GPS proxy for location-unaware devices

• US 9,426,608 B1
• Filed: 05/23/2013
• Issued: 08/23/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: T-Mobile Innovations LLC (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Sprint Communications Company LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Cope, Warren Bruce, Werner, Shane Robert, Habib, Ahsan, Olding, Douglas Alan
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, MONG-THUY THI
• Application Number:
  US13/900,634
• Time in Patent Office: 1,188 Days
• Field of Search: 455/411, 455/457, 455/456.1, 455/456.3, 455/404.2
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
• 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 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management

Abstract

A communication system, media, and methods that proxy location information to location unaware devices are provided. The communication system includes a wireless device that connects to a cellular network and personal area network. The cellular network includes a Global Positioning System server that provides location information based on the current location of the wireless device. A location-unaware device communicates with the wireless device to receive location information via the wireless device when the wireless device is within a predetermined distance of the location-unaware device. The location unaware device connects to a service database to store the location information and queries the service database to complete communication requests generated by a plain-old-telephone-system device that is connects to the location unaware device.

Claims

1. One or more non-transitory computer-storage media having computer-useable instructions embodied thereon for performing a method of providing location information, the method comprising:

notifying a service database in a location unaware device that an image capture device is within a predetermined distance of the location-unaware device'"'"'s personal area network;

at the service database, receiving a request for location information from the image-capture device over the personal area network;

authenticating, over the personal area network, the location-unaware device at a wireless device that is within the predetermined distance of the location-unaware device;

updating, over the personal area network, the service database with wireless device location information provided by the wireless device, wherein the wireless device location information is obtained from a global position system; and

in response to the request for location information from the image capture device, transmitting, over the personal area network, the wireless device location information stored in the service database to the image-capture device, wherein said location information is included in requests for location-specific content, generated by the image capture device, said requests are routed;

over the personal area network;

to the location-unaware device, which operates as a proxy to obtain responses to the requests for the location-specific content.

2. The media of claim 1, wherein the image-capture device requests location-specific content to supplement the captured images.

3. The media of claim 1, wherein the location-specific content includes borders or fonts.

4. The media of claim 1, wherein the image-capture devices include digital cameras or video cameras that capture events to create digital images and videos.

5. The media of claim 1, wherein authenticating the location-unaware device includes checking a device class associated with the location-unaware device.

6. The media of claim 1, wherein authenticating the location-unaware device includes receiving at the location-unaware device a challenge from the wireless device.

7. The media of claim 6, wherein the challenge requires the location-unaware device to validate any combination of an alphanumeric code, a username, or password.

8. The media of claim 1, wherein the location information is checked to determine whether the transmitted location information is substantially different from a location previously stored in the service database.

9. The media of claim 8, wherein transmitting location information to the image-capture device such that said location information is stored in the service database comprises generating a timestamp that reflects a date and time of an update to the location information.

10. The media of claim 1, wherein data communications from the wireless device or image-capture device are routed via the location-unaware device when the wireless device and image-capture device are part of location-unaware device'"'"'s personal area network, said data communications include the requests for location-specific content and the responses to the requests for location-specific content.

11. The media of claim 10, wherein the wireless device offsets data communications from the location-unaware device if the location-unaware device is overloaded with data communications from the wireless device and image-capture device.

12. The media of claim 1, wherein data communications from the wireless device or image-capture device are routed via the location-unaware device when the wireless device and image-capture device are part of location-unaware device'"'"'s personal area network but the wireless device offsets data communications from the location-unaware device if the location-unaware device is overloaded with data communications from the wireless device and image-capture device.

13. A computer-implemented method of providing location information, the method comprising:

establishing a communication route between an image-capture device and a location-unaware device when the location-unaware device is within a predetermined distance of the image capture device, wherein the image capture device is included in the location-unaware device'"'"'s personal area network;

at a service database of the location-unaware device, receiving a request for location information from the image-capture device over the personal area network;

authenticating, over the personal area network, the location-unaware device at a wireless device that is within the predetermined distance of the location-unaware device;

updating, over the personal area network, the service database with wireless device location information provided by the wireless device, wherein the wireless device location information is obtained from a global position system; and

in response to the request for location information from the image capture device, transmitting, over the personal area network, the wireless device location information stored in the service database to the image-capture device, wherein said location information is included in requests for location-specific content generated by the image capture device, said requests are transmitted to the location-unaware device, which operates as a proxy to obtain responses to the requests for the location-specific content.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein authenticating the location-unaware device includes checking a device class associated with the location-unaware device.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein authenticating the location-unaware device includes receiving at the location-unaware device a challenge from the wireless device and the challenge requires the location-unaware device to validate any combination of an alphanumeric code, a username, or password.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein data communications from the wireless device or image-capture device are routed via the location-unaware device when the wireless device and image-capture device are part of location-unaware device'"'"'s personal area network.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein data communications include the requests for location-specific content and the responses to the requests for location-specific content.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the wireless device offsets data communications from the location-unaware device if the location-unaware device is overloaded with data communications from the wireless device and image-capture device.

19. A computer system for providing location information, the system comprising:

a service database in a location-unaware device that is notified when an image capture device is within a predetermined distance of the location-unaware device'"'"'s personal area network;

the location-unaware device'"'"'s personal area network includes a wireless device, the location-unaware device, and the image-capture device, wherein the location-unaware is authenticated, over the personal area network, by the wireless device if it is within the predetermined distance of the location-unaware device;

at the service database, a request for location information is received from the image-capture device over the personal area network, wherein prior to providing a response to the request, the service database is updated, over the personal area network, with wireless device location information provided by the wireless device, such that the wireless device location information is obtained from a global position system, and in the response to the request for location information from the image capture device, providing, over the personal area network, the wireless device location information stored in the service database to the image-capture device; and

the location-unaware device receives, over the personal area network, requests for location-specific content, wherein said requests that are generated by the image capture device and responses to said requests are both proxied by the location-unaware device.