Clock synchronization for a wireless communications system

1. A server, comprising:

a radio receiver coupled to receive a radio frequency (RF) signal at a time T 1 ;

a clock interface to receive a reference clock signal;

a network interface to couple the server to a base station via a computer network, the network interface configured to receive a time T 2 from the base station, the time T 2 representative of a time that the RF signal was received at the base station; and

a processing device coupled to the radio receiver, the clock interface and the network interface, wherein the processing device is configured to use the time T 1 to determine a time T 0 when the RF signal was transmitted and a location of the base station, and wherein the processing device is configured to calculate a clock offset value based on when the RF signal was transmitted, the location of the base station, the time T 2 , and a reference clock signal, the clock offset value representative of a time to delay a local clock signal at the base station to synchronize the local clock signal at the base station with the reference clock signal.

2. The server of claim 1 , wherein the network interface is configured to transmit the calculated clock offset value to the base station.

3. The server of claim 1 , wherein the processing device is further configured to calculate a time T 0 in response to a time T 1 at which the RF signal was received by the radio receiver, wherein time T 0 represents a time when the RF signal was transmitted by an RF transmitter.

4. The server of claim 1 , wherein the RF signal is one of a plurality of RF signals and the radio receiver is coupled to receive the plurality of RF signals, wherein the processing device is further configured to calculate a distance between the server and an RF transmitter in response to the received plurality of RF signals, wherein the RF transmitter transmitted at least one of the plurality of RF signals.

5. The server of claim 1 , wherein the network interface is configured to receive data from the base station via the computer network, the data representative of a plurality of RF signals received at the base station, wherein the processing device is further configured to calculate the location of the base station in response to the received data.

6. The server of claim 1 , wherein the RF signal comprises a broadcast television signal that includes periodic timestamp information.

7. The server of claim 1 , wherein the clock interface receives the reference clock signal from a master reference clock via a fiber optic link.

8. The server of claim 1 , wherein the clock interface receives the reference clock signal from a master reference clock via an ISDN link.

9. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a radio receiver of a server at a time T 1 , a radio frequency (RF) signal;

receiving, by a clock interface of the server, a reference clock signal; and

receiving, by a network interface of the server, a time T 2 from a base station coupled to the server via a computer network, the time T 2 representative of a time that the RF signal was received at the base station;

calculating, by a processing device of the server, a location of the base station in response to the time T 2 ; and

calculating, by the processing device of the server, a clock offset value in response to the received RF signal, the RF signal received at the base station, and the reference clock signal, wherein calculating the clock offset value comprises using the time T 1 to calculate a time T 0 when the RF signal was transmitted by an RF transmitter, and wherein the clock offset value is based on the time T 0 , the location of the base station, the time T 2 , and the reference clock signal, the clock offset value used to synchronize a local clock signal at the base station with the reference clock signal.

10. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:

transmitting, by the network interface of the server, the calculated clock offset value to the base station.

11. The method of claim 9 , wherein receiving the RF signal comprises receiving a first plurality of RF signals, the method further comprising:

calculating a location of the server in response to the received plurality of RF signals.

12. The method of claim 9 , wherein calculating the clock offset value further comprises:

determining a time T 1 when the RF signal was received at the server;

calculating the time T 0 in response to the time T 1 and in response to a distance between the RF transmitter and the server; and

calculating the clock offset value in response to time T 2 and a delay between time T 0 and the reference clock signal.

13. The method of claim 9 , wherein the RF signal comprises a broadcast television signal.

14. The method of claim 9 , wherein the clock interface receives the reference clock signal from a master reference clock.