METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PROVIDING SPATIAL-BASED CONTEXT-AWARE SERVICE

• US 20120122476A1
• Filed: 11/14/2011
• Published: 05/17/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Original Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Inventors: Kim, Min Soo, Joo, Inhak, Lee, Chung-ho, Jang, In Sung, Shin, Sung Woong, LEE, MOONSOO
• Granted Patent: US 8,571,581 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/456.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services

Abstract

A system for providing spatial-based context-aware service includes a database configured to store a geocontext including spatial information, one or more contexts, and sensor data; a sensor/context catalog server configured to manage meta data of the contexts and the sensor data; a context processing server configured to generate a list of contexts applicable to the mobile device based on the sensor data and the meta data upon a receipt of the sensor data from the mobile device; a geocontext search server configured to search the database for candidate geocontexts appropriate for the user of the mobile device by using the location information of the mobile device and the list of contexts; and a context-aware management server configured to generate a list of recommended services by executing the searched candidate geocontexts.

Claims

1. An apparatus for creating a geocontext for a context-aware service, the apparatus comprising:

a spatial region setting unit configured to set information regarding a space, in which the context-aware service is provided;

a diagram editor configured to provide interfaces defining input/out adapters needed to the geocontext for a context-aware service; and

a geocontext creation unit configured to create the geocontext including sensor data from sensors and a context catalog server, one or more contexts, spatial information set by the spatial region setting unit and input/output adapter.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the diagram editor includes:

a palette configured to generate a work flow expressing the context-aware service in the scenario flow;

a tool box configured to provide an interface for selecting a plurality of input and output adapters constituting the scenario flow; and

a property editor configured to define an property of each of the input and output adapters.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the spatial region setting unit is configured to provide an interface for setting the spatial information in a polygon or multi-polygon using a two-dimensional map or for setting three-dimensional spatial information for the context-aware service in TIN or PolyHedra using a three-dimensional spatial map.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the geocontext the geocontext created by the geocontext creation unit includes:

an input/output data handler configured to provide interface for inputting and outputting the context data, spatial information and a list of recommended services;

a common data bus configured to exchange data with the input/output data handler between the adapters selected through the use of the diagram editor.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the adapters includes:

a context adapter configured to collect the context data;

a filter/arithmetic operation/abstraction adapter configured to express a complex context of the context-aware service;

a rule adapter configured to search for services appropriate for the user'"'"'s current location and situation to set a weight to the searched services; and

a service mapping adapter configured to map the weighted services to the service defined by the context-aware service adapter to generate the list of recommended services.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the plurality of adapters further includes a context-aware service adapter configured to define the context-aware service for the user to identify and use the context-aware service,

wherein the context-aware service adapter includes supplementary information for executing the context-aware service, and

wherein the supplementary information includes a web address for executing the context-aware service, a control command for controlling a mobile device of the user pursuant to the context-aware service, and a command or binary code that can be executed in the mobile device.

7. An apparatus for offering spatial-based context-aware service, the apparatus comprising:

a database configured to store a geocontext including spatial information, one or more contexts, and sensor data;

a sensor/context catalog server configured to manage meta data of the contexts and the sensor data;

a context processing server configured to generate a list of contexts applicable to the mobile device based on the sensor data and the meta data upon a receipt of the sensor data from the mobile device;

a geocontext search server configured to search the database for candidate geocontexts appropriate for the user of the mobile device by using the location information of the mobile device and the list of contexts; and

a context-aware management server configured to generate a list of recommended services by executing the searched candidate geocontexts.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the context-aware management server is configured to give a priority to each of the recommended services depending on the spatial importance based on the location information and spatial information.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the context-aware management server is configured to prescribe a priority of each of the recommended services in inverse proportion to the amount of the spatial information of the geocontext.

10. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the context handling server is configured to encode the context information and sensor data in the form of bit stream, respectively, thereby generating the list of contexts by comparing the encoded bit streams.

11. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein each geocontext includes an identifier (ID) of the geocontext, a point of interest (POI) within the spatial information to which the geocontext is applied, and an area of the space of the POI.

12. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein each of the recommended services includes property information necessary for executing the recommended service.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the property information is provided to the user in the form of a binary code or an interpreter source code.

14. A method for providing spatial-based context-aware service, the method comprising:

generating a list of contexts appropriate for a user by using meta data regarding sensors and contexts in accordance with a list of the sensors;

generating a list of candidate geocontexts based on a current location of the user;

executing the respective candidate geocontexts to generate a list of recommended services; and

providing the list of recommended services to the user.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein said generating a list of contexts includes:

encoding IDs of the contexts in the form of a single bit stream;

encoding IDs of the sensors in the form of bit stream; and

performing an operation on the encoded stream of contexts and the encoded stream of sensors, thereby generating the list of contexts.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein said generating a list of contexts includes:

comparing the encoded stream of context and the encoded stream of sensors to determine whether the encoded streams are identical to each other; and

when it is determined that the encoded streams are identical to each other, generating the list of contexts by using the sensor list.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein said generating a list of contexts includes applying the property of the contexts to the respective sensors in the list, and

wherein the property information includes a condition statement and a consequence statement.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the respective recommended services are given a priority depending on the spatial importance based on the location information and spatial information.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the priority is set in inverse proportional to the amount of the spatial information of the geocontext by which the recommended services has generated.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the respective recommended services includes property information required for executing the recommended services.