Method and apparatus for geographic based control in a communication system

• US 5,857,155 A
• Filed: 07/10/1996
• Issued: 01/05/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 07/10/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Motorola, Inc. (Motorola Solutions, Inc.)
• Inventors: Neville, George Brooke, Olson, Bernard Carl, Appel, Mark Jordan, Hill, Thomas Casey, Cannon, Gregory Lewis
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin, Wellington
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Lee
• Application Number:
  US08/675,318
• Time in Patent Office: 909 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456, 455/427, 455/430, 455/502, 455/517, 455/522, 455/440, 455/441, 455/63, 455/69, 455/38.3, 455/250.1, 455/254, 342/357, 342/457, 342/418
• US Class Current: 455/456.3
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1112 Global tracking of patients, e.g. by using GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/52 Determining velocity
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2205/007 for management of a communication system
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/244 Interferences in heterogeneous networks, e.g. among macro and femto or pico cells or other sector / system interference [OSI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/367 Power values between minimum and maximum limits, e.g. dynamic range
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/022 One-way selective calling networks, e.g. wide area paging

Abstract

A selective call transceiver (20) in a messaging system (100) having a plurality of transmitters (90, 94, 99), comprises a receiver module (26), a transmitter module (22) coupled to the receiver module and a controller (28) coupled to the receiver module and the transmitter module for controlling the operation of the selective call transceiver. Additionally the selective call transceiver comprises a GPS receiver (24) for receiving GPS information and coupled to the controller, wherein the controller uses the GPS information to assist in the control of functions selected from the group consisting of transmitter power control, site selection switching, sub-zone selection switching, forward error correction, retry transmission decisions, Doppler frequency shifting, synchronization, and frequency scanning and selection.

Claims

1. A selective call transceiver in a communication system having a plurality of transmitters, comprising:

a receiver module;

a transmitter module coupled to the receiver module;

a controller coupled to the receiver module and the transmitter module for controlling the operation of the selective call transceiver; and

a GPS receiver for receiving GPS information and coupled to the controller, wherein the controller uses the GPS information to assist in the control of functions selected from the group consisting of transmitter power control, site selection switching, sub-zone selection switching, forward error correction, and retry transmission decisions, wherein the function of transmitter power control uses the transmitter module to transmit to base receivers within the messaging system information derived from geographic information from the GPS receiver and site coordinates of transmitters in the messaging system in order to adjust the power of transmitters selected from the group consisting of the transmitter module and the at least one of the plurality of transmitters transmitting to the selective call transceiver.

2. The selective call transceiver of claim 1, wherein the site coordinates are stored within a memory location within the selective call transceiver.

3. The selective call transceiver of claim 1, wherein the selective call transceiver uses Received Signal Strength Indications along with the geographic information to adjust the power from the transmitter module.

4. The transceiver of claim 1, wherein the GPS receiver provides geographic information which is compared with site coordinates of transmitters in the communication system in order to adjust an outbound power transmission from at least one of the plurality of transmitters transmitting to the transceiver and to adjust an inbound power transmission from the transceiver.

5. The selective call transceiver of claim 4, wherein the site coordinates are stored with a memory location within a system controller remote from the selective call transceiver but within the messaging system.

6. The selective call transceiver of claim 1, wherein the GPS receiver provides timing information to the receiver module to maintain synchronization with the messaging system.

7. The selective call transceiver of claim 1, wherein the GPS receiver is used to determine direction and velocity of the selective call transceiver to aide in functions selected from the group of forward error correction, retransmission decisions, Doppler frequency shifting and subzone selection switching.

8. A selective call transceiver, comprising:

a receiver module having an automatic gain controller;

a transmitter module coupled to the receiver module and further having a power amplifier, wherein the transmitter transmits data to a messaging system;

a controller coupled to the receiver module and the transmitter module for controlling the operation of the selective call transceiver; and

a GPS receiver coupled to the receiver module and the transmitter module, wherein a radio received signal strength indication and location information from the GPS receiver is used to control the gain at the automatic gain controller and to control transmit power at the power amplifier, wherein the GPS receiver also provides geographic information which is compared with site coordinates of transmitters in the messaging system allowing at least one of the plurality of transmitters transmitting to the selective call transceiver to adjust its power to the selective call transceiver based on data derived from the geographic information and the site coordinates.

9. The selective call transceiver of claim 8, wherein the GPS receiver provides geographic information which is compared with site coordinates of transmitters in the messaging system in order to adjust an outbound power transmission from at least one of the plurality of transmitters transmitting to the selective call transceiver and to adjust an inbound power transmission from the selective call transceiver.

10. The selective call transceiver of claim 9, wherein the site coordinates are stored within a memory location within the selective call transceiver.

11. The selective call transceiver of claim 9, wherein the site coordinates are stored within a memory location within a system controller remote from the selective call transceiver but within the messaging system.

12. A selective call transceiver in a messaging system having a plurality of transmitters, comprising:

a receiver module;

a transmitter module coupled to the receiver module;

a controller coupled to the receiver module and the transmitter module for controlling the operation of the selective call transceiver;

a GPS receiver for receiving GPS information and coupled to the controller, wherein the controller uses the GPS information to assist in the control of functions selected from the group consisting of transmitter power control, site selection switching, sub-zone selection switching, forward error correction, retry transmission decisions, Doppler frequency shifting, synchronization, and frequency scanning and selection;

a received signal strength indicator coupled to the receiver module and the controller for providing a measurement of received signal strength for a given one of the plurality of transmitters; and

a memory for storing site coordinates corresponding to the plurality of transmitters, wherein the geographic information is compared with the site coordinates along with the received signal strength measurement to adjust the power from at least one of the plurality of transmitters for optimum efficiency.

13. The selective call transceiver of claim 12, wherein the GPS receiver is used to determine direction and velocity of the selective call transceiver to aide in adjusting for a Doppler frequency shift in a transmitting frequency from the transmitter module as the selective call transceiver travels at a measured velocity towards one of the plurality of transmitters that is transmitting to the selective call transceiver.

14. A method of controlling the operation of a two-way selective call subscriber device having a GPS receiver within a messaging system having a plurality of transmitters having known coordinates, comprising the steps of:

acquiring GPS information from the GPS receiver comprising information selected from the group of latitude, longitude, and velocity;

acquiring a received signal strength measurement at the two-way selective call subscriber device;

accessing a look-up table of the known transmitter coordinates and comparing the known transmitter coordinates with the GPS information; and

adjusting the power of at least one of the plurality of transmitters within the messaging system communicating with the two-way selective call subscriber device based on the GPS information, the received signal strength measurement and the known transmitter coordinates.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the step of controlling the operation of the messaging system comprises adjusting the power of a transmitter within the two-way selective call subscriber device.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the step of controlling the operation of the messaging system comprising adjusting the power of one or more of the plurality of transmitters within the messaging system communicating to the two-way selective call subscriber device as well as adjusting the power of a transmitter within the two-way selective call subscriber device.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the step of controlling the operation of the messaging system comprises adjusting the power of a automatic gain controller within the two-way selective call subscriber device.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the step of controlling the operation of the messaging system comprises switching to a new site or subzone.

19. A method of controlling the operation of a two-way selective call subscriber device having a GPS receiver within a messaging system having a plurality of base receivers with known coordinates, comprising the steps of:

acquiring GPS information from the GPS receiver comprising information selected from the group of latitude, longitude, and velocity;

acquiring a base receiver sensitivity measurement of at least one of the plurality of base receivers at the two-way selective call subscriber device; and

controlling the operation of the messaging system based on the GPS information and the base receiver sensitivity measurement, wherein the step of controlling comprises selecting the at least one of the plurality of base receivers having the closest distance between the base receiver and the two-way selective call subscriber device using the GPS information and adjusting a power level transmitted from the two-way selective call subscriber device to the selected base receiver based on knowledge of the base receiver'"'"'s sensitivity.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the base receiver'"'"'s sensitivity is stored within a memory within the two-way subscriber device.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the base receiver'"'"'s sensitivity is transmitted by a base transmitter to the two-way subscriber device.