Patent ID: 8681044

Claim:
A method of distributing culled satellite information, comprising: defining an inverted cone above a geographic location associated with a ground-based central station; receiving location information from a plurality of locating satellites at said ground-based central station; defining respective ellipsoid arc paths for said plurality of locating satellites passing through said inverted cone; culling, for locating satellites above said geographic location, a total number of possible locating satellites passing through said inverted cone to a less-than-total number of possible locating satellites based on said respective ellipsoid arc paths for said plurality of locating satellites; identifying a preferred order of search of said less-than-total number of possible locating satellites; and transmitting said preferred order of search of said less-than-total number of possible locating satellites from said ground-based central station to a wireless device within a service area of said ground-based central station.