Transmitting an Automatic Request Based on Location

Abstract

A system has a device connected to a network and an access point. The access point is configured to communicate with the portable computing device using a wireless communication protocol. The access point is further configured to receive from the portable computing device identification information of the portable computing device. The access point is further configured to transmit a location of the access point and the identification information to the device. The device determines a service provider based on the location and based on a prior user transaction, the prior user transaction determined based on the identification information, and automatically transmits a request to the service provider.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system comprising:
 a device connected to a network; and   an access point to communicate with a portable computing device using a wireless communication protocol by:
 receiving identification information of the portable computing device from the portable computing device; and 
 transmitting a location of the access point and the identification information to the device. 
 wherein the device is configured to:
 determine a service provider based on the location and based on a prior user transaction, the prior user transaction determined based on the identification information; and 
 automatically transmit a request for a service to the service provider. 
 
   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the service provider corresponds to a car rental agency, a hotel, a restaurant, an airline reservation center, a bank, a taxi service, a bus service, or a train service. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the service provider corresponds to a printing service, an online database service, a message service, or an E-mail service. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the request causes the service provider to book travel reservations, hotel reservations, car reservations, restaurant reservations, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the service provider is selected based further on habits, preferences, or a combination thereof determined based on the identification information. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 5 , wherein the service provider is selected based further on a travel history determined based on the identification information. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 6 , wherein the request is interpreted based on the past user transaction, the habits, the preferences, the travel history, or a combination thereof 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein:
 the service provider is a car rental company;   the request is for a car rental reservation; and   interpreting the request comprises automatically selecting a type of car to reserve.   
     
     
         9 . A method comprising:
 receiving, at a device connected to a network, identification information of a portable computing device and a location of an access point in communication with the portable computing device;   determining a service provider based on the location and based on a prior user transaction, the prior user transaction determined based on the identification information; and   automatically transmitting a request for a service to the service provider.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the access point is a particular access point of a plurality of access points in a geographic region. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the access point is a particular access point of a plurality of access points. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the access point is programmed to determine whether the portable computing device is within range of the access point. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the location corresponds to a particular airport. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 9 , further comprising determining a level of service of a user of the portable computing device, wherein the request is transmitted in response to determining that the level of service meets a requirement. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the request is transmitted via E-mail. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 9 , further comprising sending billing information corresponding to the service to a database, wherein the database includes billing information for a plurality of service providers. 
     
     
         17 . A computer readable storage device storing instructions that when executed by a processor cause the processor to perform operations comprising:
 detecting, at a device connected to a network, identification information of a portable computing device and a location of an access point in communication with the portable computing device;   determining a service provider based on the location and based on a prior user transaction, the prior user transaction determined based on the identification information; and   causing a request to be transmitted to the service provider.   
     
     
         18 . The computer readable storage device of  claim 17 , wherein the location is determined based on a proximity of the access point to a second location. 
     
     
         19 . The computer readable storage device of  claim 17 , wherein the location comprises a latitude and a longitude. 
     
     
         20 . The computer readable storage device of  claim 17 , wherein the operations further comprise causing a message based on the service provider to be sent to the portable computing device.