# US 2016/0366556 A1 · Automated determination of mobile user locations and notification of social media member events > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2016/0366556 A1 - Document ID: US20160366556A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 15/247,466 - Filed: 2016-08-25 - Published: 2016-12-15 - Earliest claimed: 2013-10-10 - Assignees: Pushd, Inc. - Applicants: Pushd, Inc. - Inventors: Abdur Chowdhury; Ophir Frieder; Eric Jensen; Ben Cherry; Matt Sanford - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20160366556A1 ## CPC - H04W 4/21: for social networking applications - H04L 51/222: using geographical location information, e.g. messages transmitted or received in proximity of a certain spot or area - H04L 51/52: for supporting social networking services - H04L 51/58: Message adaptation for wireless communication - H04L 67/10: in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network (software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46) - H04M 1/72457: according to geographic location - H04W 4/02: Services making use of location information - H04W 4/023: {using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds} - H04W 4/027: {using movement velocity, acceleration information} - H04W 4/029: Location-based management or tracking services - H04W 4/12: Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements - H04W 52/0229: {where the received signal is a wanted signal} - H04W 8/16: selectively restricting mobility {data} tracking - H04W 64/00: Locating users or terminals {or network equipment} for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management - Y02D 30/70: in wireless communication networks - H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72) - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) - H04M: TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION (circuits for controlling other apparatus via a telephone cable and not involving telephone switching apparatus G08) - Y02D: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES [ICT], I.E. INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES AIMING AT THE REDUCTION OF THEIR OWN ENERGY USE ## Abstract A method, system, and/or apparatus for automatically tracking a mobile user using the user's mobile device. This invention is particularly useful in the field of social media, such as for detecting and tracking the location and activity of a user and her community. The method or implementing software application uses or relies upon location information available on the mobile device from any source, such as cell phone usage and/or other device applications. The social media system can automatically determine a location type and/or user activity from context information. The context information can include current and past location and user and/or community information, time-dependent information, and third party information. The automated location and context information allows for users to set triggering conditions for other users, such as to provide an alert to one user or more users upon a particular action of the monitored other user being automatically determined by the system. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method of determining locations and/or activities of users participating in a social networking service, the method executed by a computer system and comprising: receiving a triggering condition from a first user through a first user electronic device; automatically monitoring for the triggering condition within the social networking service; automatically receiving location information for a second user that is within the social networking service through a location module of a second user electronic device at each of a plurality of locations as the second user electronic device travels to the locations; automatically placing the location module into a sleep mode between the locations, wherein the location module goes into the sleep mode: after automatically determining location information, and during extended travel upon an automatically determined rate of travel exceeding a predetermined threshold; automatically awakening the location module at each of the locations upon receipt of a location transmission; automatically determining an occurrence of the triggering condition by the second user through the second user electronic device; and automatically communicating the occurrence of the triggering condition to the first user through the first user electronic device. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the triggering condition comprises the second user electronic device's proximity to, arrival at, or departure from, one of the locations. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The method of claim 2, wherein the one of the locations is a specific location identified by the first user in the triggering condition. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the triggering condition is an activity or condition of the second user automatically determined using the second user electronic device. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The method of claim 4, further comprising: automatically determining a positional location of the second user; automatically determining context information about the positional location without input by the second user; automatically deducing as user information a location type and/or user activity of the positional location from the context information; and automatically analyzing the user information for the occurrence of the triggering condition. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the communicating the occurrence comprises automatically providing a time and/or distance between the first user and the second user. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The method of claim 6, wherein the triggering occurrence comprises the second user moving between locations. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the triggering condition is selected from automatically generated predetermined condition selections displayed in a user interface on the first user electronic device. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising tracking and updating a positional location of the second user electronic device upon the occurrence of the triggering condition. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising automatically and continually tracking locations of an electronic device of each member of a social media community of the first user. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the location module comprises: a timer counter configured to monitor a duration of time since each awakening, wherein whenever a time since the awakening exceeds a predetermined time allocation, the location module is placed into a sleep mode; or a stationary counter configured to monitor a duration of time since a previous detected movement of the mobile user. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving with the location module a first location transmission for a first one of the locations; incrementing a timer count configured to monitor a duration of time, wherein whenever a time exceeds a predetermined time allocation, the location module is placed into the sleep mode; incrementing a stationary counter configured to monitor a duration of time since a previous detected movement of the mobile user; receiving a second location transmission of a second one of the locations; comparing the second one of the locations to the first one of the locations; calculating a rate of travel when the second one of the locations differs from the first one of the locations, wherein if the rate of travel exceeds a predetermined threshold the location module is placed into the sleep mode; receiving a third location transmission of a third one of the locations; comparing the third one of the locations to at least one of the first one of the locations or the second one of the locations; further incrementing the stationary counter when the second or third one of the locations is the same as the first one of the locations; determining an arrival event upon reaching a predetermined arrival threshold of the stationary counter; storing data of the locations; and placing the location module into the sleep mode. ### Claim 13 A method of determining locations and/or activities of users participating in a social networking service, the method executed by a computer system and comprising: automatically and continually tracking locations of member electronic devices of a plurality of members of a social media community of a first user, wherein the tracking locations includes: automatically receiving location information for each of the member electronic devices through a location module of the each of the member electronic devices at each of a plurality of locations as the member electronic devices travel to the locations; automatically placing the location module into a sleep mode between the locations, wherein the location module goes into the sleep mode: after automatically determining location information, and during extended travel upon an automatically determined rate of travel exceeding a predetermined threshold; automatically awakening the location module at each of the locations upon receipt of a location transmission; automatically displaying location information for each of the plurality of members on a first user electronic device; receiving a triggering condition for one of the plurality of members from the first user through the first user electronic device; automatically determining an occurrence of the triggering condition by automatically monitoring a corresponding member electronic device of the one of the plurality of members; and automatically communicating the occurrence of the triggering condition to the first user through the first user electronic device. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein the triggering condition comprises the second user electronic device's proximity to, arrival at, or departure from, a location. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein the location is a specific location identified by the first user in the triggering condition. ### Claim 16 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein the triggering condition is an activity or condition of the one of the plurality of members automatically determined using the member electronic device of the one of the plurality of members. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The method of claim 16, further comprising: automatically determining context information about the location information for the one of the plurality of members without manual input therefrom; automatically deducing as user information a location type and/or user activity of the location from the context information; and automatically analyzing the user information for the occurrence of the triggering condition. ### Claim 18 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein the communicating the occurrence comprises automatically providing a time and/or distance between the first user and the one of the plurality of members. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) The method of claim 18, wherein the triggering occurrence comprises the one of the plurality of members moving between locations. ### Claim 20 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, further comprising automatically communicating the occurrence of the triggering condition to member electronic devices of several of the plurality of members other than the one of the plurality of members. ### Claim 21 A method of determining locations and/or activities of users participating in a social networking service, the method executed by a computer system and comprising: automatically determining a positional destination of a first user, wherein automatically determining the positional destination of the first user comprises: providing a location module on a mobile device configured to receive location transmissions; placing the location module into a sleep mode; awakening the location module upon receipt of a first location transmission; and determining a first location with the location module incrementing a timer count configured to monitor a duration of time, wherein whenever a time exceeds a predetermined time allocation, the location module is placed into the sleep mode; incrementing a stationary counter configured to monitor a duration of time since a previous detected movement of the first user; receiving a second location transmission of a second location; comparing the second location to the first location; calculating a rate of travel when the second location differs from the first location, wherein if the rate of travel exceeds a predetermined threshold the location module is placed into the sleep mode; receiving a third location transmission of a third location; comparing the third location to at least one of the first location or the second location; further incrementing the stationary counter when the second or third location is the same as the first location; determining an arrival event upon reaching a predetermined arrival threshold of the stationary counter; storing data of all locations; and placing the location module into the sleep mode; receiving a triggering condition from a second user through a second user electronic device; automatically monitoring for the triggering condition within the social networking service; automatically communicating the occurrence of the triggering condition by the first user to the second user through the second user electronic device. ### Claim 22 (depends on 21) The method of claim 21, further comprising reducing possible location types and/or user activities as a function of the past location type and/or user activity of the positional destination for a given time period.