Method and system for obtaining distanced audio by a portable device

• US 9,883,346 B2
• Filed: 06/15/2015
• Issued: 01/30/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/19/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Deutsche Telekom AG
• Original Assignee: Deutsche Telekom AG
• Inventors: Chizi, Barak, Shapira, Bracha, Mimran, David (Dudu)
• Primary Examiner(s): Khan, Mehmood B
• Application Number:
  US14/738,983
• Publication Number:
  US 20150373498A1
• Time in Patent Office: 960 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42 Systems providing special services or facilities to subscribers specially adapted for wireless communication networks H04W4/00
• 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 4/026 using orientation information, e.g. compass
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/027 using movement velocity, acceleration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 68/005 Transmission of information for alerting of incoming communication

Abstract

Providing distanced audio from a remote location using mobile devices, which a change in the orientation of a destination mobile device to a pointing orientation, aimed to an object of interest, is detected using an exploration application that is installed in advance on the mobile device. The azimuth to which the mobile device is currently pointing is calculated and all point and/or of objects of interest which are within a predetermined range from the pointing device, are detected. Then the exploration application automatically connects to a remote server which continuously collects the current location information of any user of a mobile device and maps its location with respect to stationary object or points of interests, or to moving objects. The server provides via the application, one or more audio alerts to the user of the destination device that one or more object or points of interest are in range.

Claims

1. A method for locating nearby available friends using mobile devices, comprising:

a) installing an exploration application in advance on a plurality of location detectable mobile devices, in order to connect via a data network to a remote server and to be linked to a sound signature reflective of an availability status of a corresponding user of one or more of said mobile devices;

b) uploading, from one or more of said plurality of mobile devices in conjunction with said exploration application, a corresponding availability status related sound signature to a database in communication with said remote server;

c) unilaterally pointing with one of said mobile devices functioning as an exploring device in a specific direction without establishing a connection with any of said mobile devices, while the exploration application installed on said exploring device calculates the azimuth of said direction;

d) detecting location data, by said remote server, of said exploring device and of all said mobile devices that are within a predetermined range from said exploring device following said pointing step and in the direction to which said exploring device is pointed;

e) extracting from said database, by said remote server, a list of friends of the user of said exploring device;

f) extracting from said database, by said remote server, a corresponding sound signature associated with all the detected mobile devices that are within said predetermined range and whose corresponding users are friends of the user of said exploring device;

g) transmitting, by said remote server, to the exploration application installed on said exploring device, the location data and the corresponding sound signature associated with all the detected mobile devices whose corresponding users are friends of the user of said exploring device;

h) by said exploring device in conjunction with the installed exploration application, displaying a corresponding icon representative of all the detected mobile devices whose corresponding users are friends of the user of said exploring device as well as a relative location of each of said corresponding icons; and

i) interacting with one of the displayed icons and being provided in response with audio of the transmitted sound signature associated with said interacted icon to determine its availability status.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the pointing direction is automatically detected by the exploration application using readings from inherent location and orientation sensors of the exploring device, and the exploration application will then be automatically connected to the remote server.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the detected mobile device which is closest to the exploring device will be displayed first.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the user of the exploring device obtains at once the corresponding sound signature associated with all the detected mobile devices whose corresponding users are friends of the user of said exploring device, in response to the unilateral pointing step.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising displaying on a location map the predetermined range from the exploring device and the relative location between the exploring device and one or more of the detected mobile devices.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising displaying a navigation path to one or more of the mobile devices.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the corresponding sound signature is uniquely associated with one of the plurality of mobile devices.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein one or more of the plurality of mobile devices is associated with a physical object.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the uploaded sound signature is also correlated with a mood status of the corresponding user.

12. The method according to claim 5, wherein changes in the relative location of the one or more mobile devices are displayed on the location map.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein the user activates a button displayed on an application-related interface of the exploring device, after being provided with audio of the transmitted sound signature associated with the interacted icon, whereupon the exploring device receives streamed audio data from the mobile device associated with the interacted icon.

7. A system for locating available friends that are nearby to a mobile device user, comprising:

a) a plurality of location-detectable mobile devices, each of which comprising a processor on which is installed in advance an exploration application, wherein the application installed on one of said mobile devices functioning as an exploring device, which, when pointing in a specific direction, is adapted to calculate the azimuth of said direction;

b) a remote server, in data communication with each of said mobile devices, wherein said remote server is adapted to detect location data of said exploring device and of all said mobile devices that are within a predetermined range from said exploring device; and

c) a database of stored sound signatures reflective of an availability status of a corresponding user of said plurality of mobile devices, to which a corresponding availability status related sound signature is uploadable from each of said plurality of mobile devices in conjunction with said exploration application and which is in data communication with said server,

wherein said server is operable to—

i) extract from said database, a list of friends of the user of said exploring device;

ii) extract from said database, a corresponding availability status related sound signature associated with all the detected mobile devices that are within said predetermined range and whose corresponding users are friends of the user of said exploring device;

iii) transmit to the exploration application installed on said exploring device, the location data and the corresponding availability status related sound signature associated with all the detected mobile devices whose corresponding users are friends of the user of said exploring device;

wherein the exploration application installed on said exploring device is also configured to display a corresponding icon representative of all the detected source devices, as well as a relative location of each of said corresponding icons, so that said exploration device will be provided with, upon interaction with one of the displayed icons, audio of the transmitted availability status related sound signature associated with said interacted icon.

8. The system according to claim 7, wherein the exploration application is configured to display a user interface that includes a locate initiating button, and wherein the remote server is adapted to transmit to the exploration application installed on the exploring device, following interaction with said locate initiating button, the location data and the corresponding availability status related sound signature associated with all the detected mobile devices whose corresponding users are friends of the user of said exploring device.