Positioning using enhanced pilot signal

• US 9,198,053 B2
• Filed: 03/28/2013
• Issued: 11/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/18/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Edge, Stephen William, Black, Peter John, Wu, Qiang, Zhao, Wanlun, Tokgoz, Yeliz, Padovani, Roberto, Naguib, Ayman Fawzy, Kim, Je Woo, Dayal, Pranav, Agashe, Parag Arun
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Ajit
• Application Number:
  US13/852,574
• Publication Number:
  US 20130217401A1
• Time in Patent Office: 971 Days
• Field of Search: 4554561-4566, 455/450, 455/403, 455/404.1, 455/404.2
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0226 Transmitters
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0236 Assistance data, e.g. base station almanac
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/12 using downlink control channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management

Abstract

Briefly, in accordance with one embodiment, a method of transmitting signals is provided. Signal waveforms are transmitted from at least two respective sectors. The at least two respective sectors are from at least two different sets of a superset of sectors. The transmitted signal waveforms include signal waveforms at least nearly mutually orthogonal at least along a particular signal dimension. An advantage of such an embodiment, for example, is reduced signal interference.

Claims

1. A method of performing positioning using a network, comprising:

determining signal dimensions for an enhanced pilot from enhanced pilot information associated with a plurality of enhanced pilots, wherein the plurality of enhanced pilots include one or both of;

enhanced pilots transmitted by different sets of sectors in different sets of time slots, one set of time slots for each set of sectors;

or

enhanced pilots transmitted by different sets of time frequency resources, one set of time frequency resources for each set of sectors;

receiving at a terminal the enhanced pilot information from the network; and

performing positioning of the terminal based on results of enhanced pilot measurements for multiple sectors using the enhanced pilot information from the terminal to obtain a position estimate for the terminal.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining signal dimensions for the enhanced pilot is performed at least in part by exchanging at least one message with a network server, and wherein the performing positioning comprises obtaining enhanced pilot measurements for enhanced pilots transmitted by multiple sectors using the enhanced pilot information.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the enhanced pilot information comprises at least one of identifiers of sectors transmitting the enhanced pilots, time locations of the enhanced pilots transmitted by the sectors, time and frequency locations of the enhanced pilots transmitted by the sectors, pilot sequences used by the sectors, locations of base stations for the sectors, pilot timing difference between the base stations, and measurement time for the enhanced pilots.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising determining one or more satellite pseudorange measurements based on one or more received satellite signals, wherein the exchanging at least one message comprises sending a message comprising enhanced pilot measurement results to the network server, and wherein performing positioning of the terminal based on the enhanced pilot to obtain a position estimate for the terminal comprises performing positioning based on the enhanced pilot and at least one of the one or more pseudoranges and receiving the position estimate from the server.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the message further comprises at least one of standard pilot measurement results and pilot measurement statistics.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein performing positioning of the terminal based on the enhanced pilot to obtain a position estimate for the terminal comprises:

sending a second message comprising enhanced pilot measurement results to a network server and receiving a position estimate for the terminal from the network server.

7. The method of claim 2, wherein the network server is a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (SLP), wherein the terminal is a SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET), and wherein the at least one message is exchanged between the SET and the SLP during a SUPL session.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein sectors in a wireless communication network transmit both enhanced pilots and standard pilots to terminals in the network.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein the signal dimensions include at least one of bandwidth, time, frequency, phase, amplitude, spreading code, spreading code sequence, signal energy or any combinations thereof.

21. The method of claim 1, wherein the network is an LTE network and the enhanced pilot is part of a positioning reference signal.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the enhanced pilot is received in a plurality of orthogonal frequency divisional multiplexing (OFDM) symbols.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the plurality of OFDM symbols is received in a downlink sub-frame.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the downlink sub-frame is configured for the positioning reference signal.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the downlink subframe configuration is specific to a cell.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein cell specific portions of the sub-frame are reserved for the transmission of positioning reference signals.

27. The method of claim 1, wherein the network is a CDMA2000 network and the enhanced pilot is a highly detectable pilot.

28. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining is performed by the terminal.

29. The method of claim 1, wherein the enhanced pilot is transmitted in a data portion of the signal.

9. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising:

at least one processor configured to determine signal dimensions for an enhanced pilot from enhanced pilot information associated with a plurality of enhanced pilots, wherein the plurality of enhanced pilots include one or both of;

enhanced pilots transmitted by different sets of sectors in different sets of time slots, one set of time slots for each set of sectors;

or

enhanced pilots transmitted by different sets of time frequency resources, one set of time frequency resources for each set of sectors;

the at least one processor further configured to receive at a terminal the enhanced pilot information from a network, and to perform positioning of the terminal based on results of enhanced pilot measurements for multiple sectors using the enhanced pilot information from the terminal to obtain a position estimate for the terminal.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the at least one processor is configured to obtain enhanced pilot measurements for enhanced pilots transmitted by multiple sectors using the enhanced pilot information.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the at least one processor is configured to perform positioning of the terminal based on the enhanced pilot to obtain a position estimate for the terminal by sending a message comprising enhanced pilot measurement results to a network server and receiving a position estimate from the network server.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the at least one processor is configured to compute the position estimate for the terminal based on the enhanced pilot measurement results.

13. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the network server is a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (SLP), wherein the terminal is a SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET), and wherein the at least one message is exchanged between the SET and the SLP during a SUPL session.

14. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising:

means for determining signal dimensions for an enhanced pilot from enhanced pilot information associated with a plurality of enhanced pilots, wherein the plurality of enhanced pilots include one or both of;

enhanced pilots transmitted by different sets of sectors in different sets of time slots, one set of time slots for each set of sectors;

or

enhanced pilots transmitted by different sets of time frequency resources, one set of time frequency resources for each set of sectors;

means for receiving at a terminal the enhanced pilot information from a network; and

means for performing positioning of the terminal based on results of enhanced pilot measurements for multiple sectors using the enhanced pilot information from the terminal to obtain a position estimate for the terminal.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the means for determining signal dimensions for the enhanced pilot is performed at least in part by means for exchanging at least one message with a network server, and wherein the means for performing positioning comprises means for obtaining enhanced pilot measurements for enhanced pilots transmitted by multiple sectors using the enhanced pilot information.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the means for exchanging at least one message comprises means for sending a message comprising enhanced pilot measurement results to the network server.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the means for performing positioning comprises means for computing the position estimate for the terminal based on the enhanced pilot measurement results.

18. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the network server is a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (SLP), wherein the terminal is a SUPL Enabled Terminal (SET), and wherein the at least one message is exchanged between the SET and the SLP during a SUPL session.

19. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising:

code for causing at least one computer to determine signal dimensions for an enhanced pilot from enhanced pilot information associated with a plurality of enhanced pilots, wherein the plurality of enhanced pilots include one or both of;

enhanced pilots transmitted by different sets of sectors in different sets of time slots, one set of time slots for each set of sectors;

or

enhanced pilots transmitted by different sets of time frequency resources, one set of time frequency resources for each set of sectors;

code for causing at least one computer to receive at a terminal the enhanced pilot information from a network, and

code for causing the at least one computer to perform positioning of the terminal based on results of enhanced pilot measurements for multiple sectors using the enhanced pilot information from the terminal to obtain a position estimate for the terminal.