Location enabled service for enhancement of smart device and enterprise software applications

• US 9,307,355 B2
• Filed: 06/26/2014
• Issued: 04/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: BlueCats Australia Pty., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: BlueCats Australia Pty., Ltd.
• Inventors: Nehrenz, Kurt, Singleton, Victor Cody, Stanley, Randall
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, DINH
• Application Number:
  US14/316,564
• Publication Number:
  US 20150005011A1
• Time in Patent Office: 649 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/185 by embedding added-value information into content, e.g. geo-tagging
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/60 Subscription-based services using application servers or record carriers, e.g. SIM application toolkits
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

A system for contextualized location aware content delivery comprising a group of beacons transmitting respective ID'"'"'s, an application running on a smart device configured for receiving the beacons, determining signal amplitude, reception time, beacon ID, and sending ID and amplitude to a server over a network. The server determines location of the smart device and contextualizes the location based on a context location database with the server. Context information sent back to application. Application sends context information along with user action information to an application server over a network. Application server sends context related information to application for display to a user on said smart device. The server, application, and beacons may be provided as a service to a facility for use with customer'"'"'s smart devices. A beacon ID security method is disclosed. Beacons may include precision location technology and relay information to one another and to the server.

Claims

1. A system for enhancing an enterprise software system with a location service comprising:

a beacon device for disposition proximal to an associated category, said beacon device configured for transmitting a beacon signal having an encoded beacon identification;

a distribution server connected to a network for distributing a smart device application to a smart device;

said smart device application comprising an application module and an integrated service module;

said integrated service module configured for running on said smart device, said integrated service module configured for controlling said smart device for receiving said beacon signal and determining proximity information relating to a distance from said smart device to said beacon based on a received signal property of said beacon signal;

said integrated service module configured for network communication with a network server;

said integrated service module configured for communicating said proximity information to said network server and receiving category information based on said proximity information from said network server;

said integrated service module configured to communicate said category information to said application module;

said application module configured to send said category information to an application server in response to a user action and configured to receive category related information from said application server for display on said smart device, said application server separate from said network server.

2. The system in accordance with claim 1, wherein said proximity information is derived in accordance with a triangulation solution algorithm.

3. The system in accordance with claim 1, wherein said proximity information is derived in accordance with a hyperbolic solution algorithm.

4. The system in accordance with claim 1, wherein said proximity information comprises two-dimensional position information.

5. The system in accordance with claim 1, wherein said proximity information comprises three-dimensional position information.

6. The system in accordance with claim 1, wherein said integrated service module is configured to read said encoded beacon identification without engaging in an interactive connection protocol with said beacon device.

7. The system in accordance with claim 1, wherein said received signal property is beacon signal strength, and wherein said integrated service module is configured to determine said beacon signal strength without engaging in an interactive connection protocol with said beacon device.

8. The system in accordance with claim 1, wherein said beacon device transmits an indication of transmitted signal level.

9. The system in accordance with claim 1, wherein said network server is configured to run a location engine algorithm to determine a location for said smart device based on said proximity information.

10. The system in accordance with claim 9, wherein said network server is configured to determine contextualized location information based on said location for said smart device and is configured to communicate said contextualized location information to said integrated service module.

11. The system in accordance with claim 9, wherein the application module is configured to initiate an action based on said contextualized location information received.

12. The system in accordance with claim 11, wherein the application module is configured to log user action information with time marker information and send the user action information and time marker information to said application server.

13. The system in accordance with claim 1, wherein the encoded beacon identification is configured to change in accordance with a time schedule, and wherein the encoded beacon identification is configured to change in accordance with a mathematical process having at least one parameter not publicly disclosed.

14. The system in accordance with claim 13, wherein the network server is configured to utilize overlapping sequential periods having an overlapping interval and permits at least two encoded beacon identification values during the overlapping interval.

15. The system in accordance with claim 14, further including a plurality of beacons transmitting a respective plurality of encoded beacon identification values, wherein the respective encoded beacon identification values are chosen to avoid duplication of the same encoded beacon identification value for a given time period among the beacons of the plurality of beacons.