Automated location determination to support VoIP E911 using self-surveying techniques for ad hoc wireless network
View Patent ↗Network devices in an Ad-Hoc wireless network self-survey themselves as necessary for approximate location or precise position information, based on methods employed, particularly useful for a non-open-sky environment. A WiFi Access Point (AP) with or without an internal GPS receiver and location conveyance support may utilize the mesh technique. If an Ad-Hoc network device is unable to contact a suitable location server, or a position request has otherwise failed to deliver a precise position, a WiFi AP is manually configured with appropriate location information, and then offers itself as if it were a location server (thereby becoming an ‘internal’ server’, containing either the determined or provisioned location of itself, for use by other APs or devices). A location server (either internal to the AP needing location, or external), performs a ‘mesh’ location determination by selecting position information from 3 or more location determined APs for subsequent processing.
1. A method of obtaining location information in an Internet Protocol (IP) network, comprising:
requesting, by a wireless network device, first location information from a first member device of a given wireless fidelity (WiFi) network;
requesting, by said wireless network device, second location information from a second member device of said given WiFi network;
requesting, by said wireless network device, third location information from a third member device of said given WiFi network;
meshing said first location information, said second location information, and said third location information, into a single meshed location associated with said wireless network device;
determining the meshed location comprising a meshed latitude that is a mean of individual latitude of each of said three locations and a meshed longitude that is a mean of individual longitude of said three locations; and
providing said meshed location to a WiFi network Access Point AP, as location information for said wireless network device;
wherein said first location information, said second location information, and said third location information are all also meshed locations.
2. The method of obtaining location information in an Internet Protocol (IP) network according to claim 1 , wherein:
said WiFi network AP is part of a local area network (LAN).
3. The method of obtaining location information in an Internet Protocol (IP) network according to claim 1 , wherein:
said WiFi network AP services at least one Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) device.
4. The method of obtaining location information in an Internet Protocol (IP) network according to claim 1 , further comprising:
supporting an E911 emergency call to a user of said wireless network device.
5. The method of obtaining location information in an Internet Protocol (IP) network according to claim 1 , wherein said first member device, said second member device, and said third member device comprise:
at least one network member device currently capable of having its location information obtained only via an averaging technique.
6. The method of obtaining location information in an Internet Protocol (IP) network according to claim 1 , wherein said first member device, said second member device, and said third member device comprise:
at least two network member devices currently capable of having their location information each obtained only via an averaging technique.
7. The method of obtaining location information in an Internet Protocol (IP) network according to claim 1 , wherein said first member device, said second member device, and said third member device comprise:
at least three network member devices currently capable of having their location information each obtained only via an averaged technique.