# US 2019/0174259 A1 · Tracking Device Operation In Behavior-Classified Zone > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2019/0174259 A1 - Document ID: US20190174259A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 16/268,501 - Filed: 2019-02-06 - Published: 2019-06-06 - Earliest claimed: 2017-08-16 - Assignees: Tile, Inc. - Applicants: Tile, Inc. - Inventors: Arunkumar Puppala; Liuyin Cheng; Wayne Patterson - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20190174259A1 ## CPC - H04W 4/021: Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences - G01S 5/01: {Determining conditions which influence positioning, e.g. radio environment, state of motion or energy consumption} - G01S 5/02: using radio waves (using satellite radio beacon systems for determining position G01S19/00) - G01S 5/0205: {Details} - G01S 5/0294: {Trajectory determination or predictive filtering, e.g. target tracking or Kalman filtering} - G01S 5/0295: {Proximity-based methods, e.g. position inferred from reception of particular signals} - G08B 21/24: Reminder alarms, e.g. anti-loss alarms - H04W 4/00: Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor - H04W 4/02: Services making use of location information - H04W 4/025: {using location based information parameters} - H04W 4/029: Location-based management or tracking services - H04W 4/16: Communication-related supplementary services, e.g. call-transfer or call-hold - H04W 4/30: Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes - H04W 12/00: Security arrangements; Authentication; Protecting privacy or anonymity - H04W 52/0206: {in access points, e.g. base stations} - H04W 52/0229: {where the received signal is a wanted signal} - H04W 52/0258: {controlling an operation mode according to history or models of usage information, e.g. activity schedule or time of day} - G01S 2205/01: specially adapted for specific applications - G01S 2205/05: Anti-theft or abduction - H04W 4/023: {using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds} - H04W 4/185: {by embedding added-value information into content, e.g. geo-tagging} - H04W 4/23: for mobile advertising - H04W 4/38: for collecting sensor information - H04W 4/42: for mass transport vehicles, e.g. buses, trains or aircraft - H04W 4/70: Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC] - H04W 4/80: Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication - H04W 8/00: Network data management - H04W 8/10: between location register and external networks - H04W 8/12: between location registers or mobility servers - H04W 8/14: between corresponding nodes - H04W 8/16: selectively restricting mobility {data} tracking - H04W 48/04: based on user or terminal location or mobility data, e.g. moving direction, speed - 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) - G01S: RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES - G08B: SIGNALLING SYSTEMS, e.g. PERSONAL CALLING SYSTEMS; ORDER TELEGRAPHS; ALARM SYSTEMS - 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 Tracking devices can be associated with safe zones, smart zones, and high risk zones. Safe zones correspond to regions where a likelihood that a tracking device is lost within the safe zone is lower than outside the safe zone. High risk zones correspond to regions where a likelihood that a tracking device is lost within the high risk zone is higher than outside the high risk zone. Smart zones correspond to an expected tracking device, mobile device, or user behavior. Home areas are geographic regions in which a user resides, and travel areas are geographic regions in which a user does not reside. A tracking device can be configured to operate in a mode selected based on a presence of the tracking device within a safe zone, a smart zone, a high risk zone, a home area, or a travel area. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method for locating a tracking device, comprising: receiving, by a central tracking system from a mobile device, a location of the tracking device, the mobile device configured to provide the location of the tracking device to the central tracking system in response to receiving a communication from the tracking device; determining, by the central tracking system, that the tracking device is located within a smart zone in response to the received location being located within a geographic boundary associated with the smart zone; and in response to determining that the tracking device is located within the smart zone: identifying, by the central tracking system, an operating mode of a set of other tracking devices while the set of other tracking devices have been located within the smart zone in the past; and providing, by the central tracking system, an instruction to the mobile device to configure the tracking device to operate in the identified operating mode, the mobile device configured to configure the tracking device to operate in the operating mode in response to receiving the instruction. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the smart zone is associated with an entity comprising one or more of: a restaurant, a gym, a church, a school, a home, a store, and a place of business. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the smart zone is generated based on historical location data of a population of tracking devices. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The method of claim 3, wherein the smart zone is associated with an entity determined from an identification by one or more owners of the population of tracking devices. ### Claim 5 (depends on 3) The method of claim 3, wherein the smart zone is associated with an entity determined by querying an external location database with the historical location data of the population of the tracking devices. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the location of the tracking device comprises a location of the mobile device when the mobile device receives the communication from the tracking device. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving, by the central tracking system, a second location of the tracking device; determining, by the central tracking system, that the tracking device is located outside of the smart zone in response to the received second location being located outside the geographic boundary associated with the smart zone; and in response to determining that the tracking device is located outside of the smart zone, providing, by the central tracking system, a second instruction to the mobile device to configure the tracking device to operate in a normal operating mode, the mobile device configured to configure the tracking device to operate in the normal operating mode in response to receiving the second instruction. ### Claim 8 A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing executable computer instructions that, when executed by a processor, perform steps for locating a tracking device comprising: receiving, by a central tracking system from a mobile device, a location of the tracking device, the mobile device configured to provide the location of the tracking device to the central tracking system in response to receiving a communication from the tracking device; determining, by the central tracking system, that the tracking device is located within a smart zone in response to the received location being located within a geographic boundary associated with the smart zone; and in response to determining that the tracking device is located within the smart zone: identifying, by the central tracking system, an operating mode of a set of other tracking devices while the set of other tracking devices have been located within the smart zone in the past; and providing, by the central tracking system, an instruction to the mobile device to configure the tracking device to operate in the identified operating mode, the mobile device configured to configure the tracking device to operate in the operating mode in response to receiving the instruction. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the smart zone is associated with an entity comprising one or more of: a restaurant, a gym, a church, a school, a home, a store, and a place of business. ### Claim 10 (depends on 8) The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the smart zone is generated based on historical location data of a population of tracking devices. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the smart zone is associated with an entity determined from an identification by one or more owners of the population of the tracking devices. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the smart zone is associated with an entity determined by querying an external location database with the historical location data of the population of tracking devices. ### Claim 13 (depends on 8) The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the location of the tracking device comprises a location of the mobile device when the mobile device receives the communication from the tracking device. ### Claim 14 (depends on 8) The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, the steps further comprising: receiving, by the central tracking system, a second location of the tracking device; determining, by the central tracking system, that the tracking device is located outside of the smart zone in response to the received second location being located outside the geographic boundary associated with the smart zone; and in response to determining that the tracking device is located outside of the smart zone, providing, by the central tracking system, a second instruction to the mobile device to configure the tracking device to operate in a normal operating mode, the mobile device configured to configure the tracking device to operate in the normal operating mode in response to receiving the second instruction. ### Claim 15 A central tracking system for locating a tracking device, comprising: a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing executable instructions that, when executed, perform steps comprising: receiving, by a central tracking system from a mobile device, a location of the tracking device, the mobile device configured to provide the location of the tracking device to the central tracking system in response to receiving a communication from the tracking device; determining, by the central tracking system, that the tracking device is located within a smart zone in response to the received location being located within a geographic boundary associated with the smart zone; and in response to determining that the tracking device is located within the smart zone: identifying, by the central tracking system, an operating mode of a set of other tracking devices while the set of other tracking devices have been located within the smart zone in the past; and providing, by the central tracking system, an instruction to the mobile device to configure the tracking device to operate in the identified operating mode, the mobile device configured to configure the tracking device to operate in the operating mode in response to receiving the instruction; and a processor for executing the instructions. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The system of claim 15, wherein the smart zone is associated with an entity comprising one or more of: a restaurant, a gym, a church, a school, a home, a store, and a place of business. ### Claim 17 (depends on 15) The system of claim 15, wherein the smart zone is generated based on historical location data of a population of tracking devices. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The system of claim 17, wherein the smart zone is associated with an entity determined from an identification by one or more owners of the population of tracking devices. ### Claim 19 (depends on 17) The system of claim 17, wherein the smart zone is associated with an entity determined by querying an external location database with the historical location data of the population of the tracking devices. ### Claim 20 (depends on 15) The system of claim 15, wherein the location of the tracking device comprises a location of the mobile device when the mobile device receives the communication from the tracking device.