Method and apparatus for using supported network information for positioning

• US 9,066,308 B2
• Filed: 12/04/2007
• Issued: 06/23/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/04/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Wachter, Andreas K., Burroughs, Kirk Allan, Edge, Stephen W., Lin, le-Hong
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu, Michael T
• Application Number:
  US11/950,335
• Publication Number:
  US 20090143076A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,758 Days
• Field of Search: 4554561-4566, 455/452.2, 455/432.1, 455/435.1
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0236 Assistance data, e.g. base station almanac
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management

Abstract

Techniques to support positioning for terminals in Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) are described. A SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET) may receive supported network information from a SUPL Location Platform (SLP), which is a location server in SUPL. The supported network information may indicate one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP, one or more types of measurement supported by the SLP, and/or information that the SET is allowed to send to the SLP. The SET may send network measurement information for a supported radio access network to the SLP. The network measurement information may include cell and/or access point (AP) information for one or more access points or base stations in the supported radio access network. The SLP may determine a location estimate for the SET based on the network measurement information from the SET.

Claims

1. An apparatus for supporting positioning in Secure User Plane Location (SUPL), comprising:

at least one processor to receive, at a SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET), supported network information from a SUPL Location Platform (SLP), to determine one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP based on the received supported network information, to filter network measurement information obtained at the SET according to the one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP, and to send the filtered network measurement information from the SET to the SLP,

wherein, for a network-initiated session, the at least one processor to receive from the SLP a SUPL INIT message or a SUPL TRIGGERED RESPONSE message comprising the supported network information, and to send to the SLP a SUPL POS INIT message or a SUPL REPORT message comprising the filtered network measurement information and

wherein, for a SET-initiated session, the at least one processor to receive from the SLP a SUPL RESPONSE message or a SUPL TRIGGERED RESPONSE message comprising the supported network information, and to send to the SLP a SUPL POS INIT message comprising the filtered network measurement information, and the at least one processor to receive a location estimate or assistance data for the SET determined by the SLP based on the filtered network measurement information; and

a memory coupled to the at least one processor.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the supported network information indicates that the SLP supports network measurement information for one or more of wireless local area network (WLAN), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Wideband CDMA (WCDMA), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), or Long Term Evolution (LTE), and wherein the filtered network measurement information sent to the SLP only includes the network measurement information supported by the SLP.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the supported network information indicates that the SLP supports wireless local area network (WLAN), and wherein the at least one processor sends WLAN access point (AP) information as the network measurement information.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the supported network information indicates that the SLP supports Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), and wherein the at least one processor sends CDMA cell information as the network measurement information.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the supported network information indicates that the SLP supports Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), and wherein the at least one processor sends WCDMA cell information as the network measurement information.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the supported network information indicates that the SLP supports Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), and wherein the at least one processor sends GSM cell information as the network measurement information.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the supported network information indicates whether the SET is allowed to send network measurement information for at least one of transmit power, antenna gain, signal-to-noise ratio (S/N), device type, signal strength, channel or frequency, and reported location for an access point (AP) in a wireless local area network (WLAN).

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the supported network information indicates whether the SET is allowed to send network measurement information for round trip delay (RTD) between the SET and an access point in a wireless local area network (WLAN).

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the supported network information indicates whether the SET is allowed to send network measurement information for at least one of transmit power, antenna gain, signal-to-noise ratio (S/N), and signal strength for the SET.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the supported network information indicates whether the SET is allowed to send historic network measurement information, and wherein the at least one processor sends historic network measurement information to the SLP if allowed by the supported network information.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the supported network information indicates whether the SET is allowed to send network measurement information for non-serving cells or non-serving access points, and wherein the at least one processor sends network measurement information for at least one non-serving cell or at least one non-serving access point if allowed by the supported network information.

12. A method of supporting positioning in Secure User Plane Location (SUPL), comprising:

receiving, at a SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET), supported network information from a SUPL Location Platform (SLP), comprising;

wherein, for a network-initiated session, receiving from the SLP a SUPL INIT message or a SUPL TRIGGERED RESPONSE message comprising the supported network information,

wherein, for a SET-initiated session, receiving from the SLP a SUPL RESPONSE message or a SUPL TRIGGERED RESPONSE message comprising the supported network information;

determining one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP based on the received supported network information;

filtering network measurement information obtained at the SET according to the one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP;

sending the filtered network measurement information from the SET to the SLP, comprising;

wherein, for a network-initiated session, sending to the SLP a SUPL POS INIT message or a SUPL REPORT message comprising the filtered network measurement information, and

wherein, for a SET-initiated session, sending to the SLP a SUPL POS INIT message comprising the filtered network measurement information; and

receiving a location estimate or assistance data for the SET determined by the SLP based on the filtered network measurement information.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the supported network information indicates that the SLP supports wireless local area network (WLAN), and wherein the sending the network measurement information comprises sending WLAN access point (AP) information as the network measurement information.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the supported network information indicates which access network types can be measured by the SUPL SET in order to obtain network measurement information that is useable by the SLP for calculating a location estimate of the SUPL SET.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the determining step determines the one or more radio access networks as a set of available access networks that each correspond to one of the indicated access network types.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the obtaining step obtains the network measurement information only for access networks that correspond to one of the indicated access network types, such that the sending step excludes, from the sending, network measurement information associated with non-supported access network types.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein the network measurement information corresponds to measurements measured by the SUPL SET by which the SLP can calculate a location estimate of the SUPL SET.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the receiving step receives the network measurement information only for access networks that correspond to one of the indicated access network types, such that network measurement information associated with non-supported access network types is excluded.

19. An apparatus for supporting positioning in Secure User Plane Location (SUPL), comprising:

means for receiving, at a SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET), supported network information from a SUPL Location Platform (SLP), comprising;

wherein, for a network-initiated session, means for receiving from the SLP a SUPL INIT message or a SUPL TRIGGERED RESPONSE message comprising the supported network information,

wherein, for a SET-initiated session, means for receiving from the SLP a SUPL RESPONSE message or a SUPL TRIGGERED RESPONSE message comprising the supported network information;

means for determining one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP based on the received supported network information;

means for filtering network measurement information obtained at the SET according to the one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP;

means for sending the filtered network measurement information from the SET to the SLP, comprising;

wherein, for a network-initiated session, means for sending to the SLP a SUPL POS INIT message or a SUPL REPORT message comprising the filtered network measurement information, and

wherein, for a SET-initiated session, means for sending to the SLP a SUPL POS INIT message comprising the filtered network measurement information; and

means for receiving a location estimate or assistance data for the SET determined by the SLP based on the filtered network measurement information.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the supported network information indicates that the SLP supports wireless local area network (WLAN), and wherein the means for sending the network measurement information comprises means for sending WLAN access point (AP) information as the network measurement information.

21. A computer program product, comprising:

a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising;

code for causing a SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET) to receive supported network information from a SUPL Location Platform (SLP) comprising;

wherein, for a network-initiated session, code for causing the SET to receive from the SLP a SUPL INIT message or a SUPL TRIGGERED RESPONSE message comprising the supported network information,

wherein, for a SET-initiated session, code for causing the SET to receive from the SLP a SUPL RESPONSE message or a SUPL TRIGGERED RESPONSE message comprising the supported network information;

code for causing the SET to determine one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP based on the received supported network information;

code for causing the SET to filter network measurement information obtained at the SET according to the one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP;

code for causing the SET to send the filtered network measurement information from the SET to the SLP, comprising;

wherein, for a network-initiated session, code for causing the SET to send to the SLP a SUPL POS INIT message or a SUPL REPORT message comprising the filtered network measurement information, and

wherein, for a SET-initiated session, code for causing the SET to send to the SLP a SUPL POS INIT message comprising the filtered network measurement information; and

code for causing the SET to receive a location estimate or assistance data for the SET determined by the SLP based on the filtered network measurement information.

22. An apparatus for supporting positioning in Secure User Plane Location (SUPL), comprising:

at least one processor to send from a SUPL Location Platform (SLP) to a SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET) supported network information indicating one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP, to receive from the SET network measurement information only for at least one of the one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP, and to provide a location estimate or assistance data to the SET based on the received network measurement information, wherein;

for a network-initiated session, the at least one processor to send to the SET a SUPL INIT message comprising the supported network information, and to receive from the SET a SUPL POS INIT message or a SUPL REPORT message comprising the network measurement information, and

for a SET-initiated session, the at least one processor to send to the SET a SUPL RESPONSE message or a SUPL TRIGGERED RESPONSE message comprising the supported network information, and to receive from the SET a SUPL POS INIT message comprising the network measurement information; and

a memory coupled to the at least one processor.

23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the at least one processor determines a first location estimate for the SET based on the network measurement information, obtains a second location estimate for the SET based on a positioning method, and determines a final location estimate for the SET based on the first and second location estimates.

24. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the supported network information indicates that the SLP supports network measurement information for one or more of wireless local area network (WLAN), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Wideband CDMA (WCDMA), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), or Long Term Evolution (LTE) such that the network measurement information received from the SET does not include network measurement information that is not supported by the SLP.

25. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the supported network information indicates whether the SET is allowed to send network measurement information for at least one of transmit power, antenna gain, signal-to-noise ratio (S/N), device type, signal strength, channel or frequency, and reported location for an access point (AP) in a wireless local area network (WLAN).

26. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the supported network information indicates whether the SET is allowed to send network measurement information for round trip delay (RTD) between the SET and an access point in a wireless local area network (WLAN).

27. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the supported network information indicates whether the SET is allowed to send network measurement information for at least one of transmit power, antenna gain, signal-to-noise ratio (S/N), and signal strength for the SET.

28. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the supported network information indicates whether the SET is allowed to send historic network measurement information.

29. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the supported network information indicates whether the SET is allowed to send network measurement information for non-serving cells or non-serving access points.

30. A method of supporting positioning in Secure User Plane Location (SUPL), comprising:

sending from a SUPL Location Platform (SLP) to a SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET) supported network information indicating one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP, comprising;

for a network-initiated session, sending to the SET a SUPL INIT message comprising the supported network information, and

for a SET-initiated session, sending to the SET a SUPL RESPONSE message or a SUPL TRIGGERED RESPONSE message comprising the supported network information;

receiving from the SET network measurement information only for at least one of the one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP, comprising;

for a network-initiated session, receiving from the SET a SUPL POS INIT message or a SUPL REPORT message comprising the network measurement information, and

for a SET-initiated session, receiving from the SET a SUPL POS INIT message comprising the network measurement information; and

providing a location estimate or assistance data to the SET based on the received network measurement information.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the supported network information indicates which access network types can be measured by the SUPL SET in order to obtain network measurement information that is useable by the SLP for calculating a location estimate of the SUPL SET.

32. The method of claim 30, wherein the network measurement information corresponds to measurements measured by the SUPL SET by which the SLP can calculate a location estimate of the SUPL SET.

33. An apparatus for supporting positioning in Secure User Plane Location (SUPL), comprising:

means for sending from a SUPL Location Platform (SLP) to a SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET) supported network information indicating one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP comprising;

for a network-initiated session, means for sending to the SET a SUPL INIT message comprising the supported network information, and

for a SET-initiated session, means for sending to the SET a SUPL RESPONSE message or a SUPL TRIGGERED RESPONSE message comprising the supported network information;

means for receiving from the SET network measurement information only for at least one of the one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP comprising;

for a network-initiated session, means for receiving from the SET a SUPL POS INIT message or a SUPL REPORT message comprising the network measurement information, and

for a SET-initiated session, means for receiving from the SET a SUPL POS INIT message comprising the network measurement information; and

means for providing a location estimate or assistance data to the SET based on the received network measurement information.

34. A computer program product, comprising:

a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising;

code for causing at least one computer to send from a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (SLP) to a SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET) supported network information indicating one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP comprising;

for a network-initiated session, code for causing the at least one computer to send to the SET a SUPL INIT message comprising the supported network information, and

for a SET-initiated session, code for causing the at least one computer to send to the SET a SUPL RESPONSE message or a SUPL TRIGGERED RESPONSE message comprising the supported network information;

code for causing the at least one computer to receive from the SET network measurement information only for at least one of the one or more radio access networks supported by the SLP, comprising;

for a network-initiated session, code causing the at least one computer to receive from the SET a SUPL POS INIT message or a SUPL REPORT message comprising the network measurement information, and

for a SET-initiated session, code for causing the at least one computer to receive from the SET a SUPL POS INIT message comprising the network measurement information; and

code for causing the at least one computer to provide a location estimate or assistance data to the SET based on the received network measurement information.