Location based messaging

• US 8,965,417 B2
• Filed: 06/17/2008
• Issued: 02/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/23/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TeleCommunication Systems Inc (Comtech Telecommunications Corporation)
• Original Assignee: TeleCommunication Systems Inc (Comtech Telecommunications Corporation)
• Inventors: Lohtia, Sunit
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu, Michael T
• Application Number:
  US12/140,577
• Publication Number:
  US 20080248820A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,443 Days
• Field of Search: 455/466, 455456-4565, 4554141-4142, 455/433
• US Class Current: 455/466
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72436 for text messaging, e.g. short messaging services [SMS] or e-mails
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72457 according to geographic location
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• 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 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/14 between corresponding nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/184 Messaging devices, e.g. message centre

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided for messages, such as short messages and multi-media messages. In one implementation a message is received from a sender, a location of the sender is determined, the message is modified to include the location of the sender, and the modified message is transmitted to a recipient.

Claims

1. A method of processing a message, comprising:

receiving a message, from a physical sender device, directed to a physical recipient device, said message including a destination number to direct said message to said physical recipient device and including a location-request code;

receiving location information from a plurality of network probes for current locations of a plurality of physical network user devices including said physical sender device;

periodically caching said location information for said plurality of physical network user devices including said physical sender device;

retrieving, at said physical location server, a current location of said physical sender device from said cache of location information;

modifying, based on said location-request code, said message to include said current location of said physical sender device; and

transmitting said modified message to said physical recipient device.

2. The method of processing a message according to claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting said modified message to said physical recipient device associated with said destination number.

3. The method of processing a message according to claim 1, wherein:

said message is a multi-media message.

4. The method of processing a message according to claim 1, wherein:

said message is a short message.

5. The method of processing a message according to claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting said message to an intermediate physical location server based on said location-request code.

6. The method of processing a message according to claim 5, wherein:

said physical location server modifies said message to remove said location-request code from said destination number.

7. The method of processing a message according to claim 5, further comprising:

sending a request from said physical location server to a physical location-enabled server; and

receiving, at said physical location server, said current location of said physical sender device from said physical location-enabled server.

8. The method of processing a message according to claim 1, further comprising:

modifying said message to add a location-request code to a sender number included in said message, where said location-request code is a request to include a current location of said physical recipient device in a reply message to said message.

9. The method of processing a message according to claim 1, wherein:

said destination number comprises a Uniform Resource Locator (URL).

11. The method of processing a message according to claim 1, wherein said determining a current location of said sender comprises:

querying a physical location enabled server for said current location of said physical sender device; and

receiving said current location of said physical sender device from said physical location enabled server.

10. A method of processing a message, comprising:

receiving a message, from a physical sender device, directed to a physical recipient device, said message including a destination number to direct said message to said physical recipient device and including a location-request code;

determining a current location of said physical recipient device;

determining if a current location of said physical recipient device can be included in a message originating from said physical recipient device; and

if said current location of said physical recipient device can be included, modifying said message to add a location-request code to a sender number included in said message, where said location-request code is a request to include said current location of said physical recipient device in a reply message to said message;

modifying, based on said location-request code, said reply message to include said current location of said physical recipient device; and

transmitting said modified reply message to said physical sender device.

12. A method of processing a message, comprising:

receiving a message, from a first physical messaging service center, directed from a physical sender device to a physical recipient device, said message including a destination number to direct said message to said physical recipient device, and including a location-request code;

receiving location information from a plurality of physical network probes for current locations for a plurality of physical network user devices including said physical sender device;

intermittently caching said location information for said plurality of physical network user devices including said physical sender device;

retrieving a current location of said physical sender device from said cache of location information;

modifying, based on said location-request code, said message to include said current location of said physical sender device; and

transmitting said modified message to a second messaging service center.

13. The method of processing a message according to claim 12, wherein:

said message is a short message, and said first physical messaging service center and said second physical messaging service center are physical short messaging service centers.

14. The method of processing a message according to claim 12, wherein:

said message is a multi-media message, and said first physical messaging service center and said second physical messaging service center are physical multi-media messaging service centers.

15. The method of processing a message according to claim 12, wherein:

said first physical messaging service center and said second physical messaging service center are a same messaging service center.

16. The method of processing a message according to claim 12, further comprising:

servicing, with said first physical messaging service center, a physical mobile network used by said physical sender device; and

servicing, with said second physical messaging service center, a mobile network used by said physical recipient device.

17. The method of processing a message according to claim 12, further comprising:

modifying said message to remove said location-request code from said destination number.

18. The method of processing a message according to claim 12, further comprising:

sending a request to a physical location-enabled server; and

receiving said current location of said sender from said physical location-enabled server.

19. The method of processing a message according to claim 12, further comprising:

retrieving said current location for said physical sender device from a cache of location information.

20. The method of processing a message according to claim 12, wherein:

said destination number comprises a Uniform Resource Locator (URL).

21. A system for processing a message, comprising:

a sender mobile station configured to receive a user input and based on the user input transmit a message over a mobile network for delivery to a recipient messaging entity associated with a destination number, where the message includes a request to include a current location of the sender mobile station in the message;

a messaging service center configured to;

receive from a sender mobile station a message;

process the message to determine if the message includes a request to include a current location of the sender mobile station in the message;

transmit the message to a location server;

receive a modified message from a location server;

transmit the modified message to a recipient messaging entity;

a location server configured to;

receive a message from a messaging center, the message including a request to include a current location of a sender mobile station in the message;

determine a current location of the sender mobile station;

modify the message to include the current location of the sender mobile station; and

transmit the modified message to a messaging center; and

a recipient messaging entity configured to receive a modified message from the location server, the modified message including a current location of a sender mobile station from which the message originated.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein:

the message is a short message, and the messaging service center is a short messaging service center.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein:

the message is a multi-media message, and

the messaging service center is a multi-media messaging service center.