# US 11,444,796 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 11,444,796 B2 - Document ID: US11444796B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/409,875 - Filed: 2021-08-24 - Published: 2021-12-09 - Granted: 2022-09-13 - Earliest claimed: 2019-01-15 - Assignees: VMware, Inc. - Applicants: VMware, Inc. - Inventors: Erich Stuntebeck - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11444796B2 ## 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 physical resource, the identifying device comprising a physical identifier affixed on or near the physical resource; extract the physical identifier associated with the physical resource 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 physical resource 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 physical resource 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 physical resource to be linked to the conferencing service event. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, 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. ### 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. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The system of claim 5, wherein the application causes the client device to link the physical resource to the conferencing service event by at least: identify a phone number 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 (depends on 6) The system of claim 6, wherein the phone number is linked to a voice device separate from the physical resource. ### Claim 8 A method comprising: obtaining data from an identifying device associated with a conferencing device, the identifying device comprising a physical identifier affixed on or near the conferencing device; extracting the physical identifier associated with the conferencing device from the data; identifying a user associated with a 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 9 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, 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 10 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, 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 11 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, wherein the identifying device comprises a near-field communication (NFC) tag and the obtaining data from the identifying device further comprises initiating an NFC session between the client device and the NFC tag. ### Claim 12 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, further comprising: creating a conferencing service event within a conferencing service; and linking the conferencing device to the conferencing service event. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein linking the conferencing device to the conferencing service event further comprises: identify a phone number 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 14 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein the phone number is associated with a voice device that is separate from the conferencing device. ### Claim 15 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 comprising a physical identifier affixed on or near the conferencing device; extract the physical 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 16 (depends on 15) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, 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 17 (depends on 15) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, 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 18 (depends on 15) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the identifying device comprises a near-field communication (NFC) tag and the machine-readable instructions obtain data from the identifying device by initiating an NFC session between the client device and the NFC tag. ### Claim 19 (depends on 15) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, 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. ### Claim 20 (depends on 19) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 19, wherein a phone number is associated with a voice device that is separate from the conferencing device.