Techniques to manage client location detection

• US 9,674,653 B2
• Filed: 03/03/2015
• Issued: 06/06/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Moreels, Pierre, Jia, Yuntao, Mallozzi, Matthew Robert, Grise, Gabriel, Ismailov, Islam, Vaccari, Andrea
• Primary Examiner(s): PHAM, TIMOTHY X
• Application Number:
  US14/636,889
• Publication Number:
  US 20160261979A1
• Time in Patent Office: 826 Days
• Field of Search: 4554561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• 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 56/006 using known positions of transmitter and receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/006 with additional information processing, e.g. for direction or speed determination

Abstract

Techniques to manage client location detection are described. In one embodiment an apparatus may comprise a location-based services support component and a client management component. The location-based services support component may be operative to determine that a network service is scheduled for a location update from a mobile device, determine a location accuracy based on the network service, and update the network service with a received location of the mobile device. The client management component may be operative to transmit a location request to the mobile device, the location request specifying the location accuracy determined based on the network service and receive a response to the location request from the mobile device, the response comprising the location of the mobile device conforming to the specified location accuracy. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

determining, by a server, that a network service of a plurality of network services is scheduled to receive a location update from a mobile device registered with the plurality of network services;

determining, using a processor circuit on the server, a location accuracy requested by the network service, wherein the location accuracy specifies an allowable margin for error in a location;

transmitting, by the server, a location request to the mobile device using a network interface component, the location request specifying the location accuracy requested by the network service;

receiving, at the server, a response to the location request from the mobile device, the response comprising a location of the mobile device and the location accuracy of the location; and

updating the network service and any of the plurality of network services, by the server, with the received location of the mobile device when a location accuracy requested by any of the plurality of network services is at or below the location accuracy received in the response.

2. The method of claim 1, the location request specifying the location accuracy empowering the mobile device to select between at least GPS-based location determination, Wi-Fi-based location determination, and cellular-tower-proximity-based location determination.

3. The method of claim 1, the location request specifying at least one of a maximum age for which the location of the mobile device may be reported and a maximum response time for the mobile device to respond to the location request.

4. The method of claim 1, the location request transmitted to a local application on the mobile device, the response received from the local application on the mobile device, the response received from the local application on a timing determined by the local application corresponding to the mobile device already having an active radio transmitter.

5. The method of claim 1, the location request transmitted to a local application on the mobile device in response to the local application indicating that the mobile device has an active radio receiver.

6. The method of claim 1, the location request transmitted to a local application on the mobile device, the response received from the local application on the mobile device, the response received from the local application on a timing determined by the local application based on the local application determining that the mobile device had determined its location to within the location accuracy in response to a request by a different application on the mobile device.

7. The method of claim 1, the response received via an intermediary mobile device, the response transmitted to the intermediary mobile device from the mobile device using a peer-to-peer radio connection.

8. The method of claim 1, the location request specifying a delay distance, the location request indicating a permission to the mobile device to delay transmission of the response to the location request when the location of the mobile device indicates a change in location of the mobile device since a previous update less than the delay distance.

9. The method of claim 1, the location request specifying a delay distance, the location request indicating an instruction to the mobile device to activate a radio transmitter of the mobile device when the location of the mobile device indicates a change in location of the mobile device since a previous update greater than the delay distance.

10. An apparatus, comprising:

a processor circuit on a device;

a location-based services support component operative on the processor circuit to determine that a network service of a plurality of network services is scheduled to receive a location update from a mobile device registered with the plurality of network services, determine a location accuracy requested by the network service, wherein the location accuracy specifies an allowable margin for error in a location, and update the network service and any of the plurality of network services with a received location and location accuracy of the location of the mobile device when a location accuracy requested by any of the plurality of network services is at or below the location accuracy received; and

a client management component operative on the processor circuit to transmit a location request to the mobile device, the location request specifying the location accuracy requested by the network service and receive a response to the location request from the mobile device, the response comprising the location of the mobile device and the location accuracy of the location.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, the location request transmitted to a local application on the mobile device, the response received from the local application on the mobile device, the response received from the local application on a timing determined by the local application corresponding to the mobile device already having an active radio transmitter.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, the location request transmitted to a local application on the mobile device, the response received from the local application on the mobile device, the response received from the local application on a timing determined by the local application based on the local application determining that the mobile device had determined its location to within the location accuracy in response to a request by a different application on the mobile device.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, the response received via an intermediary mobile device, the response transmitted to the intermediary mobile device from the mobile device using a peer-to-peer radio connection.

14. The apparatus of claim 10, the location request specifying a delay distance, the location request indicating a permission to the mobile device to delay transmission of the response to the location request when the location of the mobile device indicates a change in location of the mobile device since a previous update less than the delay distance.

15. The apparatus of claim 10, the location request specifying a delay distance, the location request indicating an instruction to the mobile device to activate a radio transmitter of the mobile device when the location of the mobile device indicates a change in location of the mobile device since a previous update greater than the delay distance.

16. At least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed, cause a system to:

determine, by a server, that a network service of a plurality of network services is scheduled to receive a location update from a mobile device registered with the plurality of network service;

determine, using a processor circuit on the server, a location accuracy requested by the network service, wherein the location accuracy specifies an allowable margin for error in a location;

transmit, by the server, a location request to the mobile device using a network interface component, the location request specifying the location accuracy requested by the network service;

receive, at the server, a response to the location request from the mobile device, the response comprising a location of the mobile device and the location accuracy of the location; and

update the network service and any of the plurality of network services, by the server, with the received location of the mobile device when a location accuracy requested by any of the plurality of network services is at or below the location accuracy received in the response.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, the location request transmitted to a local application on the mobile device, the response received from the local application on the mobile device, the response received from the local application on a timing determined by the local application corresponding to the mobile device already having an active radio transmitter.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, the location request transmitted to a local application on the mobile device, the response received from the local application on the mobile device, the response received from the local application on a timing determined by the local application based on the local application determining that the mobile device had determined its location to within the location accuracy in response to a request by a different application on the mobile device.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, the response received via an intermediary mobile device, the response transmitted to the intermediary mobile device from the mobile device using a peer-to-peer radio connection.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, the location request specifying a delay distance, the location request indicating a permission to the mobile device to delay transmission of the response to the location request when the location of the mobile device indicates a change in location of the mobile device since a previous update less than the delay distance, the location request indicating an instruction to the mobile device to activate a radio transmitter of the mobile device when the location of the mobile device indicates a change in location of the mobile device since a previous update greater than the delay distance.