Positioning using enhanced pilot signal

• US 8,412,227 B2
• Filed: 10/27/2008
• Issued: 04/02/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/18/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Edge, Stephen W., Black, Peter John, Wu, Qiang, Zhao, Wanlun, Tokgoz, Yeliz, Padovani, Roberto, Naguib, Ayman Fawzy, Kim, Je Woo, Dayal, Pranav, Agashe, Parag Arun
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Ajit
• Application Number:
  US12/259,253
• Publication Number:
  US 20090203386A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,618 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456.1, 455/456.5
• US Class Current: 455/456.1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0226 Transmitters
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0236 Assistance data, e.g. base station almanac
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/12 using downlink control channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management

Abstract

Briefly, in accordance with one embodiment, a method of transmitting signals is provided. Signal waveforms are transmitted from at least two respective sectors. The at least two respective sectors are from at least two different sets of a superset of sectors. The transmitted signal waveforms include signal waveforms at least nearly mutually orthogonal at least along a particular signal dimension. An advantage of such an embodiment, for example, is reduced signal interference.

Claims

1. A method of performing positioning, comprising:

exchanging at least one message between a terminal and a network server to exchange information for enhanced pilots used for positioning of the terminal, wherein the exchanged enhanced pilot information includes identification of at least a plurality of sectors that transmit enhanced pilots and signal dimension information for the enhanced pilots associated with the sectors, the signal dimension information indicating at least nearly mutually orthogonal signal dimensions; and

performing positioning based on the exchanged enhanced pilot information to obtain a position estimate for the terminal.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the exchanging at least one message comprises receiving a message comprising the enhanced pilot information from the network server, and wherein the performing positioning comprises obtaining enhanced pilot measurements for multiple sectors using the enhanced pilot information associated with the multiple sectors.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the signal dimension information comprises one or more signal dimension information types selected from the group consisting of time locations of the enhanced pilots transmitted by the sectors, time and frequency locations of the enhanced pilots transmitted by the sectors, and pilot sequences used by the sectors.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the exchanging at least one message comprises sending a message comprising enhanced pilot measurement results to the network server.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the enhanced pilot measurement results comprises standard pilot measurement results, pilot measurement statistics, or both.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the exchanging at least one message comprises

receiving a first message comprising the enhanced pilot information from the network server, and

sending a second message comprising enhanced pilot measurement results to the network server.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the exchanging at least one message comprises sending a message comprising the enhanced pilot information to the terminal.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the exchanging at least one message comprises receiving a message comprising enhanced pilot measurement results from the terminal, and wherein the performing positioning comprises computing the position estimate for the terminal based on the enhanced pilot measurement results.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the network server is a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (SLP), wherein the terminal is a SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET), and wherein the at least one message is exchanged between the SET and the SLP during a SUPL session.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the at least one message comprises at least one SUPL message.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the at least one message is for a positioning protocol and is carried in at least one SUPL message.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the terminal and the network server exchange the at least one message via a control plane location architecture.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one message is for Radio Resource LCS Protocol (RRLP), Radio Resource Control (RRC), or TIA-801.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the signal dimension information for the enhanced pilots associated with the plurality of sectors comprises a plurality of time slots, and wherein the plurality of sectors comprises a first sector assigned to a first time slot, and wherein the first sector is one of a set of sectors assigned to the first slot.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the signal dimension information for the enhanced pilots associated with the plurality of sectors comprises a plurality of associated time frequency resources, and wherein a the plurality of sectors comprises a first sector assigned to a first time frequency resource, wherein the first sector is part of a set of sectors each assigned to the first time frequency resource.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein sectors in a wireless communication network transmit both the enhanced pilots and standard pilots to terminals in the network.

17. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising:

at least one processor configured to exchange at least one message between a terminal and a network server to exchange information for enhanced pilots used for positioning of the terminal, wherein the exchanged enhanced pilot information includes identification of at least a first plurality of sectors that transmit enhanced pilots and signal dimension information for the enhanced pilots associated with the sectors, the signal dimension information indicating at least nearly mutually orthogonal signal dimensions, and to perform positioning based on the exchanged enhanced pilot information to obtain a position estimate for the terminal.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the at least one processor is configured to receive a message comprising the enhanced pilot information from the network server, and to obtain enhanced pilot measurements for multiple sectors using the enhanced pilot information associated with the multiple sectors.

19. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the at least one processor is configured to send a message comprising enhanced pilot measurement results to the network server.

20. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the at least one processor is configured to send a message comprising enhanced pilot information to the terminal.

21. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the at least one processor is configured to receive a message comprising enhanced pilot measurement results from the terminal, and to compute the position estimate for the terminal based on the enhanced pilot measurement results.

22. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the network server is a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (SLP), wherein the terminal is a SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET), and wherein the at least one message is exchanged between the SET and the SLP during a SUPL session.

23. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising:

means for exchanging at least one message between a terminal and a network server to exchange information for enhanced pilots used for positioning of the terminal, wherein the exchanged enhanced pilot information includes identification of at least a first plurality of sectors that transmit enhanced pilots and signal dimension information for the enhanced pilots associated with the plurality of sectors, the signal dimension information indicating at least nearly mutually orthogonal signal dimensions; and

means for performing positioning based on the exchanged enhanced pilot information to obtain a position estimate for the terminal.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the means for exchanging at least one message comprises means for receiving a message comprising the enhanced pilot information from the network server, and wherein the means for performing positioning comprises means for obtaining enhanced pilot measurements for multiple sectors using the enhanced pilot information associated with the multiple sectors.

25. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the means for exchanging at least one message comprises means for sending a message comprising enhanced pilot measurement results to the network server.

26. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the means for exchanging at least one message comprises means for sending a message comprising enhanced pilot information to the terminal.

27. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the means for exchanging at least one message comprises means for receiving a message comprising enhanced pilot measurement results from the terminal, and wherein the means for performing positioning comprises means for computing the position estimate for the terminal based on the enhanced pilot measurement results.

28. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the network server is a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (SLP), wherein the terminal is a SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET), and wherein the at least one message is exchanged between the SET and the SLP during a SUPL session.

29. A computer program product, comprising:

a computer-readable storage medium comprising;

code for causing at least one computer to exchange at least one message between a terminal and a network server to exchange information for enhanced pilots used for positioning of the terminal, wherein the exchanged enhanced pilot information includes identification of at least a plurality of sectors that transmit enhanced pilots and signal dimension information for the enhanced pilots associated with the sectors, the signal dimension information indicating at least nearly mutually orthogonal signal dimensions, and

code for causing the at least one computer to perform positioning based on the exchanged enhanced pilot information to obtain a position estimate for the terminal.