HK1050288B - Method of generating control signals based on location of radio terminals - Google Patents

Description

Method for generating control signal based on position of wireless terminal

Technical Field

The present invention is directed, in general, to wireless communication systems and, in particular, to the generation of control signals when two or more wireless terminals are in particular locations.

Background

U.S. patent No. 5,638,423 teaches activating a wireless radio terminal, such as a cellular telephone, in response to a signal received from a nearby user card over a short-range RF (radio frequency) link. The wireless terminal is activated for use when the wireless terminal and the adjacent user card are within a predetermined distance from each other, which helps to prevent unauthorized use of the wireless terminal. The predetermined distance is set by a transceiving range between the proximity user card and the wireless terminal. One disadvantage of the method taught in U.S. patent No. 5,638,423, however, is that it relies on the signal amplitude of the low power, short range RF link between the wireless terminal and the nearby user card, which is inherently unreliable.

The wireless terminal sends an inquiry signal to the card via the low power, short range RF link. If the wireless terminal does not respond to the inquiry from the card, logic in the wireless terminal determines that the wireless terminal is separated from the card by a distance greater than a predetermined distance and the wireless terminal sends an invalid proximity message and remains locked. The method of activating a wireless terminal for use taught by U.S. patent No. 5,638,423 may be subject to false positives because of the varying signal loss due to the low power, short range RF link's range and reliability according to its environment.

The disclosed methods overcome one or more of the problems set forth above.

Summary of The Invention

The control signal is generated based on the location of one or more mobile radio terminals, which may be determined, for example, by a global positioning system or by cellular positioning in the case where the radio terminal is a cellular terminal. The method generally includes the steps of determining a location of a first mobile radio terminal, determining a location of a second mobile radio terminal, comparing the locations of the terminals, and generating a control signal based on the comparison. The control signal is generated if the first and second mobile radio terminals are within a specified distance of each other. Alternatively, the control signal is generated if the first and second mobile radio terminals are at least a certain distance from each other. In addition, the control signal is generated if it is determined that the first mobile radio terminal is at a first particular location and the second mobile radio terminal is spatially displaced from a second particular location of the first particular location. In addition, the control signal is generated if it is determined that the first and second mobile radio terminals are at the first and second specific locations at a certain time (or times).

In one form, the first mobile radio terminal is a mobile communications device and the second mobile radio terminal is a key which allows the mobile communications device to operate only when the key is within a certain distance from the mobile communications device. The control signal activates the mobile communication device for use if the key is determined to be within a predetermined distance range from the mobile communication device.

An alternate embodiment of the method includes the steps of determining the location of N mobile radio terminals (where N ≧ 2), comparing the location of the N mobile radio terminals to M different specified locations, where M ≦ N, and generating a control signal if at least one of the N mobile radio terminals determines that it is at one of the M different specified locations or that each of the N terminals is at a specified location.

In one form of this alternative embodiment, the step of determining the location of the N mobile radio terminals comprises continuously monitoring the location of the N mobile radio terminals via a central server remote from the N mobile radio terminals.

Another embodiment of the method includes the steps of the location server receiving an activation signal from the first mobile radio terminal and the location server sending a location query to the first and second mobile radio terminals. The first and second mobile radio terminals report their respective locations to a location server in response to the location query. The location server compares the received locations of the first and second mobile radio terminals and generates a control signal based on the comparison.

In one form of this further embodiment, the activation signal from the first mobile radio terminal includes the location of the first mobile radio terminal, wherein the location server need only send a location query to the second mobile radio terminal.

The location information of the first and second mobile radio terminals, or the location information of the N mobile radio terminals, may be provided by a GPS receiver in the mobile radio terminal, or for cellular terminals by cellular positioning.

One object of the disclosed method is to generate control signals when two or more mobile radio terminals are simultaneously at two or more pre-arranged locations. The positions may be relative or absolute to each other and the control signals may be used to enable or disable a wide variety of applications.

Other aspects, objects, and advantages of the disclosed methods can be obtained from a study of the application, the drawings, and the appended claims.

Brief Description of Drawings

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a cellular telephone for generating control signals based on location;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a smart card for generating control signals based on location;

FIG. 3 illustrates a flow chart for generating control signals based on the cellular telephone and smart card location;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a wireless communication system for generating control signals based on location;

fig. 5 illustrates a flow chart for generating a control signal based on the location of the first and second mobile radio terminals;

FIG. 6 illustrates a flow chart of an alternative form of generating a control signal based on the location of the first and second mobile radio terminals;

fig. 7 illustrates a flow chart of another form of generating control signals based on the location of the first and second mobile radio terminals;

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of an alternative form of the wireless communication system illustrated in FIG. 4;

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of a wireless communication system for generating control signals based on the location of N mobile radio terminals; and is

Fig. 10 is a block diagram of an alternative wireless communication system for generating control signals based on the location of N mobile radio terminals.

Detailed Description

The control signal may be generated when two or more mobile radio terminals are simultaneously in two or more particular locations, and alternatively, when two or more mobile radio terminals are simultaneously in two or more particular locations at a particular time (or times). The control signal may be used to enable or disable a wide variety of applications. In one form, each wireless terminal is equipped with a GPS (global positioning system) receiver for determining the location of the terminal. The control signal may be generated by any wireless terminal, or a location server remote from and in wireless communication with the wireless terminal.

In one application, a cellular telephone may be paired with a smart card carried by a user of the cellular telephone. The cellular phone only operates when the distance from the smart card is within a selected specific range. Thus, the smart card serves as a key to activate/unlock the cellular phone.

Fig. 1 is a block diagram of a cellular telephone, shown generally at 10, that includes a user interface 12 having a visual display 14, a keypad 16 and ringer 18 components, an audio I/O circuit 20 connected to a microphone 22 and a speaker 24, a microprocessor logic circuit 26 having a memory 28, a wide-range RF transceiver 30, a GPS receiver 32, and a short-range RF transceiver 34, all of which communicate and receive power from a battery 36, via a system bus 38.

Fig. 2 is a block diagram of a smart card, shown generally at 40, that includes microprocessor logic 42 having memory 44, a short-range RF transceiver 46, a GPS receiver 48, and an optional wide-range RF transceiver 50, all communicating and receiving power from a battery 52, via a system bus 54.

The GPS receivers 32 and 48 in the phone 10 and the smart card 40 are preferably switched on intermittently to detect the position of the respective terminals. The location of the phone 10 is stored in its memory 28 and similarly the location of the smart card 40 is stored in its memory 44.

The operation when a user wants to activate the phone 10 for use will now be described with reference to the flow of fig. 1-2 and 3. It will be appreciated that although operation is described with particular reference to the telephone 10 and smart card 40, the telephone 10 and smart card 40 may be any wireless radio terminal.

Once there is incoming or outgoing call activity in the phone 10 at block 54, the microprocessor logic 26 in the phone 10 queries the location of the phone 10 at block 56. In block 56, the microprocessor logic 26 may retrieve the last stored location of the telephone 10 from the memory 28 or activate the GPS receiver 32 for location verification. The microprocessor logic 26 of the phone then queries the location of the card 40 at box 58. Similarly, the card 40 may use the last location response stored in the memory 44, or may activate its GPS receiver 48 to perform a location check sum to determine the location response. The query from The phone 10 and The response from The card 40 are sent over a short range RF link, block 58, for example Bluetooth as described in "Bluetooth-The wireless radio interface for ad hoc, wireless connectivity" in Ericsson Review third of 1998, established by The short range RF transceivers 34 and 46 in The phone 10 and card 40, respectively.

If a timely response is received from the card 40 in block 60, the microprocessor logic 26 in the phone 10 compares the position of the phone 10 and the card 40 in block 62. If the position is determined to be within a specified range in block 64, the microprocessor logic 26 in the telephone 10 generates a control signal to activate the telephone 10 and allow the call to be processed in block 66. If the position is not within a specified range or distance in block 64, the microprocessor logic 26 in the phone 10 maintains the phone 10 in a locked or deactivated state in block 68. If a timely response is not received from the card 40 in block 60, the microprocessor logic 26 in the phone 10 in block 70 maintains the phone 10 in a locked or deactivated state. It will be appreciated that the decision to lock or unlock the phone 10 may also be made in the smart card 40. In this variation, the smart card 40 may send an authorization sequence over the short range RF link to the phone 10 to unlock or activate the phone 10 in block 66.

As shown in dashed lines in fig. 3, in an alternative form, after determining that the location of the phone 10 and card 40 is within a certain range in block 64, the current time, which is typically maintained by an internal clock (not shown) in the phone 10 or card 40, in block 71, is compared to a preselected time. The preselected time set by the user may be a particular point in time or range of times, such as 1:00PM to 4:00 PM. If the current time matches the preselected time in block 71, a control signal is generated in block 66 to activate the phone 10 and allow the call to be processed. If the current time does not match the preselected time, the phone 10 remains locked or deactivated in block 68. By adding a time constraint, a user such as a parent may limit the use of the phone 10 to a particular time of day, such as when the phone has been given to their child.

Whether the phone 10 and card 40 are within a certain range is determined by a location server 72 remote from the phone 10 and card 40 as shown in fig. 4. The location server 72 communicates with the phone 10 and card 40 via a base station 74 and a network 76, or may be physically located at the base station 74. The network 76 may be any type of network that allows voice or data communication between the base station 74 and the location server 72, such as, but not limited to, a PSTN (public switched telephone network), the Internet, etc. Communication between the phone 10/card 40 and the base station 74 takes place over a wide range RF link established by the RF transceivers 30 and 50 of the phone 10 and card 40, respectively, and an RF transceiver (not shown) in the base station 74. To support this wide range of communications, each of the telephone 10 and card 40 has a Mobile Identification Number (MIN) or Short Message Service (SMS) function.

In operation, as shown in the flow diagrams of fig. 1-2, 4 and 5, the telephone 10 (first terminal) sends an initiation signal, such as an activation request signal or a call setup signal, via the base station 74 and the network 76 to the location server 72 in block 78. For convenience, communications are generally described as being between the phone 10/card 40 and the location server 72, however, it is understood that all such communications are via the base station 74 and the network 76 (if the location server 72 is not in the base station 74). The initiation signal from the telephone 10 in block 78 also contains data indicating the location of the telephone 10, which may be obtained by performing a location check using the last location stored in the telephone memory 28 or activating the GPS receiver 32 of the telephone. Upon receiving the activation signal from the phone 10, the location server 72 sends a location query to the card 40 (second terminal) in block 80. The card 40 receives the location query and sends its location back to the location server 72 in block 82. Upon receiving a location query from the server 72, the location of the card 40 may be obtained by retrieving its last stored location from the memory 44 of the card 40 or by activating the GPS receiver 48 of the card for location verification. The location server 72 compares the locations received by the phone 10 and the card 40 in block 84. If the server 72 determines that the location of the telephone 10 and card 40 are within a certain range in block 86, the location server 72 generates a control signal in block 88, typically to activate the telephone 10 to allow it to process the call. If the location server 72 determines that the location of the phone 10 and card 40 are not within the specified range in block 86, the location server 72 does not generate control signals in block 90 and the locked/deactivated state of the phone 10 is maintained.

As shown in dashed lines in fig. 5, in an alternative form, after determining in block 86 that the location of the phone 10 and card 40 are within a specified range, the location server 72 determines in block 91 whether the current time, typically maintained by an internal clock (not shown) of the location server 72, matches a preselected time. The preselected time set by the user of the system may be a particular point in time or range of times, such as 1:00PM to 7:00 PM. If the current time matches the preselected time in block 91, the location server 72 generates a control signal in block 88. Otherwise, the location server 72 does not generate a control signal in block 90.

As shown in fig. 6, in an alternative embodiment, blocks 86, 88 and 90 have been replaced by blocks 86 ', 88 ' and 90 '. The steps provided in blocks 78, 80, 82 and 84 and alternatively block 91 may be performed in the same manner as previously described with reference to fig. 5. After comparing the locations of the phone 10 and the card 40 in block 84, the location server 72 in block 86' determines whether the locations of the phone 10 and the card 40 are a predetermined distance apart. If the location server 72 determines that the location of the phone 10 and the card 40 are at least a certain distance apart in block 86 ', the location server 72 generates a control signal in block 88'. However, if the location of the phone 10 and card 40 are not a specified distance apart, the location server 72 in block 90' does not generate a control signal.

Alternatively, the control signal may be generated according to the routine illustrated in FIG. 7. After the phone 10 or card 40 has been started in block 92, the location server 72 queries and receives the location of the phone 10 (first terminal) and the card 40 (second terminal) in block 96. The location server 72 then determines whether the phone 10 is in a first particular location in block 98. If not, the location server 72 does not generate a control signal in block 100 and exits the routine. If the phone 10 is in a first particular location, the location server 72 determines whether the card 40 is in a second particular location in block 102. If not, the location server 72 does not generate a control signal in block 104 and exits the routine. If the card 40 determines that it is in the second particular location, the location server 72 generates a control signal in block 106 and exits the routine. As previously described, the control signal may be used to enable or disable various applications.

In another form, as shown in dashed lines in fig. 7, after the location of the card 40 in block 102 is determined to be at the second particular location, the location server 72 in block 107 determines whether the current time, which is typically maintained by a clock (not shown) internal to the location server 72, matches the preselected time. If the current time matches the preselected time in block 107, the location server generates a control signal in block 106 and exits the routine. Otherwise, the location server 72 does not generate a control signal in block 110 and exits the routine.

Instead of requesting location information from each of the phone 10 and card 40, the location server 72 may be provided with location information by a cellular positioning system 108 that monitors the location of each of the wireless terminals (phone 10 and card 40) as shown in fig. 8, thereby alleviating the need for GPS receivers 32 and 48 in the phone 10 and card 40, respectively. However, this requires that each mobile terminal actively transmit signals via their RF transceiver so that their location can be monitored by the cellular positioning system 108. The telephone signals utilized by the cellular positioning system 108 may be communication signals or registration signals that are intermittently transmitted by the cellular telephone 10/card 40. The determined location may be stored in a memory (not shown) located in the cellular positioning system 108.

In each of the above methods using the location server 72, the steps are essentially the same except that the location server 72 queries the cellular location system 108 for the location of the respective wireless terminal (the phone 10 and the card 40). Upon receiving the location query from the location server 72, the cellular positioning system 108 may use the stored location of the respective wireless terminal, if applicable, or may request that the wireless terminal transmit a registration signal from which the cellular positioning system 108 will determine its location. Accordingly, it is not necessary to discuss each method of utilizing the cellular positioning system 108 in great detail.

Although the control signals have been described as being generated by the location server 72, it is understood that the location server 72 or any wireless terminal may generate the control signals. Upon determining that the criteria for generating control signals has been met, the location server 72 transmits to the respective wireless terminal an authorization sequence generated by the respective wireless terminal initiating the generation of control signals.

The location server 72 may monitor the location of a plurality of mobile wireless terminals a-N via the base stations 74 and the network 76 (if the location server 72 is not among the base stations 74), as shown in fig. 9. The location server 72 determines whether the N different mobile radio terminals are in M different locations, where N ≧ 2 and M ≦ N. The location server 72 determines whether the terminal is in M different locations and generates appropriate control signals. Alternatively, the location server 72 may generate control signals when the N mobile terminals are not in the M different locations.

For example, a security building may have M security stops. Each of the N security devices carries a wireless terminal that generates a location signal that can be monitored by the location server 72. The location server 72 generates control signals to automatically close the building when no security is on one or more posts and to unlock the building when all security is on their posts.

As shown in fig. 10, the mobile wireless terminals a-N may communicate directly with the location server 72 if the location server 72 contains a transceiver and is positioned within sufficient operating range to receive signals generated by the wireless mobile terminals a-N. In such an embodiment, a short-range RF link may be established between the mobile wireless terminals A-N and the location server 72. This may be the case if the location server 72 is located centrally in the building in the above example.

In other applications utilizing the above method, the operation of a marine or maritime phone may depend on a particular boat having a built-in smart card; the operation of the emergency transceiver may be limited to the area around the police car; operation of a police car or express delivery vehicle may fail when a transceiver carried by a police officer or express delivery personnel is far away from the police car or express delivery vehicle; and so on. In each application, mobile wireless terminals may exchange location information with each other via a short-range RF link, such as bluetooth, or by having each terminal have a Mobile Identification Number (MIN) or Short Message Service (SMS) function and access to a location server, or directly with each other via a wide-range RF link.

While the present invention has been described with particular reference to the accompanying drawings, it will be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims (17)

1. A method of generating a control signal, comprising:

determining a location of a first mobile radio terminal;

determining a location of a second mobile radio terminal, wherein the second mobile radio terminal allows operation of the first mobile radio terminal only when the first mobile radio terminal and the second mobile radio terminal are within or separated by a particular distance;

comparing the position of the first mobile radio terminal and the second mobile radio terminal; and

a control signal is generated in response to the comparison, wherein the control signal is an activation signal that activates the first mobile radio terminal if the first mobile radio terminal and the second mobile radio terminal are located within or separated by a specified distance.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the location of one of the terminals is fixed and the location of the other terminal is mobile.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the locations of both terminals are mobile.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the second mobile radio terminal comprises a smart card, the card acting as a key to selectively activate, deactivate, lock, and unlock the first mobile radio terminal.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining step comprises: the first mobile radio terminal retrieves the location of the first mobile radio terminal from its memory and the second mobile radio terminal retrieves the location of the second mobile radio terminal from its memory.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the steps of determining, comparing and generating is performed by the first mobile radio terminal.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the steps of determining, comparing and generating is performed by the second mobile radio terminal.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the steps of determining, comparing, and generating is performed by a location server.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the determining step comprises the location server monitoring the location of the first mobile radio terminal and the second mobile radio terminal.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the comparing step is performed at a location server.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the generating step comprises: if the first and second mobile radio terminals are located within or separated by a specified distance, a control signal is sent from the location server to the first mobile radio terminal to activate the first mobile radio terminal for use.

12. The method of claim 1, for use in a system comprising a location server, wherein the determining step comprises:

receiving, at a location server, an activation signal from a first mobile radio terminal, the activation signal including a location of the first mobile radio terminal;

sending, by the location server, a location query to the second mobile radio terminal; and

in response to the location query, the location of the second mobile radio terminal is reported by the second mobile radio terminal.

13. The method of claim 1, for use in a system comprising a location server, wherein the determining step comprises:

receiving an activation signal from the first mobile radio terminal at the location server;

sending, by the location server, a location query to the first mobile radio terminal and the second mobile radio terminal; and

in response to the location query, the respective locations of the first mobile radio terminal and the second mobile radio terminal are reported by the first mobile radio terminal and the second mobile radio terminal.

14. A method as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the step of comparing further comprises the step of comparing the current time with a preselected time.

15. The method of claim 12 or 13, wherein the first mobile radio terminal comprises a mobile communication device, and wherein the second mobile radio terminal comprises a smart card that can selectively activate, deactivate, lock, unlock the mobile communication device only when the mobile communication device and the smart card are located within a specified distance.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining step is performed using at least one of a global positioning system and a cellular positioning system.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the first mobile radio terminal and the second mobile radio terminal operate in a wireless communication system including a base station and a location server in communication therewith.