Location tracking system conveying event information based on administrator authorizations

• US 9,680,941 B2
• Filed: 02/23/2015
• Issued: 06/13/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PerdiemCo LLC
• Original Assignee: PerdiemCo LLC
• Inventors: Diem, Darrell
• Primary Examiner(s): KING, CURTIS J
• Application Number:
  US14/629,347
• Publication Number:
  US 20150169920A1
• Time in Patent Office: 841 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/29 Geographical information databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10366 the interrogation device being adapted for miscellaneous applications
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 5/22 using electric transmission; using electromagnetic transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/083 using passwords cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using a predetermined code H04L9/3226
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/101 Access control lists [ACL]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/104 Grouping of entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/105 Multiple levels of security
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/107 wherein the security policies are location-dependent, e.g. entities privileges depend on current location or allowing specific operations only from locally connected terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• 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: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72457 according to geographic location
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/10 including a GPS signal receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/084 using delegated authorisation, e.g. open authorisation [OAuth] protocol
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/64 using geofenced areas
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• 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 4/024 : Guidance services
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/30 : Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/33 : for indoor environments, e.g. buildings
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 : Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/90 : Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 : WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

An improved system and method for defining an event based upon an object location and a user-defined zone and managing the conveyance of object location event information among computing devices where object location events are defined in terms of a condition based upon a relationship between user-defined zone information and object location information. One or more location information sources are associated with an object to provide the object location information. One or more user-defined zones are defined on a map and one or more object location events are defined. The occurrence of an object location event produces object location event information that is conveyed to users based on user identification codes. Accessibility to object location information, zone information, and object location event information is based upon an object location information access code, a zone information access code, and an object location event information access code, respectively.

Claims

1. A location tracking system comprising:

one or more servers capable of receiving identifiers and location information for a plurality of mobile devices having corresponding mobile device identification codes that identify each mobile device;

the one or more servers configured to;

store in one or more databases information for groups of users of mobile devices based on corresponding group identification codes that identify each group, each user in a group having a user identification code associated with a corresponding group identification code in the one or more databases, the user identification code identifying the user, said groups being defined by a first administrator having a first level of administrative privilege, said first level of administrative privilege being used to authorize a user in each group to be a second administrator of a plurality of second administrators, each second administrator having a corresponding second level of administrative privilege associated with a group;

store in the one or more databases information for the plurality of second administrators, each second administrator using the corresponding second level of administrative privilege after a corresponding group is defined by the first administrator to specify one or more information access codes, said one or more information access codes specifying one or more users in the corresponding group having access

     1) to location information and

     2) to event information other than location information, wherein the location information corresponds to a coordinate of a mobile device within a coordinate system corresponding to a map as determined by the location information source associated with the mobile device; and

wherein the event information comprises at least one of a condition that relates a mobile device location information to a zone where the occurrence of the event causes an alert to be sent when a mobile device crosses a boundary associated with the zone, wherein the first administrator defines the corresponding group independent of a location of a zone;

control access to the location information and the event information in order to protect the privacy of the location information and the event information based on the one or more information access codes;

check the first level of administrative privilege to authorize the second administrator having a second level of administrative privilege to be associated with the group;

check the second level of administrative privilege to control conveyance of the location and the event information regarding the group using the one or more information access codes;

provide one or more interfaces configured to receive information related to a zone, an event, and an alert for the group;

receive a request to set a zone for the group, the zone having a boundary that is independent of where mobile devices are located;

receive a request to set an event for the group;

receive a request to set an alert for the group, the request identifying a recipient of the alert;

store the group'"'"'s zone, event and alert in the one or more databases;

receive identifiers and the location information for mobile devices in the group;

compare the identifiers and location information with the group'"'"'s zone and event to determine whether to send the group'"'"'s alert;

cause the group'"'"'s alert to be sent; and

convey the location information based on the one or more information access codes specified for the group under said second level of administrative privilege.

2. The system of claim 1, the one or more servers configured to:

receive information corresponding to a second zone and a second event associated with a mobile object other than the mobile devices;

receive a request to set the second zone for the group;

receive a request to set the second event for the group;

store the group'"'"'s second zone and second event in the one or more databases; and

compare the location information for the mobile object with the second zone and the second event to determine whether to send an alert associated with the second zone and the second event.

3. The system of claim 1, where an information access code specified for the group comprises a group identification code.

4. The system of claim 3, where the information access code specified for the group comprises an access list including one or more user identification codes associated with the group identification code.

5. The system of claim 4, where said access list further comprises a plurality of sub-group identification codes, said sub-group identification codes identifying corresponding sub-groups created within the group.

6. The system of claim 5, where the one or more servers control access to the one or more user interfaces for adding a mobile device to a sub-group based on the sub-group identification code, wherein said second level of administrative privilege comprises a privilege to create the sub-group, specify the sub-group identification code, and specify the users in the sub-group.

7. The system of claim 1, where said first level of administrative privilege is associated with an location and event (L&

E) information service provider and said second level of administrative privileges are provided by the L&

E information service provider to customers of the L&

E information service, said mobile device identifications codes being associated with vehicles in a plurality of vehicle groups under the second level of the administrative privileges, wherein each vehicle group comprises vehicles used by drivers associated with corresponding mobile object identification codes under the second level of the administrative privileges, said mobile object identification codes being different from the mobile device identification codes, each mobile object identification code being associated with a mobile object comprising an NFC device, wherein a second event associated with the mobile object that is different from the event is determined based on proximity of the driver to the vehicle as determined using the NFC device.

8. The system of claim 1, where the one or more servers are further configured to:

determine occurrence of a second event that is different from the event, said second event being based on a condition associated with one or more mobile objects other the one or more mobile devices, wherein a mobile object identification code that is different from the mobile device identification codes is associated with a mobile object, and wherein the occurrence of the event and the second event is determined based on a mobile device identification code and the mobile object identification code.

9. The system of claim 8, where the one or more servers are further configured to:

receive location information from the mobile device associated with the mobile device identification code;

receive location information from the mobile object associated with the mobile object identification code;

determine occurrence of the event based on the location information from the mobile device associated with the mobile device identification code; and

determine occurrence of the second event based on the location information from the mobile object associated with the mobile object identification code.

10. The system of claim 9, where the location of the mobile object is determined based on its proximity to the mobile device as determined by a proximity device associated with the mobile object.

11. The system of claim 1, where the one or more servers are configured to further control access privileges to sensor information other than the location and the event information based the on one or more information access codes.

12. The system of claim 1, where the first level of administrative privilege is used to administer a first information sharing environment (ISE) and the second level of administrative privilege is used to administer a corresponding second ISE of a plurality of second ISEs created within the first ISE, said first and second ISEs comprising a computing network where the conveyance of the location and the event information from a server to the groups is controlled or configured, wherein each second ISEs is configured to be administered independent of other second ISEs and the first ISE using the one or more information access codes.

13. The system of claim 1, where said one or more information access codes further comprise one or more user identification codes and one or more sub-group identification codes associated with users in a sub-group having access to the location and the event information.

14. The system of claim 1, where the location information source comprises a proximity device, where location information is based on proximity of the mobile device to another device or to another object.

15. The system of claim 14, where said proximity device comprises a Bluetooth device.

16. The system of claim 14, where said another device or object comprises a mobile device.

17. The system of claim 14, said another device or object comprises a fixed device.

18. The system of claim 1, where the location information of a mobile device is determined using an NFC device.

19. The system of claim 18, where said NFC device is associated with a driver of a vehicle.

20. The system of claim 1, where said location information source provides outdoor location of a mobile device and a second location information source other than the location information source provides indoor location information of the mobile device, wherein said location information comprises at least one of the outdoor location information or the indoor location information.

21. The system of claim 20, where identifiers comprise a zone identifier code identifying a zone and an event identifier identifying an event that cause the one or more servers to send the alert.

22. The system of claim 21, where identifiers further comprise a sensor identifier.