to said generating/updating process.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said determining is based on at least one model for said coverage area of said communication node produced by said generating/updating process.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said determining comprises checking if a position contained in said information is covered by said at least one model on which said determining is based and discarding said information or making said information available to said generating/updating process at least partially based on an outcome of said checking.

4. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said information is discarded if a position contained in said information is covered by said at least one model on which said determining is based.

5. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said generating/updating process, in addition to said at least one model on which said determining is based, produces at least one further model that differs from said at least one model on which said determining is based at least in its format, and wherein said checking if said position is covered by said at least one model on which said determining is based is less complex than a checking if said position is covered by said at least one further model.

7. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein at least one model of said at least one model on which said determining is based is at least one of a rectangular model, an elliptical model and a polygonal model.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said rectangular model defines one of a rectangle that is considered to be completely within said coverage area of said communication node and a rectangle that is considered to completely enclose said coverage area of said communication node.

12. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said elliptical model describes an ellipse by the matrix

15. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said determining is based on at least one of one or more determination rules and a state machine, and wherein at least two states of said state machine are associated with different determination rules of said one or more determination rules, respectively.

17. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein a determination rule of said one or more determination rules requires that no information shall be discarded.

18. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein a determination rule of said one or more determination rules requires that said information shall be discarded if a position contained in said information is covered by a first-type model for said coverage area of said communication node produced by said generating/updating process, that said information shall be discarded if said position contained in said information is not covered by said first-type model but is covered by a second-type model for said coverage area of said communication node produced by said generating/updating process, and that said information shall be made available to said generating/updating process otherwise.

19. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein a determination rule of said one or more determination rules requires that said information shall be made available to said generating/updating process if a position contained in said information is not covered by a model for said coverage area of said communication node produced by said generating/updating process, and that, if said position contained in said information is covered by said model, said information shall be discarded randomly according to a pre-defined probability criterion and otherwise maintained.

20. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said apparatus further comprises at least one of a user interface, IP connectivity and a memory.

42. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said at least one model for a coverage area of a communication node is a geometrical model.

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21. A method, performed by an apparatus, comprising:

determining whether information useable for a generating/updating process that comprises generating and/or updating at least one model for a coverage area of a communication node shall be discarded or made available to said generating/updating process.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein said determining is based on at least one model for said coverage area of said communication node produced by said generating/updating process.

27. The method according to claim 22, wherein at least one model of said at least one model on which said determining is based is at least one of a rectangular model, an elliptical model and a polygonal model.

35. The method according to claim 21, wherein said determining is based on at least one of one or more determination rules and a state machine, and wherein at least two states of said state machine are associated with different determination rules of said one or more determination rules, respectively.

41. A readable medium having a program comprising:

program code for performing the method according to claim 21, when said program is executed on a processor.

43. The method according to claim 22, wherein said at least one model for a coverage area of a communication node is a geometrical model.

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