Method and apparatus for supporting location services with roaming

• US 8,504,064 B2
• Filed: 02/08/2012
• Issued: 08/06/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Lamba, Gaurav, Burroughs, Kirk Allan, Lin, Ie-Hong, Khushu, Sanjeev, Du, Zhimin, Wang, Yufei
• Primary Examiner(s): SIVJI, NIZAR N
• Application Number:
  US13/369,191
• Publication Number:
  US 20120149369A1
• Time in Patent Office: 545 Days
• Field of Search: 701/207, 701/408, 455/456.1, 455/440, 455/435.1, 455/404.2, 455/456, 455/418, 455/411, 455/433, 709/249, 370/338, 370/331, 370/352, 370/328, 370/332, 370/216, 370/335, 370/458, 370/315
• US Class Current: 455/456.1
• 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 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/12 between location registers or mobility servers

Abstract

Techniques for supporting location services (LCS) with roaming are described. A method of supporting LCS in a network comprising a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) enabled terminal (SET), a home SUPL location center (H-SLC), and a serving SUPL location center (S-SLC) includes receiving, at the H-SLC, a location request message for a location of the SET, where the location request message comprises an indication of a network location of the SET. The method includes sending, to the S-SLC in response to the location request message, a roaming request message. The method includes receiving, from the S-SLC in response to the roaming request message, a location report message comprising a position of the network location. The method also includes sending a reporting message comprising the position of the network location of the SET as the location of the SET.

Claims

1. An apparatus supporting location services (LCS) for a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) enabled terminal (SET) roaming from a home network and communicating with a visited network, the apparatus comprising:

at least one processor to;

receive a location request for a location of the SET at a home SUPL location center (H-SLC) in the home network, wherein the location request is received from a LCS client, and wherein the location request comprises a request for a plurality of position fixes for the SET;

determine that the LCS client is authorized to obtain the location of the SET before the location of the SET is determined;

receive first information from the SET, wherein the first information comprises an indication of a network location of the SET;

determine a serving SUPL location center (S-SLC) in the visited network based on the indication of the network location of the SET;

request a location of the SET from the S-SLC;

receive second information comprising the location of the SET from the S-SLC;

send the location of the SET received from the S-SLC to the LCS client as the location of the SET when the LCS client is authorized to receive the location of the SET;

obtain a plurality of position estimates of the SET for the plurality of position fixes; and

send the plurality of position estimates to the LCS client; and

a memory coupled to the at least one processor.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further to:

determine that the SET is roaming outside a coverage of the H-SLC based on the first information; and

select the S-SLC that covers the network location of the SET.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further to:

send a positioning request to the SET; and

receive the first information from the SET in response to the positioning request.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further to:

receive from the LCS client an indication to cancel reporting of the location of the SET; and

send notification to the SET to cancel location reporting.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further to:

receive from the SET an indication to cancel reporting of the location of the SET; and

send notification of the indication to cancel reporting of the location to the LCS client.

6. An apparatus supporting location services (LCS) for a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) enabled terminal (SET) roaming from a home network and communicating with a visited network, the apparatus comprising:

means for receiving a location request for a location of the SET at a home SUPL location center (H-SLC) in the home network, wherein the location request is received from a LCS client, and wherein the location request comprises a request for a plurality of position fixes for the SET;

means for determining that the LCS client is authorized to obtain the location of the SET before the location of the SET is determined;

means for receiving first information from the SET, wherein the first information comprises an indication of a network location of the SET;

means for determining a serving SUPL location center (S-SLC) in the visited network based on the indication of the network location of the SET;

means for requesting a location of the SET from the S-SLC;

means for receiving second information comprising the location of the SET from the S-SLC;

means for sending the location of the SET received from the S-SLC to the LCS client as the location of the SET when the LCS client is authorized to receive the location of the SET;

mean for obtaining a plurality of position estimates of the SET for the plurality of position fixes; and

means for sending the plurality of position estimates to the LCS client.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the indication of the network location of the SET comprises a system identifier (SID) and a network identifier (NID).

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the indication of the network location of the SET comprises an identification of an access point.

9. A non-transitory processor readable media for storing instructions operable to:

receive a location request for a location of a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) enabled terminal (SET) at a home SUPL location center (H-SLC) in a home network, wherein the location request is received from a LCS client, and wherein the location request comprises a request for a plurality of position fixes for the SET;

determine that the LCS client is authorized to obtain the location of the SET before the location of the SET is determined;

receive first information from the SET, wherein the first information comprises an indication of a network location of the SET;

determine a serving SUPL location center (S-SLC) in a visited network based on the indication of the network location of the SET;

request a location of the SET from the S-SLC;

receive second information comprising the location of the SET from the S-SLC;

send the location of the SET from the S-SLC to the LCS client as the location of the SET when the LCS client is authorized to receive the location of the SET;

obtain a plurality of position estimates of the SET for the plurality of position fixes; and

send the plurality of position estimates to the LCS client.

10. The non-transitory processor readable media of claim 9, wherein the indication of the network location of the SET comprises at least one of a mobile country code (MCC), a mobile network code (MNC), a location area code (LAC), a cell identity (CI), and a UTRAN cell identity (UC-ID).

11. The non-transitory processor readable media of claim 9, further comprising instructions to send the location of the SET from the S-SLC to an entity originating the location request.

12. A method of supporting location services (LCS) in a network comprising a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) enabled terminal (SET), a home SUPL location center (H-SLC), and a serving SUPL location center (S-SLC), the method at the H-SLC comprising:

receiving, at the H-SLC from a LCS client, a location request message for a location of the SET, wherein the location request comprises a request for a plurality of position fixes for the SET;

determining that the LCS client is authorized to obtain the location of the SET before the location of the SET is determined;

sending, to the SET, a positioning request message;

receiving, from the SET and in response to the positioning request message, a message comprising an indication of a network location of the SET;

sending, to the S-SLC, a roaming request message comprising the indication of the network location of the SET;

receiving, from the S-SLC in response to the roaming request message, a location report message comprising a position of the network location of the SET; and

sending, to the LCS client, a reporting message comprising the position of the network location of the SET as the location of the SET when the LCS client is authorized to receive the location of the SET;

obtaining a plurality of position estimates of the SET for the plurality of position fixes; and

sending the plurality of position estimates to the LCS client.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the location request message triggers a network-initiated tracking fix with cell and sector positioning.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

receiving, from the SET and in response to the positioning request message, a second message comprising a second indication of a second network location of the SET;

sending, to the S-SLC, a second roaming request message comprising the second indication of the second network location;

receiving, from the S-SLC and in response to the second roaming request message, a second location report message comprising a second position of the second network location based on the second indication of the second network location; and

sending, to the LCS client, a reporting message comprising the second position of the second network location as a second location of the SET when the LCS client is authorized to receive the location of the SET.

15. A method of supporting location services (LCS) in a network comprising a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) enabled terminal (SET), a home SUPL location center (H-SLC), and a serving SUPL location center (S-SLC), the method at the H-SLC comprising:

receiving, at the H-SLC from an application resident on the SET, a location request message for a location of the SET, wherein the location request message comprises an indication of a network location of the SET, and wherein the location request comprises a request for a plurality of position fixes for the SET;

determining that the application resident on the SET is authorized to obtain the location of the SET before the location of the SET is determined;

sending, to the S-SLC in response to the location request message, a roaming request message;

receiving, from the S-SLC in response to the roaming request message, a location report message comprising a position of the network location; and

sending, to the application resident on the SET, a reporting message comprising the position of the network location of the SET as the location of the SET when the application resident on the SET is authorized to obtain the location of the SET;

obtaining a plurality of position estimates of the SET for the plurality of position fixes; and

sending the plurality of position estimates to the application resident on the SET.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the indication of the network location of the SET comprises a sector identifier (SectorID).

17. A Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) enabled terminal (SET) comprising:

at least one processor to;

communicate with a visited network for a data session;

receive a location request for a location of the SET from a location services (LCS) client, wherein the location request comprises a request for a plurality of position fixes for the SET;

send first information, in response to receipt of the location request, to a home SUPL location center (H-SLC) in a home network, wherein the first information comprises an indication of a network location of the SET, wherein the H-SLC is configured to;

determine that the LCS client is authorized to obtain the location of the SET;

determine a serving SUPL location center (S-SLC) in the visited network based on the indication of the network location of the SET;

request the location of the SET from the S-SLC; and

receive second information comprising the location of the SET from the S-SLC;

receive a particular location based on the indication of the network location from the H-SLC; and

send the particular location from the H-SLC as the location of the SET to the LCS client; and

a memory coupled to the at least one processor.