Layered host based satellite positioning solutions

• US 7,813,875 B2
• Filed: 10/10/2002
• Issued: 10/12/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/10/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: CSR Technology Incorporated (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: SIRF Technology Incorporated (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bulatovic, Nikola, Yamamoto, Clifford, Nonis, Sebastian, Pande, Ashutosh, Witanis, Stefan
• Primary Examiner(s): BETIT, JACOB F
• Application Number:
  US10/269,105
• Publication Number:
  US 20050234982A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,924 Days
• Field of Search: 701/213, 707/760
• US Class Current: 701/213
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/09 providing processing capability normally carried out by the receiver
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/37 Hardware or software details of the signal processing chain
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0036 of measured values, i.e. measurement on mobile and position calculation on base station

Abstract

Methods and systems consistent with the present invention provide a host based positioning system. The host based positioning system includes a tracker hardware interface that connects to a dedicated hardware space vehicle tracker. The tracker hardware interface receives positioning information from the space vehicle tracker. The host based positioning system includes a layered approach to enable user applications on a host computer to access data from tracker hardware.

Claims

1. A system for processing positioning signals, the system comprising:

a tracker having a GPS receiver enabled to receive GPS signals;

a user interface manager to receive location data from the tracker in a predefined data format;

a communication interface to enable a plurality of user applications access to the tracker through one of a plurality of communication protocols, wherein at least one user application from the plurality of user applications requires location data delivered in a communication protocol format that is different from a communication protocol format required by at least one other user application; and

a data forwarder configured by the user interface manager in response to the communication interface receiving a request for location data from one user application from the plurality of user applications, wherein the user interface manager transmits the location data received by the tracker to the data forwarder for transmission to the user application, wherein the location data is received by the data forwarder in the predefined data format and is formatted by the data forwarder for delivery of location data to the requesting user application in a communication protocol format required by the requesting user application in response to a communication protocol format required by the requesting user application, wherein the communication protocol format is selected from a plurality of different communication protocol formats;

wherein the data forwarder comprises a location data protocol format selected from a plurality of location data protocol formats in response to receipt of an indication of protocol format from the user interface manager.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a host navigation processor in receipt of unformatted location data from the tracker via a tracker interface module and communicating the unformatted location data to the user interface manager.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the user interface manager further comprises:

a location data communication protocol format selected from a plurality of location data communication protocol formats by the user interface manager in response to a request from the communication interface that results in the unformatted location data being formatted in accordance with the location data communication protocol format.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the location data protocol format is a NMEA location data protocol format.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein the location data communication protocol format is a binary location data communication protocol format.

6. A method for processing positioning signals, the method comprising:

receiving at a communication interface a request from a user application of a plurality of user applications for location data formatted in a location data communication protocol format requested by the user application, wherein at least one user application requires a location data communication protocol format that is different from the location data communication protocol format required by at least one other user application;

notifying a host navigation processor module and a user interface manager of the request for location data formatted in the requested location data communication protocol format sent by the communication interface;

receiving GPS-based location data at the host navigation processor module from a tracker interface module;

formatting the location data into the requested location data communication protocol format required by the requesting user application at a data forwarder as directed by the user interface manager in response to the communication interface receiving the request from the user application, wherein the communication protocol format is selected from a plurality of different communication protocol formats; and

sending the formatted location data to a data forwarder for transmission to the requesting user application in the selected communication protocol format;

wherein the data forwarder comprises a location data communication protocol format selected from a plurality of location data communication protocol formats in response to receipt of an indication of communication protocol format from the user interface manager.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein formatting further comprises:

selecting a communication protocol format from a plurality of communication protocol formats for the location data.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein formatting further comprises selecting a NMEA protocol format from the plurality of protocol formats.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein formatting further comprises:

selecting a binary communication protocol format from the plurality of communication protocol formats.

10. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

decoding a plurality of GPS signals at a tracker;

deriving, from the plurality of GPS signals, the location data that is to be received at the host navigation processor module from the tracker interface module; and

sending the location data to the tracker interface module.

11. A system for processing positioning signals, comprising:

means for receiving at a communication interface a request from a user application of a plurality of user applications for location data formatted in a location data protocol format requested by the user application, wherein at least one user application requires a location data protocol format that is different from the location data protocol format required by the other user applications;

means for notifying a host navigation processor module and a user interface manager of the request for location data formatted in the requested location data protocol format sent by the communication interface;

means for receiving GPS-based location data at the host navigation processor module from a tracker interface module;

means for formatting the location data into the requested location data protocol format at a data forwarder as directed by the user interface manager in response to the communication interface receiving the request from the user application, wherein a location data protocol format is selected from a plurality of location data protocol formats, and wherein the location data protocol format formatted by the data forwarder is compatible with the location data protocol format of the user application selected from the plurality of user applications; and

means for sending the formatted location data to a data forwarder for transmission to the requesting user application in the selected location data protocol format;

wherein the data forwarder comprises a location data protocol format selected from a plurality of location data protocol formats in response to receipt of an indication of protocol format from the user interface manager.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the means for formatting comprises:

means for selecting a location data protocol format from a plurality of location data protocol formats for the location data.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the means for formatting comprises means for selecting a NMEA protocol format from the plurality of protocol formats.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the means for formatting comprises:

means for selecting a binary location data protocol format from the plurality of location data protocol formats.

15. The system of claim 11, further comprising:

means for decoding a plurality of GPS signals at a tracker;

means for deriving, from the plurality of GPS signals, the location data that is to be received at the host navigation processor module from the tracker interface module; and

means for sending the location data to the tracker interface module.

16. A storage medium accessible by a processor, the storage medium including machine-readable instructions for processing signals in a system that processes positioning signals, the signal-bearing medium comprising:

logic for receiving at a communication interface a request from a user application of a plurality of user applications for location data formatted in a location data protocol format requested by the user application, wherein at least one user application requires a location data protocol format that is different for the location data protocol format required by the other user applications;

logic for notifying a host navigation processor module and a user interface manager of the request for location data formatted in the requested location data protocol format sent by the communication interface;

logic for receiving GPS-based location data at the host navigation processor module from a tracker interface module;

logic for formatting the location data into the requested location data protocol format at a data forwarder as directed by the user interface manager in response to the communication interface receiving the request from the user application, wherein a location data protocol format is selected from a plurality of location data protocol formats, and wherein the location data protocol format formatted by the data forwarder is compatible with the location data protocol format of the user application selected from the plurality of user applications; and

logic for sending the formatted location data to a data forwarder for transmission to the requesting user application in the selected location data protocol format;

wherein the data forwarder comprises a location data protocol format selected from a plurality of location data protocol formats in response to receipt of an indication of protocol format from the user interface manager.

17. The signal-bearing medium of claim 16, further comprising logic for selecting a NMEA protocol format from a plurality of protocol formats for the location data.

18. The storage medium of claim 16, further comprising:

logic for selecting a protocol format from a plurality of protocol formats for the location data.

19. The storage medium of claim 16, further comprising:

logic for selecting a binary protocol format from a plurality of protocol formats for the location data.

20. The storage medium of claim 16, further comprising:

logic for decoding a plurality of GPS signals at a tracker;

logic for deriving, from the plurality of GPS signals, the location data that is to be received at the host navigation processor module from the tracker interface module; and

logic for sending the location data to the tracker interface module.

21. A system for processing positioning signals, the system comprising:

a tracker including a GPS receiver configured to receive GPS signals;

a navigation processor configured to receive raw measurement data from the tracker;

a user interface manager configured to receive processed location data from the navigation processor;

a communication interface configured to receive a request for location data from a requesting user application of a plurality of user applications, and to notify the navigation processor and the user interface manager of the request for location data, wherein at least one of the user applications requires a location data protocol format different from the location data protocol format required by the other user applications; and

a data forwarder configured to receive the processed location data from the user interface manager and transmit formatted location data to the requesting user application in a location data protocol format required by the requesting user application, wherein the data forwarder selects the location data protocol format from a plurality of location data protocol formats in response to the user interface, and wherein the location data protocol formatted by the data forwarder is compatible with the location data protocol format of the requesting user application selected from the plurality of user applications;

wherein the data forwarder comprises a location data protocol format selected from a plurality of location data protocol formats in response to receipt of an indication of protocol format from the user interface manager.

22. The system of claim 21, further including a host computer, the host computer including the navigation processor, the user interface manager, the communication interface, the data forwarder, and the plurality of user applications.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the host computer further comprises a tracker interface configured to receive the raw measurement data from the tracker.

24. The system of claim 22, wherein the host computer further comprises the tracker.

25. The system of claim 21, wherein the tracker comprises a location processing circuit configured to provide the raw measurement data for transmission to the navigation processor.

26. The system of claim 21, further comprising a plurality of data forwarders, wherein the user interface manager is configured to transmit the processed location data to a selected one of the data forwarders, the selection being based on a communication received at the user interface manager from the communication interface.

27. A method for processing positioning signals, the method comprising:

receiving at a communication interface a request from a requesting user application for location data, the requesting user application being one of a plurality of user applications available for communication with the communication interface, wherein at least one of the user applications requires a location data protocol format different from the location data protocol format required by the other user applications;

notifying a navigation processor and a user interface manager of the request for location data formatted in the requested location data protocol format received by the communication interface;

receiving GPS-based location data at the navigation processor from a tracker;

processing the GPS-based location data at the navigation processor and transmitting the processed location data to the user interface manager;

based on the request received at the communication interface, configuring a data forwarder to prepare the processed location data in a location data protocol format required by the requesting user application, wherein the location data protocol format is selected from a plurality of location data protocol formats, and wherein the location data protocol format formatted by the data forwarder is compatible with the location data protocol format of the user application selected from the plurality of user applications; and

transmitting formatted location data from the data forwarder to the requesting user application in the selected location data protocol format;

wherein the data forwarder comprises a location data protocol format selected from a plurality of location data protocol formats in response to receipt of an indication of protocol format from the user interface manager.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein receiving GPS based location data at the navigation processor includes receiving the GPS-based location data at a host computer that comprises the navigation processor.

29. The method of claim 27, wherein receiving GPS-based location data at the navigation processor includes receiving the GPS-based location data at a host computer that comprises the navigation processor and the tracker.

30. The method of claim 27, wherein configuring the data forwarder comprises selecting the data forwarder from a plurality of data forwarders, the selection being based on a communication received at the user interface manager from the communication interface.