Proximity discovery system and method

• US 10,680,987 B2
• Filed: 03/26/2019
• Issued: 06/09/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Plexus Meet, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Plexus Meet, Inc.
• Inventors: Larson, Erika
• Primary Examiner(s): Cumming, William D
• Application Number:
  US16/364,564
• Publication Number:
  US 20190222546A1
• Time in Patent Office: 441 Days
• Field of Search: 4554141, 4554562
• 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 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• 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 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/21 for social networking applications
• 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

Abstract

A proximity discovery system enabling a person to quickly and efficiently discover colleagues within their proximity without visual contact. The system comprises a mobile computing device including an antenna and transceiver for exchanging messages with a plurality of other mobile devices nearby the user device, a user detection module for detecting the messages from the other mobile devices, a proximity detector for estimating a distance between the user device and each of the mobile devices, a connection module for sharing biographic and professional information with the plurality of mobile devices based on one of a plurality of connection levels.

Claims

1. A proximity discovery system comprising:

a first user the first user device comprising;

a proximity detector for identifying a second user device within a predefined proximity of the first user device;

wherein the second user device is configured to generate a user interface that is populated with profile information from the second user device;

a user detection module configured to;

generate a discovery message to the second user device; and

detect a discovery message from the second user device;

wherein the discovery message comprises information that identifies a person of interest;

a connection module configured to;

transmit a first user profile; and

receive a second user profile;

wherein the first and second user profiles comprise biographic information; and

an alert generator configured to produce a notification upon detection of the person of interest.

2. The proximity discovery system of claim 1, wherein the first user device further comprises:

a camera for capturing a digital image of a card; and

an optical character recognition (OCR) module configured to;

extract an external set of information from the digital image;

import the external set of information into a set of identifying information corresponding to the second user device; and

retrieve a photo from a website if the external set of information comprises a website address.

3. The proximity discovery system of claim 1, wherein

the alert generator is configured to detect the person previously determined by the user to be of interest within a range of approximately 100 meters and to alert the user upon detection of the person previously determined by the user to be of interest within a range of approximately 100 meters.

4. A proximity discovery system comprising a user device for exchanging professional information, the user device comprising:

a user detection module for detecting discovery messages from one or more of a plurality of mobile devices;

a proximity detector for detecting the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices that are within a predefined distance of;

the user device; and

a connection module for sharing the professional information with the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices based on one or more of a plurality of connection levels, wherein the plurality of connection levels are based on human social connections.

5. The proximity discovery system of claim 4, further comprising a display generator for generating a proximity graphic comprising a name and image for one or more people associated with the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices.

6. The proximity discovery system of claim 5, wherein the discovery messages are exchanged with the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices.

7. The proximity discovery system of claim 6, wherein the display generator displays an indicia indicating an estimate of a distance from the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices to the user device, wherein the indicia includes a first indicia for a strong signal strength;

a second indicia for an intermediate signal strength;

or a third indicia for a weak signal strength.

8. The proximity discovery system of claim 7, further comprising:

an alert generator configured to detect a mobile device of a pre-determined person of interest within a nearby distance from the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices, and to alert the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices that the mobile device of the pre-determined person of interest is nearby the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices.

9. The proximity discovery system of claim 8, further comprising:

a scheduling module configured to exchange messages with the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices, and configured to generate a time and location for one or more meetings.

10. The proximity discovery system of claim 9, further comprising a messenger module configured to transmit an instant message to the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices nearby the user device, and to receive an instant message from the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices nearby the user device.

11. The proximity discovery system of claim 10, further comprising an optical character recognition (OCR) module configured to process and extract data from a digital image of a business card.

12. A method of discovering a plurality of mobile devices in a proximity of a user device, the method comprising:

transmitting a first discovery message to one or more of the plurality of mobile devices;

receiving a second discovery message from the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices;

identifying a first user device that is in a predefined proximity of the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices;

communicating a set of profile information between the first user device and at least one of the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices based on one of a plurality of connection levels;

exchanging a meeting message with at least one of the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices;

generating a time and location for one or more meetings;

wherein the connections levels are based on social connections;

generating profile information on the first user device received from one or more of the plurality of mobile devices that are identified in the predefined proximity of the first user device; and

selecting profile information of a person to display.

13. The method of discovering a plurality of mobile devices of claim 12, further comprising:

generating a proximity graphic comprising;

a name and image for one or more people using the plurality of mobile devices within approximately 100 meters of the user device; and

indicia indicating an estimate of a distance from the user device to the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices.

14. The method of discovering a plurality of mobile devices of claim 13, wherein the indicia indicating the estimate of the distance from the user device to the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices includes a first indicia for a strong signal strength;

a second indicia for an intermediate signal strength;

or a third indicia for a weak signal strength.

15. The method of discovering a plurality of mobile devices of claim 12, further comprising:

detecting a person of interest that was pre-determine by a user nearby the user device; and

alerting the user of a proximity of the person of interest.

16. The method of discovering a plurality of mobile devices of claim 12, further comprising:

transmitting instant messages to at least one of the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices nearby the user device; and

receiving instant messages from at least one of the one or more of the plurality of mobile devices nearby the user device.

17. The method of discovering a plurality of mobile devices of claim 12, further comprising:

processing and extracting a name and identifying data from a digital image of a card using optical character recognition (OCR).

18. A method for virtual discovery of people in proximity of a user, comprising using the user'"'"'s mobile device to:

transmit a first discovery message to any one or more of a plurality of mobile devices;

detect a second discovery message from any one or more of a plurality of mobile devices collocated with the user'"'"'s mobile device;

estimate a distance from the user'"'"'s mobile device to any one or more of the plurality of collocated mobile devices; and

graphically illustrate at least one collocated user on an interface of the user device to generate at least one illustrated collocated user; and

select at least one illustrated collocated user to transmit the user'"'"'s profile to the at least one illustrated collocated user and launch a messenger application for exchanging messages between the user device and the at least one illustrated collocated user.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the at least one illustrated collocated user has been previously detected by the user'"'"'s mobile device within a predetermined period of time.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising illustrating a plurality of people currently in proximity within a predetermined distance of the user'"'"'s mobile device.

21. A proximity discovery system server comprising:

a data base of connections between a plurality of user devices, each of the plurality of user devices comprising;

a proximity detector for identifying a first user device within a predefined proximity of one or more of the plurality of user devices;

wherein at least one of the plurality of user devices is configured to generate a user interface, the user interface including profile information from at least one of the plurality of user devices;

a user detection module configured to;

generate a discovery message to another mobile device; and

detect a discovery message from the another mobile device;

wherein the discovery message comprises information that identifies a person;

a connection module configured to;

transmit a first user profile; and

receive a second user profile;

wherein the first and second user profiles comprise biographic information; and

an alert generator configured to detect a person previously determined by a user to be of interest.

22. The proximity discovery system server system of claim 21, wherein the profile information from at least one of the plurality of user devices comprises profile information of a user previously detected by the user'"'"'s mobile device within a predetermined period of time.