Presence-based location and/or proximity awareness

• US 7,823,073 B2
• Filed: 07/28/2006
• Issued: 10/26/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/28/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Holmes, John S, Seshagiri, Panchapagesan
• Primary Examiner(s): Sax; Steven P
• Assistant Examiner(s): Johnson; Grant D
• Application Number:
  US11/460,882
• Publication Number:
  US 20080028063A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,551 Days
• Field of Search: 715/751, 715/753, 715/764, 715/765, 715/733, 455/456.1, 455/457, 709/204
• US Class Current: 715/753
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/54 Presence management, e.g. monitoring or registration for receipt of user log-on information, or the connection status of the users
• 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

Various embodiments utilize a presence-based network to provide a suite of services that build upon the presence-based or instant messaging foundation. In at least some embodiments, the presence-based network is utilized to implement a number of location-aware applications. In at least some embodiments, as part of a user'"'"'s presence information, their particular location is ascertained and made available to others on the presence-based network. Location can be a physical location or a logical location. Their particular physical location can be visually represented to others by, for example, displaying a map that indicates the user'"'"'s location.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

logging on to a presence-based network by a user using a computing device including a processor executing instructions stored in a computer-readable storage media, the processor being configured by the instructions for implementing an instant messaging application used to perform the logging on;

ascertaining a physical location of the computing device provided to the presence-based network;

defining a group to which the user belongs, said group being defined by the instant messaging application for automatically identifying members of the group to the user when the members are logged on to the presence-based network, wherein the presence-based network determines location information associated with one or more members of the group who are logged onto the presence-based network;

identifying a plurality of physical places as contacts in the instant messaging application, the user able to send messages addressed to the plurality of physical places identified as contacts using the instant messaging application; and

sending a message from the computing device addressed to a particular one of the physical places identified as a contact by the instant messaging application, those members of the group determined by the presence-based network to be at a location of the particular physical place receiving the message through the presence-based network, and members of the group determined by the presence-based network to not be at the location of the particular physical place not receiving the message, the computing device not necessarily being at the location of the particular physical place.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving, via the presence-based network, presence information associated with the physical places, wherein the presence information associated with the physical places includes one or more of identity of individuals present at the physical place, number of individuals present at the physical place, availability of the physical place, and resources available at the physical place.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the physical place is a conference room and the availability of the particular physical place includes whether or not the conference room is currently booked.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

visually representing, by the instant messaging application on a map on the computing device, logical locations associated with one or more members of the group who are logged onto the presence-based network, wherein the visually representing of logical locations is further responsive to at least one user-defined logical proximity parameter that defines logical proximity, wherein logical proximity is manifest abstractly with regard to an abstract space,

wherein the instant messaging application includes a module that is programmed to compute logical proximity in the abstract space,

wherein the user-defined logical proximity parameter that defines logical nearness is based on a user'"'"'s interest.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising viewing the members of the group in a list on the computing device, wherein the members of the group are listed in order of proximity to the computing device based on location information from the presence-based network.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying a current address of a particular one of the one or more members of the group based on a physical location of the particular member of the group determined from the presence-based network;

pre-filling contact information fields of the user automatically with the identified current address based on the physical location of the particular member for maintaining the address in the contact information as part of presence information for the particular member.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising defining a logical proximity parameter and a nearness parameter for displaying on a map members of the group who are both physically and logically proximate to the user, wherein the logical proximity parameter is defined according to an interest of the user.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

tagging communications that originate from the computing device by tagging the communications with the ascertained physical location from which the communications originate,

wherein the user initiates a blog for posting to a particular space while at the ascertained physical location, and

wherein the blog is tagged with the physical location from which the blog was initiated when the blog is posted.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising searching communications originated from the user based upon the tagged physical location.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising tagging one or more instant messages from the computing device with the physical location ascertained for the computing device when the instant messages originate from the computing device at the ascertained physical location.

11. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving, at one or more servers via a presence-based network and at least in part responsive to a user being logged into the presence-based network, location information associated with multiple users of the presence-based network, said location information being ascertained based upon detected locations of respective computing devices of the multiple users;

maintaining said location information by the one or more servers;

maintaining, by the one or more servers, buddy list information for recognizing users belonging to a particular buddy list as being members of a particular group of users;

receiving, via the presence-based network, presence information associated with a physical place, the physical place being identified to the presence-based network as an entity for receiving messages sent to the physical place;

receiving at the one or more servers a message from one of the users comprising the particular buddy list, the message being sent by the user addressed to the physical place identified to the presence-based network as an entity able to receive messages, the message sent addressed to the physical place regardless of a physical location of the user sending the message; and

delivering the message to the users on the particular buddy list whose location information on the presence-based network corresponds to the physical place, and not delivering the message to the users on the particular buddy list whose location information does not correspond to the physical place.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the presence information associated with the physical place includes one or more of identity of individuals present at the physical place, number of individuals present at the physical place, availability of the physical place, and resources available at the physical place.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the physical place is a conference room and the availability of the physical place includes whether or not the conference room is currently booked.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising intermittently updating the location information based upon the detected locations of the respective computing devices of the multiple users determined from the presence-based network.

15. One or more computer-readable storage media comprising computer executable instructions implemented by one or more processors for directing a computing device to:

ascertain a physical location of the computing device;

receive, via a presence-based network, location information associated with physical locations of one or more other computing devices of one or more other individuals who use the presence-based network, the one or more other individuals and a user of the computing device being members of a predefined group;

receive, via the presence-based network, presence information associated with a first physical place, the first physical place being recognized as a contact in a messaging system for enabling messages to be addressed to the first physical place as the contact; and

send a message, using the messaging system, addressed to the first physical place as the contact for receiving the message, the individuals in the predefined group whose location information on the presence-based network corresponds to the first physical place receiving the message, while the individuals in the predefined group whose location information on the presence-based network does not correspond to the first physical place do not receive the message, the message being sent from a second physical place different from the first physical place.

16. The one or more computer readable storage media of claim 15 further comprising computer executable instructions for directing the computing device to:

visually represent, on the computing device and in response to user-defined criteria that describes a logical location, one or more individuals within the predefined group that are within a predefined proximity to the logical location.

17. The one or more computer readable storage media of claim 15 further comprising computer executable instructions for directing the computing device to:

receive a definition of a nearness parameter from the user to be applied to the individuals for determining when the individuals are near to the user, wherein the nearness parameter is defined so that when one of the individuals is within a predefined distance of the physical location of the computing device, an automatic notification is generated to notify the user that the individual is within the predefined distance.

18. The one or more computer readable storage media of claim 17 further comprising computer executable instructions for directing the computing device to:

visually represent, on the computing device, one or more physical locations associated with said one or more individuals, respectively, when the physical location of the individual is within a predefined distance of the physical location of the computing device and a logical location of the individual is within a predefined logical proximity to a logical location of the user.

19. The one or more computer readable storage media of claim 15, further comprising computer executable instructions for directing the computing device to:

present a map to the user on the computing device, said map plotting the physical location of the user and plotting the physical location of a particular one of the individuals; and

present search fields with the map for identifying a meeting location between the user and the particular one of the individuals based on the determined physical location of the computing device and the determined physical location of the particular one of the individuals.

20. The one or more computer readable storage media of claim 15, wherein the presence information associated with the first physical place includes one or more of identity of individuals present at the physical place, number of individuals present at the physical place, availability of the physical place, and resources available at the physical place.