Patents Examined by Cassie Galt
  • Patent number: 8643542
    Abstract: A method for self-calibration of frequency offsets in a measurement equipment of an interference monitoring system is provided. The method involves sampling I/Q data using the interference monitoring system measurement equipment and acquiring satellite navigation signals from the I/Q data. A carrier frequency of the satellite navigation signal is estimated and an expected carrier frequency of the satellite navigation signal is calculated. The expected carrier frequency of the satellite navigation signal is compared with the estimated carrier frequency of the satellite navigation signal and a frequency offset value is calculated as the difference between the expected and estimated carrier frequencies of the satellite navigation signal. The frequency offset value is stored in a memory and used to compensate the frequency offset of at least one subsequent measurement.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 26, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 4, 2014
    Assignee: Astrium GmbH
    Inventor: Jan Wendel
  • Patent number: 8638257
    Abstract: A GNSS receiver utilizes an antenna structure that two or more antennas that are spaced apart from their neighboring antennas by less than 1 wavelength of a GNSS satellite carrier signal of interest. The receiver calculates the orientation of the antennas directly from differences in the carrier phase angles measured at the two antennas, without resolving integer carrier cycle ambiguity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 15, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 28, 2014
    Assignee: Novatel, Inc.
    Inventor: Patrick C. Fenton
  • Patent number: 8633855
    Abstract: In a technique for communication with a station on a wireless network, the technique includes forming a plurality of narrow-band beams, each having a different angular direction from an antenna of a base station and collectively distributed over a beamspace to form a pseudo-omni-directional beam pattern. That beamspace may span an entire spherical region or a portion thereof, for example, when the narrow-band beams are broadcast over a sector of an entire spherical region. The technique may assign each of the plurality of narrow-band beams to a different frequency band (such as a different channel band or sub-channel) on the wireless network. The technique may simultaneously broadcast the plurality of narrow-band beams in a time-varying manner such that the angular direction of each of the plurality of narrow-band beams varies with time, where that variation may be random or ordered.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 19, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 21, 2014
    Assignee: Marvll World Trade Ltd.
    Inventors: Jungwon Lee, Hui-Ling Lou
  • Patent number: 8629802
    Abstract: A location of a mobile terminal in a given area may be determined by including the mobile terminal in a satellite-based positioning system and in a cellular communications system. The approximate coordinates of the mobile terminal may be determined based on both satellite signals received from the satellite-based system and information related to the cellular communication system, where the coordinates include an altitude coordinate. An estimate of the altitude coordinate may be derived from the information related to the cellular communication system. The approximate coordinates may be determined using the estimate of the altitude coordinate and information provided by the satellite-based system by providing an approximate bi-dimensional positioning of the terminal and exploiting the bi-dimensional positioning and the estimate of the altitude coordinate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 7, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 14, 2014
    Assignee: Telecom Italia S.p.A.
    Inventors: Luca Boiero, Davide Cavallo
  • Patent number: 8629806
    Abstract: A GPS receiver for tracking a GPS signal. The receiver generates a mixed GPS signal by mixing the GPS signal with an oscillator signal, generates a first correlation signal by correlating the mixed GPS signal with a reference signal, and generates a filtered GPS signal from the GPS signal. The receiver also generates a filtered reference signal from the reference signal, generates a second correlation signal by correlating the filtered GPS signal with the filtered reference signal, and a generates a combined correlation signal by combining the first correlation signal with the second correlation signal. The receiver tracks the GPS signal by adjusting the phase of the oscillator signal based on the combined correlation signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 4, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 14, 2014
    Assignee: CSR Technology Inc.
    Inventor: Nam Dieu Banh
  • Patent number: 8624778
    Abstract: A set of parameters for a plurality of satellites belonging to at least two different satellite systems is assembled. Further, a definition of a data structure is provided, the data structure including at least one section for parameters for a plurality of satellites belonging to at least two different satellite systems.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 23, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 7, 2014
    Assignee: Nokia Corporation
    Inventors: Jari Tapani Syrjarinne, Lauri Aarne Johannes Wirola
  • Patent number: 8618983
    Abstract: A phased-array transmitter and receiver that may be effectively implemented on a silicon substrate. The transmitter distributes to front-ends, and the receiver combines signals from front-ends, using a power distribution/combination tree that employs both passive and active elements. By monitoring the power inputs and outputs, a digital control is able to rapidly provide phase and gain correction information to the front-ends. Such a transmitter/receiver includes a plurality of radio frequency (RF) front-ends and a power splitting/combining network that includes active and passive components configured to distribute signals to/from the front-ends.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2010
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2013
    Assignees: International Business Machines Corporation, MediaTek Inc.
    Inventors: Ping-Yu Chen, Brian A. Floyd, Jie-Wei Lai, Arun S. Natarajan, Sean T. Nicolson, Scott K. Reynolds, Ming-Dai Tsai, Alberto Valdes-Garcia, Jing-Hong C. Zhan
  • Patent number: 8599066
    Abstract: A system, method, and apparatus for obtaining information about an aircraft sighted from the ground. The system includes a communication device for determining an estimated location of the visually acquired aircraft, a flight database for determining information about a specified aircraft based on a provided location, and a network allowing communication between the communication device and the flight database. The communication device provides the estimated location of the sighted aircraft to the flight database and the flight database provides information on the sighted aircraft to the communication device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2013
    Inventor: Mark A. Wessels
  • Patent number: 8593341
    Abstract: A position calculation method and apparatus are described. The position calculation apparatus may include an inertial measurement unit and be configured to be coupled with at least one sensor unit for detecting a physical event for use in position calculation. The presence of and type sensor unit may identified, and the position processing to be undertaken may depend on this identification.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 1, 2010
    Date of Patent: November 26, 2013
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Kumar Anand, Shunichi Mizuochi, Shuji Uchida, Takuya Sugimoto, Kenji Onda, Rama Sanjay
  • Patent number: 8593342
    Abstract: The present invention provides methods of performing GNSS receivers' satellite signal acquisition and TTFF while taking advantage of SBAS signals. Due to a SBAS satellite's geostationary position and typically strong signal, the SBAS satellite signal can be acquired more quickly than a GPS satellite signal. Once a SBAS satellite signal is acquired the Doppler frequency search uncertainty may be reduced for remaining GNSS satellites which are to be acquired. Furthermore, a satellite search list may be optimized to search for satellites close to the line of sight (LOS) of the SBAS satellite for which a signal has been acquired, in receiver “warm” and “hot” start modes. Moreover, since a SBAS signal sub-frame is only one second long, which is shorter than six seconds for a GPS signal sub-frame, synchronization of the SBAS signal sub-frame may be achieved faster than for GPS signals. With aided time information, a receiver may compute the absolute time of week (TOW) from a sub-frame synchronized SBAS signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2009
    Date of Patent: November 26, 2013
    Assignee: CSR Technology Holdings Inc.
    Inventors: Mangesh Chansarkar, Gang Xie, Gengsheng Zhang
  • Patent number: 8587476
    Abstract: A system and method for activating a GPS receiver or a WiFi receiver on a mobile device may be provided, which comprises determining an approximate location of the mobile device. The approximate location of the mobile device may be determined using cell tower location information. If the approximate location of the mobile device is within a predetermined distance from a desired location, or is “close enough”, then the GPS receiver or the WiFi receiver is activated. The GPS receiver or the WiFi receiver is activated to determine a more accurate location of the mobile device. The approximate and the more accurate location information may be exchanged with another mobile device to allow the user to find one another.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 11, 2010
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2013
    Assignee: BlackBerry Limited
    Inventors: Michael Hin Kai Hung, Robert Kline
  • Patent number: 8558738
    Abstract: A GNSS receiver reduces the time to first fix by utilizing the properties of existing radiated signals of opportunity, such as AM or FM radio signals, television signals and so forth, to reduce the uncertainties associated with oscillator frequency and phase, and further utilizing an Almanac and battery backed-up date and time to determine the satellites in view and reduce the uncertainties associated with Doppler. The receiver may use multiple signals of opportunity to determine the city or local area in which the receiver is located based on the set of frequencies of the signals, and also to reduce search uncertainties for oscillator frequency by estimating an offset based on the differences between the frequencies of the respective signals of opportunity at the receiver and the nominal broadcast frequencies of the signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 15, 2013
    Assignee: NovAtel Inc.
    Inventors: Jonathan Ladd, Patrick C. Fenton
  • Patent number: 8552903
    Abstract: Various techniques are described relating to verifying a distance between devices. A distance between two devices may be verified by requiring one of the devices to take one or more actions that generate a result that is only possible if the device is at most a given distance from the other device. In some aspects verified ranging is accomplished through the use of a ranging signal and a responsive signal. In some aspects the ranging signal may comprise a random, pseudorandom, or deterministic sequence. A responding device may operate on a ranging signal in accordance with a known function to generate a responsive signal. A ranging device also may perform operations to determine the likelihood that a responding device properly operated on a ranging signal that the ranging device transmitted to the responding device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 16, 2007
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2013
    Assignee: QUALCOMM Incorporated
    Inventors: David Jonathan Julian, Amal Ekbal, Chong U. Lee
  • Patent number: 8531329
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for determining the thickness of material by penetrating the material, in particular a method for measuring the thickness of walls, ceilings and floors, with which a measurement signal (28) in the gigahertz frequency range emitted using a high-frequency transmitter (24) penetrates the material (10) to be investigated at least once and is detected by a high-frequency receiver (38). According to the present invention, it is provided that the thickness (d) of the material (10) is measured via at least two transit-time measurements of the measurement signal (28) performed at various positions (20, 22) of the high-frequency transmitter (24) and/or the high-frequency receiver (34). The present invention also relates to a device system (12; 40, 140, 240, 340) for carrying out the method described above.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 10, 2013
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Michael Mahler, Ulli Hoffmann, Reiner Krapf, Christoph Wieland, Felix Wewers
  • Patent number: 8531917
    Abstract: An apparatus for estimating a Direction of Arrival (DOA) of a wideband includes a first signal receiving unit and a second signal receiving unit to receive a wideband signal while satisfying d?Mc/2fs, wherein ‘d’ denotes a distance the first signal receiving unit and the second signal receiving unit are spaced apart from each other, ‘c’ denotes the speed of sound, ‘M’ denotes a number of wideband frequencies being a number of fast Fourier transformation (FFT) points of a wideband signal, and ‘fs’ denotes a sampling frequency, and a DOA calculating unit to calculate a DOA (?) using a normalized frequency ( f) which is obtained by performing an FFT on the respective wideband signals transmitted from the first signal receiving unit and the second signal receiving unit, and using the distance d.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 10, 2013
    Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Weiwei Cui, Ki Wan Eom, Hyung-Joon Lim
  • Patent number: 8525727
    Abstract: A GNSS navigation system and navigation method for determining user position, user velocity, and improved uncertainty metrics for position and velocity. A measurement engine in an applications processor of the system determines pseudorange and delta range values over each time period for each received satellite signal, and also determines measurement noise variances for both pseudorange and delta range for the individual signals. The satellite-specific pseudorange and delta range measurement variances are used to determine the position and velocity uncertainties by a position engine, either by way of a least-squares linearization or by way of an enhanced Kalman filter. The uncertainties may be communicated to the system user, or used in generating an integrated position and velocity result from both the GNSS navigation function and an inertial navigation system result.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 29, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2013
    Assignee: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventors: June Chul Roh, Deric Wayne Waters
  • Patent number: 8519886
    Abstract: A method and system for determining a bending angle and/or the presence of atmospheric ducting. An array of antennas is used in order to form an interferometer. The interferometer receives signals from GPS satellites and uses the index of infraction in order to determine a bending angle of the GPS signals and/or the presence of atmospheric ducting.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 27, 2013
    Assignee: The Government of the United States of America, as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
    Inventors: Thomas L Ainsworth, Gerald Nedoluha
  • Patent number: 8519889
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for estimating location of wireless stations in a wireless communication network are provided. An estimation of a bearing angle of a wireless station from a reference point of a multi-beam antenna pattern is made based on a plurality of beaming angles of a multi-beam antenna pattern and a received signal property, at the wireless station, of each of a plurality of wireless signals transmitted on respective beams of the multi-beam antenna pattern for each of the plurality of beaming angles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 27, 2013
    Assignee: Research In Motion Limited
    Inventors: David Steer, Scott Widdowson
  • Patent number: 8508405
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for protecting a radionavigation receiver user in relation to aberrant pseudo-range measurements. In the method, a measurement error is detected by a statistical estimation scheme based on calculating the residuals of the measurements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 6, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 13, 2013
    Assignee: Thales
    Inventors: Mathias Van Den Bossche, Philippe Karouby, Christophe Macabiau, Philippe Paimblanc
  • Patent number: 8497801
    Abstract: Systems, methods and devices for using ephemeris data in GNSS receivers and systems are provided. Receivers using synthetic ephemeris data for longer ephemeris availability under poor reception conditions are updated using a variety of techniques that allow for the transfer of accurate information onto degraded synthetic ephemeris information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 4, 2008
    Date of Patent: July 30, 2013
    Assignee: QUALCOMM Incorporated
    Inventors: Lionel Garin, Pramod Gupta, SaiPradeep Venkatraman