UNINTERRUPTED USAGE AND ACCESS OF PHYSICALLY UNREACHABLE MANAGED HANDHELD DEVICE

• US 20100240401A1
• Filed: 03/19/2009
• Published: 09/23/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/19/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Micro Focus Software, Inc. (Open Text Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Novell Incorporated (Open Text Corporation)
• Inventors: Davda, Nikita, Rajendran, Abirami
• Granted Patent: US 8,107,942 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/466
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/18 Commands or executable codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/214 using selective forwarding
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/16 Communication-related supplementary services, e.g. call-transfer or call-hold

Abstract

Techniques for uninterrupted usage and access to physically unreachable handheld devices are provided. A physically unreachable handheld device includes an automated agent that is configured to authenticate a message received without manual intervention and to forward information from the handheld device to another remote and different handheld device.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method that is adapted to executed by a processor on a portable handheld device to perform the method, comprising:

automatically detecting, without manual intervention, a text message, the text message having a predefined format with a predefined content, the text message also identified as being received from a remote and different device;

verifying, without manual intervention, the predefined content;

sending, without manual intervention, a secret to an email address associated with an owner of the portable handheld device;

receiving, without manual intervention, the secret in a second text message from the remote and different device, the second text message in the predefined format;

verifying, without manual intervention, the secret; and

instituting, without manual intervention, a predefined policy to forward information from the portable handheld device to the remote and different device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein automatically detecting further includes recognizing the predefined content as the email address associated with the owner.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein sending further includes randomly generating the secret.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein instituting further includes forwarding voice calls subsequently received on the portable handheld device to the remote and different device in response to the predefined policy.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein instituting further includes forwarding one or more of the following the remote and different device in response to the predefined policy:

a voice call log for voice calls received on the portable handheld device, a contact list for contacts included on the portable handheld device, and a text message log for text messages received on the portable handheld device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein instituting further includes retrieving a specific document on the portable handheld device to forward to the remote and different device, wherein an identifier for the specific document is included with the secret and the second text message.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein instituting further includes retrieving status information on the portable handheld device to forward to the remote and different device, wherein an instruction for retrieving the status information is included with the secret and the second text message.

8. A computer-implemented method that is adapted to executed by a processor on a portable handheld device to perform the method, comprising:

receiving, at a portable handheld device, a message from a remote portable handheld device;

inspecting the message and detecting an email address in the body of the message with special characters delimiting the email address;

validating the email address is associated with an owner of the portable handheld device;

sending a code to the email address;

acquiring a second message having the code; and

configuring the portable handheld device to forward subsequent incoming messages or voice calls to the remote portable handheld device.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising, processing the method on a digital phone that is the portable handheld device.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein receiving the message further includes receiving the message as a text message via a Short Message Service (SMS) protocol over a wireless communication service provider network.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein receiving the message further includes recognizing the remote portable handheld device as a remote digital phone.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein inspecting further includes identifying the email address as a previously registered email address provided previously by the owner, and registered with the method on the portable handheld device by the owner.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein configuring further includes forwarding calendar information included on the portable handheld device in response to an instruction included with the second message.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein configuring further includes forwarding one or more of the following in response to an instruction included with the second message:

pictures, videos, music, and audio messages.

15. A machine-implemented system, comprising:

a portable handheld device; and

an automated agent service implemented in a computer readable storage medium of the portable handheld device and to execute on one or more processors of the portable handheld device;

wherein the agent service is configured to automatically detect predefined formatted instructions that activate the agent service on the portable handheld device and that instruct the portable handheld device to forward information from the portable handheld device to a remote portable handheld device.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the portable handheld device is a first digital phone and the remote portable handheld device is another different portable phone.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the predefined formatted instructions are received as Short Message Service (SMS) text messages over a wireless communication service provider network.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the predefined formatted instructions direct the agent service to forward one or more of the following from the portable handheld device to the remote portable handheld device:

incoming calls that are being received on portable handheld device, a call log on the portable handheld device, requested calendar data from the portable handheld device, a text message log on the portable handheld device, incoming text messages that are being received on the portable handheld device, a requested document on the portable handheld device, status information for the portable handheld device, a requested picture on the portable handheld device, a request song on the portable handheld device, a requested video on the portable handheld device, a requested audio message on the portable handheld device, a contact list on the portable handheld device, instant messages being received on the portable handheld device, an instant message log on the portable handheld device, and a requested content on the portable handheld device.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the agent service is configured via one of the predefined formatted instructions to forward selective portions of the information to one or more additional devices.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the agent service employs a security procedure via an email address of an owner of the portable handheld device to authenticate the predefined formatted instructions before information is forwarded to the remote portable handheld device.

21. A portable digital phone, comprising:

an automated agent service implemented in a computer-readable storage medium and adapted to execute on one or more processors of the portable digital phone;

wherein the agent service is configured to operate without manual intervention, and wherein the agent service is to automatically detect an email address embedded in predefined characters as a text message sent to the portable digital phone over a wireless communication provider network, and in response to the email address the agent service generates a secret that is sent to the email address thereafter the agent service receives the secret as a second text message from a different digital phone and in response thereto the agent service forwards incoming information that is being received at the portable digital phone to the different digital phone.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the agent service is configured to receive instructions after the secret is verified to forward selective content residing on the portable digital phone to the different digital phone.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein the agent service is configured to automatically send a battery status level to the different digital phone immediately after the secret is verified.

24. The system of claim 21, wherein the portable digital phone is also a personal digital assistant (PDA).