Location based service system

• US 8,417,266 B2
• Filed: 09/18/2006
• Issued: 04/09/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/16/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Kim, Joo-Young, Kim, Wuk
• Primary Examiner(s): PHUONG, DAI
• Application Number:
  US11/523,277
• Publication Number:
  US 20100267398A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,395 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456.1
• US Class Current: 455/457
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/10 between location register and external networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/16 selectively restricting mobility data tracking

Abstract

Disclosed is a Location Based Service (LBS) system for providing location information of a target terminal for positioning. Such a LBS system can provide both a requester for location information as well as a third party specified by the requester with the location information by means of only one request message for the location information. The LBS system includes a requester terminal requesting location information of a specific terminal, and a LBS provider receiving a request for the location information from the requester terminal and providing the requester terminal with the location information. The LBS provider receives information on at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information, along with the request message for the location information, from the requester terminal, whereby the LBS provider delivers the location information to the at least one specified terminal along with the requester terminal.

Claims

1. A method for providing a Location Based Service (LBS) by an LBS provider, the method comprising:

receiving identifiers of terminals, which belong to those who are authorized to be provided with location information of a specific terminal, from a user of the specific terminal and storing the identifiers in the LBS provider;

receiving a request message for location information of the specific terminal from a requester terminal, wherein the request message contains information on the specific terminal and identifiers of the requester terminal and at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal;

performing positioning of the specific terminal to obtain the location information of the specific terminal when the request message is received;

determining whether the requester terminal and the at least one specified terminal have permission to obtain the location information based on whether the identifiers of the requester terminal and the at least one specified terminal is included in the stored identifiers of terminals; and

delivering the current location information of the specific terminal to the at least one specified terminal along with the requester terminal when permission to obtain the current location information is granted.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the LBS provider receives the request message from requester terminal through a mobile communication operator and delivers the location information of the specific terminal to the at least one specified terminal along with the requester terminal through the mobile communication operator.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal is provided with different mobile communication services, and the mobile communication operator is connected to mobile communication systems supporting the different mobile communication services.

4. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the requester terminal transmits the request message to the mobile communication operator by using a one of Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) and Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).

5. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the mobile communication operator transmits an identifier of the mobile communication operator, along with information contained in the request message, to the LBS provider.

6. The method as claimed in claim 5, further comprising checking if the mobile communication operator, the requester terminal, and the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal have permission to obtain the location information of the specific terminal, by means of the identifiers thereof.

7. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein the LBS provider checks the authority for the location information of the specific terminal based on whether the identifiers of the mobile communication operator, the requester terminal, and the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal coincide with those stored in a database of the LBS provider.

8. The method as claimed in claim 6, further comprising delivering the location information of the specific terminal determined by the positioning and a result of checking if the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal has the permission to obtain for the location information to the mobile communication operator, wherein the mobile communication operator transmits the location of the specific terminal to the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal according to whether it has authority for the location information.

9. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein, if the identifiers of the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal are phone numbers, the mobile communication operator transmits the location information of the specific terminal to the terminals having the phone numbers.

10. The method as claimed in claim 9, wherein the mobile communication operator transmits the location information of the specific terminal in one of a Push message format and a SMS message format to the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal.

11. The method as claimed in claim 5, further comprising delivering the identifiers of the mobile communication operator, the requester terminal, and the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal to the specific terminal, wherein the LBS provider performs positioning of the specific terminal according to whether the specific terminal grants the LBS provider permission to perform the positioning.

12. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the LBS provider performs positioning of the specific terminal by means of one of a cell-based method and a Global Positioning System (GPS).

13. A method for receiving a Location Based Service (LBS) by a requester terminal, the method comprising:

transmitting identifiers of terminals, which belong to those who are authorized to be provided with location information of a specific terminal, for storing the identifiers in an LBS provider;

transmitting a request message for location information of the specific terminal to an LBS provider, wherein the request message contains information on the specific terminal and identifiers of the requester terminal and at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal; and

receiving the location information of the specific terminal from the LBS provider along with the at least one specified terminal when the requester terminal and the at least one specified terminal have been granted permission to obtain the location information based on whether the identifiers of the requester terminal and the at least one specified terminal is included in the stored identifiers of terminals.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal is provided with different mobile communication services.

15. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the LBS provider is connected to mobile communication systems supporting the different mobile communication services.

16. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the LBS provider and the requester terminal are connected to each other through a specific protocol.

17. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the LBS provider and the requester terminal are connected to each other through an Internet Protocol (IP).

18. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the LBS provider checks if the requester terminal and the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal have authority to request the location information of the specific terminal, by means of the identifiers thereof, and accordingly performs positioning of the specific terminal.

19. The method as claimed in claim 18, wherein the LBS provider checks the authority for the location information of the specific terminal based on whether the identifiers of the requester terminal and the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal coincide with those stored in a database of the LBS provider.

20. The method as claimed in claim 18, wherein, if the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal have permission to obtain the location information of the specific terminal, the LBS provider transmits the location information of the specific terminal determined by the positioning to the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal.

21. The method as claimed in claim 20, wherein, if the identifiers of the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal are phone numbers, the LBS provider transmits the location information of the specific terminal in one of a Push message format and a Short Message Service (SMS) message format to the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal.

22. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the identifiers of the requester terminal and the at least one terminal specified to simultaneously receive the location information of the specific terminal are delivered to the specific terminal by the LBS provider, and the LBS provider performs positioning of the specific terminal according to whether the specific terminal give the LBS provider permission to perform the positioning.

23. A method for providing a Location Based Service (LBS) by an LBS provider, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving identifiers of terminals, which belong to those who are authorized to be provided with location information of a specific terminal, from a user of the specific terminal and storing the identifiers in the LBS provider;

receiving a request message for location information of the specific terminal from a requester terminal, wherein the request message contains information on the specific terminal and an identifier of the requester terminal;

performing positioning of the specific terminal to obtain the location information of the specific terminal when the request message is received;

checking if there is at least one terminal specified by the requester terminal, wherein an identifier of the at least one terminal specified by the requester terminal is contained in the request message;

determining whether the requester terminal and the at least one terminal have permission to obtain the location information based on whether the identifiers of the requester terminal and the at least one terminal are included in the stored identifiers of terminals; and

simultaneously delivering the location information of the specific terminal to the at least one terminal along with the requester terminal when permission to obtain the location information is granted.