THREE-DIMENSIONAL FEMTOCELL MAPPING

• US 20160192318A1
• Filed: 12/29/2014
• Published: 06/30/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Chiang, David, Polehn, Donna L., Rados, Steven R., Haynes, Thomas W., Hughes, Kent W.
• Granted Patent: US 10,028,246 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/04 Reselecting a cell layer in multi-layered cells
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/14 Reselecting a network or an air interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/32 by location or mobility data, e.g. speed data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/003 locating network equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/045 using private Base Stations, e.g. femto Base Stations, home Node B
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 Gateway arrangements

Abstract

Femtocells are often used to extend the coverage of wireless telecommunication networks, but do not typically incorporate mechanisms that allow their location to be easily ascertained. As described herein, a system may determine the locations of femtocells, based on the locations of user devices that attach to, detach from, handover between, and/or detect the femtocells. A map (such as a three-dimensional map) may be generated based on the determined locations of femtocells. The locations of femtocells may be used, for example, in emergency broadcast situations, in order to ensure that messages are distributed as completely as possible in a given region.

Claims

1. A femtocell mapping device, comprising:

a memory device storing a set of processor-executable instructions;

interface hardware configured to communicate with one or more other devices, the one or more other devices including at least one of

a user device,

a femtocell, or

a femtocell gateway that is communicatively coupled to the femtocell; and

a processor configured to execute the processor-executable instructions, wherein executing the processor-executable instructions causes the femtocell mapping device to;

receive an indication, from the user device, the femtocell, or the femtocell gateway, via the interface hardware, the indication including information regarding an attach event that involves the user device and the femtocell;

determine a location of the user device at a time that corresponds to the attach event; and

determine a location of the femtocell based on the determined location of the user device.

2. The femtocell mapping device of claim 1, wherein the attach event includes at least one of:

the user device attaching to the femtocell,

the user device detaching from the femtocell,

the user device being handed to the femtocell from another femtocell,

the user device being handed from the femtocell to another femtocell, or

the user device detecting that the femtocell is present.

3. The femtocell mapping device of claim 1, wherein the femtocell mapping device receives signal quality information regarding a signal quality between the user device and the femtocell,

wherein determining the location of the femtocell is further based on the signal quality information.

4. The femtocell mapping device of claim 3, wherein the signal quality information includes at least one of:

a signal to noise ratio (“

SNR”

),

a signal to interference plus noise ratio (“

SINR”

), or

a channel quality index (“

CQI”

).

5. The femtocell mapping device of claim 3, wherein determining the location of the femtocell includes determining an area in which the femtocell is located, wherein a size of the area is determined based on the signal strength information.

6. The femtocell mapping device of claim 1, wherein the femtocell is a first femtocell, wherein the attach event includes the user device concurrently detecting that the first femtocell and a second femtocell are present,

wherein the femtocell mapping device receives first signal strength information regarding a signal strength between the user device and the first femtocell,

wherein the femtocell mapping device receives second signal strength information regarding a signal strength between the user device and the second femtocell,

wherein executing the processor-executable instructions further causes the femtocell mapping device to determine a spatial relationship between the first femtocell and the second femtocell, based on the first signal strength information and the second signal strength information.

7. The femtocell mapping device of claim 1, wherein the attach event includes a handover of the user device from the femtocell to another femtocell,

wherein executing the processor-executable instructions further causes the femtocell mapping device to determine that a coverage area of the femtocell overlaps a coverage area of the other femtocell, based on the attach event including a handover of the user device from the femtocell to another femtocell.

8. The femtocell mapping device of claim 1, wherein executing the processor-executable instructions further causes the femtocell mapping device to generate a visual indication, on a map, that corresponds to the determined location of the femtocell.

9. The femtocell mapping device of claim 1, wherein the femtocell provides wireless coverage on behalf of a wireless telecommunications network, the wireless coverage being provided on a smaller scale than is provided by a base station of the wireless telecommunications network.

10. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a computing device and from a user device, a femtocell, or a femtocell gateway, via interface hardware associated with the computing device, an indication that an attach has occurred between the user device and the femtocell;

determining a location of the user device at a time that corresponds to the attach event; and

determining a location of the femtocell based on the determined location of the user device.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the attach event includes at least one of:

the user device attaching to the femtocell,

the user device detaching from the femtocell,

the user device being handed to the femtocell from another femtocell,

the user device being handed from the femtocell to another femtocell, or

the user device detecting that the femtocell is present.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising receiving signal strength information regarding a signal strength between the user device and the femtocell, wherein determining the location of the femtocell is further based on the signal strength information.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein determining the location of the femtocell includes determining an area in which the femtocell is located, wherein a size of the area is determined based on the signal strength information.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the femtocell is a first femtocell, wherein the attach event includes the user device concurrently detecting that the first femtocell and a second femtocell are present,

the method further comprising:

receiving first signal strength information regarding a signal strength between the user device and the first femtocell;

receiving second signal strength information regarding a signal strength between the user device and the second femtocell; and

determining a spatial relationship between the first femtocell and the second femtocell, based on the first signal strength information and the second signal strength information.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein the attach event includes a handover of the user device from the femtocell to another femtocell,

the method further comprising determining that a coverage area of the femtocell overlaps a coverage area of the other femtocell, based on the attach event including a handover of the user device from the femtocell to another femtocell.

16. The method of claim 10, further comprising generating a visual indication, on a map, that corresponds to the determined location of the femtocell.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein determining the location of the user device includes at least one of:

requesting the location from a mobility management entity (“

MME”

), or

requesting the location from the user device.

18. A user device, comprising:

a memory device storing a set of processor-executable instructions;

interface hardware configured to communicate with one or more other devices; and

a processor configured to execute the processor-executable instructions, wherein executing the processor-executable instructions causes the user device to;

detect a communication, via the interface hardware, with a femtocell, the communication being associated with an attach event;

determine a location of the user device at a time that the attach event occurred; and

output, via the interface hardware and to a femtocell mapping device, based on detecting the communication associated with the attach event, information regarding the location of the user device, wherein the femtocell mapping device uses the information regarding the location of the user device to determine at least one of;

a location of the femtocell,

a coverage area of the femtocell, or

a spatial relationship between the femtocell and one or more other femtocells.

20. The user device of claim 19, wherein outputting the information, regarding the location of the user device, to the femtocell mapping device, includes:

pushing the information, regarding the location of the user device, independently of whether a request was received from the femtocell mapping device.