Providing presence information in a communication network

• US 20060119882A1
• Filed: 12/08/2004
• Published: 06/08/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Motorola, Inc. (Motorola Solutions, Inc.)
• Inventors: Harris, John M., Crocker, Ronald T., Hart, Thomas B., Oprescu-Surcobe, Valentin
• Granted Patent: US 7,522,548 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/1.150
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1204 resulting in reduced user or operator actions, e.g. presetting, automatic actions, using hardware token storing data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1218 Reducing or saving of used resources, e.g. avoiding waste of consumables or improving usage of hardware resources
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1229 Printer resources management or printer maintenance, e.g. device status, power levels
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1288 in client-server-printer device configuration

Abstract

A server (101) designates and assigns each of a plurality of communication devices to at least one of a plurality of groups. The server (101) prepares a communication having presence information corresponding to a status of the communication devices in the group; determines network infrastructure device(s) serving the group; and transmits, at a pre-determined time, the communication to the network infrastructure device(s). A network infrastructure device (103a-c, 105a-f) receives the communication and transmits, as a common channel signal during the pre-determined time, a signal with the presence information. A communication unit (107a, 107b, 107c) receives an indication of the pre-determined time; transmits, at an interval proximate to the pre-determined time, a signal indicating the communication device'"'"'s status; and receives, at the pre-determined time, the signal with the presence information.

Claims

1. A method of providing presence information, the method comprising:

designating, for a plurality of communication devices, a plurality of groups, and assigning each of the communication devices to at least one of the groups;

preparing a communication having presence information corresponding to a status of the plurality of communication devices in the at least one group;

determining at least one network infrastructure device serving the at least one group; and

transmitting, in accordance with the communication interface, at a pre-determined time, the communication to a plurality of network infrastructure devices including the at least one network infrastructure device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the preparing the communication further comprises including, in the communication, a unique identifier corresponding to the communication devices in the at least one group.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising retrieving the presence information for the communication from a storage medium.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the preparing the communication further comprises determining portions of the plurality of communication devices which have at least overlapping entries on entity lists corresponding to the communication devices, and wherein the assigning is responsive to the overlapping entries.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmitting at the pre-determined time further comprises transmitting at a predetermined time that corresponds to the at least one of the groups.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the preparing the communication having presence information further comprises preparing a communication having presence information in the form of a bitmap.

7. A network infrastructure device, comprising:

a communication interface for receiving and transmitting communications when operably connected to a communication network;

a processor, the processor being configured to facilitate;

receiving at least one communication with presence information corresponding to a status of a plurality of communication devices;

determining, responsive to the at least one communication, at least one communication area corresponding to the plurality of communication devices; and

transmitting, in accordance with the communication interface as a common channel signal during a pre-determined time, a first signal with the presence information to the communication devices corresponding to the at least one communication area.

8. The network infrastructure device of claim 7, wherein the processor is further configured to facilitate transmitting, in accordance with the communication interface, a second signal to the communication devices corresponding to the at least one communication area with information indicating the pre-determined time.

9. The network infrastructure device of claim 7, wherein the processor is further configured to facilitate transmitting, in accordance with the communication interface, a second signal with information indicating a pre-determined common channel for the first signal.

10. The network infrastructure device of claim 7, wherein the at least one communication further includes a unique identifier corresponding to each of the communication devices.

11. The network infrastructure device of claim 7, wherein the processor is further configured to facilitate receiving, in accordance with the communication interface at an interval proximate to the pre-determined time, at least one second signal corresponding to the at least one communication device, the at least one second signal having updated presence information corresponding to the at least one communication device.

12. The network infrastructure device of claim 11, wherein the updated presence information corresponding to the at least one communication device is included with the presence information in the first signal.

13. The network infrastructure device of claim 7, wherein the processor is further configured to facilitate transmitting, in accordance with the communication interface, a second signal with information indicating the plurality of communication devices corresponding to the presence information in the first signal.

14. The network infrastructure device of claim 7, wherein the presence information is in the form of a bitmap.

15. A communication unit, comprising:

a transceiver for receiving signals when operably connected to a communication network; and

a processor, the processor being configured to facilitate first receiving, from a connection initiated by the communication network, an indication of a pre-determined time for exchanging presence information;

transmitting, at an interval proximate to the pre-determined time and in accordance with the transceiver, at least one signal having presence information indicative of a status of the communication unit; and

second receiving, in accordance with the transceiver, a transmission initiated by the communication network at the pre-determined time, having presence information corresponding to at least one other communication unit.

16. The communication unit of claim 15, wherein the presence information received in the transmission further includes presence information corresponding to the communication unit.

17. The communication unit of claim 15, wherein the first and second receiving and the transmitting are in accordance with a common channel signal.

18. The communication unit of claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured to facilitate determining a velocity of communication, and wherein the interval proximate to the pre-determined time is proportional to the velocity.

19. The communication unit of claim 15, wherein the presence information received in the transmission is in the form of a bitmap.

20. The communication unit of claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured to facilitate updating a display indicating the presence information.