Abstract: IP-based Location Services (IP-LCS) is a valuable application that may be supported by a majority of cellular phones in the future. Services offered by such applications can be closely coupled to the location of the user. IP-LCS may be designed to permit a location based application resident on a mobile terminal to track a mobile terminal or a cluster of mobile terminals, or to otherwise provide location based services to a mobile node based on the location of another mobile node or a cluster of mobile nodes.

Abstract: Provided are improved systems, methods, and devices for IP-based location service (LCS). Using one or more IP-based protocols for LCS signaling efficiently re-uses existing, implemented, and reliable protocols and increases the robustness of the LCS signaling. Particular implementations of LCS messaging call flows make efficient use of wireless bandwidths and support IP-based LCS by organizing communications and signaling to limit required communications so that IP-based protocols may be used, rather than relying upon SS7 signaling and LCS-specific communication protocols.