Proximity-Based User Interaction
5 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Techniques are described for providing location-based information and functionality to people and computing devices in various ways. In at least some situations, the techniques include enabling multiple people in a common geographic area to interact in various ways, such as via devices capable of communications (e.g., cellular telephones, computing devices with wired and/or wireless communications capabilities, etc.). In addition, the techniques include enabling the creation and maintenance of location-based virtual groups of users (also referred to as “clouds”), such as for users of mobile and/or fixed-location devices. Such clouds may enable various types of interactions between group members, and may be temporary and/or mobile.
83 Citations
66 Claims
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1-8. -8. (canceled)
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9. A computer-implemented method for providing functionality based on location-based virtual groups of users, the method comprising:
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receiving definition information for a location-based virtual group of users that indicates a geographic area of the virtual group and one or more user interaction rules regarding allowed types of user actions; selecting multiple users to participate in the virtual group based at least in part on geographic locations of the users, each of the users having a mobile communication-capable device that provides information regarding the geographic location of the user; and
automatically enabling communications between the mobile communication-capable devices of the users of the virtual group in accordance with the user interaction rules of the virtual group. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48)
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49. A non-transitory computer-readable medium whose contents configure a computing device to provide functionality for a location-based virtual group, by performing a method comprising:
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receiving an indication of a location-based virtual group that has an associated geographic area and one or more interaction rules related to allowed activities; selecting multiple users to participate in virtual group, at least some of the multiple selected users having geographic locations within the geographic area of the virtual group, the selecting of one or more of the multiple users being made in response to requests received from the one of more users to join the virtual group; and automatically facilitating interactions between communication-capable devices of the multiple selected users in accordance with the interaction rules of the virtual group, the automatic facilitating of the interactions being performed by the configured computing device. - View Dependent Claims (50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55)
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56. (canceled)
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57. A computing device configured to provide functionality based on a location-based virtual group of users, comprising:
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a memory; and a first component configured to, for each of one or more location-based virtual groups that each have an associated geographic area and one or more interaction rules related to allowed activities; initiate participation in the virtual group on behalf of a user of the computing device, the initiating including providing information for use in determining a geographic location of the computing device; and participate in the virtual group on behalf of the user in accordance with the one or more interaction rules for the virtual group, the participating including sending one or more communications to devices of one or more other users in the virtual group and/or receiving one or more communications from devices of one or more other users in the virtual group. - View Dependent Claims (58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66)
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Specification