Multiple evaluators for evaluation of a purality of conditions

A method for evaluating a particular condition of a plurality of conditions, wherein for substantially every one of said conditions there is a corresponding set of data for evaluating the condition, comprising:

• accessing a classifier for classifying the particular condition into one or more classes of a plurality of classes for said plurality of conditions, wherein said classifier uses said corresponding set of data for the conditions for classifying the conditions;
• selecting between two or more evaluators for evaluating the particular condition, wherein communication with at least one of said two or more evaluators includes a transmission using the Internet;
• wherein said step of selecting includes a substep of determining, for each of said evaluators, an indication as to whether information is available in said corresponding set of data for the particular condition for evaluating the particular condition by said evaluator;
• activating one or more of said evaluators, selected in said selecting step, for obtaining one or more evaluations of the particular condition, wherein a first of said one or more evaluators receives a portion of said corresponding set of data for the particular condition via the Internet;
• first obtaining one or more evaluator related preference data items for identifying a preference among said evaluations, wherein said preference data items are for said one or more classes in which the particular condition is classified;
• second obtaining resulting evaluation information for the particular condition using at least one of said evaluations of the particular condition and at least one of said preference data items;
• and
• transmitting said resulting evaluation information on the Internet to a predetermined destination.

A method for determining, from a plurality of conditions, first and second conditions, comprising:

• providing access to a plurality of evaluators for identifying said conditions, wherein each of said evaluators determine condition identifications when supplied with an available corresponding set of data for one or more of said conditions to be identified, and wherein for at least a first of said evaluators access is provided via the Internet;
• evaluating a performance of first and second of the evaluators so that a first indication of a likely effectiveness is associated with condition identifications from the first evaluator, and a second indication of a likely effectiveness is associated with condition identifications from the second evaluator;
• first selecting between the first and second evaluators for identifying the first condition, and contacting the first evaluator, via the Internet, for identifying the first condition;
• first obtaining from the first evaluator, a first condition identification via the Internet;
• first determining, using the first condition identification, first resulting information for identifying the first condition;
• wherein the step of first determining includes accessing the first indication of a likely effectiveness when generating the first resulting information;
• second selecting between the first and second evaluators for identifying the second condition, and contacting the second evaluator for identifying the second condition, the second evaluator contacted at a site different from a site contacted in said step of contacting the first evaluator;
• second obtaining, from the second evaluator, a second condition identification;
• second determining, using the second condition identification, second resulting information for identifying the second condition;
• wherein the step of second determining includes accessing the second indication of a likely effectiveness when generating the second resulting information.

A method for determining, from a plurality of conditions, a condition (CNDN) desired to be identified, wherein for substantially every one of said conditions there is a corresponding set of data for each of one or more of a plurality of estimators for identifying the condition, comprising:

• obtaining a plurality of classes for said plurality of conditions, wherein for each said class (C), at least most of said conditions therein are each identified by predetermined criteria, said predetermined criteria for identifying said corresponding set of data for the conditions in the class C;
• providing access to the plurality of estimators for determining said conditions when said estimators are supplied with said corresponding sets of data for said conditions;
• obtaining a plurality of data item collections, wherein for each of said estimators and each of more than one of said conditions, there is one of said data item collections having:
• (a1) a representation of the condition, and
• (a2) a representation of a data set for identifying said condition of (a1);
• (a3) an estimate of said condition generated by said estimator when said representation of (a2) is input to said estimator;
• activating a first of said estimators with said corresponding set of data for said condition CNDN for determining a first estimate for identifying said condition CNDN;
• selecting one or more of said data item collections, wherein for each of said selected data item collections, said estimate of (a3):
• (i) was generated by said first estimator, and (ii) has a determined relationship to said first estimate that is determined to be satisfied for selecting said one or more data item collections;
• determining a second estimate of said condition CNDN using said representations of(a1) from said selected data item collections.

An apparatus for locating mobile units, wherein wireless signal measurements are capable of being obtained using wireless transmissions between:

• (i) the mobile units and (ii) a plurality of terrestrial communication stations, each said communication station being for at least one of transmitting and receiving the wireless transmissions with the mobile units, comprising:
• a predetermined interface for accessing a plurality of estimators, each of the estimators for estimating locations of a plurality of said mobile units, wherein for at least a first and a second of said estimators, (a) the first estimator uses a corresponding input that includes data obtained from signals S received by one of the mobile units being located by the first estimator, wherein the signals S are received from a transmitting station that is not supported on the earth's surface and (b) the second estimator uses a second corresponding input for one of the mobile units being located by the second estimator, the second corresponding input includes data obtained from one of (b-1) and (b-2) following for determining a location estimate:
• (b-1) a time difference of arrival measurement of a signal between one of the mobile units and the communication stations, and (b-2) a recognition of a pattern in signals communicated between one of the mobile units and the communication stations;
• wherein a controller the predetermined interface outputs to the first estimator, at a first destination, first information for locating at least some of the mobile units, and outputs to the second estimator, at a second destination, second information for locating at least some of the mobile units:
• wherein at least one of:
• (c1) the first information is transmitted to the first destination via a transmission on a telecommunications network such that the first and second destinations are distributed thereon, and (c2) the second information is transmitted to the second destination via a transmission on a telecommunications network such that the first and second destinations are distributed thereon:
• one or more components for receiving location requests for the plurality of mobile units, and initiating contacts via the predetermined interface with one or more of the plurality of estimators for estimating mobile unit locations to satisfy the requests,

A method for locating a mobile unit (MU), wherein said mobile unit MU is one of a plurality of mobile units, and wherein corresponding wireless signal measurements are capable of being obtained using wireless transmissions between each of the plurality of mobile units and a plurality of terrestrial communication stations, each said communication station being for at least one of transmitting and receiving the wireless transmissions with the mobile units, comprising:

• first transmitting, via a network, a first activation request for receipt by a first predetermined destination of the network for activating a first location estimating method for estimating a location of the mobile unit MU,;
• second transmitting, via a network, a second activation request for receipt by a second predetermined destination, wherein the second activation request is for activating a second location estimating method, for estimating a same or different location of the mobile unit MU;
• wherein the first and second predetermined destinations are different from the mobile unit MU;
• wherein, for determining a location estimate, each of said first and second location estimating methods uses data obtained from a different one of (a) and (b) following:
• (a) signals S received by the mobile unit MU, the signals S received from a transmitting station that is not supported on the earth's surface, and
• (b) at least one of (i) and (ii) following:
• (i) a time difference of arrival measurement of signals between the mobile unit MU and at least two of the communication stations, wherein at least one of the two communication stations receives a wireless signal from the mobile unit MU, or
• (ii) wireless signals (WS') communicated between the communication stations and one or more of the mobile units different from MU;
• wherein when an instance of the data is obtained, at least in part, from the time difference of arrival measurement for determining a location of the mobile unit MU, there is a two-way communication between the mobile unit MU and at least one of the communication stations in order to provide the instance of the data to a corresponding one of first and second location estimating methods;
• wherein when an instance of the data is obtained, at least in part, from an instance of the wireless signals WS, a corresponding one of first and second location estimating methods uses location dependent characteristics of the wireless signals WS to determine a correspondence between:
• (1) characteristics of the wireless signals transmitted between the mobile unit MU, and one or more of the communication stations, and (2) a geographical location of the mobile unit MU;
• wherein when activated for locating MU1, each of the first and second location estimating methods performs at least one corresponding geographical location determining computation for locating MU, wherein the corresponding computations are performed at network sites distributed from one another.

A method for locating a mobile unit MU, wherein said mobile unit MU is one of a plurality of mobile units, and corresponding wireless signal measurements are capable of being obtained using wireless transmissions between each of the plurality mobile units and a plurality of communication stations residing on a surface of the earth, each said communication station being for at least one of transmitting and receiving the wireless transmissions with the mobile units, comprising:

• selecting between at least two or more location estimating methods for estimating a location of the mobile unit MU, wherein each of first and second of the location estimating methods is dependent upon corresponding data provided by at least one of (a) through (d) following:
• (a) signals received by the mobile unit MU from a transmitting station not supported on the earth's surface,
• (b) a time difference of arrival measurement of a wireless signals between the mobile unit MU and the communication stations,
• (c) an angle of arrival measurement of a signal between the mobile unit MU and at least one of the communication stations, and
• (d) wireless signals (WS) transmitted between the communication stations and one or more of the mobile units different from MU;
• wherein said step of selecting includes a substep of determining, for at least one of said location estimating methods, an indication as to whether information is available for estimating a location of the mobile unit MU;
• requesting activation of one or more of said first and second location estimating methods, selected in said selecting step, for estimating one or more locations of said mobile unit MU;
• wherein a preference is given to locating the mobile unit MU by one of the location estimating methods:
• (i) that uses data obtained from available wireless signals received by the mobile unit MU from a transmitting station not supported on the earth's surface, over (ii) locating the mobile unit MU by one of the location estimating methods that is more dependent upon the corresponding data available for locating the mobile unit MU from (b) through (d) hereinabove;
• wherein when the corresponding data for a selected location estimating method (LEM) of the first and second location estimating methods is provided, at least in part, by an instance of (c) hereinabove, there is a two-way communication between the mobile unit MU and at least one of the communication stations in order to provide the corresponding data to the location estimating method LEM:
• wherein when the corresponding data for a selected location estimating method (LSMws) of the first and second location estimating methods includes an instance of the wireless signals WS, the selected location estimating method LSMws uses location dependent characteristics of the wireless signals WS to determine a correspondence between:
• (1) characteristics of the wireless signals transmitted between the mobile unit MU, and one or more of the communication stations, and (2) a geographical location of the mobile unit MU.

A method for locating mobile units MU1 and MU2, wherein said mobile units MU1 and MU2 are each from a plurality of mobile units, and wireless signal measurements are capable of being obtained using wireless transmissions between each of the plurality of mobile units, and a plurality of communication stations supported on the surface of the earth, each said communication station being for at least transmitting some of the wireless transmissions to the mobile units for determining geographic locations of the mobile units, comprising:

• transmitting, to a first destination, a first request for activating a first location estimator for determining a first location estimate of the mobile unit MU1;
• wherein for determining the first location estimate, the first location estimator uses first data obtained from signals received by the mobile unit MU1 from a transmitting station not supported on the earth's surface;
• providing, to a second destination, a second request for activating of a second location estimator for determining a second location estimate of the mobile unit MU2 using second data obtained from location indicative data from one or more signals communicated between the mobile unit MU2 and one of the communication stations, wherein there is a two-way communication between the mobile unit MU2 and at least one of the communication stations in order to provide the second data to the second location estimator, the second data providing information indicative of a position of MU2 relative to at least one of the communication stations;
• wherein the first and second destinations are distributed from one another on a telecommunications network, wherein at least one of the first and second location estimates is transmitted on the telecommunications network to a predetermined site on the telecommunications network as a response to a corresponding one of the first and second requests;
• and
• wherein for locating at least one mobile unit (MUn) of the plurality of mobile units, a preference is given for:
• (i) determining a location of the mobile unit MUn using data (D) obtained from wireless signals received by the mobile unit MUn from a transmitting station not supported on the earth's surface, over (ii) determining a location of the mobile unit MUn using, instead of the data D, alternative available location indicative data obtained from one or more signals communicated between the mobile unit MUn and one of the communication stations, wherein there is a two-way communication between the mobile unit MUn and at least one of the communication stations in order to obtain the alternative location data, wherein the alternative location data provides information indicative of a position of MUn relative to at least one of the communication stations.