On-device mapping of WIFI hotspots via direct connection of WIFI-enabled and GPS-enabled mobile devices

• US 20070167174A1
• Filed: 01/19/2006
• Published: 07/19/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 01/19/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Kirkland, Dustin, Halcrow, Michael
• Granted Patent: US 7,466,986 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/456.200
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/18 Selecting a network or a communication service
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/20 Selecting an access point
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

A WIFI-enabled and GPS-enabled user device executes a hotspot location utility, which enables the device to detect WIFI hotspots and update a locally-stored hotspot location database (LHLD) containing geographically-mapped hotspots. When a hotspot is detected, the device accesses the hotspot, retrieves identification information and usage terms from the hotspot, and measures performance metrics of the hotspot. The utility stores the identified hotspot with the current GPS coordinate as an entry within the LHLD. When a user later desires to locate hotspots within a particular geographic location, the user enters the physical address of the location, and hotspots with matching (or proximate) GPS coordinates of the entered address are presented to the user. The user may specify certain preferences for usage terms, performance metrics, and location criteria, and the utility filters all geographic hits and returns only hotspots in the geographic location that also satisfy these preferences.

Claims

1. A computer device comprising:

a processor;

local storage accessible to the processor and processor operations;

a locally-executed hotspot locating (LHSL) utility executing on the processor and which comprises program code that when executed by the processor performs the functions of;

responsive to a detection of a wireless hotspot by the wireless transceiver, identifying a current GPS coordinate of the computer device;

linking the current GPS coordinate with an identifier (ID) of the detected wireless hotspot; and

automatically updating a locally-stored hotspot location database (LHLD) stored on the local storage with an entry corresponding to the detected hotspot and linked GPS coordinate.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein said device is a mobile user device further comprising:

a system interconnect;

a global positioning system (GPS) receiver coupled to the system interconnect that records a current GPS location of the mobile device; and

a wireless transceiver coupled to the system interconnect and which is capable of detecting hotspots, supporting wireless connection to the hotspots, and receiving operating characteristics and performance metrics of the hotspots when wireless connectivity is established by the LHSL utility.

3. The device of claim 1, said hotspot locating utility further comprising code that when executed by the processor performs the functions of:

automatically initiating a connection to a wireless access point associated with the detected hotspot; and

dynamically retrieving information about the hotspot during the connection, said information comprising operating characteristics and performance metrics of the hotspot and associated service from among;

name/identification (ID) of the hotspot;

name of the hotspot service provider/vendor;

cost associated with accessing the hotspot;

availability of the hotspot, including general total uptime and periods of availability for access;

bandwidth of the wireless link to the hotspot;

estimated bandwidth of the link from the hotspot to the background network;

average time to establish a connection to the hotspot, guaranteed minimum download speed and minimum upload speed;

maximum, minimum and average latency added by the hotspot link;

accessibility range of the hotspot;

wireless signal attenuation characteristics exhibited by the hotspot;

overall quality of service (QoS) of the hotspot, determined utilizing parameters that define the quality, strength, and usability of the hotspot;

overall historical and current user rating of the hotspot.

4. The device of claim 3, wherein said code that provides the function of dynamically retrieving comprises code for:

accessing the hotspot;

transmitting one or more test packets to a backend network connected to an access device of the hotspot, said test packets causing a return packet to be generated by one or more hosts within the backend network and transmitted back to the device; and

determining operating characteristics and performance metrics of the hotspot and associated service based on the connection to the hotspot and the transmission and return of the test packets.

5. The device of claim 3, wherein said code that provides the function of updating the LHLD comprises code for:

storing the operating parameters and performance metrics within the entry for the hotspot; and

providing said operating parameters and performance metrics to a user when said user later requests a listing of hotspots that that results in an output the entry.

6. The device of claim 3, said code further comprising code for:

measuring the round-trip time for the test packets to return to determine network latency over the hotspot connection;

mapping bandwidth measurements, both peak and sustained, for the hotspot;

storing said network latency and bandwidth measurements within the hotspot entry;

comparing round-trip times of the detected hotspot against other round-trip times obtained for other hotspots in the geographical area to gauge relative performance; and

providing said latency, said relative performance and said bandwidth to a user when said user later requests a listing of hotspots that results in an output of the entry.

7. The device of claim 4, wherein said program code that provides the function of automatically updating comprises code for:

when the detected hotspot is previously identified within an existing entry of the LHLD, updating only the operating parameters and performance metrics of the existing entry whereby duplicate entries are avoided and the existing entry contains updated and current information; and

storing within the existing entry a time of a last update, wherein each entry is assigned a entry creation time and a most current update time that is adjusted as updates to the existing entry occur.

8. The device of claim 1, further comprising program code that when executed performs the functions of:

receiving a request for one or more hotspots within a particular geographic location;

determining which acceptable entries of the multiple entries within the HLD have a geographic location in proximity to the particular geographic location;

identifying those entries having proximate geographical locations as acceptable entries; and

providing an output of the acceptable entries to the user.

9. The device of claim 8, further comprising program code that when executed performs the functions of:

when said request includes user-preferences for operating characteristics and performance metrics associated with the acceptable hotspot, comparing the user preferred operating characteristics and performance metrics to the stored operating characteristics and performance metrics for each of the entries deemed acceptable based on their proximity to the specific geographical location; and

presenting for output only those entries that are both proximate to the specific geographic location and exhibit similar operating characteristics and performance metrics as the user-preferences;

wherein when no entry that is proximate to the specific geographic location also exhibits similar operating characteristics and performance metrics, said code comprises code for displaying a result that indicates that no entries proximate to the specific geographic location exhibits the user-preferences.

10. The device of claim 8, further comprising program code that when executed performs the functions of:

displaying a user interface within which a user may enter said request, said user interface being displayed locally on the device;

wherein said receiving of the request occurs when the user enters and submits the request within the user interface; and

wherein said providing displays said output via a graphical display associated with said user interface, and wherein for each returned acceptable entry, the output comprises one or more of;

hotspot and service identification information;

usage terms for the hotspot;

system requirements for accessing the hotspot;

known performance metrics a and operating characteristics of the hotspot;

street address;

driving directions from an origination point entered by the user within the request; and

, when graphics output is support by the user interface, a map of the location of the hotspot.

11. The device of claim 2, wherein said device includes a mechanism for generating and transmitting HOTs (hotspot operability transmissions) including corresponding GPS locations to a remote Provider.

12. The device of claim 2, further comprising:

a mechanism for establishing communication with a second device; and

wherein said LHSL utility further comprises code that when executed performs the functions of;

when the second device includes stored hotspot location data;

establishing a connection to communicate with the second device;

ascertaining that the hotspot location data on the second device is stored in a supported format for sharing;

updating the device'"'"'s LHLD with hotspot location data from the second device that is more recent than the hotspot data currently stored within the device'"'"'s LHLD; and

tagging the hotspot location data received from the second device as originating from the second device.

13. The device of claim 11, wherein said utility comprises program code that when executed performs the functions of:

when the second device is a peer device, dynamically establishing said connection as a peer-to-peer connection; and

when a share option is turned on within the device, said utility executes code that provides the function of automatically sharing the device'"'"'s LHLD with the second device.

17. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising program code that when executed performs the functions of:

receiving a request for one or more hotspots within a particular geographic location;

determining which acceptable entries of the multiple entries within the HLD have a geographic location in proximity to the particular geographic location;

identifying those entries having proximate geographical locations as acceptable entries;

when said request includes user-preferences for operating characteristics and performance metrics associated with the acceptable hotspot, comparing the user preferred operating characteristics and performance metrics to the stored operating characteristics and performance metrics for each of the entries deemed acceptable based on their proximity to the specific geographical location;

presenting for output only those entries that are both proximate to the specific geographic location and exhibit similar operating characteristics and performance metrics as the user-preferences; and

wherein when no entry that is proximate to the specific geographic location also exhibits similar operating characteristics and performance metrics, said code comprises code for displaying a result that indicates that no entries proximate to the specific geographic location exhibits the user-preferences.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising program code that when executed performs the functions of:

displaying a user interface within which a user may enter said request, said user interface being displayed locally on the device;

wherein said receiving of the request occurs when the user enters and submits the request within the user interface; and

wherein said providing displays said output via a graphical display associated with said user interface, and wherein for each returned acceptable entry, the output comprises one or more of;

hotspot and service identification information;

usage terms for the hotspot;

system requirements for accessing the hotspot;

known performance metrics a and operating characteristics of the hotspot;

street address;

driving directions from an origination point entered by the user within the request; and

, when graphics output is support by the user interface, a map of the location of the hotspot.

20. The computer program product of claim 18, wherein said utility further comprises program code that performs the functions of:

when a share option is turned on within the device, said utility executes code that provides the function of automatically sharing the device'"'"'s LHLD with the second device;

wherein when the second device is a Provider, said utility includes code that when executed performs the functions of generating and transmitting HOT (hotspot operability transmission) signals including GPS locations to the Provider;

updating the device'"'"'s LHLD with hotspot information from the second device that is more recent than the hotspot information within the device'"'"'s LHLD; and

tagging a source of any information received from the second device as originating from the second device.

14. A computer program product comprising:

a computer readable medium; and

program code for a hotspot location utility on the computer readable medium that when executed by a processor performs the functions of;

responsive to a detection of a wireless hotspot by the device on which said utility is executing;

identifying a current GPS coordinate of the device;

linking the current GPS coordinate with an identifier (ID) of the detected wireless hotspot; and

automatically updating a locally-stored hotspot location database (LHLD) on the device with an entry corresponding to the detected hotspot and linked GPS coordinate.

15. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein said device is a mobile device comprising a system interconnect, a global positioning system (GPS) receiver coupled to the system interconnect that receives current GPS location of the mobile device, and a wireless transceiver coupled to the system interconnect and which is capable of detecting hotspots and establishing wireless communication with the hotspots, wherein said hotspot locating utility further comprises code that when executed by the processor performs the following functions:

automatically initiating a connection to a wireless access point associated with the detected hotspot; and

dynamically retrieving information about the hotspot during the connection, said information comprising operating characteristics and performance metrics of the hotspot and associated service from among;

name/identification (ID) of the hotspot;

name of the hotspot service provider/vendor;

cost associated with accessing the hotspot;

availability of the hotspot, including general total uptime and periods of availability for access;

bandwidth of the wireless link to the hotspot;

estimated bandwidth of the link from the hotspot to the background network;

average time to establish a connection to the hotspot, guaranteed minimum download speed and minimum upload speed;

maximum, minimum and average latency added by the hotspot link;

accessibility range of the hotspot;

wireless signal attenuation characteristics exhibited by the hotspot;

overall quality of service (QoS) of the hotspot, determined utilizing parameters that define the quality, strength, and usability of the hotspot;

overall historical and current user rating of the hotspot.

16. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein:

said program code that provides the function of dynamically retrieving information comprises code for;

accessing the hotspot;

transmitting one or more test packets to a backend network connected to an access device of the hotspot, said test packets causing a return packet to be generated by one or more hosts within the backend network and transmitted back to the device;

measuring the round-trip time for the test packets to return to determine network latency over the hotspot connection;

mapping bandwidth measurements, both peak and sustained, for the hotspot; and

determining operating characteristics and performance metrics of the hotspot and associated service based on the connection to the hotspot and the transmission and return of the test packets;

wherein said code that provides the function of updating the LHLD comprises code for;

storing the operating parameters and performance metrics, including said network latency and bandwidth measurements, within the hotspot entry for the hotspot;

when the detected hotspot is previously identified within an existing entry of the LHLD, updating only the operating parameters and performance metrics of the existing entry whereby duplicate entries are avoided and the existing entry contains updated and current information;

storing within the existing entry a time of a last update, wherein each entry is assigned a entry creation time and a most current update time that is adjusted as updates to the existing entry occur;

comparing round-trip times of the detected hotspot against other round-trip times obtained for other hotspots in the geographical area to gauge relative performance; and

providing said operating parameters and performance metrics, including said latency, said relative performance and said bandwidth, to a user when said user later requests a listing of hotspots that that results in an output the entry.

19. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein said hotspot locating utility further comprises code that when executed performs the functions of:

displaying a HLD datashare GUI that provides user selectable options for determining how the device should receive updates of hotspot location data from other devices;

receiving user selections within the HLD datashare GUI;

configuring a share functionality of the HSL utility based on the received user selections;

establishing communication with a second device;

when the second device includes stored hotspot location data;

establishing a connection to communicate with the second device;

ascertaining that the hotspot location data on the second device is stored in a supported format for sharing; and

updating the device'"'"'s LHLD with hotspot location data from the second device that is more recent than the hotspot data currently stored within the device'"'"'s LHLD.