BACKGROUND
FIELD OF INVENTION
[0001] The present subject matter relates to location based services and, particularly but
not exclusively, to a location based service to facilitate communication between users in
proximity to each other.
BACKGROUND
[0002] With the advent of communication technology, electronic communication
between people has increased. Devices such as mobile phones and PDAs allow users to
communicate with ease through phone calls and SMSs. Further, the Internet not only facilitates
users to exchange emails and chat using instant messenger (IM), but also lets users make voice
calls, video conferences, and so on. Also, in recent years, social networking sites have gained
immense popularity to the extent that many users prefer to be online for long durations of time.
[0003] In spite of the omnipresence of various means of communicating electronically, it
is experienced that electronic communication is no substitute for face-to-face meetings. Friends and acquaintances, more often than not, plan personal meetings. Organizing such meetings involves planning to ensure availability of parties intending to meet, deciding upon a place, etc. On the other hand, spontaneous encounters, or get-togethers that do not require extensive planning and coordination are preferred. For example, it may be desirable for one visiting a fun¬fair on a weekend to be able to discover friends who may be present at the fair around the same time without prior planning and coordination.
SUMMARY
[0004] This summary is provided to introduce concepts related to a proximity
notification system and the concepts are further described below in the detailed description. This
summary is neither intended to identify essential features of the claimed subject matter nor is it
intended for use in determining or limiting the scope of the claimed subject matter.
[0005] In one embodiment of the subject matter, a plurality of users, each having a
communication device, is registered with a proximity based communication system. Further a location of each of the plurality of users is determined based on a location of the communication device. A notification for a communication device of at least one user from amongst the plurality of users is generated based on a proximity parameter. The proximity parameter is based on a proximity of the at least one user with at least one another user amongst the plurality of users. In
accordance with one embodiment of the subject matter, the proximity parameter is defined by the at least one user such that a proximity parameter may be defined for each of the plurality of users.
[0006] In accordance with one embodiment of the subject matter, the proximity
notification system comprises a processor end a merrory coupled to the processor. The memory comprises a location determination module configured to determine a location of each of a plurality of communication devices and a notification generation module configured to generate a notification for a communication device based on a proximity parameter defining the proximity of the communication device with at least one another communication device from amongst the plurality of communication devices.
[0007] In accordance with one more embodiment of the subject matter, a
communication device is described to comprise a processor and a memory coupled to the processor. The memory comprises a proximity based information receiver configured to receive proximity based information relating to one or more other communication devices in proximity of the communication device.
[0008] The subject matter, in accordance with one more embodiment of the subject
matter, describes a computer-readable medium having embodied thereon a computer program for executing a method comprising registering one or more users and determining a location of each of the one or more users based on a location of a communication device of each of the one or more users. Based on the location and a proximity parameter defining the proximity of at least one user with other users, a notification for a communication device of the at least one user is generated.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
[0009] The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures.
In the figures, the left-most digit(s) of a reference number identifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. The same numbers are used throughout the figures to reference like features and components. Some embodiments of system and/or methods in accordance with embodiments of the present subject matter are now described, by way of example only, and with reference to the accompanying figures, in which:
[0010] Figure 1 illustrates a proximity based communication system, in accordance with
an embodiment of the present subject matter;
[0011] Figure 2 illustrates a proximity notification system and a communication device,
according to an embodiment of the present subject matter;
[0012] Figure 3 illustrates a method for generation of notification by a proximity based
communication system, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter.
[0013] Figure 4 illustrates a method for receiving a notification from a proximity based
communication system, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter.
[0014] It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that any block diagrams herein
represent conceptual views of illustrative systems embodying the principles of the present subject matter. Similarly, it will be appreciated that any flow charts, flow diagrams, state transition diagrams, pseudo code, and the like represent various processes which may be substantially represented in computer readable medium and so executed by a computer or processor, whether or not such computer or processor is explicitly shown.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0015] Systems and methods for proximity based communication are described herein. In
accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter, a proximity based communication
system comprises a proximity notification system and a plurality of communication devices
communicatively coupled to the proximity notification system. The plurality of communication
devices may be portable devices, registered with the proximity notification system such that the
communication devices, at every instance, identify their location to the proximity notification
system. The proximity notification system is configured to determine the distance between the
communication devices to generate proximity based notifications for users of the communication
devices. In one embodiment, the proximity notification system allows a user of a registered
communication device to define a proximity parameter with respect to one or more of other
registered communication devices. The proximity notification system generates a notification for
the registered communication device when the one or more of other registered communication
devices are found to be within a proximity range defined by the proximity parameter.
[0016] The proximity based communication systems and methods can be implemented in
a variety of network environments employing various communication devices and/or computing system or devices. The proximity notification system of the proximity based communication systems may be implemented in a variety of computing devices that include, but are not limited
to, desktop computers, laptops, mainframe computers, servers, and the like. In a similar manner, the communication devices may be any mobile communication devices, IP based communication devices and/or computing system, such as e-mail or text-message enabled, laptops other portable computers, and hand-held devices like mobile phones, PDA, or smart phones. Additionally, the system and method can be implemented in any of the communication networks, such as Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) network, Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) network, Long Term Evolution (LTE) network, Personal Communications Service (PCS) network, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) network, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) network, Next Generation Network (NGN), and IP-based network, Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), and Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN). Although the description herein is with reference to certain networks, the systems and methods may be implemented in other networks and devices, albeit with a few variations, as will be understood by a person skilled in the art.
[0017] Location based service, as conventionally known, provide information that have a
direct relation to the geographical location of a user of a communication device. Examples of typical location based services may be indicating the nearest business or service, such as an automatic teller machine (ATM) or restaurant; and receiving alerts, such as traffic alerts. Further, in recent years, location based services are not only limited to identifying a location of a business or service, like the ATM or restaurant, but also extend to identify a location of a person, such as discovering the whereabouts of a friend. In one example of such services, based on the privacy settings of a first and a second user, either one of the first and the second user may be indicated the location of the other user. The geographical location is typically indicated as an icon on a map displayed on the communication device of a user. Using such services, it is possible for a user to request for the locations of a plurality of his acquaintances. Accordingly, to identify whether an acquaintance is in the vicinity, a user is explicitly -equired to select one or more acquaintances, and request for their location.
[0018] In one embodiment, the present subject matter discloses a proximity based
communication system for automatic generation of proximity based notification to indicate the proximity of a user of a communication device, registered with the proximity based communication system, with other registered communication devices. In one embodiment, the proximity based notification may also comprise information requested by the user of the
communication device. The proximity may be determined by a proximity parameter defined by
the user of the communication device. In one implementation, a user may define different
proximity parameters with respect to one or more other registered communication devices.
[0019] In one implementation, users of communication devices registered with the
proximity notification system of the proximity based communication system to receive proximity based notifications on their communication devices. The registration may be understood as a process of enabling the proximity notification system to identify a user. The user may register with the proximity notification system by various methods. In one example, the user may access a web page through his communication device or any other device and create a user profile providing various user details comprising at least one identifier and other personal details, such as profession, address and email id to the proximity notification system. The identifier may be a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) number, an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI), an International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI), a Mobile Station Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) number or any other similar unique identifier that may allow the proximity notification system to identify a communication device of the user. Accordingly, the proximity notification system is enabled to associate a user profile with each of the registered communication devices.
[0020) Upon registration of the communication device, the proximity notification system
may provide an application, which the communication device downloads and stores in a local memory component. The application, among other activities, communicates with the proximity notification system to indicate to the proximity notification system the current location of the communication device. It will be apparent to one skilled in the art that information relating to current location of the communication device is available through absolute or relative position of the communication device, such as by using the Global Positioning System (GPS) signals, cell tower triangulation, Wifi access point identification, the GLObal NAvigation Satellite System (GLONASS), the Galileo positioning system, the Bediou Satellite Navigation and Positioning System, an inertial navigation system, a dead reckoning system, or by accessing address, internet protocol (IP) address, or location information in a geolocator database.
[0021] Accordingly, the proximity notification system is aware of the current location of
each of the registered communication device and, in one implementation, based on a query generated by a user of a communication device or on predefined proximity rules set by the user,
the proximity notification system generates proximity based notifications for the communication device.
[0022] For example, a query generated by a user of a communication device may relate
to seeking contact numbers of doctors in proximity of an accident spot. In such a case, the proximity notification system searches for other registered communication devices in proximity of the communication device generating the query based on the user profiles associated with other registered communication devices. The proximity determination may be based on a proximity parameter defined by the user in the query or a default proximity parameter. Based on the search results, the proximity notification system generates and provides a proximity based notification comprising information, such as contact number of the doctors in proximity of the accident spot, to the communication device generating the query.
[0023] In another example, the proximity notification system may generate a proximity
based notification in absence of any query generated by a user of a communication device. Such a proximity based notification may be based on predefined proximity rules set by the user. In one implementation, the proximity notification system may be provided information pertaining to contacts of a user. For instance, the user may provide to the proximity notification system a list of his contacts such that each contact is identified by an identifier. The term 'contact' used here may include friends, friends of friends, or acquaintances of more remote relation, and may be understood as any person with whom the user wishes to communicate. Further, for each contact, the user may define a proximity parameter.
[0024] A contact of the user may be registered with the proximity notification system or
may register at a future date. From amongst the contacts of the user, the registered contacts are monitored and whenever a contact of the user is in proximity, as defined by the proximity parameter for the contact, the proximity notification system generates a proximity based notification for the user. The notification may be received by the user on his communication device, for example, as a SMS, an e-mail ail notification, or an Internet Protocol (IP) based communication indicating to the user that a contact is in vicinity.
[0025] In one embodiment, prior to determining the current location of a registered
device or prior to providing any user details, such as contact number of a user to another user, the proximity notification system may be configured to verify the privacy settings defined by the user and/or seek approval from the user whose user details are being revealed. In the
aforementioned example, based on the query, once the proximity notification system identifies a doctor, in one implementation, the doctor is sent a request on his communication device to seek his approval to reveal his contact number to the user generating the query. Further, in the other aforementioned example, a contact of a user registering at a future date, upon registration, may be notified that the user wishes to receive a notification when the contact is in the vicinity and his approval regarding the same may be obtained.
[0026] The proximity based communication system may allow for convenient
communication among registered users who like to meet without having to plan every meeting.
The system may also allow for spontaneous socializing, where one may spontaneously decide to
meet an acquaintance who is in the vicinity, for example, in the same shopping mall or book fair.
In addition, the proximity based communication system may help avoid instances where friends
were around, near each other, but never realized it until later. The proximity based
communication system provides information relating to proximity of a contact without a user
explicitly making an effort to request for :t. Further, as will also be appreciated by those skilled
in the art, the proximity based commupies ion systerr may be extended using well-known social
networking approaches to allow for communications. For instance, in one implementation, the
proximity based communication system ;nay be configured to automatically receive information
pertaining to contacts of a user from one or more social networking servers and obtain the
information by searching a friend list of the user available on the social networking sites.
[0027] Additionally, the proximity based communication system enables users to receive
real time information based on their current location. Proximity based notifications providing information relating to emergency services, other location based businesses and services may enable users of communication devices to avail such services with greater ease and in a time-efficient manner.
[0028] These and other advantages of the present subject matter would be described in
greater detail in conjunction with the following figures. While aspects of described systems and methods for proximity based communication can be implemented in any number of different computing systems, environments, and/or configurations, the embodiments are described in the context of the following exemplary system(s).
[0029] It should be noted that the description and figures merely illustrate the principles
of the present subject matter. It will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the art will be able to
devise various arrangements that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the
principles of the present subject matter and are included within its spirit and scope. Furthermore,
all examples recited herein are principally intended expressly to be only for pedagogical
purposes to aid the reader in understanding the principles of the present subject matter and the
concepts contributed by the inventor(s) to furthering the art, and are to be construed as being
without limitation to such specifically reained examples and conditions. Moreover, all statements
herein reciting principles, aspects, and embodiments of the present subject matter, as well as
specific examples thereof, are intended to encompass equivalents thereof.
[0030] It will also be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the words during, while,
and when as used herein are not exact terms that mean an action takes place instantly upon an initiating action but that there may be some small but reasonable delay, such as a propagation delay, between the initial action and the reaction that is initiated by the initial action. Additionally, the word "connected" is used throughout for clarity of the description and can include either a direct connection or an indirect connection.
[0031] Figure 1 illustrates a proximity based communication system 100 implementing a
proximity notification system 102 for generation of proximity based notifications,
interchangeably referred to as notification for the sake of simplicity, according to an embodiment
of the present subject matter. The proximity notification system 102 may be implemented in a
variety of computing devices that inclucde, but are rot limited to, desktop computers, laptops,
mainframe computers, servers, and the like. The proximity based communication system 100
includes one or more communication devices 104-1, 104-2, 104-3, and 104-N, collectively
referred to as communication devices 104, communicatively coupled to each other and to the
proximity notification system 102 through a communication network 106. The communication
devices 104 may include, for example, desktop computers, hand-held devices, laptops or other
portable computers, network computers, mobile phones, and smart phones. Each of the
communication devices 104 works on a communication protocol as defined by the
communication network 106 to which the communication device 104 is coupled.
[0032] The communication network 106 may be a wireless or a wired network, or a
combination thereof. The communication network 106 can be a collection of individual networks, interconnected with each other and functioning as a single large network (e.g., the internet or an intranet). Examples of such individual networks include, but are not limited to,
Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) network, Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) network, Long Term Evolution (LTE) network, Personal Communications Service (PCS) network, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) network, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) network, Next Generation Network (NGN), Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), and Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN). Depending on the technology, the communication network 106 includes various network entities, such as gateways and routers; however, such details have been omitted to maintain the brevity of the description.
[0033] In one embodiment of the proximity based communication system 100, the
communication devices 104 are registered with the proximity notification system 102. The registration may be understood as a process of enabling the proximity notification system 102 to identify each of the communication devices 104 and users thereof. While the registration may be carried out in several different ways, in one example, a user of a communication device, such as the communication device 104-1 may access a web page to register the communication device 104-1 with the proximity notification system 102. To access the web page the user may use the communication device 104-1 or any other internet enabled communication device configured to access the web page. It will be understood that communication between the communication device 104-1 and the other internet enabled communication device may be carried out using conventionally known methods and has not been elaborated.
[0034] Every user registering with the proximity notification system 102 specifies a
respective communication device that the user wishes to register. Consider an example where a user of the communication device 104-2, which may be a mobile phone in one example, accesses a web page through his desktop computer to register the communication device 104-2. In the present case, the user specifies an identifier associated with the communication device 104-2. The identifier may be a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) number, an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI), an International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI), a Mobile Station (ISDN) number or any other similar unique identifier associated with the communication device 104-2 that may allow the proximity notification system 102 to identify the communication device 104-2.
[0035] In the description, a user registering one or more communication devices 104 with
the proximity notification system 102 is referred to as a registered user or simply a user.
Similarly, communication devices 104 registered with the proximity notification system 102 are
also interchangeably referred to as registered communication devices 104.
[0036] Further, in one embodiment, each user may also create a user profile providing
various user details, such as profession, contact number, address and email id to the proximity notification system 102. However, in various other embodiments, a user need not create a user profile and only indicate a location from where the user details of the user may be retrieved. For example, a user having a preexisting user profile in a social networking site may indicate his account credential to the proximity notification system 102 which in turn may be configured to retrieve the preexisting user profile from the social networking site.
[0037] In one more embodiment, users registering with the proximity notification system
102 may also provide to the proximity notification system 102, information pertaining to their
contacts where each contact is identified by an identifier. For instance, a user may provide a list
of his contacts to the proximity notification system 102 using the web page accessed for the
registration. In another example, the proximity notification system 102 may be configured to
retrieve information pertaining to the contacts of a user from a communication device, for
example communication device 104-3 that may be a smart phone that the user has registered
with the proximity notification system 102. In said example, once a user has registered, the
proximity notification system 102 may access the phone book of the smart phone and retrieve
contact numbers of the contacts of the user. In one more example, for every registered user, the
proximity notification system 102 may retrieve the information pertaining to the contacts of a
user from his social networking site. For example, the friend list of the user may be accessed and
for each of contact present in the friend list, an identifier may be obtained from the respective
profile of the contacts preexisting in the social networking site. It will be understood that a
contact of the user may or may not be registered with the proximity notification system 102.
Accordingly, the proximity notification system 102 may be configured to obtain the profile of
the contacts who are presently registered with the proximity notification system 102.
[0038] Additionally, in one embodiment, the proximity notification system 102 may
prompt a user to define a proximity parameter for his contacts. For example, a user may define a proximity parameter as 20Km for a contact who is close friend, however, define the proximity parameter as 5Km for other acquaintances. In another embodiment, the proximity notification system 102, may be configured to define default proximity parameter for the contact of a user.
For instance, the proximity notification system 102 may be configured to determine that a
contact A of a user does not reside in the same city as the user while a contact B resides in the
same city and accordingly define 20Km as a default proximity parameter for contact A and 2Km
for contact B. A determination relating to where a contact resides may be made by the proximity
notification system 102 by tracking a usual location of the communication devices 104 of the
contacts. In one example, the determination may be based on the user details available in the
respective profile of the contacts that may be preexisting in the social networking site.
[0039] Thus upon registration, the proximity notification system 102 identifies each of
the registered communication devices 104 and is enabled to associate a user profile with each of the registered communication devices 104. Abo, information relating to the contacts of each user is obtained and a proximity parameter is associated with each of the contacts. The various user details relating to the profile of the users, identifier associated with a communication device 104 of the users, the information relating to the contacts of users, and the proximity parameter associated with each of the contacts may be stored in a data repository 108. The data repository 108 may be any storage or memory component implemented internal or external to the proximity notification system 102.
[0040] In one embodiment, every user may also indicate a privacy setting to the
proximity notification system 102. Privacy settings defined by a user enables the proximity notification system 102 to determine the user details relating to the user that may be revealed to other registered users. For example, a user may define his privacy setting such that his contact number may not be disclosed to other registered users. Accordingly, the proximity notification system 102 may either not disclose the user's contact number to other registered users or, in one embodiment, seek the user's approval prior to disclosing his contact number to other registered users.
[0041] Once registered, a location determination module 110 of the proximity
notification system 102 monitors the communication devices 104 to determine the location of each of the communication devices 104. In one implementation, upon registration of a communication device, such as the communication device 104-2, the proximity notification system 102 may provide an application, which the communication device 104-2 downloads and stores in a local memory component. The application, among other activities, communicates with the location determination module 110 to indicate a current location of the communication
device 104-2 to the location determination module 110. It will be understood by one skilled in the art that the information relating to the current location is available with the communication device 104-2 and is used by the application to indicate the current location of the communication device 104-2 to the location determination module 110. For instance, the communication device 104-2 may be a GPS enabled device configured to determine its current location at any given instance. In another example, where the communication device 104-2 is not GPS enabled, the communication device 104-2 may be communicatively coupled to an external geolocator module, for example, a GPS module hosted on a remote server to obtain information regarding the current location of the communication device 104-2 and communicate the same to the location determination module 110. In one more example, the communication device 104-2 may employ techniques, such as triangulation to determine its own location and send the same to location determination module 110.
[0042] In another implementation of the present subject matter, the location
determination module 110 may be configured to determine the current location of each of the communication devices 104 instead of being indicated the current location of the communication devices 104 by the respective communication devices 104. In another example, the location determination module 110 may obtain the information regarding the current location of the communication device 104-1 from a network entity, for example, a Base Transceiver Station BTS, a Home Location Register (HLR), a Visitor Location Register (VLR) of the network 106 where the communication devices 104-1 may be located. In other examples, the current location of the communication device 104-1 may be determined if the communication device 104-1 is in a Wi-Fi zone recognized by the location determination module 110. Only a few examples of techniques for determining the current location of the communication devices 104 employed by the location determination module 110 are provided here to maintain the brevity of description. It will be apparent to one skilled in the art that various other conventionally known techniques may also be employed.
[0043] The current location related information of each of the communication devices
104 available with the location determination module 110 is used by a notification generation module 112 of the proximity notification system 102 to generate proximity based notifications. In one embodiment, proximity based notifications may be sent to proximity notification receiver modules of the communication devices 104. It will be appreciated that each of the
communication devices 104-1, 104-2, 104-3, and 104-N, comprise a proximity notification receiver module 114-1, 114-2, 114-3, and 114-N, respectively. The proximity notification receiver modules 114-1, 114-2, 114-3, and 114-N, may be collectively referred to as proximity notification receiver modules 114.
[0044] The proximity based notifications, also interchangeably referred to as
notifications are based on proximity of a user with at least one other user. In one embodiment, the notifications may be either spontaneous or in response to a query generated by a user of a communication device, such as the communication device 104-1.
[0045] In one example, a spontaneous notification may be sent to a proximity notification
receiver module 114-1 of the communication device 104-1 in case a contact of the user of the communication device 104-1 is in the vicinity. The notification may be based on the proximity parameter that may be defined by the user as described previously or may be based on a default proximity parameter. The notification may be, for example, a SMS, an Internet Protocol (IP) based communication or an e-mail specifying to the user of the communication device 104-1 that a contact is close by.
[0046] In one example, the privacy settings are defined by a user to control the
spontaneous notifications received by Mm. For example, if a user wishes to be notified only if contact C is in proximity and does not wane to be notified if contact D is close by, he may configure his privacy setting accordingly. The privacy setting may be modified by the user at anytime.
[0047] In another embodiment, a notification may be generated by the notification
generation module 112 in response to a query sent to the proximity notification system 102 by a registered user, such as the user of the communication device 104-1. In one example, the user of the communication device 104-1 may generate a query to enquire if any of his contacts are within a range of 10 Km. In another example, the user of the communication device 104-1 may generate a query to enquire whether any service provider, such as an electrician or a plumber is in the vicinity, say within a range of 5 Km. Accordingly, in the former case, the notification generation module 112 may locate the contacts of the user of the communication device 104-1 who may be in vicinity. While in the latter case, the notification generation module 112 may identify any registered users in the vicinity whose profile details indicate that they are the service providers being sought by the user of the communication device 104-1. As mentioned
previously, the vicinity is decided based on the proximity parameter which may be either user defined or a default proximity parameter.
[0048] In one implementation, a list of default proximity parameters for different types of
queries may be predefined in the proxi-ni'v notification system 102. For example, a relatively large proximity parameter may be defined fo; emergency services related queries while a smaller one may be defined for other services related query. Accordingly, a user querying for a doctor may be notified even if the doctor is, say, 8 Km away, however, a user querying for a cab may be notified only if the cab is close, say, with a range of 2 Km.
[0049] Thus, the proximity based notifications provide information relating to contact of
a user who may be in the vicinity and allow the users to meet such contacts without having to plan a meeting. Additionally, the notifications also provide user details relating to other registered users, irrespective of the other registered users not being a contact of the user. Also, as mentioned previously, proximity based notifications are in accordance with the privacy settings of the registered users and accordingly, a user may control the notifications that may be received by him as well as the ensure that user details pertaining to him is not revealed to other registered users.
[0050] Figure 2 illustrates the proximity notification system 102 and a communication
device, such as communication device 104-1 according to an embodiment of the present subject
matter to elaborate the details of the operation of the proximity notification system 102.
[0051] The proximity notification system 102 and the communication device 104-1 as
discussed previously may be implemented as various types of computing systems and or communication devices. In one implementation, the proximity notification system 102 and the communication device 104-1 include a system processor 202-1 and a device processor 202-2, respectively. The system processor 202-1 and the device processor 202-2 may be collectively referred to as processor 202.
[0052] The processors 202 may be implemented as one or more microprocessors,
microcomputers, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, central processing units, state machines, logic circuitries, and/or any devices that manipulate signals based on operational instructions. Among other capabilities, the processor(s) are configured to fetch and execute computer-readable instructions stored in the memory.
[0053] The functions of the various elements shown in the figures, including any
functional blocks labeled as "processor(s)", may be provided through the use of dedicated hardware as well as hardware capable of executing software in association with appropriate software. When provided by a processor, the functions may be provided by a single dedicated processor, by a single shared processor, or by a plurality of individual processors, some of which may be shared. Moreover, explicit use if the term "processor" should not be construed to refer exclusively to hardware capable of executing software, and may implicitly include, without limitation, digital signal processor (DSP) hardware, network processor, application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), field programmable gate array (FPGA), read only memory (ROM) for storing software, random access memory (RAM), and non volatile storage. Other hardware, conventional and/or custom, may also be included.
[0054] The proximity notification system 102 and the communication device 104-1 may
further include one or more memory components, referred to as a system memory 204-1 and a device memory 204-2, coupled to the system processor 202-1 and the device processor 202-2, respectively. The system memory 204-1 and the device memory 204-2 are collectively referred to memory 204. The memory can include any computer-readable medium known in the art including, for example, volatile memory (e.g., RAM), and/or non-volatile memory (e.g., EPROM, flash memory, etc).
[0055] Also, the proximity notific?tio:i system 102 and the communication device 104-1
include a system interface 206-1 and a device interface 206-2, respectively, which is collectively
referred to as interfaces 206. The interface 206 may include a variety of software and hardware
interfaces allowing the proximity notification system 102 and the communication device 104-1
to interact with each other and with the several computing devices and/or network entities.
Further, the interface(s) may enable the proximity notification system 102 and the
communication device 104-1 to communicate with other communication and computing devices,
such as web servers and external repositories. The interface(s) 206 can facilitate multiple
communications within a wide variety of networks and protocol types, including wired networks,
for example LAN, cable, etc., and wireless networks such as WLAN, cellular, or satellite based.
[0056] In one embodiment, the system memory 204-1 includes system modules 208
including a registration module 210 and other module(s) 212 in addition to the location determination module 110 and the notification generation module 112. Further, the notification
generation module 112 includes a proximity based search module 214. Additionally, the system
memory 204-1 includes system data 216 that serves, amongst other things, as a repository for
storing data fetched, processed, received and generated by one or more of the system modules
208. The data 216 includes, for example, user profile data 218, location data 220 and other data
222. The other data 222 comprises data corresponding to one or more of the other module(s) 212.
[0057] Similarly the device memory 204-2 includes device modules 224 comprising the
proximity notification receiver module 114-1, a user interface module 226, a location indicator
module 228 and other device module(s) 230. The user interface module 226 includes a proximity
based query generator module 232. Further, the device memory 204-2 includes device data 234
that serves, in addition to other things, as a repository for storing data fetched, processed,
received and generated by one or more of the device modules 224. The device data 234 includes,
for example, contacts data 236, notifications 238 and other data 240. The other data 240
comprises data corresponding to one or more of the other module(s) 230.
[0058] In one embodiment, the communication device 104-1 is registered with the
proximity notification system 102. A user using the communication device 104-1, to register the communication device 104-1 with the proximity notification system 102 may, in one example, launch a web browser using the user interface module 226 of the communication device 104-1. The web browser may be indicated a Universal Resource Locator (URL) pertaining to the proximity notification system 102 to be directed to the registration module 210 of the proximity notification system 102. In one implementation, the registration module 210 is configured to provide a form where the user may input the user details through the user interface module 226 to create a user profile. In other implementations, the registration module 210 may be configured to obtain the user details from a location, such as a social networking site indicated by the user. The user details are saved in the user profile data 218.
[0059] Also, in one embodiment, the information pertaining to the contacts of a user may
be obtained in the registration process. The information pertaining to the contacts of a user is also saved as the user profile data 218. In one implementation, information pertaining to the contacts of a user may be present as the contact data 236 in the communication device 104-1 and may be retrieved by the registration module 210 and saved as the user profile data 218. The user profile data 218 may store proximity parameter that the user may define with respect to one or more of his contacts.
[0060] Additionally, as explained previously, in one implementation, privacy setting may
be defined by the user of the communication device 104-1. For example, the privacy setting may be defined using the user interface module 226. The privacy setting may also be saved in the user profile data 218.
[0061] Once the communication device 104-1 has registered with the proximity
notification system 102, the location determination module 110 of the proximity notification system 102 monitors the current location of the communication device 104-1. In one embodiment, the location indicator module 228 of the communication device 104-1 communicates with to indicate the current location of the communication device 104-1 to the location determination module 110 the current location current location of the communication device 104-1. The current location of the communication device 104-1 as explained previously may be available through absolute or relative position of the communication device 104-1, such as by using the GPS signals, and BIS triangulation methods. The current location of the communication device 104-1 may be saved as location data 220 in the system memory 204-1 of the proximity notification system 102 and may be updated as and when a change in the current location occurs.
[0062] As apparent, the proximity notification system 102, monitors all the
communication devices 104 registered with the proximity notification system 102, in a manner similar to that of the communication device 104-1, to determine the current location of each of the communication devices 104.
[0063] Based on the current location of the communication device 104-1, as determined
by the location determination module 110, the notification generation module 112 may generate proximity based notification for the user of the communication device 104-1. The proximity based notification may be spontaneous, for example, to notify the user that he is heading towards a traffic jam or to notify that a contact is in vicinity. As apparent, since the proximity notification system 102 is aware of the current location of the communication device 104-1, based on the privacy setting defined by the user of the communication device 104-1, the proximity notification system 102 may provide notifications pertaining to various location based services, such as advertisements or other information to the user of the communication device 104-1. The generation of such notifications is based on the proximity parameter which may be defined by the user during the registration process and saved in the user profile data 218 or default
proximity parameter which may be associated with different types of location based services and may be preexisting as other data 222 in the system data 216 of the notification generation module 112.
[0064] In another embodiment, a notification may be generated by the notification
generation module 112 in response to a query sent to the proximity notification system 102 by
the user of the communication device 104-1. The user may generate the query using the
proximity based query module 232 of the communication device 104-1. For illustration, consider
a scenario where the user is looking for a cab. The user may generate a query for the proximity
notification system 102 to enquire whether a cab is in the vicinity. The user may also mention a
proximity parameter in the query. For example, the user may specify that he is looking for a cab
located anywhere within a radius of 1 Km. In case the user has not specified any proximity
parameter, the notification generation module 112 may associate a default proximity parameter
available in the other data 222 of the notification generation module 112.
[0065] The query generated by ihe user of the communication device 104-1, and the
proximity parameter associated therewith may be received by the notification generation module
112. In response to receiving a query from the proximity based query module 232, the
notification generation module 112, may be configured to generate a notification in response to
the query taking into account the current location of the communication device 104-1. For the
purpose, the notification generation module 112 obtains the current location of the
communication device 104-1 from the location determination module 110.
[0066] To respond to the queries generated by the user, for example the query enquiring
a cab the vicinity, the notification generation module 112 employs the proximity based search module 214 to search the data repository 108 to find other registered users whose user details reveal that they may provide a transportation service, such as a cab. Such users, if identified on the basis of their user details, may be indicated to the location determination module 110 to ascertain their current location. In case the current location of the identified user is such that the user providing the cab service is in vicinity of the user of the communication device 104-1, as defined by the proximity parameter, contact information of the user providing the cab service, for example, his contact number, may be provided to the user of the communication device 104-1 as a notification.
[0067] In one embodiment, prior to sending the contact information of the user providing
the cab service to the user of the communication device 104-1, the notification generation module 112 may send a message, such as a status enquiry to the user providing the cab service to ensure that the cab is available for hire. In one example, the message may inform the user providing the cab service that the user of the communication device 104-1 wishes to avail his services. Based on the privacy settings of the user of the communication device 104-1, the message may include a SIM number or a Mobile Station (ISDN) number associated with communication device 104-1 and the user providing the cab service may directly contact the user of the communication device 104-1.
[0068] It will understood that, in the description of Figure 2, the proximity notification
system 102 is depicted to be coupled only to the communication device 104-1 for the ease of description. The proximity notification system 102 is coupled to all the registered communication devices 104 and not to the communication device 104-1 alone. Accordingly, it will be appreciated that the system data 216 of the proximity notification system 102 includes user profile data 218 and location data 229 of all the registered communication devices 104 and may be searched by the proximity based search module 214 to identify other registered communication devices 104 to generate z notification in response to a query. As apparent, in one implementation, the data repository 108 may implemented internal to the proximity notification system 102 and referred to as the system data 216.
[0069] The proximity notification receiver module 114-1 of the communication device
104-1 is configured to receive the notifications and provide the same to the user interface module 226. In one implementation, the notification receiver module 114-1 may also save it as notification data 238 in the device data 234 of the communication device 104-1 for the user to retrieve the same at a future instance.
[0070] Figure 3 illustrates a method 300 for generation of a proximity based notification
in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter, while Figure 4 illustrates a method 400 for receiving the notification, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter.
[0071] The order in which the methods 300 and 400 are described is not intended to be
construed as a limitation, and any number of the described method blocks can be combined in any order to implement the methods 300 and 400, or an alternative method. Additionally,
individual blocks may be deleted from the methods 300 and 400 without departing from the
spirit and scope of the subject matter described herein. Furthermore, the methods 300 and 400
can be implemented in any suitable hardware, software, firmware, or combination thereof.
[0072] A person skilled in the art will readily recognize that steps of the methods 300 and
400 can be performed by programmed computers. Herein, some embodiments are also intended to cover program storage devices, for exanple, digita! data storage media, which are machine or computer readable and encode machine-executable or comouter-executable programs of instructions, wherein said instructions perform some or all of the steps of the described methods 300 and 400. The program storage devices may be, for example, digital memories, magnetic storage media such as a magnetic disks and magnetic tapes, hard drives, or optically readable digital data storage media.
[0073] Although, the method 300 for generation of a proximity based notification may be
implemented in a variety of communication systems working in different network environment,
in the embodiments described in Figure 3, the method 300 is explained in context of the
aforementioned proximity notification system 102 for the ease of explanation.
[0074] Referring to method 300, at block 302, a plurality of users, each having a
respective communication device, such as a communication device 104-1, 104-2.... 104-N, may be registered with the proximity notification system 102. At block 304, the proximity notification system 102 obtains various user details elating to a profile of each of the users that register with the proximity notification system 102. A user of each of the registered communication devices 104 is identified by an identifier associated with the respective communication device 104-1, 104-2.... 104-N and the user details provided to the proximity notification system 102 in the course of registering with the proximity notification system 102.
[0075] Based on the location of the respective communication devices 104 a current
location of each of the users is obtained at block 306. Based on the current location of the respective users obtained at block 306, at block 308, a notification for at least one user, for example, the user of the communication device 104-1 is generated. The notification is based on a proximity parameter, such that the proximity parameter is based on a proximity of the user of the communication device 104-1 with at least one other user amongst the plurality of users registered with the proximity notification system 102.
[0076] In one example, a spontaneous notification may be generated based on proximity
of the user with one or more other registered users, in case the proximity is in accordance with the proximity parameter, which may be defined by the user or predefined by the proximity notification system 102. In one example, the other registered users may be contacts of the user while in another example, the other registered users may be professionals or service provider sought by the user.
[0077] Figure 4 illustrates a method 400 for receiving the notification that may be
implemented by any of the communicatic a devices .04, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter. The method 400 for receiving the notification that may be implemented in any of the communication devices 104 coupled to the proximity notification system 102 and is explained herein in reference to the communication device 104-1 for the ease of explanation.
[0078] The method 400 may be initiated at block 402, where the communication device
104-1 registers with the proximity notification system 102. At block 404, the registered communication device 104-1 communicates with the proximity notification system 102 to indicate its current location to the proximity notification system 102. Since the proximity notification system 102 is made aware of the current location of the communication device 104-1 and also has similar current location related information for each of the other registered users, the user of the communication device 104-1 may seek information relating to other registered user who may be in the vicinity of the current location of the communication device 104-1. Accordingly, at block 406, the user of the communication device 104-1 may generate a query for the proximity notification system 102 to seek information relating to other registered users in proximity of his current location. At block 408, the user of the communication device 104-1 may receive a notification in response to the query. In one embodiment, the notification is generated only if the proximity of the user of the communication device 104-1 and other registered users is in accordance with either a user defined or default proximity parameter. In one embodiment, a notification, such as spontaneous notification may also be received by the communication device 104-1 without the user of the communication device 104-1 sending a query to the proximity notification system 102. This, as evident, is in accordance with the privacy setting of the user of the communication device 104-1.
[0079] Thus the notifications providing information relating to other registered users,
such as contact of a user or other professional sought by the user, who may be in vicinity may be
received by the user to enable the user to interact with such other registered users.
[0080] Although implementations for the proximity based communication system have
been described in language specific to structural features and/or methods, it is to be understood that the appended claims are not necessarily limited to the specific features or methods described. Rather, the specific features and methods are disclosed as exemplary implementations for generation of proximity based notifications.

WE CLAIM:
1. A method for generation of a proximity based notification, the method comprising:
registering a plurality of users, each having a respective communication device, with a
proximity based communication system;
obtaining a location of each of the plurality of users based on a location of the respective communication device; and
generating a notification for a communication device of at least one user amongst the plurality of users based on a proximity parameter, wherein the proximity parameter is based on a proximity of the at least one user with at least one other user amongst the plurality of users.
2. The method as claimed in claim 1. wherein the proximity parameter is defined by the at
least one user such that a proximity parameter is defined for each of one or more user from
amongst the plurality of users.
3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the registering further comprises:
receiving one or more identifiers pertaining to each of the plurality of users; and
receiving a user profile comprising user details for each of the plurality of users, wherein
at least one identifier is associated with the user profile.
4. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the obtaining comprises verifying privacy settings of each of the plurality of users.
5. The method as claimed in claim I, wherein the generating is in response to a query received from the communication device of at least one user.
6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the method further comprises receiving information relating to contacts of the plurality of users, wherein the information comprises at least one identifier for each of the contacts; of the plurality of users.
7. A proximity notification system comprising:
a processor; and
a memory coupled to the processor, the memory comprising,
a location determination module configured to determine a location of each of a plurality of communication devices; and
a notification generation module configured to generate a notification for a communication device based on a proximity parameter defining the proximity of the
communication device with at least one other communication device from amongst the plurality of communication devices.
8. The proximity notification system as claimed in claim 7 further comprising a registration module configured to register the pluralicy of communication devices.
9. The proximity notification system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the registration module is configured to associate each of the plurality of communication devices with at least one user profile.
10. The proximity notification system as claimed in claim 7 further comprising a contact information receiving module configured to receive information pertaining to contacts of users of each of the plurality of communication devices.
11. The proximity notification system as claimed in claim 7 further comprising a search module configured to search the least one other registered communication device based on a user profile associated with the least one other registered communication device.
12. A communication device comprising:
a processor; and
a memory coupled to the processor, the memory comprising,
a proximity based information receiver configured to receive a proximity based notification relating to one or more other communication devices in proximity of the communication device.
13. The communication device as claimed in claim 12, wherein the proximity is determined by a proximity parameter defined by a user of the communication device such that a proximity parameter is defined for each of the one or more other communication devices.
14. The communication device as claimed in claim 12 further comprising:
a location indicator configured to indicate a current location of the communication device to a proximity notification system; and
a query module configured to query the proximity notification system based on the current location of the communication device.
15. A computer-readable medium having embodied thereon a computer program for
executing a method comprising:
registering one or more users;
determining a location of the one or more users based on a location of a communication device of each of the one or more user; and
generating a notification for a communication device of at least one user based on a proximity parameter defining the proximity of the at least one user with the one or more users.