Wireless event notification system and methods for use therein

• US 20090258636A1
• Filed: 04/10/2008
• Published: 10/15/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/10/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Helvick, Richard Eric
• Granted Patent: US 8,655,382 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/414.200
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• 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 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/20 Services signaling; Auxiliary data signalling, i.e. transmitting data via a non-traffic channel

Abstract

A wireless event notification system that selectively notifies members of events based on their location and/or interests, and devices and method for use therein. The wireless event notification system provides single or multifactor filtering based on one or more of proximity to an event, membership in a subgroup to which an event pertains and/or desire to receive events at the severity level of an event. Superfluous notifications are thereby reduced. Location-based filtering may be done by a notification server device to which member locations are reported or, to enhance member privacy, by wireless client devices using unreported member locations. Additionally, in some embodiments, wireless client devices are distributed by a system administrator to members after the system administrator has registered the members with the system to remove device acquisition, device compatibility and member registration hurdles that can present obstacles to universal participation in the system.

Claims

1. A notification server device for a wireless event notification system, comprising:

a network interface;

a memory storing member profiles for members of the system; and

a processor communicatively coupled with the network interface and the memory, wherein in response to an event notification request having an event descriptor for an event, under control of the processor the server device identifies based at least in part on the event descriptor and the member profiles a subset of the members to receive notification of the event and transmits via the network interface event notification messages addressed to wireless client devices associated with the subset of the members.

2. The server device of claim 1, wherein the server device identifies the subset based at least in part on locations reported to the server device by the client devices and stored in member profiles.

3. The server device of claim 1, wherein the server device identifies the subset based at least in part on notification subgroups stored in member profiles.

4. The server device of claim 1, wherein the server device identifies the subset based at least in part on event severity thresholds stored in member profiles.

5. The server device of claim 2, wherein message text in the event notification messages varies based on proximity of an event location in the event descriptor to the reported locations.

6. The server device of claim 1, wherein the event notification messages comprise Short Message Service (SMS) messages.

7. The server device of claim 1, wherein the event notification messages comprise Multimedia Message Service (MMS) messages.

8. The server device of claim 1, wherein the event notification messages are carried in Internet Protocol (IP) packets.

9. The server device of claim 1, wherein each member profile is uniquely associated with a member of the system and a wireless client device, and each member profile is created in the memory before the client device associated with the member profile is distributed to the member associated with the member profile.

10. The server device of claim 1, wherein in response to a location report received on the network interface from a wireless client device, under control of the processor the server device identifies a member profile associated with the client device and updates a location in the identified member profile.

12. The client device of claim 1, wherein the client device regulates display on the user interface of remotely generated event notification messages at least in part by transmitting under control of the processor to a remote notification server device via at least one of the wireless interfaces a location report having the location, whereby the server device selectively inhibits based at least in part on the location transmission of event notification messages to the client device.

11. A wireless client device for use in a wireless event notification system, comprising:

a user interface;

one or more wireless interfaces; and

a processor communicatively coupled with the user interface and the wireless interfaces, wherein under control of the processor the client device determines a location of the client device based at least in part on information received via at least one of the wireless interfaces and applies the location to regulate display on the user interface of remotely generated event notification messages.

13. The client device of claim 11, wherein the client device regulates display on the user interface of remotely generated event notification messages at least in part by selectively inhibiting under control of the processor based at least in part on the location display on the user interface of event notification messages received from a remote notification server device via at least one of the wireless interfaces.

14. The client device of claim 11, wherein the information received via the at least one wireless interface comprises global positioning system (GPS) position information.

15. The client device of claim 11, wherein the information received via the at least one wireless interface comprises position information received from a cellular base station.

16. The client device of claim 11, wherein the information received via the at least one wireless interface comprises position information received from a wireless local area network (LAN) access point.

17. A method for selectively notifying members of a wireless event notification system of events, comprising the steps of:

receiving information;

determining a location of a wireless client device based at least in part on the information; and

regulating display on the client device of remotely generated event notification messages based at least in part on the location.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the regulating step comprises transmitting the location to a remote device whereby the remote device selectively inhibits transmission of remotely generated event notification messages based at least in part on the location.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the regulating step comprises selectively inhibiting based at least in part on the location display on the client device of remotely generated event notification messages received on the client device.