Patent ID: 7035647

Claim:
A method for use in providing location information regarding mobile units in a telecommunications network, comprising the steps of: first obtaining identification information regarding a mobile unit to be located and parameter information comprising a spatial accuracy of the location information; second obtaining first location information regarding said mobile unit from a first source, said first source being associated with a first expected lag time relating to providing the first location information and a first expected resource requirement related to system resources involved in providing the first location information; performing a comparison of the first location information to the parameter information; based on said comparison, selectively obtaining second location information regarding said mobile unit from a second source different than said first source, said second source being associated with a second expected lag time relating to providing the second location information and a second expected resource requirement related to system resources involved in providing the second location information; where at least one of the first expected lag time and first expected resource requirement is greater than at least one of the second expected lag time and second expected resource requirement; and providing an output related to said location request based on at least one of said first location information or said second location information.