# US 11,121,886 B2 · Workflow automation using near-field communication > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,121,886 B2 - Document ID: US11121886B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/098,856 - Filed: 2020-11-16 - Published: 2021-03-04 - Granted: 2021-09-14 - Earliest claimed: 2019-01-15 - Assignees: VMware, Inc. - Applicants: VMware, Inc. - Inventors: Erich Stuntebeck - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11121886B2 ## CPC - H04L 12/1818: {Conference organisation arrangements, e.g. handling schedules, setting up parameters needed by nodes to attend a conference, booking network resources, notifying involved parties} - G06Q 10/1093: Calendar-based scheduling for persons or groups - H04L 12/1822: {Conducting the conference, e.g. admission, detection, selection or grouping of participants, correlating users to one or more conference sessions, prioritising transmission} - H04L 12/1831: {Tracking arrangements for later retrieval, e.g. recording contents, participants activities or behavior, network status} - H04W 8/005: {Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals} - H04W 4/023: {using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds} - H04W 4/80: Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) - G06Q: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72) ## Abstract Disclosed are various approaches for initiating workflows with respect to physical resource devices on behalf of a user. A physical identifier can be affixed to a physical resource device. An identifier can be embedded within the physical identifier. A workflow application can initiate workflows upon detecting that a user has scanned or captured the identifier. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A system comprising: a client device comprising a processor and a memory; and an application executable by the client device, the application causing the client device to at least: obtain data from an identifying device associated with a conferencing device, the identifying device associated with an identifier located in proximity to or on the conferencing device, wherein the identifying device comprises a near-field communication (NFC) tag and the application obtains data from the identifying device by initiating an NFC session between the client device and the NFC tag; extract the identifier associated with the conferencing device from the data; identify a user associated with the client device; identify a calendar associated with a user account of the user; determine whether a calendar event at a present time is associated with the calendar associated with the user account; and link the conferencing device with the calendar event. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the application creates the calendar event in response to determining that the calendar event at the present time is not associated with the calendar associated with the user account. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the application links the conferencing device with the calendar event by causing the client device to at least: identify a conferencing service identifier within the calendar event, the conferencing service identifier comprising at least one of: a dial-in number or a uniform resource locator (URL) associated with a conferencing service event; cause the conferencing device to be linked to the conferencing service event. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the application causes the conferencing device to be linked to the conferencing service event by causing the conferencing service to initiate a voice session with the conferencing device. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the application causes the client device to create a conferencing service event within a conferencing service and link the conferencing device to the conferencing service event. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The system of claim 5, wherein the application causes the client device to link the conferencing device to the conferencing service event by at least: identify a phone number associated with the conferencing device from the data obtained from the identifying device; and causing the conferencing service to initiate a call to the phone number on behalf of the conferencing service event. ### Claim 7 A method comprising: obtaining data from an identifying device associated with a conferencing device, the identifying device associated with an identifier located in proximity to or on the conferencing device, wherein the identifying device comprises a near-field communication (NFC) tag and the application obtains data from the identifying device by initiating an NFC session between the client device and the NFC tag; extracting the identifier associated with the conferencing device from the data; identifying a user associated with the client device; identifying a calendar associated with a user account of the user; determining whether a calendar event at a present time is associated with the calendar associated with the user account; and linking the conferencing device with the calendar event. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The method of claim 7, further comprising creating the calendar event in response to determining that the calendar event at the present time is not associated with the calendar associated with the user account. ### Claim 9 (depends on 7) The method of claim 7, wherein linking the conferencing device with the calendar event further comprises: identifying a conferencing service identifier within the calendar event, the conferencing service identifier comprising at least one of: a dial-in number or a uniform resource locator (URL) associated with a conferencing service event; cause the conferencing device to be linked to the conferencing service event. ### Claim 10 (depends on 7) The method of claim 7, further comprising causing the conferencing device to be linked to the conferencing service event by causing the conferencing service to initiate a voice session with the conferencing device. ### Claim 11 (depends on 7) The method of claim 7, further comprising creating a conferencing service event within a conferencing service; and linking the conferencing device to the conferencing service event. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein linking the conferencing device to the conferencing service event further comprises: identify a phone number associated with the conferencing device from the data obtained from the identifying device; and causing the conferencing service to initiate a call to the phone number on behalf of the conferencing service event. ### Claim 13 A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising machine-readable instructions, wherein when executed by a processor of a client device, the machine-readable instructions cause the client device to at least: obtain data from an identifying device associated with a conferencing device, the identifying device associated with an identifier located in proximity to or on the conferencing device, wherein the identifying device comprises a near-field communication (NFC) tag and the application obtains data from the identifying device by initiating an NFC session between the client device and the NFC tag; extract the identifier associated with the conferencing device from the data; identify a user associated with the client device; identify a calendar associated with a user account of the user; determine whether a calendar event at a present time is associated with the calendar associated with the user account; and link the conferencing device with the calendar event. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the instructions create the calendar event in response to determining that the calendar event at the present time is not associated with the calendar associated with the user account. ### Claim 15 (depends on 13) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the instructions link the conferencing device with the calendar event by causing the client device to at least: identify a conferencing service identifier within the calendar event, the conferencing service identifier comprising at least one of: a dial-in number or a uniform resource locator (URL) associated with a conferencing service event; cause the conferencing device to be linked to the conferencing service event. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the instructions cause the conferencing device to be linked to the conferencing service event by causing the conferencing service to initiate a voice session with the conferencing device. ### Claim 17 (depends on 13) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the instructions cause the client device to create a conferencing service event within a conferencing service and link the conferencing device to the conferencing service event.