System and method for determining device proximity

1. A computer-implemented method for determining device proximity, the computer-implemented method comprising the steps of:

encoding, by a first device, a pairing secret into a displayable code;

initiating, by a second device, an application for initializing a proximity function;

determining, by the application for initializing the proximity function on the second device, parameters of a camera of the second device;

analyzing, by the application for initializing the proximity function on the second device, parameters of the camera for configuring a rectangle size;

determining, by the application for initializing the proximity function on the second device, the rectangle size according to the parameters of the camera and a position of the second device proximate to the first device determined by the application for initializing the proximity function, wherein the rectangle size (S) is determined according to the equation:

S

=

f

·

x

·

R

y

D

ymax

⁡

(

c

-

f

)

,

wherein f is a focal point of the camera of the second device,

wherein x is a size of the displayable code on the first device,

wherein R y is a y dimension of a display resolution of the display of the second device,

wherein D ymax is a y dimension of a sensor chip of the camera of the second device, and

wherein c is a threshold distance between the first device and the second device;

displaying, by a display of the second device, the rectangle over an image of the displayable code obtained by the camera, wherein the displayed rectangle has the determined rectangle size;

determining, by the second device, when the displayable code in the image substantially fills the rectangle; and

in response to determining that the displayable code in the image substantially fills the rectangle:

decoding, by the second device, the displayable code to determine the pairing secret; and

completing a wireless pairing of the first and second devices using the pairing secret.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the displayable code comprises a Quick Response (QR) code or a barcode.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the step of determining parameters of the camera includes determining at least one of a focal length, dimensions of a sensor chip, and a display resolution of the camera.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising the step of:

in response to completing the pairing, storing, by the first device, a signal strength and device identifier data associated with the second device.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the wireless pairing comprises a Bluetooth pairing.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the rectangle size is configured based, at least in part, on the parameters of the camera and a predetermined or configurable threshold distance.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first and second devices is a mobile computing device.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the first device is a source computing device and the second device is a mobile computing device.

9. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having a program stored thereon, the program causing a computer system to execute the steps of:

initiating an application for initializing a proximity function associated with a camera;

determining parameters of the camera;

analyzing the parameters of the camera for configuring a rectangle size;

determining the rectangle size according to the parameters of the camera and a position of the computer system determined by the application for initializing the proximity function, wherein the rectangle size (S) is determined according to the equation:

S

=

f

·

x

·

R

y

D

ymax

⁡

(

c

-

f

)

,

wherein f is a focal point of the camera,

wherein x is a size of the displayable code,

wherein R y is a y dimension of a display resolution of a display of the second computing device,

wherein D ymax is a y dimension of a sensor chip of the camera, and

wherein c is a threshold distance between the first and second computing devices;

displaying the rectangle over an image obtained by the camera, wherein the displayed rectangle has the determined rectangle size;

determining when a displayable code in the image substantially fills the rectangle; and

in response to determining that the displayable code in the image substantially fills the rectangle:

decoding the displayable code to produce a pairing secret; and

completing a wireless pairing of first and second computing devices using the pairing secret.

10. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 9 , wherein the step of determining parameters of the camera includes determining at least one of a focal length, dimensions of a sensor chip, and a display resolution of the camera.

11. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 9 , wherein the rectangle size is configured based, at least in part, on the parameters of the camera and a predetermined or configurable threshold distance.

12. A computer-implemented method for authorizing use of a first device or accessible application thereon, the computer-implemented method comprising the steps of:

encoding, by a first device, a pairing secret into a displayable code;

presenting the displayable code on the first device;

displaying a boundary on a second device, wherein a size of the boundary is determined according to parameters of a camera of the second device and a position of the second device proximate to the first device, wherein the size (S) of the boundary is determined according to the equation:

S

=

f

·

x

·

R

y

D

ymax

⁡

(

c

-

f

)

,

wherein f is a focal point of the camera,

wherein x is a size of the displayable code,

wherein R y is a y dimension of a display resolution of a display of the first device,

wherein D ymax is a y dimension of a sensor chip of the camera, and

wherein c is a threshold distance between the first and second devices;

determining when an image of the displayable code substantially fills an area defined by the boundary;

in response to determining that the displayable code in the image substantially fills the area defined by the boundary:

decoding, by the second device, the displayable code to determine the pairing secret; and

completing a wireless pairing of the first and second devices using the pairing secret.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 12 , further comprising the step of:

in response to completing the pairing of the first and second devices, measuring a first value of a signal strength between the first and second devices.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 13 , further comprising the step of:

saving the first value of the measured signal strength as a threshold value for later use.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 14 , further comprising the steps of:

after the pairing of the first and second devices, measuring a second value of the signal strength between the first and second devices; and

determining when the second value of the signal strength is at least equal to or greater than the threshold value.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 15 , further comprising the step of:

in response to determining that the second value of the signal strength is at least equal to or greater than the threshold value, authorizing use of the first computing device.