Message decoding for positioning

Abstract

To provide systems, devices, and methods for decoding an optimized message format utilizable for positioning.SOLUTION: Methods may include obtaining at least one encoded sample measurement. The at least one encoded sample measurement includes at maximum, two pieces of full identifier information of respective radio nodes, and a part of a respective full identifier information of the respective radio nodes, and includes at maximum, three pieces of partial identifier information, and at least one signal strength information of the respective radio nodes. The methods also may include resolving respective partial identifier information of the maximum of three pieces of partial identifier information of respective radio nodes to determine their respective full identifier information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The following disclosure relates to the field of positioning, and more particularly to systems, apparatus, and methods for decoding optimized message formats usable for (e.g., Wi-Fi) positioning of electronic devices, such as, for example, Internet of Things (IoT) devices. [Background technology]

[0002] Low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) technologies are a popular connectivity option, especially for some IoT solutions, due to their low cost and battery consumption. One challenge in many cases is limited network bandwidth, which limits the amount of data that can be transmitted between each device and a back-end server. For network positioning applications, bandwidth limitations on message size can significantly reduce positioning accuracy and availability, and in some cases may preclude the use of certain technologies due to a lack of critical data.

[0003] A specific example of an existing implementation is the Sigfox Atlas positioning service provided as a service by Sigfox®, such as its message protocol for data communication, which enables, for example, standard positioning messages that support (e.g., only) reporting two neighbor identifier information (e.g., medium access control (MAC) addresses) without accompanying signal strength measurements (e.g., received signal strength (RSS)). This can easily lead to inaccurate positioning results, and in the worst case, to a fallback to highly inaccurate cell positioning due to the inability to calculate any position information (e.g., location estimate) based on, for example, provided Wi-Fi samples. Additionally, the lack of RSS measurements precludes the possibility of using much more accurate positioning, such as Wi-Fi and / or indoor positioning methods. To give an example of the size of two MAC addresses, they are each encoded entirely into a byte array of six bytes (each octet). Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The inventors have recognised that it would be useful to enable a solution for cases where lossy coding could be used to allow more information to be included in such messages. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] According to a first exemplary aspect, a method is disclosed, the method comprising: - collecting at least one sample measurement including at least one of identifier information or signal strength information of a plurality of wireless nodes, wherein one or more signals transmitted by each wireless node are observable at a location where the device collects the at least one sample measurement; - encoding at least one sample measurement based on a condition: - enabling at least one encoded sample measurement (and / or provided message) to include up to two full identifiers of each wireless node; - enabling the encoded at least one sample measurement (and / or provided message) to include up to three partial identifier information, wherein the partial identifier information may include a portion of each full identifier information of each wireless node; and - encoding the at least one sample measurement (and / or the provided message) to include at least one signal strength information of each wireless node; - Providing at least one sample measurement (and / or message) that is encoded.

[0006] For example, the method may be performed and / or controlled by an apparatus, such as an electronic device, such as a mobile terminal, a mobile device, a user equipment (UE), a user device, a smartphone, a tablet, a portable navigation device, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, an Industrial IoT (IIoT) device, or a combination thereof. Hereby, the apparatus is also referred to as a first apparatus hereinafter. Alternatively, for example, the method may be performed and / or controlled by a wireless node, such as a Wi-Fi access point, a beacon device, or a combination thereof. For example, the method may be performed and / or controlled by at least one processor of the electronic device and / or the wireless node. One or more of the aforementioned entities may be included (e.g., installed and / or located) at, for example, a site, etc.

[0007] According to a second exemplary aspect, a method is disclosed, the method comprising: - obtaining at least one coded sample measurement (and / or message), wherein the at least one coded sample measurement (and / or message) comprises: - a first of the plurality of wireless nodes Each wireless node One or Two full identifiers, - A second of the plurality of wireless nodes Each wireless node From one Three pieces of identifier information, Second a portion of each full identifier information of each wireless node; From one Three pieces of partial identifier information, and - First and second At least one signal strength information for each wireless node and - (e.g., included in at least one sample measurement and / or message) Second Each wireless node From one The partial identifier information for each of the three partial identifier information Elucidation and determining full identifier information for each of the plurality of identifiers.

[0008] For example, the method may be performed and / or controlled by an apparatus such as a server. This will also be referred to hereinafter as a second apparatus. Alternatively, the method may be performed and / or controlled by two or more apparatuses, such as a server cloud including at least two servers. For example, the method may be performed and / or controlled by at least one processor of the server or server cloud. The second apparatus may be represented by a server cloud. This server or server cloud may be configured to provide, for example, one or more wireless maps (e.g., at a site) and / or indoor positioning and / or floor detection services.

[0009] The method of the first exemplary embodiment and / or the second exemplary embodiment may enable the use of lossy coding to enable, for example, the inclusion of more identifier information (e.g., MAC address or MAC) along with one or more received signal strength information (e.g., RSS indicator (RSSI) measurements) for such positioning messages transmitted over a low-bandwidth wireless protocol such as the Sigfox protocol. Sigfox refers to a (e.g., low-bandwidth) message protocol. Sigfox provides a network positioning service called Sigfox Atlas. Sigfox is an example of an LPWAN. This LPWAN format is particularly useful for Sigfox because other LPWAN standards offer significantly larger messages than Sigfox that easily encompass “full-resolution” radio scans. However, compared to these other LPWANs, Sigfox enables significantly lower power consumption, longer range, and indoor performance, respectively. While Sigfox may not be able to encompass “full-resolution” radio scans, the aforementioned benefits make Sigfox a suitable choice for use in mobile communications, particularly IoT mobile communications.

[0010] According to a further exemplary aspect, a computer program is disclosed which, when executed by a processor, causes an apparatus, e.g., a server, to perform and / or control operations of the methods according to the first exemplary aspect and / or the second exemplary aspect.

[0011] The computer program may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, in particular a tangible and / or non-transitory medium. The computer-readable storage medium may be, for example, a disk or a memory. The computer program may be stored in the computer-readable storage medium in the form of instructions encoded therein. The computer-readable storage medium may be for participating in the operation of a device, for example, a read-only memory (ROM) or an internal or external memory such as a computer hard disk, or for distributing the program, for example, an optical disk.

[0012] According to a further exemplary embodiment, an apparatus is disclosed, the apparatus being configured to or comprising respective means for performing and / or controlling the method according to the first exemplary embodiment and / or the second exemplary embodiment.

[0013] The means of the apparatus may be implemented in hardware and / or software. They may include, for example, at least one processor for executing computer program code to perform the required functions, at least one memory for storing the program code, or both. Alternatively, they may include circuits designed to implement the required functions, for example implemented in an integrated circuit, a chipset or chip, etc. In general, they may include, for example, one or more processing means or processors.

[0014] According to a further exemplary aspect, an apparatus is disclosed, the apparatus including at least one processor and at least one memory containing computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code together with the at least one processor configured to cause an apparatus, e.g., the apparatus, to at least perform and / or control a method according to the first exemplary aspect and / or the second exemplary aspect.

[0015] The above-disclosed apparatus according to any aspect may be a module or component of a device such as a chip. Alternatively, the disclosed apparatus according to any aspect may be a device such as a server or a server cloud. The disclosed apparatus according to any aspect may include only the disclosed components, such as a means, a processor, a memory, or the like, or may further include one or more additional components.

[0016] According to a further exemplary embodiment, a system is disclosed, the system including at least one device according to the first exemplary embodiment disclosed above and at least one device according to the second exemplary embodiment disclosed above.

[0017] Any disclosure herein with respect to any exemplary embodiment should be understood to be an equivalent disclosure with respect to any subject matter according to the respective exemplary embodiment, e.g., with respect to an apparatus, a method, a computer program, and a computer-readable medium. Thus, for example, a disclosure of method steps will also be considered a disclosure of means for performing and / or means configured to perform the respective method steps. Similarly, a disclosure of means for performing and / or means configured to perform method steps will also be considered a disclosure of the method steps themselves. The same applies to any phrases describing at least one processor and at least one memory containing computer program code, and describing the at least one memory and computer program code, together with the at least one processor, configured to cause an apparatus to perform at least certain steps.

[0018] Exemplary features and exemplary embodiments of all aspects will be described in further detail below.

[0019] For example, the first apparatus may be an IoT device as disclosed above, or the like. For example, such an IoT device may include or be connectable to a transmitter, e.g., according to a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), Bluetooth (BT) or Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), or LPWAN communication standard, or the like. Such an IoT device may, for example, observe (e.g., acquire) and / or provide (e.g., transmit) (e.g., standard) signals in order to recognize and / or announce their presence. Such an IoT device may, for example, be low-performance (also referred to as a low-performance device) and may not include or be connectable to, e.g., user input devices (e.g., keypads or touchpads, to name a few non-limiting examples) and / or displays for displaying, e.g., information to, e.g., a user.

[0020] For example, the first device may be portable (e.g., weighing less than 5, 4, 3, 2, or 1 kg). For example, the first device may include or be connectable to a display for displaying a guided / navigated route to a user. For example, the first device may include or be connectable to a means for outputting sound, e.g., in the form of voice commands or information. For example, the first device may include or be connectable to one or more sensors for determining a position of the device, e.g., in the form of a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver, e.g., a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receiver. For example, the first device may include or be connectable to one or more sensors, e.g., in the form of an accelerometer and / or gyroscope for acquiring information. For example, the first device may include or be connectable to a receiver and / or transmitter (e.g., transceiver) for receiving and / or transmitting information, e.g., that broadcast by a wireless node (e.g., Wi-Fi access point). For example, a (e.g., simple) Wi-Fi signal detector / scanner without transmission capabilities may be sufficient to collect at least one sample measurement, such as by picking up a Wi-Fi MAC address (e.g., represented by one or more respective identifier information), and additionally or alternatively to collect RSS readings (e.g., represented by one or more received signal strength information), which can be connected to a first device. Based on the obtained information, at least one location of the first device (e.g., the device from which the broadcast information was obtained (e.g., received)) can be determined. For example, the first device may be suitable for outdoor and / or indoor navigation positioning, respectively.

[0021] For example, one or more wireless nodes may be included in a site, for example, by the infrastructure of the site (e.g., a building). For example, such wireless nodes may be used for indoor positioning and / or floor detection, for example, via BT (Bluetooth), BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy), etc., or may be Wi-Fi access points for indoor positioning and / or floor detection, for example, via WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network) specifications, etc. Such wireless nodes may comply with the Sigfox standard. It is noted that the cell in which the signals of one or more such wireless nodes according to the Sigfox standard are observable may be quite large (e.g., covering a range of tens of kilometers), and therefore the positioning accuracy may be limited. In some cases, one or more wireless nodes may announce their availability in this manner to electronic devices (e.g., one or more first devices) seeking a connection, for example, via a broadcast signal. The signal may convey such information in the form of a packet in a predetermined format, and additionally or alternatively, such information may include at least identifier information of each wireless node. Each wireless node may be visible to any IoT device (eg, a first device) over a suitable wireless interface, regardless of whether it is known to the IoT device.

[0022] Such wireless node(s) of one or more wireless nodes, e.g., at a venue, may include or be connectable to a transceiver, e.g., according to BT, BLE, Sigfox, and / or WLAN specifications, for providing wireless-based communications. Each wireless node of one or more wireless nodes, e.g., at a venue, may use such transceiver to transmit and / or broadcast one or more signals, e.g., including one or more pieces of information.

[0023] For example, the first device may collect at least one sample measurement based on one or more signals transmitted by one or more wireless nodes conforming to the Wi-Fi / BT / BLE communication standards, and then provide (e.g., transmit) the respective encoded at least one sample measurement via the Sigfox communication standard. When the first device (e.g., tracker) may have multiple (e.g., at least two) data connection options (e.g., may transmit and / or receive one or more signals via different communication standards), the first device may then select which communication standard to use depending on, for example, data transmission needs or power consumption constraints, to name a few non-limiting examples.

[0024] Alternatively or additionally, when collecting the at least one sample measurement, the first device may also collect (e.g., observe and / or measure) one or more Global Navigation Satellite Signals (GNSS) signals. When such a GNSS-based position is available at the first device, this position may be provided (e.g., transmitted) to, for example, a second device, e.g., also via the Sigfox communication standard. For example, each message provided via the Sigfox communication standard may have 12 bytes, which is sufficient to convey the respective location (e.g., latitude / longitude coordinates) of the GNSS position.

[0025] The location may be, for example, a building, a shopping mall, an office building, a publicly accessible location (eg, a train station, an airport, or a university), to name a few non-limiting examples.

[0026] The one or more signals may be observable, for example, by a first device. The first device collects (e.g., measures) at least one sample measurement by collecting (e.g., measuring) at least one of identifier information or received signal strength information based on signals provided by one or more wireless nodes. Alternatively or additionally, the at least sample measurement may be collected, for example, by obtaining identifier information of at least one respective wireless node device that transmitted the respective one or more signals, and optionally collecting (e.g., measuring) received signal strengths of the signals (e.g., as values ​​such as RSS or RSSI values), for example, as respective received signal strength information, etc.

[0027] The respective identifier information may, for example, enable one of the one or more wireless nodes to be identified. For example, the one or more identifier information of the one or more wireless nodes may be determined, for example, by receiving the one or more identifier information from the one or more wireless nodes. Additionally or alternatively, for example, the one or more identifier information of the one or more wireless nodes may be determined, for example, by extracting the one or more identifier information from one or more received signals of the one or more wireless nodes, for example, including at least one of the one or more identifier information of each of the one or more wireless nodes. The respective identifier information may, for example, be a medium access control (MAC) address of the respective wireless node.

[0028] The respective signal strength information may include or be represented by a respective RSS value. Such RSS values ​​may be collected, for example, by measuring one or more signal strength values ​​based on transmitted signals of one or more wireless nodes. Such respective signal strength information may represent, for example, the power of received wireless signals (e.g., observable at the location of the first device), which may be transmitted (e.g., periodically) from, for example, each of the one or more wireless nodes. Examples of received signal strength parameters that may be included in the respective signal strength information are an RSS or a representation of a physical received power level value (e.g., an Rx power level value), for example, in dBm. The respective signal strength information may represent, for example, a signal strength measurement value of an observable signal strength at the measurement location.

[0029] The at least one sample measurement may include at least one of respective identifier information or respective signal strength information. The at least one sample measurement may include both (respective identifier information and respective signal strength information) of one or more wireless nodes observable at each location where the first device collects the at least one sample measurement. For example, the at least one sample measurement may include at least one of respective identifier information or respective signal strength information of multiple (e.g., at least two) wireless nodes. For example, the collected at least one sample measurement may include 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, or more identifier information and optionally received signal strength information of a corresponding number of wireless nodes; for example, if signals of five different wireless nodes are collected, it may include five identifier information and optionally five received signal strength information.

[0030] In order to reduce the size of messages that may be used, for example, to provide at least one sample measurement (e.g., to another entity such as a second device), the at least one sample measurement and / or each message provided in addition to or as an alternative to providing the at least one sample measurement may be encoded based on one or more of the following conditions: - enabling at least one encoded sample measurement (and / or each message) to include up to two full identifier information pieces of each wireless node (e.g., each identifier information piece of each wireless node represented by six octets / bytes); - allowing at least one encoded sample measurement (and / or each message) to include up to three partial identifier information, which may include a portion of each full identifier information of each wireless node (and thus not the full identifier information represented by 6 octets / bytes); and - enabling at least one encoded sample measurement (and / or each message) to include at least one signal strength (e.g., and optionally, if the encoded sample measurement is split into two or more (e.g., discreet) messages (e.g., as disclosed in further detail below), up to all, e.g., five, or eight or more, collected received signal strength information.

[0031] This may make it possible to reduce the size of at least one sample measurement and / or message, in particular by not including all of the collected identifier information, but for example only the last octet of each identifier information, for which the term "partial identifier information" is used.

[0032] Hereby, the terms "identifier information" and "full identifier information" are used synonymously.

[0033] The encoded at least one sample measurement (and / or the respective message) may be provided, such as by sending or transmitting the at least one encoded sample measurement. To take one non-limiting example, the at least one encoded sample measurement may be provided to an entity different from the first device, such as a second device. Additionally or alternatively, to take one further non-limiting example, the at least one encoded sample measurement may be provided to a respective wireless node of a plurality or one or more wireless nodes, which may then forward the at least one encoded sample measurement to the second device.

[0034] According to exemplary embodiments of all exemplary aspects, each full identifier information is represented by six octets, and each partial identifier information is represented by one octet, which is a part of each full identifier information, such as the last octet of each collected identifier information.

[0035] Each partial identifier information may be represented by at least the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, or sixth (e.g., last) octet / byte of each (full) identifier information, or a combination thereof. For example, each full identifier information of each wireless node may be a specific MAC address consisting of six bytes. Then, each partial identifier information of this full identifier information may be represented by (e.g., only) the last byte of the six bytes of the full identifier information.

[0036] According to exemplary embodiments of all exemplary aspects, at least one signal strength information of the encoded at least one sample measurement is represented by four bits (e.g., half of a byte, each half of an octet).

[0037] Each signal strength information of the at least one encoded sample measurement may be encoded to allow it to be represented by four bits and not by more than four bits.

[0038] Each signal strength information may be collected (e.g., measured) as a value on a logarithmic scale. To encode such a value, the collected signal strength information may be encoded (e.g., transformed or compressed) into, for example, a linear value. Each linear value may be based on the respective signal strength information being encoded (e.g., transformed or compressed).

[0039] This may enable lossy encoding of the at least one sample measurement, which may enable the encoded at least one sample measurement to include (e.g., contain) two or more identifier information (e.g., MAC addresses), optionally along with two or more signal strength information (e.g., RSSI measurements) for a positioning message transmitted, for example, over a low-bandwidth wireless protocol.

[0040] For example, two or more pieces of identifier information and, optionally, two or more pieces of received signal strength information may be included in a collected sample measurement. Each sample measurement may (e.g., then) be encoded such that the encoded sample measurement includes two full pieces of identifier information (e.g., respective MAC addresses, 6 octets / bytes each). Furthermore, the sample measurement may be encoded to include (e.g., only) the last octet / byte of additional (e.g., all) identifier information of the collected sample measurement, e.g., as respective partial identifier information.

[0041] For example, a second device provided with the coded sample measurements (e.g., subsequently) calculates full identifier information based on, for example, the last octet / byte, etc., represented by the partial identifier information of each coded sample measurement. ElucidationThe encoded sample measurement value may include two full identifier information pieces and a remaining number of partial identifier information pieces from (e.g., all) identifier information pieces (e.g., MAC addresses) of multiple wireless nodes that are proximate to (and therefore whose signals are observable from) the wireless node identified by the two full identifier information pieces.

[0042] Optionally, the sample measurements may be encoded to include one or more such lossy encoded signal strength information.

[0043] As a general note, for example, a useful usable range for received signal strength information (e.g., RSS values) when used for indoor positioning is from −40 dBm to −80 dBm. Because received signal strength values ​​(measurable by the first device) decrease on a logarithmic scale as the distance to the wireless emitter (e.g., the transmitter of the respective wireless node) increases, received signal strength values ​​greater than −40 dBm may not typically be measured, while received signal strength values ​​less than −80 dBm may not (e.g., significantly) contribute to improving the accuracy of the positioning. Thus, 1) measurements may be limited to a given range of −40 dBm to −80 dBm, and 2) received signal strength values ​​may be emphasized in the higher range (i.e., a higher emphasis for larger received signal strength values ​​than for smaller received signal strength values). resolution (maintaining a constant value of 0.015 sigma). This may allow received signal strength information of sufficient precision (e.g., contained in collected (e.g., measured) sample measurements) to be encoded into, for example, 4 bits (half a byte). Such a half byte allows 16 unique (e.g., linear) signal strength values ​​to be stored.

[0044] According to exemplary embodiments of all exemplary aspects, at least one signal strength information of at least one encoded sample measurement is converted to a linear value, and this conversion is based on at least one of predetermined signal strength values ​​or predetermined signal strength ranges of the collected (e.g., measured) signal strength information mapped to a respective linear value (e.g., included in a lookup table).

[0045] These linear values ​​representing collected (e.g., measured) signal strength information may be values ​​between 1 and 40. As disclosed above, these values ​​between 1 and 40 dBm are less relevant, so these values ​​may correspond to predetermined integer values. Received signal strength values ​​higher than 40 dBm may correspond to predetermined, more quantized integer values. Finally, all measured received signal strength values ​​≥ 80 dBm may be coded to a specific predetermined value because these values ​​are also less relevant. This assumed linear value may be transformed to another logarithmic scale, such as by applying the following general logarithmic function: f(n) = k log n + c, where k and c are constants used to bound the range from 0 to 15 [c = 0, k = 16 log(40)].

[0046] For example, received signal strength values ​​converted to a logarithmic scale may be encoded (eg, expanded) to the full range of integer values ​​0 to 15, as shown in Table 1 below.

[0047] [Table 1]

[0048] This may allow the received signal strength information to be lossy coded into a 4-bit value that is included in at least one coded sample measurement.

[0049] According to exemplary embodiments of all exemplary aspects, at least one (e.g., encoded) sample measurement is enabled to include up to five transformed (e.g., see table above) signal strength information.

[0050] This involves compressing identifier information (e.g., MAC addresses) and / or received signal strength information (e.g., RSS measurements) of a large number (e.g., multiple) of wireless nodes (e.g., Wi-Fi access points) to a size small enough to allow their transmission over a limited bandwidth (e.g., via the Sigfox communication protocol), while still allowing for more accurate location determination, e.g., at a back-end server (e.g., a second device). Elucidation When compared to, for example, a standard Sigfox Atlas protocol without such lossy coding, the method according to the first exemplary aspect may enable the inclusion of, for example, three additional identifier information (e.g., MAC addresses) and received signal strength information (e.g., respective measurements of RSS values) of all five wireless nodes (e.g., Wi-Fi access points), such as by increasing the size of the payload data of each message used to provide the encoded at least one sample measurement by (e.g., only) six bytes.

[0051] According to exemplary embodiments of all exemplary aspects, the at least one sample measurement (e.g., provided and encoded) is provided (or obtained) in a single message (e.g., the size of which may be limited to, e.g., 18 bytes or more, to take one non-limiting example). For example, if each message may have 18 bytes or more, the at least one encoded sample measurement may be provided in a single message. If each message may have fewer than 18 bytes, it may be beneficial to split the at least one encoded sample measurement into two or more respective (e.g., discreet) messages and provide both messages (e.g., separately), etc.

[0052] As disclosed above, when the encoded at least one sample measurement is provided via a single message, for example, up to five pieces of identifier information and / or up to five pieces of received signal strength information may be provided. Thus, the at least one encoded sample measurement may include (e.g., only) one entire piece of identifier information, which may be conveyed by a single message having a limited size, e.g., 12 bytes (e.g., to have such a payload).

[0053] According to example embodiments of all example aspects, at least one sample measurement (e.g., encoded) is provided (or obtained) as two or more unobtrusive messages. For example, the two or more unobtrusive messages may be provided (e.g., transmitted or sent) via the Sigfox communication standard for data communication, to give one non-limiting example.

[0054] Where the encoded at least one sample measurement is provided via two or more unobtrusive messages, e.g., up to 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, or more pieces of identifier information and / or up to 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, or more pieces of received signal strength information, where the at least one sample measurement is encoded into at least two (hence, two or more) unobtrusive messages.

[0055] According to exemplary embodiments of all exemplary aspects, the first of the two unobtrusive messages includes one of up to two full identifier information of each wireless node, is allowed to include up to three partial identifier information, and is allowed to include signal strength information of each wireless node whose identifier information or a portion thereof is included in the first unobtrusive message.

[0056] According to exemplary embodiments of all exemplary aspects, the second of the two discreet messages may include another one of up to two full identifier information of each wireless node, may include up to three further partial identifier information not included in the first discreet message, and may include signal strength information of each of the wireless nodes whose identifier information or parts thereof are included in the second discreet message.

[0057] It should be noted that the terms “first unobtrusive message” and “second unobtrusive message” do not specify the order in which the first unobtrusive message and the second unobtrusive message may be provided by the first device (e.g., received by the second device, etc.). This may be addressed, for example, by the protocol used to transmit the first unobtrusive message and the second unobtrusive message. However, the bytes of the first unobtrusive message and the second unobtrusive message must be received in the correct order or be ordered correctly after receipt so that the contents of the respective messages (e.g., payloads, e.g., encoded at least one sample measurement, etc.) can be correctly interpreted. The first unobtrusive message may be provided first and the second unobtrusive message may be provided thereafter, or vice versa. The first unobtrusive message and the second unobtrusive message may be interchangeable in this regard. However, it may be more reasonable for each conservative message received after another conservative message to point back to the first received conservative message (e.g., via an included cyclic redundancy check (CRC) checksum), i.e., for example, for a second conservative message to include, for example, a CRC8 checksum that points back to, for example, the first conservative message. Additionally, it may be the other way around, whereby a first conservative message may point back to a second conservative message (e.g., via an included CRC checksum), since, for example, the last octet of the total size of each first conservative message may be available to include such a CRC checksum. In principle, at least one (e.g., encoded) sample measurement may be split into three or more messages, such as when more than eight pieces of identifier information and / or eight pieces of received signal strength information (e.g., eight Wi-Fi samples) need to be reported. It may be useful to indicate an intention to provide (e.g., send) additional messages.This is because, for example, a backend service (e.g., provided / hosted by the second device) that may combine the respective messages may need to know whether it needs to wait for a subsequent message, for example, to avoid additional latency in positioning. If a Wi-Fi scan (e.g., collected at least one sample measurement) contains or may include (e.g., only) two to four wireless nodes (e.g., access points), the first device may still provide the encoded at least one sample measurement in / by two messages, each containing partial identifier information (e.g., partial MAC). Elucidation It may be possible to rotate the entire identifier information (eg, the entire MAC or MAC address) to improve the likelihood of a successful match.

[0058] It will be appreciated that in cases where at least one sample measurement (e.g., provided and encoded) is provided (or obtained) in a single message, one byte of that single message, if available, may be used to indicate the number of subsequent messages, if any (0 if the last byte is excluded), such as the last byte of such a single message.

[0059] According to exemplary embodiments of all exemplary aspects, the second unobtrusive message is enabled to include a checksum (e.g., a CRC8 checksum represented by, for example, one byte) of the first unobtrusive message.

[0060] According to exemplary embodiments of all exemplary aspects, the first unobtrusive message is enabled to include a checksum (e.g., a CRC8 checksum represented by, for example, one byte) of the second unobtrusive message.

[0061] For example, it may be possible to combine and splice a first and a second unobtrusive message based on the first or second unobtrusive message having their respective CRC8 codes. The respective checksum (e.g., CRC8 code) may be present in either message; it only needs to point to the other unobtrusive message.

[0062] Thus, based on the same principle, it is also believed to be disclosed that the encoded at least one sample measurement can be provided as three or more unobtrusive messages, such as by allowing a combination of unobtrusive messages, such that the total number of unobtrusive messages minus one includes a respective checksum, thereby pointing to all of the unobtrusive messages as a whole. For example, in the case of three unobtrusive messages, the second and third unobtrusive messages may include their respective checksums. The checksum of the third unobtrusive message may point to the second unobtrusive message, and the checksum of the second unobtrusive message may point to the first unobtrusive message.

[0063] To take one further non-limiting example, when an implementation in a backend server (e.g., a second device) receives the first unobtrusive message, it may already know which message to wait for to combine, instead of having to look back at previously received messages to find the correct one.

[0064] According to an exemplary embodiment of the first exemplary aspect, the method comprises: - obtaining location information determined based at least in part on the provided encoded at least one sample measurement.

[0065] The location information may indicate a determined (e.g., estimated) location based at least in part on, for example, the provided encoded at least one sample measurement. As one non-limiting example, the location information may be represented by coordinates such as, for example, latitude, longitude, and optionally, altitude values.

[0066] The location information may be obtained, for example, by receiving the location information from a backend server (eg, the second device).

[0067] According to an exemplary embodiment of the first exemplary aspect, the method comprises: - providing a location request indicating a request for a determination of a location where the device collected the at least one sample measurement.

[0068] The location request may be provided, for example, from the first device to the second device. The location request may be provided prior to obtaining the location information disclosed above.

[0069] The second device may obtain at least one encoded sample measurement. If the second device obtains (e.g., receives) the encoded at least one sample measurement as two unobtrusive messages, the first unobtrusive message alone may be sufficient for positioning purposes and thus for determining (e.g., by) the location information, but there is a higher risk of positioning failure due to, for example, the unavailability of full identifier information (e.g., MAC address of a particular wireless node) in a wireless model database. For example, if the previous location of the first device is known, the second device may still ElucidationFor example, when the respective full identifier information may not be found, e.g., in a database, the second device may still search for the respective radio models based on the partial identifier information. This may result in many hits. The second device may investigate the locations of these radio models and find, e.g., clusters, etc., but this may not yet be conclusive. Now, when the second device knows / has a sufficiently fresh (e.g., not older than 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 10 minutes, or more) last known location of the first device, it may be beneficial to determine (e.g., identify) the correct model based only on the respective partial identifier information.

[0070] According to an exemplary embodiment of the first exemplary aspect, the method comprises: - further comprising obtaining a configuration indicating the number of messages for which the at least one sample measurement is to be encoded, the configuration being determined based on the number of messages possible in a given time frame (e.g., on a per day basis; to take one non-limiting example, Sigfox may be limited to approximately 140 messages per day), and the at least one sample measurement being further encoded based on the configuration.

[0071] Currently, the Sigfox specification specifies that, for example, a maximum of 140 messages can be sent per day, so splitting (e.g., by the first device) and combining (e.g., by the second device) of the unobtrusive messages used to send the at least one encoded sample measurement, or even changing the mode (e.g., from using a single message or two unobtrusive messages to send the at least one encoded sample measurement) may be done to take this or such limitations into account.

[0072] The second device obtains at least one encoded sample measurement, such as by receiving at least one encoded sample measurement from a first device that provides at least one encoded sample measurement. Thus, the at least one encoded sample measurement obtained by the second device may be at least one encoded sample measurement provided by the first device. As disclosed above with respect to the first exemplary embodiment, the at least one encoded sample measurement or respective message provided may include: - up to two full identifiers (e.g., represented by 6 octets / bytes) for each wireless node; - up to three pieces of partial identifier information for each wireless node, each piece of partial identifier information including a portion (e.g., the last octet) of (but not the entire) full identifier information for each wireless node; and - At least one signal strength information (e.g., coded / converted to an applicable logarithmic scale) for each wireless node.

[0073] This example given above may be applied, for example, where the at least one encoded sample measurement or each message provided may have a payload of up to 12 bytes, to take one non-limiting example.

[0074] Depending on the size (e.g., amount of data) each message may have, the number of full identifier information (e.g., represented by 6 octets / bytes) for each wireless node, and / or the number of partial identifier information for each wireless node, and / or the number of signal strength information may be variable.

[0075] Any disclosure regarding a feature and / or embodiment according to a first exemplary aspect is deemed to be an equivalent disclosure regarding the same / equivalent / similar feature and / or embodiment according to a second exemplary aspect.

[0076] Each partial identifier information is Elucidation Each partial identifier information is generated when at least one encoded sample measurement obtained includes one or more respective partial identifier information. Elucidation This may be done.

[0077] According to an exemplary embodiment of the second exemplary aspect, the method comprises: - determining location information based at least in part on the obtained at least one encoded sample measurement; and - providing the location information.

[0078] According to an exemplary embodiment of the second exemplary aspect, the method comprises: - further including obtaining (e.g., receiving) a location request indicating that a location at which a device (e.g., a first device) collected the obtained at least one sample measurement should be determined (e.g., estimated).

[0079] For example, the location request may be obtained, such as by receiving a request from an entity such as a server or an IoT device (e.g., the first device).

[0080] According to an exemplary embodiment of the second exemplary aspect, the method comprises: - further including combining the first and second unobtrusive messages when at least one encoded sample measurement was obtained as two unobtrusive messages instead of one.

[0081] The at least one encoded sample measurement may be obtained as a single message. Alternatively, the at least one encoded sample measurement may be obtained as two or more unobtrusive messages. In the latter case, such first and second unobtrusive messages may be combined, such as by splicing the first and second unobtrusive messages, optionally splicing additional unobtrusive messages if more than two unobtrusive messages are obtained. The combining may be performed at least in part based on checksum (e.g., CRC checksum) information included in at least one of the two or more unobtrusive messages.

[0082] According to an exemplary embodiment of the second exemplary aspect, the first unobtrusive message and the second unobtrusive message are combined based on a checksum included in the second unobtrusive message.

[0083] According to an exemplary embodiment of the second exemplary aspect, the method comprises: - each signal strength information represented by a linear value based on at least one of a predetermined signal strength value or a predetermined signal strength range, the predetermined signal strength value or a predetermined signal strength range being mapped to the respective linear value; Elucidation The method further includes:

[0084] The one or more signal strength values ​​may be the same as those described above with respect to the one or more signal strength values ​​used by the exemplary embodiment of the method according to the first exemplary aspect of the present invention, for example.

[0085] Each signal strength information Elucidation The converting may be performed and / or controlled based on converting a 4-bit (e.g., binary) value included in the obtained at least one encoded sample measurement to an integer value and then to a dBm (negative) value. This, e.g., two-stage conversion may be performed as disclosed above showing a table having columns with headings dBm (negative), Convert, Binary.

[0086] According to an exemplary embodiment of the second exemplary aspect, the location estimation is performed based on up to five full identifier information (e.g., partial identifier information) of each wireless node. Elucidation may be obtained) and their corresponding signal strength information (e.g., when at least one coded sample measurement is obtained as a single (e.g., unobtrusive) message).

[0087] According to an exemplary embodiment of the second exemplary aspect, the location estimation is performed by using up to eight full identifier information (e.g., partial identifier information) of each wireless node. Elucidation may be obtained) and their corresponding signal strength information (e.g., when at least one coded sample measurement is obtained as a single (e.g., unobtrusive) message).

[0088] According to an exemplary embodiment of the second exemplary aspect, the method comprises: - determining a configuration in which at least one sample measurement indicates the number of messages to be encoded, the configuration being determined based on the number of messages possible in a given time frame (e.g., on a daily basis, 140 messages Sigfox); - providing the configuration (e.g., to a first device, such as an IoT device).

[0089] The first device may obtain (e.g., receive) this configuration from the second device. The first device may then apply this configuration such that when the first device encodes at least one collected sample measurement, this encoding may be performed and / or controlled at least in part based on the configuration. The number of messages into which the at least one sample measurement is encoded may be set by the configuration in such a way that a respective transport protocol (e.g., Sigfox) can transmit the encoded sample measurement, for example, from the first device to the second device, etc.

[0090] The above-described features and example embodiments may equally relate to different aspects.

[0091] It should be understood that the presentation in this section is by way of example only and is non-limiting.

[0092] Other features will become apparent from consideration of the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood, however, that the drawings are designed for illustrative purposes only and not as a definition of the limits to which reference should be made to the appended claims. It is further to be understood that the drawings are not drawn to scale and that the drawings are intended merely to conceptually illustrate the structures and procedures described herein. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0093] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a system according to an exemplary embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 is a flow chart illustrating an example embodiment of a method according to a first exemplary aspect. [Figure 3] 4 is a flow chart illustrating an example embodiment of a method according to a second exemplary aspect. [Figure 4] 1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating an apparatus configured to perform a method according to a first exemplary embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram illustrating an apparatus configured to perform a method according to a second exemplary embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a storage medium. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0094] It will be understood that the following description serves to enhance understanding and should be read in conjunction with and supplemental to the description provided in the Summary section above of this specification.

[0095] 1 is a schematic high-level block diagram illustrating a system 100 according to all exemplary aspects. The system 100 includes a plurality of wireless nodes 130-1 through 130-5, an IoT device 140 (e.g., a first device configured to perform and / or control, for example, a method according to a first exemplary aspect), a server cloud (also referred to as a back-end server) 110 (e.g., a second device configured to perform and / or control, for example, a method according to a second exemplary aspect), an optional location service server cloud 120-1, and an optional radio model database 120-2. The optional location service server cloud 120-1 and the optional radio model database 120-2 may be included in or connectable to the server cloud 110. The server cloud 110 may be part of or host a tracking service.

[0096] As indicated by the example arrows between entities of system 100, communication may occur, such as, for example, wireless or wired communication between entities.

[0097] Example embodiments of all exemplary aspects may enable one or more of the following: The IoT device 140 may collect (e.g., measure) at least one sample measurement including at least one of identifier information or signal strength information of the plurality of wireless nodes 130-1 to 130-5. One or more signals transmitted by each wireless node 130-1 to 130-5 are observable at a location where the IoT device 140 collects (e.g., measures) the at least one sample measurement.

[0098] These one or more signals of each wireless node 130-1 through 130-5 may include or indicate respective identifier information (e.g., a MAC address) of each wireless node of the plurality of wireless nodes 130-1 through 130-5. Additionally or alternatively, these one or more signals of each wireless node 130-1 through 130-5 may include or indicate respective received signal strength information (e.g., an RSS value or RSSI) of each wireless node of the plurality of wireless nodes 130-1 through 130-5.

[0099] For example, wireless node 130-1 may provide (e.g., send or transmit) one or more signals that include or indicate identifier information (e.g., MAC addresses) "m11:m12:m13:m14:m15:m16," where each identifier information has six octets or is represented by six bytes. Additionally, wireless node 130-1 may provide (e.g., send or transmit) one or more signals that include or indicate received signal strength information (e.g., RSS values), referred to as "r1" in FIG.

[0100] Similarly, wireless node 130-2 may provide one or more signals including: Identifier information: m21:m22:m23:m24:m25:m26 Received signal strength information: r2

[0101] Wireless node 130-3 may provide one or more signals including: Identifier information: m31:m32:m33:m34:m35:m36 Received signal strength information: r3

[0102] Wireless node 130-4 may provide one or more signals including: Identifier information: m41:m42:m43:m44:m45:m46 Received signal strength information: r4

[0103] The wireless node 130-5 may provide one or more signals including: Identifier information: m51:m52:m53:m54:m55:m56 Received signal strength information: r5

[0104] When the IoT device 140 is located in a position such that one or more signals (e.g., all) transmitted by each of the wireless nodes 130-1 to 130-5 are observable, the IoT device 140 collects (e.g., measures) sample measurements including identifier information for each of the wireless nodes 130-1 to 130-5 (e.g., all) and optionally received signal strength information for each of the wireless nodes 130-1 to 130-5 (e.g., all).

[0105] The collected at least one sample measurement may be (e.g., lossy) encoded by the measurement of the IoT device 140 based on the following conditions: - enabling the encoded at least one sample measurement to include up to two full identifier information of each of the wireless nodes 130-1 to 130-5; - enabling the encoded at least one sample measurement to include up to three partial identifier information of each of the wireless nodes 130-1 to 130-5, wherein the partial identifier information may include a portion of the full identifier information of each of the wireless nodes 130-1 to 130-5; and - enabling the encoded at least one sample measurement to include signal strength information for at least one of the respective wireless nodes 130-1 to 130-5;

[0106] The collected at least one sample measurement may be encoded in a manner such that the information contained in the collected at least one sample measurement can fit into a message, such as, for example, 18 bytes.

[0107] For example, if the sample measurements include respective identifier information and respective received signal strength information as disclosed above, after encoding, the encoded sample measurements may include the following information as shown in the table shown in FIG. 1:

[0108] [Table 2]

[0109] As can be seen, the encoded sample measurement contains the following information: - the full identifier information of the wireless node 130-1 (e.g., all 6 octets, which equals 6 bytes); - the full identifier information of the wireless node 130-2 (e.g., all 6 octets, which equals 6 bytes); - partial identifier information of the wireless node 130-3 (e.g., last / sixth octet); - partial identifier information of the wireless node 130-4 (e.g., last / sixth octet); - partial identifier information of the wireless node 130-5 (e.g., last / sixth octet); - Received signal strength information of the radio nodes 130-1 to 130-5 applied to a logarithmic scale. The three part identifier information and the received signal strength information may also require 6 octets, which is equal to 6 bytes in the transmitted message.

[0110] As another example, the collected at least one sample measurement may be encoded in a manner such that the information included in the collected at least one sample measurement can fit into a message of, for example, 12 bytes. The encoded sample measurement may include one full identifier information and three partial identifier information, and, for example, up to four respective received signal strength information associated with the one full identifier information and three partial identifier information. After encoding, the encoded sample measurement may include the following information:

[0111] [Table 3]

[0112] It is noted that encoding each collected at least one sample measurement may be applied (e.g., in addition) to future low-bandwidth protocols or as a space-efficient method, even when each message used to provide the at least one encoded sample measurement may have, for example, more than 18 bytes, such as LoRa for Long Range Wide Area Networks (LoRaWAN). LoRa supports one or more respective messages that may have up to 256 bytes. To take one non-limiting example, a single small message with at least one encoded sample measurement may be beneficial, such as when 238 bytes are still available (if in this example the at least one encoded sample measurement has 18 bytes) to communicate a more complex observation (e.g., more than just temperature).

[0113] Each encoded sample measurement is then provided to, for example, server cloud 110. Similarly, server cloud 110 obtains (e.g., receives) at least one encoded sample measurement that includes: - full identifier information for each wireless node, here up to two of the wireless nodes 130-1 and 130-2; - up to three partial identifier information pieces for each wireless node, here wireless nodes 130-3 to 130-5, each of which includes a portion of the full identifier information of each wireless node; and - at least one signal strength information of each radio node, here the received signal strength information of the radio nodes 130-1 to 130-5 applied to a logarithmic scale;

[0114] The server cloud transmits the partial identifier information of each of the wireless nodes, here, the wireless nodes 130-3 to 130-5, at most three pieces of partial identifier information. ElucidationTo this end, the server cloud may provide (e.g., send) a request to the wireless model database 120-2, for example, a request to find neighboring / suitable APs, thereby determining the respective partial identifier information. Elucidation Such requests may not include (e.g., only) the respective partial identifier information, but may also include (e.g., two) respective full identifier information, such that a search for neighboring wireless nodes will be in the vicinity of the respective wireless nodes for which the server cloud 110 has obtained the respective full identifier information (e.g., the respective full identifier information allows for identification of the respective wireless nodes, and then there is a good chance that identifying the correct respective wireless node based on, for example, the last octet of the respective identifier information represented by the respective partial identifier information will be sufficient (e.g., errors will be less than 1% of (e.g., all) requests)).

[0115] The server cloud 110 stores the partial identifier information Elucidation When the server cloud 110 receives the received signal strength information, Elucidation Further details are disclosed below.

[0116] Optionally, the server cloud may provide (e.g., send) a location request to, for example, the location service server cloud 120-1. The server cloud 110 may have previously obtained (e.g., received) such a location request from the IoT device 140. The location request may be (e.g., Elucidation each identifier information) and optionally (e.g., Elucidation The location services server cloud 120-1 may include or be accompanied by received signal strength information (including received signal strength information that has been estimated). The location services server cloud 120-1 may determine (e.g., estimate) location information based on the respective identifier information and / or received signal strength information and provide (e.g., transmit) the determined location information, for example, back to the server cloud 110. The server cloud 110 may provide (e.g., transmit, relay, or forward) the location information to the IoT device 140.

[0117] The following data flow that may be used when the encoded sample measurements are provided by a single message may be as follows: 1. The IoT device 140 gathers (e.g., collects) (e.g., Wi-Fi) samples (e.g., sample measurements), such as by measuring the MAC addresses and / or RSS of five nearby access points (APs, e.g., wireless nodes 130-1 to 130-5). 2. The IoT device 140 encodes the Wi-Fi sample into a lossy data format and sends it to the backend server 110 (e.g., a tracking service). - 2 MACs (e.g., identifier information) consisting of a total of 6 octets / bytes => 12 bytes - 3MAC consisting of only the last octet (e.g., identifier information) => 3 bytes - RSS value (e.g. received signal strength information) converted to the applicable logarithmic scale, coded into 4 bits each => approximately 3 bytes 3. The backend server 110 finds the incomplete MAC by searching the radio model for compatible APs in the neighborhood of the two APs that have the full MAC. Elucidation do. 4. The backend server 110 makes a location request with all five MACs and the corresponding RSS values.

[0118] Some IoT communication protocols (e.g., Sigfox) may be constrained to very short message sizes, for example 12 or 18 bytes. In an alternative data flow where the payload is larger than 12 or 18 bytes, each message may be split into two or more discreet messages. This data flow may be implemented as follows: 1. The IoT device 140 gathers (e.g., collects) (e.g., Wi-Fi) samples (e.g., measurements), such as by measuring the MAC addresses and / or RSS of five nearby access points (APs, e.g., wireless nodes 130-1 to 130-5). 2. The IoT device 140 encodes the Wi-Fi sample into a lossy data format, splits it into two messages, and it (e.g., the IoT device 140) sends the two messages to the backend server 110 (e.g., a tracking service). - First Message - 1 MAC (e.g., identifier information) consisting of a total of 6 octets / bytes => 6 bytes - 3MAC consisting of only the last octet (e.g., identifier information) => 3 bytes - 4 MACs (e.g., identifier information) encoded on 4 bits, converted to the applicable logarithmic scale, all RSS values ​​(e.g., received signal strength information) => 2 bytes => 11 bytes in total - Second Message - 1 MAC (e.g., identifier information) consisting of a total of 6 octets / bytes => 6 bytes - 3MAC consisting of only the last octet (e.g., identifier information) => 3 bytes - 4 MACs (e.g., identifier information) encoded on 4 bits, converted to the applicable logarithmic scale, all RSS values ​​(e.g., received signal strength information) => 2 bytes - CRC8 checksum of message #1 (i.e. checksum information) => 1 byte to allow combining messages at the backend server => 12 bytes in total 3. The backend server combines the messages and finds the incomplete MAC by searching the radio model for compatible APs in the neighborhood of the two APs that have the full MAC. Elucidation do. 4. The backend server 110 makes a location request with all eight MACs and the corresponding RSS values.

[0119] The first message alone may be sufficient for positioning purposes (e.g., determining location information), but there is a higher risk of positioning failure due to the full MAC (e.g., identifier information) not being available in the wireless model (e.g., database 120-2).

[0120] [Table 4]

[0121] The conversion of RSS values ​​(eg, received signal strength information) to an adapted logarithmic scale may be performed and / or controlled by example embodiments of all exemplary aspects as follows. RSS values ​​(e.g., received signal strength information) are already measured using a logarithmic scale. To further compress the RSS values, they can be assumed to be linear values ​​between 1 and 40, where 1 corresponds to a value between 1 and 40 dBm and 40 corresponds to a value ≥ 80 dBm. This assumed linear value is further converted to another logarithmic scale by applying the following general logarithmic function: f(n) = k log n + c, where k and c are constants used to bound the range from 0 to 15 [c = 0, k = 16 log(40)]. An example of such a mapping is shown in Table 1 in the Summary section of this specification.

[0122] 2 is a flow chart 200 illustrating an example embodiment of a method according to a first exemplary aspect. The flow chart 200 may be performed by an IoT device (e.g., a first device), such as the IoT device 140 of FIG.

[0123] In a first step 201, at least one sample measurement is collected. The at least one sample measurement is collected (e.g., measured) based on one or more signals transmitted (e.g., generated) by a plurality of wireless nodes, such as wireless nodes 130-1 to 130-5 in FIG. 1 .

[0124] In a second step 202, the at least one sample measurement is encoded. As disclosed in the overview section above, the at least one sample measurement is based on one or more specific conditions. This may enable reducing the size of the encoded at least one sample measurement to facilitate providing (e.g., transmitting) a message including the at least one sample measurement.

[0125] In a third step 203, the at least one encoded sample measurement is provided, such as by transmitting the at least one encoded sample measurement. The at least one encoded sample measurement may be provided to a server cloud (e.g., a second device), such as server cloud 110 of Figure 1. The at least one encoded sample measurement may be provided to an entity different from the server cloud, such as to another entity of the communication network (e.g., not shown in Figure 1), which then relays and forwards the at least one encoded sample measurement, respectively, to the server cloud.

[0126] In an optional fourth step 204, a location request is provided, such as by sending a location request to a server cloud (e.g., a second device), which may be the same server cloud to which the at least one sample measurement encoded in step 203 was provided. By means of the location request, the device performing and / or controlling flowchart 200 may request that its location be determined (e.g., estimated), being each location where it collected the at least one sample measurement in step 201.

[0127] In an optional fifth step 205, location information is obtained, such as from an entity to which a location request was provided (e.g., sent) in optional step 204. The location information may indicate a location where a device executing and / or controlling flowchart 200 collected at least one sample measurement (see step 201).

[0128] In an optional sixth step 206, the location information (eg, from step 205) is overlaid on a map user interface (UI).

[0129] In an optional seventh step 207, the location information is used for navigation, such as to navigate a user of a device executing and / or controlling flowchart 200 (e.g., tracker 140 of FIG. 1 ) along a route, such as to a destination (which may be input) and / or from location to location represented by the location information, to name a few non-limiting examples.

[0130] In an optional eighth step 208, a notification may be provided, such as that the device executing and / or controlling the flowchart 200 (e.g., tracker 140 in FIG. 1 ) has reached a particular location X, is moving, is not found, or is calculating a route to the location of the device executing and / or controlling the flowchart 200 (e.g., tracker 140 in FIG. 1 ), to name a few non-limiting examples.

[0131] In particular, it will be understood that any of steps 206-208 may be performed and / or controlled before, in parallel with, and / or after any of steps 201-205.

[0132] 3 is a flowchart 300 illustrating an example embodiment of a method according to a second exemplary aspect. The flowchart 300 may be performed by a server cloud (e.g., a second device), such as the server cloud 110 of FIG. 1.

[0133] In a first step 301, at least one encoded sample measurement is obtained. The at least one encoded sample measurement is obtained by receiving the at least one encoded sample measurement from, for example, an IoT device (e.g., a first device), such as, for example, IoT device 140, which may represent an apparatus that performs and / or controls flowchart 200 of FIG.

[0134] In an optional second step 302, the at least one encoded sample measurement is combined, such as if the at least one encoded sample measurement was obtained as two or more unobtrusive messages in step 301. To this end, as an example, checksum information included in a first or second unobtrusive message forming the at least one encoded sample measurement obtained in step 301 may indicate (e.g., via the checksum information) a respective unobtrusive message to be combined (e.g., spliced) with the respective unobtrusive message that includes that checksum information.

[0135] In a third step 303, the partial identifier information of each of the up to three partial identifier information of each wireless node included in the at least one encoded sample measurement value of step 301 is Elucidation This may allow determining or obtaining the respective full identifier information instead of partial identifier information. To this end, the device executing and / or controlling flowchart 300 may retrieve further information (e.g., a look-up table with a structure as disclosed in the Overview section) from a memory, e.g., a database included in or connectable to said device.

[0136] In an optional fourth step 304, such a position request is obtained, such as by receiving a position request. The position request may be obtained from a device performing and / or controlling flowchart 200 of Figure 2. The device performing and / or controlling flowchart 200 of Figure 2 may request that its own position be determined (e.g., estimated), being each location where it has collected at least one sample measurement (see step 201 of Figure 2).

[0137] In a fifth step 305, location information is determined. The location information may be determined in response to obtaining a location request (see step 304). The location information may be determined at least in part based on at least one encoded sample measurement, or more precisely based on one or more full and / or partial identifier information contained in the at least one encoded sample measurement and / or one or more received signal strength information.

[0138] In an optional sixth step 306, the location information is provided, such as by transmitting the location information (e.g., determined in step 305) to an entity form from which the location request may have been obtained in step 304, such as a device that performs and / or controls flowchart 200 of FIG. 2 .

[0139] In an optional seventh step 307, a route is determined (eg, calculated), such as a route to or from the location represented by the location information.

[0140] In an optional eighth step 308, the route may be provided (eg, of step 307), such as by transmitting the route to, for example, a device that performs and / or controls flowchart 200 of FIG.

[0141] In particular, it will be understood that any of steps 307, 308 may be performed and / or controlled before, in parallel with, and / or after any of steps 301-306.

[0142] FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus 400 according to an example embodiment, which may represent, for example, IoT device 140 of FIG.

[0143] The device 400 includes a processor 410 , a working memory 420 , a program memory 430 , a data memory 440 , a communication interface 450 , an optional user interface 460 , and an optional sensor 470 .

[0144] The apparatus 400 may for example be configured to perform and / or control a method according to the first exemplary aspect or to include respective means (at least one of 410-470) for performing and / or controlling the method. Additionally, the apparatus 400 may constitute an apparatus including at least one processor (410) and at least one memory (420) including computer program code, which, together with the at least one processor, are configured to cause an apparatus, such as the apparatus 400, to at least perform and / or control a method according to the first exemplary aspect.

[0145] Processor 410 may include, for example, functional and / or structural units such as sample measurement collector 411. For example, sample measurement collector 411 may collect (e.g., measure) one or more pieces of identifier information and / or one or more pieces of received signal strength information, etc., based on, for example, one or more signals generated by wireless nodes such as wireless nodes 130-1 to 130-5 in FIG. 1 .

[0146] The processor 410 may include, for example, functional and / or structural units such as an encoder 412. The encoder 412 may encode, for example, collected sample measurements.

[0147] The processor 410 may further control, for example, memories 420-440, a communication interface 450, an optional user interface 460, and an optional sensor 470.

[0148] The processor 410 may, for example, execute computer program code stored in the program memory 430, which may, for example, represent a computer-readable storage medium containing program code that, when executed by the processor 410, causes the processor 410 to perform a method according to the first exemplary aspect.

[0149] Processor 410 (and any other processors mentioned herein) may be any suitable type of processor. Processor 410 may include, but is not limited to, one or more microprocessors, one or more processors with one or more associated digital signal processors, one or more processors without associated digital signal processors, one or more special-purpose computer chips, one or more field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), one or more controllers, one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), or one or more computers. The associated structure / hardware is programmed in a manner to perform the described functions. Processor 410 may, for example, be an application processor running an operating system, etc.

[0150] The processor 410 may also include a program memory 430. This memory may be, for example, permanently connected to the processor 410 or may be at least partially removable from the processor 410, for example in the form of a memory card or stick. The program memory 430 may be, for example, a non-volatile memory. To give some examples, the program memory 430 may be, for example, a flash memory (or a portion thereof), a ROM, PROM, EPROM, and EEPROM memory (or a portion thereof), or a hard disk (or a portion thereof). The program memory 430 may also include an operating system for the processor 410. The program memory 430 may also include firmware for the device 400.

[0151] The device 400 includes working memory 420, e.g., in the form of volatile memory. The working memory 420 may be, e.g., random access memory (RAM) or dynamic RAM (DRAM), to name a few non-limiting examples. The working memory 420 may be used by the processor 410, e.g., when executing an operating system and / or computer programs.

[0152] The data memory 440 may be, for example, a non-volatile memory, etc. To give some examples, the data memory 440 may be, for example, a flash memory (or a portion thereof), a ROM, PROM, EPROM, and EEPROM memory (or a portion thereof), a hard disk (or a portion thereof), etc. The data memory 440 may store, for example, one or more sample measurements, one or more identifier information, one or more partial identifier information, one or more received signal strength information, one or more encoded sample measurements, one or more messages, one or more unobtrusive messages, one or more location requests, one or more location information, or a combination thereof, etc.

[0153] The communication interface 450 enables the device 400 to communicate with other entities, such as, for example, the server cloud 110 of Figure 1. For example, the communication interface 450 may include a wireless interface, such as, for example, a cellular wireless communication interface and / or a WLAN interface, and / or a wire-bonded interface, such as, for example, an IP-based interface, for communicating with entities, for example, over the Internet. The communication interface may enable the device 400 to communicate with other entities, such as, for example, one or more of the wireless nodes 130-1 through 130-5 of Figure 1.

[0154] User interface 460 is optional and may include a display for displaying information to a user and / or an input device (e.g., a keyboard, keypad, touchpad, mouse, etc.) for receiving information from a user.

[0155] Sensors 470 are optional and may include, for example, a barometric pressure sensor for gathering pressure information, etc.

[0156] Some or all of the components of device 400 may be connected, for example, via a bus, etc. Some or all of the components of device 400 may, for example, be combined into one or more modules.

[0157] FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus 500 according to an example embodiment, which may represent, for example, server cloud 110 of FIG.

[0158] The apparatus 500 includes a processor 510 , a working memory 520 , a program memory 530 , a data memory 540 , a communication interface 550 , and an optional user interface 560 .

[0159] The apparatus 500 may for example be configured to perform and / or control the method according to the second exemplary embodiment or to include respective means (at least one of 510-560) for performing and / or controlling the method. Additionally, the apparatus 500 may constitute an apparatus including at least one processor (510) and at least one memory (520) including computer program code, which, together with the at least one processor, are configured to cause an apparatus, such as the apparatus 500, to at least perform and / or control the method according to the second exemplary embodiment.

[0160] The processor 510 may include, for example, as functional and / or structural units, an identifier information and / or received signal strength information resolver 511. The identifier information and / or received signal strength information resolver 511 may, for example, resolve one or more partial identifier information Elucidation and / or one or more signal strength information Elucidation It is also possible to convert the value into a dBm value.

[0161] The processor 510 may further control, for example, memories 520-540, a communication interface 550, and an optional user interface 560.

[0162] The processor 510 may, for example, execute computer program code stored in the program memory 530, which may, for example, represent a computer-readable storage medium containing program code that, when executed by the processor 510, causes the processor 510 to perform a method according to the second exemplary aspect.

[0163] Processor 510 (and any other processors mentioned herein) may be any suitable type of processor. Processor 510 may include, but is not limited to, one or more microprocessors, one or more processors accompanied by one or more digital signal processors, one or more processors without accompanying digital signal processors, one or more special-purpose computer chips, one or more field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), one or more controllers, one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), or one or more computers. The associated structure / hardware is programmed in a manner to perform the described functions. Processor 510 may, for example, be an application processor running an operating system, etc.

[0164] The processor 510 may also include a program memory 530. This memory may be, for example, permanently connected to the processor 510 or may be at least partially removable from the processor 510, for example in the form of a memory card or stick. The program memory 530 may be, for example, a non-volatile memory. To give some examples, the program memory 530 may be, for example, a flash memory (or a portion thereof), a ROM, PROM, EPROM, and EEPROM memory (or a portion thereof), or a hard disk (or a portion thereof). The program memory 530 may also include an operating system for the processor 510. The program memory 530 may also include firmware for the device 500.

[0165] The device 500 includes working memory 520, e.g., in the form of volatile memory. The working memory 520 may be, e.g., random access memory (RAM) or dynamic RAM (DRAM), to name a few non-limiting examples. The working memory 520 may be used by the processor 510, e.g., when executing an operating system and / or computer programs.

[0166] The data memory 540 may be, for example, a non-volatile memory, etc. To give some examples, the data memory 540 may be, for example, a flash memory (or a portion thereof), a ROM, PROM, EPROM, and EEPROM memory (or a portion thereof), a hard disk (or a portion thereof), etc. The data memory 540 may store, for example, one or more sample measurements, one or more identifier information, one or more partial identifier information, one or more received signal strength information, one or more encoded sample measurements, one or more messages, one or more unobtrusive messages, one or more location requests, one or more location information, or a combination thereof, etc.

[0167] The communication interface 550 enables the apparatus 500 to communicate with other entities, such as, for example, wireless nodes 130-1 through 130-5 of Figure 1. For example, the communication interface 550 may include a wireless interface, such as, for example, a cellular wireless communication interface and / or a WLAN interface, and / or a wire-bonded interface, such as, for example, an IP-based interface, for communicating with entities, for example, over the Internet. The communication interface may enable the apparatus 500 to communicate with other entities, such as, for example, one or more of the IoT devices 140 of Figure 1.

[0168] User interface 560 is optional and may include a display for displaying information to a user and / or an input device (e.g., a keyboard, keypad, touchpad, mouse, etc.) for receiving information from a user.

[0169] Some or all of the components of the device 500 may be connected, for example, via a bus, etc. Some or all of the components of the device 500 may, for example, be combined into one or more modules.

[0170] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of examples of tangible, non-transitory computer-readable storage media according to the present invention that may be used to implement, for example, program and / or main memory 430, 530 or working memory 420, 520 or program or data memory 440, 540 of device 400 and / or device 500 of Figure 4 or Figure 5. Figure 6 shows a flash memory 600 that may be soldered or bonded to, for example, a printed circuit board, a solid-state drive 601 including multiple memory chips (e.g., flash memory chips), a magnetic hard drive 602, a Secure Digital (SD) card 603, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) memory stick 604, an optical storage medium 605 (e.g., a CD-ROM or DVD), and a magnetic storage medium 606.

[0171] The following embodiments will also be considered to be disclosed.

[0172] <Embodiment 1> - collecting at least one sample measurement including at least one of identifier information or signal strength information of a plurality of wireless nodes, wherein one or more signals transmitted by each wireless node are observable at a location where the device collects the at least one sample measurement; - encoding at least one sample measurement based on a condition: - enabling the encoded at least one sample measurement to include up to two full identifiers of each wireless node; - enabling the encoded at least one sample measurement to include up to three partial identifier information, wherein the partial identifier information may include a portion of each full identifier information of each wireless node; and - encoding, wherein the encoded at least one sample measurement includes at least one signal strength information of a respective wireless node; - Provide at least one coded sample measurement A method comprising:

[0173] <Embodiment 2> 2. The method according to embodiment 1, wherein each full identifier information is represented by six octets, each partial identifier information is represented by one octet, and each partial identifier information is the last octet of each obtained identifier information.

[0174] <Embodiment 3> 3. A method according to embodiment 1 or 2, wherein at least one signal strength information of the encoded at least one sample measurement value is represented by 4 bits.

[0175] <Embodiment 4> A method according to any of embodiments 1 to 3, wherein at least one signal strength information of at least one encoded sample measurement value is converted into a linear value, and the conversion is based on at least one of predetermined signal strength values ​​or predetermined signal strength ranges of the collected signal strength information mapped to the respective linear value.

[0176] <Embodiment 5> A method according to any of embodiments 1 to 4, wherein the encoded at least one sample measurement is allowed to include up to five transformed signal strength information.

[0177] <Embodiment 6> A method according to any of embodiments 1 to 5, wherein the at least one encoded sample measurement value provided is provided in a single message.

[0178] <Embodiment 7> 7. A method according to any of embodiments 1 to 6, wherein the encoded at least one sample measurement is provided as two unobtrusive messages.

[0179] <Embodiment 8> A method according to any of embodiments 1 to 7, wherein the first of the two discreet messages includes one of up to two full identifier information of each wireless node, is allowed to include up to three partial identifier information, and is allowed to include signal strength information of each wireless node whose identifier information or a portion thereof is included in the first discreet message.

[0180] <Embodiment 9> A method according to any of embodiments 1 to 8, wherein the second of the two discreet messages includes another one of up to two full identifier information of each wireless node, is allowed to include up to three further partial identifier information not included in the first discreet message, and is allowed to include signal strength information of each wireless node whose identifier information or part thereof is included in the second discreet message.

[0181] <Embodiment 10> 10. A method according to any of embodiments 1-9, wherein the second unobtrusive message is enabled to include a checksum of the first unobtrusive message.

[0182] <Embodiment 11> 11. A method according to any of embodiments 1 to 10, further comprising obtaining location information determined at least in part based on the provided encoded at least one sample measurement.

[0183] <Embodiment 12> 12. The method according to any of embodiments 1-11, further comprising providing a location request indicating that a location at which the device collected the at least one sample measurement should be determined.

[0184] <Embodiment 13> - obtaining a configuration indicative of the number of messages to be encoded, the configuration being determined based on the number of messages possible in a given time frame; - at least one sample measurement is further encoded based on this configuration; A method according to any one of embodiments 1 to 12.

[0185] <Embodiment 14> 1. A method performed and / or controlled by an apparatus, said method comprising: - obtaining at least one encoded sample measurement, the at least one encoded sample measurement comprising: - a first of the plurality of wireless nodes Each wireless node One or Two full identifiers, - A second of the plurality of wireless nodes Each wireless node From one Three pieces of identifier information, Second a portion of each full identifier information of each wireless node; From one Three pieces of partial identifier information, and - First and secondacquiring at least one signal strength information for each wireless node; - Second Each wireless node From one The partial identifier information for each of the three partial identifier information Elucidation and determine all identifier information for each A method comprising:

[0186] <Embodiment 15> - determining a position estimate based at least in part on the acquired encoded at least one sample measurement; and - Providing its location estimate; 15. The method of embodiment 14, further comprising:

[0187] <Embodiment 16> 16. A method according to any of embodiments 14 or 15, further comprising obtaining a location request indicating that the location at which the device collected the obtained at least one sample measurement should be determined.

[0188] <Embodiment 17> 17. A method according to any of embodiments 14 to 16, further comprising combining the first and second conservative messages when at least one encoded sample measurement is obtained as two conservative messages instead of one.

[0189] <Embodiment 18> 18. The method according to any of embodiments 14-17, wherein the first and second unobtrusive messages are combined based on a checksum included in the second unobtrusive message.

[0190] <Embodiment 19> and generating respective signal strength information represented by linear values ​​based on at least one of predetermined signal strength values ​​or predetermined signal strength ranges mapped to the respective linear values. Elucidation 19. The method according to any of embodiments 14 to 18, further comprising:

[0191] <Embodiment 20> The location estimation is First and second Each wireless node From one 20. The method according to any of embodiments 14 to 19, wherein the determination is based on all five identifier information and their corresponding signal strength information.

[0192] <Embodiment 21> 21. A method according to any of embodiments 14-20, wherein the location estimate is determined based on up to eight full identifier information of each wireless node and their corresponding signal strength information.

[0193] <Embodiment 22> - determining a configuration in which at least one sample measurement indicates a number of messages to be encoded, the configuration being determined based on a number of messages possible in a given time frame; - providing its configuration and 22. The method according to any of embodiments 14 to 21, further comprising:

[0194] <Embodiment 23> A method according to any of embodiments 14 to 22, wherein each full identifier information is represented by 6 octets, each partial identifier information is represented by 1 octet, and the part of each full identifier information is the last octet of each obtained identifier information.

[0195] <Embodiment 24> A method according to any of embodiments 14 to 23, wherein at least one signal strength information of at least one encoded sample measurement value is represented by 4 bits.

[0196] <Embodiment 25> A method according to any of embodiments 14 to 24, wherein the encoded at least one sample measurement value is allowed to include up to five converted signal strength information.

[0197] <Embodiment 26> A method according to any of embodiments 14 to 25, wherein the at least one encoded sample measurement value provided is provided in a single message.

[0198] <Embodiment 27> 27. A method according to any of embodiments 14 to 26, wherein the encoded at least one sample measurement value is provided as two unobtrusive messages.

[0199] <Embodiment 28> A method according to any of embodiments 14 to 27, wherein the first of the two discreet messages includes one of up to two full identifier information of each wireless node, is allowed to include up to three partial identifier information, and is allowed to include signal strength information of each wireless node whose identifier information or part thereof is included in the first discreet message.

[0200] <Embodiment 29> A method according to any of embodiments 14 to 28, wherein the second of the two discreet messages includes another one of up to two full identifier information of each wireless node, is allowed to include up to three further partial identifier information not included in the first discreet message, and is allowed to include signal strength information of each wireless node whose identifier information or part thereof is included in the second discreet message.

[0201] <Embodiment 30> 30. A method according to any of embodiments 14 to 29, wherein the second unobtrusive message is enabled to include a checksum of the first unobtrusive message.

[0202] <Embodiment 31> An apparatus comprising means for carrying out the method of any one of embodiments 1 to 13.

[0203] <Embodiment 32> An apparatus comprising at least one processor and at least one memory that stores instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least perform and / or control a method according to any one of embodiments 1 to 13.

[0204] <Embodiment 33> An apparatus comprising means for carrying out the method of any one of embodiments 14 to 30.

[0205] <Embodiment 34> An apparatus comprising at least one processor and at least one memory that stores instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least perform and / or control a method according to any of embodiments 14 to 30.

[0206] <Embodiment 35> A computer program which, when executed by a processor, causes an apparatus, such as an apparatus according to embodiment 31 or 32, to perform and / or control the operations and / or steps of the method of any of embodiments 1 to 13.

[0207] <Embodiment 36> A computer program product comprising a computer program according to embodiment 35.

[0208] <Embodiment 37> A computer program which, when executed by a processor, causes an apparatus, such as an apparatus according to embodiment 33 or 34, to perform and / or control the operations and / or steps of the method of any of embodiments 14 to 30.

[0209] <Embodiment 38> A computer program product comprising a computer program according to embodiment 37.

[0210] <Embodiment 39> at least one first device according to embodiment 31 or 32; at least one second device according to embodiment 33 or 34; and A system including:

[0211] Any presented connection in the described embodiments herein should be understood to operatively couple the associated components, and thus the connection may be direct or indirect, involving any number or combination of intervening components, or there may be only a functional relationship between the components.

[0212] Furthermore, any methods, processes, and operations described or illustrated herein may be implemented using instructions executable on a general-purpose or special-purpose processor, which instructions are stored on a computer-readable storage medium (e.g., a disk or memory, etc.) for execution by such a processor. References to a "computer-readable storage medium" should be understood to encompass specialized circuitry such as, for example, FPGAs, ASICs, signal processing devices, and other devices.

[0213] The expression "A and / or B" is considered to include any one of the following three scenarios: (i) A, (ii) B, (iii) A and B. In this specification, the expression "at least one of A or B" is sometimes used, which has the same meaning as the expression "A and / or B." Furthermore, the article "a" should not be understood as "one," i.e., the use of the expression "an element" does not exclude the presence of further elements. The term "comprising" should be understood in an open sense, i.e., an object "comprising element A" may include further elements in addition to element A.

[0214] It will be understood that all presented embodiments are merely exemplary, and that any feature presented for a particular example embodiment may be used alone in any manner, or combined with any feature presented for the same or another specific example embodiment, and / or with any other feature not mentioned. In particular, the example embodiments presented in this specification should be understood to be disclosed in all possible combinations with each other, as far as technically reasonable, and the example embodiments are not alternatives for each other. Furthermore, it will be understood that any feature presented for an example embodiment in a particular category (method / apparatus / computer program / system) may also be used in a corresponding manner in an example embodiment in any other category. In addition, it should be understood that the presence of a feature in a presented example embodiment does not necessarily mean that this feature forms an essential feature and cannot be omitted or substituted.

[0215] The recitation of a feature including at least one of the subsequently listed features does not mandate that the feature include all of the subsequently listed features or at least one of several subsequently listed features. Selection of any combination of the listed features or selection of only one of the listed features is also possible. Specific combinations of all of the subsequently listed features may also be considered. In addition, multiple occurrences of only one listed feature may also be possible.

[0216] The order of all method steps presented above is not required, and alternative orders may be possible, but the particular order of method steps illustratively shown in the figures shall be considered one possible order of method steps for each embodiment illustrated by each figure.

[0217] Having described this subject matter above by way of example embodiments, it should be noted that there are alternative ways and variations that are obvious to those skilled in the art and that can be implemented without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. - obtaining at least one encoded sample measurement, said at least one encoded sample measurement comprising: - one or two full identifier information of a first respective wireless node of the plurality of wireless nodes; one to three pieces of partial identifier information for a second respective radio node of the plurality of radio nodes, the one to three pieces of partial identifier information including a portion of each full identifier information of the second respective radio node; and - obtaining at least one signal strength information of each of said first and second wireless nodes; - resolving each partial identifier information of said one to three partial identifier information of each second wireless node to determine respective full identifier information; An apparatus comprising means for performing the steps of:

2. The means for performing determining position information based at least in part on the acquired encoded at least one sample measurement; - providing said location information; and 10. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

3. The means for performing 3. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising means for combining a first unobtrusive message and a second unobtrusive message if the at least one encoded sample measurement is obtained as two unobtrusive messages instead of one.

4. The means for performing 2. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising: means for resolving each signal strength information represented by a linear value based on at least one of a predetermined signal strength value or a predetermined signal strength range mapped to the respective linear value.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein a location estimate is determined based on one to five full identifier information of each of the first and second wireless nodes and their corresponding signal strength information.

6. 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein each full identifier information is represented by six octets, each partial identifier information is represented by one octet, and the portion of each full identifier information is the last octet of each obtained identifier information.

7. 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one signal strength information of the encoded at least one sample measurement is represented by four bits.

8. A method performed and / or controlled by the apparatus of claim 1, said method comprising: - obtaining at least one encoded sample measurement, said at least one encoded sample measurement comprising: - one or two full identifier information of a first respective wireless node of the plurality of wireless nodes; one to three pieces of partial identifier information for a second respective radio node of the plurality of radio nodes, the one to three pieces of partial identifier information including a portion of each full identifier information of the second respective radio node; and - including at least one signal strength information of each of said first and second wireless nodes; To obtain and - resolving each partial identifier information of said one to three partial identifier information of each second wireless node to determine respective full identifier information; A method comprising:

9. determining position information based at least in part on the acquired encoded at least one sample measurement; - providing said location information; and The method of claim 8 further comprising:

10. 10. The method of claim 8 or claim 9, further comprising combining a first unobtrusive message and a second unobtrusive message if the at least one encoded sample measurement was obtained as two unobtrusive messages instead of one.

11. 9. The method of claim 8, further comprising: resolving each signal strength information represented by a linear value based on at least one of a predetermined signal strength value or a predetermined signal strength range mapped to the respective linear value.

12. 9. The method of claim 8, wherein a location estimate is determined based on one to five full identifier information of each of the first and second wireless nodes and their corresponding signal strength information.

13. 9. The method of claim 8, wherein each full identifier information is represented by six octets, each partial identifier information is represented by one octet, and the portion of each full identifier information is the last octet of each obtained identifier information.

14. 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the at least one signal strength information of the encoded at least one sample measurement is represented by four bits.

15. A computer program which, when executed by a processor, causes an apparatus to perform and / or control the operations and / or steps of the method according to claim 8.

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