TWI463162B - Method and system for determining position of moving wireless communication device - Google Patents

Description

Method and system for determining the location of a mobile wireless communication device

The present invention relates generally to wireless communication systems, and more particularly to the positioning of mobile wireless communication devices in the wireless communication system.

In wireless communication systems, some wireless communication devices or mobile endpoints are equipped with GPS functionality (generally, for example, a GPS-equipped mobile phone), while some mobile endpoints are not equipped with GPS functionality. In practice, it is sometimes necessary to determine the geographic location of a wireless device that is not equipped with a GPS function. There is a technique in the prior art for determining the geographic location of the mobile endpoint that is not equipped with a GPS function, wherein the technique for locating the non-GPS wireless communication device is radio positioning technology (radio positioning). The radio positioning technique employs two methods, one of which is Angle Of Arrival (AOA) and the other is Time Difference Of Arrival (TDOA). In the AOA method, signal strength and signal transmission time measurements received on at least two wireless communication system base station communication towers are performed to evaluate the angle between each communication tower and the wireless communication device such that each The intersection of the connection line between the communication tower and the wireless communication device is measured as the location of the wireless communication device; in the TDOA method, the time difference when the signal of the wireless communication device reaches each communication tower is measured to determine The distance between the wireless communication device and the communication tower causes the location of the wireless communication device to be determined. The AOA and TDOA methods require a line-of-sight path between the wireless communication device and the base station communication tower. However, in some cases, such as in a road with a city of skyscrapers, the direct line of sight path between the wireless communication device and the communication tower is typically blocked.

To this end, the present invention provides methods and systems for determining the location of a mobile wireless communication device.

In one aspect, the present invention provides a method for determining a location of a wireless communication device moving in a cellular wireless communication network, the method comprising: recording a movement path of the wireless communication device in a cell of the cellular wireless communication network Recording a moving path and GPS information of the GPS wireless communication device in the cellular communication network of the cellular wireless communication network; determining that the moving path of the GPS wireless communication device matches the moving path of the wireless communication device; And determining the location of the wireless communication device based on the GPS information of the matched GPS wireless communication device.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a system for determining a location of a wireless communication device moving in a cellular wireless communication network, comprising: recording means for recording in cells of the cellular wireless communication network a wireless communication device and a moving path of the GPS wireless communication device; a GPS information recorder for recording GPS information of the GPS wireless communication device; and a comparator for determining a GPS wireless communication in which the moving path matches the moving path of the wireless communication device And a location calculator for determining a location of the wireless communication device based on the GPS information of the matched GPS wireless communication device.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a wireless communication device for a cellular wireless communication network, comprising: a cellular information recorder, wherein the cellular information recorder is based when the wireless communication device moves in the cellular wireless communication network The cell identification signal broadcast by the base station of the cellular wireless communication network records cell handover information, wherein the cell handover information includes the cell and the entry time entered by the wireless communication device.

The present invention enables non-GPS wireless communication devices to be more accurately positioned by incorporating wireless communication devices and mobile cellular information for high-precision GPS positioning.

The drawings which show the specific embodiments of the present invention are described in more detail below with reference to the embodiments of the invention. However, the invention may be embodied in a variety of forms and should not be construed as being limited to the illustrated embodiments. The present invention may be understood and practiced without departing from the skill of the art, and components or details not directly related to the present invention are omitted in the specific embodiments and drawings to highlight the subject matter of the present invention. The nature of the invention will be more clearly understood.

First, refer to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing a communication network system 100 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the communication network system 100 includes a non-GPS wireless communication device A, a GPS enabled wireless communication device B, and a location service system 10 that communicate via a cellular wireless communication network (not shown). The cellular wireless communication network (eg, GSM) includes a mobile switching center 20 and a plurality of base stations.

An example of a non-GPS wireless communication device A is a conventional mobile phone, which has functions such as receiving and transmitting signals via the base station BS, storing and processing the signals, inputting and outputting information, etc., but without GPS function. When the ordinary mobile phone A changes its geographical position due to the movement, the ordinary mobile phone A receives and transmits the signal to the corresponding base station BS, and also transfers from the base station BS to the other base station BS on the moving path.

The signal coverage of the base station BS of the cellular wireless communication network is a geographical area of a specific range, which can be further divided into a plurality of cells. The base station BS periodically broadcasts cell identification signals in each cell to which it belongs. Ordinary mobile phone A can collect cell identification signals sent by neighboring cells to generate measurement reports for purposes such as communication link establishment. When the normal mobile phone A receives the cell identification signal, the signal strength of the received signal can be detected, and the cell with the maximum received signal strength is usually regarded as the current cell.

An example of a GPS-enabled wireless communication device B is a mobile phone having a Global Positioning System (GPS) function, referred to as a GPS mobile phone. In addition to the general functions of an ordinary mobile phone, the GPS mobile phone B has a GPS module and can receive and process GPS information to further determine the location of the GPS mobile phone B.

The basic concept of the present invention is to determine the location of the non-GPS wireless communication device (e.g., the normal mobile phone) using a wireless communication device having a GPS function (e.g., the GPS handset). The non-GPS wireless communication device is also referred to as a "wireless communication device" hereinafter, and the wireless communication device having a GPS function is referred to as a "GPS wireless communication device." In the context where it is not necessary to distinguish whether or not the wireless communication device has a GPS function, the "wireless communication device" is also used to indicate the ordinary wireless communication device and the "GPS wireless communication device" to clarify their versatility. In the description of the specific embodiment, the "normal mobile phone" is also used as an example of the "wireless communication device", and the "GPS mobile phone" is used as an example of the "GPS wireless communication device". Similarly, in the context of not needing to distinguish whether the mobile phone has a GPS function, the "mobile phone" is also used to indicate the ordinary mobile phone and the GPS mobile phone to clearly explain their versatility. It should be clearly stated that the use of the ordinary mobile phone and the GPS mobile phone are merely for convenience of explanation and brief description, and it is obvious that they do not implement various embodiments of the "wireless communication device" and "GPS wireless communication device" of the present invention. Form a limit.

According to this embodiment of the invention, in addition to the conventional functional device, the conventional mobile phone A further includes a cellular information recorder 30 for recording cell handover information. As mentioned above, the base station BS periodically broadcasts the cell identification signal in each cell, and the ordinary mobile phone A can collect the cell identification signal transmitted by the base station BS in each cell, and can detect the received signal. The strength of the signal. According to this embodiment of the invention, the cell information recorder 30 records the cell identification of the cell with the strongest signal strength and the time of entry into the cell as the cell handover information. The recorded cell handover information can be stored in the memory (not shown) of the ordinary mobile phone A. The ordinary mobile phone A also periodically transmits the cell handover information to the location service system 10 via a transceiver (not shown). Regarding the cell handover information, further explanation will be given below in connection with Figs. 2A to 2B.

In accordance with this embodiment of the invention, the GPS handset B also contains a cellular information recorder 30 that has the same functionality and operates in the same manner as the cellular information recorder 30 of the conventional handset A. Furthermore, the GPS mobile phone B further includes a GPS information recorder 40 for recording GPS information from GPS satellite signals. It is well known to those skilled in the art that, depending on the particular example, the GPS information may directly contain the geographic location of the GPS handset B or may be used to calculate the geographic location of the GPS handset B. The GPS mobile phone B stores the recorded cell handover information and GPS information in the memory. In a particular example, GPS handset B periodically transmits the cell handover information to location service system 10 via its own transceiver (not shown), and also periodically transmits the GPS information to location service system 10 via the transceiver.

The location service system 10 in accordance with this embodiment of the present invention includes recording devices 102a, 102b, a GPS information recorder 104, a comparator 106, and a location calculator 108.

The recording devices 102a, 102b of the location service system 10 are used to record the movement paths of the ordinary mobile phone A and the GPS mobile phone B in the cells of the cellular wireless communication network, such as cell handover information from the ordinary mobile phone A and the GPS mobile phone B.

The GPS information recorder 104 is used to record GPS information of the GPS wireless communication device (for example, the GPS mobile phone B).

According to this embodiment of the invention, the database system can be used to implement the recording device and the GPS information recorder. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the database 102a, 102b is used to record the cell handover information. Another database 104 is used to record the GPS information.

It should be noted that FIG. 1 shows two databases 102a and 102b for recording cell handover information from ordinary mobile phone A and cell handover information from GPS mobile phone B, and this is only for highlighting or emphasizing that the cell handover information system is from ordinary Mobile phone A and GPS mobile phone B. However, this is not necessary in a particular instance. It is well known to those skilled in the art that as long as the data structure of the database is designed to distinguish information representing different mobile phones, the cell handover information of the ordinary mobile phone A and the cell handover information of the GPS mobile phone B can be placed in the same database. .

The comparator 106 is for determining a GPS wireless communication device (for example, a GPS handset B) whose movement path matches the movement path of the wireless communication device (for example, the ordinary mobile phone A).

The position calculator 108 is for determining the position of the wireless communication device A based on the GPS information of the matched GPS wireless communication device B determined by the comparator 106.

According to a specific embodiment of the present invention, the comparator 106 determines that the GPS mobile phone B mode in which the moving path matches the moving path of the ordinary mobile phone A is found to be similar to the ordinary mobile phone A through the same cells, and the dwell time in the same cell is similar. And the moment when it leaves the last identical cell is the similar GPS mobile phone B.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, the moving path of the wireless communication device in the cells of the cellular wireless communication network is characterized in that the wireless communication device receives the cell handover according to the cell identification signal broadcast by the mobile base station. News. Therefore, it may be the moving path of the GPS wireless communication device in the cells of the cellular wireless communication network. Subsequently, by determining the GPS hand-held information that matches the cell handover information of the cell phone A, the comparator 106 determines that the same cell is passed through the same cell as the normal cell phone A, and the dwell time in the same cell is similar and leaves the cell. Finally, the same cell is at the same time as the GPS phone B.

The location calculator 108 can then calculate the location of the normal handset A based on the cell handover information of the normal handset A, the matched GPS radio communication device B, and the cell handover information of the GPS handset B.

In order to better illustrate the more detailed implementation of the comparator 106 of the present invention and the position calculator, cell transfer information associated with Figures 2A-2B is now further introduced.

2A-2B exemplarily illustrate one form of cell transfer information recorded by the cellular information recorder 30 in accordance with this embodiment of the present invention as a whole. FIG. 2A exemplarily shows a movement route of a user of the ordinary mobile phone A (or the GPS mobile phone B). Figure 2B shows the contents of the cell handover information sequentially recorded by the user's handset when passing the route shown in Figure 2A in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention. As shown, each column below the "time" in the header of Figure 2B represents the time value; each column below the "cell identification" in the header indicates the base with the strongest signal strength when the mobile phone enters at a certain moment. The cell identification number of the cell. For example, the data pair (192428, 25357) in column 1 of the table indicates that the handset enters a cell with a "25357" cell identification number at 19:24:28, and the data pair in column 2 (192603, 32853) indicates that the mobile phone enters a cell with a "32853" identification number at 19:26:03.

By simply processing the contents in the table of Fig. 2B, it is easy to derive a data pair (C _i , t _i ) of the dwell time of the mobile phone in a cell. For the sake of convenience, the identification number "25357" is replaced by a simplified identification "1", and the identification number "32853" is replaced by the identification "2", and then the mobile phone's dwell time t ₁ in the cell "1" is The time difference between when the mobile phone enters the cell "1" and when the mobile phone enters the next cell "2", that is, t ₁ =19:26:03-19:24:28. We can use the data pair (C _i , t _i ) to indicate the dwell time of the handset in a cell, where C _i identifies the cell and t _i identifies the dwell time of the handset in the cell C _i . In this example, the data pair (C ₁ , t ₁ ) indicates the dwell time of the handset in cell "1" t ₁ =19:26:03-19:24:28.

From the table of Figure 2B, the time at which the handset leaves a cell can be derived. The time the cell leaves the cell is the time the cell enters the next cell from the cell. For example, from the table of FIG. 2B, it can be determined that the time when the mobile phone leaves the cell "1" is 19:26:03, that is, the time when the mobile phone enters the cell "2".

In a similar manner, the dwell time (C _i , t _i ) of the handset at each base station C _i can be calculated. Therefore, the data pair order (C ₁ , t ₁ ), (C ₂ , t ₂ ), ... (C _K , t _K ) can be derived from the table of FIG. 2B, and the sequence indicates that the mobile phone is in the cell C ₁ The residence time is t ₁ , the residence time in cell C ₂ is t ₂ ..., and the residence time in cell C _K is t _K .

In summary, the data can be used to indicate the sequence and the time the phone leaves the last cell, that is,

S={T,(C ₁ ,t ₁ ),(C ₂ ,t ₂ ),...(C _K ,t _K )} (1)

Equation (1) is called the K-length cell transfer sequence, where C _i represents the cell (i = 1...K), t _i represents the residence time of the cell in cell C _i , and T is the cell leaving the cell C _K of the time, i.e. the cell phone to the next time point C _{K + 1} after cell C _K.

The cell transfer sequence S represents the residence time t _{1 of the} normal cell phone A in the cell C ₁ , and then it enters the next cell C ₂ , the dwell time in the cell C ₂ is t ₂ ..., in the cell C _K The residence time is t _K and leaves the cell C _K at time T.

From the above, the mobile path (the normal mobile phone A and the GPS mobile phone B) moving in the cellular network is characterized by: the cell handover information recorded by the mobile phone according to the cell identification signal broadcast by the base station cell, Including the time when the mobile phone enters each cell; it may also be characterized by the order in which the data pairs (C _i , t _i ) of the dwell time of the mobile phone in each cell C _i are sequentially formed; and its characteristics further It may be: the cell transfer order shown by the formula (1).

Obviously, the cell handover information or cell handover sequence of the mobile phone is characterized not only by the cells (C ₁ , C ₂ , ... C _K ) that the mobile phone passes, but also by the moving speed of the mobile phone - in general, time t _i shorter the handset moving speed of the cells C _i in the faster; smaller average T _i to t _K is the cell _{C 1, C 2, ... C} K are the average speed will be faster.

Refer now to Figure 3 below. Figure 3 is a schematic representation of the movement path of different wireless communication devices in the cellular network. The moving path of the ordinary mobile phone A and the GPS mobile phone B1 and B2 moving in the cellular wireless communication network in a specific time period is shown in the upper right corner of FIG. 3, wherein the dotted arrows 301, 302, and 303 respectively represent the GPS mobile phone B1 and the GPS mobile phone B2. The mobile path of ordinary mobile phone A. The dashed circle in the illustration represents a base cell, wherein eight cells are shown in the figure: cell 1, cell 2, ... cell 8. As shown in the figure, the cell line cells 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9 through which the mobile path of the GPS handset B1 passes; the cell line cells through which the mobile path 302 of the GPS handset B2 passes 9, 5, 6, 7, 8; and the cell line cells 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 passed by the mobile path 303 of the ordinary mobile phone A.

The above-mentioned moving paths are obtained from the cell handover information recorded by the GPS mobile phones B1 and B2 and the cellular information recorder 30 of the ordinary mobile phone A, as mentioned above. The dwell time in each cell can also be obtained from the cell transfer information, as shown in the table at the lower left corner of Figure 3, where the three data pairs in column 2 of the table represent the GPS handsets B1 and B2, respectively. And the corresponding residence time of ordinary mobile phone A in each cell. For example, the data pair (1, 20s) in column 2 indicates that GPS handset B1 resides in cell 1 for 20 seconds; the data pair (1, 23s) in column 3 indicates that normal handset A resides in cell 1 23 second……

It should be noted that for convenience of explanation, the data in the table in the lower left corner of FIG. 3 is processed data. For example, the actual cell identification code as shown in FIG. 2B is represented by the schematic number "1", " 2", ... "8" replaced. In addition, the unit preset of the dwell time can be regarded as seconds, so that the data pair (1, 23 s) can be expressed as (1, 23).

The circled number 1-22 in Fig. 3 indicates the geographical location identification on the moving paths of the GPS mobile phones B1, B2 and the ordinary mobile phone A. Specifically, in column 3 of the table in the lower left corner of FIG. 3, column 1 indicates that the GPS handset B1 sequentially passes through the geographic locations 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 14,15. Column 2, column 2, indicates that the GPS handset B2 sequentially passes through the geographic locations 15, 14, 13, 12, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22. According to the GPS information of the GPS mobile phones B1 and B2, the above geographical locations can be obtained.

In column 3 of the lower left corner of Figure 3, column 3 indicates that the ordinary mobile phone A passes through the geographic locations 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 in sequence. 21, 22, wherein certain geographic methods can be calculated in accordance with the method of the present invention. The following describes how this particular manner performs the calculations in conjunction with FIG.

Reference is made to Figure 4 below. 4 is a flow diagram of a particular embodiment of the present invention showing a method for determining the location of the wireless communication device in the wireless communication network.

4 shows ten steps 401-410, which are performed by the wireless communication device A, the GPS wireless communication device B, and the location service system 10, respectively. In FIG. 4, the ordinary mobile phone A and the GPS mobile phone B are still used to indicate the wireless communication device A and the GPS wireless communication device B, respectively. It should be noted that the above-described ten steps are intended to describe the various embodiments of the present invention as completely as possible. However, any specific embodiment does not need to include all such steps, and the indication of the steps does not mean The order of execution of these steps.

As shown, the operation of the conventional handset A involves steps 401 and 402. Specifically, in step 401, the cell information recorder 30 of the ordinary mobile phone A records the cell handover information. As described above with reference to Fig. 1, the cellular information recorder 30 of the conventional mobile phone A records the cell handover information based on the broadcast of the base station cells, and therefore is omitted for simplification.

In step 402, the ordinary mobile phone A periodically uploads the cell handover information to the location service system 10 via its transceiver.

If necessary, in step 406, the normal mobile phone A sends a location request to the location service system 10 to request the location service system 10 to determine the location of the normal handset A. Accordingly, in step 410, the normal mobile phone A receives the location information that the location service system 10 should request to return.

It should be noted that although the flow chart shows that the normal mobile phone A sends the location request for the ordinary mobile phone A and receives the location information returned by the location service system 10, such requirements may also be sent by other devices that can communicate with the location service system 10. According to another embodiment of the present invention, such a request may be transmitted by a wireless communication device of another user authorized by a user of the ordinary mobile phone A, and accordingly, the location information calculated by the location service system 10 will be transmitted back. To the wireless communication device of the user who sent the request.

As shown, GPS handset B performs steps 403 and 404. Specifically, in step 403, the cell information recorder 30 of the GPS handset B records the cell handover information in the same manner as the cell information recorder 30 of the normal handset A records the cell handover information. In addition, the GPS information recorder 40 of the GPS mobile phone B also records the GPS information from the GPS satellite signal. Those skilled in the art have learned that the GPS positioning information can be obtained from the GPS information, and the GPS positioning information can be calculated by the GPS module provided in the GPS mobile phone B, and can also be calculated by a server having a more powerful computing function. Since there have been many examples in the prior art, this is not a problem to be solved in the present invention, and is omitted for simplification.

In step 404, the GPS handset B periodically uploads the cell handover information and the GPS information to the location service system 10 via its transceiver.

It should be noted that although the flowchart uses a step 403 to indicate that the GPS mobile phone B records the cell handover information and the GPS information, it does not mean that the cell handover information and the GPS information must be simultaneously recorded; likewise, no complete synchronization operation is required. The cell handover information and the upload of the GPS information.

The operation of location service system 10 involves some or all of steps 402, 404, 405, 406, 407, 408, 409, and 410.

First, the recording device 102a of the location service system 10 records the movement path of the wireless communication device A in the cells of the cellular wireless communication network (402). This step corresponds to the step in which the mobile phone A uploads the cell handover information.

The recording devices 102b and 104 of the location service system 10 also record the mobile path and GPS information (404) of the GPS wireless communication device B in the cellular wireless communication network in the cells of the cellular wireless communication network. This step corresponds to the step of the GPS mobile phone B uploading the cell handover information and the GPS information.

The location service system 10 generates a mapping (405) between the cell handover information and the GPS information from the GPS wireless communication device B, as needed.

The above steps may be performed when the computing resource is idle, so that the processing time required to associate the cell handover information with the GPS information may be stored later. However, it should be noted that the location service system 10 may also extract the associated GPS information from the GPS information recorder 104 after finding the matching GPS wireless communication device B.

The location service system 10 receives the location requirements for the normal handset A from the normal handset A (406) as needed. This step corresponds to the step in which the normal mobile phone A sends the positioning request. As mentioned above, the positioning requirements for the ordinary mobile phone A can also be derived from the wireless communication device of another user authorized by the user of the ordinary mobile phone A. In fact, technically, even if the positioning service system 10 does not receive any request from the outside, it can independently locate the ordinary mobile phone A.

When it is required to locate the ordinary mobile phone A, the location service system 10 extracts the latest cell handover information (407) of the ordinary mobile phone A from the recording device 102a. As mentioned above, the cell handover information contains the cells entered by the ordinary mobile phone A and the entry time, and reflects the moving path and speed of the ordinary mobile phone A.

In order to determine the location of the normal mobile phone A, the comparator 106 of the location service system 10 first determines that the mobile phone's mobile path matches the normal mobile phone A's mobile path (408).

According to a specific embodiment of the present invention, the comparator 106 finds the GPS mobile phone passing through the same cells, and the cell handover information extracted from the recording device 102a according to the ordinary mobile phone A and the cell handover information recorded by the GPS mobile phone in the recording device 102b. Compared to the conventional mobile phone A, the residence time in the same cell is similar and the timing at which it leaves the last identical cell is similar.

According to a specific embodiment of the present invention, the location service system 10 derives a cell handover order from the cell handover information of the ordinary mobile phone A and the GPS mobile phone, and derives a cell handover order from the cell handover information of the GPS mobile phone, wherein the cell handover sequence has a corresponding The time the cell stays in the cell and the moment it leaves the last cell. The comparator 106 determines that the cell handover order of the GPS handset matches the cell handover order of the ordinary handset A.

According to a specific embodiment of the present invention, the comparator 106 finds a cell handover sequence S ₁ = {T ₁ , (C ₁ , t ₁ ), (C ₂ , t ₂ ), ... (C) with the ordinary mobile phone A. _K , t _K )}, the cell handover order of the GPS mobile phone S ₂ = {T ₂ , (C ₁ , t ₁ '), (C ₂ , t ₂ '), .... (C _K , t _K ')} meets the following matching conditions:

∣T ₁ -T ₂ ∣<ΔT and ∣t _i -t _i '∣<Δt,i=1,2,...,K

Where t _i and t _i ' are the residence times of the ordinary mobile phone A and the GPS mobile phone in the cell C _i respectively, and T ₁ and T ₂ are the time when the ordinary mobile phone A and the GPS mobile phone leave the last cell C _{K respectively} , and ΔT and Δt is a predetermined critical value, respectively.

The GPS mobile phone that satisfies the above conditions and matches the normal mobile phone A can be used by the location calculator of the location service system 10 to determine the location of the ordinary mobile phone A.

Referring now to Figure 3, a procedure for finding a matching GPS handset for a conventional handset A as shown in Figure 3 is illustrated. Set K=1, the critical value ΔT=5 and Δt=5, and at the moment when the ordinary mobile phone A just enters the cell 2 from the cell 1, it needs to locate the ordinary mobile phone A and the comparator 106, according to the ordinary mobile phone A in the lower left corner of FIG. The data is in the order and the cell handover order of the ordinary mobile phone A is S ₁ = {T ₁ , ( ₁ , ₂₃ )}, and the cell handover order S ₂ = {T ₂ , ( ₁ , 20)} of the GPS mobile phone is found to satisfy the match. Conditions (assuming that the actual values of T ₁ and T ₂ satisfy ∣ T _{1 -} T ₂ ∣ < 5, and the corresponding GPS handset is a GPS handset B1 moving along line 301).

The above matching conditions involve three important parameters: K, ΔT and Δt. The higher the degree of similarity between the normal mobile phone A and the GPS mobile phone B matching the target on the moving path, the larger K is; the higher the similarity between the ordinary mobile phone A and the target GPS mobile phone B at the moving speed, and The higher the accuracy of the position of the ordinary mobile phone A obtained from the matched GPS mobile phone B, the smaller the ΔT and Δt, but the lower the matching success rate and the higher the computing cost; conversely, the higher the K Small, the larger the ΔT and Δt, the lower the similarity between the moving path and the moving speed of the matched ordinary mobile phone A and the GPS mobile phone B, but the probability of successful matching at this time becomes larger. Based on the above understanding, those skilled in the art can set appropriate parameters based on specific situations, for example, according to the capacity of computing resources, the characteristics of regional roads, and the requirements for positioning accuracy.

After the comparator 106 determines the matched GPS handset, the location service system location calculator 108 calculates the current location of the normal handset A based on the GPS information of the GPS handset (409).

According to a specific embodiment of the present invention, as mentioned above, the comparator 106 determines that the matched GPS mobile phone is determined by finding that the cell handover sequence S ₂ of the GPS mobile phone matches the cell handover sequence S _{1 of the} ordinary mobile phone A. In the case, in order to obtain the position of the ordinary mobile phone A at the current time t, the location calculator 108 calculates the value of T ₂ + tT ₁ , and obtains the position of the GPS mobile phone at the time T ₂ + tT ₁ from the GPS information of the matched GPS mobile phone. And speculate that this location is the current location of the ordinary mobile phone A.

It should be appreciated, when the latest cell handover order ordinary handset A of S ₁ success cells GPS handset B of handover sequence S ₂ match, and when the ordinary handset A is located in the current cell and the GPS handset B is then positioned the cell lines the same tT _a current time based differential between the cells ₁ C _{K + 1,} when the ordinary handset a leaves the cell C _{K (K + 1} i.e. into the cell C) time points t and list T, the GPS mobile phone T ₂ The position of +tT ₁ is the GPS position at which the time interval tT ₁ will arrive after the GPS handset leaves the cell C _K . Since the speed of the ordinary mobile phone A is similar to the speed of the GPS mobile phone, and the time when they enter the current cell C _K+1 is similar, the GPS mobile phone can be presumed to be the ordinary mobile phone A at the GPS position of the T ₂ + tT ₁ Current location.

The program for finding the matching GPS mobile phone is continuously found for the ordinary mobile phone A exemplified in FIG. 3. When the ordinary mobile phone A just needs to locate the ordinary mobile phone A from the time when the cell 1 enters the cell 2, the ordinary mobile phone A is at the current time t. The location is the GPS position of the GPS handset B1 at time T ₂ +tT ₁ , and the location is determined by the specific GPS information, possibly in the position shown in FIG. 3 . And location . According to the method of the present invention, in the case shown in FIG. 3, most of the actual positions corresponding to the ordinary mobile phone A in the table in the lower left corner of FIG. 3 can be derived from the GPS position of the GPS mobile phone B1 or the GPS mobile phone B2.

According to a specific embodiment of the present invention, the position calculator 108 can calculate the normal mobile phone A and the GPS mobile phone B according to the cell handover order of the ordinary mobile phone A and the cell handover order of the matched GPS mobile phone B, in the case where higher precision is required. The speed difference at the time of movement, and the appropriate correction of the current position of the ordinary mobile phone A derived from the GPS position of the GPS mobile phone based on the speed difference. It is obvious to those skilled in the art that the above speed difference is mainly reflected in the difference in dwell time between the ordinary mobile phone A and the GPS mobile phone B in the same cell. The correction of the position derived from the GPS position of the GPS handset should be performed primarily based on the speed difference in the last cell of the cell handover sequence.

Finally, the location service system 10 returns the current location of the normal mobile phone A determined by the location calculator 108 based on the GPS information of the matched GPS mobile phone to the requesting party of the normal mobile phone A.

The invention can obtain high-precision positioning of the non-GPS wireless communication device by incorporating the mobile cellular information and the high-precision GPS positioning of the wireless communication device. According to the present invention, the cell communication information reflects the moving path and speed of the wireless communication device during movement, and the cell handover information is blocked from the visual path between the wireless communication device and a base station communication tower. The factual influence. Although the method of the present invention may have a positioning error in determining a cell junction, the range of the error may be defined. Even in the worst case where the wireless communication device simultaneously produces an error when both cells are determined before and after the movement passes, the radius of the overlapping coverage area of the two immediately adjacent base station cells is typically about 50 meters, thus the largest The discriminant error is only 50*2=100 meters, which is much smaller than the error of 300 meters in existing techniques such as the motion localization method (cell localization).

While the invention and its exemplary embodiments have been described with reference to the embodiments of the invention, it is understood that the invention The examples do not depart from the scope and use of the invention. For example, although in the description, the functional components, comparator 106, and location calculator 108 are deployed in the location service system 10, these functional components can also be deployed on the wireless communication device; The functional components of the service system 10 can also be deployed on other servers in the communication network or separately integrated into dedicated servers. All such changes and modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

From the above description, it is known to those skilled in the art that the present invention may be embodied as an apparatus, method, or computer program product. Therefore, the present invention may be embodied in the following forms, that is, it may be an overall hardware, a whole software (including firmware, resident software, microcode, etc.), or generally referred to as "circuit", "module" or " The combination of the software part and the hardware part of the system. Moreover, the invention can be embodied in the form of a computer program product embodied in any physical expression medium containing computer usable code.

Any combination of one or more computer-usable or computer-readable media can be used. The computer-usable or computer-readable media may be, but is not limited to, an electrical, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, device, device, or transmission medium. More specific examples of the computer readable media (non-exhaustive list) include the following: electrical connection of one or more wires, portable computer disk, hard disk, random access memory (RAM), Read-only memory (ROM), Erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), optical fiber, portable CD-ROM ( A compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical memory device, a transmission medium such as an Internet or an Internet, or a magnetic memory device. Note that the computer can use or computer readable media or even a program-printed paper or other suitable media, for example, by electronically scanning such paper or other media, electronically The program is then compiled, interpreted or processed in an appropriate manner and stored in the computer memory if necessary. In the context of this document, the computer-usable or computer-readable media may be any medium that contains, stores, communicates, transmits, or transmits the program for use by the instruction execution system, apparatus, or device, or with the instruction execution system, A device or device is associated. The computer usable medium can include a data signal that can be transmitted in the base frequency or as part of a carrier, and by which the computer can use the code. Any suitable medium may be used including, but not limited to, radio, wire, optical cable, radio frequency, and the like to transmit such computer usable code.

Computer code for performing the operations of the present invention can be written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including object oriented programming languages - such as Java, Smalltalk, C++, and the like, as well as conventional programming languages - for example "C" programming language or similar (close) programming language. The code can be executed entirely on the user's computer, partially executed on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partly on the remote computer, or at a distance The computer or server is fully executed. In the latter case, the remote computer can be connected to the user's computer via any type of network - including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or can be connected To an external computer (via the Internet, for example, using an Internet service provider).

In addition, each block of the flowchart and/or the block diagrams, and combinations of each block of the flowchart and/or block diagram of the present invention can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a general computer, a special purpose computer or other processor of a programmable data processing device, thereby generating a machine for causing the instructions executed by the computer or other programmable data processing device to be implemented in the flow chart. And/or the device/function of the device provided in the block diagram.

The computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer readable medium capable of instructing the computer or other programmable data processing device to operate in a particular manner, such that instructions stored in the computer readable medium produce manufactured articles, including An instruction device that implements the functions/jobs provided in the flowchart and/or the blocks of the block diagram.

The computer program instructions can also be loaded onto the computer or other programmable data processing device to cause the computer or other programmable data processing device to perform a series of operational steps to generate a computer-implemented program, and thus, on the computer or other The instructions executed on the programmable device provide a program that implements the functions/operations provided in the flowchart and/or the blocks of the block diagram.

The flowcharts and block diagrams in the figures illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of systems, methods, and computer program products that can be implemented in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block of the flowchart or block diagrams can represent a module, a program segment, or a portion of the code, which comprises one or more executable instructions for implementing the logic functions provided. It should be noted that in some instances, such as alternatives, the functions indicated in the blocks may occur in different orders as indicated in the drawings. For example, two connected blocks may in fact be executed substantially in parallel, and sometimes in reverse order, depending on the functionality involved. It should also be noted that each of the blocks of the flowcharts and/or the block diagrams and the blocks of the flowcharts and/or block diagrams can be implemented using a dedicated hardware system that performs the functions or operations provided, or It can be implemented using a combination of dedicated hardware and computer instructions.

100. . . Communication network system

A. . . Non-GPS wireless communication device; ordinary mobile phone

B. . . GPS-enabled wireless communication device; GPS mobile phone

BS. . . Wireless communication base station

10. . . Location service system

20. . . Mobile switching center

30. . . Cell information recorder

40. . . GPS information recorder

102a, 102b. . . Recording device

104. . . GPS information recorder; another database

106. . . Comparators

108. . . Location calculator

301. . . GPS mobile phone B1 moving path; line

302. . . GPS mobile phone B2 moving path

303. . . Ordinary mobile phone A mobile path

B1, B2. . . GPS mobile phone

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the aspects of the invention. Such identical or similar symbols in the drawings generally represent such identical or similar components or parts in the exemplary embodiments of the invention.

1 is a block diagram schematically showing a wireless communication network in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

2A to 2B are schematic diagrams showing a moving path of a wireless communication device and a method of representing the same;

Figure 3 is a schematic representation of the movement path of different wireless communication devices;

Figure 4 is a schematic representation of a flow chart of a method in accordance with this embodiment of the present invention.

A. . . Non-GPS wireless communication device; ordinary mobile phone

B. . . GPS-enabled wireless communication device; GPS mobile phone

10. . . Location service system

Claims (17)

A method for determining a location of a wireless communication device in a cellular communication network, comprising: recording the movement path of the wireless communication device in a cell of the cellular wireless communication network; recording in the cellular a mobile station and a GPS information of a GPS wireless communication device in the cellular network of the wireless communication network; and a GPS wireless communication device for determining a movement path and the movement path of the wireless communication device; The GPS information of the matched GPS wireless communication device determines the location of the wireless communication device. The method of claim 1, wherein the GPS wireless communication device that determines the movement path to match the movement path of the wireless communication device comprises: finding the same cell with the wireless communication device, and in the same cell. A GPS wireless communication device that has similar dwell time and is close to the last identical cell. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the moving path of the wireless communication device in the cell of the cellular wireless communication network is based on the cell broadcast by the mobile base station by the wireless communication device The cell handover information obtained by the identification signal includes the cell and the entry time entered by the wireless communication device; the moving path of the GPS wireless communication device in the cell of the cellular wireless communication network is the wireless communication by the GPS a cell handover information obtained by the device based on the cell identification signal broadcast by the mobile base station, wherein The cell and entry time entered by the GPS wireless communication device. The method of claim 3, wherein the finding is that the wireless communication device passes through the same cells, and the GPS wireless communication device has a similar dwell time in the same cell and a time when the cell leaves the last same cell. And including, according to the cell communication information of the wireless communication device and the GPS wireless communication device, finding a time when the same cell with the wireless communication device passes through the same cell, the dwell time in the same cell is similar, and the time is away from the last same cell. GPS wireless communication device. The method of claim 4, wherein the cell communication information of the wireless communication device and the GPS wireless communication device is used to find that the same cell in the same cell as the wireless communication device passes, and the dwell time is similar in the same cell. The GPS wireless communication device having a similar time from the last same cell further includes a cell handover sequence of the wireless communication device and the GPS wireless communication device derived from the cell communication information of the wireless communication device and the GPS wireless communication device, respectively. And determining a GPS wireless communication device in which the cell handover order matches the cell handover order of the wireless communication device, wherein the cell handover sequence includes a residence time of the corresponding wireless communication device or the GPS wireless communication device in the cell and leaving the last cell The moment. The method of claim 5, wherein the determining that the cell handover sequence matches the cell handover order of the wireless communication device comprises determining a cell handover sequence with the wireless communication device S ₁ = {T ₁ , (C ₁ , t ₁ ), (C ₂ , t ₂ ), ... (C _K , t _K )}, the cell handover sequence of the GPS wireless communication device is S ₂ = {T ₂ , (C ₁ , t ₁ '), (C ₂ , t ₂ '), ... (C _K , t _K ')} satisfy the following conditions: | T _{1 -} T ₂ | < ΔT and | t _{i -} t _i '|<Δt,i=1,2,...,K where t _i and t _i ' are the dwell times of the wireless communication device and the GPS wireless communication device in the cell C _i , respectively, T ₁ and T ₂ respectively The timing of the wireless communication device and the GPS wireless communication device leaving the last cell C _K , and ΔT and Δt are respectively predetermined threshold values. The method of claim 6, wherein the determining the location of the wireless communication device comprises obtaining the location of the wireless communication device at the current time t according to the GPS information of the matched GPS wireless communication device The GPS wireless communication device is at this position at time T ₂ + tT ₁ . The method of claim 7, further comprising calculating the wireless communication device and the matched GPS wireless communication device according to the cell handover sequence of the wireless communication device and the cell handover sequence of the matched GPS wireless communication device. The speed difference between the two, and correcting the position of the wireless communication device at the current time t based on the speed difference. A system for determining the location of a wireless communication device in a cellular wireless communication network, comprising: a recording device for recording cells of the wireless communication device and a GPS wireless communication device in the cellular wireless communication network a moving information path; a GPS information recorder for recording GPS information of the GPS wireless communication device; a comparator for determining a GPS wireless communication device whose moving path matches the moving path of the wireless communication device; a position calculator, The GPS information for the GPS wireless communication device based on the matching determines the location of the wireless communication device. The system of claim 9, wherein the comparator includes a method for finding that the same cell as the wireless communication device passes, the dwell time in the same cell is similar, and the time at which it leaves the last identical cell is similar. A device for a GPS wireless communication device. The system of claim 9 or 10, wherein the mobile communication path of the wireless communication device in the cell of the cellular wireless communication network is identified by the wireless communication device according to a cell broadcast by a mobile base station The cell handover information obtained by the signal, the cell and the entry time entered by the wireless communication device; the mobile path of the GPS wireless communication device in the cell of the cellular wireless communication network is determined by the GPS wireless communication device The cell handover information obtained by the cell identification signal broadcast by the mobile base station includes the cell and the input time entered by the GPS wireless communication device. The system of claim 11, wherein the GPS wireless communication device is configured to find a time when the same cell in the same cell is similar to the wireless communication device, and the dwell time is similar in the same cell and the time is away from the last same cell. The device, according to the cell communication information of the wireless communication device and the GPS wireless communication device, finds that the same cell with the wireless communication device passes through the same cell, and the dwell time in the same cell is similar and it leaves the last same cell. A GPS wireless communication device with similar timing. The system of claim 12, wherein the GPS wireless communication is found to be similar to the time when the wireless communication device passes through the same cells, the dwell time in the same cell is similar, and the time is away from the last identical cell. The device of the device further includes means for separately from the wireless communication device and the GPS wireless communication The cell handover information of the device for deriving the cell communication sequence of the wireless communication device and the GPS wireless communication device, and for determining that the cell handover sequence of the GPS wireless communication device matches the cell handover order of the wireless communication device The device, wherein the cell handover sequence includes a dwell time of the corresponding wireless communication device or GPS wireless communication device in the cell and a moment of leaving the last cell. The system of claim 13, wherein the determining that the cell handover sequence of the GPS wireless communication device matches the cell handover order of the wireless communication device comprises determining a cell handover sequence with the wireless communication device S ₁ = { T ₁ , (C ₁ , t ₁ ), (C ₂ , t ₂ ), ... (C _K , t _K )}, the cell handover order of the GPS wireless communication device is S ₂ = {T ₂ , ( C ₁ , t ₁ '), (C ₂ , t ₂ '), ... (C _K , t _K ')} satisfy the following conditions: | T _{1 -} T ₂ | < ΔT and | t _{i -} t _i '|<△t,i=1,2,...,K where t _i and t _i ' are the dwell times of the wireless communication device and the GPS wireless communication device in the cell C _i , respectively T ₁ and T ₂ The timings of the wireless communication device and the GPS wireless communication device leaving the last cell C _K are respectively determined, and ΔT and Δt are respectively predetermined threshold values. The system of claim 14, wherein the location calculator obtains the GPS wireless communication device when the wireless communication device is at the current time t according to the GPS information of the matched GPS wireless communication device. This position at time T ₂ + tT ₁ . The system of claim 15, wherein the location calculator further comprises the cell handover sequence according to the wireless communication device and the cell handover sequence of the matched GPS wireless communication device, for calculating the wireless communication device and the a device for matching the speed difference between GPS wireless communication devices, and according to the speed The degree difference corrects the position of the wireless communication device at the current time t. A computer program comprising a code device that, when executed on a computer, performs all of the steps in items 1 through 8 of the request.