Autonomous transmit chain delay measurements

• US 9,778,371 B2
• Filed: 08/19/2016
• Issued: 10/03/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/12/2012
• Status: Expired

• Current Assignee: Outdoor Wireless Networks LLC (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: CommScope Technologies, LLC (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Inventors: Islam, Tariqul, Al-Mufti, Khalid W., HANNAN, Ariful
• Primary Examiner(s): Phan, Dao
• Application Number:
  US15/242,272
• Publication Number:
  US 20170045625A1
• Time in Patent Office: 410 Days
• Field of Search: 34235521, 34235725, 34235729, 3423574, 701468, 701469
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/46 the supplementary measurement being of a radio-wave signal type
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/021 Calibration, monitoring or correction G01S5/0252 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/10 Position of receiver fixed by co-ordinating a plurality of position lines defined by path-difference measurements , e.g. omega or decca systemsG01S5/12 takes precedence ; beacons and receivers cooperating therewith G01S1/306, G01S1/308

Abstract

A system and method for determining transmission delay in a communications system. In some embodiments, satellite positioning information having System Frame Number (SFN) information may be received for a mobile device and observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA) measurements may be received for a mobile device. A location of the mobile device may be determined as a function of the received satellite positioning information. A Global Positioning System (GPS) time estimate may be determined as a function of the determined location of the mobile device. Transmission delay between a node serving the mobile device and an antenna serving the mobile device may be determined as a function of the received OTDOA measurements and determined GPS time estimate.

Claims

1. A method of determining transmission delay in a communications network having a plurality of nodes comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving satellite positioning information for a mobile device, the received satellite positioning information including System Frame Number (SFN) information;

(b) receiving observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA) measurements for a mobile device from one or more of the plural nodes;

(c) determining a location of the mobile device as a function of the received satellite positioning information;

(d) determining a Global Positioning System (GPS) time estimate as a function of the determined location of the mobile device; and

(e) determining transmission delay between a node serving the mobile device and an antenna serving the mobile device as a function of the received OTDOA measurements and determined GPS time estimate.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of receiving satellite positioning information further comprises requesting the mobile device to report a GPS to network time relationship.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the serving node is an eNodeB.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the OTDOA measurements include SFN initialization time.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of determining propagation delay between the serving antenna and the mobile device as a function of the determined mobile device location and location of the serving antenna, wherein the determined transmission delay is a function of the determined propagation delay.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the determined propagation delay is a function of a transmission path from the mobile device to the serving antenna or from the serving antenna to the mobile device.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of determining transmission delay further comprises determining cable delay and/or radio frequency component delay.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of iteratively repeating step (c) and averaging the determined locations over the iteration.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of determining a location of one or more other mobile devices using respective received satellite information, wherein the step of determining transmission delay comprises determining transmission delay as a function of the determined locations of the one or more other mobile devices to minimize bias.