Selection of a radio access technology resource based on radio access technology resource historical information

• US 8,897,802 B2
• Filed: 07/21/2011
• Issued: 11/25/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/21/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Mobility II LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Mobility II LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Meredith, Sheldon, Austin, Mark, Fix, Jeremy
• Primary Examiner(s): Brandt, Christopher M
• Assistant Examiner(s): DEAN, JR, JOSEPH E
• Application Number:
  US13/188,300
• Publication Number:
  US 20130023274A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,223 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456.1, 455/405, 455/436, 455/450, 455/456.2, 455/452, 455/453, 370/331
• US Class Current: 455/456.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/18 Selecting a network or a communication service
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0229 where the received signal is a wanted signal
• 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 64/006 with additional information processing, e.g. for direction or speed determination
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/02 Selection of wireless resources by user or terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/563 of the wireless resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/06 adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

The disclosed subject matter provides for selecting a radio access technology resource based on historical data related to the radio access technology resource. Location information can be employed to determine a radio access technology resource. Historical information related to the radio access technology resource can then be employed to determine the suitability of the radio access technology resource. A set of radio access technology resources can be ordered or ranked to allow selection of a suitable radio access technology resource from the set. Incorporation of historical information can provide for additional metrics in the selection of a radio access technology resource over simple contemporaneous radio access technology resource information. In some embodiments timed fingerprint location (TFL) information can be employed to determine a location.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a memory to store executable instructions; and

a processor, coupled to the memory, that facilitates execution of the executable instructions to perform operations, comprising;

determining that a wireless coverage area associated with a first radio access technology resource of a set of radio access technology resources comprises a location represented by location information associated with a user equipment;

determining that another wireless coverage area associated with a second radio access technology resource of the set of radio access technology resources comprises the location, wherein the first radio access technology resource employs a different radio access technology than the second radio access technology resource;

determining that a first condition relating to first past wireless performance information associated with the first radio access technology resource is satisfied;

based on the first condition being determined to have been satisfied, associating a first ranking value, based on the first past wireless performance information, with the first radio access technology resource;

determining that a second condition relating to second past wireless performance information associated with the second radio access technology resource is satisfied;

based on the second condition being determined to have been satisfied, associating a second ranking value, based on the second past wireless performance information, with the second radio access technology resource; and

initiating a communications link via the second radio access technology resource based on the first ranking value associated with the first radio access technology resource and the second ranking value associated with the second radio access technology resource.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise determining the location information comprising direction information and speed information.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the location information is determined from first location information associated with the user equipment correlated with a first time and second location information associated with the user equipment correlated with a second time.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the determining the location information further comprises predicting a future location of the user equipment based on the direction information and the speed information.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the wireless coverage area comprises the future location of the user equipment.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the location information comprises timed fingerprint location information.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the determining that the first condition is satisfied is based on comparing a first wireless performance characteristic of the first radio access technology resource to a second wireless performance characteristic of the second radio access technology resource.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise receiving a rule used for the determining that the first condition is satisfied.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise receiving the first past wireless performance information associated with the first radio access technology resource.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the first past wireless performance information comprises bandwidth information for the first radio access technology resource, and wherein the bandwidth information comprises information associated with a data throughput of a successful connection to the first radio access technology resource.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the first past wireless performance information comprises bandwidth information for the first radio access technology resource, and wherein the bandwidth information facilitates a determination of anticipated bandwidth of the first radio access technology resource at the location without powering on a radio of the user equipment corresponding to the first radio access technology resource.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving updated wireless performance information associated with the first radio access technology resource; and

determining that a third condition relating to the updated wireless performance information is satisfied,

wherein the associating the first ranking value with the first radio access technology resource is further based on the third condition being determined to have been satisfied.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the first ranking value is a value that facilitates ranking the first radio access technology resource among other radio access technology resources of the set of radio access technology resources comprising the first radio access technology resource and the second radio access technology resource.

14. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a system comprising a processor, location information associated with a user equipment;

determining, by the system, that a first radio access technology resource of a set of radio access technology resources provides coverage to the location;

determining, by the system, a value related to rank ordering the first radio access technology resource and other radio access technology resources of the set of radio access technology resources based on historical performance information of the set of radio access technology resources;

selecting, by the system, a radio access technology resource, from the set of radio access technology resources determined to provide coverage to the location, based on the value being determined to have satisfied a rule related to selection of the radio access technology resource, wherein a radio access technology employed by the radio access technology resource is different from that of another radio access technology resource of the set of radio access technology resources; and

initiating, by the system, a communications link employing the radio access technology resource.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising receiving, by the system and based on the location information, the historical wireless performance information associated with the radio access technology resource.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising receiving, by the system, contemporaneous wireless performance information, wherein the selecting the radio access technology resource is further based on the contemporaneous wireless performance information.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the receiving location information comprises receiving timed fingerprint location information.

18. A mobile device comprising:

a memory to store executable instructions; and

a processor, coupled to the memory, that facilitates execution of the executable instructions to perform operations, comprising;

determining location information associated with the mobile device;

determining that a first radio access technology resource, of a set of radio access technology resources representing a plurality of radio access technologies, provides coverage to the mobile device based on the location information;

receiving historical wireless communication performance information related to the first radio access technology resource;

designating a ranking value associated with the first radio access technology resource based on the historical wireless communication performance information, wherein the ranking value is related to sorting radio access technology resources of the set of radio access technology resources by historical wireless communication performance; and

initiating a communications link via a second radio access technology resource selected from the set of radio access technology resources based on the ranking value.

19. The mobile device of claim 18, wherein the determining the location information is based on timed fingerprint location information.

20. The mobile device of claim 18, wherein the initiating is further based on selecting the second radio access technology resource based on a predicted location of the mobile device.