Systems and methods of networking enhancements using location based services

• US 8,965,930 B2
• Filed: 07/11/2013
• Issued: 02/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Nielsen, Mark D., Ramanathan, Sri, Terry, Matthew A., Trevathan, Matthew B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Woo, Isaac M
• Application Number:
  US13/939,785
• Publication Number:
  US 20130295968A1
• Time in Patent Office: 593 Days
• Field of Search: 707600-899
• US Class Current: 707/791
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/00 Information retrieval; Database structures therefor; File system structures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72463 to restrict the functionality of the device
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management

Abstract

A location based service and method configured to provide a mechanism for information to a subscribing user. The method is implemented on a computing infrastructure and includes querying one or more databases for matching information of a third party that is associated with one or more mobile devices that pass within a predefined location at one or more predefined intervals. The method further includes providing location information to a subscribing user of the one or more mobile devices that have the matching information and pass within the predefined location.

Claims

1. A computing system comprising:

a storage system configured to store one or more databases; and

a computing device including at least one processor configured to;

query the one or more databases to obtain information associated with one or more users with mobile devices entering a predefined location;

determine a match between the one or more users with the mobile devices and a subscriber using the queried information;

obtain location information of the one or more users which are matched to the subscriber;

provide the location information of the one or more matched users to the subscriber;

deconstruct the predefined location after providing the location information; and

determine a central location point for the subscriber and the one or more users which are matched to the subscriber, wherein the determining of the central location point comprises;

retrieving a location of the subscriber and the one or more users, which are matched to the subscriber; and

averaging the locations of the subscriber and the one or more users, which are matched to the subscriber.

2. The computing system of claim 1, wherein a service provider performs the querying.

3. The computing system of claim 1, wherein a content provider receives events from a service provider that the one or more users with the mobile devices have passed within the predefined location and the content provider queries the one or more databases for the matching and sends the location information to the subscriber.

4. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the one or more databases which are queried are databases associated with one or more social networking systems or interest groups.

5. A computer program product comprising a computer usable storage medium having readable program code tangibly embodied in the storage medium, the computer program product being operable to:

query one or more databases for matching information of one or more third parties, which is associated with one or more mobile devices, that pass within a predefined location at one or more predefined intervals;

provide location information to a subscribing user of the one or more mobile devices associated with the one or more third parties, which have the matching information, and pass within the predefined location; and

determine a central location point for the subscribing user and the one or more third parties, which have the matching information, wherein the determining of the central location point comprises;

retrieving a location of the subscribing user and the one or more third parties; and

averaging the locations of the subscribing user and the one or more third parties.

6. The computer program product of claim 5, wherein the computer program product is further operable to:

receive from the subscribing user a request to activate a proximity alert; and

notify the subscribing user that the proximity alert is activated.

7. The computer program product of claim 5, wherein the matching information includes the one or more third parties which are members of a same social network or interest group as that of the subscribing user.