Providing location data about a mobile entity

• US 6,799,032 B2
• Filed: 03/23/2001
• Issued: 09/28/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Comcast IP Holdings I LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Thomas, Andrew, McDonnell, James Thomas Edward, Waters, John Deryk, Crouch, Simon E., Spratt, Michael P.
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, CONGVAN
• Application Number:
  US09/816,682
• Publication Number:
  US 20020004399A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,285 Days
• Field of Search: 455/410, 455/411, 455/456, 455/452.2, 455/453, 455/509, 455/511, 455/63.1, 455/67.13, 455/437, 455/440, 455/456.5, 455/514, 455/515, 455/635.1, 455/635.2
• US Class Current: 455/410
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/08 Mobility data transfer
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/16 selectively restricting mobility data tracking
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data

Abstract

A mobile entity (20) provides accuracy limit data (Q) that indicates a desired accuracy of location data (L) about the mobile entity. This data (Q) is passed, either directly or indirectly from the mobile entity (20), to a location handling system (80) which provides location data (L) about the corresponding mobile entity limited to the desired accuracy. In one embodiment, the location handling system is a location server. In another embodiment the location handling system is a decryption entity (80) for decrypting encrypted location data.

Claims

1. A method of providing location data about a mobile entity, wherein:

the mobile entity provides a data package that comprises quality of service data (QoS data) indicating a desired accuracy limit of location data about the mobile entity, the data package being digitally signed by the mobile entity,

the digitally-signed data package is passed, either directly or indirectly from the mobile entity, to a location handling system, and

the location handling system after checking, on the basis of the digital signing of the data package, that the data package has been provided by the mobile entity, provides location data about the mobile entity limited to an accuracy no greater than that indicated by the QoS data.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the location handling system is a location server, the digitally-signed data package being passed to the location server either directly from the mobile entity or via a service system contacted by the mobile entity.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein the location handling system is a location server, the digitally-signed data package being passed to the location server by a service system contacted by the mobile entity and the location server returning the location data to the service system where it is used to provide a service to the mobile entity.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein the location handling system is a decryption entity for decrypting encrypted location data provided to it by the mobile entity or a service system, the digitally-signed data package being passed to the decryption entity either directly from the mobile entity or via a service system contacted by the mobile entity.

5. A method according to claim 1, wherein the location handling system is a decryption entity for decrypting encrypted location data, the digitally-signed data package and encrypted location data being provided by the mobile entity to a service system which passes these data to the decryption entity, and the decryption entity decrypting the location data and returning it, with an accuracy determined by the QoS data, to the service system where it is used to provide a service to the mobile entity.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein the location handling system is a decryption entity for decrypting encrypted location data, the digitally-signed data package being provided by the mobile entity to a service system which obtains encrypted location data concerning the mobile entity from a location server and then passes the digitally-signed data package and encrypted location data to the decryption entity, the decryption entity decrypting the location data and returning it, with an accuracy determined by the QoS data, to the service system where it is used to provide a service to the mobile entity.

7. A method according to claim 4, wherein the encrypted location data is accompanied by an indication of the accuracy of that data, the decryption entity taking account of this accuracy when processing the location data to provide the level of accuracy determined by the QoS data.

8. A method according to claim 5, wherein the encrypted location data is accompanied by an indication of the accuracy of that data, the decryption entity taking account of this accuracy when processing the location data to provide the level of accuracy determined by the QoS data.

9. A method according to claim 6, wherein the encrypted location data is accompanied by an indication of the accuracy of that data, the decryption entity taking account of this accuracy when processing the location data to provide the level of accuracy determined by the QoS data.

10. A method according to claim 1, wherein the location handling system limits the accuracy of the location data it provides, relative to the accuracy of the location data available to it, by combining with the components of the available location data, additional components randomised over a range set by the difference between the accuracy of the available location data and the accuracy specified in the QoS data.

11. A method according to claim 1, wherein the digitally-signed data package is provided to the location handling system by a service system from which the mobile entity has requested a location-dependent service, the location handling system providing said location data about the mobile entity to the service system.

12. A method according to claim 11, wherein the data package further comprises an identifier of a service entity, the location handling system only providing said location data to the service system where this system is the service entity identified in the data package.

13. A method according to claim 11, wherein the data package further comprises a time validity indicator, the location handling system only providing said location data to the service system where the time validity indicator in the data package indicates that the validity of the data package has not expired.

14. A method of providing location data about a mobile entity, wherein:

the mobile entity requests a location-dependent service from a service system and provides that system with quality of service data (QoS data) that indicates a desired accuracy limit of location data about the mobile entity and is authenticatable as being provided by the mobile entity,

the service system requests location data about the mobile entity from a location handling system, the request being accompanied by the QoS data, and

the location handling system checks the authenticity of the QoS data as having been provided by the mobile entity, and then provides back to the service system the requested location data limited to an accuracy no greater than that indicated by the QoS data.

15. A method according to claim 14, wherein the mobile entity digitally signs the QoS data, and the location handling system checks the authenticity of the QoS data on the basis of the mobile entity'"'"'s digital signature.

16. A method according to claim 14, wherein the QoS data is provided by the mobile entity in a digitally-signed data package that also includes an identifier of a service entity, the location handling system checking the authenticity of the QoS data and said identifier on the basis of the mobile entity'"'"'s digital signature of the data package, the location handling system only providing said location data to the service system where this system is the service entity identified in the data package.

17. A location handling system comprising:

receiving means for receiving a request for location data, and a data package that has been digitally signed by a mobile entity and comprises quality of service data, QoS data, indicating a desired limit on the accuracy of location data to be provided about the mobile entity;

authentication means for checking, on the basis of the digital signing of the data package, that the data package has been provided by said mobile entity; and

response means arranged upon the authentication means confirming that the data package has been provided by said mobile entity, to respond to the request for location data by providing location data about the mobile entity limited to an accuracy no greater than that indicated by the QoS data.

18. A location handling system according to claim 17, wherein the receiving means is arranged to receive both the request for location data and the digitally-signed data package from a service system from which the mobile entity has requested a location-dependent service, the response means being arranged to provide said location data about the mobile entity to the service system.

19. A location handling system according to claim 18, wherein the data package further comprises an identifier of a service entity, the location handling system further comprising service-system check means for checking that the service system making the request for location data is the service entity identified in the data package, and the response means being further arranged to provide the location data about the mobile entity to the service system only if the service-system check means confirms that the service system is the service entity identified in the data package.

20. A location handling system according to claim 17, wherein the location handling system is a location server.

21. A location handling system according to claim 17, wherein the location handling system is a decryption entity arranged to receive location data about the mobile entity in encrypted form, the location handling system further comprising decryption means for decrypting the received encrypted location data.