Decentralized wireless communication network and method having a plurality of devices

• US 7,570,927 B2
• Filed: 06/16/2006
• Issued: 08/04/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/16/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Motorola, Inc. (Motorola Solutions, Inc.)
• Inventors: Shi, Qicai, Kyperountas, Spyros, Correal, Neiyer S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cumming; William D
• Application Number:
  US11/424,622
• Publication Number:
  US 20070293237A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,145 Days
• Field of Search: 455/90.1, 455/17, 455/509, 455/445, 455/437, 455/455, 455/7, 455/422, 455/444, 455/450, 455/406, 455/500, 455/428, 370/352
• US Class Current: 455/90.1
• 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 4/20 Services signaling; Auxiliary data signalling, i.e. transmitting data via a non-traffic channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/04 adapted for relaying to or from another terminal or user

Abstract

A wireless communication system and method for determination of the location of a location-incapable device of a decentralized wireless communication network. Upon receipt of location determination information, relevant to the location of the location-incapable device in the network and sufficient to perform a calculation of the location of the location-incapable device, a location-capable device of the network may calculate the location of the location-incapable device and make this information available to one or more devices of the network.

Claims

1. A method of determining a location of a location-incapable device of a plurality of devices of a decentralized wireless communication network comprising the location-incapable device, a plurality of location-aware devices communicatively coupled to the location-incapable device, and a location-capable device communicatively coupled to the location-incapable device, said method comprising:

the location-incapable device transmitting location determination information, relevant to the location of the location-incapable device in the network and sufficient to perform a calculation of the location of the location-incapable device, to the location-capable device;

the location-capable device receiving the location determination information and calculating the location of the location-incapable device in the network; and

communicating the location of the location-incapable device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein communicating the location of the location-incapable device comprises transmitting the location of the location-incapable device to at least one of the location-incapable device, a device of the plurality of devices, and a location function of the network.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the location-capable device is a location-aware device of the plurality of location-aware devices of the network.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the location determination information comprises measurements of one or more parameters related to distance made by the location-incapable device and location information of one or more of the plurality of location-aware devices communicatively coupled to the location-incapable device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the location-capable device does not calculate the location of the location-incapable device instead delegating said calculation to a second location-capable device of the network, further comprising:

the location-capable device transmitting the location determination information relevant to the location of the location-incapable device in the network to said second location-capable device of the network;

the second location-capable device calculating the location of the location-incapable device in the network using the location determination information relevant to the location of the location-incapable device; and

the second location-capable device transmitting the location of the location-incapable device.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the location-capable device delegates the calculation to the second location-capable device in response to a network condition of the network.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

the location-incapable device selecting to transmit the location determination information to the location-capable device on the basis of one or more criteria.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the location-incapable device is operable to calculate its location in the network but delegates said calculation to the location-capable device in response to a network condition of the network.

9. A method of determining a location of a location-incapable device of a decentralized wireless communication network comprising the location-incapable device, a plurality of location-aware devices communicatively coupled to the location-incapable device, and a location-capable device communicatively coupled to the location-incapable device, said method comprising:

the location-incapable device transmitting location determination information relevant to the location of the location-incapable device in the network and sufficient to perform a calculation of the location of the location-incapable device to the location-capable device of the plurality of location-capable devices of the network.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

the location-incapable device receiving the location of the location-incapable device calculated by the location-capable device from the location determination information.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the location determination information comprises measurements of one or more parameters related to distance made by the location-incapable device and location information of one or more of the plurality of location-aware devices communicatively coupled to the location-incapable device.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

the location-incapable device measuring received waveforms from the one or more of the plurality of location-aware devices communicatively coupled to the location-incapable device to obtain the measurements.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising the location-incapable device:

listening for message transmissions from the one or more location-aware devices; and

receiving message transmissions from the one or more location-aware devices; and

measuring waveforms of the received message transmissions from the one or more location-aware devices to obtain the measurements from the location-incapable device to the one or more location-aware devices.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising the location-incapable device:

transmitting a request for message transmissions from the one or more location-aware devices;

receiving message transmissions from the one or more location-aware devices; and

measuring waveforms of the received message transmissions from the one or more location-aware devices to obtain the measurements from the location-incapable device to the one or more location-aware devices.

15. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

the location-incapable device selecting to transmit the location determination information to the location-capable device on the basis of one or more criteria.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein the location-incapable device is operable to calculate its location in the network but delegates said calculation to the location-capable device in response to a network condition of the network.

17. A decentralized wireless communication network having a plurality of devices, comprising:

a location-incapable device inoperable to directly determine its location within the network;

a plurality of location-aware devices communicatively coupled to the location-incapable device;

a plurality of location-capable devices operable to perform location determination calculations and communicatively coupled to the location-incapable device;

wherein in response to receiving from the location-incapable device location determination information relevant to the location of the location-incapable device in the network, a location-capable device of the plurality of location-capable devices determining the location of the location-incapable device in the network using the location determination information.

18. The network of claim 17, wherein the location-capable device comprises a

location determination element operable to calculate the location of the location-incapable device in the network using the location determination information.

19. The network of claim 17, wherein the location-capable device is operable to communicate the calculated location of the location-incapable device to at least one of the location-incapable device, a device of the plurality of devices of the network, and a location function of the network communicatively coupled to the location-capable device.

20. The network of claim 17, wherein the location determination information comprises measurements of one or more parameters related to distance made by the location-incapable device and location information of one or more of the plurality of location-aware devices communicatively coupled to the location-incapable device.

21. The network of claim 20, wherein the measurements are measured by the location-incapable device from waveforms received from one or more of the plurality of location-aware devices communicatively coupled to the location-incapable device.

22. The network of claim 17, wherein the location-capable device is a location-aware device of the plurality of location-aware devices.

23. The network of claim 17, wherein the network is a 802.15.4 system.

24. The network of claim 17, wherein the location-incapable device is operable to calculate its location in the network but delegates said calculation to the location-capable device in response to a network condition of the network.

25. The device of claim 17, wherein the location-capable device does not calculate the location of the device and delegates said calculation to a second location-capable device of the plurality of devices of the network.

26. The device of claim 25, wherein delegation by the location-capable device to the second location-capable device occurs in response to a network condition of the network.