Measuring wireless network performance via a world wide network

• US 6,782,256 B2
• Filed: 03/22/2001
• Issued: 08/24/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tektronix Incorporated (Fortive Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Tektronix Incorporated (Fortive Corp.)
• Inventors: Turpin, John F., Engholm, Kathryn A., Stadnik, Paul J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cumming, William
• Application Number:
  US09/815,070
• Publication Number:
  US 20020137504A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,251 Days
• Field of Search: 455/423, 455/424, 455/425
• US Class Current: 455/423
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements

Abstract

Measuring wireless network performance from a remote site uses a mobile handset that may include an appropriate world wide network browser. A user connects the mobile handset to the remote site via the wireless network which is coupled to the world wide network. Once the connection is made, application software at the measurement site sends commands to the mobile handset and in response the mobile handset sends measurement data to the application software. The application software processes the data to provide information about the wireless network performance including analyses for predictive and diagnostic purposes, since measurement data from many handsets, many locations and many base stations at many times may be collected at one central location.

Claims

1. A system for measuring the performance of a wireless network from a remote site comprising:

a mobile handset that communicates with the wireless network;

a world wide network coupled between the wireless network and the remote site; and

a measurement computer at the remote site having application software that automatically communicates with the mobile handset by sending commands for execution by the mobile handset and in response receiving measurement data from the mobile handset once connection is established over the world wide and wireless networks between the measurement site and the mobile handset, the application software providing measures of performance for the wireless network from the measurement data.

2. The system as recited in claim 1 wherein the application software further provides the measures of performance for the wireless network to the mobile handset over the world wide and wireless networks.

3. The system as recited in claim 1 wherein the measurement data comprises data selected from the group consisting of PN offset, received power level, geographic location and identification of the mobile handset.

4. The system as recited in claim 1 wherein the mobile handset further has a geographic location finder so that the measurement data includes geographic location and the measures of performance are related the geographic location.

5. The system as recited in claim 1 further comprising a gateway coupled between the wireless network and the world wide network, the gateway being coupled by the world wide network to the remote site and having application software for generating the commands to the mobile handset, receiving responses from the mobile handset and forwarding the measurement data to the remote site for processing by the remote site application software without connecting the mobile handset to the remote site.