CREATING REAL-TIME CONVERSATIONS

• US 20130173729A1
• Filed: 12/03/2012
• Published: 07/04/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Starenky, Victor, Kennberg, Aleksandr V., Rideout, Joseph
• Granted Patent: US 9,253,134 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/222 using geographical location information, e.g. messages transmitted or received in proximity of a certain spot or area

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on computer storage media, for creating conversations related to a location. One method includes receiving a topic for a real-time conversation from a user, receiving location information related to a location of the user, and creating a real-time conversation object that includes the received topic. The method also includes tagging the created real-time conversation object with the received location information, indexing, based on the received topic and the received location information, the tagged real-time conversation object with respect to other real-time conversation objects, and providing the tagged real-time conversation object in response to a search for real-time conversation objects received from another user.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, at a server, a topic for a real-time conversation from a user;

receiving, at the server, location information related to a location of the user;

creating, at the server, a real-time conversation object that includes the received topic;

tagging the created real-time conversation object with the received location information;

indexing, based on the received topic and the received location information, the tagged real-time conversation object with respect to other real-time conversation objects; and

providing the tagged real-time conversation object in response to a search for real-time conversation objects received from another user.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the location information is received from a computing device of the user and based on an output of a Global Positioning System (GPS) sensor included in the computing device of the user.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, from the user, a list of other users to invite to be associated with the created real-time conversation object;

sending, to the other users included in the received list, invitations to be associated with the created real-time conversation object;

receiving, from one or more of the other users, an acceptance of the invitation; and

updating the created real-time conversation object to include indicators of the one or more other users that accepted the invitation.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein indexing the tagged real-time conversation object includes updating, based on the location information, an index of real-time conversation objects stored on the server to include the tagged real-time conversation object.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein updating the index of real-time conversation objects stored on the server to include the tagged real-time conversation object includes sorting the real-time conversation objects included in the index based on locations associated with each of the real-time conversation objects.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein updating the index of real-time conversation objects stored on the server to include the tagged real-time conversation object includes sorting the real-time conversation objects included in the index based on a level of message activity over a certain period of time associated with each real-time conversation object.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving a request from the user to create the real-time conversation object,

wherein:

receiving location information related to the location of the user includes receiving location information that indicates the location of the user at the time the user requested the creation of the real-time conversation object; and

tagging the created real-time conversation object with the received location information includes tagging the created real-time conversation object with the location of the user at the time the user requested the creation of the real-time conversation object and maintaining the location with which the created real-time conversation object is tagged regardless of whether a current location of the user changes.

8. A system comprising:

one or more computers and one or more storage devices storing instructions that are operable, when executed by the one or more computers, to cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising;

receiving a topic for a real-time conversation from the user;

receiving location information related to a location of the user;

creating a real-time conversation object that includes the received topic;

tagging the created real-time conversation object with the received location information;

indexing, based on the received topic and the received location information, the tagged real-time conversation object with respect to other real-time conversation objects; and

providing the tagged real-time conversation object in response to a search for real-time conversation objects received from another user.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the location information is received from a computing device of the user and based on an output of a Global Positioning System (GPS) sensor included in the computing device of the user.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the stored instructions include instructions that are operable, when executed by the one or more computers, to cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

receiving, from the user, a list of other users to invite to be associated with the created real-time conversation object;

sending, to the other users included in the received list, invitations to be associated with the created real-time conversation object;

receiving, from one or more of the other users, an acceptance of the invitation; and

updating the created real-time conversation object to include indicators of the one or more other users that accepted the invitation.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the stored instructions are operable, when executed by the one or more computers, to cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

indexing the tagged real-time conversation object by updating, based on the location information, an index of real-time conversation objects stored on the server to include the tagged real-time conversation object.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the stored instructions are operable, when executed by the one or more computers, to cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

updating the index of real-time conversation objects stored on the server to include the tagged real-time conversation object by sorting the real-time conversation objects included in the index based on locations associated with each of the real-time conversation objects.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the stored instructions are operable, when executed by the one or more computers, to cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

updating the index of real-time conversation objects stored on the server to include the tagged real-time conversation object by sorting the real-time conversation objects included in the index based on a level of message activity over a certain period of time associated with each real-time conversation object.

14. The system of claim 8, wherein the stored instructions include instructions that are operable, when executed by the one or more computers, to cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

receiving a request from the user to create the real-time conversation object,

wherein the stored instructions are operable, when executed by the one or more computers, to cause the one or more computers to;

receive location information related to the location of the user by receiving location information that indicates the location of the user at the time the user requested the creation of the real-time conversation object; and

tag the created real-time conversation object with the received location information by tagging the created real-time conversation object with the location of the user at the time the user requested the creation of the real-time conversation object and maintaining the location with which the created real-time conversation object is tagged regardless of whether a current location of the user changes.

15. A nonvolatile computer storage medium encoded with a computer program, the program comprising instructions that, when executed by one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

receiving a topic for a real-time conversation from the user;

receiving location information related to a location of the user;

creating a real-time conversation object that includes the received topic;

tagging the created real-time conversation object with the received location information;

indexing, based on the received topic and the received location information, the tagged real-time conversation object with respect to other real-time conversation objects; and

providing the tagged real-time conversation object in response to a search for real-time conversation objects received from another user.

16. The medium of claim 15, wherein the location information is received from a computing device of the user and based on an output of a Global Positioning System (GPS) sensor included in the computing device of the user.

17. The medium of claim 15, wherein the program includes instructions that, when executed by the one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

receiving, from the user, a list of other users to invite to be associated with the created real-time conversation object;

sending, to the other users included in the received list, invitations to be associated with the created real-time conversation object;

receiving, from one or more of the other users, an acceptance of the invitation; and

updating the created real-time conversation object to include indicators of the one or more other users that accepted the invitation.

18. The medium of claim 15, wherein the instructions, when executed by one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

indexing the tagged real-time conversation object by updating, based on the location information, an index of real-time conversation objects stored on the server to include the tagged real-time conversation object.

19. The medium of claim 18, wherein the instructions, when executed by one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

updating the index of real-time conversation objects stored on the server to include the tagged real-time conversation object by sorting the real-time conversation objects included in the index based on locations associated with each of the real-time conversation objects.

20. The medium of claim 18, wherein the instructions, when executed by one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

updating the index of real-time conversation objects stored on the server to include the tagged real-time conversation object by sorting the real-time conversation objects included in the index based on a level of message activity over a certain period of time associated with each real-time conversation object.

21. The medium of claim 15, wherein the program includes instructions that, when executed by the one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

receiving a request from the user to create the real-time conversation object,

wherein the instructions, when executed by one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to;

receive location information related to the location of the user by receiving location information that indicates the location of the user at the time the user requested the creation of the real-time conversation object; and

tag the created real-time conversation object with the received location information by tagging the created real-time conversation object with the location of the user at the time the user requested the creation of the real-time conversation object and maintaining the location with which the created real-time conversation object is tagged regardless of whether a current location of the user changes.