Dynamic geofence based on members within

• US 9,432,806 B2
• Filed: 12/04/2012
• Issued: 08/30/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/04/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Original Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Inventors: Zises, Matthew Scott
• Primary Examiner(s): Appiah, Charles
• Assistant Examiner(s): Peaches, Randy
• Application Number:
  US13/693,145
• Publication Number:
  US 20140155094A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,365 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456.3, 455/404.1, 455/456.2
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/022 with dynamic range variability
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/21 for social networking applications

Abstract

One example embodiment relates to a method that comprises receiving, via a first portable electronic device, contextual information and a geolocation relating to a first user in a network-based system; receiving, via second portable electronic device, contextual information and a geolocation relating to a second user in the network-based system; identifying a common element in the received contextual information relating to the first user, and the received contextual information relating to the second user; and in response to an identification of the common element, defining a boundary for a geofence based on the geolocation of the first or second users.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, via a first portable electronic device, contextual information and a geolocation relating to a first user in a network-based system;

receiving, via a second portable electronic device, contextual information and a geolocation relating to a second user in the network-based system;

identifying a common element in the received contextual information relating to the first user, and the received contextual information relating to the second user, wherein the common element is not pre-identified, and is identified upon a comparison of the first and second contextual information;

in response to an identification of the common element, defining a boundary for a geofence based on the geolocation of the first or second users; and

automatically monitoring the geolocation of the first or second user and dynamically adjusting the boundary of the geofence based on the identified common element and a change in the geolocation of the first or second user.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising monitoring the geolocation of the first or second user and adjusting the boundary of the geofence based on a change in the geolocation.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying a population size of member s connected to the network-based system to be included within the defined geofence, the population size based on an identification of the common element in received contextual information relating to at least one member of the population and the received contextual information relating to the first or second user.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the first and second users are included in the population.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the boundary of the geofence is defined based on a geolocation of the at least one member.

6. The method of claim 3, further comprising monitoring the contextual information relating to the first or second user or the at least one member, and redefining the boundary of the geofence based on a change in the contextual information or a desired population size to be included with the geofence.

7. The method of claim 3, further comprising redefining the boundary of the geofence based on an identified change in the geolocation or the contextual information relating to at least one member of the population, or to the first or second user.

8. The method of claim 3, further comprising redefining the boundary of the geofence to exclude at least one member from the population, the exclusion based on an identified change in geolocation or contextual information relating to the at least one excluded member.

9. The method of claim 3, further comprising redefining the boundary of the geofence to include at least one new member in the population, the inclusion based on a geolocation of the at least one new member, or an identification of a common element in received contextual information relating to the at least one new member and the contextual information relating to at least one other member of the population.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising monitoring the contextual information or geolocation relating to the first or second user, and dynamically redefining the boundaries of the geofence based on movement of the first or second user within a geographic region of the networked-based system, or an identified change in the contextual information relating to the first or second user.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising defining a boundary for the geofence based on a predetermined distance between the respective geolocations of the first and second user.

12. A system comprising at least one module, executing on one or more computer processors, to:

receive, via a first portable electronic device, contextual information and a geolocation relating to a first user in a network-based system;

receive, via second portable electronic device, contextual information and a geolocation relating to a second user in the network-based system;

identify a common element in the received contextual information relating to the first user, and the received contextual information relating to the second user, wherein the common element is not pre-identified, and is identified upon a comparison of the first and second contextual information;

in response to an identification of the common element, defining a boundary for a geofence based on the geolocation of the first or second users; and

automatically monitoring the geolocation of the first or second user and dynamically adjusting the boundary of the geofence based on the identified common element and a change in the geolocation of the first or second user.

13. A non-transitory machine readable medium, including instructions, which when performed by a machine, causes the machine to perform the operations of:

receiving, via a first portable electronic device, contextual information and a geolocation relating to a first user in a network-based system;

receiving, via second portable electronic device, contextual information and a geolocation relating to a second user in the network-based system;

identifying a common element in the received contextual information relating to the first user, and the received contextual information relating to the second user, wherein the common element is not pre-identified, and is identified upon a comparison of the first and second contextual information;

in response to an identification of the common element, defining a boundary for a geofence based on the geolocation of the first or second users; and

automatically monitoring the geolocation of the first or second user and dynamically adjusting the boundary of the geofence based on the identified common element and a change in the geolocation of the first or second user.

14. A method comprising:

deploying one or more mobile stations into a geographic region of a network-based system, the mobile stations to facilitate definition of a boundary of a geofence surrounding a population of members connected to the network-based system located within the geographic region;

receiving, via the one or more mobile stations, contextual information relating to a plurality of members of the population within the geographic region;

identifying a common element in the received contextual information relating to at least two members of the population as a basis for defining a first boundary of the geofence to include the at least two members, wherein the common element is not pre-identified, and is identified upon a comparison of the contextual information of the at least two members;

automatically monitoring the geolocation of the at least two members of the population and dynamically adjusting the boundary of the geofence based on the identified common element and a change in the geolocation of one of the at least two members of the population; and

defining the first boundary of the geofence.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein defining the first boundary of the geofence is further based on a geolocation of at least one of the member of the population.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein defining the first boundary of the geofence is further based on a geolocation of at least one mobile station.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising redefining the boundary of the geofence based on a desired number of members of the population to be included with the geofence.

18. The method of claim 14, further comprising defining a second boundary of the geofence based on a change in geolocation of at least one member of the population, or of the one or more mobile stations.

19. The method of claim 14, further comprising defining a second boundary of the geofence based on a change in received contextual information relating to at least one member of the population.

20. The method of claim 14, further comprising redefining the boundary of the geofence to exclude at least one member from the population, based on a change in geolocation or received contextual information of the at least one excluded member.

21. The method of claim 14, further comprising redefining the boundary of the geofence to include at least one new member to the population, the inclusion based on a geolocation of the at least one new member, or an identification of a common element in received contextual information relating to the at least one new member and the contextual information relating to at least one other member of the population.

22. The method of claim 14, wherein the one or more deployed mobile stations are in communication with each other.

23. A system comprising:

at least one mobile station deployable into a geographic region of a network-based system, the mobile station to facilitate definition of a boundary of a geofence surrounding a population of member s connected to the network-based system located within the geographic region; and

at least one module, executing on one or more computer processors, to;

receive, via the at least one mobile station, contextual information relating to a plurality of members of the population within the geographic region;

identify a common element in the received contextual information relating to at least two members of the population as a basis for defining a first boundary of the geofence to include the at least two members, wherein the common element is not pre-identified, and is identified upon a comparison of the contextual information relating to the at least two members;

automatically monitor the geolocation of the at least two members of the population and dynamically adjust the boundary of the geofence based on the identified common element and a change in the geolocation of one of the at least two members of the population; and

define the first boundary of the geofence.

24. A non-transitory machine readable medium, including instructions, which when performed by a machine, causes the machine to perform the operations of:

receiving, via one or more mobile stations, contextual information relating to a plurality of members of the population within a geographic region of a network-based system, the one or more mobile stations deployable into the geographic region to facilitate the definition of a boundary of a geofence surrounding a population of member s connected to the network-based system located within the geographic region;

identifying a common element in the received contextual information relating to at least two members of the population as a basis for defining a first boundary of the geofence to include the at least two members, wherein the common element is not pre-identified, and is identified upon a comparison of the contextual information relating to the at least two members;

automatically monitoring the geolocation of the at least two members of the population and dynamically adjusting, without manual intervention through a user interface, the boundary of the geofence based on the identified common element and a change in the geolocation of one of the at least two members of the population; and

defining the first boundary of the geofence.