Method and system for generating associations between a user profile and wireless devices

• US 8,160,615 B1
• Filed: 01/25/2008
• Issued: 04/17/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/25/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: T-Mobile Innovations LLC (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Nextel Communications (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Barnes, James D., Distler, Peter H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Corsaro, Nick
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lebassi, Amanuel
• Application Number:
  US12/020,341
• Time in Patent Office: 1,544 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456.1, 455/456.2, 455/456.3
• US Class Current: 455/456.3
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• 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 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data

Abstract

A method is provided for generating associations between a user profile and a wireless device. The method comprises storing information about a location of a first wireless device associated with a first user profile and storing information about a location of a second of wireless device associated with a second user profile. The method also comprises determining the second wireless device is substantially collocated with the first wireless device based on the information about location of the first wireless device and the information about the location of the second wireless device. The method also comprises generating an association between the first user profile and the second wireless device based on the determining and displaying on a screen of the second wireless device a content selected based on the first user profile.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

storing, by a computer system, information about a location of a first wireless device associated with a first user profile of a first subscriber;

storing, by the computer system, information about a location of a second wireless device associated with a second user profile of a second subscriber;

determining, by the computer system, a frequency of proximity over a period of time and a duration of proximity for the first and second wireless devices based on the stored information about the location of the first and second wireless devices;

identifying, by the computer system, the second wireless device as being substantially collocated with the first wireless device when the frequency of proximity over the period of time is greater than a first predetermined threshold and the duration of proximity is greater than a second predetermined threshold; and

in response to said identifying the second wireless device as being substantially collocated with the first wireless device, generating an association between the first user profile and the second wireless device to indicate that the first wireless device and the second wireless device are used by a single subscriber.

2. The method according to claim 1 further comprising delivering personalized content selected based on the first user profile to one of the first wireless device or the second wireless device.

3. The method according to claim 1 wherein said identifying the second wireless device as being substantially collocated with the first wireless device further comprises identifying the first and second wireless devices as being in proximity in a plurality of different locations.

4. The method according to claim 1 wherein the first and second wireless devices are selected from the group consisting of a mobile phone, a personal digital assistant, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, and a media player.

5. The method according to claim 1 wherein the location of the first wireless device or the location of the second wireless device is determined using one of the Global Positioning System, a network side ping, a Home Location Register, or triangulating communication.

6. The method according to claim 1 wherein generating the association further comprises updating the first user profile to include the second wireless device.

7. A method comprising:

determining, by a computer system, a frequency of proximity over a period of time and a duration of proximity for a plurality of mobile devices;

identifying, by the computer system, the plurality of mobile devices as being substantially collocated with each other when the frequency of proximity over the period of time is greater than a first predetermined threshold and the duration of proximity is greater than a second predetermined threshold;

determining, by the computer system, that the plurality of mobile devices, each mobile device associated with a separate user profile of a separate subscriber, are used by a single subscriber based on the identification of collocation of the plurality of mobile devices; and

in response to said identifying, combining the separate user profiles of the plurality of mobile devices into a combined user profile of the single subscriber that uses the plurality of mobile devices.

8. The method according to claim 7 wherein identifying the plurality of mobile devices as being substantially collocated with each other further comprises:

storing information about a location of the plurality of mobile devices.

9. The method according to claim 7 further comprises delivering personalized content for the single subscriber selected based on the combined user profile.

10. The method according to claim 7 wherein combining the separate user profiles of the plurality of mobile devices further comprises updating a first of the separate user profiles to include the other separate user profiles.

11. The method according to claim 7 wherein identifying the plurality of mobile devices as being substantially collocated with each other further comprises identifying the plurality of mobile devices as being in proximity in a plurality of different locations.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a program that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to:

store information about a location of a first wireless device associated with a first user profile of a first subscriber;

store information about a location of a second wireless device associated with a second user profile of a second subscriber;

determine a frequency of proximity over a period of time and a duration of proximity for the first and second wireless devices based on the stored information about the location of the first and second wireless devices;

identify the second wireless device as being substantially collocated with the first wireless device when the frequency of proximity over the period of time is greater than a first predetermined threshold and the duration of proximity is greater than a second predetermined threshold; and

in response to said identifying, generate an association between the first user profile and the second wireless device to indicate that the first wireless device and the second wireless device are used by a single subscriber.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 12 wherein said identifying the second wireless device as being substantially collocated with the first wireless device further comprises identifying the first and second wireless devices as being in proximity in a plurality of different locations.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 12 wherein the program causes the processor to store the information about the location of the second wireless device by triangulating communication between the second wireless device and multiple base transceiver stations.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 12 wherein the program causes the processor to determine the location of the first wireless device or the second wireless device using at least one of the Global Positioning System;

a network side ping; and

a Home Location Register.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 12 wherein the program causes the processor to target personalized content to the single subscriber based on the first user profile.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 12 wherein the program causes the processor to deliver personalized advertisements selected based on the first user profile to the first wireless device and to the second wireless device.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 12 wherein to generate the association further comprises to update the first user profile to include the second wireless device.