(12) United States Patent
`Grindeland
`
`(10) Patent No.:
`(45) Date of Patent:
`
`US 8,948,785 B1
`Feb. 3, 2015
`
`USOO8948785B1
`
`(54) METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR MANAGING
`MOBILE STATION LOCATION
`INFORMATION
`
`(75) Inventor: Jesse H. Grindeland, Olathe, KS (US)
`
`(*) Notice:
`
`(73) Assignee: Sprint Spectrum L.P., Overland Park,
`KS (US)
`Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this
`patent is extended or adjusted under 35
`U.S.C. 154(b) by 3258 days.
`(21) Appl. No.: 10/264,100
`5, 2001
`WOO1/33825 A1
`(22) Filed:
`Oct. 3, 2002
`9, 2002 ............... H04Q7/20
`WO O2/O76118
`(51) Int. Cl
`OTHER PUBLICATIONS
`H0474/02
`(2009.01)
`Mark Moeglein and Norman Krasner, "An Introduction to
`(52) U.S. Cl.
`SnapTrackTM Server-Aided GPS Technology”, pp. 1-11 (1998).
`USPC ..................................... 455,456,2,455,4141 gly increast. Pilliposition location
`(58) Fist of classign Searth, 1, 418, 456.1-456.6
`OpenMobile Alliance, “OpenMobile Alliance Short Paper', pp. 1-5.
`(Aug. 2002).
`455/414.1-414.4, 435.1, 433
`(Continued)
`See application file for complete search history.
`
`W- w
`
`OO ......
`
`2866 E: $38. f Verteuil ................. 3.
`7,103,368 B2* 9/2006 Teshima ...
`455,456.3
`2002/0016173 A1* 2/2002 Hunzinger ...
`455,456
`2002.0035605 A1* 3, 2002 McDowell et al. ..
`709,206
`2002fOO77897 A1* 6, 2002 Zellner et al. .....
`TO5/14
`2002/0080063 A1* 6/2002 Bloebaum et al.
`342,357.1
`2002/0164996 A1* 11/2002 Dorenbosch ......
`455,456
`2002/0168988 A1* 11, 2002 Younis .......
`455,456
`2002/0184418 A1* 12/2002 Blight ........
`710/100
`2002/0193121 A1* 12/2002 Nowak et al. .
`455,456
`2003/0060214 A1* 3/2003 Hendrey et al. ............... 455,456
`(Continued)
`
`FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS
`
`WO
`WO
`
`OUOS TO C al al X, pp. 1
`
`(56)
`
`References Cited
`
`U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
`
`4/1997 Loomis et al.
`5,625,668 A
`5,835,907 A 11/1998 Newman
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`5, 1999 Olds
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`7/2000 MarSolais
`6,163,701 A 12/2000 Saleh et al.
`6,185,427 B1
`2, 2001 Krasner et al.
`6,272,342 B1* 8/2001 Havinis et al. ................ 455,433
`6,311,069 B1 * 10/2001 Havinis et al. ............. 455,456.4
`6,321,092 B1
`1 1/2001 Fitch et al.
`6.421,002 B2
`7/2002 Krasner
`6.424,840 B1
`7/2002 Fitch et al.
`6,442,391 B1* 8/2002 Johansson et al. ......... 455,456.2
`6,609,064 B1* 8/2003 Dean ............
`TO1,213
`6,636,801 B2 * 10/2003 Curbow ...
`TO1/2O7
`6,757,545 B2* 6/2004 Nowak et al.
`455,456.2
`6,778,818 B1* 8/2004 O'Neil ....................... 455,404.1
`
`Primary Examiner — Khawar Iqbal
`
`ABSTRACT
`(57)
`Mobile stations initiate location determination sessions. Such
`as at predetermined time intervals, with a wireless telecom
`munications network. The wireless telecommunications net
`work obtains the locations of the mobile stations as a result of
`the location determination sessions, and the mobile station
`locations are stored in one or more location registers. The
`location information stored in the location register(s) may
`then be used by location-based applications. For example, an
`application may request that the wireless telecommunications
`network provide a specified service to the mobile stations that
`are located in a specified Zone according to the mobile station
`locations stored in the location register(s).
`15 Claims, 3 Drawing Sheets
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`Page 1 of 10
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`US 8,948,785 B1
`Page 2
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`(56)
`
`References Cited
`
`U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
`
`2003/0134646
`2003. O144008
`2003/O148771
`2003. O157942
`2004/OOO2343
`2004/OO77311
`2004/O185871
`2004/0203854
`2004/O2O3922
`2004/02096O2
`2005/0239476
`2006, OO19674
`
`455,456
`A1* 7, 2003 Forrester .................
`455,456
`A1* 7/2003 Rehkopf .
`455,456
`A1* 8, 2003 de Verteuil ..............
`455,456
`A1
`8/2003 Osmo .....................
`A1
`1/2004 Brauel et al.
`455,456.1
`A1* 4/2004 Riley ..........
`... 455.12.1
`455,456.
`A1* 9, 2004 Somani et al.
`:::
`A1* 10, 2004 Nowak .....
`455,456.1
`A1* 10, 2004 Hines et al. .
`554
`A1* 10/2004 Joyce et al. .
`455,456.
`A1* 10, 2005 Betrabet et al.
`... 455,456.1
`A1
`1/2006 McNew et al. .........
`
`
`
`OTHER PUBLICATIONS
`OpenGIS Consortium, “OGC's Open LS Initiative: Building a Foun
`dation for Location Services' pp. 1-2 (2002).
`Signal Soft Corporation, “Location Studio 2.0 Overview”, pp. 1-18
`(Jun. 2002).
`Location Inter-Operability Forum, “Mobile Location Protocol”. LIF
`TS 101 Specification, Version 3.0.0, pp. 1-92 (Jun. 6, 2002).
`Telecommunications Industry Association, "Position Determination
`Service Standard for Dual-Mode Spread Spectrum Systems.” TIA/
`EIA/IS-801, (Oct 15, 1999).
`Telecommunication Industry Association, “EnhancedWireless 9-1-1
`Phase 2", J-STD-036 (Jul 12, 2000).
`* cited by examiner
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`Page 2 of 10
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`1.
`METHOD AND SYSTEM FORMANAGING
`MOBILE STATION LOCATION
`INFORMATION
`
`BACKGROUND
`
`1. Field of the Invention
`The present invention relates to telecommunications and,
`more particularly, to methods and systems for managing
`mobile station location information.
`2. Description of Related Art
`Wireless telecommunications networks are increasingly
`using wireless location technologies to determine the loca
`tions of the mobile stations they serve. As a result, there is an
`increasing interest in developing location-based applications,
`i.e., applications that make use of mobile station location
`information. These location-based applications may simply
`track or monitor the locations of mobile stations, or they may
`provide information or services to mobile stations based on
`their locations. Such location-based applications may be
`internal to the wireless telecommunications network, or they
`may be third-party applications that obtain the locations of
`mobile stations from a location server or other entity in the
`wireless telecommunications network. For example, the
`Location Inter-operability Forum (LIF) has developed the
`“Mobile Location Protocol Specification' (version 3.0.0 pub
`lished on Jun. 6, 2002) to define an access method that allows
`applications to query a wireless network for location infor
`mation.
`One difficulty with expanding the use of location-based
`applications is that the process of obtaining mobile station
`locations for the applications may consume substantial net
`work resources. In particular, wireless telecommunications
`networks typically initiate location determinations in order to
`respond to requests for location information from location
`based applications. Thus, as the number of location-based
`applications requesting location information increases, and
`the number of mobile stations being located increases, the
`load on the wireless telecommunications network may cor
`respondingly increase Substantially.
`Accordingly, there is a need to obtain and provide mobile
`station location information more efficiently.
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`SUMMARY
`
`In a first principal aspect, an exemplary embodiment of the
`present invention provides a method of managing location
`information relating to a mobile station. The mobile station is
`able to send receive communications via a wireless telecom
`munications network. In accordance with the method, the
`mobile station initiates a location determination session with
`the wireless telecommunications network. The wireless tele
`communications network obtains a location of the mobile
`station as a result of the location determination session, and
`the location is stored in a location register of the wireless
`telecommunications network.
`In a second principal aspect, an exemplary embodiment of
`the present invention provides a method of managing location
`information relating to a plurality of mobile stations. The
`mobile stations initiate location determination sessions at
`predetermined time intervals. The locations of the mobile
`stations are obtained as a result of the location determination
`sessions, and the locations are stored in at least one location
`register.
`In a third principal aspect, an exemplary embodiment of
`the present invention provides a system for managing mobile
`stations location information. The system comprises a loca
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`US 8,948,785 B1
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`tion gateway, a position determining entity (PDE) communi
`catively coupled to the location gateway, and at least one
`location register. The location gateway receives requests from
`mobile stations to initiate location determination sessions. In
`response, the location gateway determines whether permis
`sions to locate the mobile stations have been obtained. The
`PDE obtains the locations of the mobile stations during the
`location determination sessions, and the at least one location
`register stores the locations.
`In a fourth principal aspect, an exemplary embodiment of
`the present invention provides a method of providing loca
`tion-based services in a wireless telecommunications net
`work serving a plurality of mobile stations that have mobile
`station locations stored in at least one location register. In
`accordance with the method, a request that a specified service
`be provided to mobile stations located in a specified Zone is
`received. Zone-located mobile stations are identified by
`determining which of the plurality of mobile stations are
`located in the specified Zone, according to the mobile station
`locations stored in the at least one register. The specified
`service is provided to at least one of the Zone-located mobile
`stations.
`
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
`
`FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram of a wireless telecom
`munications network, in accordance with an exemplary
`embodiment of the present invention;
`FIG. 2 is simplified call flow diagram, in accordance with
`an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and
`FIG. 3 is simplified call flow diagram, in accordance with
`an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
`
`DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY
`EMBODIMENTS
`
`The present invention, in its preferred embodiments, pro
`vides a wireless telecommunications network with location
`information in advance of specific requests from location
`based applications. In particular, the mobile stations them
`selves initiate location determination sessions with the wire
`less telecommunications network, as a result of which the
`wireless telecommunications network obtains the locations
`of the mobile stations. Preferably, the mobile stations initiate
`the location determination sessions at predetermined time
`intervals, such as every 15 minutes. However, the mobile
`stations may also be able to initiate location determination
`sessions at other times, i.e., "spontaneously.”
`The locations obtained in this way are stored in one or more
`location registers in the wireless telecommunications net
`work. Internal and third-party location-based applications
`may then use the location information stored in the location
`registers. In many cases, this stored location information is
`Sufficient for the location-based applications, such as being
`recent enough, so that the network will not need to make
`additional location determinations to respond to requests
`from location-bases applications. In this way, network
`resources may be conserved.
`1. Exemplary Architecture
`
`Referring to the drawings, FIG. 1 is a simplified block
`diagram of an exemplary wireless telecommunications net
`work 10 in which exemplary embodiments of the present
`invention may be employed. Wireless telecommunications
`network 10 includes a base transceiver station (BTS) 12 that
`provides a wireless coverage area within which BTS 12 may
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`3
`communicate with one or more mobile stations, such as
`mobile station 14, over an air interface. Mobile station 14 may
`be a wireless telephone, a wirelessly-equipped personal digi
`tal assistant (PDA), or other wireless communication device.
`The communications between BTS 12 and mobile station 14
`may occur in a digital format, such as CDMA, TDMA, GSM,
`or 802.11X, or they may occur in an analog format, Such as
`AMPS. A preferred wireless communications format is
`“CDMA 2000, such as described in EIA/TIA/IS-2000
`Series, Rev. A (published March 2000), which is incorporated
`herein by reference.
`BTS 12 is controlled by a base station controller (BSC) 16,
`which, in turn, is controlled by a mobile Switching center
`(MSC) 18. MSC 18 is connected to the public switched tele
`phone network (PSTN) 20 and may use an out-of-band sig
`naling system, Such as Signaling System 7 (SS7) to route calls
`through PSTN 20. MSC 18 is also able to signal to a home
`location register (HLR) 22 and to a service control point
`(SCP) 24. This signaling may occur via one or more signal
`transfer points (STPs), such as STP 26. The signaling
`between MSC 18 and HLR 22 may conform to IS-41 speci
`fications. A recent revision of the IS-41 specifications, ANSI/
`TIA/EIA-41-D-97, published in December 1997, is incorpo
`rated herein by reference. The signaling between MSC 18 and
`SCP 24 may conform to the specification “Wireless Intelli
`gent Network.” TIA/EIA/IS-771, published in July 1999,
`which is incorporated herein by reference. Other signaling
`protocols could be used, however. In this way, MSC 18, BSC
`16, and BTS 12 may connect incoming calls from PSTN 20,
`which calls may originate from calling parties using landline
`telephones, mobile stations, or other communication devices,
`to mobile station 14. Similarly, MSC 18, BSC 16, and BTS 12
`may connect calls originating from mobile station 14 to their
`destinations, via PSTN 20.
`Mobile station 14 is also able to access a packet-switched
`network 30. Packet-switched network 30 may include one or
`more local area networks (LANs) and/or one or more wide
`area network (WANs), such as the Internet. Packet-switched
`network 30 may route packets using a network protocol. Such
`as the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/
`IP).
`To provide access to packet-switched network 30, BSC 16
`may include a packet control function (PCF), and a packet
`data serving node (PDSN) 32 may connect BSC/PCF 16 to
`packet-switched network 30. The communications between
`BSC/PCF 16, MSC 18, and PDSN 32 may conform to “third
`generation” (3G) specifications. Examples of such 3G speci
`fications include “Wireless IP Network Standard, 3GPP2
`PS0001-A, dated Jul. 16, 2001 and "3GPP2Access Network
`Interfaces Interoperability Specification. 3GPP2 A.S0001
`A, dated June 2001, which are incorporated herein by refer
`ence. Briefly stated, under these 3G specifications, when
`mobile station 14 requests packet data service, BSC/PCF 16
`may engage in signaling with MSC 18 and with PDSN32 to
`authenticate and authorize mobile station 14 and to set up a
`data link with PDSN32. If this process is successful, a point
`to-point protocol (PPP) session is established between mobile
`Station 14 and PDSN 32. PDSN 32 then acts as a network
`access server, providing mobile station 14 access to packet
`switched network 30. In some cases, mobile station 14 may
`use the Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) for communi
`cations via packet-switched network 30, in which case the
`communications may occur through a WAP gateway 34.
`Packet-switched network 30 may also carry communica
`tions related to the process of obtaining and providing loca
`tion information relating to mobile stations, such as mobile
`station 14. In this regard, wireless telecommunications net
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`work 10 may include a position determination entity (PDE)
`40. As described in more detail below, PDE 40 may be able to
`communicate with mobile stations, such as mobile station 14,
`in location determination sessions carried over packet
`switched network 30, during which PDE 40 may determine
`the locations of the mobile stations. In some embodiments,
`PDF 40 may not be able to communicate using the TCP/IP
`packet format used in packet-switched network 30. Accord
`ingly, PDE 40 may be communicatively coupled to packet
`switched network 30 via an interface application 42 that
`converts between the communication formats used by PDE
`40 and packet-switched network 30.
`As described in more detail below, the mobile station loca
`tions obtained in location determination sessions may be
`stored in one or more of location register(s) 44, which may be
`communicatively coupled to packet-switched network 30. In
`an exemplary embodiment, location register(s) 44 comprise a
`plurality of regional location registers. In particular, each
`regional location register may be associated with a geo
`graphic region, such as a region of the United States, and
`stores the locations of mobile stations that are located in its
`associated geographic region.
`Wireless telecommunications network 10 may also include
`a location gateway 46, communicatively coupled to packet
`Switched network 30. Location gateway 46 may manage the
`processes of obtaining and utilizing mobile station location
`information in various ways. For example, location gateway
`46 may be involved in setting up location determination ses
`sions between mobile stations, such as mobile station 14, and
`PDE 40. For example, network 10 may be configured so that
`it does not locate a particular mobile station or provide loca
`tion-based services to the mobile station unless the mobile
`station "opts in by granting permission to be located and/or
`to receive specific location-based services. Accordingly, net
`work 10 may include a permissions database 48 that stores
`information regarding the permissions that network 10 has
`obtained. Preferably, permissions database 48 is external to
`locations gateway 46, or wholly or partially internal to loca
`tion gateway 46, so as to be accessible to location gateway 46.
`Before setting up a location determination session between a
`mobile station, such as mobile station 14, and PDE 40, loca
`tion gateway 46 may query permissions database 48 in order
`to check whether network 10 has obtained permission to
`locate the mobile station.
`Location gateway 46 may also serve as a gateway for
`applications seeking access to the location information con
`tained in location register(s) 44. Such location-based appli
`cations may include internal applications 50 and/or third
`party applications 52. Internal applications 50 may be treated
`by wireless telecommunications network 10 as “trusted
`applications and may access location gateway 46, Such as via
`packet-switched network 30, without network 10 applying
`security measures. In contrast, wireless telecommunications
`network 10 may require third-party applications 52 to access
`location gateway 46 via a wireless application manager 54.
`which, in turn, is communicatively coupled to location gate
`way 46 via packet-switched network30. As described in more
`detail below, wireless application manager 54 may use a
`security service to authenticate and authorize third-party
`applications 52 before allowing them access to location gate
`way 46.
`In addition to the foregoing, many other network elements
`may be communicatively coupled to packet-switched net
`work30 and may be able to communicate with mobile station
`14 via packet-switched network 30.
`2. Exemplary Operations
`
`Exemplary operations are described below with reference
`to the exemplary architecture of FIG. 1, with mobile station
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`US 8,948,785 B1
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`5
`14 as a representative of a plurality of mobile stations served
`by wireless telecommunications network 10. One exemplary
`operation relates to the process of obtaining the location of
`mobile stations, such as mobile station 14, and storing the
`location in location register(s) 44. As described in more detail
`below, the location of mobile station 14 may be obtained as a
`result of a location determination session. Another exemplary
`operation relates to the utilization of the location information
`stored in location register(s) 44, Such as by internal applica
`tions 50 and/or third-party applications 52.
`a. Location Determination Sessions
`In an exemplary embodiment, the process of obtaining the
`location of mobile station 14 begins when mobile station 14
`initiates a location determination session with wireless tele
`communications network 10. Mobile station 14 may initiate
`the location determination session autonomously. For
`example, mobile station 14 may be programmed to initiate a
`location determination session at predetermined time inter
`vals, such as every 15 minutes.
`Mobile station 14 may also initiate location determination
`sessions spontaneously. For example, an application running
`on mobile station 14 may cause it to initiate a location deter
`mination session at times other than the predetermined time
`intervals. Similarly, a network element in wireless telecom
`munications network 10. Such as location gateway 46, may
`send a send a signal to mobile station 14 to cause it to initiate
`a location determination session at times other than the pre
`determined time intervals.
`Wireless telecommunications network 10 obtains the loca
`tion of mobile station 14 as a result of the location determi
`nation session initiated by mobile station 14. The specific
`manner in which the network 10 obtains the location will, in
`general, depend on the type of location-determining tech
`nique that is used and the specifics of the information that is
`exchanged during the location determination session. The
`communications between mobile station 14 and wireless tele
`communications network 10 in the location determination
`session may conform to the specification “Position Determi
`nation Service Standard for Dual-Mode Spread Spectrum
`Systems.” TIA/EIA/IS-801, dated Oct. 15, 1999, which is
`incorporated herein by reference. Other protocols may be
`used, however.
`In a preferred embodiment, wireless assisted GPS is used
`to determine the location of mobile station 14. In the wireless
`assisted GPS approach, mobile station 14 includes a Global
`Positioning System (GPS) receiver but does not determine its
`location on its own. Instead, a location server in network 10,
`such as PDE 40, determines the location of mobile station 14,
`typically in terms of latitude and longitude, based at least in
`part on information provided by mobile station 14. For
`example, mobile station 14 may first send its approximation
`location, such as the cellor sector it is operating in, to PDE 40.
`Using this approximate location, PDE 40 determines what
`GPS satellites are in view and their Doppler offsets and then
`sends this information to mobile station 14 as “assistance
`data.” Mobile station 14 then uses this assistance data to
`acquire GPS signals from the GPS satellites and, thereby,
`obtains information, such as pseudoranges, from which its
`location may be calculated. Mobile station 14 sends the pseu
`doranges and/or other location-related information to PDE
`40. PDE 40 then calculates the location of mobile station 14,
`Such as in terms of latitude and longitude, based on the infor
`mation from mobile station 14 and, optionally, various cor
`rections. In this way, wireless telecommunications network
`10 obtains the location of mobile station 14 as a result of the
`location determination session.
`
`40
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`45
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`6
`However, other techniques for determining the location of
`mobile station 14 may be used. For example, mobile station
`14 may use its GPS receiver to determine its location without
`network assistance. In that case, mobile station 14 may sim
`ply send to PDE 40 or other network element its calculated
`location, e.g., its latitude and longitude, during the location
`determination session. Alternatively, location technologies
`that do not rely on GPS may be used to determine the location
`of mobile station 14.
`In a preferred approach, wireless assisted GPS is used, as
`described above. In addition, mobile station 14 preferably
`communicates with PDE 40 via packet-switched network30,
`So as to avoid additional loading of the circuit-switched side
`of wireless telecommunications network 10. Thus, mobile
`station 14 may communicate with PDE 40 using IS-801 mes
`sages that are encapsulated in TCP/IP packets.
`Mobile station 14 may initiate a location determination
`session by first initiating a TCP/IP session via PDSN 32.
`Mobile station 14 may then begin the location determination
`process by sending PDE 40 an IS-801 message encapsulated
`in TCP/IP packets. For example, mobile station 14 may
`include a Qualcomm gpsOne-enabled chipset that generates
`the IS-801 message. The encapsulated IS-801 message may
`traverse PDSN 32, WAP gateway 34, and packet-switched
`network 30 and may be reviewed by location gateway 46
`before reaching the PDE 40.
`Location gateway 46 unwraps the IS-801 message and
`queries permissions database 48 to determine whether the
`sender has given permission to be located in this manner. If
`the sender has not given permission, location gateway 46 may
`return an “ask” message to mobile station 14 that asks
`whether the user will give permission to being located. The
`user may respond to the 'ask” message, and mobile station 14
`may transmit the response to location gateway 46. In addition,
`subscribers may be able to use their mobile stations to turn
`their permissions on and off as desired at other times.
`If the appropriate permission is indicated, either in permis
`sions database 48 or in an affirmative response to the “ask”
`message, location gateway 46 encapsulates the IS-801 mes
`sage into TCP/IP packets and sends it to PDE40. If PDE 40 is
`unable to use the packet format used by packet-switched
`network 30, then interface application 42 may unwrap the
`IS-801 message from the TCP/IP packets and deliver the
`IS-801 message to PDE 40. Alternatively, location gateway
`46 may be able to send the IS-801 message to PDE 40 directly.
`After PDE 40 receives the initial IS-801 message, PDE 40
`and mobile station 14 may continue to communicate as
`needed in order to complete the location determination. As
`noted above, the messaging required for PDE 40 to obtain the
`location of mobile station 14 will, in general, depend on the
`type of location technology that is used.
`Once PDE 40 obtains the location of mobile station 14, the
`location, the mobile identification number (MIN) or other
`identifier of mobile station 14, and a timestamp are stored in
`location register(s)44. In a preferred approach, PDE 40 sends
`the location to mobile station 14, and mobile station 14 sends
`its location, Such as in an XML message, to the one of location
`register(s) 44 associated with its geographic region. Alterna
`tively, PDE 40 may send the location to location register(s) 44
`without going through mobile station 14.
`FIG. 2 is a simplified call flow diagram for the exemplary
`process described above. As indicated by step 100, mobile
`station 14 initiates a location determination session by trans
`mitting a session initiation message that is received by loca
`tion gateway 46. As noted above, the session initiation mes
`sage of step 100 is preferably carried over packet-switched
`network 30, such as in the form of an IS-801 message encap
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`7
`sulated in TCP/IP packets, and it may traverse various net
`work elements, such as PDSN 32 and WAP gateway 34,
`before reaching location gateway 46.
`In response to the message of step 100, location gateway 46
`may check the permissions stored in permissions database 48
`to determine whether a permission to locate mobile station 14
`has been obtained. For example, location gateway 46 may
`send permissions database 48 a query that identifies mobile
`station 14, such as by MIN, as indicated by step 102. Permis
`sions database 48 may return a response that includes the
`permissions, if any, associated with that MIN, as indicated by
`step 104. If the response of step 104 indicates an appropriate
`permission, then location gateway 46 forwards the session
`initiation message to PDE 40, as indicated by step 106. As
`noted above, the session initiation message of step 106 may
`reach PDE 40 via packet-switched network 30 and interface
`application 42.
`PDE 40 and mobile station 14 may then continue to
`exchange messages so that PDE 40 obtains the location of
`mobile station 14. In the wireless assisted GPS approach,
`PDE 40 may send assistance data to mobile station 14, as
`indicated by step 108. Using this assistance data, mobile
`station 14 acquires location information from GPS satellites,
`Such as pseudoranges, and sends the information to PDE 40.
`as indicated by step 110. PDE 40 then calculates the location
`of mobile station 14, Such as in latitude and longitude, and
`sends the calculated location to mobile station 14, as indi
`cated by step 112. Mobile station 14, in turn, sends location
`register(s) 44 a message that includes the calculated location
`of step 112, MIN or other identifier of mobile station 14, and
`a timestamp, as indicated by Step 114. More particularly,
`mobile station 14 may send the message of step 114 to the one
`of location register(s) 44 associated with the geographic
`region in which mobile station is presently located, which
`location register then stores the relevant information con
`tained in the message, e.g., the location, MIN, and timestamp.
`b. Utilization of Location Information
`One of the benefits of having the mobile stations initiate
`location determination sessions is that the mobile station
`locations are already stored in location register(s) 44 in
`advance of specific requests by location-based applications,
`Such as internal applications 50 and third-party applications
`52. Thus, when a location-based application needs mobile
`station locations, the application may, in many cases, use the
`information already stored in location register(s) 44, rather
`than requesting network 10 to use its resources to find mobile
`stations. More particularly, internal applications 50 may
`query location gateway 46, and third-party applications 52
`may query location gateway 46 via wireless application man
`ager 54, to make use of the location information stored in
`50
`location register(s) 44. In this way, the location information
`stored in location register(s) 44 may be used to Support broad
`casting and multicasting technologies.
`For example, the present invention may provide an appli
`cation programming interface (API) that location-based
`applications can use to target multiple mobile stations located
`within a specified Zone. Specifically, network 10 may support
`a Loc(Zone) API that location-based applications may use to
`request that a specified service be provided to multiple mobile
`stations located in a specified Zone, based on the locations
`stored in location register(s)44. The "Zone' may be defined in
`a number of different ways, such as by Zip code, postal code,
`city, or latitude and longitude ranges. In many cases, the
`specified service may involve delivery of a message to the
`mobile stations located in the Zone. The message may, for
`example, include text or graphics that a mobile station may be
`able to display or to save for late