Systems and methods to provide a reminder relating to a physical business location of interest to a user when the user is near the physical business location

• US 8,515,459 B2
• Filed: 01/13/2013
• Issued: 08/20/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 04/08/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Enhanced Geographic LLC
• Inventors: Busch, James David
• Primary Examiner(s): Batista, Marcos
• Application Number:
  US13/740,218
• Publication Number:
  US 20130130719A1
• Time in Patent Office: 219 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456.3, 705/39, 370/338
• US Class Current: 455/456.3
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9537 Spatial or temporal dependent retrieval, e.g. spatiotemporal queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/322 Aspects of commerce using mobile devices [M-devices]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3224 Transactions dependent on location of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/384 using social networks
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0205 Location or geographical consideration
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0224 based on user history
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0233 Method of redeeming a frequent usage reward
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0236 Incentive or reward received by requiring registration or ID from user
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0245 Surveys
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0255 based on user history
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0256 User search
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0267 Wireless devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0282 Rating or review of business operators or products
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/10 including a GPS signal receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/12 including a sensor for measuring a physical value, e.g. temperature or motion
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/025 : using location based information parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 : Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/30 : Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/38 : for collecting sensor information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 : Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

In general, the invention relates to methods and systems that facilitate the discovery of business locations of interest to a user and record visits of the user to those business locations. A network includes a server programmed with a database of location information and a database of user information. Sometimes, users may not realize that businesses of interest are nearby. Businesses of interest be selected by the user using a button in a web page or on a mobile phone. The business location is put into a list of business locations associated with the user. The next time the user is determined to be physically located near a business of interest to the user, a notification is sent to the user'"'"'s mobile device. The system may determine if the physical named location is subsequently visited by the user.

Claims

1. A method, used by a location based service system including at least one server having at least one network interface, of notifying a user of a wireless device of a physical named location of interest to the user of the wireless device, the wireless device having a wireless communication interface and a geographic location sensor, comprising the acts of:

a) transmitting to a computer that includes a network interface and that is associated with the user, using a network interface of the location based services system, data corresponding to the physical named location of interest to the user;

b) receiving from the computer associated with the user, using a network interface of the location based services system, a request that the location based services system send a notification to the user'"'"'s wireless device when the user'"'"'s wireless device is determined to be located near the physical named location of interest to the user;

c) receiving from the wireless device via a wireless network, using a network interface of the location based services system, geographic location information determined using the geographic location sensing hardware of the wireless device, wherein the geographic location information;

(i) corresponds to the geographic location of the wireless device; and

(ii) indicates that the user of the wireless device is near the physical named location of interest to the user;

d) transmitting to the user'"'"'s wireless device, using a network interface of the location based services system, a notification message configured to remind the user of the named location of interest to the user, the notification;

(i) including information identifying the physical named location of interest to the user; and

(ii) including information that causes the user'"'"'s wireless device to inform the user that the user is physically located near the physical named location of interest to the user;

e) transmitting to the wireless device, using a network interface of the location based services system, at least one named location near the geographic location of the wireless device based on a database including named locations and associated geographic location information;

f) receiving from the wireless device, using a network interface of the location based services system, an indicated named location, selected from the at least one named location, corresponding to the physical named location of interest to the user to verify that the user visited the physical named location of interest to the user of the wireless device; and

g) storing information indicating that the user of the wireless device visited the physical named location of interest to the user.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the computer associated with user is a wireless device.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the computer associated with the user is a personal computer.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the computer associated with the user is a television set top box.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising transmitting, to the computer associated with the user, a listing of all businesses that the user has requested proximity notifications.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising transmitting, to the wireless device associated with the user, a listing of all businesses that the user has requested proximity notifications.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting information indicating that the physical named location was visited to a third party.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting, to a third party, information indicating that the user of the wireless device visited the physical named location.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting information indicating that the user of the wireless device visited the physical named location to a social networking service using an Application Programming Interface (API) made available by the social networking service.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising adding the indicated named location to a location history associated with the user.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising adding information associated with the user to analytics data associated with the physical named location visited by the user.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting information associated with the indicated named location to a social networking service using an Application Programming Interface (API) made available by the social networking service.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving a list of contacts from a social networking service with a link established with the social networking service through an Application Programming Interface (API) made available by the social networking service.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving location privacy settings from a social networking service with a link established with the social networking service through an Application Programming Interface (API) made available by the social networking service.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

d) receiving, from the wireless device, information relating to a purchase associated with the user at the physical named location.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

d) receiving, from a payment processing system, information relating to a purchase made by the user at the physical named location.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

d) periodically receiving, from the wireless device, geographic location information corresponding to the location of the wireless device; and

e) computing a list of possible locations visited by the user of the wireless device based on the geographic location information periodically received from the wireless device.

18. A method, used by a location based service system including at least one server having at least one network interface, of notifying a user of a physical named location of interest to the user of the wireless device, wherein the user operates:

(i) a personal computer having a network interface, and (ii) a wireless device including a wireless communication interface and a geographic location sensor, the method comprising the acts of;

a) receiving, from the network interface of the personal computer using a network interface of the location based services system, a request for data;

b) transmitting, to the network interface of the personal computer using a network interface of the location based services system, the data, wherein the data includes information relating to a physical named location of interest to the user;

c) receiving, from the network interface of the personal computer using a network interface of the location based services system, a request indicating that the user desires that the location based services system send a notification to the user'"'"'s mobile device when the user'"'"'s wireless device is located near the physical named location of interest to the user;

d) receiving, from the wireless communication interface of the wireless device using a network interface of the location based services system, geographic location information determined using the geographic location sensor of the wireless device that;

(i) corresponds to the geographic location of the wireless device; and

(ii) indicates that the user of the wireless device is near the physical named location of interest to the user;

e) transmitting a notification message to the user'"'"'s wireless device to remind the user of the named location of interest to the user, using a network interface of the location based services system, the notification;

(i) including information identifying the physical named location of interest to the user; and

(ii) including information that informs the user that the physical named location of interest to the user is nearby;

f) transmitting, to the wireless device using a network interface of the location based services system, at least one named location near the geographic location of the wireless device based on a database including named locations and associated geographic location information;

g) receiving, from the wireless device using a network interface of the location based services system, an indicated named location, selected from the at least one named location, corresponding to the physical named location of interest to the user to verify that the user visited the physical named location of interest to the user of the wireless device; and

h) storing information indicating that the user of the wireless device visited the physical named location of interest to the user.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the data transmitted to the personal computer is included in a webpage.

20. A location based service system that notifies a user of a wireless device of a physical named location of interest to the user of the wireless device, the wireless device having a wireless communication interface and a geographic location sensor, comprising:

a) the location based services system having at least one server having at least one processor, at least one storage device, and at least one network interface;

b) the location based services system configured to transmit to a computer that includes a network interface and that is associated with the user, using a network interface of the location based services system, data corresponding to the physical named location of interest to the user;

c) the location based services system configured to receive from the computer associated with the user, using a network interface of the location based services system, a request that the location based services system send a notification to the user'"'"'s wireless device when the user'"'"'s wireless device is determined to be located near the physical named location of interest to the user using a processor of the location based services system and geographic information stored in a storage device of the location based services system;

d) the location based services system configured to receive from the wireless device via a wireless network, using a network interface of the location based services system, geographic location information determined using the geographic location sensing hardware of the wireless device, wherein the geographic location information;

(i) corresponds to the geographic location of the wireless device; and

(ii) indicates that the user of the wireless device is near the physical named location of interest to the user;

e) the location based services system configured to transmit to the wireless device, using a network interface of the location based services system, a notification message configured to remind the user of the named location of interest to the user, the notification;

(i) including information identifying the physical named location of interest to the user; and

(ii) including information that causes the user'"'"'s wireless device to inform the user that the user is physically located near the physical named location of interest to the user;

f) the location based services system configured to transmit to the wireless device, using a network interface of the location based services system, at least one named location near the geographic location of the wireless device based on a database including named locations and associated geographic location information;

g) the location based services system configured to receive from the wireless device, using a network interface of the location based services system, an indicated named location, selected from the at least one named location, corresponding to the physical named location of interest to the user to verify that the user visited the physical named location of interest to the user of the wireless device; and

h) the location based services system configured to store, in a storage device of the location based services system, information indicating that the user of the wireless device visited the physical named location of interest to the user.

21. The system of claim 20 wherein the computer associated with the user is a wireless device.

22. The system of claim 20 wherein the computer associated with the user is a personal computer.

23. The system of claim 20 wherein the computer associated with the user is a television set top box.