Communication apparatus, communication method, program, information management apparatus and communication system

• US 9,924,485 B2
• Filed: 04/14/2014
• Issued: 03/20/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/26/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Rekimoto, Junichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Ly, Anh-Vu
• Assistant Examiner(s): Reyes Ortiz, Hector
• Application Number:
  US14/252,185
• Publication Number:
  US 20140301380A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,436 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0236 Assistance data, e.g. base station almanac
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 60/04 using triggered events
• 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 64/006 with additional information processing, e.g. for direction or speed determination

Abstract

Provided is a communication apparatus 40 including a positioning unit 421 that obtains position information of a local apparatus by measuring a position of the local apparatus based on signals received from satellites via a communication unit 410, a base station detection unit 422 that obtains base station identification information to identify a base station from the signal received from the base station via the communication unit 410, a history information registration unit 430 that registers first history information containing the position information obtained by the positioning unit 421 with a history information storage unit 440 and also registers second history information containing the base station identification information obtained by the base station detection unit 422 with the history information storage unit 440, and a transmission control unit 450 that transmits the first history information registered with the history information storage unit 440 to an information management apparatus 20 via the communication unit and also transmits the second history information registered with the history information storage unit 440 to the information management apparatus 20 via the communication unit 410.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

circuitry configured to acquire a position information;

circuitry configured to associate first time information with the acquired position information;

circuitry configured to acquire identification information of a base station; and

circuitry configured to associate second time information with the acquired identification information,

wherein, when a difference value between the first time information and the second time information is less than a predetermined value, the acquired position information and the identification information are registered in association with each other, and

wherein the first time information indicates the time that the position information is acquired, and the second time information indicates the time that the identification information of the base station is acquired.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry configured to initiate a transmission, to an external apparatus, of the acquired position information, the first time information, the identification information of the base station, and the second time information.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, further comprising:

a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium,

wherein the transmission is initiated when a predetermined amount of information has been stored within the non-transitory computer-readable medium.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the transmission is initiated when a predetermined time period elapses after a last transmission to the external apparatus.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein a plurality of previously acquired position information are registered in association with a plurality of previously acquired identification information, as history information.

5. A method comprising:

acquiring a position information of an apparatus;

associating first time information with the acquired position information;

acquiring identification information of a base station;

associating second time information with the acquired identification information; and

registering, when a difference value between the first time information and the second time information is less than a predetermined value, the acquired position information and the identification information in association with each other,

wherein the first time information indicates the time that the position information is acquired, and the second time information indicates the time that the identification information of the base station is acquired.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

transmitting, to an external apparatus, the acquired position information, the first time information, the identification information of the base station, and the second time information.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the transmission is initiated when a predetermined amount of information has been stored within a non-transitory computer-readable medium.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the transmission is initiated when a predetermined time period elapses after a last transmission to the external apparatus.

11. The method of claim 5, wherein a plurality of previously acquired position information are registered in association with a plurality of previously acquired identification information, as history information.

9. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having embodied thereon a program, which when executed by a computer causes the computer to execute a method, the method comprising:

acquiring a position information of an apparatus;

associating first time information with the acquired position information;

acquiring identification information of a base station;

associating second time information with the acquired identification information; and

registering, when a difference value between the first time information and the second time information is less than a predetermined value, the acquired position information and the identification information in association with each other,

wherein the first time information indicates the time that the position information is acquired, and the second time information indicates the time that the identification information of the base station is acquired.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein a plurality of previously acquired position information are registered in association with a plurality of previously acquired identification information, as history information.