Systems and methods for tracking a location of a mobile device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11337031-B2
Application number	US-202016949259-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 22, 2020
Priority date	Oct 24, 2019
Publication date	May 17, 2022
Grant date	May 17, 2022

Abstract

A device determines, based on location verification data that has been received, that the device is indoors at a first geographic location. The device determines a base measured barometric pressure, and an initial floor that the device is located on in a structure that includes the first geographic location. The device determines an adjusted measured barometric pressure for a second geographic location based on a second measured barometric pressure for the second geographic location and one or more reference barometric pressures that are associated with a reference location. The device determines an altitude for the second geographic location based on the base measured barometric pressure and the adjusted measured barometric pressures. The device causes a server to predict a floor that the device is located on at the second geographic location and to provide floor data that identifies the floor to an interface that is accessible to the device.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method, comprising:
determining, by a device, a base measured barometric pressure at a first geographic location;
determining, by the device, an adjusted measured barometric pressure at a second geographic location,
wherein the adjusted measured barometric pressure is determined using a difference between a first reference barometric pressure at a reference location and a second reference barometric pressure at the reference location;

determining, by the device and based on the base measured barometric pressure and the adjusted measured barometric pressure, an altitude at the second geographic location; and
providing, by the device, reporting data to a server device for predicting a floor that the device is located on at the second geographic location,
wherein the reporting data includes information associated with the first geographic location, the second geographic location, the base measured barometric pressure, the adjusted measured barometric pressure, and the altitude at the second geographic location, and
wherein the floor is predicted based on the reporting data and other reporting data associated with one or more other devices that are in a threshold proximity of the device.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein one or more clustering techniques are used to predict the floor that the device is located on, the one or more clustering techniques including at least one of:
a location-based clustering technique,
a barometric-pressure-based clustering technique, or
an altitude-based clustering technique.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the one or more clustering techniques are used to process historical reporting data provided by the one or more other devices.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein providing the reporting data comprises:
providing, as part of the reporting data, sensor data that identifies a type of pressure sensor associated with the device,
wherein the server device assigns a confidence score to the reporting data based on the sensor data, and
wherein the server device predicts the floor that the device is located on based on the confidence score.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
obtaining information associated with one or more reference barometric pressures at the reference location at set time periods; and
wherein determining the adjusted measured barometric pressure at the second geographic location further includes:
determining the adjusted measured barometric pressure at the second geographic location using the information associated with the one or more reference barometric pressures at the reference location.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the altitude is determined by using a hypsometric formula to process the base measured barometric pressure and the adjusted measured barometric pressure.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the altitude is determined based on a first order derivative of a function that represents a set of measured barometric pressures measured over time.

8. A device, comprising:
one or more memories; and
one or more processors, communicatively coupled to the one or more memories, configured to:
determine a base measured barometric pressure at a first geographic location;
determine an adjusted measured barometric pressure at a second geographic location,
wherein the adjusted measured barometric pressure is determined using a difference between a first reference barometric pressure at a reference location and a second reference barometric pressure at the reference location;

determine based on the base measured barometric pressure and the adjusted measured barometric pressure, an altitude at the second geographic location; and
provide reporting data to a server device for predicting a floor that the device is located on at the second geographic location,
wherein the reporting data includes information associated with the first geographic location, the second geographic location, the base measured barometric pressure, the adjusted measured barometric pressure, and the altitude at the second geographic location, and
wherein the floor is predicted based on the reporting data and other reporting data associated with one or more other devices that are in a threshold proximity of the device.

9. The device of claim 8 , wherein one or more clustering techniques are used to predict the floor that the device is located on, the one or more clustering techniques including at least one of:
a location-based clustering technique,
a barometric-pressure-based clustering technique, or
an altitude-based clustering technique.

10. The device of claim 9 , wherein the one or more clustering techniques are used to process historical reporting data provided by the one or more other devices.

11. The device of claim 8 , wherein the one or more processors, when providing the reporting data, are configured to:
provide, as part of the reporting data, sensor data that identifies a type of pressure sensor associated with the device,
wherein the server device assigns a confidence score to the reporting data based on the sensor data, and
wherein the server device predicts the floor that the device is located on based on the confidence score.

12. The device of claim 8 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:
obtain information associated with one or more reference barometric pressures at the reference location at set time periods; and
wherein the one or more processors, when determining the adjusted measured barometric pressure at the second geographic location, are further configured to:
determine the adjusted measured barometric pressure at the second geographic location using the information associated with the one or more reference barometric pressures at the reference location.

13. The device of claim 8 , wherein the altitude is determined by using a hypsometric formula to process the base measured barometric pressure and the adjusted measured barometric pressure.

14. The device of claim 8 , wherein the altitude is determined based on a first order derivative of a function that represents a set of measured barometric pressures measured over time.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions, the instructions comprising:
one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device, cause the one or more processors to:
determine a base measured barometric pressure at a first geographic location;
determine an adjusted measured barometric pressure at a second geographic location,
wherein the adjusted measured barometric pressure is determined using a difference between a first reference barometric pressure at a reference location and a second reference barometric pressure at the reference location;

determine based on the base measured barometric pressure and the adjusted measured barometric pressure, an altitude at the second geographic location; and
provide reporting data to a server device for predicting a floor that the device is located on at the second geographic location,
wherein the reporting data includes information associated with the first geographic location, the second geographic location, the base measured barometric pressure, the adjusted measured barometric pressure, and the altitude at the second geographic location, and

wherein the floor is predicted based on the reporting data and other reporting data associated with one or more other devices that are in a threshold proximity of the device.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15 , wherein one or more clustering technique

Assignees

• Verizon Patent & Licensing Inc

Inventors

• Mallesan Saravanan
• Sardesai Ashish
• Tyagi Paritosh
• Otts Gina L
• Mcmanus Jean M
• Moline Corbin Pierce
• Mallya Sumanth S

Classifications

• H04W4/029

  Location-based management or tracking services · CPC title

• H04W4/025 Primary

  using location based information parameters · CPC title

• G01S5/02695

  Constraining the position to lie on a curve or surface · CPC title

• H04W4/02

  Services making use of location information · CPC title

• G01S5/0278

  involving statistical or probabilistic considerations (G01S5/0252, G01S5/0294 take precedence) · CPC title