Positioning of a wireless device served by a FEMTO cell

• US 9,031,575 B2
• Filed: 02/26/2014
• Issued: 05/12/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/22/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Burroughs, Kirk Allan
• Primary Examiner(s): Siddiqui, Kashif
• Application Number:
  US14/190,600
• Publication Number:
  US 20140179350A1
• Time in Patent Office: 440 Days
• Field of Search: 455/404.2, 455/422.1, 4554351-436, 455/440, 455/444, 4554561-4566, 455/561, 455/562.1
• US Class Current: 455/456.1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/11 wherein the cooperating elements are pseudolites or satellite radio beacon positioning system signal repeaters
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0054 of actual mobile position, i.e. position calculation on base station
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/025 using location based information parameters
• 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 64/003 locating network equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/045 using private Base Stations, e.g. femto Base Stations, home Node B

Abstract

Techniques for supporting positioning are described. In an aspect, positioning of mobile stations served by femto cells may be supported by having the femto cells transmit at least one identity used to differentiate the femto cells from other cells/sectors in a wireless network. The at least one identity may also convey certain information for the femto cells, which may be pertinent for positioning of the mobile stations. In one design, a femto cell may send the at least one identity assigned to the femto cell and the location of the femto cell to mobile stations as an aid for positioning. A mobile station may receive and forward the least one identity and the location of the femto cell to a location server. The mobile station and the location server may then perform positioning based on the at least one identity and the location of the femto cell.

Claims

1. A method of positioning, comprising:

receiving, at a mobile station, an at least one identity of a femto cell, wherein the at least one identity of the femto cell comprises at least one of a plurality of identities for femto cells;

sending the at least one identity of the femto cell to a location server;

receiving one or more positioning assistance messages from the location server, wherein the one or more positioning assistance messages are generated in response to the at least one identity of the femto cell; and

performing positioning based at least in part on the one or more positioning assistance messages received from the location server.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one identity of the femto cell comprises a value within a plurality of ranges of values reserved femto cells, and further comprising:

differentiating the femto cell from sectors in a wireless network based on the at least one identity of the femto cell, wherein a range of values in the plurality of ranges of values is reserved for femto cells of a different type, and a type of the femto cell is determined based on the value of the at least one identity of the femto cell.

3. The method of claim 1,

wherein the one or more positioning assistance messages comprise a femto network identification database obtained based on the at least one identity of the femto cell.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

obtaining a location of the femto cell, and wherein positioning is performed based further on the location of the femto cell.

5. The method of claim 4,

wherein the location of the femto cell is obtained from the mobile station, by performing positioning with the femto cell, or by querying a database based on the at least one identity of the femto cell.

6. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

determining a maximum antenna range of the femto cell based on the at least one identity of the femto cell, and wherein positioning is performed based further on the maximum antenna range of the femto cell.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein the location of the femto cell comprises a latitude and a longitude, the method further comprising:

determining an altitude of the femto cell based on the latitude and the longitude of the femto cell, and wherein positioning is performed based further on the altitude of the femto cell.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein the performing positioning further comprises:

obtaining pseudo-range measurements with respect to the femto cell at the mobile station; and

determining a location estimate based on the location of the femto cell and the pseudo-range measurements.

9. An apparatus for use in performing positioning, the apparatus comprising:

at least one processing unit configured to

obtain an at least one identity of a femto cell, wherein the at least one identity of the femto cell comprises at least one of a plurality of identities for femto cells;

send the at least one identity of the femto cell to a location server;

obtain one or more positioning assistance messages from the location server, wherein the one or more positioning assistance messages are generated in response to the at least one identity of the femto cell; and

perform positioning based at least in part on the one or more positioning assistance messages received from the location server.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the at least one identity of the femto cell comprises a value within a plurality of ranges of values reserved femto cells, and wherein the at least one processing unit is further configured to:

differentiate the femto cell from sectors in a wireless network based on the at least one identity of the femto cell, wherein a range of values in the plurality of ranges of values is reserved for femto cells of a different type, and a type of the femto cell is determined based on the value of the at least one identity of the femto cell.

11. The apparatus of claim 9,

wherein the one or more positioning assistance messages comprise a femto network identification database obtained based on the at least one identity of the femto cell.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the at least one processing unit is further configured to:

obtain a location of the femto cell, and wherein positioning is performed based further on the location of the femto cell.

13. The apparatus of claim 12,

wherein the location of the femto cell is based on positioning performed with the femto cell, or querying of a database based on the at least one identity of the femto cell.

14. The apparatus of claim 12,

wherein the at least one processing unit is further configured to determine a maximum antenna range of the femto cell based on the at least one identity of the femto cell, and wherein positioning is performed based further on the maximum antenna range of the femto cell.

15. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the location of the femto cell comprises a latitude and a longitude, and wherein the at least one processing unit is further configured to:

determine an altitude of the femto cell based on the latitude and the longitude of the femto cell, and wherein positioning is performed based further on the altitude of the femto cell.

16. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the at least one processing unit is further configured to:

obtain pseudo-range measurements with respect to the femto cell at the apparatus; and

determine a location estimate based on the location of the femto cell and the pseudo-range measurements.

17. A non-transitory computer program product, comprising:

a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising;

code to cause at least one processing unit to obtain an at least one identity of a femto cell at a mobile station, wherein the at least one identity of the femto cell comprises at least one of a plurality of identities for femto cells;

code to cause the at least one processing unit to initiate transmission of the at least one identity of the femto cell to a location server;

code to cause the at least one processing unit to obtain one or more positioning assistance messages from the location server, wherein the one or more positioning assistance messages are generated in response to the at least one identity of the femto cell; and

code to cause the at least one processing unit to perform positioning based at least in part on the one or more positioning assistance messages received from the location server.

18. The non-transitory computer program product of claim 17, wherein the at least one identity of the femto cell comprises a value within a plurality of ranges of values reserved femto cells, and further comprising:

code to cause the at least one processing unit to differentiate the femto cell from sectors in a wireless network based on the at least one identity of the femto cell, wherein a range of values in the plurality of ranges of values is reserved for femto cells of a different type, and a type of the femto cell is determined based on the value of the at least one identity of the femto cell.

19. The non-transitory computer program product of claim 17,

wherein one or more the positioning assistance messages comprise a femto network identification database obtained based on the at least one identity of the femto cell.

20. The non-transitory computer program product of claim 17, further comprising:

code to cause the at least one processing unit to obtain a location of the femto cell, and wherein positioning is performed based further on the location of the femto cell.

21. The non-transitory computer program product of claim 20,

wherein the location of the femto cell is based on positioning performed with the femto cell, or querying of a database based on the at least one identity of the femto cell.

22. The non-transitory computer program product of claim 20, further comprising:

code to cause the at least one processing unit to determine a maximum antenna range of the femto cell based on the at least one identity of the femto cell, and wherein positioning is performed based further on the maximum antenna range of the femto cell.

23. The non-transitory computer program product of claim 20, wherein the location of the femto cell comprises a latitude and a longitude, the non-transitory computer program product further comprising:

code to cause the at least one processing unit to determine an altitude of the femto cell based on the latitude and the longitude of the femto cell, and wherein positioning is performed based further on the altitude of the femto cell.

24. An apparatus for performing positioning, comprising:

means for receiving an at least one identity of a femto cell, wherein the at least one identity of the femto cell comprises at least one of a plurality of identities for femto cells;

means for sending the at least one identity of the femto cell to a location server;

means for receiving one or more positioning assistance messages from the location server, wherein the one or more positioning assistance messages are generated in response to the at least one identity of the femto cell; and

means for performing positioning based at least in part on the one or more positioning assistance messages received from the location server.

25. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the at least one identity of the femto cell comprises a value within a plurality of ranges of values reserved femto cells, and further comprising:

means for differentiating the femto cell from sectors in a wireless network based on the at least one identity of the femto cell, wherein a range of values in the plurality of ranges of values is reserved for femto cells of a different type, and a type of the femto cell is determined based on the value of the at least one identity of the femto cell.

26. The apparatus of claim 24,

wherein the one or more positioning assistance messages comprise a femto network identification database obtained based on the at least one identity of the femto cell.

27. The apparatus of claim 24, further comprising:

means for obtaining a location of the femto cell, and wherein positioning is performed based further on the location of the femto cell.

28. The apparatus of claim 27,

wherein the location of the femto cell is based on positioning performed with the femto cell, or querying of a database based on the at least one identity of the femto cell.

29. The apparatus of claim 27, further comprising:

means for determining a maximum antenna range of the femto cell based on the at least one identity of the femto cell, and wherein positioning is performed based further on the maximum antenna range of the femto cell.

30. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the location of the femto cell comprises a latitude and a longitude, the apparatus further comprising:

means for determining an altitude of the femto cell based on the latitude and the longitude of the femto cell, and wherein positioning is performed based further on the altitude of the femto cell.