AUTOMATICALLY QUIETING MOBILE DEVICES

• US 20130225152A1
• Filed: 12/22/2012
• Published: 08/29/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Matthews, Joseph H. III, King, Joseph Spencer, Schrader, Joseph A., Chen, Ted Tai-Yu, Sarin, Raman K.
• Application Number:
  US13/726,090
• Publication Number:
  US 20130225152A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/419
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/37 Managing security policies for mobile devices or for controlling mobile applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/21 for social networking applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/50 Service provisioning or reconfiguring
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/04 based on user or terminal location or mobility data, e.g. moving direction, speed
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/24 Transfer of terminal data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/18 between terminal devices

Abstract

In implementations of automatically quieting mobile devices, a mobile device includes a communication interface for communicating with other devices that are associated with the mobile device, and the other devices correspond to respective users of the devices. A device quiet service is implemented to initiate a device quiet control that quiets one or more of the other associated devices that are controllable by the mobile device, and the device quiet service initiates communication of the device quiet control to the associated devices. A device quiet control can be initiated to restrict communication functions of the other associated devices, such as for a designated time duration. Alternatively or in addition, a device quiet control can quiet the other associated devices at a designated location, during an event, within a designated quiet zone, and/or quiet the associated devices that are proximate the mobile device at a location.

Claims

1. A mobile device, comprising:

a communication interface configured for communicating with one or more other devices that are associated with the mobile device, the one or more associated devices corresponding to one or more users of the devices;

a processing system to implement computer instructions as a device quiet service that is configured to;

initiate a device quiet control configured to quiet one or more of the associated devices that are controllable by the device; and

initiate communication of the device quiet control to the one or more associated devices.

2. A mobile device as recited in claim 1, further comprising an integrated display device, and wherein the device quiet service is configured to receive the device quiet control via a user interface that is displayable on the integrated display device.

3. A mobile device as recited in claim 1, wherein the device quiet control is configured to restrict functions of the one or more other associated devices.

4. A mobile device as recited in claim 1, wherein the device quiet control is configured to quiet the one or more other associated devices for a designated time duration.

5. A mobile device as recited in claim 1, wherein the device quiet control is configured to quiet the one or more other associated devices at a designated location.

6. A mobile device as recited in claim 1, wherein the device quiet control is configured to quiet the one or more other associated devices during an event.

7. A mobile device as recited in claim 1, wherein the device quiet control is configured to quiet the one or more associated devices within a designated quiet zone.

8. A mobile device as recited in claim 1, wherein the device quiet service is configured to initiate the device quiet control for one or more of the other associated devices that are proximate the mobile device at a location.

9. A mobile device as recited in claim 1, wherein the device quiet service is configured to initiate a device activation control to un-restrict functions of an associated other device responsive to a bump input of the associated other device contacting the mobile device.

10. A method, comprising:

displaying a user interface on a display of a mobile device from which a user can control one or more other devices that are associated with the mobile device;

receiving an input of a device quiet control via the user interface, the device quiet control configured to quiet one or more of the other associated devices that are controllable by the mobile device; and

communicating the device quiet control to the one or more other associated devices.

11. A method as recited in claim 10, further comprising restricting communication functions of the one or more other associated devices with the device quiet control.

12. A method as recited in claim 10, further comprising quieting the one or more other associated devices for a designated time duration.

13. A method as recited in claim 10, further comprising quieting the one or more other associated devices at least one of:

at a designated location;

during an event;

or

within a designated quiet zone.

14. A method as recited in claim 10, further comprising quieting one or more of the other associated devices that are proximate the mobile device at a location.

15. A method as recited in claim 10, further comprising un-restricting communication functions of an associated other device responsive to a bump input of the associated other device contacting the mobile device.

16. A device quiet system, comprising:

a network service device to execute computer instructions as a device quiet service that is configured to;

receive a device quiet control from a mobile device, the device quiet control initiated to quiet one or more other devices that are associated with the mobile device and that correspond to one or more users of the devices;

determine the one or more other devices that are controllable by the mobile device based on identifiers of the mobile device and the one or more other devices; and

communicate the device quiet control received from the mobile device to the one or more other devices that are associated with the mobile device.

17. A device quiet system as recited in claim 16, wherein the device quiet control is configured to restrict communication functions of the one or more other devices that are associated with the mobile device.

18. A device quiet system as recited in claim 16, wherein the device quiet control is configured to quiet the one or more associated devices for a designated time duration.

19. A device quiet system as recited in claim 16, wherein the device quiet control is configured to quiet the one or more other devices at least one of:

at a designated location;

during an event;

or

within a designated quiet zone.

20. A device quiet system as recited in claim 16, wherein the device quiet control is configured to quiet one or more other devices that are proximate the mobile device at a location.