US 2010/0246419 A1Published application

Method and system for collecting locationing information in a wireless local area network

AssigneeSymbol Technologies, Inc.

InventorsPuneet BATTA, Ram NAGARAJAN

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Abstract

A method and system are provided for determining estimated location of a wireless communication device (WCD) operating in a network. The network includes a first AP that is currently associated with, a second AP and a third AP. The first AP transmits a first RSSI data request message to the WCD at a first time over a radio channel. The first RSSI data request message includes a BSSID of the first AP. The WCD then transmits a first response message to the first AP, and in response the first AP transmits a first measured RSSI value to a trilateration engine (TE). At a second time different that the first time, the second AP can switch to the radio channel and transmit a second RSSI data request message that includes the BSSID of first AP to the WCD over the radio channel. In response, the WCD transmits a second response message to the second AP, and in response the second AP transmits a second measured RSSI value to the TE. A third AP performs a similar message exchange. This method and system can be used to collect RSSI information from the WCD at the APs without disrupting the connection of the WCD and the first AP that it is currently associated with, without disrupting the connections between the other second and third APs and any other WCDs that are currently communicating with the second and third APs, without requiring the WCD to send probe requests to the APs, and without the need to synchronize the APs.

Claims24

Dependent claims

A method for determining estimated location of a wireless communication device operating in a network comprising a first access point that the wireless communication device is currently associated with, a second access point, and a third access point, the method comprising:

transmitting, from the first access point to the wireless communication device at a first time over a radio channel, a first Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) data request message comprising a basic service set identifier (BSSID) of the first access point;
transmitting a first response message from the wireless communication device to the first access point;
and transmitting a first measured RSSI value from the first access point to a trilateration engine in response to the first response message;
transmitting a second RSSI data request message from the second access point to the wireless communication device over the radio channel at a second time different that the first time, wherein the second RSSI data request message comprises the BSSID of first access point;
transmitting a second response message from the wireless communication device to the second access point;
and transmitting a second measured RSSI value from the second access point to the trilateration engine in response to the second response message;
and
transmitting a third RSSI data request message from the third access point to the wireless communication device over the radio channel, wherein the third RSSI data request message comprises the BSSID of the first access point;
transmitting a third response message from the wireless communication device to the third access point, and transmitting a third measured RSSI value from the third access point to the trilateration engine in response to the third response message.

6 more elements

A wireless network for determining estimated location of a wireless communication device operating in the network, comprising:

a wireless communication device;
a network infrastructure computer comprising a trilateration engine;
a first access point that the wireless communication device is currently associated with, the first access point designed to:
transmit to the wireless communication device at a first time over a radio channel, a first Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) data request message comprising a basic service set identifier (BSSID) of the first access point;
receive a first response message transmitted from the wireless communication device;
determine a first measured RSSI value from the first response message;
and transmit a first measured RSSI value to the trilateration engine in response to the first response message;
a second access point designed to transmit a second RSSI data request message to the wireless communication device over the radio channel at a second time different that the first time, wherein the second RSSI data request message comprises the BSSID of first access point;
receive a second response message from the wireless communication device;
determine a second measured RSSI value from the second response message;
and transmit a second measured RSSI value to the trilateration engine in response to the second response message;
a third access point designed to transmit a third RSSI data request message to the wireless communication device over the radio channel, wherein the third RSSI data request message comprises the BSSID of the first access point;
receive a third response message from the wireless communication device, determine a third measured RSSI value from the third response message;
and transmit a third measured RSSI value to the trilateration engine in response to the third response message.

11 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.