Skyhook Wireless, Inc.

Qualcomm Incorporated

Shyhook Wireless, Inc.

Farshid Alizadeh-Shabdiz

Russel Kipp Jones

Edward James Morgan

Nicolas Brachet

Christopher Steger

Michael George Shean

Andrei Dancus

Kaveh Pahlavan

Andrew Broadstone

Gerald Cavanaugh

Richard Sutton

George Polak

Thomas Jason Dytko

Javier Velez

Joel N Nelson

Joel Morrin

Mohammad A Heidari

Oleksiy Ignatyev

Arun Ramamurthy

Pathum Mudannayake

Russel Jones

Nicholas Brachet

Mohammad A Heidaran

Russel K Jones

In one example embodiment, a certified location service enables a mobile device to access a location-based service when a determined location meets a location requirement and an overall confidence score for the determined location exceeds a confidence threshold. A data package is received including identifiers of beacons observed by the mobile device, and a location of the mobile device is determined based on a calculated location of one or more of the beacons. An overall confidence score for the determined location is calculated based on one or more individual confidence scores for the one or more beacons used in determining the location or composite confidence scores for types of the one or more beacons. The determined location and the overall confidence score are provided to one or more provider servers that allow the mobile device to access a location-based service based thereon.

Certified location for mobile devices

In various embodiments, techniques are provided for determining and associating multiple locations with beacons, and estimating a location of an electronic device based on beacons having multiple associated locations.

Positioning system with multi-position beacons

In various embodiments, techniques are provided for determining and associating multiple locations with beacons, and estimating a location of an electronic device based on beacons having multiple associated locations. To determine multiple locations of a beacon, observations are grouped into observation clusters, a probability is calculated that each observation cluster accurately describes the beacon, multiple observation clusters are selected as representative of the beacon based on the calculated probabilities, characteristics are derived for the beacon (including multiple locations) based on the selected multiple observation clusters, and at least the multiple locations for the beacon are stored in a reference database. To estimate a location of an electronic device, a list of detected beacons is created, one or more locations are accessed from a reference database for each of the beacons on the list of detected beacons with at least one of the beacons having multiple locations, the locations are grouped into location clusters, a probability each location cluster represents a location of the electronic device is calculated, an location cluster is selected to represent the location of the beacon based on the calculated probabilities, and a location of the electronic device is estimated based on the selected location cluster.

Positioning system with multi-location beacons

In one example embodiment, an analysis application implements a technique for measuring a property of interest of an input dataset of location samples. The analysis application may process the input dataset in one or more multi-stage pipelines to produce values that measure a metric for the input dataset. The values that measure the metric for the input dataset may be compared with values that measure the metric for one or more labeled datasets that are generated by the analysis application, for example, using a feedback loop and sampling from a plurality of delta data sets. Each labeled datasets may have different values that measure the metric and corresponding measures of the property of interest. Based on the comparison, the analysis application may determine the measure of the property of interest for the input dataset and such measure may be returned, for example, to a remote device.

Techniques for measuring a property of interest in a dataset of location samples

In various embodiments, techniques are provided for determining one or more zones in which mobile devices are presently located and identifying or updating characteristics of on or more zones. Samples that include beacon information and/or sensor information collected by mobile devices are aggregated and dynamically organized into sample classes that are associated with zero, one or more zones. A venue is characterized by a set of zones and associated tags, which may be informed based on samples for the venue, a venue group to which the venue belongs, or all venues. To determine if a mobile device is located in one or more zones, the samples are compared to zone characteristics, and based thereon (and optionally history information) one or more zones are selected having determined likelihoods, and at least a zone having the highest likelihood of the one or more selected zones is returned.

Techniques for determining whether a mobile device is inside or outside a zone of a venue

In one embodiment, a technique is provided for propagating network address to attribute associations between network addresses. One or more profiles are obtained that maintain an association between a first network address and one or more attributes, the association produced from network address observations of the first network address by one or more source devices in communication with a network. A second network address is determined that is associated with the first network address based on a similarity criteria. The second network address initially lacks an association with the one or more attributes. The one or more attributes are propagated from the first network address to the second address, to form an association between the second network address and the one or more attributes. The association between the second network address and the one or more attributes is then stored in an updated profile.

Propagating attributes between network addresses

In one embodiment, a processing technique is provided that utilizes multiple network address observations. One or more records are obtained that maintain network address observations, each network address observation associating one or more attributes with a network address observed by one or more source devices. Multiple network addresses from the network address observations are clustered into one or more discrete groups of network addresses based on a clustering criteria. For a selected group of network addresses, an association is formed associating one or more refined attributes derived from the selected group with an individual network address that is a member of the selected group.

Processing multiple network address observations

In one embodiment, a processing technique is provided for determining a refined attribute of a network address based on one or more other attributes. A network address associated with a source device in communication with a network is observed. One or more first attributes of the network address are determined, where the one or more first attributes indicate at least a spatial or temporal property of the network address. The one or more first attributes are processed to determine a second attribute to be associated with the network address, where the second attribute indicates whether the network address is a fixed or mobile network address, or is a proxy or non-proxy network address. A record is stored that maintains the association between the second attribute and the network address.

Determining fixed/mobile and proxy/non-proxy network addresses

In one embodiment, techniques are provided to establish and use semantic associations between location profiles and ambient profiles. One or more location profiles are selected from a location database. A first plurality of ambient profiles is selected for a first area surrounding one or more geographic locations of the location profiles. One or more patterns are extracted from the first plurality of ambient profiles and are used to generate associations between location profiles and ambient profiles in an association database which semantically associates location profiles with ambient profiles independent of geographic location. The associations may be used, among other things, to service requests from mobile devices and/or update ambient profiles or location profiles.

Techniques for establishing and using associations between location profiles and beacon profiles

In one embodiment, a mapping/translation technique is provided for generating an association between an observed network address and one or more attributes that are not directly observed. A network address is observed that is associated with a source device. A first attribute is determined, the first attribute being a directly observed attribute. The first attribute is mapped to a second attribute based on at least a predefined spatial, temporal, or identity-related correspondence between the first attribute and the second attribute, wherein the second attribute was not directly observed in connection with the network address. An association is generated between the second attribute and the network address. A record that maintains the association between the second attribute and the network address is stored.

Mapping/translation techniques for generating associations between network addresses and attributes that were not directly observed

In various embodiments, position of a user device is estimated by scanning for WLAN packets transmitted within range of the user device, the scanning to include a plurality of phases which are progressed through until WLAN information sufficient to identify at least a threshold number of WLAN APs is obtained, the plurality of phases including an active scanning phase in which the RF module transmits probe request packets and receives one or more probe response packets, and one or more passive scanning phases in which the RF module listens for one or more packets without first transmitting request packets, extracting WLAN information indicating an identity of one or more WLAN APs from the one or more probe response packets or the one or more listened for packets, and providing the WLAN information to a WPS to obtain an estimate of the position of the user device.

Techniques for estimating a position of a user device using optimized scanning

In one embodiment, a filtering technique is provided for ensuring data quality of network address observations. A network address observation is obtained of a network address associated with a source device, the network address observation associating the network address with one or more directly observed attributes. The network address observation is filtered based on a comparison of a selected one of the one or more directly observed attributes to a predetermined criteria, and using a result of the comparison as indicative of whether the network address observation should be used for association of the network address with one or more directly observed attributes. The filtering either associates one or more indicators with the network address observation, or removes the network address observation. A network address to attribute association system executed on one or more electronic devices stores a record that maintains any network address observation that has not been removed and any indicator.

Ensuring data quality by filtering network address observations

In one embodiment, techniques are provided for estimating demographic information. A current device demographic profile for a mobile device is retrieved. An estimated geographic location of the mobile device and a time at which the mobile device visited the estimated geographic location is determined. Based on this, a location demographic profile for a geographic area that includes the estimated geographic location and for a time frame that includes the determined time is retrieved. The current device demographic profile for the mobile device is updated based on the location demographic profile. Further, the location demographic profile is updated based on a plurality of device demographic profiles of a plurality of mobile devices that visit geographic locations within the geographic area, the plurality of mobile devices including the mobile device.

Growing community of inventors

Wayland, MA, United States of America

Farshid Alizadeh-Shabdiz