Obviousness

Obviousness Analysis of US Patent 9031581 under 35 U.S.C. § 103

This analysis identifies combinations of prior art references, as disclosed within US patent 9031581 itself, that would render the independent claims (1, 26, and 42) obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art (POSA) at the time of the invention (priority date 2005-04-04). The patent explicitly states that its functionality "utilizes existing platforms and infrastructure," suggesting a combination of known elements.

Identified Prior Art from US9031581:

The patent text describes the following as prior art or existing technology:

• One-way location sharing systems: This includes services like On Star and Mercedes Benz TeleAid, where vehicles with GPS receivers and cellular phone capability transmit their location to a central aid center for tracking and communication. [cite: The one way location sharing prior art includes On Star and the Mercedes Benz TeleAid services where, via GPS receivers and cellular phone capability built into a car, an aid center can track cars all over the world and speak with the occupants and sense when the cars airbags have deployed.]
• Commercial kid tracking systems: These services allow parents to track their children's locations in a one-way manner. [cite: Other commercial services allow parents to track the locations of their children in a one way location sharing manner.] The patent notes a limitation of these systems: they "could not be reconfigured in the field to add new individuals with whom location information was to be shared." [cite: the prior art kid tracking systems could not be reconfigured in the field to add new individuals with whom location information was to be shared.]
• Typical prior art cellular system infrastructure (FIG. 12): This encompasses cellular devices (phones, PDAs), transceiver towers, central switching systems, and a public service telephone network, facilitating digital radio communications. [cite: FIG. 12 is a block diagram of a typical prior art cellular system infrastructure in which the method and apparatus of the invention work in a peer-to-peer embodiment.]
• E911 requirements: These mandates ensure that emergency calls from cellular devices transmit location information. [cite: Use and sale of an application that makes use of the on-board GPS capability of cell phones and PDAs built to comply with the E911 requirement allows the carriers to recoup some of the costs imposed upon them by the E911 requirement.]
• General knowledge of web-enabled, Java-enabled cell phones/PDAs with GPS and displays: The patent refers to these as suitable for its "preferred embodiment," indicating their pre-existence. [cite: the invention contemplates 2.5 GHz and 3 GHz Java enabled, web enabled (or similar) cell phones and Personal Digital Assistants or other web enabled wireless products with global positioning system (GPS) receivers and sufficiently large liquid crystal displays for the preferred embodiment.]
• General knowledge of "Buddy Lists" or contact lists: These were common in instant messaging and phone contact applications for managing groups of contacts for communication.

Obviousness of Claim 1: System for Location-Based Services

Combination of References:
A POSA would combine:

1. One-way location sharing prior art (On Star/TeleAid): Teaches obtaining a device's location (GPS), transmitting it via a cellular network, and a central system (aid center/server) tracking and displaying this location. [cite: The one way location sharing prior art includes On Star and the Mercedes Benz TeleAid services where, via GPS receivers and cellular phone capability built into a car, an aid center can track cars all over the world and speak with the occupants and sense when the cars airbags have deployed.]
2. Commercial kid tracking systems: Reinforces the concept of location tracking from a mobile device to another party or central system. [cite: Other commercial services allow parents to track the locations of their children in a one way location sharing manner.]
3. Typical prior art cellular system infrastructure (FIG. 12): Provides the underlying network and communication channels for transmitting data between wireless devices and servers. [cite: FIG. 12 is a block diagram of a typical prior art cellular system infrastructure in which the method and apparatus of the invention work in a peer-to-peer embodiment.]
4. E911 requirements: Teaches the concept of automatically including location data with emergency communications. [cite: Use and sale of an application that makes use of the on-board GPS capability of cell phones and PDAs built to comply with the E911 requirement allows the carriers to recoup some of the costs imposed upon them by the E911 requirement.]
5. General knowledge of "Buddy Lists" from communication applications: Teaches the creation and management of user-defined lists of contacts for various interactions.

Motivation to Combine:
A POSA would be motivated to combine these references to address the "need... to allow them [users] to be able to contact rescuers and know the location of the rescuers... and to allow the rescuers to know the location of the victims they are trying to rescue." [cite: Another need is for a system for use by motorists, hikers, pilots and boatmen to allow them to be able to contact rescuers and know the location of the rescuers as they come to the aid of the stranded person and to allow the rescuers to know the location of the victims they are trying to rescue.]

• Mutual Tracking: Extending one-way location sharing (e.g., On Star reporting to an aid center, or kid trackers reporting to parents) to enable mutual, two-way location sharing between two individuals (e.g., a stranded motorist and a tow truck driver) directly addresses this stated need. A POSA would recognize that if a device can send its location, it can also receive and display the location of another device.
• Dynamic "Instant Buddy" Lists: The patent explicitly identifies a problem with "prior art kid tracking systems" that "could not be reconfigured in the field to add new individuals." [cite: the prior art kid tracking systems could not be reconfigured in the field to add new individuals with whom location information was to be shared.] A POSA would be motivated to solve this known problem by implementing a dynamic, temporary "Instant Buddy" feature, leveraging the known concept of "Buddy Lists" for ad-hoc group formation, especially for emergency scenarios where immediate contact and location sharing are crucial.
• Distress Messages: Integrating location information with distress messages (e.g., SOS alerts) is a natural extension of E911 functionality and existing emergency communication methods, particularly within a system designed for rescue scenarios.
• Server and Network Infrastructure: The use of a central server coupled to the internet and cellular networks for managing user accounts, storing location data, and sending maps/updates is a straightforward architectural choice for any large-scale networked service, readily derivable from the operations of On Star's aid center and general cellular network operations (FIG. 12).

Obviousness of Claim 26: Method for Sharing Location Information

Combination of References:
A POSA would combine:

1. GPS-enabled cellular wireless devices: For obtaining location. [cite: the invention contemplates 2.5 GHz and 3 GHz Java enabled, web enabled (or similar) cell phones and Personal Digital Assistants or other web enabled wireless products with global positioning system (GPS) receivers and sufficiently large liquid crystal displays for the preferred embodiment.]
2. One-way location sharing prior art (On Star/TeleAid/kid trackers): Teaches a device acquiring and transmitting its location to a central system or another device. [cite: The one way location sharing prior art includes On Star and the Mercedes Benz TeleAid services where, via GPS receivers and cellular phone capability built into a car, an aid center can track cars all over the world and speak with the occupants and sense when the cars airbags have deployed., Other commercial services allow parents to track the locations of their children in a one way location sharing manner.]
3. Typical prior art cellular system infrastructure (FIG. 12): Provides the network for transmitting data packets. [cite: FIG. 12 is a block diagram of a typical prior art cellular system infrastructure in which the method and apparatus of the invention work in a peer-to-peer embodiment.]
4. General knowledge of data encryption in wireless communication: Encryption for privacy and security of sensitive data (like location) transmitted over public networks was a known technique. [cite: Position information exchanged via radio transmission on the cellular infrastructure is encrypted so that outsiders cannot see or use location information that is transmitted.]
5. General knowledge of server-mediated messaging/communication systems: Servers receiving data from one client and forwarding it to others on a list (e.g., email, instant messaging).
6. General knowledge of "Buddy Lists" or contact lists.

Motivation to Combine:
Given the desire for mutual location awareness (as noted above), a POSA would find it obvious to extend a one-way server-mediated location transmission method to a two-way exchange. If a first device can send its location to a server, and the server can forward it to a second device, it is a straightforward design choice to enable the second device to perform the same steps (obtain, encrypt, send to server) for its own location, and for the server to forward that back to the first device, thereby achieving mutual location sharing. The use of encryption for location data is a common security practice for sensitive personal information in electronic communication.

Obviousness of Claim 42: Method for a Cellular Wireless Device

Combination of References:
A POSA would combine:

1. GPS-enabled cellular wireless devices with displays: For obtaining location and displaying information. [cite: the invention contemplates 2.5 GHz and 3 GHz Java enabled, web enabled (or similar) cell phones and Personal Digital Assistants or other web enabled wireless products with global positioning system (GPS) receivers and sufficiently large liquid crystal displays for the preferred embodiment.]
2. One-way location sharing prior art (On Star/TeleAid/kid trackers): Teaches the core concept of sending device location to a central system for tracking. [cite: The one way location sharing prior art includes On Star and the Mercedes Benz TeleAid services where, via GPS receivers and cellular phone capability built into a car, an aid center can track cars all over the world and speak with the occupants and sense when the cars airbags have deployed., Other commercial services allow parents to track the locations of their children in a one way location sharing manner.]
3. Typical prior art cellular system infrastructure (FIG. 12): The communication backbone for data transmission. [cite: FIG. 12 is a block diagram of a typical prior art cellular system infrastructure in which the method and apparatus of the invention work in a peer-to-peer embodiment.]
4. General knowledge of user interfaces (GUI) for mobile applications: Including menus and contact/buddy lists for selection. [cite: a simple menu structure allows easy setup and management of Buddy Watch application programs. The keypad of the phone or PDA is used to enter information into the Buddy Watch enabled device.]
5. General knowledge of data encryption and authentication in networked services: For secure transmission and verifying paid subscriptions. [cite: The Buddy Watch application will be a service which a cellular carrier offers on a subscription basis.]
6. Map servers and integration of map data with location points: Widely available mapping services and navigation systems that provide maps based on location data.
7. General knowledge of user-configurable settings/preferences in software applications: To allow users to customize parameters like update frequency or duration of temporary features. [cite: the users can change things on the fly in the field such as: adding groups and members; adding instant buddies, changing the size of the area in which their buddies can be tracked, enabling or disabling the location information sharing function without disabling the phone, etc.]

Motivation to Combine:
A POSA would be motivated to combine these references to provide a complete and user-friendly mobile application for location sharing.

• User Selection and Interface: Implementing a "Buddy List" or "Instant Buddy" feature through a user-friendly interface with menus and selection options (e.g., as described in FIG. 3 and FIG. 10) is a standard design practice for mobile applications, allowing users to initiate and manage location sharing.
• Server Processing and Map Display: The steps of the device sending encrypted location to a server, the server verifying subscriptions, retrieving other buddies' locations and a map, and sending this back to the device for display, are direct applications of extending existing one-way location tracking services (On Star) with widely available mapping technology and standard server-side application logic for a subscription-based service.
• Configurable Settings: Providing user-configurable settings for update frequency and "Instant Buddy" duration addresses common user needs for control over privacy, battery consumption, and the temporary nature of certain sharing relationships. These are routine design considerations for mobile applications and network services. [cite: the users can change things on the fly in the field such as: adding groups and members; adding instant buddies, changing the size of the area in which their buddies can be tracked, enabling or disabling the location information sharing function without disabling the phone, etc.]

In summary, the core inventive concept of US9031581, while addressing recognized problems, appears to be a combination of existing location tracking, cellular communication, and software design principles that would have been obvious to a POSA, driven by known needs for mutual, dynamic, and secure location sharing.