US 6,594,666 B1 · Location aware application development framework

Abstract

A shareable application program interface (API) infrastructure which is used in combination with a relational database to provide data storage and processing functions for location-aware objects, including particularly mobile objects whose current position is periodically updated by a position determining system. Client and service tables in the relational database are used to store the current point location, and other data, representing virtual objects, including mobile objects. A region table stores that describing the geometry and characteristics of geographical regions having defined boundaries within which the client and service objects reside. For each client, the set of services used by that client is recorded in a client profile database table. The services available on the system which are position-dependent have a geographical location associated with them. The API makes available an assortment of location dependent processing functions which may be used by location aware applications.

Claims22

Dependent claims

Apparatus for performing location-dependent data processing operations comprising, in combination,

a relational database management system for creating and updating data structures describing fixed and movable objects, said data structures comprising:
a services table containing information describing each of a plurality of different services, including data specifying the geographic location of each such service,
a clients table containing information describing client entities which potentially use one or more of the services described in said services table, including data specifying the geographic location of each such client entity, and
a regions table containing information describing a plurality of geographic regions, including data describing the geographical boundaries which define the geometric extent of each of said geographic regions and additional data which further characterizes each such region,
means for presenting a standard application program interface for responding to service requests from cooperating computer programs by performing predetermined processing operations with respect to said fixed and movable objects defined by said relational database management system.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Location aware application development framework

Life of this patent

Location aware application development framework

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims22