Providing and utilizing maps in location determination based on RSSI and RTT data

Abstract

The subject matter disclosed herein relates to utilizing location information, such as maps, in location determination based on Received Signal Strength Indication (RSSI) and Round-Trip Time (RTT) data. Weighting information can be determined from and/or provided in the location information. The weighting information associated with an area in which a mobile device is located can impact how RSSI and RTT data is weighted in a calculation of the mobile device's location.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for facilitating a determination of a mobile device's location based upon weighted Received Signal Strength Indication (RSSI) and Round-Trip Time (RTT) data, the method comprising:
 obtaining location data corresponding to a plurality of areas associated with a structure;   determining, with a processing unit, for each area of the plurality of areas:
 a condition of an environment associated with the area, based on the location data; and 
 weighting information based on the condition of the environment associated with the area and relating to weighting RSSI and RTT data; and 
   sending the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas to a mobile device.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas comprises a heatmap. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 exchanging RSSI and RTT communications with the mobile device.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the weighting information includes at least one of:
 a confidence level,   a wall composition type,   a number of walls between an area and an access point,   a distance, or   hardware information of an access point.   
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 receiving data from one or more mobile devices; and   updating the weighting information of at least one area of the plurality of areas based on the received data.   
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein, the weighting information for each area of the plurality of areas includes information relating to weighting RSSI and RTT data for each of a plurality of access points. 
     
     
         7 . A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having instructions embedded thereon for causing a processing unit to perform functions including:
 obtaining location data corresponding to a plurality of areas associated with a structure;   determining, for each area of the plurality of areas:
 a condition of an environment associated with the area, based on the location data; and 
 weighting information based on the condition of the environment associated with the area and relating to weighting RSSI and RTT data; and 
   sending the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas to a mobile device.   
     
     
         8 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 7 , wherein the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas comprises a heatmap. 
     
     
         9 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 7 , further comprising instructions for exchanging RSSI and RTT communications with the mobile device. 
     
     
         10 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 7 , wherein the weighting information includes at least one of:
 a confidence level,   a wall composition type,   a number of walls between an area and an access point,   a distance, or   hardware information of an access point.   
     
     
         11 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 7 , further comprising instructions for:
 receiving data from one or more mobile devices; and   updating the weighting information of at least one area of the plurality of areas based on the received data.   
     
     
         12 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 7 , wherein, the weighting information for each area of the plurality of areas includes information relating to weighting RSSI and RTT data for each of a plurality of access points. 
     
     
         13 . A system for facilitating a determination of a mobile device's location based upon weighted Received Signal Strength Indication (RSSI) and Round-Trip Time (RTT) data, the system comprising:
 means for obtaining location data corresponding to a plurality of areas associated with a structure;   means for determining, for each area of the plurality of areas:
 a condition of an environment associated with the area, based on the location data; and 
 weighting information based on the condition of the environment associated with the area and relating to weighting RSSI and RTT data; and 
   means for sending the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas to a mobile device.   
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 13 , wherein the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas comprises a heatmap. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 13 , further comprising means for exchanging RSSI and RTT communications with the mobile device. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 13 , wherein the weighting information includes at least one of:
 a confidence level,   a wall composition type,   a number of walls between an area and an access point,   a distance, or   hardware information of an access point.   
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 13 , further comprising:
 means for receiving data from one or more mobile devices; and   means for updating the weighting information of at least one area of the plurality of areas based on the received data.   
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 13 , wherein, the weighting information for each area of the plurality of areas includes information relating to weighting RSSI and RTT data for each of a plurality of access points. 
     
     
         19 . A server for facilitating a determination of a mobile device's location based upon weighted Received Signal Strength Indication (RSSI) and Round-Trip Time (RTT) data, the server comprising:
 a transmitter;   a receiver;   a memory; and   a processing unit communicatively coupled with the transmitter, the receiver, and the memory, the processing unit configured to   obtain location data corresponding to a plurality of areas associated with a structure;   determine, for each area of the plurality of areas:
 a condition of an environment associated with the area, based on the location data; and 
 weighting information based on the condition of the environment associated with the area and relating to weighting RSSI and RTT data; and 
   send, via the transmitter, the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas to a mobile device.   
     
     
         20 . The server of  claim 19 , wherein the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas comprises a heatmap. 
     
     
         21 . The server of  claim 19 , wherein the processing unit is further configured to exchange, using either or both the transmitter or the receiver, RSSI and RTT communications with the mobile device. 
     
     
         22 . The server of  claim 19 , wherein the weighting information includes at least one of:
 a confidence level,   a wall composition type,   a number of walls between an area and an access point,   a distance, or   hardware information of an access point.   
     
     
         23 . The server of  claim 19 , wherein the processing unit is further configured to:
 receive data from one or more mobile devices; and   update the weighting information of at least one area of the plurality of areas based on the received data.   
     
     
         24 . The server of  claim 19 , wherein, the weighting information for each area of the plurality of areas includes information relating to weighting RSSI and RTT data for each of a plurality of access points. 
     
     
         25 . A method for determining a mobile device's location based upon weighted Received Signal Strength Indication (RSSI) and Round-Trip Time (RTT) data, the method comprising:
 receiving, with a mobile device, weighting information of each area of a plurality of areas;   storing the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas in a memory of the mobile device;   obtaining an RSSI measurement and an RTT measurement relating to an area in which the mobile device is located;   using the weighting information of the area in which the mobile device is located to determine:
 a first weight for the RSSI measurement, and 
 a second weight for the RTT measurement; and 
   calculating the mobile device's location using the first weight and the second weight.   
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 25 , wherein using the weighting information to determine the first weight and the second weight includes calculating a confidence level for either or both of the RSSI measurement and the RTT measurement, based on the weighting information. 
     
     
         27 . The method of  claim 25 , wherein the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas comprises a heatmap. 
     
     
         28 . The method of  claim 25 , further comprising updating the weighting information of at least one area of the plurality of areas. 
     
     
         29 . The method of  claim 28 , wherein the updating the weighting information of at least one area of the plurality of areas is based on either or both of:
 historical data of the mobile device; or   data received from another mobile device.   
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 28 , wherein the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas includes information regarding a plurality of access points. 
     
     
         31 . A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having instructions embedded thereon for causing a processing unit to perform functions including:
 receiving weighting information of each area of a plurality of areas;   storing the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas in a memory;   obtaining an RSSI measurement and an RTT measurement relating to an area in which a mobile device is located;   using the weighting information of the area in which the mobile device is located to determine:
 a first weight for the RSSI measurement, and 
 a second weight for the RTT measurement; and 
   calculating a location of the mobile device using the first weight and the second weight.   
     
     
         32 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 31 , wherein the instructions for using the weighting information to determine the first weight and the second weight includes include instructions for calculating a confidence level for either or both of the RSSI measurement and the RTT measurement, based on the weighting information. 
     
     
         33 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 31 , wherein the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas comprises a heatmap. 
     
     
         34 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 31 , further comprising instructions for updating the weighting information of at least one area of the plurality of areas. 
     
     
         35 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 34 , wherein the instructions for updating the weighting information of at least one area of the plurality of areas are configured to base the updating on either or both of:
 historical data of the mobile device; or   data received from another mobile device.   
     
     
         36 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 34 , wherein the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas includes information regarding a plurality of access points. 
     
     
         37 . A system for determining a mobile device's location based upon weighted Received Signal Strength Indication (RSSI) and Round-Trip Time (RTT) data, the system comprising:
 means for receiving weighting information of each area of a plurality of areas;   means for storing the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas in a memory;   means for obtaining an RSSI measurement and an RTT measurement relating to an area in which a mobile device is located;   means for using the weighting information of the area in which the mobile device is located to determine:
 a first weight for the RSSI measurement, and 
 a second weight for the RTT measurement; and 
   means for calculating the mobile device's location using the first weight and the second weight.   
     
     
         38 . The system of  claim 37 , wherein the means for using the weighting information to determine the first weight and the second weight include means for calculating a confidence level for either or both of the RSSI measurement and the RTT measurement, based on the weighting information. 
     
     
         39 . The system of  claim 37 , wherein the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas comprises a heatmap. 
     
     
         40 . The system of  claim 37 , further comprising means for updating the weighting information of at least one area of the plurality of areas. 
     
     
         41 . The system of  claim 40 , wherein the means for updating the weighting information of at least one area of the plurality of areas are configured to base the updating on either or both of:
 historical data of the mobile device; or   data received from another mobile device.   
     
     
         42 . The system of  claim 40 , wherein the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas includes information regarding a plurality of access points. 
     
     
         43 . An mobile device configured to determine a location based upon weighted Received Signal Strength Indication (RSSI) and Round-Trip Time (RTT) data, the mobile device comprising:
 a transmitter;   a receiver;   a memory; and   a processing unit coupled with the transmitter, the receiver, and the memory, the processing unit configured to:
 receive weighting information of each area of a plurality of areas; 
 store the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas in the memory; 
 obtain an RSSI measurement and an RTT measurement relating to an area in which a mobile device is located; 
 use the weighting information of the area in which the mobile device is located to determine:
 a first weight for the RSSI measurement, and 
 a second weight for the RTT measurement; and 
 
 calculate a location of the mobile device using the first weight and the second weight. 
   
     
     
         44 . The mobile device of  claim 43 , wherein the processing unit is configured to use the weighting information to determine the first weight and the second weight by calculating a confidence level for either or both of the RSSI measurement and the RTT measurement, based on the weighting information. 
     
     
         45 . The mobile device of  claim 43 , wherein the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas comprises a heatmap. 
     
     
         46 . The mobile device of  claim 43 , wherein the processing unit is further configured to update the weighting information of at least one area of the plurality of areas. 
     
     
         47 . The mobile device of  claim 46 , wherein the processing unit is configured to base the updating the weighting information of at least one area of the plurality of areas on either or both of:
 historical data of the mobile device; or   data received from another mobile device.   
     
     
         48 . The mobile device of  claim 46 , wherein the weighting information of each area of the plurality of areas includes information regarding a plurality of access points.