Wireless Location Accuracy via Configurable Blind Spots
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current wireless location determination methods fail to achieve high precision, especially in areas requiring absolute certainty, such as blind spots or geofences, due to cost and energy constraints, and often rely on additional wireless communication methods or onboard sensors.
Innovation Solution
The strategic placement of configurable blind spots and non-identity recognizing sensors in known locations, combined with timing and velocity data, enhances location precision by utilizing the loss of wireless communication and signal strength reduction to determine the precise location of a mobile wireless device.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If traditional wireless location determination methods are used, then the system is simple and low cost, but location accuracy is insufficient (not less than a few feet)
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces blind spots as intermediary zones with known locations that mediate between the wireless device and the location determination system. When a device enters or exits a blind spot, this event serves as a reference point to calculate precise location and velocity, enabling high-precision location determination without requiring complex onboard sensors in the device itself
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces mechanical/optical presence sensors with wireless communication-based detection. Instead of using physical sensors to detect device presence, the system uses loss of wireless communication signal to identify when a device enters or exits a blind spot, thereby determining location through communication status rather than mechanical sensing
2Measurement precision
If onboard sensors are added to wireless devices to improve location accuracy, then location precision increases, but cost and energy consumption increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the infrastructure (host system) perform the location determination function rather than requiring the mobile device to have onboard sensors. The blind spots and communication loss events at the infrastructure level provide location information, allowing the device to determine its location using existing communication capabilities without additional energy-consuming sensors
Solution Approach 2:
Blind spots serve as intermediary reference zones that enable the infrastructure to determine device location without requiring the device itself to have precision sensors. The known location of blind spots combined with communication loss timing provides the necessary reference for high-precision location calculation
3Measurement precision
If precise identification devices are integrated within blind spots to improve location accuracy, then location precision increases, but cost increases and additional wireless communication methods are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the existing wireless communication system perform multiple functions: both normal data communication and location determination. The same communication channel used for regular operations also detects blind spot entry/exit events, eliminating the need for separate identification devices or additional communication methods
Solution Approach 2:
The blind spot acts as an intermediary that translates physical presence into communication status changes. Instead of using precise identification devices to detect presence, the system uses the blind spot to create observable communication loss events that indicate device location
4Measurement precision
If blind spots are used to improve location accuracy, then location precision increases, but the system requires strategic placement and integration of sensors
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces physical sensor deployment with virtual blind spot definition based on wireless communication characteristics. Instead of installing sensors in specific physical locations, the system defines blind spots through signal analysis and communication loss detection, significantly simplifying deployment
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a virtual model of physical space using blind spots that replicate the function of physical sensors. The blind spot representation in the system mirrors the actual geographic zones, enabling location determination without physical sensor installation
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention is a precision location system for wireless devices within a host system using known location of blind spots or partial blind spots to advantageously increase the accuracy of location determination. The host system with known blind spots is particularly adept at providing the control system with precise location accuracy for determining the entering or departing of a known geofence zone by a wireless device host.