Cellular network-based location system
First Claim
1. In a cellular system comprising a plurality of cell sites each including a plurality of mobile stations in communication with a base station, and comprising a plurality of interconnected mobile switching centers each in communication with the base stations of certain cell sites, wherein each mobile switching center maintains network identification data for each mobile station being served in said certain cell sites, a method of determining the location of a mobile station originating communications within a cell site, comprising the steps of:
- acquiring the network identification data for said mobile station from the mobile switching center serving said cell site; and
translating said acquired network identification data into geographical location information using indexable tables generated from data of trunk groups and member numbers used by each cell site and data front geographic maps of radio coverage for said cell sites.
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Accused Products
Abstract
In a cellular system configuration, the location of a mobile station is determined from the acquisition of cellular network data pertaining to the mobile station, and the translation of such network data into a corresponding geographical position profile. The cellular system includes a mobile station locator entity for receiving from a mobile switching center the network data such as cell and/or sector ID and trunk group member number. The mobile station locator translates the network data into position information such as geographic coordinates (latitude and longitude), resolution (radius), and angle values for sectorized cells.
67 Citations
31 Claims
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1. In a cellular system comprising a plurality of cell sites each including a plurality of mobile stations in communication with a base station, and comprising a plurality of interconnected mobile switching centers each in communication with the base stations of certain cell sites, wherein each mobile switching center maintains network identification data for each mobile station being served in said certain cell sites, a method of determining the location of a mobile station originating communications within a cell site, comprising the steps of:
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acquiring the network identification data for said mobile station from the mobile switching center serving said cell site; and translating said acquired network identification data into geographical location information using indexable tables generated from data of trunk groups and member numbers used by each cell site and data front geographic maps of radio coverage for said cell sites. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. In a cellular system comprising a plurality of cell sites each including a plurality of mobile stations in communication with a base station, and comprising a plurality of interconnected mobile switching centers each in communication with the base stations of certain cell sites, wherein each mobile switching center maintains network identification data for each mobile station being served in said certain cell sites, a method of determining the location of a mobile station originating communications within a cell site, comprising the steps of:
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transmitting from the mobile switching center a cellular channel including the network identification data for said mobile station; receiving the transmitted network identification data; and translating the received network identification data into geographical location information using indexable tables generated from data of trunk groups and member numbers used by each cell site and data from geographic maps of radio coverage for said cell sites.
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6. A location-finding assembly in a cellular system, said system servicing a plurality of mobile stations through a base station connected to a mobile switching center, comprising:
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server means responsive to a location request for prompting the mobile switching center for network data on a base station; said server means including means for receiving network data from the mobile switching center, and means for converting said network data into a corresponding geographical position profile using indexable tables generated from data of trunk groups and member numbers used by each cell site and data from geographic maps of radio coverage for said cell sites.
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7. In a cellular network, a method comprising:
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receiving an identity and latitude and longitude coordinates of a mobile station, wherein the identity of the mobile station has been determined based on an emergency call from the mobile station and the latitude and longitude coordinates of the mobile station have been provided by the mobile station; using the latitude and longitude coordinates to determine which type of location data among multiple types of location data is used during the emergency call, wherein a first type of location data is latitude-and-longitude-coordinates-type location data; reformatting the latitude and longitude coordinates to enable displaying the latitude and longitude coordinates at an assistance center; and communicating the identity and the reformatted latitude and longitude coordinates to the assistance center, which processes the emergency call using the identity and the reformatted latitude and longitude coordinates. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 27, 28)
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16. In a cellular network, a method comprising:
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receiving an identity and latitude and longitude coordinates of a mobile station, wherein the identity of the mobile station has been determined based on an emergency call from the mobile station and the latitude and longitude coordinates have been provided by the mobile station based on a geographic position of the mobile station and the emergency call at the mobile station; using the latitude and longitude coordinates to determine which type of location data among multiple types of location data is used during the emergency call, wherein a first type of location data is latitude-and-longitude-coordinates-type location data; reformatting the latitude and longitude coordinates to enable displaying the latitude and longitude coordinates at an assistance center; and communicating the identity and the reformatted latitude and longitude coordinates to the assistance center, which processes the emergency call using the identity and the reformatted latitude and longitude coordinates and maps the position of the mobile station based on the reformatted latitude and longitude coordinates for purposes of dispatching emergency personnel to the position of the mobile station. - View Dependent Claims (29)
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17. In a cellular network, a method comprising:
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receiving a feature code and latitude and longitude coordinates from a mobile station, wherein the feature code corresponds to an emergency call from the mobile station; determining an identity of the mobile station based on the feature code; using the latitude and longitude coordinates to determine which type of location data among multiple types of location data is used during the emergency call, wherein a first type of location data is latitude-and-longitude-coordinates-type location data; communicating the identity and the latitude and longitude coordinates of the mobile station, wherein the communicated identity and latitude and longitude coordinates assist an assistance center in locating the position of the mobile station. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 30)
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26. In a cellular network, a method comprising:
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receiving a first string of alphanumerical characters representing a feature code and a second string of alphanumerical characters representing latitude and longitude coordinates from a mobile station, wherein the feature code corresponds to an emergency call from the mobile station and the latitude and longitude coordinates reflect an approximate position of the mobile station; determining an identity of the mobile station based on the feature code; using the second string of alphanumerical characters to determine which type of location data among multiple types of location data is used during the emergency call, wherein a first type of location data is latitude-and-longitude-coordinates-type location data; communicating the identity and the latitude and longitude coordinates of the mobile station, wherein the communicated identity and latitude and longitude coordinates assist an assistance center in locating the position of the mobile station. - View Dependent Claims (31)
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Specification