Communicating information describing activity of computer system users among computer system users

• US 9,584,459 B2
• Filed: 04/04/2014
• Issued: 02/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Jhanji, Neeraj
• Primary Examiner(s): Baturay, Alicia
• Application Number:
  US14/245,786
• Publication Number:
  US 20140222934A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,061 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0259 based on store location
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0267 Wireless devices
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/224 providing notification on incoming messages, e.g. pushed notifications of received messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/54 Presence management, e.g. monitoring or registration for receipt of user log-on information, or the connection status of the users
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/20 Services signaling; Auxiliary data signalling, i.e. transmitting data via a non-traffic channel

Abstract

A computer-implemented method receiving receives information describing a current or future activity from a user of a computing system via a mobile device. The current activity is an activity occurring at a current time when the information is received, while the future activity is an activity occurring at a future time relative to a time when the information is received. The method transmits the information describing the current or future activity to a backend database coupled to the Internet and remote from the mobile device. The information describing the current or future activity is accessible to at least one recipient having access privilege to information associated with the user and describing the current or future activity via the Internet.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

maintaining a plurality of user profiles in a server, each user profile describing information associated with a user and associated with status information associated with the user;

maintaining access privilege information associated with each user profile identifying one or more users authorized by a user corresponding to the user profile to access at least a portion of information in the user profile;

receiving, at the server, location information associated with a sending user from a mobile computing device associated with the sending user;

storing the received location information in a user profile associated with the sending user;

identifying one or more receiving users authorized to access location information associated with the sending user based at least in part on access privilege information associated with the user profile associated with the sending user; and

communicating a message including the received location information to one or more mobile computing devices associated with the identified one or more receiving users authorized to access location information associated with the sending user.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the location information associated with the sending user is manually provided by the sending user via the mobile computing device associated with the sending user.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the location information associated with the sending user is determined by an automatic location finding technology included on the mobile computing device associated with the sending user.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the mobile computing device associated with the sending user comprises a mobile telephone.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the location information associated with the sending user specifies a location of the mobile computing device associated with the sending user at a time when the mobile computing device associated with the sending user determines the location information.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the location information associated with the sending user specifies a location of the sender'"'"'s mobile computing device at a time subsequent to a time when the location information was sent from the mobile computing device associated with the sending user to the server.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the message includes a status associated with the sending user, the status determined from the user profile associated with the sending user.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 7, wherein the status associated with the sending user is received from the mobile computing device associated with the sender along with the location information associated with the sending user.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein a message sent to a mobile computing device associated with an identified receiving user includes information from the user profile associated with the sending user that the identified receiving user is authorized to access based at least in part on access privilege information associated with the user profile associated with the sending user.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the location information associated with the sending user is associated with an activity.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, wherein the message includes a description of the activity.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, wherein the message includes an invitation to participate in the activity.

13. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having instructions encoded thereon that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to:

maintain a plurality of user profiles in a server, each user profile describing information associated with a user and associated with status information associated with the user;

maintain access privilege information associated with each user profile identifying one or more users authorized by a user corresponding to the user profile to access at least a portion of information in the user profile;

receive, at the server, location information associated with a sending user from a mobile computing device associated with the sending user;

store the received location information in a user profile associated with the sending user;

identify one or more receiving users authorized to access location information associated with the sending user based at least in part on access privilege information associated with the user profile associated with the sending user; and

communicate a message including the received location information to one or more mobile computing devices associated with the identified one or more receiving users authorized to access location information associated with the sending user.

14. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein the location information associated with the sending user is manually provided by the sending user via the mobile computing device associated with the sending user.

15. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein the location information associated with the sending user is determined by an automatic location finding technology included on the mobile computing device associated with the sending user.

16. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein the mobile computing device associated with the sending user comprises a mobile telephone.

17. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein the location information associated with the sending user specifies a location of the mobile computing device associated with the sending user at a time when the mobile computing device associated with the sending user determines the location information.

18. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein the location information associated with the sending user specifies a location of the sender'"'"'s mobile computing device at a time subsequent to a time when the location information was sent from the mobile computing device associated with the sending user to the server.

19. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein the message includes a status associated with the sending user, the status determined from the user profile associated with the sending user.

20. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein a message sent to a mobile computing device associated with an identified receiving user includes information from the user profile associated with the sending user that the identified receiving user is authorized to access based at least in part on access privilege information associated with the user profile associated with the sending user.