# US 10,771,988 B2 · Signaling assessment of wireless receivers > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,771,988 B2 - Document ID: US10771988B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 16/116,471 - Filed: 2018-08-29 - Published: 2019-02-28 - Granted: 2020-09-08 - Earliest claimed: 2017-08-29 - Assignees: Cable Television Laboratories, Inc. - Applicants: Cable Television Laboratories, Inc. - Inventors: Daryl Malas; Joshua Redmore; Orne Brocaar - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10771988B2 ## CPC - H04W 24/02: Arrangements for optimising operational condition - H04L 43/10: Active monitoring, e.g. heartbeat, ping or trace-route - H04L 43/062: related to network traffic - H04W 24/10: Scheduling measurement reports {; Arrangements for measurement reports} - H04W 36/0058: {Transmission of hand-off measurement information, e.g. measurement reports} - H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72) - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) ## Abstract Assessing signaling characteristics for wireless receivers after being deployed within a service area is contemplated. The wireless receivers may be assessed for purposes of optimizing signaling interactions according to measurements generated during normal operating conditions and/or as a function of actual usage as opposed to estimates or other approximations generated prior to deployment. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method for assessing a plurality of wireless receivers after deployment within a service area, the method comprising: receiving first radio data from a first plurality of the plurality of wireless receivers, the first plurality receiving a first ping transmitted from a first wireless receiver of the plurality of wireless receivers, the first radio data representing first signaling characteristics of the first ping as individually received at the first plurality; receiving second radio data from a second plurality of the plurality of wireless receivers, the second plurality receiving a second ping transmitted from a second wireless receiver of the plurality of wireless receivers, the second radio data representing second signaling characteristics of the second ping as individually received at the second plurality; and associating the first radio data with the second radio data to generate a signaling map of the service area for the first and second plurality. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 further comprising receiving the first and second radio data within reporting messages communicated from the first and second plurality. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The method of claim 2 further comprising instructing the plurality of wireless receivers to transmit one of the reporting messages for each received one of the first and second pings. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The method of claim 3 further comprising instructing the plurality of wireless receivers to include within each reporting message an identifier of itself, an identifier of the wireless receiver transmitting the associated first and/or second ping and the associated first and/or second signaling characteristics. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The method of claim 4 further comprising instructing the plurality of wireless receivers to generate the first and/or second signaling characteristics as a function of measurements performed thereat for each received one of the first and second pings. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The method of claim 5 further comprising instructing the plurality of wireless receivers to include the following measurements as at least part of the first and/or second signaling characteristics: a frequency measurement; a spread factor measurement; a relative signal strength indicator (RSSI) measurement; a signal- to-noise ratio (SNR) measurement; a received signal code power (RSCP), a reference signal received quality (RSRQ) and/or a reference signal received power (RSRP). ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The method of claim 6 further comprising generating the signal map as a table sufficient for cross-referencing the first and second signaling characteristics of the first and second pings as received at each of the first and second plurality, and based on the first and second signaling characteristics, listing in the table each of the first and second plurality having overlapping signaling ranges. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The method of claim 7 further comprising associating location coordinates in the table with each of the first and second plurality, the location coordinates indicating placement of the associated first and second plurality within the service area. ### Claim 9 (depends on 7) The method of claim 7 further comprising: determining a handover request made by the first wireless receiver to handover a client associated therewith to another one of the plurality of wireless receivers; and selecting a target wireless receiver of the plurality of wireless receivers to take a handover of the client from the first wireless receiver, including selecting the target wireless receiver from one of the first and second plurality having overlapping signaling ranges with the first wireless receiver. ### Claim 10 (depends on 7) The method of claim 7 further comprising determining at least one of the second plurality to be have a non-overlapping signaling range relative to one of the first plurality such that at least one of the plurality of wireless receivers is incapable of receiving one of the first and second pings. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 further comprising instructing the plurality of wireless receivers when to listen for the first and second pings. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11 further comprising instructing the plurality of wireless receivers to switch from a normal mode to a listening mode when instructed to listen for the first and second pings, the normal mode corresponding with normal operation where the plurality of wireless receivers operate according to a dwell time less than a dwell time when operating according to the listing mode. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12 further comprising selecting the dwell time for the listening mode to be at least twice as great as a time frequency, the time frequency being a repeating interval for each of the plurality of wireless access points to independently transmit a beacon, the beacon having different signaling characteristics than the first and second pings. ### Claim 14 A method for assessing a plurality of wireless receivers after deployment within a service area, the method comprising: instructing the plurality of wireless receivers to individually transmit a test signal such that a plurality of test signals are broadcasted across the service area; receiving radio data from the plurality of wireless receivers, the radio data representing signaling characteristics associated with the plurality of test signals as individually received at the plurality of wireless receivers; and processing the radio data to generate a signaling map of the service area, the signaling map defining an interrelationship of the signaling characteristics sufficient to facilitate optimizing wireless signaling within the service area according to usage data collected after deployment of the wireless receivers. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14 further comprising: instructing the plurality of wireless receivers to transmit the test signals independently of signaling exchanged with clients associated therewith or attempting to associate therewith such that the radio data represents signaling exchange independent of the clients; and instructing the plurality of wireless receivers to include the following measurements as at least part of the signaling characteristics: a frequency measurement; a spread factor measurement; a relative signal strength indicator (RSSI) measurement; a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) measurement; a received signal code power (RSCP), a reference signal received quality (RSRQ) and/or a reference signal received power (RSRP). ### Claim 16 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14 further comprising: determining a handover for a first wireless receiver of the plurality of wireless receivers, the handover resulting from the signaling characteristics associated with the first wireless receiver indicating a need to handover a client associated therewith to another one of the plurality of wireless receivers; and selecting a target wireless receiver of the plurality of wireless receivers to take a handover of the client from the first wireless receiver based on the signaling characteristics within the signaling map. ### Claim 17 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14 further comprising processing the signaling characteristics to determine: one or more unnecessary receivers of the plurality of wireless receivers, the unnecessary receivers having signaling ranges overlapping with another one or more of the plurality of wireless receivers; handing over clients associated with the unnecessary receivers to the another one or more of the plurality of wireless receivers; and shutting down the unnecessary receivers after handing over the clients associated therewith. ### Claim 18 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14 further comprising processing the signaling characteristics to determine: one or more overpowered receivers of the plurality of wireless receivers, the overpowered receivers having signaling strength above a threshold; and reducing power of the overpowered receivers such that signaling with clients associated therewith are below the threshold. ### Claim 19 A system comprising: a plurality of wireless receivers for facilitating wireless signaling with one or more clients associated therewith, the clients having previously completed an authentication process for associating with one of the plurality of wireless receivers; a server in communication with the plurality of wireless receivers, the server executing an optimization process for optimizing wireless signaling within a service area of the plurality of wireless receivers after deployment of the plurality wireless receivers and after the clients have completed the authentication process, the optimization process being executed according to radio data transmitted from the plurality of wireless receivers following deployment; wherein the server includes a non-transitory computer-readable medium having a plurality of non-transitory instructions stored thereon and executable with an associated processor to facilitate the optimization process, the plurality of instructions being sufficient for: i) instructing the plurality of wireless receivers to individually transmit a ping such that a plurality of pings broadcast across the service area, including specifying signaling parameters to be used by all of the plurality wireless receivers when transmitting the ping; ii) receiving the radio data from the plurality of wireless receivers, the radio data representing signaling characteristics associated with the plurality of pings as individually received at the plurality of wireless receivers; and iii) processing the radio data to generate a signaling map of the service area, the signaling map defining an interrelationship of the signaling characteristics to facilitate optimizing wireless signaling within the service area. ### Claim 20 (depends on 19) The system of claim 19 wherein the plurality of wireless receivers are low power devices deployed as part of a low power wide area network (LPWAN) to statelessly forward the radio data to the server.