Obtaining pseudorange information using a cellular device

• US 9,851,448 B2
• Filed: 07/29/2016
• Issued: 12/26/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Trimble Inc.
• Original Assignee: Trimble Inc.
• Inventors: Rudow, Richard, Kasirajan, Venkateswaran, Wold, Robert, Janky, James M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hong, Dung
• Application Number:
  US15/224,259
• Publication Number:
  US 20160334515A1
• Time in Patent Office: 515 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/071 DGPS corrections
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/11 wherein the cooperating elements are pseudolites or satellite radio beacon positioning system signal repeaters
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/17 Emergency applications
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/25 involving aiding data received from a cooperating element, e.g. assisted GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/41 Differential correction, e.g. DGPS [differential GPS]
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/43 using carrier phase measurements, e.g. kinematic positioning; using long or short baseline interferometry
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/46 the supplementary measurement being of a radio-wave signal type
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/49 whereby the further system is an inertial position system, e.g. loosely-coupled
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72418 for supporting emergency services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/10 including a GPS signal receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/90 Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management

Abstract

The cellular device accesses a GPS/GNSS chipset embedded within the cellular device. The GPS/GNSS chipset calculates pseudorange information for use by the GPS/GNSS chipset. The cellular device extracts the pseudorange information from the GPS/GNSS chipset for use elsewhere in the cellular device outside of the GPS/GNSS chipset.

Claims

1. A mobile device comprising:

memory coupled with a bus;

a Global Positioning System/Global Navigation Satellite System (GPS/GNSS) embedded receiver coupled with the bus;

a communications system coupled with the bus; and

one or more processors coupled with the bus, wherein the the one or more processors are configured to;

send a message to the GPS/GNSS embedded receiver to initiate an E911 activity,

receive pseudorange information provided by the E911 activity,

send a second message to the GPS/GNSS embedded receiver to cancel the E911 activity before transmission of the pseudorange information external to the mobile device, and

determine a position fix of the mobile device based on the pseudorange information.

2. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured to obtain the pseudorange information from the GPS/GNSS embedded receiver via a thin Secure User Platform Location (SUPL).

3. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured to obtain the pseudorange information from the GPS/GNSS embedded receiver using a command supported by a Secure User Platform Location (SUPL).

4. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the communications system is a cellular telephone system.

5. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the mobile device is a cellular telephone.

6. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the mobile device is a non-voice enabled cellular device.

7. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are external to the GPS/GNSS embedded receiver.

8. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to receive differential corrections via the communications system, and the position fix is determined based on the pseudorange information and the differential corrections.

9. The mobile device of claim 1, further comprising a display coupled to the bus, wherein the display is configured to display the position fix.

10. The mobile device of claim 1, further comprising a memory coupled to the bus, wherein the memory is configured to store the pseudorange information.

11. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the pseudorange information includes at least one of uncorrected pseudorange information, differential GNSS corrections, high precision GNSS satellite orbital data, GNSS satellite broadcast ephemeris data, or ionospheric projections.

12. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the communications system is configured to send the position fix to an electronic device that is remotely located with respect to the mobile device.

13. A method for obtaining pseudorange information using a mobile device that includes an embedded Global Positioning System/Global Navigation Satellite System (GPS/GNSS) receiver and one or more processors outside the GPS/GNSS receiver, the method comprising:

initiating, performed by the one or more processors, an E911 operation to obtain the pseudorange information from the GPS/GNSS receiver of the mobile device;

receiving, at the one or more processors, the pseudorange information from the GPS/GNSS receiver;

preventing, performed by the one or more processors, the pseudorange information from being sent external to the mobile device by terminating the E911 operation, and

determining, performed by the one or more processors, a location of the mobile device based on the pseudorange information.

14. The method as recited by claim 13, wherein:

initiating the E911 operation comprises initiating a Secure User Platform Location (SUPL) operation.

15. The method as recited by claim 13, wherein the E911 operation is initiated using an improved accuracy Secure User Platform Location (SUPL) client of the mobile device.

16. The method as recited by claim 13, wherein the pseudorange information is provided to a location manager portion of an operating system of the mobile device that is external to the GPS/GNSS embedded receiver.

17. The method as recited by claim 13, wherein the mobile device is a cellular telephone or a non-voice enabled cellular device.

18. The method as recited by claim 13, further comprising:

receiving differential corrections from a source external to the mobile device; and

determining a location of the mobile device based on the pseudorange information and the differential corrections.