Cloud-based device twinning

• US 10,057,738 B2
• Filed: 06/28/2017
• Issued: 08/21/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/07/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.), AT&T Mobility II LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Schmit, Edward G., Das, Jayanta
• Primary Examiner(s): Nealon, William
• Application Number:
  US15/636,456
• Publication Number:
  US 20170303104A1
• Time in Patent Office: 419 Days
• Field of Search: 455417
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42272 whereby the subscriber registers to the terminals for personalised service provision
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/543 Call deflection
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/16 Communication-related supplementary services, e.g. call-transfer or call-hold

Abstract

A network-based service is utilized to facilitate twinning of two or more communication devices associated with a subscriber account. Incoming communication is intercepted by a communication device and forwarded to a network server, which in turn transmits the incoming communication to the multiple twinned devices. In addition, identifier data associated with outgoing communication is replaced with a primary identifier (e.g., customer telephone number (CTN)) of a user'"'"'s primary device or a common identifier (e.g., a mobile one number (MON)) assigned to devices associated with the user'"'"'s subscriber account. Communication devices can be temporarily twinned for a defined time period, during which a common bill can be generated for the twinned devices.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a processor; and

a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, facilitate performance of operations, comprising;

receiving communication data that is directed to a destination device, wherein the communication data comprises first identifier data representing a first user equipment,

based on information accessed from a network data store of a communication network, determining that the first identifier data has been linked to second identifier data representing a second user equipment, and

in response to the determining, replacing, within the communication data, the first identifier data with the second identifier data to generate updated communication data that is to be directed to the destination device.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the first user equipment comprises a device that has been leased by a subscriber identity associated with the second user equipment.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the first user equipment comprises a device of a vehicle coupled to a network device of the communication network.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

facilitating a transmission of the updated communication data to the destination device via a network device of the communication network.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the second identifier data is indicative of a customer telephone number.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving instruction data indicative of an instruction to link the first user equipment to the second user equipment.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving timing data indicative of a time period during which the first user equipment and the second user equipment are to be linked.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the operations further comprise:

in response to determining that the timing data satisfies an expiration criterion, unlinking the first user equipment and the second user equipment.

9. The system of claim 6, wherein the operations further comprise:

in response to receiving, from the second user equipment, authorization data indicative of an authorization to link the first user equipment with the second user equipment, facilitating the linking of the first identifier data to the second identifier data.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the authorization data is received via a text message.

11. A method, comprising:

linking, by a system comprising a processor, identifiers of communication devices associated with a common subscriber identity;

based on input data, selecting, by the system, a primary identifier of the identifiers; and

in response to receiving, from a secondary communication device of the communication devices, communication data, comprising a secondary identifier of the identifiers and that is directed to a destination device, replacing, by the system, the secondary identifier with the primary identifier to generate modified communication data that is to be directed to the destination device.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

receiving, by the system, timing data indicative of a time period during which the identifiers are to be linked, wherein the linking comprises linking the identifiers during the time period.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the receiving the timing data comprises receiving the timing data indicative of the time period for which the secondary communication device has been leased.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

receiving, by the system, input data indicative of an instruction to delink the identifiers; and

in response to the receiving the input data, delinking the identifiers.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the communication data is first communication data, the destination device is a first destination device, and the method further comprises:

subsequent to the delinking and in response to the receiving, from the secondary communication device, second communication data that comprises the secondary identifier and that is directed to a second destination device, facilitating, by the system, a transmission of the second communication data to the second destination device.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the linking comprises linking customer telephone numbers of the communication devices.

17. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processor facilitate performance of operations, comprising:

based on receiving input data, associating communication devices that are related to a common subscriber identity;

determining a primary identifier associated with the common subscriber identity; and

in response to receiving, from a source communication device of the communication devices, communication data that comprises a source identifier indicative of the source communication device and that is directed to a destination device, replacing the source identifier with the primary identifier to generate modified communication data that is to be provided to the destination device.

18. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the associating comprises storing, within a network data store, association data indicative of association between identifiers of the communication devices.

19. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the associating comprises associating the communication devices during a time period that is determined to satisfy a defined timing criterion.

20. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the source communication device comprises a device that is rented for a defined time period.