LOCATION TRACKING USING FIBER OPTIC ARRAY CABLES AND RELATED SYSTEMS AND METHODS
First Claim
1. An optical-fiber-based wireless communication system, comprising:
- at least one service unit configured to receive signals from at least one outside network; and
a plurality of fiber optic array cables configured to provide signals to the service unit, each fiber optic array cable having multiple reference units disposed along a length of the fiber optic array cable, each of the multiple reference units containing at least one antenna, an electrical-to-optical (E/O) converter, and an optical-to-electrical (O/E) converter,wherein the at least one service unit is configured to;
cause a radio frequency (RF) signal to be transmitted from one or more of the at least one antennas in the multiple reference units to form a wireless coverage area associated with the reference unit;
receive a corresponding signal from at least three of the multiple reference units indicative of a distance between each of the respective reference units and an object in the wireless coverage areas associated with the respective reference units; and
process the corresponding signals received from the plurality of the multiple reference units to determine a location of the object in at least two dimensions.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Fiber optic array cables and related systems and methods to determine and/or track locations of objects are disclosed. The fiber optic array cables can be employed in an optical-fiber-based communication system, including a centralized optical-fiber based communication system. In one embodiment, the fiber optic array cable is configured to carry optical RF or radio-over-fiber (RoF) signals to establish communications with objects. The fiber optic array cable includes multiple reference units along the length of the cable. The reference units can be configured to convert received optical RF signals into electrical RF signals to establish RF communications with objects capable of receiving electrical RF signals. The reference units are also configured to convert received electrical RF signals from the objects into optical RF signals, which are then used to determine the location of the object. Having the availability of the multiple reference units on one or more the fiber optic array cables can provide enhanced reliability in tracking objects.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. An optical-fiber-based wireless communication system, comprising:
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at least one service unit configured to receive signals from at least one outside network; and a plurality of fiber optic array cables configured to provide signals to the service unit, each fiber optic array cable having multiple reference units disposed along a length of the fiber optic array cable, each of the multiple reference units containing at least one antenna, an electrical-to-optical (E/O) converter, and an optical-to-electrical (O/E) converter, wherein the at least one service unit is configured to; cause a radio frequency (RF) signal to be transmitted from one or more of the at least one antennas in the multiple reference units to form a wireless coverage area associated with the reference unit; receive a corresponding signal from at least three of the multiple reference units indicative of a distance between each of the respective reference units and an object in the wireless coverage areas associated with the respective reference units; and process the corresponding signals received from the plurality of the multiple reference units to determine a location of the object in at least two dimensions. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A fiber optic array cable, comprising:
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at least one electrical power line; a plurality of optical fibers; and at least four reference units disposed along a length of the fiber optic cable, and each containing at least one antenna, an electrical-to-optical (E/O) converter, and an optical-to-electrical (O/E) converter, wherein each of the at least one antenna associated with each of the reference units is configured to; transmit a radio frequency (RF) signal to respective wireless coverage areas associated with the respective reference units; and receive a corresponding signal from an object in the corresponding wireless coverage area, wherein the corresponding signals received at a plurality of the reference units are used to determine a location of the object. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification