Position-linked chat system, position-linked chat method, and computer product

• US 20020007396A1
• Filed: 05/09/2001
• Published: 01/17/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 05/12/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ISAO Corp. (Toyota Tsusho Corporation)
• Original Assignee: ISAO Corp. (Toyota Tsusho Corporation)
• Inventors: Takakura, Tetsuo, Sato, Masaomi
• Granted Patent: US 6,981,021 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management

Abstract

The position-linked chat system makes it possible to carry out a chat using many terminals connected to a server device through the Internet. The server device includes a chat room controller which generates many chat rooms based on a geographical standard, a chat room selector which selects a chat room in which a user of certain terminal is to participate based on information relating to the current position of that terminal, and a voice controller which mixes voices of users transmitted from the terminals of respective users participating in the same chat room.

Claims

1. A position-linked chat system for carrying out a chat using a plurality of terminals connected to a server device through a network, wherein said server device includes,

a chat room control unit which generates a plurality of chat rooms divided based on a geographical standard related to the current position of each user;

a chat room selecting unit which selects a chat room in which a user at a terminal is to participate, based on information relating to the current position of the terminal posted from each terminal; and

a sound control unit which mixes voices of users transmitted via terminals of respective users who participate in the same chat room selected by said chat room selecting unit.

2. The position-linked chat system according to claim 1, wherein said chat room control unit generates a plurality of hierarchical chat rooms of which division ranges are mutually different and mutually superimposed.

3. The position-linked chat system according to claim 1, wherein said chat room control unit generates a plurality of chat rooms that are divided based on a geographical standard, and that are further divided based on a standard of a purpose of each user.

4. The position-linked chat system according to claim 1, wherein when a chat room has been selected by said chat room selecting unit, said chat room control unit generates, combines or divides the chat room according to the number of users participating in the chat room.

5. The position-linked chat system according to claim 1, wherein said chat room selecting unit selects a chat room corresponding to the current position of each terminal posted from each terminal, as a chat room in which the user is to participate.

6. The position-linked chat system according to claim 1, wherein said server device further includes a move-destination position estimating unit which estimates a position of moving destination of a user based on a change in the current position of each terminal posted from each terminal, and

said chat room selecting unit selects a chat room corresponding to a position of a move destination of a user estimated by said move-destination position estimating unit, as a chat room in which the user is to participate.

7. The position-linked chat system according to claim 1, wherein said chat room selecting unit changes over a chat room in which a user is to participate, according to a change in the current position of each terminal posted from each terminal.

8. The position-linked chat system according to claim 7, wherein when said chat room selecting unit is to change over a chat room, said sound control unit posts to a terminal of a user participating in the chat room to be changed over that the chat room will be changed over.

9. The position-linked chat system according to claim 1, wherein said server device further includes an inter-terminal distance calculating unit which calculates a distance between terminals based on the current position of each terminal posted from each terminal, and

said sound control unit controls sound volume of sound output from each terminal according to a distance between terminals calculated by said inter-terminal distance calculating unit.

10. The position-linked chat system according to claim 1, wherein said server device further includes an inter-terminal distance calculating unit which calculates a distance between terminals based on the current position of each terminal posted from each terminal, and

when a distance between terminals calculated by said inter-terminal distance calculating unit is within a predetermined distance, said sound control unit posts to each terminal of each user coming close to each other that the users are coming close to each other.

11. The position-linked chat system according to claim 1, wherein when a plurality of chat rooms have been selected in which the terminal user is to participate, said sound control unit mixes the voice of this user transmitted via the user terminal with voices transmitted via terminals of users participating in the plurality of chat rooms.

12. A position-linked chat method for carrying out a chat using a plurality of terminals connected to a server device through a network, wherein said server device performs the steps of:

generating a plurality of chat rooms divided based on a geographical standard related to the current position of each user;

selecting a chat room in which a user at a terminal is to participate, based on information relating to the current position of the terminal posted from each terminal; and

mixing voices of users transmitted via terminals of respective users who participate in the same chat room selected at the step of selecting a chat room.

13. The position-linked chat method according to claim 12, wherein at the chat-room selecting step, a chat room corresponding to the current position of each terminal posted from each terminal is selected as a chat room in which the user is to participate.

14. The position-linked chat method according to claim 12, further comprising the step of:

estimating a position of a move destination of a user based on a change in the current position of each terminal posted from each terminal, wherein

at the chat-room selecting step, a chat room corresponding to a position of a move destination of a user estimated at the move-destination position estimating step is selected as a chat room in which the user is to participate.

15. The position-linked chat method according to claim 12, wherein at the chat-room selecting step, a chat room in which a user is to participate is changed over according to a change in the current position of each terminal posted from each terminal.

16. A computer-readable recording medium recorded with a program for carrying out a chat using a plurality of terminals connected to a server device through a network, wherein said server device stores a computer program for performing the steps of:

generating a plurality of chat rooms divided based on a geographical standard related to the current position of each user;

selecting a chat room in which a user at a terminal is to participate, based on information relating to the current position of the terminal posted from each terminal; and

mixing voices of users transmitted via terminals of respective users who participate in the same chat room selected at the step of selecting a chat room.

17. The computer-readable recording medium recorded with a program according to claim 16, wherein at the chat-room selecting step, a chat room corresponding to the current position of each terminal posted from each terminal is selected as a chat room in which the user is to participate.

18. The computer-readable recording medium recorded with a program according to claim 16, further comprising the step of:

estimating a position of a move destination of a user based on a change in the current position of each terminal posted from each terminal, wherein

at the chat-room selecting step, a chat room corresponding to a position of a move destination of a user estimated at the move-destination position estimating step is selected as a chat room in which the user is to participate.

19. The computer-readable recording medium recorded with a program according to claim 16, wherein at the chat-room selecting step, a chat room in which a user is to participate is changed over according to a change in the current position of each terminal posted from each terminal.

20. A program for carrying out a chat using a plurality of terminals connected to a server device through a network, wherein said server device stores a computer program for performing the steps of:

generating a plurality of chat rooms divided based on a geographical standard related to the current position of each user;

selecting a chat room in which a user at a terminal is to participate, based on information relating to the current position of the terminal posted from each terminal; and

mixing voices of users transmitted via terminals of respective users who participate in the same chat room selected at the step of selecting a chat room.

21. The program according to claim 20, wherein at the chat-room selecting step, a chat room corresponding to the current position of each terminal posted from each terminal is selected as a chat room in which the user is to participate.

22. The program according to claim 20, further comprising the step of:

estimating a position of a move destination of a user based on a change in the current position of each terminal posted from each terminal, wherein

at the chat-room selecting step, a chat room corresponding to a position of a move destination of a user estimated at the move-destination position estimating step is selected as a chat room in which the user is to participate.

23. The program according to claim 20, wherein at the chat-room selecting step, a chat room in which a user is to participate is changed over according to a change in the current position of each terminal posted from each terminal.