System and method for disabling a cellular phone

• US 6,542,730 B1
• Filed: 11/05/1999
• Issued: 04/01/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Aeris Communications Inc.
• Original Assignee: Aeris.Net
• Inventors: Hosain, Syed Zaeem
• Primary Examiner(s): VUONG, QUOCHIEN B
• Application Number:
  US09/435,239
• Time in Patent Office: 1,243 Days
• Field of Search: 455/403, 455/410, 455/411, 455/466, 455/26.1, 455/550, 455/575, 455/435, 455/418, 455/419, 455/420, 340/5.3, 340/5.31, 340/5.8
• US Class Current: 455/410
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/67 by electronic means
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones

Abstract

A system and method for temporary or permanent disabling of a cellular control device is described. A cellular control module is responsive to either a temporary disable command or a factory disable command received over a cellular control channel. The cellular control module is responsive to an enable command received over the cellular control channel if the cellular control module was previously temporarily disabled by a temporary disable command. The cellular control module includes disable logic to respond to a temporary disable command, and disable logic to respond toga factory disable command.

Claims

1. A radio frequency (RF) module which receives commands over a cellular control channel and which communicates with a host controller over a data interface, the RF module comprising:

a processor;

a memory to store a first instruction corresponding to a first disable command received over said cellular channel, which, when executed by said processor, causes said processor to disable said RF module such that said RF module may be enabled by said host controller; and

said memory to store a;

second instruction corresponding to a second disable command received over said cellular channel, which, when executed by said processor, causes said processor to disable said RF module such that said RF module may not be enabled by said host.

2. The RF module as claimed in claim 1 wherein said first and second disable commands are embodied in first and second mobile identification numbers, respectively, and wherein said RF module receives and processes multiple MINs.

3. The RF module as claimed in claim 1 wherein said first instruction, when executed by said processor, causes said processor to disable said RF module such that said RF module may be enabled by an enable command received over said cellular control channel.

4. The RF module as claimed in claim 1 wherein said second instruction, when executed by said processor, causes said processor to disable said RF module such that said RF module may be enabled by an enable command received over said cellular control channel.

5. The RF module as claimed in claim 1 wherein said memory stores a factory disable instruction corresponding to a factory disable command received over said cellular channel, which, when executed by said processor, causes said processor to disable said RF module such that said RF module may not be re-enabled by either said host controller or said enable command received over said cellular control channel.

6. The RF module as claimed in claim 1 wherein the memory to store an instruction, which, when executed by said processor, causes said processor to disable said RF module such that said RF module may not be enabled by said host controller includes said host controller to perform a checksum calculation to ensure that said second disable command was properly transmitted.

7. The RF module as claimed in claim 1 wherein said first and second disable commands received and interpreted by said RF module are formatted in the Forward Message Transport Protocol (“

FMTP”

).

8. A cellular control module for receiving commands over a cellular control channel comprising:

temporary disable logic to disable said cellular control module responsive to a temporary disable command received over said cellular control channel;

factory disable logic to disable said cellular control module responsive to a factory disable command received over said cellular control channel; and

enable logic coupled with the first disable logic to enable said cellular control module responsive to an enable command received over said cellular control channel if said cellular control module was disabled by said temporary disable logic but not if said cellular control module was disabled by said factory disable logic.

9. The cellular control module for receiving commands over a cellular control channel as claimed in claim 8 wherein said temporary disable logic further comprises:

first temporary disable logic to disable said cellular control module responsive to a first temporary disable command received over said cellular control channel;

second temporary disable logic to disable said cellular control module responsive to a second temporary disable command received over said cellular control channel; and

wherein said enable logic to enable said cellular control module responsive to an enable command received over a data interface with a host controller if said cellular control module was disabled by said first temporary disable logic but not if said cellular control module was disabled by said second temporary disable logic.

10. The cellular control module for receiving commands over a cellular control channel as claimed in claim 8 wherein said factory disable command includes a checksum calculation to ensure that said factory disable command was properly transmitted.

11. The cellular control module for receiving commands over a cellular control channel as claimed in claim 8 wherein said temporary disable and factory disable commands received and interpreted by said cellular control module are formatted in the Forward Message Transport Protocol (“

FMTP”

).

12. The cellular control module for receiving commands over a cellular control channel as claimed in claim 8 wherein said temporary disable and factory disable commands are embodied in first and second mobile identification numbers, respectively, and wherein said cellular control module receives and processes multiple MINs.

13. A method for disabling a cellular control module comprising:

disabling said cellular control module responsive to one of a temporary disable command that causes a temporary disabled condition and a factory disable command that causes a factory disabled condition, received over a cellular control channel; and

enabling said cellular control module responsive to an enable command received over said cellular control channel if said cellular control module was disabled by said temporary disable command but not if said cellular control module was disabled by said factory disable command.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13 wherein disabling said cellular control module responsive to said temporary disable command comprises disabling said cellular control module with one of a first temporary disable command and a second temporary disable command, and wherein enabling said cellular control module responsive to an enable command comprises enabling said cellular control module with a host controller if said cellular control module was disabled by said first temporary disable command but not if said cellular control module was disabled by said second temporary disable command.

15. The method for disabling a cellular control module as claimed in claim 13 including the step of performing a checksum calculation on said factory disable command to ensure that said factory disable command was properly transmitted.

16. The method for disabling a cellular control module as claimed in claim 13 wherein said temporary disable and factory disable commands received and interpreted by said cellular control module are formatted in the Forward Message Transport Protocol (“

FMTP”

).

17. The method for disabling a cellular control module as claimed in claim 13 wherein said temporary disable and factory disable commands are embodied in first and second mobile identification numbers, respectively, and wherein said cellular control module receives and processes multiple MINs.

18. A method for disabling a cellular control module comprising:

receiving a command over a cellular control channel having a MIN associated therewith;

temporarily disabling said cellular control module if said MIN corresponds to a temporary disable instruction;

permanently disabling said cellular control module if said MIN corresponds to a permanent disable instruction; and

enabling said cellular control module responsive to an enable command received over said cellular control channel if said cellular control module was temporarily disabled but not if said cellular control module was permanently disabled.

19. The method for disabling a cellular control module as claimed in claim 18 wherein said enable command has a particular MIN associated therewith.

20. The method for disabling a cellular control module as claimed in claim 18 wherein enabling said cellular control module responsive to an enable command comprises enabling said cellular control module if said cellular control module was disabled by said first temporary disable instruction but not if said cellular control module was disabled by said second temporary disable instruction, and

wherein said first and second temporary disable instructions are transmitted over said cellular control channels with different MINs associated therewith.

21. The method for disabling a cellular control module as claimed in claim 18 including the step of performing a checksum calculation on said permanent disable instruction to ensure that said permanent disable instruction was properly transmitted.