Managing a Fleet of Electronic Devices

• US 20140006567A1
• Filed: 06/27/2012
• Published: 01/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Kenneth O. Sanders II
• Inventors: Smith, Brandon J., Barry, Marcus A., Ducrou, Jon Robert, Brennan, Christopher M., Sanders, Kenneth O. II, Miller, Erik J., Lerner, David M., Budker, Andrew
• Granted Patent: US 9,021,069 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/220
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/177 Initialisation or configuration control processor initialisation G06F9/4405
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0803 Configuration setting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0806 for initial configuration or provisioning, e.g. plug-and-play
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/104 Grouping of entities
• 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 12/77 Graphical identity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/50 Service provisioning or reconfiguring

Abstract

This disclosure describes, in part, techniques for managing access to a fleet account of mobile electronic devices. For instance, an administrator of a business and educational institution may place an order with an offering service to purchase a large number of eBook reader devices. The offering service identifies that the business and educational institution is ordering a fleet of devices. Furthermore, each of the devices ordered are associated or registered to a managed or fleet account controlled by the administrator of the business and educational institution. The techniques described herein prevent an individual user of a fleet device from de-registering the device from the managed account, and also allow an account administrator to alter preferred settings of the managed account. Further, techniques are described for allowing a user of a device to opt-in or associate their device with the account.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

under control of one or more computing systems configured with executable instructions,

receiving an order for one or more client devices;

determining whether the one or more client devices are to be associated with an account;

at least partly in response to determining that the one or more client devices are to be associated with the account;

associating each of the one or more client devices with the account; and

sending configuration instructions to each of the one or more client devices, the configuration instructions adapted to modify a setting of each of the one or more client devices to prevent the respective client device from disassociation from the account,

wherein the account is associated with specified content, the specified content being accessible by each client device that is associated with the account.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the account is associated with specified content, the specified content being accessible by each client device that is associated with the account.

3. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the account is associated with multiple sub-groups, a first sub-group associated with first content accessible by a first group of devices and a second sub-group associated with second content accessible by a second group of devices.

4. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein determining that the one or more client devices are to be associated with the account further comprises determining that a number of the one or more client devices is greater than a threshold number.

5. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the one or more client devices are for distribution to individual users and the account is managed by at least one administrator, the method further comprising:

receiving a request from the at least one administrator to configure a setting on each of the one or more client devices; and

sending instructions to configure the setting on each of the one or more client devices at least partly in response to receiving the request from the at least one administrator.

6. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein each of the one or more client devices is associated with a respective device identifier, the associating comprises registering each of the device identifiers with the account, and the method further comprises:

receiving, over a network, an indication when a first one of the client devices is first powered on, the indication including a first device identifier of the first client device;

determining that the first device identifier has been registered with the account; and

wherein the sending of configuration instructions includes sending the configuration instructions to the first client device at least partly in response to determining that the first device identifier has been registered with the account.

7. A method as recited in claim 1, the method further comprising:

receiving, from an additional client device, a request to associate the additional client device with the account; and

at least partly in response to receiving the request, associating the additional client device with the account.

8. A system comprising:

one or more processors; and

one or more computer readable media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed on the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform acts comprising;

receiving a request to associate one or more client devices with an account;

associating each of the one or more client devices with the account in response to the request; and

sending configuration instructions to each of the one or more client devices, the configuration instructions adapted to modify a setting of the respective client device to prevent the respective client device from disassociation from the account.

9. A system as recited in claim 8, wherein the account is associated with specified content, the specified content being accessible by each client device that is associated with the account.

10. A system as recited in claim 9, wherein the account is managed by an educational institution or a business.

11. A system as recited in claim 9, wherein the account is associated with multiple sub-groups, a first sub-group associated with first content accessible by a first group of devices and a second sub-group associated with second content accessible by a second group of devices.

12. A system as recited in claim 8, wherein each of the one or more client devices are for distribution to individual users and the account is managed by at least one administrator, the acts further comprising:

receiving a request from the at least one administrator to configure a setting on each the one or more client devices; and

sending instructions to configure the setting on each of the one or more client devices at least partly in response to receiving the request from the at least one administrator.

13. A system as recited in claim 12, wherein the sending comprises communicating with each of the one or more client devices over a network after distributing a respective client device to a respective individual user.

14. A system as recited in claim 12, wherein the setting comprises disabling a web browser on each respective client device, disabling access to a web-store from each respective client device, requesting that each respective user implement a password for accessing the respective client device, disabling a media player on each respective client device, disabling each respective client device, requesting that each respective user implement a minimum password length for accessing the respective client device, disabling use of a specified wireless network by the respective client device, enabling a wireless network filter for the respective client device, enabling access to specific content, or preventing the respective client device from playing a specified game.

15. A system as recited in claim 8, wherein each of the one or more client devices is associated with a respective device identifier, the associating comprises registering each of the device identifiers with the account, and the system further comprises:

receiving, over a network, an indication when a first one of the client devices is first powered on, the indication including a first device identifier of the first client device;

determining that the first device identifier has been registered with the account; and

wherein the sending of configuration instructions includes sending the configuration instructions to the first client device at least partly in response to determining that the first device identifier has been registered with the account.

16. A system as recited in claim 8, the acts further comprising sending a message for display on each of the one or more client devices, the message indicating that each of the one or more client devices may not be disassociated from the account.

17. A system as recited in claim 8, the acts further comprising:

receiving, from an additional client device, a request to associate the additional client device with the account, the request comprising an indication that the additional client device has captured an image; and

at least partly in response to receiving the request, associating the additional client device with the account.

18. A system as recited in claim 17, wherein the image comprises a quick response (QR) code or a bar code that identifies the account.

19. A system as recited in claim 8, the acts further comprising:

receiving, from an additional client device, a request to associate with the account;

sending an image for display on the additional client device;

receiving an indication that a device other than the additional client device has captured the image displayed on the additional device; and

associating the additional client device with the account.

20. A system as recited in claim 19, wherein the image comprises a quick response (QR) code or a bar code that identifies the account and the additional client device.

21. A system as recited in claim 19, the acts further comprising;

receiving a request from the additional client device to disassociate the additional device from the account; and

at least partly in response to receiving the request, disassociating the additional client device from the account.

22. An apparatus comprising:

a display;

one or more processors configured to perform acts comprising;

sending a first signal to an account server that is remote from the apparatus, the first signal configured to associate the apparatus to an account managed, at least in part, by the account server;

at least partly in response to the sending of the first signal, receiving a second signal from the account server; and

at least partly in response to the receiving of the second signal, configuring the apparatus to prevent the apparatus from being disassociated from the account.

23. An apparatus as recited in claim 22, the acts further comprising updating, at least partly in response to receiving of the second signal, at least one setting of the apparatus, the at least one setting specified by an administrator of the account.

24. An apparatus as recited in claim 22, wherein the first signal is sent when the apparatus is first powered on.

25. An apparatus as recited in claim 22, the acts further comprising:

requesting to register with a second account, the requesting comprising capturing an image associated with the second account;

sending the captured image to the account server;

receiving a third signal from the account server, the third signal causing the apparatus to prompt a user of the apparatus to register the apparatus with the second account; and

register the apparatus with the second account at least partly in response to receiving a selection of the prompt from the user.

26. An apparatus as recited in claim 25, the acts further comprising:

sending, to the account server, a request to de-register from the second account; and

receiving a fourth signal from the account server, the fourth signal causing the apparatus to de-register from the second account.

27. An apparatus as recited in claim 22, the acts further comprising:

requesting to register with a second account;

receiving, from the account server, an image on the display of the apparatus that is unique to the second account and the apparatus.