COMMUNITY WI-FI NETWORK

• US 20150127436A1
• Filed: 11/04/2013
• Published: 05/07/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/04/2013
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: MacDonald, David Neil, Singh, Vikas, Sharma, Saumaya, Mazandarany, Darya, Lamba, Triptpal Singh, Goyal, Piyush, Ford, Brent Edward
• Application Number:
  US14/071,619
• Publication Number:
  US 20150127436A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.16
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0214 Referral reward systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0226 Incentive systems for frequent usage, e.g. frequent flyer miles programs or point systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/781 Centralised allocation of resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/822 Collecting or measuring resource availability data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/51 based on terminal or device properties

Abstract

Various technologies described herein pertain to joining a computing device in a local network to a community Wi-Fi network. The community Wi-Fi network includes disparate computing devices that share respective network bandwidth capacities with member consumer devices of the community Wi-Fi network. The computing device receives an opt-in signal indicating that the computing device desirably be added to the community Wi-Fi network. Responsive to receiving the opt-in signal, the computing device retrieves account parameters. The account parameters include data indicating a network bandwidth capacity allocated to the account, which is usable by the computing device. A shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity is determined based at least in part upon the parameters of the account. The computing device is configured to share the shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity for consumption by member consumer device(s). The computing device communicates with the member consumer device(s) over a Wi-Fi connection

Claims

1. A method of joining a computing device in a local network to a community Wi-Fi network, comprising:

receiving, at the computing device, an opt-in signal indicating that the computing device desirably be added to the community Wi-Fi network, wherein the community Wi-Fi network comprises disparate computing devices, and wherein the disparate computing devices share respective network bandwidth capacities with one or more member consumer devices of the community Wi-Fi network;

responsive to receiving the opt-in signal, retrieving parameters of an account, wherein the parameters comprise at least data indicating a network bandwidth capacity allocated to the account, and wherein the network bandwidth capacity allocated to the account is usable by the computing device;

determining a shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity allocated to the account based at least in part upon the parameters of the account; and

configuring the computing device to share the shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity for consumption by the one or more member consumer devices, wherein the computing device and the one or more member consumer devices communicate over a Wi-Fi connection.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the computing device is coupled with a routing device in the local network, and wherein the computing device is at least one of an access point, a computer, or a gaming console included in the local network.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising dynamically adjusting the shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity for consumption by the one or more member consumer devices as a function of time based at least in part upon the parameters of the account.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the parameters of the account further comprise one or more of data indicating historic network bandwidth consumption for the account, data indicating a bandwidth cap for the account, data indicating bandwidth throttling for the account, or data indicating a cost of the network bandwidth capacity for the account.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving credentials for the account, wherein the parameters of the account are retrieved by the computing device from a server computing device of an Internet Service Provider (ISP) utilizing the credentials, and wherein the ISP provides the network bandwidth capacity allocated to the account.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

tracking the consumption by the one or more member consumer devices of the shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity; and

at least one of;

retaining usage data indicative of tracked consumption by the one or more member consumer devices in a data repository of the computing device;

Or

transmitting the usage data indicative of the tracked consumption by the one or more member consumer devices to at least one server computing device.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein bandwidth provided and consumed by a user of the computing device in the community Wi-Fi network is net metered, wherein credits are accrued as a function of an amount of the shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity consumed by the one or more member consumer devices, and wherein debits are accrued as a function of an amount of the network bandwidth capacities shared by the disparate computing devices consumed by a consumer device of the user.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein rates at which the credits and the debits are accrued are dynamically adjusted over time based upon network bandwidth capacity demand.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein a referral credit is earned by the user of the computing device, wherein the referral credit is based upon at least one of a referred computing device of a referred user joining the community Wi-Fi network, an amount of consumed network bandwidth capacity shared by the referred computing device, or an amount of the network bandwidth capacities shared by the disparate computing devices consumed by a referred consumer device of the referred user.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising controlling access permissions for the shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity for consumption by the one or more member consumer devices, wherein the access permissions:

permit a first subset of the one or more member consumer devices to consume the shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity; and

inhibit a second subset of the one or more member consumer devices from consuming the shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising controlling content restrictions for the shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity for consumption by the one or more member consumer devices, wherein the content restrictions:

permit consumption of a first subset of content types by the one or more member consumer devices using the shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity; and

inhibit consumption of a second subset of the content types by the one or more member consumer devices using the shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising controlling access rights for the shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity for consumption by the one or more member consumer devices, wherein the access rights:

permit the one or more member consumer devices to access a first subset of network resources of the local network; and

inhibit the one or more member consumer devices to access a second subset of the network resources of the local network.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein at least a part of the shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity is gifted to a given member consumer device from the one or more member consumer devices.

14. A server computing device, comprising:

a collection component that receives usage data indicative of;

an amount of consumed network bandwidth capacity provided by a computing device of a user in a community Wi-Fi network, wherein the community Wi-Fi network comprises computing devices that share respective network bandwidth capacities with member consumer devices of the community Wi-Fi network, and wherein the computing devices and the member consumer devices communicate over Wi-Fi connections; and

an amount of consumed network bandwidth capacity consumed by a member consumer device of the user in the community Wi-Fi network; and

an accounting component that;

assigns credits to a profile of the user based upon the amount of the consumed network bandwidth capacity provided by the computing device of the user in the community Wi-Fi network;

assigns debits to the profile of the user based upon the amount of the consumed network bandwidth capacity consumed by the member consumer device of the user in the community Wi-Fi network; and

computes a net metered value for the profile of the user as a function of a difference between the credits and the debits.

15. The server computing device of claim 14, further comprising a community administration component that controls inclusion of the computing devices and the member consumer devices in the community Wi-Fi network.

16. The server computing device of claim 14, further comprising a community administration component that manages a quality of service (QoS) for the member consumer device of the user in the community Wi-Fi network as a function of the net metered value for the user.

17. The server computing device of claim 14, wherein the accounting component further assigns credits to the profile of the user upon initiation of the computing device sharing network bandwidth capacity for consumption by the member consumer devices of the community Wi-Fi network.

18. The server computing device of claim 14, wherein the accounting component further assigns credits to the profile of the user based upon a referral.

19. The server computing device of claim 14, wherein the accounting component further assigns credits to the profile of the user based upon an amount of consumed network bandwidth capacity provided by the member consumer device of the user and consumed by the member consumer devices of the community Wi-Fi network.

20. A computing device in a local network, comprising:

a membership management component that receives an opt-in signal indicating that the computing device desirably be added to a community Wi-Fi network, wherein the community Wi-Fi network comprises disparate computing devices, and wherein the disparate community devices share respective network bandwidth capacities with one or more member consumer devices of the community Wi-Fi network;

a parameter retrieval component that;

receives credentials for an account; and

responsive to receipt of the opt-in signal, retrieves parameters of the account from a server computing device of an Internet Service Provider (ISP) utilizing the credentials, wherein the ISP provides network bandwidth capacity allocated to the account, wherein the parameters comprise at least data indicating the network bandwidth capacity allocated to the account, and wherein the network bandwidth capacity allocated to the account is usable by the computing device;

a sharing control component that;

determines a shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity allocated to the account based at least in part upon the parameters of the account; and

configures the computing device to share the shared portion of the network bandwidth capacity for consumption by the one or more member consumer devices; and

a wireless interface component that communicates with the one or more member consumer devices over a Wi-Fi connection.