GPS Based Friend Location and Identification System and Method

• US 20110282799A1
• Filed: 07/21/2011
• Published: 11/17/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/14/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Spatial Reality LLC
• Original Assignee: Charles D. Huston
• Inventors: Huston, Charles D.
• Granted Patent: US 8,417,261 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/319
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2024/0025 Tracking the path or location of one or more users, e.g. players of a game
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/836 Sensors arranged on the body of the user
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2225/50 Wireless data transmission, e.g. by radio transmitters or telemetry
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0021 Tracking a path or terminating locations
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 71/0605 Decision makers and devices using detection means facilitating arbitration
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/216 using geographical information, e.g. location of the game device or player using GPS
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/332 using wireless networks, e.g. cellular phone networks
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/65 automatically by game devices or servers from real world data, e.g. measurement in live racing competition
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/795 for finding other players; for building a team; for providing a buddy list
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/406 Transmission via wireless network, e.g. pager or GSM
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/69 Involving elements of the real world in the game world, e.g. measurement in live races, real video
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8017 Driving on land or water; Flying
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/42 Determining position
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0009 Transmission of position information to remote stations involving assistance data G01S5/0236
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0027 of actual mobile position, i.e. position determined on mobile
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/017 Head mounted
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/75 Indicating network or usage conditions on the user display

Abstract

A system and method for observing a personal networking event which shares the position of a number of friendly participants with other participants within a group. In one form, the position of unknown participants meeting certain criteria is also displayed to a user or one or more friendly participants. The views are selectable by friendly participants on, for example, a GPS equipped cell phone, to include a view from the participant'"'"'s position, zoom, pan, and tilt views, or views from another friendly location or from another geographic location, giving increased situational awareness and identification of participants. Other information can be shared among friendly participants, including social information, status and directions.

Claims

1. A method for participating in a mobile social networking situation, comprising:

a. selecting a user'"'"'s desired level of participation in a social networking situation, which includes a defined criteria;

b. logging into a server connected to a communication network by said user;

c. communicating the user'"'"'s desired level of participation in said social networking situation to said server;

d. publishing the user'"'"'s GPS location in a geographic area of interest to said server;

e. communicating to said user a participant'"'"'s information stored on said server, where said participant is located in said geographic area of interest and meets said defined criteria, said participant information including position and identity; and

f. displaying on a portable device accompanying said user said other participant'"'"'s position and identity.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said defined criteria is social information.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein said social information includes destination, cash available, time available, meeting desires, introduction desires, partner status, gender, race, interest, group affinity, culture affinity, music affinity, or a physical attribute.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said participant information includes social information.

5. The method of claim 1, including communicating a second criteria for identifying other participants.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said display on said portable device is a plan view of said geographic area of interest and said other participant locations are displayed.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said display on said portable device is a perspective view of said geographic area of interest and said other participant'"'"'s position is displayed.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said geographic area of interest is within a certain range from said user'"'"'s GPS location.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein said desired level of participation includes allowing access to said user'"'"'s location to a predetermined circle of friends on said server.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein said desired level of user participation includes publishing said user'"'"'s location and identity only to other participants connecting to said server that meet another criteria.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein said other criteria is a participant destination and a user'"'"'s location and identity are published only to a participant having the same destination.

12. A method for identifying mobile social network participants to a mobile user, comprising:

recording said user'"'"'s location in a geographic area of interest on a server;

recording said user'"'"'s desired level of participation on said server, where said desired level of participation includes i) a first criteria for publishing the user'"'"'s identity to social network participants and ii) a second criteria for receiving the location and identity of social network participants;

recording other social networking participant locations on said server and criteria specific to each participant;

identifying other social network participants whose locations are in said geographic area of interest and said specific criteria meet said second criteria; and

communicating said identified other social network participants from said server to a portable device accompanying said user, wherein the participant location and identity is displayed.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein said display on said portable device is a plan view of said geographic area of interest and said other participant locations are displayed.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein said display on said portable device is a perspective view of said geographic area of interest and said other participant locations are displayed.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein said second criteria is social information.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein said social information includes destination, cash available, time available, meeting desires, introduction desires, partner status, gender, race, interest, group affinity, culture affinity, music affinity, or a physical attribute.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein said geographic area of interest is a certain range from a user location stored on said server.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein said first criteria is a circle of friends of said user identified on said server.

19. A portable device accompanying a user participating in a social network situation, comprising:

a GPS module for determining said user'"'"'s location in a geographic area of interest;

a radio for publishing said user'"'"'s GPS location and a defined criteria to a communication network having a server connected thereto for recording said GPS location and said defined criteria selected by the user;

a radio for receiving other participants information stored on said server, where said other participants are located in said geographic area of interest and meet said defined criteria, and said information received includes location and identity; and

a display which depicts the other participants location in said geographic area of interest.

20. The device of claim 19, wherein said defined criteria is social information and said social information includes destination, cash available, time available, meeting desires, introduction desires, partner status, gender, race, interest, group affinity, culture affinity, music affinity, or a physical attribute.

21. The device of claim 19, wherein said display is a plan view of said geographic area of interest.

22. The device of claim 19, wherein said display is an augmented reality perspective view of said geographic area of interest and the background is a photographic image of the area of interest.