Operating method of user-specific device providing customized service to multiple adjacent mobile terminals, user-specific device, and mobile terminal

• US 9,386,418 B2
• Filed: 09/10/2014
• Issued: 07/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/04/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Na, Yu Jin, Lee, Jong Kee, Jang, Soon Kyu, Cho, Young Ei, Choi, Chang Mok, Kim, Sang Joon, Na, Su-Hyun
• Primary Examiner(s): NEFF, MICHAEL R
• Application Number:
  US14/482,558
• Publication Number:
  US 20150289098A1
• Time in Patent Office: 664 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456.3
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8033 location-dependent, e.g. business or home
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8072 Group, conference or multi-party call
• 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 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/003 locating network equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/25 Maintenance of established connections

Abstract

A method and apparatus are configured to recognize mobile terminals positioned within a coverage area for short range communication with a user-specific device, wherein each mobile terminal comprises identification information for the user-specific device. The method and the apparatus provide a customized service corresponding to at least one of the mobile terminals.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

recognizing a plurality of mobile terminals positioned within a coverage area for short range communication with a user-specific device, wherein each mobile terminal comprises identification information for the user-specific device;

selecting a mobile terminal from among the plurality of mobile terminals based on a characteristic of the mobile terminal,

wherein the selecting comprises determining predefined terminal condition information of customized service available for the mobile terminals, wherein the terminal condition information sets characteristics of each of the mobile terminals; and

providing a customized service corresponding to the selected mobile terminal based on the terminal condition information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the recognizing comprises:

recognizing the plurality of mobile terminals positioned within the coverage area using the identification information.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the characteristic comprises a distance between the user-specific device and each mobile terminal.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the selecting further comprises:

selecting the mobile terminal among the plurality of mobile terminals that is positioned closest to the user-specific device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the characteristic comprises a priority preassigned to each of the mobile terminals.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the priority is editable information.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the selecting further comprises:

determining that terminal condition information of customized service available for the mobile terminals is absent, wherein the terminal condition information sets characteristics of each of the mobile terminals; and

transmitting an unavailable service message to the plurality of mobile terminals.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the providing further comprises:

receiving a billing rate for the customized service from the selected mobile terminal; and

calculating a fee to be paid based on the received billing rate.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

adjusting a billing rate of remaining mobile terminals among the plurality of mobile terminals based on the received billing rate.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising a program comprising instructions to cause a computer to perform the method of claim 1.

11. A mobile terminal, comprising:

a communication unit configured to perform short range communication with a user-specific device; and

a processor configured to

receive customized service from the user-specific device in response to being within a coverage area for the short range communication with the user-specific device, and in response to being selected, by the user-specific device, from among a plurality of mobile terminals to receive the customized service based on a characteristic of the mobile terminal,

wherein being selected by the user-specific device comprises the user-specific device determining predefined terminal condition information of customized service available for the mobile terminals, wherein the terminal condition information sets characteristics of each of the mobile terminals; and

provide a customized service corresponding to the selected mobile terminal based on the terminal condition information.

12. The mobile terminal of claim 11, wherein the mobile terminal comprises identification information for the user-specific device.

13. The mobile terminal of claim 12, wherein the user-specific device is configured to recognize that the mobile terminal is positioned within the coverage area for the short range communication with the user-specific device based on the identification information.

14. The mobile terminal of claim 11, wherein the characteristic comprises a distance from the user-specific device.

15. The mobile terminal of claim 11, wherein the characteristic comprises a priority preassigned to the mobile terminal.

16. The mobile terminal of claim 15, wherein the priority is editable information.

17. The mobile terminal of claim 11, further comprising:

a touch display configured to display a preset billing rate,

wherein the processor is configured to receive a billing rate for the customized service based on a gesture of a user of the mobile terminal in response to the preset billing rate, and to transmit the received billing rate to the user-specific device through the communication unit.

18. The mobile terminal of claim 17, wherein the billing rate for the customized service is configured to increase, decrease, or be maintained based on the gesture of the user, and

wherein the billing rate is displayed on the touch display.

19. A user-specific device, comprising:

a recognizer configured to

recognize a plurality of mobile terminals positioned within a coverage area for short range communication with a user-specific device, wherein each mobile terminal comprises identification information for the user-specific device; and

select a mobile terminal from among the plurality of mobile terminals based on a characteristic of the mobile terminal,

wherein the selecting the mobile terminal comprises determining predefined terminal condition information of customized service available for the mobile terminals, wherein the terminal condition information sets characteristics of each of the mobile terminals; and

a provider configured to provide a customized service corresponding to the selected mobile terminal based on the terminal condition information.

20. The user-specific device of claim 19, wherein the user-specific device is configured to recognize that the plurality of mobile terminals are positioned within the coverage area for the short range communication with the user-specific device based on the identification information.

21. The user-specific device of claim 19, wherein the recognizer reads and processes identification information associated with the selected mobile terminal to recognize the customized services desired by the selected mobile terminal.

22. The user-specific device of claim 19, wherein the identification information is pre-stored in each mobile terminal or in the user-specific device.

23. The user-specific device of claim 19, wherein the characteristic comprises a distance between the user-specific device and each mobile terminal, a priority of each mobile terminal, or a location of each mobile terminal.