User activity detection on a device

• US 7,711,815 B2
• Filed: 10/10/2006
• Issued: 05/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/10/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Nayak, Niranjan S., Garg, Neeraj K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Quang N.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Yohannes; Tesfay
• Application Number:
  US11/548,143
• Publication Number:
  US 20080086528A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,302 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/224
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3423 where the assessed time is active or idle time
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3495 for systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/54 Presence management, e.g. monitoring or registration for receipt of user log-on information, or the connection status of the users

Abstract

Communication information is sent to a device that a user is using rather than a device the user is not using. For example, a backlight of a device can be monitored and if the backlight becomes inactive (turns off) for longer than a predetermined interval, it can be inferred that the user is no longer using the device and communications are no longer sent to the device. If the backlight becomes active (turns on) for longer than a predefined interval it is inferred that the user is active on the device and communications are sent to the device. If intrinsic evidence is of a high confidence level that the user is using the device, such as answering a phone call or sending a communication, the device is declared active without waiting for expiration of the confirmation timer.

Claims

1. A system for monitoring activity of a device, the system comprising:

a processor;

a register component configured to register the device with a presence agent and allow real-time communication with at least one contact;

an activity monitor component configured to monitor a backlight of the device;

a status component configured to receive information indicative of the backlight and set a status of the device to at least one of Active in response to the information indicative of the backlight indicating the backlight is lit or to Away in response to the information indicative of the backlight indicating the backlight is unlit;

a declaration component configured to declare the status of the device to the presence agent;

a confirmation timer configured to track a selected interval, wherein the selected interval commences when the backlight changes from being lit to being unlit, wherein the status component is further configured to set the status of the device to Active when the information indicative of the backlight indicating the backlight is lit indicates the backlight is lit for longer than the selected interval; and

a computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to implement at least one of the register component, the activity monitor component, the status component, the declaration component or the confirmation timer.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the information indicative of the backlight includes a state of the backlight of the device and indicates the device is in use when the backlight is lit and indicates that the device is not in use when the backlight is unlit.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the status component is further configured to override the confirmation timer and automatically set the status of the device to Active based on intrinsic evidence that is received.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the backlight is unlit when the device is not illuminated with the backlight.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the status component is further configured to set the status of the device to Away based on a manual instruction.

6. The system of claim 1, further comprising a machine learning component configured to automatically change the status of the device from Away to Active and from Active to Away.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the machine learning component is configured to employ at least one of an artificial-intelligence based scheme or a rules-based logic scheme.

8. A method comprising:

executing on a processor, computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to;

identify that a backlight of a device has changed from being illuminated to being non-illuminated;

commence a timer upon the identifying that the backlight has changed from being illuminated to being non-illuminated;

determine whether the backlight is still non-illuminated after expiration of the timer; and

infer that a status of the device is inactive, in response to determining that the backlight is still non-illuminated after the expiration of the timer.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the computer-executable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to:

detect intrinsic evidence indicative of a user of the device being online; and

infer that the status of the device has an active status based solely upon a detected intrinsic evidence of the user of the device being online.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the computer-executable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to infer that the status of the device is an active status, in response to determining that the backlight is illuminated after the expiration of the timer.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the computer-executable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to communicate the inferred status of the device to a presence agent.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the computer-executable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to, prior to determining that the backlight is illuminated, declare the status of the device as inactive.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the computer-executable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor declare to a presence agent, the status of the device as inactive after inferring that the status is inactive.

14. A computer-readable storage medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed on a processor, cause the processor to:

identify that a backlight of a device has changed from being illuminated to being non-illuminated;

start a timer upon the identifying that the backlight has changed from being illuminated to being non-illuminated;

determine a device status based on whether the backlight of the device is illuminated or is non-illuminated after expiration of the timer;

set the device status to an active status upon processing information indicative of the backlight being illuminated after the expiration of the timer; and

automatically communicate the device status to a presence agent.

15. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 14, further storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed on a processor, further cause the processor to:

set the device status to an inactive status upon processing information indicative of the backlight being non-illuminated after the expiration of the timer.

16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 14, further storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed on a processor, further cause the processor to:

evaluate intrinsic evidence; and

automatically change the device status based, in part, on an evaluated intrinsic evidence.