Terminal devices, information processing methods, and computer readable storage mediums

• US 10,582,344 B2
• Filed: 10/01/2018
• Issued: 03/03/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LY Corp. (A Holdings Corp.), Z Intermediate Global Corporation
• Original Assignee: LINE Corporation (A Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Sugimoto, Kenichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Trinh, Tan H
• Application Number:
  US16/148,149
• Publication Number:
  US 20190037364A1
• Time in Patent Office: 519 Days
• Field of Search: 455 411, 455 412, 455457, 370329, 705 1425, 705319, 709223, 709204, 709206, 709218
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management
• 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 76/15 Setup of multiple wireless link connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/186 Processing of subscriber group data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/04 adapted for relaying to or from another terminal or user

Abstract

A terminal device includes at least one processor and a transceiver. The at least one processor is configured to execute computer readable instructions to generate a list of a plurality of other terminal devices located within a threshold range from the terminal device via short-range wireless communication. The transceiver is configured to transmit, in response to selection of a set of terminal devices from among the plurality of other terminal devices included in the list, a request to establish an association with users corresponding to terminal devices in the selected set of terminal devices.

Claims

1. A messaging system comprising:

a messaging server including

a memory configured to store computer readable instructions; and

at least one processor configured to execute the computer readable instructions to cause the messaging server to

generate a group relationship table based on a received group relationship registration request from a first terminal device, the group relationship registration request including a user identifier associated with the first terminal device and a user identifier of at least one second terminal device, the group relationship table being indicative of an association between the first terminal device and the at least one second terminal device,

register the group relationship table in a group relationship database,

send an agreement request to the at least one second terminal device, the agreement request including a group identifier associated with the group relationship table and user identifiers stored in the group relationship table, and

update the group relationship table based on an agreement response received from the at least one second terminal device, the agreement response indicating whether the at least one second terminal device has agreed to be associated with the first terminal device.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the messaging server further comprises:

a transceiver configured to

receive the group relationship registration request from the first terminal device;

transmit a group relationship registration notification to the first terminal device in response to generation of the group relationship table by the at least one processor;

transmit the agreement request to the at least one second terminal device, the agreement request requesting to associate the at least one second terminal device with the first terminal device; and

receive the agreement response from the at least one second terminal device.

3. The system of claim 2, further comprising:

the at least one second terminal device including

a transceiver configured to

receive the agreement request from the messaging server, and

transmit the agreement response to the messaging server; and

at least one processor configured to execute computer readable instructions to determine whether to accept the agreement request to associate the at least one second terminal device with the first terminal device in response to the agreement request from the messaging server.

4. The system of claim 2, further comprising:

the first terminal device including

at least one processor configured to execute computer readable instructions to generate a list of a plurality of other terminal devices located within a threshold range from the first terminal device via short-range wireless communication, the plurality of other terminal devices including the at least one second terminal device; and

a transceiver configured to transmit, in response to selection of a set of terminal devices from among the plurality of other terminal devices included in the list, the group relationship registration request to the messaging server, the set of terminal devices including the at least one second terminal device.

5. A messaging system comprising:

a messaging server including

a memory configured to store computer readable instructions;

at least one processor configured to execute the computer readable instructions to cause the messaging server to

generate a group relationship table based on a received group relationship registration request from a first terminal device, the group relationship registration request including a user identifier associated with the first terminal device and a user identifier of at least one second terminal device, the group relationship table being indicative of an association between the first terminal device and the at least one second terminal device,

register the group relationship table in a group relationship database, and

update the group relationship table based on an agreement response received from the at least one second terminal device, the agreement response indicating whether the at least one second terminal device has agreed to be associated with the first terminal device; and

a transceiver configured to

receive the group relationship registration request from the first terminal device,

transmit a group relationship registration notification to the first terminal device in response to generation of the group relationship table by the at least one processor,

transmit an agreement request to the at least one second terminal device, the agreement request including a group identifier associated with the group relationship table and user identifiers stored in the group relationship table, and the agreement request requesting to associate the at least one second terminal device with the first terminal device, and

receive the agreement response from the at least one second terminal device.

6. The system of claim 5, further comprising:

the at least one second terminal device including

a transceiver configured to

receive the agreement request from the messaging server, and

transmit the agreement response to the messaging server; and

at least one processor configured to execute computer readable instructions to determine whether to accept the agreement request to associate the at least one second terminal device with the first terminal device in response to the agreement request from the messaging server.

7. The system of claim 5, further comprising:

the first terminal device including

at least one processor configured to execute computer readable instructions to generate a list of a plurality of other terminal devices located within a threshold range from the first terminal device via short-range wireless communication, the plurality of other terminal devices including the at least one second terminal device; and

a transceiver configured to transmit, in response to selection of a set of terminal devices from among the plurality of other terminal devices included in the list, the group relationship registration request to the messaging server, the set of terminal devices including the at least one second terminal device.