Methods and apparatus for facilitating the determination of GPS location information for a mobile station without disrupting communications of voice call

• US 8,078,195 B2
• Filed: 01/27/2011
• Issued: 12/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Radic, Slaven, Jin, Xin
• Primary Examiner(s): RAMPURIA, SHARAD K
• Application Number:
  US13/015,271
• Publication Number:
  US 20110117879A1
• Time in Patent Office: 320 Days
• Field of Search: 4554561-457, 455/404.2
• US Class Current: 455/456.2
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/09 providing processing capability normally carried out by the receiver
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/17 Emergency applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/50 for emergency connections

Abstract

Techniques for use in a mobile device for obtaining location information with use of a Global Positioning System (GPS) involve receiving, through a user interface of the mobile device, a voice call request for establishing a voice call; and in response to receiving the voice call request: comparing a selected telephone number of the voice call request with one or more predetermined telephone numbers stored in memory of the mobile device; if the selected telephone number matches one of the predetermined telephone numbers stored in the memory: prior to initiating the voice call, performing a GPS fix with the GPS system for obtaining the location information of the mobile device; if the selected telephone number fails to match one of the predetermined telephone numbers stored in the memory: refraining from performing the GPS fix for obtaining the location information of the mobile device prior to establishing the voice call; and initiating the voice call from the mobile device via a wireless network.

Claims

1. A method for use in a mobile communication device for obtaining location information with use of a Global Positioning System (GPS), the method comprising:

receiving GPS navigational-type data via a wireless communication network;

storing the GPS navigational-type data in memory of the mobile communication device;

receiving, through a user interface of the mobile communication device, a voice call request for establishing a voice call;

in response to receiving the voice call request;

comparing a selected number of the voice call request with one or more predetermined numbers stored in the memory;

if the selected number matches one of the predetermined numbers stored in the memory, then prior to initiating the voice call, deriving GPS assistance data based on the GPS navigational-type data that was received and stored prior to the voice call request, and performing a GPS fix with the GPS system using the GPS assistance data for thereby obtaining GPS measurement data;

if the selected number fails to match one of the predetermined numbers stored in the memory, then refraining from performing the GPS fix prior to establishing the voice call;

initiating the voice call from the mobile communication device via the wireless communication network; and

during the voice call, causing the GPS measurement data and a request for calculating a location of the mobile communication device to be transmitted to a location server in the wireless communication network for calculating the location of the mobile communication device based on the GPS measurement data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more predetermined numbers stored in the memory are for emergency calls.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein one of the predetermined telephone numbers stored in the memory is 911 for an emergency call.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the GPS navigational-type data comprises GPS ephemeris data, GPS almanac data, or both.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the GPS assistance data comprises at least one of:

GPS satellite PseudoRandom Noise (PRN) code identifying data, Doppler frequency data, time delay window data, and bit contents of the GPS navigational data.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the GPS measurement data comprises GPS pseudorange data.

7. The method of claim 1, which is embodied as computer instructions stored in a non-transitory computer readable medium and executable by one or more processors of the mobile communication device.

8. A mobile communication device, comprising:

one or more processors;

a user interface coupled to the one or more processors;

a wireless receiver and transmitter coupled to the one or more processors and operative for communication in a wireless communication network;

memory coupled to the one or more processors;

the one or more processors being operative to obtain location information of the mobile communication device with use of a Global Positioning System (GPS) by;

receiving, via the wireless receiver, GPS navigational-type data from the wireless communication network;

storing the GPS navigational-type data in the memory;

receiving, through the user interface, a voice call request for establishing a voice call;

in response to receiving the voice call request;

comparing a selected telephone number of the voice call request with one or more predetermined telephone numbers stored in the memory;

if the selected telephone number matches one of the predetermined telephone numbers stored in the memory, then prior to initiating the voice call, deriving GPS assistance data based on the GPS navigational-type data that was received and stored prior to the voice call request, and performing a GPS fix with the GPS system using the GPS assistance data for thereby obtaining GPS measurement data;

if the selected telephone number fails to match one of the predetermined telephone numbers stored in the memory, then refraining from performing the GPS fix prior to establishing the voice call;

initiating the voice call from the mobile communication device via the wireless communication network; and

during the voice call, sending via the wireless transmitter the GPS measurement data and a request for calculating a location of the mobile communication device to a location server in the wireless communication network for calculating the location of the mobile communication device based on the GPS measurement data.

9. The mobile communication device of claim 8, wherein the one or more predetermined telephone numbers stored in the memory are for emergency calls.

10. The mobile communication device of claim 8, wherein one of the predetermined telephone numbers stored in the memory is 911 for an emergency call.

11. The mobile communication device of claim 8, wherein the GPS navigational-type data comprises GPS ephemeris data, GPS almanac data, or both.

12. The mobile communication device of claim 8, wherein the GPS assistance data comprises at least one of:

GPS satellite PseudoRandom Noise (PRN) code identifying data, Doppler frequency data, time delay window data, and bit contents of the GPS navigational data.

13. The mobile communication device of claim 8, wherein the GPS measurement data comprises GPS pseudorange data.

14. A communication system, comprising:

a wireless communication network;

a mobile communication device which is configured to operate in the wireless communication network;

the mobile communication device being operative to obtain a location of the mobile communication device with use of a Global Positioning System (GPS) by;

receiving GPS navigational-type data via the wireless communication network;

storing the GPS navigational-type data in memory of the mobile communication device;

receiving, through a user interface of the mobile communication device, a voice call request for establishing a voice call;

in response to receiving the voice call request;

comparing a selected telephone number of voice call request with one or more predetermined telephone numbers stored in the memory;

if the selected telephone number matches one of the predetermined telephone numbers stored in the memory, then prior to initiating the voice call, deriving GPS assistance data based on the GPS navigational-type data that was received and stored prior to the voice call request, and performing a GPS fix with the GPS system using the GPS assistance data for thereby obtaining GPS measurement data;

if the selected telephone number fails to match one of the predetermined telephone numbers stored in the memory, then refraining from performing the GPS fix prior to establishing the voice call;

initiating the voice call from the mobile communication device via a the wireless communication network; and

during the voice call, sending via the wireless communication network the GPS measurement data and a request for calculating a location of the mobile communication device to a location server in the wireless communication network for calculating the location based on the GPS measurement data.

15. The communication system of claim 14, wherein the one or more predetermined telephone numbers stored in the memory are for emergency calls.