Method and apparatus for determining location of mobile device

• US 8,483,725 B2
• Filed: 11/04/2011
• Issued: 07/09/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/03/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Kim, Taesu, You, Kisun, Lee, Yong-Hui, Lee, Te-Won
• Primary Examiner(s): Siddiqui, Kashif
• Application Number:
  US13/289,675
• Publication Number:
  US 20120142378A1
• Time in Patent Office: 613 Days
• Field of Search: 455/404.2, 4554141-4144, 455/422.1, 4554561-457, 709223-226
• US Class Current: 455/456.6
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/1075 Telemetering, e.g. transmission of ambient measurements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2038 Call context notifications
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2094 Proximity
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41407 embedded in a portable device, e.g. video client on a mobile phone, PDA, laptop constructional details of equipment or arrangements specially adapted for portable computer application G06F1/1626; arrangements specially adapted for mobile receivers in broadcast systems H04H20/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42203 sound input device, e.g. microphone
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4394 involving operations for analysing the audio stream, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in audio streams arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of audio in broadcast systems H04H60/58

Abstract

A method for determining a location of a mobile device with reference to locations of a plurality of reference devices is disclosed. The mobile device receives ambient sound and provides ambient sound information to a server. Each reference device receives ambient sound and provides ambient sound information to the server. The ambient sound information includes a sound signature extracted from the ambient sound. The server determines a degree of similarity of the ambient sound information between the mobile device and each of the plurality of reference devices. The server determines the location of the mobile device to be a location of a reference device having the greatest degree of similarity.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving first ambient sound information from a mobile device;

receiving reference ambient sound information from each of a plurality of reference devices, the reference ambient sound information including first reference ambient sound information received from a first reference device of the plurality of reference devices and further including second reference ambient sound information received from a second reference device of the plurality of reference devices;

determining degrees of similarity, the degrees of similarity including a first degree of similarity between the first ambient sound information and the first reference ambient sound information and further including a second degree of similarity between the first ambient sound information and the second reference ambient sound information; and

in response to determining that the first degree of similarity is greater than the second degree of similarity, estimating a location of the mobile device based on a location of the first reference device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one reference device of the plurality of reference devices is a second mobile device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first degree of similarity is determined based on a Euclidean distance between a first vector representing the first ambient sound information and a second vector representing the first reference ambient sound information.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated in response to determining that the first degree of similarity exceeds a first similarity threshold.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first similarity threshold is set to be greater as the plurality of reference devices are positioned closer to each other.

6. The method of claim 4, further comprising determining additional degrees of similarity, wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated in response to determining that a number of the additional degrees of similarity greater than a second similarity threshold is less than a count threshold.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the additional degrees of similarity are determined based on Euclidean distances between vectors representing the reference ambient sound information from pairs of the plurality of reference devices.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the first similarity threshold is set to be greater as the plurality of reference devices are positioned closer to each other.

9. The method of claim 4, wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated in response to determining that a number of the degrees of similarity greater than the first similarity threshold is less than a count threshold.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the first ambient sound information comprises a sound signature associated with the mobile device, and wherein the reference ambient sound information from each of the plurality of reference devices comprises a respective reference device sound signature.

43. The method of claim 1, wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated based on a location of the second reference device if the second degree of similarity is greater than the first degree of similarity.

11. A server comprising:

a receiver configured to receive first ambient sound information from a mobile device and reference ambient sound information from each of a plurality of reference devices, the reference ambient sound information including first reference ambient sound information received from a first reference device of the plurality of reference devices and further including second reference ambient sound information received from a second reference device of the plurality of reference devices; and

a location determination device configured to estimate a location of the mobile device by determining degrees of similarity, the degrees of similarity including a first degree of similarity between the first ambient sound information and the first reference ambient sound information and further including a second degree of similarity between the first ambient sound information and the second reference ambient sound information,

wherein the location determination device is further configured to estimate the location of the mobile device based on a location of the first reference device in response to determining that the first degree of similarity is greater than the second degree of similarity.

12. The server of claim 11, wherein at least one reference device of the plurality of reference devices is a second mobile device.

13. The server of claim 11, further comprising an information database configured to store information indicating respective locations of the plurality of reference devices.

14. The server of claim 11, wherein the first degree of similarity is determined based on a Euclidean distance between a first vector representing the first ambient sound information and a second vector representing the first reference ambient sound information.

15. The server of claim 11, wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated in response to determining that the first degree of similarity exceeds a first similarity threshold.

16. The server of claim 15, wherein the first similarity threshold is set to be greater as the plurality of reference devices are positioned closer to each other.

17. The server of claim 15, wherein the location determination device is further configured to determine additional degrees of similarity, and wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated in response to determining that a number of the additional degrees of similarity greater than a second similarity threshold is less than a count threshold.

18. The server of claim 17, wherein the additional degrees of similarity are determined based on Euclidean distances between vectors representing the reference ambient sound information from pairs of the plurality of reference devices.

19. The server of claim 17, wherein the first similarity threshold is set to be greater as the plurality of reference devices are positioned closer to each other.

20. The server of claim 15, wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated in response to determining that a number of the degrees of similarity greater than the first similarity threshold is less than a count threshold.

21. The server of claim 11, wherein the first ambient sound information comprises a sound signature associated with the mobile device, and wherein the reference ambient sound information from each of the plurality of reference devices comprises a respective reference device sound signature.

44. The server of claim 11, wherein the location determination device is further configured to estimate the location of the mobile device based on a location of the second reference device in response to determining that the second degree of similarity is greater than the first degree of similarity.

22. A server comprising:

means for receiving first ambient sound information from a mobile device and for receiving reference ambient sound information from each of a plurality of reference devices, the reference ambient sound information including first reference ambient sound information received from a first reference device of the plurality of reference devices and further including second reference ambient sound information received from a second reference device of the plurality of reference devices; and

means for estimating a location of the mobile device by determining degrees of similarity, the degrees of similarity including a first degree of similarity between the first ambient sound information and the first reference ambient sound information and further including a second degree of similarity between the first ambient sound information and the second reference ambient sound information,

wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated based on a location of the first reference device in response to determining that the first degree of similarity is greater than the second degree of similarity.

23. The server of claim 22, wherein at least one reference device of the plurality of reference devices is a second mobile device.

24. The server of claim 22, further comprising means for storing information indicating respective locations of the plurality of reference devices.

25. The server of claim 22, wherein the of first degree of similarity is determined based on a Euclidean distance between a first vector representing the first ambient sound information and a second vector representing the first reference ambient sound information.

26. The server of claim 22, wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated in response to determining that the first degree of similarity exceeds a first similarity threshold.

27. The server of claim 26, wherein the first similarity threshold is set to be greater as the plurality of reference devices are positioned closer to each other.

28. The server of claim 26, wherein the means for estimating the location of the mobile device is configured to determine additional degrees of similarity, and wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated in response to determining that a number of the additional degrees of similarity greater than a second similarity threshold is less than a count threshold.

29. The server of claim 28, wherein the additional degrees of similarity are determined based on Euclidean distances between vectors representing the reference ambient sound information from pairs of the plurality of reference devices.

30. The server of claim 28, wherein the first similarity threshold is set to be greater as the plurality of reference devices are positioned closer to each other.

31. The server of claim 26, wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated in response to determining that a number of the degrees of similarity greater than the first similarity threshold is less than a count threshold.

32. The server of claim 22, wherein the first ambient sound information comprises a sound signature associated with the mobile device, and wherein the reference ambient sound information from each of the plurality of reference devices comprises a respective reference device sound signature.

45. The server of claim 22, wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated based on a location of the second reference device if the second degree of similarity is greater than the first degree of similarity.

33. A computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to:

receive first ambient sound information from a mobile device;

receive reference ambient sound information from each of a plurality of reference devices, the reference ambient sound information including first reference ambient sound information received from a first reference device of the plurality of reference devices and further includes second reference ambient sound information received from a second reference device of the plurality of reference devices;

determine degrees of similarity, the degrees of similarity including a first degree of similarity between the first ambient sound information and the first reference ambient sound information and further including a second degree of similarity between the first ambient sound information and the second reference ambient sound information; and

in response to determining that the first degree of similarity is greater than the second degree of similarity, estimate determining a location of the mobile device based on a location of the first reference device.

34. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 33, wherein at least one reference device of the plurality of reference devices is a second mobile device.

35. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 33, wherein the first degree of similarity is determined based on a Euclidean distance between a first vector representing the first ambient sound information and a second vector representing the first reference ambient sound information.

36. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 33, wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated in response to determining that the first degree of similarity exceeds a first similarity threshold.

37. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 36, wherein the first similarity threshold is based on a relative proximity of the plurality of reference devices.

38. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 36, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to determine additional degrees of similarity, wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated in response to determining that a number of the additional degrees of similarity greater than a second similarity threshold is less than a count threshold.

39. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 38, wherein the degrees of second similarity are determined based on Euclidian distances between vectors representing the reference ambient sound information from pairs of the plurality of reference devices.

40. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 38, wherein the first similarity threshold is based on a relative proximity of the plurality of reference devices.

41. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 36, wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated in response to determining that a number of the degrees of similarity greater than the first similarity threshold is less than a count threshold.

42. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 33, wherein the first ambient sound information comprises a sound signature associated with the mobile device, and wherein the reference ambient sound information from each of the plurality of reference devices comprises a respective reference device sound signature.

46. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 33, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the processor to estimate the location of the mobile device based on a location of the second reference device if the second degree of similarity is greater than the first degree of similarity.

47. A method comprising:

receiving first ambient sound information from a mobile device;

receiving first reference ambient sound information from a first reference device;

receiving second reference ambient sound information from a second reference device;

comparing a first degree of similarity between the first ambient sound information and the first reference ambient sound information to a second degree of similarity between the first ambient sound information and the second reference ambient sound information; and

in response to determining that the first degree of similarity is greater than the second degree of similarity, estimating a location of the mobile device based on a location of the first reference device.

48. The method of claim 47, further comprising determining whether the first degree of similarity exceeds a threshold, wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated in response to determining that the first degree of similarity exceeds the threshold, and wherein the threshold is based on a proximity of the first reference device relative to the second reference device.

49. The method of claim 47, wherein the location of the mobile device is estimated based on a location of the second reference device in response to determining that the second degree of similarity is greater than the first degree of similarity.