Location visit confirmation services for wireless devices

• US 6,831,563 B1
• Filed: 03/20/2001
• Issued: 12/14/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Bellsouth Intellectual Property Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Contractor, Sunil H.
• Primary Examiner(s): MULLEN, THOMAS J
• Application Number:
  US09/811,563
• Time in Patent Office: 1,365 Days
• Field of Search: 340/573.1, 340/539.1, 340/306, 340/3.3, 705/8-11, 700/111
• US Class Current: 340/573.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/04 Forecasting or optimisation specially adapted for administrative or management purposes, e.g. linear programming or "cutting stock problem" market predictions or forecasting for commercial activities G06Q30/0202
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 11/00 Arrangements, systems or apparatus for checking, e.g. the occurrence of a condition, not provided for elsewhere
• 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: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services

Abstract

A location visit confirmation service includes a portable wireless device, a schedule of predetermined sites, a location identification device and a central processor. The central processor periodically receives position data generated by the location identification device identifying the location of the portable wireless device. The central processor compares this position data to the schedule of predetermined sites. Using a threshold based on distance, or distance and time, it is determined whether a service person completed a visit to one of the sites in the schedule. At the end of the site visit confirmation evaluation period, a summary report is generated that confirms those scheduled site visits that were completed. The summary report is provided by the wireless carrier to the subscriber.

Claims

1. A system for confirming visits to sites, comprising:

a portable wireless device;

a schedule of predetermined sites to be visited by a service person associated with the portable wireless device on behalf of a subscriber;

a location identification means for acquiring location data of the portable wireless device; and

a processor for comparing a position based on the location data to the schedule in order to confirm whether a predetermined site has been visited by the service person.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the location identification means acquires the location data based on the detection of a dedicated phone number.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the detection of a dedicated phone number is performed by a mobile telephone switching office.

4. The system of claim 1, further comprising a mobile telephone switching office adapted to detect a dedicated phone number and an emergency phone number.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein location data is sent to a first device when the dedicated phone number is detected, and wherein location data is sent to a second device when the emergency phone number is detected.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the second device is one of a public service answering point, an emergency services router, and a database coupled to a public service answering point, and wherein the first device is said processor.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the location identification means performs a network-based time difference of arrival (TDOA) computation.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the location identification means performs a network-based angle of arrival (AOA) computation.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the location identification means computes the location data based on a combination of time difference of arrival (TDOA) and angle of arrival (AOA) computations.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the location identification means performs a location pattern matching (LPM) computation.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the location identification means computes the location data by performing a global positioning system (GPS) computation.

12. A system for confirming visits to sites, comprising:

a portable wireless device;

a schedule of predetermined sites to be visited by a service person associated with the portable wireless device, wherein the schedule of predetermined sites comprises a series of X-Y pairs or latitude-longitude pairs;

means for acquiring location data of the portable wireless device; and

a processor for comparing a position based on the location data to the schedule in order to confirm whether a predetermined site has been visited by the service person.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the schedule is created by converting a plurality of street addresses to the series.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the conversion is performed by accessing a geographic information system (GIS).

15. The system of claim 12, further comprising a report generator module for generating a report identifying the predetermined sites from the schedule that were visited by the service person.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein comparisons performed by the processor are based on a threshold.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the threshold comprises a distance.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the threshold comprises a distance and a time.

19. The system of claim 12, wherein the means for acquiring location data of the portable wireless device acquires the location data on a periodic basis.

20. The system of claim 12, wherein the means for acquiring location data of the portable wireless device acquires the location data based on a prediction algorithm that predicts when the service person is near one of the predetermined sites in the schedule.

21. A method for confirming visits to sites, comprising:

providing a portable wireless device to a service person;

providing a schedule of predetermined sites to be visited by the service person on behalf of a subscriber;

acquiring location data of the portable wireless device; and

comparing a position based on the location data to the schedule in order to confirm whether a predetermined site has been visited by the service person.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising detecting a specific phone number associated with tracking service persons, and wherein acquiring location data is based on detection of said phone number.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein detecting a specific phone number associated with tracking service persons is performed by a mobile telephone switching office.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the mobile telephone switching office performs the additional step of detecting an emergency phone number.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the location data is forwarded to a first device when the specific phone number is detected and the location data is forwarded to a second device when the emergency phone number is detected.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the first device is a processor that performs said comparing and the second device is one of a public service answering point, an emergency services router, and a database coupled to a public service answering point.

27. The method of claim 21, wherein acquiring location data comprises performing a network-based time difference of arrival (TDOA) computation.

28. The method of claim 21, wherein acquiring location data comprises performing a network-based angle of arrival (AOA) computation.

29. The method of claim 21, wherein acquiring location data comprises performing a network-based time difference of arrival (TDOA) and a network-based angle of arrival (AOA) computation.

30. The method of claim 21, wherein acquiring location data comprises performing a location pattern matching (LPM) computation.

31. The method of claim 21, wherein acquiring location data comprises performing a global positioning system (GPS) computation.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein the portable wireless device includes a GPS receiver.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the GPS computation is performed by the portable wireless device.

34. The method of claim 32, wherein the GPS computation is performed by a processor.

35. A method for confirming visits to sites, comprising:

providing a portable wireless device to a service person;

providing a schedule of predetermined sites to be visited by the service person on behalf of a subscriber, wherein the schedule comprises a series of X-Y pairs or latitude-longitude pairs;

acquiring location data of the portable wireless device; and

comparing a position based on the location data to the schedule in order to confirm whether a predetermined site has been visited by the service person.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein the schedule is created by converting a plurality of street addresses to the series.

37. The method of claim 36, wherein the conversion is performed by accessing a geographic information system (GIS).

38. The method of claim 35, further comprising generating a report describing whether the predetermined sites in the schedule were visited by the service person.

39. The method of claim 35, wherein comparing a position based on the location data to the schedule is based on a threshold.

40. The method of claim 39, wherein the threshold comprises a distance.

41. The method of claim 39, wherein the threshold comprises a distance and a time.

42. The method of claim 35, wherein acquiring location data occurs on a periodic basis.

43. The method of claim 35, wherein acquiring location data occurs at a time based on a prediction algorithm that predicts the movement of the service person.

44. A system for confirming visits to sites, comprising:

a memory storing a schedule of predetermined sites to be visited by a service person on behalf of a subscriber, the service person having a portable wireless device;

a first processing module for acquiring location data of the portable wireless device;

a second processing module for comparing a position based on the location data to the schedule in order to confirm whether a predetermined site has been visited by the service person.

45. The system of claim 44, wherein the first processing module and the second processing module are located in a wireless carrier network.

46. The system of claim 44, wherein the first processing module is located in the wireless device.

47. The system of claim 44, wherein the first processing module performs one or more of the following computations:

time difference of arrival (TDOA);

angle of arrival (AOA);

location pattern matching (LPM), and global positioning system (GPS).

48. The system of claim 44, wherein the schedule is based on the conversion of a plurality of street addresses to a series of X-Y pairs or longitude-latitude pairs.

49. The system of claim 48, wherein the conversion is performed by the subscriber.

50. The system of claim 48, wherein the conversion is performed by a wireless carrier.

51. The system of claim 44, wherein the comparison performed by the second processing module is based on a threshold.

52. The system of claim 51, wherein the threshold comprises a distance.

53. The system of claim 51, wherein the threshold comprises a distance and a time.

54. The system of claim 44, wherein the first processing module is adapted to acquire the location data based on a time period or a prediction algorithm.

55. A system for confirming visits to sites, comprising:

means for providing two-way communications, said means being carried by or with a service person;

a schedule of predetermined sites to be visited by the service person;

means for acquiring location data of the means for providing two-way communications; and

means for comparing a position based on the location data to at least one of the predetermined sites in order to determine if the at least one predetermined site was visited by the service person.

56. The system of claim 55, wherein the means for providing two-way communications comprises a cell phone, a two-way pager, or a personal data assistant.

57. The system of claim 55, wherein the means for acquiring location data is a processor that performs a location computation.

58. The system of claim 57, wherein the location computation comprises one or more of a global positioning system (GPS) computation, a time difference of arrival (TDOA) computation, an angle of arrival (AOA) computation, and a location pattern matching (LPM) computation.

59. The system of claim 55, wherein the schedule of predetermined sites comprises coordinate pairs in longitude/latitude format or Cartesian format.

60. The system of claim 59, wherein the means for comparing comprises a processor that compares the position to a coordinate pair corresponding to one of the predetermined sites.