Systems, methods, and computer-readable storage devices for generating and using a radio-frequency map of an area

• US 9,736,644 B2
• Filed: 06/27/2016
• Issued: 08/15/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/05/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Mobility II LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Mobility II LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Meredith, Sheldon Kent, Fix, Jeremy, Kosseifi, Mario
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, David Q
• Application Number:
  US15/193,455
• Publication Number:
  US 20160309297A1
• Time in Patent Office: 414 Days
• Field of Search: 4554561, 4554565, 455422, 370252
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• 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 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• 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

Abstract

A method comprising obtaining, by a system using a processor, a wireless fingerprint corresponding to a mobile communication device and a subject area in which the mobile communication device is or was positioned. The method also includes obtaining, by the system, an area wireless signal distribution map indicating wireless signal strength values corresponding to multiple wireless transmitters positioned in the subject area, and determining, by the system, based on the wireless fingerprint and the area wireless signal distribution map, a location of the mobile communication device.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by a system comprising a processor, from a mobile communication device, a wireless fingerprint generated by the mobile communication device, the wireless fingerprint corresponding to a location within a subject area at which the mobile communication device is or was positioned at a specific time, and the wireless fingerprint comprising at least one signal strength value of at least one signal received by the mobile communication device from at least one transmitter associated with the subject area, wherein the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal is measured by the mobile communication device;

determining, by the system, based at least in part on the wireless fingerprint, a distance of the location within the subject area at which the mobile communication device is or was positioned from the at least one transmitter from which the at least one signal was received by the mobile communication device;

relating, by the system, the distance of the location from the at least one transmitter with the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal received by the mobile communication device from the at least one transmitter; and

generating, by the system, an area wireless signal distribution map for the subject area, wherein the area wireless signal distribution map associates the location with the at least one signal strength value, wherein the location is defined with respect to the distance from the at least one transmitter.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless fingerprint further comprises an identification of the at least one transmitter associated with the subject area.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal is at or above a threshold, as determined by the mobile communication device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless fingerprint further comprises an identification of the mobile communication device from which the wireless fingerprint is received, an identification of the at least one transmitter associated with the subject area, and a time stamp comprising the specific time.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the time stamp corresponds to at least one of when the at least one signal was transmitted by the at least one transmitter to the mobile communication device, when the at least one signal was received by the mobile communication device, or when the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal was measured by the mobile communication device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the wireless fingerprint generated by the mobile communication device comprises receiving a plurality of wireless fingerprints from the mobile communication device, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints include the wireless fingerprint, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints comprise signal strength values of signals received by the mobile communication device from the at least one transmitter, wherein each of the plurality of wireless fingerprints corresponds to a respective location within the subject area at which the mobile communication device is or was positioned at a corresponding specific time, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints indicate a movement characteristic of the mobile communication device with respect to the at least one transmitter such that the mobile communication device is determined to be moving towards the at least one transmitter when the signal strength values of the signals from the at least one transmitter increase over a period of time, and wherein the signal strength values of the signals comprise the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal of the wireless fingerprint.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the wireless fingerprint generated by the mobile communication device comprises receiving a plurality of wireless fingerprints from the mobile communication device, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints include the wireless fingerprint, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints comprise signal strength values of signals received by the mobile communication device from the at least one transmitter, wherein each of the plurality of wireless fingerprints corresponds to a respective location within the subject area at which the mobile communication device is or was positioned at a corresponding specific time, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints indicate a movement characteristic of the mobile communication device with respect to the at least one transmitter such that the mobile communication device is determined to be moving away from the at least one transmitter when the signal strength values of the signals from the at least one transmitter decrease over a period of time, and wherein the signal strength values of the signals comprise the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal of the wireless fingerprint.

8. A system comprising:

a processor; and

a computer-readable medium comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising;

receiving, from a mobile communication device, a wireless fingerprint generated by the mobile communication device, the wireless fingerprint corresponding to a location within a subject area at which the mobile communication device is or was positioned at a specific time, and the wireless fingerprint comprising at least one signal strength value of at least one signal received by the mobile communication device from at least one transmitter associated with the subject area, wherein the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal is measured by the mobile communication device,

determining, based at least in part on the wireless fingerprint, a distance of the location within the subject area at which the mobile communication device is or was positioned from the at least one transmitter from which the at least one signal was received by the mobile communication device,

relating the distance of the location from the at least one transmitter with the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal received by the mobile communication device from the at least one transmitter; and

generating an area wireless signal distribution map for the subject area, wherein the area wireless signal distribution map associates the location with the at least one signal strength value, wherein the location is defined with respect to the distance from the at least one transmitter.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the wireless fingerprint further comprises an identification of the at least one transmitter associated with the subject area.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal is at or above a threshold, as determined by the mobile communication device.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the wireless fingerprint further comprises an identification of the mobile communication device from which the wireless fingerprint is received, an identification of the at least one transmitter associated with the subject area, and a time stamp comprising the specific time.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the time stamp corresponds to at least one of when the at least one signal was transmitted by the at least one transmitter to the mobile communication device, when the at least one signal was received by the mobile communication device, or when the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal was measured by the mobile communication device.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein receiving the wireless fingerprint generated by the mobile communication device comprises receiving a plurality of wireless fingerprints from the mobile communication device, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints include the wireless fingerprint, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints comprise signal strength values of signals received by the mobile communication device from the at least one transmitter, wherein each of the plurality of wireless fingerprints corresponds to a respective location within the subject area at which the mobile communication device is or was positioned at a corresponding specific time, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints indicate a movement characteristic of the mobile communication device with respect to the at least one transmitter such that the mobile communication device is determined to be moving towards the at least one transmitter when the signal strength values of the signals from the at least one transmitter increase over a period of time, and wherein the signal strength values of the signals comprise the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal of the wireless fingerprint.

14. The system of claim 8, wherein receiving the wireless fingerprint generated by the mobile communication device comprises receiving a plurality of wireless fingerprints from the mobile communication device, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints include the wireless fingerprint, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints comprise signal strength values of signals received by the mobile communication device from the at least one transmitter, wherein each of the plurality of wireless fingerprints corresponds to a respective location within the subject area at which the mobile communication device is or was positioned at a corresponding specific time, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints indicate a movement characteristic of the mobile communication device with respect to the at least one transmitter such that the mobile communication device is determined to be moving away from the at least one transmitter when the signal strength values of the signals from the at least one transmitter decrease over a period of time, and wherein the signal strength values of the signals comprise the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal of the wireless fingerprint.

15. A computer-readable storage device comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor of a system, cause the processor to perform operations comprising:

receiving, from a mobile communication device, a wireless fingerprint generated by the mobile communication device, the wireless fingerprint corresponding to a location within a subject area at which the mobile communication device is or was positioned at a specific time, and the wireless fingerprint comprising at least one signal strength value of at least one signal received by the mobile communication device from at least one transmitter associated with the subject area, wherein the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal is measured by the mobile communication device;

determining, based at least in part on the wireless fingerprint, a distance of the location within the subject area at which the mobile communication device is or was positioned from the at least one transmitter from which the at least one signal was received by the mobile communication device;

relating the distance of the location from the at least one transmitter with the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal received by the mobile communication device from the at least one transmitter; and

generating an area wireless signal distribution map for the subject area, wherein the area wireless signal distribution map associates the location with the at least one signal strength value, wherein the location is defined with respect to the distance from the at least one transmitter.

16. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the wireless fingerprint further comprises an identification of the at least one transmitter associated with the subject area.

17. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal is at or above a threshold, as determined by the mobile communication device.

18. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the wireless fingerprint further comprises an identification of the mobile communication device from which the wireless fingerprint is received, an identification of the at least one transmitter associated with the subject area, and a time stamp comprising the specific time.

19. The computer-readable storage device of claim 18, wherein the time stamp corresponds to at least one of when the at least one signal was transmitted by the at least one transmitter to the mobile communication device, when the at least one signal was received by the mobile communication device, or when the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal was measured by the mobile communication device.

20. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein receiving the wireless fingerprint generated by the mobile communication device comprises receiving a plurality of wireless fingerprints from the mobile communication device, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints include the wireless fingerprint, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints comprise signal strength values of signals received by the mobile communication device from the at least one transmitter, wherein each of the plurality of wireless fingerprints corresponds to a respective location within the subject area at which the mobile communication device is or was positioned at a corresponding specific time, wherein the plurality of wireless fingerprints indicate a movement characteristic of the mobile communication device with respect to the at least one transmitter such that the mobile communication device is determined to be moving towards the at least one transmitter when the signal strength values of the signals from the at least one transmitter increase over a first period of time and that the mobile communication device is determined to be moving away from the at least one transmitter when the signal strength values of the signals from the at least one transmitter decrease over a second period of time, wherein the signal strength values of the signals comprise the at least one signal strength value of the at least one signal of the wireless fingerprint.