Applications processor including a database system, for use in a wireless location system

A centralized database system operatively coupled to a wireless location system including one or more location processors, wherein the wireless location system communicates with a wireless communications system over an interface including a standard secure protocol, the centralized database system comprising:

• a computer;
• a database;
• and
• a plurality of software processes for use in managing the wireless location system, providing interfaces to external users and applications, and storing location records and configuration information wherein the processes include a 911 interface process that manages each interface between the wireless location system and E911 network elements;
• and wherein the E911 network elements include at least one of the following elements:
• tandem switches, selective routers, ALI databases and PSAPs;
• wherein the wireless location system supports command/response and informational messages communicated over said interface, wherein the messages aid in the detection, demodulation and triggering of wireless transmissions, and in passing location records to the wireless communications system;
• wherein the software processes include a Dispatcher process that receives location records from the location processors and forwards the location records to other processes;
• and wherein, when the Dispatch process forwards a location record to the 911 interface process, the 911 interface process makes a routing determination and forwards the location record over an appropriate interface to an appropriate E911 network element.

A centralized database system operatively coupled to a wireless location system including one or more location processors, wherein the wireless location system communicates with a wireless communications system over an interface including a standard secure protocol, the centralized database system comprising:

• a computer;
• a database;
• and
• a plurality of software processes for use in managing the wireless location system, providing interfaces to external users and applications, and storing location records and configuration information;
• wherein the wireless location system supports command/response and informational messages communicated over said interface, wherein the messages aid in the detection, demodulation and triggering of wireless transmissions, and in passing location records to the wireless communications system;
• wherein the processes include a tasking process that controls a tasking list within the wireless location system, wherein the tasking list comprises a list of trigger criteria that determines which wireless transmitters will be located, and wherein the tasking list contains a plurality of flags and fields for each of a plurality of trigger criteria;
• and
• wherein the centralized database system supports push modes of providing location records to applications, wherein applications requesting push mode receive a location record as soon as it is available from the centralized database system, and wherein the centralized database system supports pull modes of providing location records to applications, wherein applications requesting pull mode must send a query to the centralized database system regarding a particular wireless transmitter in order to receive a location record, wherein the query from the application can specify any one of:
• (a) the last location record, (b) a series of location records, and (c) all location records meeting specific criteria.

A centralized database system operatively coupled to a wireless location system including one or more location processors, wherein the wireless location system communicates with a wireless communications system over an interface including a standard secure protocol, the centralized database system comprising:

• a computer;
• a database;
• and
• a plurality of software processes for use in managing the wireless location system, providing interfaces to external users and applications, and storing location records and configuration information;
• wherein the wireless location system supports command/response and informational messages communicated over said interface, wherein the messages aid in the detection, demodulation and triggering of wireless transmissions, and in passing location records to the wireless communications system;
• wherein the processes include a 911 interface process that manages each interface between the wireless location system and E911 network elements;
• wherein the centralized database system includes a dynamic routing means, including a dynamic routing table, for determining, when the 911 interface process is connected to multiple E911 networks elements, to which E911 network element to provide a location record;
• and
• wherein, when the 911 interface process receives a “911” location record for a specific wireless transmitter, the 911 interface process converts latitude and longitude information into an address of a specific cell in the dynamic routing table, whereby the cell may be queried to determine routing instructions, including the identity of an E911 network element responsible for serving the geographic area in which the “911” call occurred.

A centralized database system operatively coupled to a wireless location system including one or more location processors, wherein the wireless location system communicates with a wireless communications system over an interface including a standard secure protocol, the centralized database system comprising:

• a computer;
• a database;
• and
• a plurality of software processes for use in managing the wireless location system, providing interfaces to external users and applications, and storing location records and configuration information;
• wherein the wireless location system supports command/response and informational messages communicated over said interface, wherein the messages aid in the detection, demodulation and triggering of wireless transmissions, and in passing location records to the wireless communications system;
• and
• wherein the processes include a Location Synchronization process running on each of a primary and redundant centralized database system, wherein the Location Synchronization process detects the need to synchronize location records between centralized database systems, and then creates records that list the location records that need to be transferred from one centralized database system to another centralized database system.

A centralized database system operatively coupled to a wireless location system including one or more location processors, wherein the wireless location system communicates with a wireless communications system over an interface including a standard secure protocol, the centralized database system comprising:

• a computer;
• a database;
• and
• a plurality of software processes for use in managing the wireless location system, providing interfaces to external users and applications, and storing location records and configuration information;
• wherein the wireless location system supports command/response and informational messages communicated over said interface, wherein the messages aid in the detection, demodulation and triggering of wireless transmissions, and in passing location records to the wireless communications system;
• wherein the centralized database system supports roaming between wireless location systems located in different geographic areas or operated by different wireless carriers, and wherein the centralized database system can exchange trigger criteria between a first wireless location system and a second wireless location system;
• wherein the centralized database system contains a table in which a list of valid home subscriber identities is maintained;
• and wherein, when a wireless transmitter meeting home criteria makes a transmission, the wireless location system checks trigger information in a signal of interest table (SOIT) and, if any trigger criterion is met, begins location processing for that transmission;
• and
• wherein, when a first wireless transmitter not meeting the home criterion makes a transmission in a second wireless location system with a second centralized database system and SOIT, the second wireless location system checks its SOIT for a trigger and if the transmission meets an existing criterion in the SOIT, the transmitter is located and a location record is forwarded from the second wireless location system to the centralized database system in the first wireless location system.

A centralized database system operatively coupled to a wireless location system including one or more location processors, wherein the wireless location system communicates with a wireless communications system over an interface including a standard secure protocol, the centralized database system comprising:

• a computer;
• a database;
• and
• a plurality of software processes for use in managing the wireless location system, providing interfaces to external users and applications, and storing location records and configuration information
• wherein the wireless location system supports command/response and informational messages communicated over said interface, wherein the messages aid in the detection, demodulation and triggering of wireless transmissions, and in passing location records to the wireless communications system;
• wherein the centralized database system supports roaming between wireless location systems located in different geographic areas or operated by different wireless carriers, and wherein the centralized database system can exchange trigger criteria between a first wireless location system and a second wireless location system;
• wherein the centralized database system contains a table in which a list of valid home subscriber identities is maintained;
• and wherein, when a wireless transmitter meeting home criteria makes a transmission, the wireless location system checks trigger information in a signal of interest table (SOIT) and, if any trigger criterion is met, begins location processing for that transmission;
• and
• wherein, when a first wireless transmitter not meeting the home criterion makes a transmission in a second wireless location system with a second centralized database system and SOIT, the second wireless location system checks its SOIT for a trigger and if the first wireless transmitter has a “roamer” entry in the SOIT indicating that the first wireless transmitter has registered in the second wireless location system but has no trigger criterion, then the transmission is not processed by the second wireless location system.

A centralized database system operatively coupled to a wireless location system including one or more location processors, wherein the wireless location system communicates with a wireless communications system over an interface including a standard secure protocol, the centralized database system comprising:

• a computer;
• a database;
• and
• a plurality of software processes for use in managing the wireless location system, providing interfaces to external users and applications, and storing location records and configuration information;
• wherein the wireless location system supports command/response and informational messages communicated over said interface, wherein the messages aid in the detection, demodulation and triggering of wireless transmissions, and in passing location records to the wireless communications system;
• wherein the messages supported by the wireless location system over the interface to the wireless communications system include a query for voice channel assignment, in which, when the wireless location system is triggered to perform location processing on a voice channel transmission, the wireless location system queries the wireless communications system to obtain the current voice channel assignment information for the particular transmitter for which the wireless location system has been triggered;
• and
• wherein, to ensure that the identity of the wireless transmitter and the voice channel assignment information are in synchronization, the wireless location system queries the voice channel assignment information for a particular wireless transmitter, receives the necessary RF data, then again queries the voice channel assignment information for that same wireless transmitter, and then verify that the status of the wireless transmitter did not change during the time in which the RF data was being collected by the wireless location system.

A centralized database system operatively coupled to a wireless location system including one or more location processors, wherein the wireless location system communicates with a wireless communications system over an interface including a standard secure protocol, the centralized database system comprising:

• a computer;
• a database;
• and
• a plurality of software processes for use in managing the wireless location system, providing interfaces to external users and applications, and storing location records and configuration information;
• wherein the wireless location system supports command/response and informational messages communicated over said interface, wherein the messages aid in the detection, demodulation and triggering of wireless transmissions, and in passing location records to the wireless communications system;
• and
• wherein the wireless location system uses the command/response message set to query the wireless communications system about the identity of a wireless transmitter that had been using a particular voice channel at a particular cell site at a particular time, whereby the wireless location system is enabled to first perform location processing on transmissions without knowing the identities, and then later to determine the identity of the wireless transmitters making the transmissions and append this information to the location record.

A centralized database system operatively coupled to a wireless location system including one or more location processors, wherein the wireless location system communicates with a wireless communications system over an interface including a standard secure protocol, the centralized database system comprising:

• a computer;
• a database;
• and
• a plurality of software processes for use in managing the wireless location system, providing interfaces to external users and applications, and storing location records and configuration information;
• wherein the wireless location system supports command/response and informational messages communicated over said interface, wherein the messages aid in the detection, demodulation and triggering of wireless transmissions, and in passing location records to the wireless communications system;
• wherein the centralized database system further comprises a State Table in which the wireless location system continuously maintains a copy of the state and status of wireless transmitters;
• wherein, for selected air interfaces, the wireless location system keeps identity information obtained from Access bursts in the control channel in the State Table, and this information is used for decoding masks used for voice channels;
• and
• wherein the selected air interfaces include a CDMA air interface protocol, and the wireless location system uses an Electronic Serial Number (ESN) of the wireless transmitter to, in part, determine a long code mask used in the coding of voice channel transmissions;
• wherein at least one of the LSN and long code mask is maintained in the State Table for entries in the Tasking List.