Mobile proximity detector for mobile electronic devices

A method, comprising:

• receiving, at a mobile electronic device and from a remote device via short-range wireless communications, a sequence of remote device proximity indicators in a sequence of beamformed communications;
• monitoring a current position and a current velocity of the mobile electronic device;
• determining directions of reception for beamformed communications in the sequence of beamformed communications;
• determining signal strengths for the beamformed communications in the sequence of beamformed communications;
• determining a current remote device position using at least a determined direction of reception and a determined signal strength for at least one beamformed communication in the sequence of beamformed communications;
• determining a current remote device velocity using at least a determined direction of reception and a determined signal strength for at least one beamformed communication in the sequence of beamformed communications and using the sequence of remote device proximity indicators;
• determining, using at least the current remote device position, the current remote device velocity, and the current position and the current velocity of the mobile electronic device, a likelihood of close contact between the mobile electronic device and the remote device;
• and
• providing the likelihood of close contact.

A non-transitory computer storage medium having programming instructions stored thereon that, when executed by one or more processors of a mobile electronic device, cause the mobile electronic device to perform operations comprising:

• receiving, at the mobile electronic device and from a remote device via short-range wireless communications, a sequence of remote device proximity indicators in a sequence of beamformed communications;
• monitoring a current position and a current velocity of the mobile electronic device;
• determining directions of reception for beamformed communications in the sequence of beamformed communications;
• determining signal strengths for the beamformed communications in the sequence of beamformed communications;
• determining a current remote device position using at least a determined direction of reception and a determined signal strength for at least one beamformed communication in the sequence of beamformed communications;
• determining a current remote device velocity using at least a determined direction of reception and a determined signal strength for at least one beamformed communication in the sequence of beamformed communications and using the sequence of remote device proximity indicators;
• determining, using at least the current remote device position, the current remote device velocity, and the current position and the current velocity of the mobile electronic device, a likelihood of close contact between the mobile electronic device and the remote device;
• and
• providing the likelihood of close contact.