Method for locating coverage gaps in wireless communication services
First Claim
1. A method for determining coverage gaps within a geographical area served by a wireless communication network, comprising:
- at a mobile unit within said geographical area;
determining a location of said mobile unit via satellite positioning signals;
determining a quality metric of a wireless link corresponding to said location of said mobile unit, wherein said wireless link is a cellular wireless link; and
transmitting a location report to a service computer from said mobile unit via a non-cellular communications link from said mobile unit, wherein said location report comprises said quality metric of said wireless link and said location of said mobile unit corresponding to said quality metric; and
at said service computer;
receiving said location report along with a plurality of said location reports from each of a plurality of mobile units, wherein each of the received location reports comprises said quality metric of said wireless link as measured by the sending mobile unit and a location of said sending mobile unit corresponding to the quality metric;
compiling data from said location reports; and
identifying a position of weak signal quality within the geographical area based on said compiled data.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method for determining coverage gaps within a geographical area served by a wireless communication network includes: (a) receiving a location report from each of a plurality of mobile units; (b) storing all location reports received from the mobile units in a database; and (c) searching the database for a position within the geographical area at which an acceptable quality wireless signal has not been received. The location report may include a measured signal quality metric of the wireless link, which may be the signal strength of the wireless link, a bit error rate of the wireless link, or both. Location reports may be displayed on a map to show coverage quality and gaps. Statistical technique and quantitative techniques can be applied on the signal quality metrics reported.
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Citations
37 Claims
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1. A method for determining coverage gaps within a geographical area served by a wireless communication network, comprising:
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at a mobile unit within said geographical area; determining a location of said mobile unit via satellite positioning signals; determining a quality metric of a wireless link corresponding to said location of said mobile unit, wherein said wireless link is a cellular wireless link; and transmitting a location report to a service computer from said mobile unit via a non-cellular communications link from said mobile unit, wherein said location report comprises said quality metric of said wireless link and said location of said mobile unit corresponding to said quality metric; and at said service computer; receiving said location report along with a plurality of said location reports from each of a plurality of mobile units, wherein each of the received location reports comprises said quality metric of said wireless link as measured by the sending mobile unit and a location of said sending mobile unit corresponding to the quality metric; compiling data from said location reports; and identifying a position of weak signal quality within the geographical area based on said compiled data. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 36)
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18. A method for determining coverage gaps within a geographical area served by a wireless communication network, comprising:
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at a mobile unit within said geographical area; determining a location of said mobile unit via satellite positioning signals; determining a quality metric of a wireless link corresponding to said location of said mobile unit, wherein said wireless link is a cellular wireless link; and transmitting a location report to a service computer from said mobile unit via a non-cellular communications link from said mobile unit, wherein said location report comprises said quality metric of said wireless link and said location of said mobile unit corresponding to said quality metric; and at said service computer; receiving said location report along with a plurality of said location reports from each of a plurality of mobile units, wherein each of the received location reports comprises said quality metric of said wireless link as measured by the sending mobile unit and a location of said sending mobile unit corresponding to the quality metric; storing the location reports in a database; and generating a coverage map displaying information from the location reports. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 37)
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Specification