Using neighboring access points to provide client device location data

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9247394-B2
Application number	US-201213721716-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 20, 2012
Priority date	Dec 20, 2012
Publication date	Jan 26, 2016
Grant date	Jan 26, 2016

Abstract

Techniques are presented to determine a location of a wireless client device operating in a wireless local area network. A beacon report request action frame is sent to a wireless client device, where the request frame is configured to cause the wireless client device to transmit a broadcast probe request frame. A beacon report response message is received from the wireless client device and includes one or more probe response frames transmitted by one or more wireless access points that receive the broadcast probe request frame. The wireless client device location is determined based in part on signal strength information in the probe response frames sent by the one or more wireless access points and which signal strength information indicates the signal strength observed by the one or more wireless access points with respect to the broadcast probe request frame transmitted by the wireless client device.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method comprising:
providing access to a wireless local area network for a wireless client device using one of a plurality of wireless access points;
storing information indicating locations of at least one of the plurality of wireless access points;
sending a beacon report request action frame from a first access point among the plurality of access points to the wireless client device, the beacon report request action frame including a measurement type field and a measurement mode field, wherein the beacon report request action frame is configured to cause the wireless client device to transmit a broadcast probe request frame according to an IEEE 802.11 standard;
receiving at the first access point, from the wireless client device, a beacon report response message configured according to the measurement mode field, wherein the beacon report response message includes one or more probe response frames transmitted according to the IEEE 802.11 standard by one or more wireless access points that receive the broadcast probe request frame and which probe response frames are received by the wireless client device from the one or more wireless access points; and
evaluating the one or more probe response frames contained in the beacon report response message received from the wireless client device;
discarding signal strength information associated with a wireless access point for which no location information is stored; and
determining a location of the wireless client device based at least in part on signal strength information contained in the probe response frames sent by the one or more wireless access points and which signal strength information indicates the signal strength observed by the one or more wireless access points with respect to the broadcast probe request frame transmitted by the wireless client device.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein sending comprises sending the beacon report request action frame without any optional sub-elements such that upon receiving the beacon report request action frame, the wireless client device is configured to include in the beacon response report message the probe response frames that the wireless client device receives from the one or more wireless access points.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining comprises determining the location of the wireless client device based further on received signal strength information determined at the first access point from signals transmitted by the wireless client device to the first access point.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the one or more wireless access points are not part of the wireless local area network.

5. An apparatus comprising:
a network interface unit configured to provide access to a wireless local area network for a wireless client device;
a memory; and
a processor coupled to the network interface unit and the memory and configured to:
send a beacon report request action frame to the wireless client device, the beacon report request action frame including a measurement type field and a measurement mode field, wherein the beacon report request action frame is configured to cause the wireless client device to transmit a broadcast probe request frame to a plurality of wireless access points according to an IEEE 802.11 standard;
store information indicating locations of at least one of the plurality of wireless access points;
receive a beacon report response message configured according to the measurement mode field from the wireless client device, wherein the beacon report response message includes one or more probe response frames transmitted according to the IEEE 802.11 standard by one or more wireless access points that receive the broadcast probe request frame and which probe response frames are received by the wireless client device from the one or more wireless access points; and
evaluate the one or more probe response frames contained in the beacon report response message received from the wireless client device;
discard signal strength information received from a wireless access point for which no location information is stored; and
determine a location of the wireless client device based at least in part on signal strength information contained in the one or more probe response frames sent by the one or more wireless access points and which signal strength information indicates the signal strength observed by the one or more wireless access points with respect to the broadcast probe request frame transmitted by the wireless client device.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the processor is further configured to send the beacon report request action frame without any optional sub-elements such that upon receiving the beacon report request action frame, the wireless client device is configured to include the probe response frames that the wireless client device receives from the one or more wireless access points.

7. The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the processor is further configured to determine the location of the wireless client device based further on received signal strength information from signals transmitted by the wireless client device and received at the apparatus.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the processor is further configured to determine the location of the wireless client device based on received signal strength information determined at the one or more wireless access points that are not part of the wireless local area network.

9. A non-transitory computer-readable storage media encoded with software comprising computer executable instructions and when the software is executed operable to cause a processor to:
provide access to a wireless local area network for a wireless client device;
generate a beacon report request action frame to be sent to the wireless client device, the beacon report request action frame including a measurement type field and a measurement mode field, wherein the beacon report request action frame is configured to cause the wireless client device to transmit a broadcast probe request frame to a plurality of wireless access points according to an IEEE 802.11 standard;
store information indicating locations of at least one of the plurality of wireless access points;
receive a beacon report response message configured according to the measurement mode field from the wireless client device, wherein the beacon report response message includes one or more probe response frames transmitted according to the IEEE 802.11 standard by one or more wireless access points that receive the broadcast probe request frame and which probe response frames are received by the wireless client device from the one or more wireless access points; and
evaluate the probe response frames contained in the beacon report response message received from the wireless client device;
discard signal strength information associated with a wireless access point for which no location information is stored; and
determine a location of the wireless client device based at least in part on signal strength information contained in the one or more probe response frames sent by the one or more wireless access points and which signal strength information indicates the signal strength observed by the one or more wireless access points with respect to the broadcast probe request frame transmitted by the wireless client device.

10. The computer-readable storage media of claim 9 , wherein the instructions operable to cause the processor to send comprise instructions operable to cause the processor to send the beacon report request action frame without any optional sub-elements such that upon receiving the beacon report request action frame, the wireless client d

Assignees

• Cisco Tech Inc
• Cisco Tech Inc

Inventors

• V M Mubeesh Ali
• Balasubramanian Karthikeyan

Classifications

• H04W84/12

  WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks] · CPC title

• H04W64/00 Primary

  Locating users or terminals {or network equipment} for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management · CPC title

• G01S5/0252

  Radio frequency fingerprinting · CPC title

• H04W12/12

  Detection or prevention of fraud · CPC title

• H04W88/08

  Access point devices · CPC title