Locative social networking using a mobile device

• US 8,804,527 B2
• Filed: 04/21/2011
• Issued: 08/12/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/21/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Empire Technology Development LLC (Allied Inventors Management, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Empire Technology Development LLC (Allied Inventors Management, LLC)
• Inventors: Pollari, Esa Tapani
• Primary Examiner(s): CHAN, SAI MING
• Application Number:
  US13/264,675
• Publication Number:
  US 20120281686A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,209 Days
• Field of Search: 370/338, 370/236
• US Class Current: 370/236
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6245 Protecting personal data, e.g. for financial or medical purposes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0267 Wireless devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0884 by delegation of authentication, e.g. a proxy authenticates an entity to be authenticated on behalf of this entity vis-à-vis an authentication entity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• 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 68/00 User notification, e.g. alerting and paging, for incoming communication, change of service or the like

Abstract

Technologies are generally described for providing a locative social networking service utilizing wireless access point. In some examples, a method performed under control of a mobile device may include connecting to a wireless local area network, finding at least one other mobile device connected to the wireless local area network and satisfying a predetermined condition, and for each found mobile device, requesting a public user profile associated with the found mobile device, in response to the request, receiving the public user profile associated with the found mobile device, and for each found mobile device from which an associated public user profile is received, transmitting to the found mobile device a public user profile associated with the mobile device.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

connecting to a wireless local area network;

finding a mobile device connected to the wireless local area network and satisfying a predetermined condition;

requesting a user profile associated with the mobile device;

in response to an authorization by the mobile device to send the user profile, receiving the user profile associated with the mobile device; and

transmitting to the mobile device a different user profile that is not associated with the mobile device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the requesting the user profile associated with the mobile device, and the receiving the user profile associated with the mobile device, and the transmitting the different user profile that is not associated with the mobile device are via a wireless access point.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the wireless local area network comprises a Wi-Fi network, and the wireless access point comprises a Wi-Fi access point.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the Wi-Fi access point is provided by a different mobile device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined condition is that the mobile device supports a locative social networking service.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the requesting comprises:

directly transmitting a request to the mobile device using a service discovery protocol.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the service discovery protocol a Universal Plug and Play Simple Service Discovery Protocol or a Bonjour protocol.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

presenting on a user interface an indication of the user profile.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the presenting comprises displaying a personalized report of the user profile.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the personalized report is based at least on a priority.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the priority is based at least on a comparison of the user profile with an interest of a user associated with the different user profile.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the priority is based at least on a determination of whether information included in the user profile satisfies a specified criteria.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the specified criteria is specified by a user via the user interface.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting to the mobile device associated with the user profile a request for another user profile associated with the user profile.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

in response to a different authorization by the mobile device to send the other user profile, receiving the other user profile associated with the user profile.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

receiving a request-denied message from the mobile device.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving from the mobile device a request for the different user profile; and

presenting on the mobile device an indication of the request for the different user profile.

18. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating a visual indicator that indicates proximity of the mobile device in proportion to a power measurement associated with the mobile device.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the generating the visual indicator comprises:

altering a size of the visual indicator as a function of the power measurement associated with the mobile device.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

sending to the mobile device via a wireless access point a request for the power measurement;

receiving via the wireless access point a permission-granted message including a peer-to-peer communication device address of the mobile device;

paging the mobile device using the peer-to-peer communication device address of the mobile device.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein the generating the visual indicator comprises:

determining the power measurement based on a received signal strength indication (RSSI) reading of a peer-to-peer communication associated with the mobile device; and

converting the RSSI reading into the visual indicator or an audible indicator.

22. A method, comprising:

connecting to a wireless local area network;

identifying a mobile device connected to the wireless local area network, the mobile device satisfying a predetermined condition;

in response to an authorization by the mobile device, exchanging with the mobile device a plurality of user profiles, the plurality of user profiles comprising at least a first user profile associated with the mobile device and a second user profile not associated with the mobile device.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the exchanging the plurality of user profiles is via a wireless access point.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the wireless local area network comprises a Wi-Fi network, and the wireless access point comprises a Wi-Fi access point.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein the predetermined condition is that the mobile device is associated with a locative social networking service.

26. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

transmitting to the mobile device a request for additional information associated with the first user profile; and

in response to a different authorization by the mobile device to send the additional information, receiving from the mobile device the additional information.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the additional information is a private user profile associated with the first user profile.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein the transmitting the request for additional information is performed in response to an indication of a desire for the additional information.

29. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

generating a visual indicator that indicates proximity of the mobile device associated with the first user profile as a function of a power measurement associated with the mobile device; and

presenting the visual indicator on a display device.

30. The method of claim 26, further comprising:

displaying the additional information on a display device.

31. The method of claim 26, further comprising:

displaying at least a portion of the additional information.

32. A non-transitory computer-readable storage device comprising instructions that, in response to execution, cause a system comprising a processing device to perform operations, comprising:

connecting to a wireless local area network;

finding at least one mobile device connected to the wireless local area network and satisfying a predetermined condition; and

for each found mobile device,

requesting a user profile associated with the found mobile device;

in response to an authorization by the found mobile device to transmit the user profile associated with the found mobile device, receiving the user profile associated with the found mobile device; and

for each found mobile device from which an associated user profile is received, transmitting to the found mobile device a different user profile that is not associated with the found mobile device.

33. A system, comprising:

a memory to store instructions; and

a processor, coupled to the memory, to execute or facilitate execution of the instructions to at least connect to a wireless local area network, find a mobile device connected to the wireless local area network that satisfies a predetermined condition, request a user profile associated with the mobile device, receive the user profile associated with the mobile device in response to an authorization by the mobile device to send the user profile, and transmit to the mobile device a different user profile that is not associated with the mobile device.

34. A system, comprising:

means for connecting to a wireless local area network;

means for identifying a mobile device connected to the wireless local area network, the mobile device satisfying a predetermined condition; and

means for exchanging with the mobile device a plurality of user profiles in response to a permission by the mobile device, the plurality of user profiles comprising at least a first user profile associated with the mobile device and a second user profile not associated with the mobile device.