Method and system for connecting wireless communications unit users

• US 8,340,707 B2
• Filed: 04/10/2011
• Issued: 12/25/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/05/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sejo Pan
• Original Assignee: Sejo Pan
• Inventors: Pan, Sejo
• Primary Examiner(s): LE, NHAN T
• Application Number:
  US13/083,567
• Publication Number:
  US 20110207406A1
• Time in Patent Office: 625 Days
• Field of Search: 455/41.2, 455/41.3, 455418-420, 455/456.1, 455/456.3, 455/518, 455/519, 455/550.1
• US Class Current: 455/518
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42008 Systems for anonymous communication between parties, e.g. by use of disposal contact identifiers

Abstract

A system and method for wireless communications unit users within proximity to make social connections. Users can dynamically discover potential matches in the proximity and interactively find out mutual intentions to socially connect in an anonymous and discreet manner.

Claims

1. A method for a first wireless communication unit (WCU) user to locate or connect with one or more other WCU users encountered in proximity, comprising:

storing a user-defined profile locally in the first WCU, wherein said profile comprises descriptive information of the user of the first WCU or an identifier based on which said descriptive information can be separately retrieved so that the user of the first WCU can be visually identified through said profile by other WCU users;

the first WCU handshaking with other WCU'"'"'s by wirelessly transferring its profile to other WCU'"'"'s and receiving profiles from other WCU'"'"'s in proximity;

displaying to the user of the first WCU a discovery result comprising the received profiles of the WCU'"'"'s in the proximity;

initiating a connection attempt from the first WCU to a second WCU with profile chosen by the user of the first WCU from among the discovery result.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

repeatedly tracking WCU'"'"'s being added to or removed from the proximity and repeatedly tracking any profile change of any WCU in the proximity and refreshing said discovery result displayed to the user of the first WCU.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

allowing the user of the first WCU to discard or select any one or more of the profiles from said discovery result so that the discarded or not-selected profiles are removed from said discovery result afterwards.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

allowing the user of the first WCU to communicate with the user of the second WCU by directly connecting the first WCU and the second WCU.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the communication between any two WCU'"'"'s uses at least one of the following to address each other:

the device ID'"'"'s of the WCU'"'"'s, the ID'"'"'s associated with software executing on the WCU'"'"'s, and a part of the user-defined profile stored in the WCU'"'"'s.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the first WCU blocks incoming communications from all WCU users from reaching the user of the first WCU except from that of a user with whom the user of the first WCU is also trying to communicate.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

connecting the user of the first WCU and the user of the second WCU by connecting the first WCU and the second WCU directly without going through any intermediate device, only when the user of the first WCU has initiated a connection attempt to the second WCU and the first WCU has received a connection attempt from the second WCU.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

tracking another WCU user once encountered by retaining and using at least one of the following pieces of information of that other WCU obtained in the handshaking;

(a) the device ID of that other WCU;

(b) an ID associated with software executing on that other WCU;

(c) a part of, or the whole profile of that other WCU.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a distance and/or direction reference from each of the WCU'"'"'s in said discovery result to the first WCU using at least one of the following;

Received Signal Strength, Time of Flight, and External Positioning Service;

including said distance and/or direction references of each of the WCU'"'"'s in said discovery result.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

the first WCU notifying its user of an attempt to connect from another WCU only when its user makes a connection attempt to that other WCU and the first WCU also receives a connection attempt from that other WCU.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

repeatedly determining said distance and/or direction reference and repeatedly updating the discovery result accordingly.

12. A wireless communication unit (WCU) for enabling its user to locate or connect with another WCU user encountered in proximity comprising:

a communicating device capable of transmitting and receiving wireless signals;

means for storing a user-defined profile locally in the WCU, wherein said profile comprises descriptive information of its user or an identifier based on which said descriptive information can be separately retrieved so that its user can be visually identified through said profile by other WCU users;

software executing on said WCU, said software when executed, causes handshaking of said WCU directly with other WCU'"'"'s in proximity running the same software to exchange said profiles;

means for the WCU displaying a discovery result comprising the received profiles from other WCU'"'"'s;

means for the WCU initiating a connection attempt to a target WCU chosen by the user of the WCU from among the discovery result.

13. The WCU of claim 12, further comprising means for discarding at least one received profile from said discovery result and exclude the corresponding WCU from future handshaking.

14. The WCU of claim 12, further comprising means for communicating directly between said WCU and another WCU using one of the following to address each other:

(a) the device ID'"'"'s of the WCU'"'"'s;

(b) an ID associated with software executing on each of the WCU'"'"'s;

(c) any unique user-defined attribute in the profile of each of the WCU'"'"'s.

15. The WCU of claim 12, further comprising means for the WCU connecting directly with said target WCU only when the WCU has initiated a connection attempt to said target WCU and has received a connection attempt from said target WCU.

16. The WCU of claim 12, further comprising means for tracking another WCU user once encountered by retaining and using at least one of the following pieces of information of that other WCU obtained in said handshaking:

(a) the device ID of that other WCU;

(b) an ID associated with software executing on that other WCU;

(c) any part or all of the profile of that other WCU.

17. The WCU of claim 12, further comprising means for obtaining and displaying in the discovery result a reference of distance and/or direction from said WCU to another WCU.

18. The WCU of claim 17, further comprising means for repeatedly obtaining said reference of distance and/or direction and repeatedly updating the discovery result accordingly.

19. The WCU of claim 12, further comprising means for controlling the effective transmitting and receiving range of said communicating device.

20. The WCU of claim 12, further comprising means for said WCU blocking incoming communications from all other WCU'"'"'s from reaching the user of said WCU except from one with whom the user of said WCU also attempts to communicate.