System with wireless messages to enhance location accuracy

• US 9,344,989 B2
• Filed: 09/06/2012
• Issued: 05/17/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/06/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Varoglu, Devrim, Parupudi, Ravisastry
• Primary Examiner(s): PATEL, MAHENDRA R
• Application Number:
  US13/605,747
• Publication Number:
  US 20140066091A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,349 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456.1, 455/57.11, 455/66.1, 455/422.1, 340/442
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/10 providing dedicated supplementary positioning signals
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/48 by combining or switching between position solutions derived from the satellite radio beacon positioning system and position solutions derived from a further system
• 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 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/40 for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• 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 72/542 using measured or perceived quality

Abstract

Electronic equipment in a system may transmit and receive wireless advertisement messages. Each wireless message may include location information and may have an associated received signal strength indicator when received from transmitting equipment by receiving equipment. The transmitting equipment may be associated with stationary equipment such as equipment installed at a building, adjacent to a road, or in traffic control equipment or other traffic structures. The receiving electronic equipment may be mobile equipment such as a vehicle or mobile computing equipment such as a cellular telephone or portable computer. Satellite navigation system signals may be received by the receiving electronic equipment in addition to the wireless messages. The receiving electronic information can present alerts to a user based on a location determined using the wireless messages and the satellite navigation system signals.

Claims

1. A method for operating receiving electronic equipment at a location, comprising:

with the receiving electronic equipment, receiving wireless advertisement messages containing location data from stationary transmitting electronic equipment, wherein the receiving electronic equipment forms part of a vehicle of a given type;

analyzing the received wireless advertisement messages with the receiving electronic equipment to generate corresponding received signal strength indicator information;

with the receiving electronic equipment, using the location data and the received signal strength indicator information to identify the location of the receiving electronic equipment;

presenting a user of the receiving electronic equipment with an alert based on the location of the receiving electronic equipment, wherein presenting the user with the alert comprises displaying information for the user based at least partly on the given type of the vehicle; and

updating a map based on analyzing the received wireless advertisement messages.

2. The method defined in claim 1 wherein receiving the wireless advertisement messages comprises receiving Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) messages.

3. The method defined in claim 2 wherein the transmitting electronic equipment is located adjacent to a road and wherein receiving the wireless advertisement messages comprises receiving wireless signals from the transmitting electronic equipment that is located adjacent to the road while the receiving electronic equipment is located on the road.

4. The method defined in claim 3 wherein the receiving electronic equipment comprises portable computing equipment and wherein receiving the wireless advertisement messages comprises receiving wireless advertisement messages with the portable computing equipment.

5. The method defined in claim 1 wherein the receiving electronic equipment forms part of a vehicle traveling on a road and wherein the transmitting equipment comprises equipment mounted adjacent to the road.

6. The method defined in claim 5 wherein the road includes a branch and wherein the method comprises positioning an icon on the branch in response to analyzing the received wireless advertisement messages.

7. The method defined in claim 1 wherein presenting the user with the alert comprises displaying information for a driver of the vehicle with information on driving conditions.

8. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising:

with the receiving electronic equipment, processing satellite navigation system signals to help determine the location of the receiving electronic equipment.

9. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising:

receiving satellite navigation system signals from satellites using a satellite navigation system receiver in the receiving electronic equipment.

10. The method defined in claim 9 further comprising:

determining whether to use the received wireless advertisement messages to help identify the location of the receiving electronic equipment in addition to the satellite navigation system signals based on a determination of whether a geographic position of the receiving electronic equipment is within a predetermined geographic area.

12. The method defined in claim 1 wherein displaying the information to the user comprises:

displaying a first set of information when the vehicle is a first type of vehicle; and

displaying a second set information that is different from the first set of information when the vehicle is a second type of vehicle that is different from the first type of vehicle.

13. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising:

receiving the information at the receiving electronic equipment; and

filtering the information to separate information that is relevant to the user from information that is not relevant to the user, wherein displaying the information for the user comprises;

displaying the information that is relevant to the user while omitting the information that is not relevant to the user.

14. The method defined in claim 9, further comprising:

determining whether to use the received wireless advertisement messages to help identify the location of the receiving electronic equipment in addition to the received satellite navigation system signals based on a signal strength of the received satellite navigation system signals.

11. A method for operating receiving electronic equipment at a location, comprising:

with the receiving electronic equipment, receiving wireless advertisement messages containing location data from stationary transmitting electronic equipment, wherein the receiving electronic equipment is part of a vehicle of a given type being driven on a road by a driver;

receiving satellite navigation system signals from satellites using a satellite navigation system receiver in the receiving electronic equipment;

analyzing the received wireless advertisement messages with the receiving electronic equipment to generate corresponding received signal strength indicator information;

with the receiving electronic equipment, using the location data and the received signal strength indicator information to identify the location of the receiving electronic equipment; and

displaying information on the receiving electronic equipment for the driver based on the given type of the vehicle, wherein the information includes a map that includes an icon representing the location of the receiving electronic equipment as determined using both the received satellite navigation system signals and the received wireless advertisement messages.