Querying for devices based on location

• US 9,553,838 B1
• Filed: 02/08/2013
• Issued: 01/24/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/08/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Airship Group, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Urban Airship, Inc.
• Inventors: Panchenko, Mikhail, Simmons, Wade W., Standefer, Benjamin D., Onnen, Erik A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Meky, Moustafa M
• Assistant Examiner(s): HURST, ANDREA L
• Application Number:
  US13/763,567
• Time in Patent Office: 1,446 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1859 adapted to provide push services, e.g. data channels
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/222 using geographical location information, e.g. messages transmitted or received in proximity of a certain spot or area
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/224 providing notification on incoming messages, e.g. pushed notifications of received messages

Abstract

Querying for devices based on location is disclosed. A request to send a push notification to a location is received. One or more bucket indexes to search for the presence of a device identifier are determined. The one or more bucket indexes are searched for the presence of the device identifier. One or more device identifiers are received in response to the search. The push notification is sent to one or more devices associated with the received one or more device identifiers.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a set of one or more processors configured to;

receive from a device associated with a marketer a request to send a push notification to one or more user devices associated with a location, the request including an indication of a time range at which to send the push notification;

determine, a plurality of bucket indexes to search for a presence of a device identifier, wherein each bucket index of the plurality of determined bucket indexes corresponds to a data structure entity representing a unique combination of a resolution of a geographic polygon and a time slice, wherein the resolution of the geographic polygon corresponds to a precision of a geographic area encompassing the received location and the resolution of a time slice corresponds to a precision of the received time range, each bucket index is mapped to device identifiers for a set of devices that were located within the particular geographic polygon during the temporal window defined by the time slice;

search the bucket indexes for the presence of the device identifier;

receive one or more device identifiers in response to the search;

transmit, by a processor, the push notification to one or more devices associated with the received one or more device identifiers; and

a memory coupled to the set of one or more processors and configured to provide the set of one or more processors with instructions.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the location is associated with a geographic polygon.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the time range is specified relative to a request time.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the bucket indexes are determined based at least in part on the geographic polygon and the time range.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein determining the bucket indexes includes generating one or more keys used to access the bucket indexes.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the processor is further configured to determine one or more time slices implicated by the time range.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the one or more keys are generated at least in part by using an identifier of the geographic polygon and the one or more time slices.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more device identifiers are associated with mobile devices that were in the location during the time range.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the push notification is sent to mobile devices associated with the one or more device identifiers.

10. A method, comprising:

receiving from a device associated with a marketer a request to send a push notification to one or more user devices associated with a location, the request including an indication of a time range at which to send the push notification;

determining, a plurality of bucket indexes to search for a presence of a device identifier, wherein each bucket index of the plurality of determined bucket indexes corresponds to a data structure entity representing a unique combination of a resolution of a geographic polygon and a time slice, wherein the resolution of the geographic polygon corresponds to a precision of a geographic area encompassing the received location and the resolution of a time slice corresponds to a precision of the received time range, each bucket index is mapped to device identifiers for a set of devices that were located within the particular geographic polygon during the temporal window defined by the time slice;

search the bucket indexes for the presence of the device identifier;

receive one or more device identifiers in response to the search; and

transmitting, by a processor, the push notification to one or more devices associated with the received one or more device identifiers.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the location is associated with a geographic polygon.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the time range is specified relative to a request time.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the bucket indexes are determined based at least in part on the geographic polygon and time range.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein determining the bucket indexes includes generating one or more keys used to access the bucket indexes.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising determining one or more time slices implicated by the time range.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the one or more keys are generated at least in part by using an identifier of the geographic polygon and the one or more time slices.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein the one or more device identifiers are associated with mobile devices that were in the location during the time range.

18. A computer program product embodied in a non-transitory tangible computer readable storage medium and comprising computer instructions for:

receiving from a device associated with a marketer a request to send a push notification to one or more user devices associated with a location, the request including an indication of a time range at which to send the push notification;

determining, a plurality of bucket indexes to search for a presence of a device identifier,

wherein each bucket index of the plurality of determined bucket indexes corresponds to a data structure entity representing a unique combination of a resolution of a geographic polygon and a time slice, wherein the resolution of the geographic polygon corresponds to a precision of a geographic area encompassing the received location and the resolution of a time slice corresponds to a precision of the received time range, each bucket index is mapped to device identifiers for a set of devices that were located within the particular geographic polygon during the temporal window defined by the time slice;

search the bucket indexes for the presence of the device identifier;

receive one or more device identifiers in response to the search;

transmitting, by a processor, the push notification to one or more devices associated with the received one or more device identifiers.