Determining positions in a wireless radio system

• US 8,655,372 B2
• Filed: 11/04/2008
• Issued: 02/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/05/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: RPX Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Vargas, Angel Gallego, Riesco, Marcos De Castro, Galler, Jurgen
• Primary Examiner(s): Kincaid, Lester
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lai, Daniel
• Application Number:
  US12/741,290
• Publication Number:
  US 20120142366A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,932 Days
• Field of Search: 4554561-457
• US Class Current: 455/456.1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/02521 using a radio-map
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/14 Determining absolute distances from a plurality of spaced points of known location
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/003 locating network equipment

Abstract

A method is described for expanding the radio-map of a WiFi system. A hotspot (HS₄) of which the position is unknown and to be estimated is “seen” in a number of fingerprints (FP₁, FP₂, FP₃), each taken at a different position. Several hotspots with a known position (HS₁, HS₂ and HS₃) are also “seen” in the fingerprints (FP₁, FP₂, FP₃). The geo-positions of the measurement locations, where the fingerprints (FP₁, FP₂, FP₃) were taken, are estimated based on the signals from the hotspots (HS₁, HS₂, HS₃) with known geo-position seen in the fingerprints and the known geo-positions of those hotspots. The position of the hotspot (HS₄) is determined based on the signals from that hotspot (HS₄) seen in the fingerprints and the geo-positions of the measurement locations where the fingerprints were taken, estimated in the previous step.

Claims

1. Method for determining by trilateration position of an access point of a wireless radio system comprising the following steps:

retrieving signal measurements between the access point (HS4) of which the position is to be determined and a radio device at a plurality of locations (FP1, FP2, FP3) and signal measurements between a plurality of further access points (HS1, HS2, HS3) with a known position and the radio device at the plurality of locations;

determining the position of the plurality of locations based on the signal measurements between the further access points and the radio device; and

determining the position of the access point based on the signal measurements between the access point and the radio device and based on the position of the locations by solving a system of equations formed by three circumferences wherein,

a) the circumference centres correspond to the three locations;

b) the circumference radii correspond to the distances, wherein a proportionality factor (N,M) of at least some of the distances with respect to another of the distances is used as an input to the system of equations.

2. Method according to claim 1 wherein the radio device is an end-user device of the wireless radio system.

3. Method according to claim 1 or 2 wherein the signals between the access point and the radio device and the signals between the plurality of further access points and the radio device are measured by the radio device.

4. Method according to claim 1 or 2 wherein the signals between the access point and the radio device are measured by the access point and the signals between the plurality of further access points and the radio device are measured by the further access points.

5. Method according to claim 1, used for extending a radio-map of the wireless radio system.

6. Method according to claim 1, wherein the wireless radio system is a WiFi system.

7. A computer program product comprising computer program code means stored on a computer readable, non-transitory medium, adapted to perform the steps of claim 1, when said program is run on a computer.

8. Method for determining by trilateration position of a wireless radio device based on a set of measurements of signals between the wireless radio device and further wireless radio devices located at different, known positions, the method comprising the following steps:

a) retrieving (405) for each of the measurements the position of the corresponding further wireless radio device and a signal measurement;

b) generating (410) non-repeating groups of measurements out of the set of measurements;

c) for at least some of the groups;

c1) assigning (420) a weight to the group and

c2) determining (430) the position of the wireless radio device based on the data retrieved for the group;

d) determining (470) the position of the wireless radio device by calculating a weighted average of the positions of the wireless radio device obtained from the data of at least some of the groups by solving a system of equations formed by three circumferences wherein,

d1) the circumference centres correspond to three locations;

d2) the circumference radii correspond to the distances, wherein a proportionality factor (N,M) of at least some of the distances with respect to another of the distances is used as an input to the system of equations.

9. Method according to claim 8 wherein the position of the wireless radio device is determined by trilateration using signal strengths.

10. Method according to claim 8 or 9 wherein each group consists of three measurements.

11. Method according to claim 8, wherein the steps of assigning a weight and determining the position of wireless radio device are performed for all groups in which the most important measurement is included.

12. Method according to claim 8, wherein the weight of the group is a function of the strength of the signals used for the measurements of the group.

13. Method according to claim 8, wherein the weight of the group is a function of the quality of the position of the further wireless radio devices used for the measurements of the group.

14. Method according to claim 8, wherein the data of the groups having the lowest weights is discarded when calculating the weighted average of the position of the wireless radio device.

15. Method according to claim 8, wherein the wireless radio device is an access point.

16. Method according to claim 15 wherein for the measurements one or more end-user devices at different positions are used.

17. Method according to claim 8, wherein the wireless radio device is an end-user device.

18. Method according to claim 17 wherein for each of the measurements a different access point is used as the further wireless radio device.

19. Method according to claim 8, wherein if none of the groups of measurements determines a valid position, the position of the wireless radio device is determined from the weighted average of the positions of the further wireless radio 15 devices.

20. Trilateration method for determining position of a wireless radio device comprising the steps of:

retrieving signal measurements between the wireless radio device (HS1) of which the position is to be determined and a further radio device at at least three locations (FP1, FP2, FP3),

converting the signal measurements into distances between the wireless radio device and the three locations,

determining the position of the wireless radio device by solving a system of equations formed by three circumferences wherein,

a) the circumference centres correspond to the three locations;

b) the circumference radii correspond to the distances, wherein a proportionality factor (N,M) of at least some of the distances with respect to another of the distances is used as an input to the system of equations.