LOCATION TRACKING USING FIBER OPTIC ARRAY CABLES AND RELATED SYSTEMS AND METHODS
First Claim
1. An array cable, comprising:
- a plurality of electrical conductors;
a plurality of optical fibers;
an outer jacket at least partially enclosing the optical fibers and the electrical conductors; and
at least four reference units spaced from one another and disposed along a length of the cable, each reference unit having at least two antennas, at least one electrical-to-optical (E/O) converter electrically connected to at least one of the electrical conductors, and at least one optical-to-electrical (O/E) converter electrically connected to at least one of the electrical conductors,wherein each of the reference units is configured to;
transmit radio frequency (RF) signals to a respective wireless coverage area; and
receive RF signals from an object in its respective wireless coverage area such that the received signals are used to determine a location of the object.
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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
16 Claims
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1. An array cable, comprising:
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a plurality of electrical conductors; a plurality of optical fibers; an outer jacket at least partially enclosing the optical fibers and the electrical conductors; and at least four reference units spaced from one another and disposed along a length of the cable, each reference unit having at least two antennas, at least one electrical-to-optical (E/O) converter electrically connected to at least one of the electrical conductors, and at least one optical-to-electrical (O/E) converter electrically connected to at least one of the electrical conductors, wherein each of the reference units is configured to; transmit radio frequency (RF) signals to a respective wireless coverage area; and receive RF signals from an object in its respective wireless coverage area such that the received signals are used to determine a location of the object. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. An array cable, comprising:
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a plurality of electrical conductors; a plurality of optical fibers; a jacket; and at least three reference units spaced from one another and disposed along a length of the cable, each reference unit having at least two antennas, at least one electrical-to-optical (E/O) converter, and at least one optical-to-electrical (O/E) converter, wherein each of the reference units is configured to; transmit radio frequency (RF) signals to a respective wireless coverage area; and receive RF signals from an object in its respective wireless coverage area such that the received signals are used to determine at least a two-dimensional location of the object. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. An array cable, comprising:
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a fiber optic cable comprising a plurality of optical fibers and a jacket at least partially enclosing the optical fibers; and multiple reference units disposed along a length of the fiber optic cable, each reference unit comprising at least two antennas, at least one electrical-to-optical (E/O) converter, and at least one optical-to-electrical (O/E) converter, wherein each of the reference units is configured to; transmit ultrawideband (UWB) radio frequency (RF) signals to a respective coverage area; and receive signals from an object in its coverage area such that the received signals are used to determine at least a two-dimensional location of the object. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16)
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Specification