System and method for locating network nodes

• US 8,903,653 B2
• Filed: 06/10/2010
• Issued: 12/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Uniloc 2017 LLC (SoftBank Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Uniloc Luxembourg S.à r.l. (f/k/a Uniloc Luxembourg S.A.) (Uniloc Corporation Pty. Limited)
• Inventors: Etchegoyen, Craig Stephen
• Primary Examiner(s): Olszewski, John R
• Assistant Examiner(s): Do, Truc M
• Application Number:
  US12/813,391
• Publication Number:
  US 20100324821A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,636 Days
• Field of Search: 701/469, 701/425, 701/457, 455/456.1, 455/411
• US Class Current: 701/472
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/02213 Receivers arranged in a network for determining the position of a transmitter
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0263 by combining or switching between positions derived from two or more separate positioning systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/06 Position of source determined by co-ordinating a plurality of position lines defined by path-difference measurements G01S5/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/107 wherein the security policies are location-dependent, e.g. entities privileges depend on current location or allowing specific operations only from locally connected terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/126 the source of the received data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management

Abstract

As system for locating a network node may be implemented as a static network device for determining location of a mobile node. The system includes a transceiver for receiving a device identifier over a public network from the mobile node, the device identifier based on a user-configurable parameter and a non-user-configurable parameter of the mobile node, and a processor coupled to the transceiver and to memory containing executable code. When executed, the code effects method steps for: accessing, in response to the transceiver receiving the device identifier, a database of authorized device identifiers corresponding to known mobile nodes, establishing, in response to the device identifier matching one of the authorized device identifiers, a secure private network with the mobile node, and communicating with two additional static network devices, the three static network devices implementing triangulation to determine a location of the mobile node.

Claims

1. A method, at one or more static nodes, for determining location information of a mobile node, comprising:

receiving a device identifier over a public network from the mobile node at a transceiver in the one or more static nodes, the device identifier being generated at the mobile node from input parameters including a combination of at least one user-configurable parameter and at least one non-user-configurable parameter of the mobile node, wherein the device identifier is further generated by utilizing at least one irreversible transformation of the at least one user-configurable parameter and the at least one non-user-configurable parameter of the mobile node, whereby the input parameters cannot be derived from the resulting device identifier;

accessing a database of authorized identifiers corresponding to known mobile nodes;

establishing, in response to the device identifier matching one of the authorized identifiers, a secure private network (SPN) with the mobile node; and

using triangulation to determine a location of the mobile node.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending the location information to the mobile node via the SPN.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising supplementing the triangulation with data from a Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) system to determine the location of the mobile node.

4. A method, at a mobile node, for obtaining location information of the mobile node, comprising:

determining three static nodes closest to the mobile node via a public network;

sending a device identifier to at least one of the three static nodes, the device identifier being generated at the mobile node from input parameters including a combination of at least one user-configurable parameter and at least one non-user-configurable parameter of the mobile node, wherein the device identifier is further generated by utilizing at least one irreversible transformation of the at least one user-configurable parameter and the at least one non-user-configurable parameter of the mobile node, whereby the input parameters cannot be derived from the resulting device identifier;

establishing, in response to the at least one of the three static nodes authenticating the device identifier, a secure private network (SPN) with the three static nodes, the three static nodes implementing triangulation to determine a location of the mobile node; and

receiving information regarding the location of the mobile node from the at least one of the three static nodes via the SPN.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the at least one non-user-configurable parameter comprises at least one of CPU ID, CPU model, CPU manufacturer, and CPU voltage for the mobile node.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the at least one user-configurable parameter comprises one of hard disk volume name, user name, device name, user password, and hard disk initialization date for the mobile node.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the device identifier is generated by utilizing a cryptographic hash function on the at least one user-configurable parameter and the at least one non-user-configurable parameter of the mobile node.

8. A method, at a mobile node, for obtaining location information of the mobile node, comprising:

determining three static nodes closest to the mobile node via a public network;

sending a device identifier to at least one of the three static nodes, the device identifier being generated at the mobile node from input parameters including a combination of at least one user-configurable parameter and at least one non-user-configurable parameter of the mobile node, wherein the at least one non-user-configurable parameter is based on a carbon degradation characteristic of a computer chip of the mobile node, the carbon degradation characteristic manifesting as a processing time required to compute a benchmarking algorithm, and whereby the input parameters cannot be derived from the resulting device identifier;

establishing, in response to the at least one of the three static nodes authenticating the device identifier, a secure private network (SPN) with the three static nodes, the three static nodes implementing triangulation to determine a location of the mobile node; and

receiving information regarding the location of the mobile node from the at least one of the three static nodes via the SPN.

9. A method, at a mobile node, for obtaining location information of the mobile node, comprising:

determining three static nodes closest to the mobile node via a public network;

sending a device identifier to at least one of the three static nodes, the device identifier being generated at the mobile node from input parameters including a combination of at least one user-configurable parameter and at least one non-user-configurable parameter of the mobile node, wherein the at least one non-user-configurable parameter is based on a silicon degradation characteristic of a computer chip of the mobile node, the silicon degradation characteristic manifesting as a processing time required to compute a benchmarking algorithm, and whereby the input parameters cannot be derived from the resulting device identifier;

establishing, in response to the at least one of the three static nodes authenticating the device identifier, a secure private network (SPN) with the three static nodes, the three static nodes implementing triangulation to determine a location of the mobile node; and

receiving information regarding the location of the mobile node from the at least one of the three static nodes via the SPN.

10. A static network device for determining location of a mobile node, comprising:

a transceiver for receiving a device identifier over a public network from the mobile node, the device identifier being generated at the mobile node from input parameters including a combination of at least one user-configurable parameter and at least one non-user-configurable parameter of the mobile node, wherein the device identifier is further generated by utilizing at least one irreversible transformation of the at least one user-configurable parameter and the at least one non-user-configurable parameter of the mobile node, whereby the input parameters cannot be derived from the resulting device identifier;

at least one processor operatively coupled to the transceiver; and

a memory operatively coupled to the at least one processor and comprising executable code for the at least one processor to;

access, in response to the transceiver receiving the device identifier, a database of authorized device identifiers corresponding to known mobile nodes;

establish, in response to the device identifier matching one of the authorized device identifiers, a secure private network (SPN) with the mobile node; and

communicate with two additional static network devices, the static network device and the two additional static network devices implementing triangulation to determine a location of the mobile node.

11. The device of claim 10, wherein the at least one processor instructs the transceiver to send information regarding the location to the mobile node via the SPN.

12. The device of claim 10, wherein the static network device is housed in an infrastructure cabinet.

13. The device of claim 12, wherein the infrastructure cabinet comprises a field traffic cabinet.

14. The device of claim 10, wherein the transceiver is adapted for wireless communication.

15. The device of claim 10, wherein the public network comprises the public Internet.

16. A mobile network device, comprising:

a transceiver;

at least one processor operatively coupled to the transceiver; and

a memory operatively coupled to the at least one processor and comprising executable code for the at least one processor to;

determine three static nodes closest to the device via a public network;

generate a device identifier from input parameters of the mobile device, the input parameters including a combination of at least one user-configurable parameter and at least one non-user-configurable parameter of the mobile node, whereby the input parameters cannot be derived from the resulting device identifier;

send the device identifier to at least one of the three static nodes via the transceiver,

the device identifier being based on a combination of at least one user-configurable parameter and at least one non-user-configurable parameter of the device and is generated by utilizing at least one irreversible transformation of the at least one user-configurable parameter and the at least one non-user-configurable parameter of the mobile node;

establish, in response to the at least one of the three static nodes authenticating the device identifier, a secure private network (SPN) with the three static nodes, the three static nodes implementing triangulation to determine a location of the device; and

receive information regarding the location of the device from the at least one of the three static nodes via the SPN.

17. The device of claim 16, wherein the mobile network device is located in a passenger vehicle.

18. The device of claim 16, wherein the mobile network device is located in a portable electronic device.