Provision of location-based business information

• US 9,031,978 B1
• Filed: 04/11/2012
• Issued: 05/12/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hiya Inc.
• Original Assignee: WhitePages Incorporated
• Inventors: Beresniewicz, Sebastian, Mehta, Sanam, Modi, Vishal, Moore, Bret, Newman, Brent, Richen, Owyn, Siu, John
• Primary Examiner(s): Leroux, Etienne
• Assistant Examiner(s): BIBBEE, JARED M
• Application Number:
  US13/444,569
• Time in Patent Office: 1,126 Days
• Field of Search: 707/709, 707/722, 707/723, 707/724, 707/728, 707/796, 707/770
• US Class Current: 707/770
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/29 Geographical information databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/838 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9537 Spatial or temporal dependent retrieval, e.g. spatiotemporal queries

Abstract

Location-based searches for venues for a mobile computing device. An application server system may determine search results in response to a search query, comprising a search location, received from the mobile computing device. The application server system determines, for each search query, whether the search location is within a threshold distance from a location of the mobile computing device. If within the threshold distance, the application server system transmits search result data comprising, for each example venue in the search results, a distance of the venue to the location of the mobile computing device. If not within the threshold distance, the application server system transmits search result data comprising, for each venue in the search results, a distance of the venue to the search location.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of performing location-based searches for a mobile computing device, the method comprising:

determining, by an application server system, search results in response to location-based search queries received from the mobile computing device, wherein each search query includes search location data indicative of a geographic search location that is different from a location of the mobile computing device, and the search queries are received by the application server system via a data network, wherein each of the search results comprises one or more venues satisfying search parameters of the search query, wherein the mobile computing device comprises at least one processor and operatively associated memory, and wherein the application server system comprises at least one computer-based server;

when location information of the mobile computing device is available to the application server system, determining, by the application server system, for each search query, a relevance of a distance between the mobile computing device and the geographic search to how search results are provided, wherein displaying of the search results varies depending on the distance between the mobile computing device and the geographic search location based on whether the geographic search location is within a threshold distance from the location of the mobile computing device;

for a first search query from the mobile computing device where the search location is not within the threshold distance of the mobile computing device, transmitting by the application server system to the mobile computing device via the data network search result data for the first search query that comprises, for each of the one or more venues in the search results for the first search query, data indicative of the distance from the one or more venues to the search location such that the mobile computing device displays the search results to show the distance from the one or more venues to the search location; and

for a second search query from the mobile computing device where the search location is within the threshold distance of the mobile computing device, transmitting by the application server system to the mobile computing device via the data network search result data for the second search query that comprises, for each venue of the one more venues in the search results for the second search query, data indicative of the distance from the one or more venues to the location of the mobile computing device such that the mobile computing device displays the search results to show the distance from the one or more venues to the mobile computing device.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving, by the application server system from the mobile computing device via the data network, the location information of the mobile computing device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the location information comprises real-time location information of the mobile computing device.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the location information comprises historical location information of the mobile computing device.

5. The method claim 1, further comprising determining, by the application server system, one or more trending venues within a trending threshold distance from the search location.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein determining the one or more trending venues comprises determining the one or more trending venues based on venue trending data stored in a venue trending database.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the search result data for the second search query that is transmitted to the mobile computing device comprises data indicative of the one or more trending venues.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the search result data for the second search query that is transmitted to the mobile computing device comprises data indicative of the one or more trending venues that satisfy search parameters for the second search query.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein the search result data for the second search query that is transmitted to the mobile computing device comprises data indicative of the distance from the one or more trending venues to the search location.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining, by the application server system, one or more trending venues within a trending threshold distance from the mobile computing device.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the search result data for the second search query that is transmitted to the mobile computing device comprises data indicative of the one or more trending venues.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the search result data for the second search query that is transmitted to the mobile computing device comprises data indicative of the distance from the one or more trending venues to the mobile computing device.

13. A system for performing location-based searches, the system comprising:

a mobile computing device comprising at least one processor and operatively associated memory;

an application server system in communication with the mobile computing device via a data network, wherein the application server system comprises at least one computer-based server, and wherein the application server system is programmed to;

determine search results in response to location-based search queries received from the mobile computing device, wherein each search query includes search location data indicative of a geographic search location that is different from a location of the mobile computing device, wherein each of the search results comprises one or more venues satisfying search parameters of the search query;

when location information of the mobile computing device is available to the application server system, determine for each search query a relevance of a distance between the mobile computing device and the geographic search to how search results are provided, wherein displaying of the search results varies depending on the distance between the mobile computing device and the geographic search location based on whether the search location is within a threshold distance from the location of the mobile computing device;

for a first search query from the mobile computing device where the search location is not within the threshold distance of the mobile computing device, transmit to the mobile computing device via the data network search result data for the first search query that comprises, for each of the one or more venues in the search results for the first search query, data indicative of the distance from the one or more venues to the search location such that the mobile computing device displays the search results to show the distance from the one or more venues to the search location; and

for a second search query from the mobile computing device where the search location is within the threshold distance of the mobile computing device, transmit to the mobile computing device via the data network search result data for the second search query that comprises, for each venue of the one more venues in the search results for the second search query, data indicative of the distance from the one or more venues to the location of the mobile computing device such that the mobile computing device displays the search results to show the distance from the one or more venues to the mobile computing device.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the application server system receives from the mobile computing device via the data network the location information of the mobile computing device.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the location information comprises real-time location information of the mobile computing device.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the location information comprises historical location information of the mobile computing device.

17. The system claim 13, wherein the application server system is further programmed to determine one or more trending venues within a trending threshold distance from the search location.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the search result data for the second search query that is transmitted to the mobile computing device comprises data indicative of the one or more trending venues.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein:

the search result data for the second search query that is transmitted to the mobile computing device comprises data indicative of the distance from the one or more trending venues to the search location; and

the mobile computing device comprises a graphical user interface for displaying a location of the one or more trending venues centered around the search location.

20. The system of claim 14, wherein the application server system is further programmed to determine one or more trending venues within a trending threshold distance from the mobile computing device.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the search result data for the second search query that is transmitted to the mobile computing device comprises data indicative of the one or more trending venues.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein:

the search result data for the second search query that is transmitted to the mobile computing device comprises data indicative of the distance from the one or more trending venues to the mobile computing device; and

the mobile computing device comprises a graphical user interface for displaying a location of the one or more trending venues centered around the location of the mobile computing device.

23. The system of claim 13, wherein the mobile device further comprises a graphical user interface and wherein the mobile device is programmed to display via the graphical user interface the search result data for the first search query.

24. The system of claim 13, wherein the mobile device further comprises a graphical user interface and wherein the mobile device is programmed to display via the graphical user interface the search result data for the second search query.

25. A computer-implemented method of performing location-based searches for a mobile computing device, the method comprising:

determining, by an application server system, one or more trending venues with respect to a mobile computing device that is in communication with the application server system based on location information for the mobile computing device;

when location information of the mobile computing device is available to the application server system, and in response to location-based search queries that each comprise a geographic search location different from a location of the mobile computing device and that is received by the application server system from the mobile computing device via the data network, determining by the application server system a relevance of a distance from the mobile computing device to the search locations to how search results are provided, wherein displaying of the search results varies depending on the distance between the mobile computing device and the search locations based on whether the search locations are within a threshold distance from the location of the mobile computing device;

for a first search query from the mobile computing device where the search location is not within a threshold distance of the location of the mobile computing device, transmitting by the applications server system to the mobile computing device via the data network search result data for the first search query, wherein the search result data for the first search query comprises data indicative of the distance of the one or more trending venues from the search location such that the mobile computing device displays the search results to show the distance from the one or more venues to the search locations; and

for a second search query from the mobile computing device where the search location is within the threshold distance of the mobile computing device, transmitting by the applications server system to the mobile computing device via the data network search result data for the second search query, wherein the search result data for the second search query comprises data indicative of the distance of the one or more trending venues from the mobile computing device such that the mobile computing device displays the search results to show the distance from the one or more venues to the mobile computing device.

26. A system for performing location-based searches, the system comprising:

a mobile computing device comprising;

at least one processor;

memory operatively associated to the at least one processor; and

a graphical user interface in communication with the at least one processor;

an application server system in communication with the mobile computing device via a data network, wherein the application service system comprises at least one computer-based server, and wherein the application server system is programmed to;

determine one or more trending venues proximal to a mobile computing device based on location information for the mobile computing device;

when location information of the mobile computing device is available to the application server system, and in response to location-based search queries that each comprise a geographic search location different from a location of the mobile computing device and that is received by the application server system from the mobile computing device via the data network, determine a relevance of a distance from the mobile computing device to the search locations to how search results are provided, wherein displaying of the search results varies depending on the distance between the mobile computing device and the search locations based on whether the search locations are within a threshold distance from the location of the mobile computing device;

for a first search query from the mobile computing device where the search location is not within a threshold distance of the location of the mobile computing device, transmitting by the applications server system to the mobile computing device via the data network search result data for the first search query, wherein the search result data for the first search query comprises data indicative of the distance of the one or more trending venues from the search location such that the mobile computing device displays the search results to show the distance from the one or more venues to the search locations; and

for a second search query from the mobile computing device where the search location is within the threshold distance of the mobile computing device, transmitting by the applications server system to the mobile computing device via the data network search result data for the second search query, wherein the search result data for the second search query comprises data indicative of the distance of the one or more trending venues from the mobile computing device such that the mobile computing device displays the search results to show the distance from the one or more venues to the mobile computing device.

27. The system of claim 26, wherein the graphical user interface of the mobile computing device displays the locations of the one or more trending businesses centered around the search location for the first search query.

28. The system of claim 26, wherein the graphical user interface of the mobile computing device displays the locations of the one or more trending businesses centered around the location of the mobile computing device for the second search query.