Travel arrangements through buddy lists in a geosocial environment

• US 20080255759A1
• Filed: 04/11/2007
• Published: 10/16/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Fatdoor Incorporated
• Inventors: Abhyanker, Raj Vasant
• Application Number:
  US11/786,330
• Publication Number:
  US 20080255759A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/209
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management

Abstract

A method, apparatus and system of travel arrangement using buddy lists in a geosocial environment are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method includes providing a plurality of user profiles, each profile in the plurality of user profiles to include an associated specific geographic location, associating a user with a first user profile in the plurality of user profiles, selecting a second user profile in the plurality of user profiles, determining a mode of physical communication, and generating a physical communication plan of physical communication between a first specific geographic location associated with the first user profile in the plurality of user profiles and a second specific geographic location associated with the second user profile in the plurality of user profiles. The method may also include providing a plurality of modes of physical communication.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

providing a plurality of user profiles, each user profile in the plurality of user profiles to include an associated specific geographic location;

associating a user with a first user profile in the plurality of user profiles;

selecting a second user profile in the plurality of user profiles;

determining a mode of physical communication; and

generating a physical communication plan of physical communication between a first specific geographic location associated with the first user profile in the plurality of user profiles and a second specific geographic location associated with the second user profile in the plurality of user profiles, wherein the physical communication plan is based on the determined mode of physical communication.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing a plurality of modes of physical communication; and

selecting at least one mode of physical communication in the plurality of modes of physical communication, wherein the physical communication plan is based on the at least one mode of physical communication in the plurality of modes of physical communication.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a threshold distance parameter;

calculating a distance between the first specific geographic location associated with the first user profile in the plurality of user profiles and the second specific geographic location associated with the second user profile in the plurality of user profiles;

comparing the threshold distance parameter and the calculated distance between the first specific geographic location associated with the first user profile in the plurality of user profiles and the second specific geographic location associated with the second user profile in the plurality of user profiles to determine a comparison result; and

determining the mode of physical communication based on the comparison result.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing physical communication options based on the mode of physical communication;

selecting at least one physical communication option of the physical communication options; and

generating the physical communication plan based on the selected at least one physical communication option of the physical communication options.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

communicating a message relevant to the physical communication plan to at least one recipient.

6. The method of claim 1 in a form of a machine-readable medium embodying a set of instructions that, when executed by a machine, causes the machine to perform the method of claim 1.

7. A system, comprising:

an integrated geosocial environment;

a social network module of the integrated geosocial environment, the social network module to include user profiles, each user profile of the user profiles to include an associated specific geographic location;

a map module to include map data of the specific geographic locations of each user profile of the user profiles, the map data to serve as a basis to determine physical communication plans and to render maps modeling at least two orthogonal directions to indicate at least one specific geographic location associated with a selected user profile of the user profiles;

a selection module to select a second user profile of the user profiles;

a mode determination module to determine a mode of physical communication; and

a plan module to generate a physical communication plan to detail a physical communication between a first specific geographic location associated with a first user profile and a second specific geographic location associated with the second user profile.

8. The system of claim 7, further comprising:

a profile add module to add a user profile to the user profiles and to modify the user profile of the user profiles.

9. The system of claim 7, further comprising:

a display module to display a plurality of modes of physical communication associated with the second user profile and to select at least one mode of physical communication in the plurality of modes of physical communication associated with the second user profile.

10. The system of claim 7, further comprising:

a travel arrangement module to include travel planning data to use as a basis to generate the physical communication plan.

11. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

a surface travel module to include route data to use as a basis to generate surface travel instructions included in the physical communication plan.

12. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

an air travel module to include air travel data to use as a basis to generate an air travel itinerary and reservations included in the physical communication plan.

13. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

a rental car module to include rental car data to use as a basis to generate a rental car reservation included in the physical communication plan.

14. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

a travel package module to include data related to combined modes of transportation to use as a basis to generate a travel package included in the physical communication plan.

15. The system of claim 7, further comprising:

a mail module to include mail data to use as a basis to generate printable postage labels and printable address labels included in the physical communication plan.

16. An integrated geosocial environment, comprising:

a first instruction set to enable a social network, to include a people database, a businesses database, and a places database, each of the people database, the businesses database, and the places database to include associated user profiles, the social network associated with global map data, in which the social network is associated with specific geographic locations identifiable in the global map data;

a second instruction set integrated with the first instruction set to select a user profile of the user profiles, the user profile to include an associated specific geographic location identifiable in the global map data; and

a third instruction set integrated with the first instruction set and the second instruction set to generate a physical communication plan between a predetermined geographic location and the specific geographic location associated with the selected user profile.

17. The integrated geosocial environment of claim 16, further comprising:

a fourth instruction set to provide a plurality of modes of physical communication and to determine at least one mode of physical communication of the plurality of modes of physical communication, wherein the physical communication plan is at least partially derived from the at least one mode of physical communication in the plurality of modes of physical communication.

18. The integrated geosocial environment of claim 16, further comprising:

a fifth instruction set to determine a threshold distance parameter and to calculate a distance between the predetermined geographic location and a specific geographic location associated with the selected user profile, and to compare the threshold distance parameter and the calculated distance to determine a mode of physical communication based on the comparison.

19. The integrated geosocial environment of claim 16, further comprising:

a sixth instruction set to provide options related to a mode of physical communication and to select at least one option of the options related to the mode of physical communication, wherein the physical communication plan is at least partially derived from the selected, at least one option of the options related to the mode of physical communication.

20. The integrated geosocial environment of claim 16, further comprising:

a seventh instruction set to provide information about the physical communication plan to at least one recipient.