Position location method and apparatus for a mobile telecommunications system

• US 6,778,130 B1
• Filed: 12/05/2001
• Issued: 08/17/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/16/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Nortel Networks Limited (Nortel Networks Corporation)
• Inventors: Bevan, David Damian Nicholas, Hudson, John Edward, Overbury, Francis Giles, Reed, Christopher John, Gale, Simon John
• Primary Examiner(s): Blum, Theodore M.
• Application Number:
  US10/005,297
• Time in Patent Office: 986 Days
• Field of Search: 342/174, 342/442, 342/360, 342/369
• US Class Current: 342/174
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 1/026 of associated receivers
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/74 Systems using reradiation of radio waves, e.g. secondary radar systems; Analogous systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 3/023 Monitoring or calibrating
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 3/48 the waves arriving at the antennas being continuous or intermittent and the phase difference of signals derived therefrom being measured
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/12 by co-ordinating position lines of different shape, e.g. hyperbolic, circular, elliptical or radial
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/246 specially adapted for base stations

Abstract

In a cellular mobile telecommunications system the position of a mobile station can be estimated in terms of its bearing and range from a cell site. A multi-element direction finding antenna at the cell site receives signals from the mobile station and a receiver circuit estimates the bearing using the relative phase of signals received at different antenna elements and estimates the range by measuring round trip delay of signals to and from the mobile station. Motion of the mobile station can introduce errors into the bearing estimate due to frequency offset and frequency spread when element sampling is non-simultaneous. Compensation for these errors is introduced by using signal samples successively received at the same antenna element to estimate Doppler frequency offset and spread. It is necessary to ensure accurate calibration of the direction finding antenna and the receiver circuit. This is done by injecting calibration signals into the circuit near the antenna or into the antenna itself from a near field probe. Other aspects of calibration, such as antenna position, are calibrated using a remote beacon. A beacon emulating a mobile station but at a fixed, known location, or a beacon at an adjacent cell site may be used.

Claims

1. A method for calibrating a direction-finding antenna and a receiver circuit to which it is coupled in a radio telecommunications system, said receiver circuit including signal-phase-sensitive direction-finding signal-processing equipment, comprising the step of;

providing a near-field calibration source comprising a radio transmitter within a coverage area of said antenna;

transmitting a calibration signal from said source for reception by said antenna;

processing said received calibration sign in said receiver circuit to generate an output; and

comparing said output with a predetermined reference synchronised with said calibration signal to assess calibration of said antenna and said receiver circuit.

2. A method for calibrating a direction-finding antenna coupled to a receiver circuit situated at a cell site of a cellular radio telecommunications system, a communications transceiver for communicating with mobile stations of said system also being situated at said cell site, comprising the steps of,

providing a radio transceiver beacon, laving at least partial transmission and reception functionality of one of said mobile stations, at a predetermined, known position at a known bearing and/or distance from said cell site;

controlling said communications transceiver to set up a call with said beacon during which said beacon transmits signals to said cell site;

receiving said signals at said direction-finding antenna; and

processing said received signals in said receiver circuit to estimate a bearing from said cell site to said beacon and/or a distance between said cell site and said beacon and comparing said estimate or estimates with said known bearing and/or distance.

3. A method according to claim 2, in which said step of providing said beacon comprises providing a mobile station compatible with said telecommunications system.

4. A method according to claim 2, in which said beacon is provided at said position such that it can communicate with more than one cell site in order to calibrate direction finding antennas and receiver circuits at each said cell site.

5. A method for calibrating a direction finding antenna situated at a first cell site of a cellular radio telecommunications system, comprising the steps of;

providing a trasmitter beacon at a second cell site adjacent to said first cell site;

transmitting a signal from said beacon;

receiving said signal at said direction-finding antenna; and

processing said received signal using receiver circuitry coupled to said direction finding antenna to estimate a bearing from said first cell site to said second cell site, comparing said estimate with a known bearing from said first cell site to said second cell site, and calibrating said direction finding antenna and/or said receiver circuitry accordingly.

6. A method according to claim 5, in which said radio telecommunications system is a CDMA (code division multiple access) system and said signal transmitted by said beacon is a narrowband signal within or near the allocated CDMA bandwidth.

7. A method according to claim 5, in which said signal transmitted by said beacon can be used to calibrate direction finding antennas at a plurality of adjacent cell sites.

8. A method for calibrating a direction finding antenna and/or associated receiver circuitry at a cell site of a radio telecommunications system, comprising the step of selecting one or more of the calibration methods of providing a radio transceiver beacon and providing a radio transmitter beacon at an adjacent cell site.

9. An apparatus for calibrating a direction finding antenna and a receiver circuit coupled thereto in a radio telecommunications system, said receiver circuit including phase-sensitive direction-finding signal processing equipment, comprising;

a support for said antenna;

a near-field calibration source comprising a radio transmitter mounted on a calibration source support extending from said antenna support;

a calibration signal generator coupled to said calibration source for transmitting a calibration signal from said calibration source for reception by said antenna and processing by said receiver circuit to generate an output; and

a comparator or comparing said output with a reference synchronised with said calibration signal to assess calibration of said antenna and said receiver circuit.

10. An apparatus for calibrating a direction finding antenna at a cell site of a cellular radio telecommunications system, a transceiver for communicating with mobile stations also being situated at said cell site, comprising;

a radio transceiver beacon having at least partial transmission and reception functionality of one of said mobile stations, situated at a predetermined location at a known bearing and/or distance from said cell site;

a controller at said cell site for controlling said transceiver to set up a call with said beacon during which said beacon transits signals to said cell site;

a receiver circuit coupled to said direction finding antenna for processing said transmitted signals as received at said direction finding ant and for estimating a bearing from said cell site to said beacon and/or a distance from said cell site to said beacon; and

a comparator for comparing said estimated bearing and/or distance with said known bearing and/or distance.

11. A beacon for use in an apparatus as defined in claim 10.

12. A beacon according to claim 11, comprising a mobile station compatible with said telecommunications system.

13. An apparatus calibrating a direction finding antenna and/or a receiver circuit coupled thereto situated at a first cell site of a cellular radio telecommunications system, comprising;

transmitter beacon situated at a second cell site adjacent to said first cell site;

a calibration signal generator coupled to said beacon for causing said beacon to transmit a calibration signal;

said receiver circuit coupled to said direction finding antenna for processing said calibration signal as received by said direction finding antenna to generate an estimated bearing from said first cell site to said second cell site;

a comparator coupled to said receiver circuit for comparing said estimated bearing with a known bearing from said first cell site to said second cell site; and

a calibrator for calibrating said direction finding antenna and/or said receiver circuit according to said comparison.

14. An apparatus according to claim 13, in which said radio telecommunications system is a CDMA system and said calibration signal is a narrowband signal within a guardband of the allocated CDMA bandwidth.

15. A calibration beacon as defined in claim 13.