System for performing environmental measurements and for transferring measurement results

• US 7,031,663 B2
• Filed: 03/05/1999
• Issued: 04/18/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: RPX Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nokia Mobile Phones UK Limited (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Okkonen, Harri, Heinonen, Pekka
• Primary Examiner(s): BEAMER, TEMICA M
• Application Number:
  US09/263,402
• Publication Number:
  US 20020119769A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,601 Days
• Field of Search: 455/404, 455/423, 455/521, 455/524, 455/67.1, 455/561, 455/504, 455/505, 340/539, 340/511, 340/905
• US Class Current: 455/67.11
• CPC Class Codes: G01W 1/04 giving only separate indications of the variables measured
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/002 with telemetering systems telemetering in general G08C

Abstract

Automatic environmental measuring stations (10, 10a, 10b, 10c) are connected in a physical connection with base stations (11; 11a; 11b; 11c) of a cellular radio system which stations measure certain basic phenomena of the atmosphere and/or the concentrations of certain substances in the air. The information of the measurements is transferred using a base station over the cellular radio system to a central equipment (14) either as regular reports or as acute alarms if any alarm limit is exceeded. The information may also be transmitted over the base station of the cellular radio system to mobile stations (15) in the area of the base station in the form of individually tailored reports and alarms.

Claims

1. A system for performing environmental measurements and for transferring measuring data, wherein the system comprises:

a plurality of base stations of a cellular radio system, each base station forming a cell and the plurality of base stations forming a cellular radio network, the base stations comprising means for transferring data in the cellular radio system,

a plurality of environmental measuring stations each being connected to one of the plurality of base stations, the measuring stations comprising

measuring means for performing environmental measurements, and

control means for transferring measuring data to the respective base station that it is connected to for transferring the measuring data further over said cellular radio system,

and each said environmental measuring station is physically placed on the same site as the base station that it is connected to and is physically connected to the respective base station,

a central equipment connected to the cellular radio system for collecting environmental measuring data from the plurality of environmental measuring stations through the base stations of the cellular radio system, and

terminal devices of the cellular radio system for receiving data relating to the environmental measurements via the cellular radio system.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein the system comprises a data adapter for adapting the data transferred from the measuring station to the base station into a format suitable for the base station and correspondingly for adapting the data coming from the base station to the measuring station into a format suitable for the measuring station.

3. A system according to claim 1, wherein it comprises in said central equipment means for collecting announcements that are sorted regionally and are based upon the collected measuring data, and for transmitting said announcements to terminal devices over the cellular radio system.

4. A system according to claim 1, wherein the control means of one of the plurality of environmental measuring stations have been arranged to transfer measuring data to a terminal device being in the coverage area of the base station.

5. A system according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said plurality of environmental measuring stations comprises a memory for storing at least one predetermined alarm limit in connection with a certain measurement and means for comparing the measuring data obtained based upon a measurement performed by the measuring means with said alarm limit and for generating an alarm signal when said alarm limit is exceeded.

6. A system according to claim 5, wherein the measuring station is configured to automatically send said alarm signal to the central equipment.

7. A system according to claim 1, wherein the system has been arranged to transfer said measuring data in a data call or in a short-message over the cellular radio system.

8. A system according to claim 1, wherein the measuring system is configured to allow a user of a terminal device to set a personal threshold value in the measuring system, and the measuring system is configured to send through the base station a personal message to the user'"'"'s terminal device if the set threshold value is exceeded.

9. A system according to claim 1, wherein the measuring system is configured to allow a user of a terminal device to set an individual alarm limit with the terminal device, and the terminal device is configured to send, via the base station to the measuring station, said set individual alarm limit when the terminal device is within the area of the base station.

10. A system according to claim 9, wherein the individual alarm limit is a pollen concentration value.

11. A system according to claim 9, wherein the terminal device is configured to automatically send, via the base station to the measuring station, said set individual alarm limit upon arriving in the area of the base station.

12. A system according to claim 1 wherein each base station of said plurality of base stations is fixed in position.

13. A method for performing environmental measurements and for transferring measuring data, wherein the method comprises the steps of

performing environmental measurements in connection with a base station of a cellular radio system and physically on the same site where the base station is located, the base station forming a cell of a cellular radio network,

transferring results representative of the measured environmental data forward to the base station in order to transfer said results further over said cellular radio system,

collecting said results at a central location from the environmental measuring station through the base station of the cellular radio system, and

transferring data relating to the environmental measurements to a terminal device of the cellular radio system.

14. A method according to claim 13, wherein the method further comprises a step of collecting said results through the cellular radio system from environmental measurements at several base stations and creating a regional measuring result based upon them.

15. A method according to claim 13, wherein the method comprises transferring said results over the base station to a terminal device being in the covering area of the base station.

16. A method according to claim 15, wherein the method comprises setting an alarm limit for a certain measurement and transferring said results over the base station to the terminal device as a response to the measured environmental data exceeding said alarm limit.

17. A method according to claim 13, wherein the method comprises transferring said results in a data call or in a short-message over the cellular radio system.

18. A method according to claim 13, further comprising a step, by a user, of setting the terminal device to a personal threshold value, and a step, by the measuring system, of sending through the base station a personal message to the user'"'"'s terminal device it the set threshold value is exceeded.

19. A method according to claim 13, further comprising a step, by a user, of setting at the terminal device an individual alarm limit, and a step by the terminal device, of sending, via the base station to the measuring station, said set individual alarm limit when the terminal device is within the area of the base station.

20. A method according to claim 19, wherein the individual alarm limit is a pollen concentration value.

21. A method according to claim 19, wherein the terminal device is configured to automatically send, via the base station to the measuring station, said set individual alarm limit upon arriving in the area of the base station.

22. A method according to claim 19, wherein the terminal device is configured to automatically send said alarm limit to central equipment of the cellular radio system.

23. A system for performing environmental measurements and for transferring measuring data, the system comprising:

a plurality of base stations of a cellular radio network and a further plurality of terminal devices in communication with base stations of the network;

a plurality of environmental measuring stations, each of said measuring stations communicating with and having a common location with a respective one of said base stations, each of the measuring stations performing environmental measurements and having a data interface for communication of data of an environmental measurement with the respective one of the base stations;

a central equipment connected to the cellular radio network for collecting environmental measuring data from the plurality of environmental measuring stations through the base stations; and

wherein the terminal devices are employed by users of the network for receiving data relating to the environmental measurements via the cellular radio network.

24. A method for performing environmental measurements and for transferring measuring data, wherein the method comprises the steps of:

providing users of a cellular radio network with terminal devices for receipt of data relating to a environmental measurements, the network including a plurality of base stations in communication with the terminal devices;

performing environmental measurements by measuring stations located at respective ones of the base stations and being in communication with the respective ones of the base stations;

at each of the measuring stations, transferring results representative of measured environmental data to the respective base station for further transfer via the network to said terminal devices;

collecting said results at a central location from each of said environmental measuring stations through the base stations of the network; and

transferring data relating to the environmental measurements from the central location via the network to individual ones of said terminal devices.