Location-based services

• US 10,602,307 B2
• Filed: 08/20/2019
• Issued: 03/24/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PayPal, Inc. (PayPal Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: PayPal, Inc. (PayPal Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Phillips, Alan, Schroth, Frank, Palmer, Geoffrey M., Zielinski, Stefan G., Smith, Allen P., Cunningham, III, Colin M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ly, Nghi H
• Application Number:
  US16/545,326
• Publication Number:
  US 20190380001A1
• Time in Patent Office: 217 Days
• Field of Search: 4554563, 4554561, 4554141, 455418, 455421
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06311 Scheduling, planning or task assignment for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0236 Threshold setting
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0261 System arrangements wherein the object is to detect trespassing over a fixed physical boundary, e.g. the end of a garden
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0269 System arrangements wherein the object is to detect the exact location of child or item using a navigation satellite system, e.g. GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0272 System arrangements wherein the object is to detect exact location of child or item using triangulation other than GPS
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/10 between location register and external networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/14 between corresponding nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/08 between user and terminal device

Abstract

A method and system for presenting location information on mobile devices is discussed. The method includes tracking, at a device associated with a user, mobile locations of mobile devices associated with the user, the mobile locations based on server data received from a location server. The method includes displaying an interactive map via a User Interface (UI) on a device display of the device, where the interactive map can indicate mobile locations with respect to names of physical locations. The method includes displaying a control element, on the UI, for receiving a user selection to control a first mobile device of the one or more mobile devices. The method also includes communicating, based on receiving the user selection, with the location server to remotely control the first mobile device.

Claims

1. A device tracking system, comprising:

a mobile device comprising a device display, the mobile device configured to;

access device locations of one or more additional mobile devices, the device locations accessible via server data received from a location server; and

display an interactive map interface on the device display, the interactive map interface indicating names of locations, the interactive map interface further indicating a plurality of pictures, each of the plurality of pictures associated with a respective one of the additional mobile device(s), the interactive map interface further indicating a control element for receiving a user selection to control a first mobile device of the additional mobile device(s); and

the location server configured to;

provide the server data to the mobile device, the server data based on location data transmissions received from the additional mobile device(s).

2. The device tracking system of claim 1, wherein the location server is further configured to provide the server data for the additional mobile device(s) which the mobile device is authorized to access.

3. The device tracking system of claim 1, wherein the location data transmissions are determined by security preferences of respective users associated with the additional mobile device(s), the security preferences indicating whether each of the respective additional mobile devices provides a respective one of the location data transmissions.

4. The device tracking system of claim 1, wherein the location server is further configured to provide, based on the first mobile device, the control element to the mobile device.

5. The device tracking system of claim 1,

wherein the location server is further configured to determine respective additional control elements for each of the additional mobile device(s);

and

wherein the mobile device is configured to display the interactive map interface that further indicates a certain control element depending on a selection of a certain mobile device of the additional mobile device(s).

6. The device tracking system of claim 1,

wherein the location server is further configured to control the first mobile device based on a selection, corresponding to the user selection, received from the mobile device.

7. The device tracking system of claim 1, wherein the mobile device is configured to display the interactive map interface that further indicates, based on the server data, user locations of a plurality of users by indicating their associated mobile device locations.

8. The device tracking system of claim 1, wherein the location server is further configured to receive the location data transmissions based on respective preferences for each of the additional mobile device(s), the location data transmissions comprising one or more of Wi-Fi data, cellular networking data transmissions, and satellite data transmissions.

9. A method for controlling mobile devices, the method comprising:

tracking, at a device associated with a user, mobile locations of one or more mobile devices associated with the user, the mobile locations based on server data received from a location server;

displaying an interactive map via a User Interface (UI) on a device display of the device, the interactive map indicating mobile locations with respect to names of physical locations;

displaying a control element, on the UI, for receiving a user selection to control a first mobile device of the one or more mobile devices; and

communicating, based on receiving the user selection, with the location server to remotely control the first mobile device.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the server data indicates additional mobile devices that the user is authorized to access.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the control element is received from the location server, and wherein options indicated by the control element are based on a configuration of the first mobile device.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein said communicating with the location server comprises transmitting a message to affect the first mobile device via the location server.

13. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

displaying, on the UI, a new control element based on a selection of a certain mobile device of the one or more mobile devices.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the interactive map further indicates, based on the server data, user locations of a plurality of users by indicating their associated mobile device locations.

15. A non-transitory machine-readable medium having instructions stored thereon, the instructions executable to cause performance of operations comprising:

tracking device locations of devices associated with a user, the device locations determined based on location data transmissions from the devices, the devices including a first device, the location data transmissions including first location data transmissions from the first device;

communicating map data and control data to a user device, the map data for display on an interactive map of the user device, the map data for indicating on the interactive map location representations of the device locations and device representations of the devices, the control data for indicating a control element for performing a control action on a certain device of the devices; and

in response to receiving an indication of a user selection of the control element, performing the control action.

16. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise providing server data for the devices which the user device is authorized to access.

17. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the location data transmissions are determined by security preferences of respective users associated with the devices, the security preferences indicating whether each of the respective devices provides a respective one of the location data transmissions.

18. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise determining, based on settings associated with the user device, the control element for provision to the user device.

19. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise determining respective additional control elements for each of the devices.

20. A method for remotely controlling mobile devices, the method comprising:

determining mobile device locations, each of the mobile device locations determined based on location data transmissions from a plurality of mobile devices;

communicating with a first mobile device, of the plurality of mobile devices, to present an interactive map interface for display on the first mobile device, the interactive map interface for indicating names of physical locations and the plurality of mobile devices, the interactive map interface further for indicating a plurality of pictures, each of the plurality of pictures associated with a respective one of the physical locations or a respective one of the plurality of mobile devices;

accessing location transmissions from the plurality of mobile devices; and

in response to a determination, based on the accessing, that a physical location of one or more of the plurality of mobile devices has been determined, presenting, on the display of the first mobile device, one or more user selectable options to control the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices remotely.