Techniques for providing missed arrival notifications

• US 8,610,600 B1
• Filed: 03/11/2011
• Issued: 12/17/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CA, Inc. (d/b/a CA Technologies) (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Symantec Corporation (NortonLifeLock Inc.)
• Inventors: Sobel, William E.
• Primary Examiner(s): La, Anh V
• Application Number:
  US13/045,971
• Time in Patent Office: 1,012 Days
• Field of Search: 340/994, 340/991, 340/989, 340/995.1, 340/995.13, 340/995.19, 342/357, 342/357.31, 342/357.75, 701/456, 701/454, 701/465
• US Class Current: 340/994
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0225 Monitoring making use of different thresholds, e.g. for different alarm levels
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/025 System arrangements wherein the alarm criteria uses absence of reply signal after an elapsed time
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0269 System arrangements wherein the object is to detect the exact location of child or item using a navigation satellite system, e.g. GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/08 using communication transmission lines G08B13/19658, G08B21/0286, G08B25/016 take precedence

Abstract

Techniques for providing missed arrival notifications are disclosed. In one particular exemplary embodiment, the techniques may be realized as a method for providing missed arrival notifications comprising: receiving, from a user associated with a client device, travel information that indicates at least an expected destination and an expected route to the expected destination, tracking, on a notification system, the client device'"'"'s progress in traveling the expected route to the expected destination, determining, on the notification system, whether the client device has deviated from the expected route to the expected destination, and initiating, on the notification system, an alert escalation procedure in response to determining that the client device has deviated from the expected route to the expected destination.

Claims

1. A method for providing missed arrival notifications comprising:

receiving, from a user associated with a client device, travel information that indicates at least an expected destination and an expected route to the expected destination;

tracking, on a notification system, the client device'"'"'s progress in traveling the expected route to the expected destination;

determining, on the notification system, whether the client device has deviated from the expected route to the expected destination; and

initiating, on the notification system, an alert escalation procedure in response to determining that the client device has deviated from the expected route to the expected destination, the alert procedure comprising;

a first alert level comprising transmitting an alert to the client device to request a response from the user, the first alert level occurring in response to initiating the alert escalation procedure, and

a second alert level comprising transmitting one or more alerts to one or more third party systems, the second alert level occurring contingent on the user'"'"'s response to the alert transmitted to the client device during the first alert level.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the travel information indicates an expected time of arrival.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the expected destination comprises a geographic location that is associated with geographic coordinates.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein tracking further comprises receiving one or more progress updates from the client device.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein determining further comprises comparing the expected route to an actual route.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the actual route is derived based on the one or more progress updates.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein determining further comprises applying a narrow travel range to the actual route.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein determining further comprises applying a wide travel range to the actual route.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the alert procedure further comprises a third alert level that comprises notifying an authority near a current location of the client device.

10. At least one non-transitory processor readable storage medium for storing a computer program of instructions configured to be readable by at least one processor for instructing the at least one processor to execute a computer process for performing the method as recited in claim 1.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the second alert level occurs when an expected response is not received from the client device after the alert associated with the first alert level is transmitted to the client device.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein

the alert procedure ends if a first predetermined response is received from the client device after the alert associated with the first alert level is transmitted to the client device;

the third alert level occurs if a second predetermined response different from the first predetermined response is received from the client device after the first alert level is transmitted to the client device; and

the second alert level occurs if neither the first nor the second predetermined responses are received from the client device after the first alert level is transmitted to the client device.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein if the second alert level occurs, the third alert level occurs contingent on responses received during the second alert level.

14. An article of manufacture for providing missed arrival notifications, the article of manufacture comprising:

at least one non-transitory processor readable medium; and

instructions stored on the at least one medium;

wherein the instructions are configured to be readable from the at least one medium by at least one processor and thereby cause the at least one processor to operate so as to;

receive, from a user associated with a client device, travel information that indicates at least an expected destination and an expected route to the expected destination;

track, on a notification system, the client device'"'"'s progress in traveling the expected route to the expected destination;

determine, on the notification system, whether the client device has deviated from the expected route to the expected destination; and

initiate, on the notification system, an alert escalation procedure in response to determining that the client device has deviated from the expected route to the expected destination, the alert procedure comprising;

a first alert level comprising transmitting an alert to the client device to request a response from the user, the first alert level occurring in response to initiating the alert escalation procedure, and

a second alert level comprising transmitting one or more alerts to one or more third party systems, the second alert level occurring contingent on the user'"'"'s response to the alert transmitted to the client device during the first alert level.

15. A system for providing missed arrival notifications comprising:

one or more processors communicatively coupled to a network, wherein the one or more processors are configured to;

receive, from a user associated with a client device, travel information that indicates at least an expected destination and an expected route to the expected destination;

track, on a notification system, the client device'"'"'s progress in traveling the expected route to the expected destination;

determine, on the notification system, whether the client device has deviated from the expected route to the expected destination; and

initiate, on the notification system, an alert escalation procedure in response to determining that the client device has deviated from the expected route to the expected destination, the alert procedure comprising;

a first alert level comprising transmitting an alert to the client device to request a response from the user, the first alert level occurring in response to initiating the alert escalation procedure, and

a second alert level comprising transmitting one or more alerts to one or more third party systems, the second alert level occurring contingent on the user'"'"'s response to the alert transmitted to the client device during the first alert level.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the travel information indicates an expected time of arrival.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the expected destination comprises a geographic location that is associated with geographic coordinates.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to track by receiving one or more progress updates from the client device.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to determine by comparing the expected route to an actual route.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the actual route is derived based on the one or more progress updates.