Communicating information describing current or activity of computer system users among computer system users

• US 8,832,209 B2
• Filed: 08/19/2011
• Issued: 09/09/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Jhanji, Neeraji
• Primary Examiner(s): Gillis, Brian J
• Application Number:
  US13/213,906
• Publication Number:
  US 20120005230A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,117 Days
• Field of Search: 709/204, 709/206, 709/219, 705/319
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0259 based on store location
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0267 Wireless devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/222 using geographical location information, e.g. messages transmitted or received in proximity of a certain spot or area
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/224 providing notification on incoming messages, e.g. pushed notifications of received messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/54 Presence management, e.g. monitoring or registration for receipt of user log-on information, or the connection status of the users
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/20 Services signaling; Auxiliary data signalling, i.e. transmitting data via a non-traffic channel

Abstract

A computer-implemented method receiving receives information describing a current or future activity from a user of a computing system via a mobile device. The current activity is an activity occurring at a current time when the information is received, while the future activity is an activity occurring at a future time relative to a time when the information is received. The method transmits the information describing the current or future activity to a backend database coupled to the Internet and remote from the mobile device. The information describing the current or future activity is accessible to at least one recipient having access privilege to information associated with the user and describing the current or future activity via the Internet.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

(a) receiving, at a computer system, location information and status information from a mobile device of a user of the computer system,

(i) the location information representing a geographic location of the user, and

(ii) the status information manually provided by the user on the mobile device;

(b) storing the location information and the status information of the user in a database maintained by the computer system; and

(c) sending the status information and the location information of the user to an additional user of the computer system for display, the additional user granted access by the user to the status information and the location information by the user.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

(i) receiving a request from the additional user for information associated with the geographic location; and

(ii) querying the database to retrieve the status information of the user associated with the location information of the geographic location responsive to receiving the request.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the status information and the location information of the user to an additional user of the computer system for display comprises displaying information about the user including the status information and the location information of the user.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the location information is determined with the aid of an automatic location finding technology.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the location information is manually provided by the user at the mobile device.

6. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions encoded thereon that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to:

(a) store location information and status information of a user of a computing system in a database responsive to receiving the location information and the status information from a mobile device of the user,

(i) the location information representing a geographic location of the user,

(ii) the status information manually provided by the user on the mobile device; and

(b) receive the location information and the status information of the user provided from the mobile device; and

(c) send the location information and the status information of the user to an additional user of the computer system for display, the additional user granted access by the user to the status information and the location information by the user.

7. The computer program product of claim 6, wherein send the location information and the status information of the user to the additional user of the computer system for display comprises:

(i) determine if the user has granted the additional user access to the location information and the status information; and

(ii) send the location and the status information to the additional user responsive to determining the user has granted the additional user access to the additional user.

8. The computer program product of claim 6, further comprising querying the status information and the location information of the user from the database responsive to receiving a query from the additional user.

9. The computer program product of claim 6, wherein the geographic location is determined with the aid of an automatic location finding technology.

10. A method comprising:

(a) receiving location information and entered information from a user of a computing system,

(i) the location information representing a geographic location of the user from a mobile device of the user,

(ii) the entered information manually provided by the user on the mobile device;

(b) storing the location information with the entered information of the user in a database maintained by the computer system;

(c) receiving a request from an additional user of the computer system for information associated with the geographic location;

(d) querying the database to retrieve the entered information of the user associated with the location information of the geographic location responsive to receiving the request and responsive to the additional user being granted access by the user to the entered information; and

(e) sending the entered information and the location information of the user retrieved from the database to the additional user for display on a computing device of the second user.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the location information is determined with the aid of an automatic location finding technology.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the location information is manually provided by the user at the mobile device.

13. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

(a) receiving, by a computer system, location information of a device accessed by a user of the computer system at a geographic location, the location information representing the geographic location of the user;

(b) storing the location information of the user in a database maintained by the computer system that associates the location information with the user after receiving the location information; and

(c) sending, from the computer system, a communication generated based at least in part on the location information and information entered by the user and associated with the location information via the device for display to an additional user granted access by the user to the location information.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

(i) receiving status information provided by the user at the device; and

(ii) storing the status information in the database, the status information and the location information associated with the user.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the communication is generated based at least in part on the location information and the status information if the additional user is granted access by the user to the status information.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising storing different levels of access by the additional user to items of information comprising the location information.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the device is a mobile computing device.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the mobile computing device is GPS (Global Positioning System) enabled.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the location information is determined with the aid of an automatic location finding technology included on the mobile computing device.

20. The method of claim 13, wherein the location information of the user is selected from a list of locations.