Maintaining antenna connectivity based on communicated geographic information

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10637559-B2
Application number	US-201816146578-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 28, 2018
Priority date	Feb 24, 2017
Publication date	Apr 28, 2020
Grant date	Apr 28, 2020

Abstract

Example methods, apparatus, systems, and articles of manufacture (e.g., physical storage media) to facilitate maintaining of antenna connectivity based on communicated geographic information are disclosed. An example method may include receiving, by a device, position information from a base station. The position information may include an altitude associated with the base station. The method may further include determining a positional difference between the device and the base station based at least on the position information. The method may further include configuring an antenna of the device based at least on the positional difference.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A device, comprising:
an antenna;
one or more processors; and
a non-transitory machine readable medium comprising instructions stored therein, which when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations, the operations comprising:
receiving, from a first cellular base station, first geographic information associated with the first cellular base station as part of one or more broadcast messages, wherein the one or more broadcast messages are receivable by user equipment within a receiving range of the first cellular base station, wherein a first portion of the first geographic information comprises position information and is received in a first type of broadcast message associated with a first periodicity, and wherein a second portion of the first geographic information is received in a second type of broadcast message associated with a second periodicity different from the first periodicity;
determining a first direction to point the antenna based on the first geographic information; and
configuring the antenna based on the first direction.

2. The device of claim 1 , wherein the position information is indicative of an altitude associated with the first cellular base station, and wherein the first direction is based at least on the position information.

3. The device of claim 1 , wherein the first geographic information comprises obstacle information and/or weather information, and wherein the first direction is based at least on the obstacle information and/or the weather information.

4. The device of claim 1 , wherein the operations further comprise receiving, from the first cellular base station, signal strength information indicative of signal strength statistics based on signals previously received by user equipment from the first cellular base station at different altitude levels and/or in different frequency bands, wherein the different altitude levels are relative to a reference level, and wherein the configuring is further based on the signal strength information.

5. The device of claim 1 , wherein the operations further comprise:
receiving, from the first cellular base station, second geographic information associated with a second cellular base station;
determining a second direction to point the antenna based at least on the second geographic information; and
configuring the antenna based at least on the second direction.

6. The device of claim 1 , wherein the operations further comprise:
receiving signals from each of a plurality of cellular base stations that includes the first cellular base station;
selecting one of the plurality of cellular base stations based at least on a signal strength associated with the received signals;
determining a second direction to point the antenna based at least on position information associated with the selected one of the plurality of cellular base stations; and
configuring the antenna to point at the selected one of the plurality of cellular base stations based at least on the second direction.

7. The device of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the one or more broadcast messages is a master information block (MIB) message or a system information block (SIB) message, wherein at least one of the one or more broadcast messages is encrypted, and wherein the device comprises an unmanned vehicle.

8. A method to facilitate network connectivity for a device, the method comprising:
receiving, by the device, position information associated with a first base station, wherein the position information comprises information indicative of an altitude associated with the first base station;
receiving, by the device from the first base station, signal strength information indicative of signal strength statistics based on signals previously received by user equipment from the first base station at different altitude levels and/or in different frequency bands, wherein the different altitude levels are relative to a reference level;
determining, by the device, a direction to point an antenna of the device based at least on the position information; and
configuring, by the device, the antenna based at least on the direction and the signal strength information.

9. The method of claim 8 , further comprising determining, by the device, a positional difference between the device and the first base station based at least on the position information, wherein the direction is based on the positional difference.

10. The method of claim 8 , further comprising:
receiving, by the device, an indication of a data channel;
accessing, by the device, the data channel based on the indication; and
retrieving, by the device, geographic information from the data channel,
wherein the direction is based on the position information and the geographic information.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the position information associated with the first base station and the indication are received as part of one or more broadcast messages from a second base station, and wherein the one or more broadcast messages are receivable by user equipment within a receiving range of the second base station.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the second base station comprises an eNodeB.

13. The method of claim 8 , wherein the configuring comprises:
selecting the antenna from among a plurality of antennas of the device; and/or
adjusting an orientation of the antenna based on the direction.

14. The method of claim 8 , further comprising receiving obstacle information associated with the first base station and/or weather information associated with the first base station, wherein the direction is further based on the obstacle information and/or the weather information.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein:
the position information is received in a first type of message associated with a first periodicity, and
the obstacle information and/or the weather information is received in a second type of message associated with a second periodicity different from the first periodicity.

16. A non-transitory machine readable storage medium including machine readable instructions which, when executed, cause one or more processors of a device to perform operations, wherein the operations comprise:
receiving geographic information associated with a base station as part of one or more broadcast messages, wherein the one or more broadcast messages are receivable by user equipment within a receiving range of the base station, wherein a first portion of the geographic information comprises position information and is received in a first type of broadcast message associated with a first periodicity, and wherein a second portion of the geographic information is received in a second type of broadcast message associated with a second periodicity different from the first periodicity;
determining a direction to point an antenna based on the geographic information; and
configuring the antenna based on the direction.

17. The non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 16 , wherein the position information is indicative of an altitude associated with the base station, and wherein the direction is based at least on the position information.

Assignees

• At & T Mobility Ii Llc

Inventors

• Peitzer Haywood S
• Mustafic Damir
• Wolters Ii James A
• Walsh Matthew
• Becker Thomas

Classifications

• H04B7/18506 Primary

  Communications with or from aircraft, i.e. aeronautical mobile service · CPC title

• H04W64/006

  with additional information processing, e.g. for direction or speed determination · CPC title

• H04W48/10

  using broadcasted information · CPC title

• H04B17/12

  of transmit antennas, e.g. of the amplitude or phase · CPC title

• H04B17/318

  Received signal strength · CPC title