US 12,237,872 B2
Time-of-flight based unified positioning system and methods
Hafeez M. Chaudhary, Brussels (BE); and Bart Scheers, Rumst (BE)
Assigned to ECOLE ROYALE MILITAIRE—KONINKLIJKE MILITAIRE SCHOOL, Brussels (BE)
Appl. No. 17/759,145
Filed by ECOLE ROYALE MILITAIRE—KONINKLIJKE MILITAIRE SCHOOL, Brussels (BE)
PCT Filed Jan. 19, 2021, PCT No. PCT/EP2021/051083
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Jul. 20, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/148415, PCT Pub. Date Jul. 29, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 20153693 (EP), filed on Jan. 24, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2023/0038212 A1, Feb. 9, 2023
Int. Cl. H04B 17/00 (2015.01); H04B 17/10 (2015.01); H04W 64/00 (2009.01); H04W 74/00 (2009.01)
CPC H04B 17/104 (2015.01) [H04W 64/006 (2013.01); H04W 74/002 (2013.01)] 12 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method, comprising:
determining a position of a plurality of mobile network devices relative to a plurality of reference network devices, wherein the plurality of mobile network devices and the plurality of reference network devices communicate with one another over a wireless channel and access the wireless channel according to an access policy comprising a sequence of time frames,
wherein each time frame of the sequence comprises a plurality of portions reserved for communicating messages relating to different time-of-flight (ToF) computation methods, each of the different ToF computation methods allowing for determining a position of at least one of the plurality of mobile network devices;
wherein at least two of the different ToF position computation methods are selected from the group consisting of: one-way Time of arrival, Time difference of arrival, Two-way ranging, and Symmetrical double-sided two-way ranging;
wherein the time frames of the sequence or corresponding portions of the time frames of the sequence have predetermined time length;
wherein in a first portion of the plurality of portions the wireless channel is accessed according to a time division multiple access scheme;
wherein in a second portion of the plurality of portions the wireless channel is accessed according to a collision avoidance scheme; and
wherein at least a portion of the plurality of reference network devices are arranged indoors;
the method further comprising:
communicating first messages between the plurality of reference network devices and a first mobile network device of the plurality of mobile network devices within a first portion of the plurality of portions, wherein the first messages relate to a first one of the different ToF position computation methods;
collecting first ToF information from the first messages and determining a position of the first mobile network device based on the first ToF information by applying the first ToF position computation method:
communicating second messages between the plurality of reference network devices and a second mobile network device of the plurality of mobile network devices within a second portion of the plurality of portions, wherein the second messages relate to a second one of the different ToF position computation methods; and
collecting second ToF information from the second messages and determining a position of the second mobile network device based on the second ToF information by applying the second ToF position computation method.