Telecommunications – Radiotelephone system – Message storage or retrieval
Reexamination Certificate
2002-07-16
2004-01-20
Chin, Vivian (Department: 2682)
Telecommunications
Radiotelephone system
Message storage or retrieval
C455S412200, C455S414100, C455S456100, C455S456300
Reexamination Certificate
active
06681107
ABSTRACT:
INVENTION
The invention is essentially a system and method for accessing and leaving messages at physical coordinate way points. Using hand held, user supported, or car mounted wireless computing and/or Communication Devices, users can either leave or access messages which become available by virtue of the physical coordinate location of a wireless network Subscriber's Device.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
As our society continues to evolve and become more integrated with technology demand for wireless information increases constantly. Mobile phones, pagers, personal Communications Devices, wearable computers, handheld and car mounted GPS Devices, and wireless personal digital assistants (PDAs) are becoming commonplace. These Devices provide users with customizable content and specific information while they are on the move. Of particular utility, are positioning system Devices, which convey to a person their physical location at a point in time. The global positioning system (herein after GPS) allows persons to pinpoint their location at any point on the earth to within a few meters of precision. The backbone of the system is the NAVSTAR satellite constellation, comprised of 17 low orbit satellites that transmit synchronized signals, which among other things, are representative of time. Originally designated for military use in location and ordinance guidance systems, the system is now available for public and commercial use. Individuals can walk or drive around with handheld Devices costing only a few hundred dollars and know exactly where they are going, record coordinate way points, view their position in the context of maps, and record routes traveled. This has become a standard feature in luxury automobiles allowing drivers and passengers to view, in real or semi-real time, their location superimposed on a road map. The Devices work by reading triangulated signal information from three satellites to determine a precise location. The differences in arrival times of the time-synchronized signals allow the Device to calculate its position. The problem with GPS is that a separate receiver is needed to receive the satellites' signals and that the signal itself is very weak. Thus, any overhead cover, such as trees, tunnels, overpasses, etc. can prevent the receiver from receiving its signal.
Cellular and wireless networks are also capable of delivering this kind of position information to their subscribers. Through Triangulation, signal strength measurements, angle of incidence measurements, GPS over cellular, and combinations of these techniques, cellular networks can pinpoint the location of a driver to within reasonable levels of accuracy. Especially in densely populated areas, where there are many cellular towers within close proximity to one another, it is possible to determine, within tens of meters of accuracy, the location of a user of a cellular phone.
In 1998, the Federal Communications Commission (hereinafter FCC) mandated in its rules for commercial mobile radio service (herein after CMRS) providers that the providers upgrade their networks to facilitate emergency 911 or E911 service, requiring them not only to connect the calls to the appropriate operator and transmit the caller's phone number, but also to transmit position information on the origination point of the call. The Commission adopted E911 rules in accordance with an agreement between the wireless industry and state and local 911 officials to promote wireless technologies and transmissions that provide important information to enable the 911 Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) to promptly locate the 911 caller. The wireless E911 service was established to ensure that wireless phones automatically transmit the same vital data about a 911 caller's location as wireline phones. CMRS providers were expected to achieve transmission of the enhanced location information in two phases, with Phase I to begin Apr. 1, 1998. Accordingly, the E911 rules now provide that, for Phase I, carriers transmit a caller's Automatic Number Identification (ANI) and the location of the cell site or base station receiving a 911 call to the designated 911 PSAP beginning Apr. 1, 1998. These capabilities allow the PSAP attendant to call back if the 911 call is disconnected and to provide general location information to assist in the prompt dispatch of emergency personnel.
As for Phase II, carriers are to transmit more accurate Automatic Location Information (ALI) of a caller beginning Oct. 1, 2001, according to phased-in timetables for handset-based and network-based technologies. The specific requirements for Phase II state that covered carriers provide to the designated PSAP the location of a 911 call by longitude and latitude within a radius of no more than 125 meters in 67 percent of all cases, using Root Mean Square (RMS) methodology. The two prerequisites in the current rules for a carrier's obligation to implement either Phase I or Phase II are that: (1) the carrier has received a request for such service from a PSAP that has the capabilities of receiving and using the data, and (2) a mechanism for recovering the costs of the service is in place. The solution for the CMRS providers to Phase II can come from either the network or the handset; however, if the carriers choose the handset-based solution for Phase II deployment, they are required to begin selling and activating Phase II-compliant handsets no later than Mar. 1, 2001, without regard to the PSAP-related prerequisites. In November of 1999, the FCC amended its cost recovery rule to modify the requirement that a mechanism for cost recovery be in place before a carrier is obligated to provide E911 services. The FCC affirmed the requirement that a formal mechanism be in place for PSAP cost recovery, but eliminated as a barrier to E911 implementation, any prerequisite that carrier's E911 costs be covered by a mechanism.
Successful implementation of E911 will establish 911 as a universal number so that a user of a wireless phone could simply dial 911 regardless of whether they are in their home network or not. This will require the wireless provider to transmit simultaneous to the call, position information on the user to the 911 operator so that emergency personal can be dispatched to the location of the caller. Upgrading their networks to provide this service is a significant cost to both the wireless provider as well as the local government who employs the 911 operators and maintains the call receiving hardware. This has been a point of contention by the wireless service providers. They have been reluctant to adhere to mandates to provide E911 service without a cost recovery mechanism in place due to the fact that that providing this service costs them additional money, reducing their profit margin and does not generate any additional revenue. It would be desirable for the wireless providers to have a mechanism for generating a return on investment in the infrastructure required to provide E911 service. Such a mechanism would make compliance with the FCC Phase II mandate more attractive to CMRS providers and may provide a way for them to increase their profitability by expanding their commercial services to include location specific content.
Currently, there are three variants of technologies for determining the location of a network activated mobile phone. Broadly, these fall into the categories of network-implemented, handset-implemented, or hybrid. Network-based answers are usually based on a combination of systems called time of arrival (TOA), time difference of arrival (TDOA), and an amplitude difference based on angle of arrival (AD-AOA). Under TDOA, the time difference between a signal from a mobile phone arriving at three different base stations are measured, giving a calculation of the mobile's location. ADAOA calculates the angle of a signal arriving at two base stations, again yielding a location, and the combination of these two technologies yields accuracy in the region of 100 meters. All methods are currently in the ex
Jenkins Michael D.
Mancini Phillip D.
Chin Vivian
Persino Raymond B.
Ralabate Esq. James J.
Tucker Christopher
Xybernaut Corporation
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