Estimation of speed and direction of travel in a WLAN positioning system

• US 8,526,967 B2
• Filed: 12/30/2011
• Issued: 09/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Skyhook Wireless Incorporated (Liberty Broadband Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Skyhook Wireless Incorporated (Liberty Broadband Corp.)
• Inventors: Alizadeh-Shabdiz, Farshid, Morgan, Edward James, Pahlavan, Kaveh
• Primary Examiner(s): DOAN, KIET M
• Application Number:
  US13/341,116
• Publication Number:
  US 20120100872A1
• Time in Patent Office: 613 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456.1, 455/456.5, 455/411, 455/456.2, 455/502, 455/560, 455/450, 455/436, 455/434, 455/69, 370/338, 370/252, 370/328, 370/253, 370/311, 342/457, 342/465, 342/451, 342/378
• US Class Current: 455/456.1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 11/02 using radio waves G01S19/00 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 11/06 using intensity measurements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/10 Scheduling measurement reports ; Arrangements for measurement reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/027 using movement velocity, acceleration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/006 with additional information processing, e.g. for direction or speed determination

Abstract

A method for estimating the speed and bearing of a Wi-Fi enabled device using WLAN radio signals in a WLAN based location service is provided. A method used to estimate a speed of travel of a Wi-Fi enabled device comprises the Wi-Fi enabled device receiving signals transmitted by Wi-Fi access points in range of the Wi-Fi enabled device, and using the signals to estimate the speed of and/or direction of travel of the Wi-Fi enabled device.

Claims

1. A method of inferring that a Wi-Fi enabled device is substantially stationary, comprising:

receiving information from signals transmitted by at least one Wi-Fi access point and received by a Wi-Fi enabled device, the receiving occurring over time;

measuring, over an interval of time, a total duration of time during which the Wi-Fi enabled device detects signals transmitted by the at least one Wi-Fi access point; and

inferring that the Wi-Fi enabled device is substantially stationary based on the total duration of time during which signals from the at least one Wi-Fi access point were detected so that the inference that the Wi-Fi enabled device is substantially stationary can be made without requiring position estimates of the Wi-Fi enabled device.

2. A system for inferring that a Wi-Fi enabled device is substantially stationary, comprising:

at least one non-transitory computer-readable media comprising instructions that when executed cause a computer system to;

receive information from signals transmitted by at least one Wi-Fi access point and received by a Wi-Fi enabled device, the receiving occurring over time;

measure, over an interval of time, a total duration of time during which the Wi-Fi enabled device detects signals transmitted by the at least one Wi-Fi access point; and

infer that the Wi-Fi enabled device is substantially stationary based on the total duration of time during which signals from the at least one Wi-Fi access point were detected so that the inference that the Wi-Fi enabled device is substantially stationary can be made without requiring position estimates of the Wi-Fi enabled device.