TERMINAL LOCATION USING FORCED HANDOVER OF M2M DEVICE IN WHITE SPACE
A method for determining the location of a communication terminal in a network comprising a plurality of communication devices, each configured to communicate with at least one terminal, the method comprising instructing the terminal whose location is to be determined to handover from a communication device to which it is currently attached to another communication device in the network.
1 . A method for determining the location of a communication terminal in a network comprising a plurality of communication devices, each configured to communicate with at least one terminal, the method comprising instructing the terminal whose location is to be determined to handover from a communication device to which it is currently attached to another communication device in the network.
2 . A method as claimed in claim 1 , comprising the terminal attaching to another communication device responsive to the instruction.
3 . A method as claimed in claim 2 , comprising the other communication device determining an indication of the terminal's location.
4 . A method as claimed in claim 2 , comprising, when the terminal is attached to the other communication device, performing a timing operation to determine an indication of the terminal's location.
5 . A method as claimed in claim 3 , comprising determining a location of the terminal in dependence on the indication.
6 . A method as claimed in claim 3 , comprising the other communication device forwarding the indication to a location server in the network.
7 . A method as claimed in claim 6 , comprising the location server determining a location of the terminal.
8 . A method as claimed in claim 7 , comprising the terminal reattaching to the communication device once the indication of its location has been determined.
9 . A method as claimed in claim 8 , comprising the communication device, once the terminal has reattached, obtaining the determined location of the terminal from the location server.
10 . A method as claimed in claim 1 , comprising repeatedly instructing the terminal to handover from the communication device to which it is currently attached to another communication device in the network.
11 . A method as claimed in claim 10 , comprising:
determining, each time that the terminal hands over to another communication device responsive to the repeated instructions, an indication of the terminal's location; and
determining a location for the terminal in dependence on those indications.
12 . A method as claimed in claim 1 , comprising the terminal selecting the other communication device independently of the communication device to which it is currently attached.
13 . A method as claimed in claim 1 , comprising the terminal selecting, as the other communication device, a communication device from which it experiences a signal strength below a threshold at which the terminal is configured to determine it can maintain a communications link with the communication device.
14 . A communication device for communicating with a terminal via a communication network comprising a plurality of communication devices, each configured to communicate with at least one terminal, the communication device being configured to determine a location associated with the terminal by instructing it to handover to another communication device in the network.
15 . A communication device as claimed in claim 14 , configured for machine-to-machine communication.
16 . A communication device as claimed in claim 14 , configured to operate in whitespace.
17 . (canceled)
18 . (canceled)