METHOD AND DEVICE FOR CONTROLLING THE FUNCTION OF MOBILE COMMUNICATION EQUIPMENT

• US 20090082001A1
• Filed: 10/13/2008
• Published: 03/26/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: -, Rahul, YU, Qian
• Application Number:
  US12/250,231
• Publication Number:
  US 20090082001A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/418
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72457 according to geographic location
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/10 including a GPS signal receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/04 based on user or terminal location or mobility data, e.g. moving direction, speed

Abstract

The present invention discloses a method for controlling functions of a mobile equipment. In the method, current location of a mobile equipment is compared with preconfigured location information associated with a function of the mobile equipment and the mobile equipment is controlled, according to a result of the comparing. The present invention may be implemented by an approach that the mobile equipment itself is in control or by an approach that a user identity module or a network is in control on the basis of the existing toolkit technology or over-the-air technology. The present invention also provides device solutions corresponding to the different approaches. With the present invention, an organization may set a restriction for the purpose of information security, while the employees of the organization may use high-end mobile equipments without changing the mobile equipments frequently. A mobile equipment may change its function status depending on different locations.

Claims

1. A method for control functions of a mobile equipment, comprising:

obtaining current location information of a mobile equipment;

comparing the current location information with preconfigured location information associated with a function state of the mobile equipment; and

controlling a function of the mobile equipment according to a result of the comparing.

2. The method for control functions of a mobile equipment according to claim 1, wherein obtaining the current location information of the mobile equipment comprises:

obtaining, by the mobile equipment, its own current location information periodically from a network;

or

obtaining, by the mobile equipment, its own current location information when the mobile equipment updates its own location.

3. The method for control functions of a mobile equipment according to claim 1, wherein obtaining the current location information of the mobile equipment comprises:

obtaining, by a user identify module used by the mobile equipment, its own current location information periodically from a network;

or

obtaining, by a user identify module used by the mobile equipment, its own current location information when the mobile equipment updates its own location.

4. The method for control functions of a mobile equipment according to claim 1, wherein controlling the function of the mobile equipment according to the result of the comparing comprises:

sending, by the mobile equipment or a user identity module used by the mobile equipment, a enabling or disabling instruction to a driver program of the function, according to the result of the comparing;

or

adding or deleting, by the mobile equipment or the user identity module, the function to or from a control interface of the function via a control instruction.

5. The method for control functions of a mobile equipment according to claim 1, wherein the preconfigured location information is stored on the mobile equipment.

6. The method for control functions of a mobile equipment according to claim 1, wherein obtaining the current location information of the mobile equipment comprises:

obtaining, by a network, the current location information of the mobile equipment periodically.

7. The method for control functions of a mobile equipment according to claim 6, wherein controlling the function of the mobile equipment according to the result of the comparing:

sending, by the network, a control instruction to the mobile equipment according to the result of the comparing;

controlling, by the mobile equipment, the function of the mobile equipment according to the control instruction;

or

forwarding, by the mobile equipment, the control instruction to a user identity module used by the mobile equipment; and

controlling, by the user identity unit, the function of the mobile equipment according to the control instruction.

8. The method for control functions of a mobile equipment according to claim 6, further comprising:

pre-configuring, by the network, a user list associated with the preconfigured location information, the user list being one or more groups of user lists associated with corresponding function states;

if the current location information is contained in the preconfigured location information, judging whether a user of the mobile equipment is recorded in the user list according to information of the user provided by a user identity module used by the mobile equipment; and

if the user is recorded in the user list, executing the procedure of controlling the function of the mobile equipment according to the result of the comparing.

9. The method for control functions of a mobile equipment according to claim 1, further comprising:

setting, by the mobile equipment, an enabling or disabling state of a function to be controlled as a normal state; and

restoring the state of the function to be controlled to the normal state if no control instruction is received from the network in a period.

10. The method for control functions of a mobile equipment according to claim 1, wherein the preconfigured location information is updated from a network by means of OTA download.

11. A mobile equipment, comprising:

an application unit, adapted to implement an application function of the mobile equipment according to a diver program of the application unit; and

a program controlling unit, adapted to provide program control associated with the driver program of the application unit to a user interface of the mobile equipment;

wherein, the mobile equipment further comprises;

a positioning unit, adapted to obtain current location information of the mobile equipment from a network;

a location shield list storing unit, adapted to store location information associated with a function state of the application unit of the mobile equipment; and

a function controlling unit, adapted to compare the current location information obtained by the positioning unit with the location information stored in the location shield list storing unit, and controlling a function of the mobile equipment according to a result of the comparing.

12. The mobile equipment according to claim 11, wherein the function controlling unit sends an enabling or disabling instruction to the driver program of the application unit, or sends a control instruction to the program controlling unit to add or delete the application function to or from a control interface of the program controlling unit, according to a result of the comparing.

13. The mobile equipment according to claim 11, further comprising:

a over-the-air (OTA) interface, adapted to obtain location information associated with the function state of the application unit of the mobile equipment from the network based on the OTA technology, and update the location shield list storing unit by storing the location information into the location shield list storing unit.

14. A user equipment, comprising a mobile equipment and a user identity module, the mobile equipment comprising:

an application unit, adapted to implement a function of the mobile equipment according to a diver program of the application unit; and

a program controlling unit, adapted to provide program control associated with the driver program of the application unit to a user interface of the mobile equipment;

wherein the user identity module comprises;

a location shield list storing unit, adapted to store location information associated with a function state of the application unit of the mobile equipment;

the mobile equipment further comprises;

a positioning unit, adapted to obtain current location information of the mobile equipment from the network; and

a function controlling unit, adapted to compare the current location information obtained by the positioning unit with the location information stored in the location shield list storing unit, and controlling a function of the mobile equipment according to a result of the comparing.

15. A user equipment, comprising a mobile equipment and a user identity module, wherein the mobile equipment comprises an application unit and a program controlling unit, the user identity module comprises a toolkit program interface, and

the application unit is adapted to implement a function of the mobile equipment according to a diver program of the application unit;

the program controlling unit is adapted to provide program control associated with the driver program of the application unit to a user interface of the mobile equipment;

the toolkit program interface is adapted to provide a control interface for the user identity module to control a mobile equipment of the user identity module;

wherein the mobile equipment further comprises a positioning unit and a location shield list storing unit, the user identity module further comprises a function controlling unit; and

the positioning unit is adapted to obtain current location information of the mobile equipment from a network periodically;

the location shield list storing unit is adapted to store location information associated with a function state of the application unit of the mobile equipment; and

the function controlling unit is adapted to obtain the current location information of the mobile equipment from the positioning unit, compare the current location information with the location information stored in the location shield list storing unit, and controlling a function of the mobile equipment according to a result of the comparing.

16. A user identity module, comprising:

a toolkit program interface, adapted to provide a control interface for the user identity module to control a mobile equipment of the user identity module;

wherein the user identity module further comprises a location shield list storing unit and a function controlling unit;

the location shield list storing unit is adapted to store location information associated with a function state of the mobile equipment; and

the function controlling unit is adapted to obtain current location information of the mobile equipment from the mobile equipment, compare the current location information with the location information stored in the location shield list storing unit, and control a function of the mobile equipment via the toolkit program interface according to a result of the comparing.

17. A network server used in a mobile communication system, comprising an over-the-air control interface adapted to provide a control interface for the network server to control a mobile equipment;

wherein the network server further comprises a positioning unit, a location shield list storing unit and a function controlling unit;

the positioning unit is adapted to obtain current location information of the mobile equipment;

the location shield list storing unit is adapted to store location information associated with a function state of the mobile equipment; and

the function controlling unit is adapted to compare the current location information obtained by the positioning unit with the location information stored in the location shield list storing unit, and control a function of the mobile equipment via the over-the-air control interface according to a result of the comparing.

18. The network server used in a mobile communication system according to claim 17, wherein the network server further comprises an effective user storing unit;

the effective user storing unit is adapted to store one or more groups of user lists associated with the location information stored in the location shield list storing unit, the one or more groups of user lists corresponding to corresponding function states; and

the function controlling unit is adapted to, after determining that the current location information obtained by the positioning unit is contained in the location information stored in the location shield list storing unit, judge whether a user of the mobile equipment is recorded in the one or more groups of user lists according to information of the user provided by a user identity module used by the mobile equipment, and control a function of the mobile equipment through the over-the-air control interface according to the result of the comparing.