Dynamic wireless networks and interactive wireless information communication and delivery systems for calculating distance to an object

• US 8,594,638 B2
• Filed: 12/04/2011
• Issued: 11/26/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/10/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lb Analytics, LLC
• Original Assignee: Iviu Technologies Inc.
• Inventors: Sturdivant, Rick, Brown, Joaquin Felipe, Brown, David E., Turner, Chris, Dewitt, Aaron
• Primary Examiner(s): Jackson, Blane J
• Application Number:
  US13/310,761
• Publication Number:
  US 20130040588A1
• Time in Patent Office: 723 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456.1, 455/456.3, 455/457, 455/41.2, 455/414.1
• US Class Current: 455/414.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/27 for locating or positioning the transmitter
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/318 Received signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management

Abstract

A method is disclosed for calculating a distance to objects or a nearest object to a wireless enabled device. The method includes the steps of broadcasting a signal by the wireless enabled device to data tags, receiving by the data tags the signal by the wireless enabled device, and obtaining by each of the data tags a signal strength indicator of the wireless enabled device based on the signal from the wireless enabled device. Each of the data tags in a range transmits a signal to the wireless enabled device including the signal strength indicator of the wireless enabled device. Each signal strength indicator of the wireless enabled device is communicated to a positioning and communication system.

Claims

1. A method for calculating a distance to objects or a nearest object to a wireless enabled device, the method comprising:

broadcasting a signal by the wireless enabled device to data tags within a distance range;

receiving by the data tags within the distance range the signal by the wireless enabled device;

obtaining by each of the data tags within the distance range a signal strength indicator of the wireless enabled device based on the signal from the wireless enabled device;

transmitting by each of the data tags in the range a signal to the wireless enabled device including the signal strength indicator of the wireless enabled device;

communicating each signal strength indicator of the wireless enabled device to a positioning and communication system; and

communicating to the wireless enabled device information including the distance to the objects or nearest object within the distance range of the data tags.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the signal by the wireless enabled device includes a User Datagram Protocol (UDP) and the signal strength indicator is computed from the UDP by each of the data tags within the distance range of the wireless enabled device.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising communicating by a relative location system that includes at least one reference or access point configured to communicate with a wireless information and communication network and to collect information about the wireless enabled device.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the information about the wireless enabled device includes how long a user stood in a certain place or in front of a certain object and send information to an information repository that includes a transaction component that tracks expressions of interest of observers in places and objects as well as a route of the observers through the places.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein communicating each signal strength indicator of the wireless enabled device includes each of the data tags communicate with a dynamic wireless network each signal strength indicator that indicates which data tags or tagged objects are included within a dynamic wireless network.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein communicating each signal strength indicator of the wireless enabled device includes the wireless enabled device communicates with a dynamic wireless network each signal strength indicator that indicates which data tags or tagged objects that are part of the dynamic wireless network.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein broadcasting a signal by the wireless enabled device to data tags in the distance range includes broadcasting using an AdHoc network for sending messages between device locations systems, the positioning and communications system, and the wireless enabled device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein communicating each signal strength indicator of the wireless enabled device to a positioning and communication system includes communicating each signal strength indicator to a Wi-Fi network to communicate location based on relative signal strength within an information repository which objects a device location system and the positioning and communications system are associated.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising broadcasting a signal by the wireless enabled device to data tags in the range includes communicating broadcasting a signal including a Wi-Fi scanning signal by the wireless enabled device to the data tags.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising attenuating the signal strength indicator of the wireless enabled device to control range within which transmitting by each of the data tags within the distance range a signal to the wireless enabled device including the signal strength indicator of the wireless enabled device.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting a beacon signal by the data tags within the distance range of the wireless enabled device and the wireless enabled device performs a Wi-Fi scan to obtain the beacon signal and the wireless enabled device calculates the Signal Strength Indicator in response to the received beacon signal.

12. A system for measuring relative signal strength of a wireless enabled device within a distance range for objects, the system comprising:

data tags configured to receive a signal transmitted by at least one wireless enabled device within the distance range, each of the data tags obtains within the distance range a signal strength indicator from the signal transmitted from each of the wireless enabled device; and

in response, each of the data tags transmits within the distance range a signal to the wireless enabled device including the signal strength indicator of each of the at least one wireless enabled device; and

a positioning and communication system configured to communicate with each of the data tags within the distance range and receive at least one signal strength indicator of each of the at least one wireless enabled device and communicate with each of the at least one wireless enabled device information about objects with the distance range of the data tags.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the signal transmitted by the at least one wireless enabled device includes a User Datagram Protocol (UDP) and the signal strength indicator is computed from the UDP by each of the data tags in the distance range of each of the at least one wireless enabled device.

14. The system of claim 12, further comprising a relative location system that includes at least one reference or access point configured to communicate with a wireless information and communication network and to collect information about each of the at least one wireless enabled device within the distance range.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the information about the at least one wireless enabled device includes how long a user stood in a certain place or in front of a certain object and send information to an information repository that includes a transaction component that tracks expressions of interest of observers in places and objects as well as a route of the observers through the places.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein each signal strength indicator of the at least one wireless enabled device includes each of the data tags communicates with a dynamic wireless network each signal strength indicator to obtain which data tags or tagged objects are part of a dynamic wireless network.

17. The system of claim 12, further comprising an Adhoc network configured to send messages between device locations systems, the positioning and communications system, and the at least one wireless enabled device.

18. The system of claim 12, further comprising a relative location system that communicate with the positioning and communication system communicating each signal strength indicator of the at least one wireless enabled device to a positioning and communication system includes the relative location system that communicates each signal strength indicator to a Wi-Fi network to communicate location based on relative signal strength within an information repository from which objects a device location system and the positioning and communications system are associated.

19. The system of claim 12, further comprising each of the data tags being configured to attenuate the signal strength indicator of the at least one wireless enabled device to control range within which by each of the data tags in the distance range transmit a signal to the at least one wireless enabled device including the signal strength indicator of the at least one wireless enabled device.

20. The system of claim 12, further comprising each of the data tags transmits a beacon signal by the data tags within the range of the at least one wireless enabled device and the at least one wireless enabled device performs a Wi-Fi scan to obtain the beacon signal and calculates the Signal Strength Indicator in response to a received beacon signal.