Method and System for Location-Based Monitoring of a Mobile Device

• US 20080274752A1
• Filed: 07/14/2008
• Published: 11/06/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Skyhook Holding, Inc. (Liberty Broadband Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Skyhook Holding, Inc. (Liberty Broadband Corp.)
• Inventors: Houri, Cyril
• Granted Patent: US 9,392,406 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/456.1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0252 Radio frequency fingerprinting
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/02524 Creating or updating the radio-map
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0263 by combining or switching between positions derived from two or more separate positioning systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9537 Spatial or temporal dependent retrieval, e.g. spatiotemporal queries
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/622 Layer-2 addresses, e.g. medium access control [MAC] addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/025 using location based information parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/003 locating network equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices

Abstract

Method and system for monitoring location of a mobile device relative to a region of interest includes defining a geographic region of interest, receiving a request to obtain notification when the mobile device leaves from, is present in or enters into the region of interest, determining when the mobile device leaves, is present in or enters into the region of interest, and automatically generating a notification signal upon departure of the mobile device from, presence of the mobile device in or entry of the mobile device into the region of interest without manual intervention by a user of the mobile device. It is therefore possible to monitor the departure of a mobile device, and thus presumably the user thereof, from one or more defined regions, the presence of the person in one or more defined regions, and also the entry of the person into one or more defined regions.

Claims

1. A method for monitoring location of a mobile device relative to a region of interest, comprising:

defining a geographic region of interest;

receiving a request to obtain notification when the mobile device leaves from, is present in or enters into the region of interest;

determining when the mobile device leaves, is present in or enters into the region of interest; and

automatically generating a notification signal upon departure of the mobile device from, presence of the mobile device in or entry of the mobile device into the region of interest without manual intervention by a user of the mobile device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of determining when the mobile device leaves, is present in or enters into the region of interest comprises:

periodically determining the location of the mobile device; and

monitoring the location of the mobile after every determination thereof to ascertain whether the location of the mobile device is changed to be outside of the region of interest, remain within the region of interest or is changed to be inside of the region of interest.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the signal is an SMS message or an e-mail message.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising causing the mobile device to react to the generation of the notification signal.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of defining the region of interest comprises viewing a map and demarcating a boundary of the region of interest on the map, further comprising associating identification of the mobile device with the defined region of interest.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising associating one of a plurality of predetermined templates with the defined region of interest and associated identification of the mobile device such that the notification signal generated when the mobile device leaves from, is present in or enters into the defined region of interest, is based on the associated template.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the region of interest is defined relative to a movable device, the step of determining when the mobile device leaves, is present in or enters into the region of interest comprising:

determining the location of the movable device to enable parameters of the region of interest to be derived therefrom; and

periodically determining the location of the mobile device; and

monitoring the location of the mobile after every determination thereof to ascertain whether the location of the mobile device is changed to be outside of the region of interest, remain within the region of interest or is changed to be inside of the region of interest.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the region of interest is defined relative to a computing device,

the step of determining when the mobile device leaves, is present in or enters into the region of interest comprising determining the relative location of the mobile device to the computing device without determining the absolute location of the mobile device.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the computing device has a wireless communications capability,

the step of determining the relative location of the mobile device to the computing device comprising determining the strength of a signal being transmitted between the mobile device and the computing device,

the step of determining when the mobile device leaves, is present in or enters into the region of interest further comprising determining whether the strength of the signal is below a threshold.

10. A system for monitoring location of a mobile device relative to a region of interest, comprising:

a memory component for storing a defined geographic region of interest and a request to obtain notification when the mobile device leaves from, is present in or enters into the region of interest;

a location determining system for determining a location of the mobile device; and

a processor coupled to said memory component and said location determining system for analyzing the location of the mobile device as determined by said location determining system relative to the region of interest stored in said memory component in order to determine when the mobile device leaves from, is present in or enters into the region of interest,

said processor being arranged to automatically generate a notification signal when it determines that the mobile device has left the region of interest, is present in the region of interest or has entered into the region of interest without manual intervention by a user of the mobile device.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein said location determining system is arranged to determine the location of the mobile device at a predetermined frequency and said processor is arranged to analyze the location of the mobile device relative to the region of interest whenever the location of the mobile device has changed.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the signal automatically generated by said processor is an SMS message or an e-mail message.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein said memory component, said location determining system and said processor are arranged on the mobile device.

14. The system of claim 13, further comprising a transmission or communications unit arranged on the mobile device to transmit the notification signal to another device remote from the mobile device.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein said another device is arranged to define the region of interest to cause the region of interest to be stored in said memory component.

16. The system of claim 10, wherein said memory component includes a plurality of templates selectable as a base for the signal to be automatically generated, said templates relating to the region of interest, the location of the mobile device or a change in location of the mobile device.

17. The system of claim 10, wherein said memory component, said location determining system and said processor are arranged on a server remote from the mobile device, further comprising a transmission or communications unit arranged on the mobile device to transmit information about reception of signals by the mobile device to said location determining system to enable said location determining system to determine the location of the mobile device based on the information.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein said server further comprises a region of interest defining system embodied on computer-readable media and arranged to enable a person to view at least one map and define at least one region of interest on each of the viewed at least one map to be stored in said memory component, and enable an identification of the mobile device to be associated with the region of interest.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein said server further comprises a template defining system embodied on computer-readable media and arranged to enable the person defining the region of interest to create a template or assign an existing template as a base for the notification to be automatically generated for each defined region of interest and associated mobile device.

20. The system of claim 10, wherein the region of interest is defined relative to a movable device, further comprising an additional location determining system for determining a location of the movable device to enable parameters of the region of interest to be derived therefrom and used in the analysis of the location of the mobile device as determined by said location determining system relative to the region of interest.

21. The system of claim 10, wherein said location determining system is arranged to determine the location of the mobile device relative to another device which receives or reacts to the generated notification signal.

22. A server application embodied on computer-readable media and arranged to monitor location of a mobile device relative to a region of interest, said server application being arranged to:

store a defined geographic region of interest;

store a request for notification to be provided based on the location of the mobile device relative to the region of interest;

periodically determine the location of the mobile device;

analyze the location of the mobile device relative to the region of interest in order to determine when the mobile device leaves from, is present in or enters into the region of interest; and

automatically generate a notification signal when it determines that the mobile device has left from, is present in or has entered into the region of interest without manual intervention by a user of the mobile device.

23. The application of claim 22, wherein said server application is further arranged to:

enable a person to view at least one map;

define at least one region of interest on each of the viewed at least one map to be stored; and

enable an identification of the mobile device to be associated with the region of interest.

24. The application of claim 23, wherein said server application is further arranged to enable the person defining the region of interest to create a template or assign an existing template as a base for the notification to be automatically generated for each defined region of interest and associated mobile device.

25. The application of claim 22, wherein said server application is further arranged to coordinate transmission of the notification signals to a device other than the mobile device whose user is interested in the monitoring of the location of the mobile device.

26. The application of claim 22, wherein the region of interest is defined relative to a movable device, said server application being further arranged to periodically determine a location of the movable device to enable parameters of the region of interest to be derived therefrom and used in the analysis of the location of the mobile device relative to the region of interest.