Patent ID: 8432904

Claim:
An intelligent access device for providing ad hoc closed user group communication between a plurality of communication devices, the intelligent access device comprising: a discovery module broadcasting a group-specific ping command to discover a set of Internet Protocol enabled end user communication devices associated with one of a plurality of an ad hoc closed user groups within communication range, the discovery module ascertaining an Internet Protocol address associated with each end user communication device; and a database storing information identifying the one ad hoc closed user group, members of the one ad hoc closed user group, and the Internet Protocol address of each member of the one ad hoc closed user group, wherein the discovery module broadcasts a plurality of unique, group-specific ping commands and ascertains the Internet Protocol address of each Internet Protocol enabled end user communication device, and wherein the database includes separate partitions for each ad hoc closed user group, with each partition storing information associated with each member of each ad hoc closed user group in a separate partition.