LOCATION-BASED OPERATIONAL CONTROL OF A TRANSMITTER

• US 20150355334A1
• Filed: 08/24/2015
• Published: 12/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/14/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Iheartcommunications Inc. (iHeartMedia, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Iheartcommunications Inc. (iHeartMedia, Inc.)
• Inventors: Stubbs, Michael L.
• Granted Patent: US 10,117,067 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/14 specially adapted for specific applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/185 Space-based or airborne stations; Stations for satellite systemsH04B7/204 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5682 Policies or rules for updating, deleting or replacing the stored data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/44 for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]

Abstract

A method includes receiving location, retrieving geo-fence data from a geo-fence database corresponding to a boundary of a jurisdiction, and automatically selecting between a first or second frequency band satellite transmitter based on the comparison.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving location data from a global positioning system receiver coupled to a satellite controller;

retrieving geo-fence data from a geo-fence database, the geo-fence data corresponding to a boundary of a jurisdiction; and

comparing the location data and the geo-fence data at the satellite controller, wherein the satellite controller is configured to automatically select a first frequency band satellite transmitter or a second frequency band satellite transmitter based on the comparison.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the satellite controller, the geo-fence database, the global positioning system receiver, the first band satellite frequency transmitter, and the second band satellite frequency transmitter are located on a vehicle.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein a result of comparing the location data to the geo-fence data indicates that the vehicle entered or is about to enter a particular jurisdiction.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the satellite controller automatically switches from the first frequency band satellite transmitter to the second frequency band satellite transmitter upon detecting that the vehicle is approaching a particular distance from a U.S. coastline.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the first frequency band satellite transmitter includes a K_a/K_u-band satellite transmitter and the second frequency band satellite transmitter includes a C-band satellite transmitter, and wherein the vehicle is a ship.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the satellite controller automatically selects the first frequency band satellite transmitter or the second frequency band satellite transmitter in response to detecting that the vehicle has exited a particular jurisdiction.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting the first frequency band satellite transmitter when the location data is within a threshold distance of the geo-fence data; and

selecting the second frequency band satellite transmitter when the location data is not within the threshold distance of the geo-fence data.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the selected frequency band satellite transmitter is used to communicate via a satellite to a hub station.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

receiving updated geo-fence data from the hub station; and

updating the geo-fence database according to the updated geo-fence data.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the boundary of the jurisdiction corresponds to a boundary of a nation.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the boundary of the jurisdiction corresponds to a government regulated area.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the geo-fence database includes data related to multiple jurisdictional boundaries.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the satellite controller selects operational parameters based on rules corresponding to a particular jurisdiction.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the satellite controller automatically changes operational parameters based on laws or regulations of a jurisdiction.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the operational parameters comprise a satellite transmitter frequency band or power level.

16. A method comprising:

at a hub station, receiving location data from a satellite antenna controller coupled to a first frequency band satellite transmitter and to a second frequency band satellite transmitter of a vehicle;

retrieving geo-fence data from a geo-fence database, the geo-fence data corresponding to a boundary of a jurisdiction;

comparing the location data and the geo-fence data; and

based on the comparison, sending at least one command to the satellite antenna controller based on a requirement of the jurisdiction, wherein the at least one command indicates a selection of the first band satellite frequency transmitter or the second band satellite frequency transmitter.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the at least one command further indicates a transmit frequency, a receive frequency, a symbol rate, a modulation type, a forward error correction configuration, or any combination thereof.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

receiving data related to the satellite antenna controller or the vehicle while the vehicle is en route, wherein the data includes a location, a satellite transmission band, or any combination thereof; and

storing the data in a memory.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the data further includes a symbol rate, a modulation type, a forward error correction configuration, a carrier power level, or any combination thereof.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein the hub station is land based.