Mobile device-based bandwidth throttling

• US 8,442,484 B2
• Filed: 09/13/2012
• Issued: 05/14/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Rubin, Andrew E., Greenwalt, Robert J.
• Primary Examiner(s): CAI, WAYNE HUU
• Application Number:
  US13/613,645
• Publication Number:
  US 20130012160A1
• Time in Patent Office: 243 Days
• Field of Search: 455405-408, 455/412.2, 455/414.2, 455423-425
• US Class Current: 455/405
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/20 Traffic policing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/29 using a combination of thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/02 Traffic management, e.g. flow control or congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/10 Flow control between communication endpoints
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/535 based on resource usage policies
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for implementing mobile device-based bandwidth throttling. In one aspect, a method includes receiving policy from a wireless carrier that specifies one or more data usage thresholds allotted by the wireless carrier for data transferred over a wireless carrier network during a predetermined period of time, determining an amount of data that has been transferred by the mobile device over the wireless carrier network during the predetermined period of time, determining that the amount exceeds one or more of the data usage thresholds, and throttling the bandwidth of a mobile device over the wireless carrier network based on determining that the amount exceeds one or more of the data usage thresholds.

Claims

1. A mobile device comprising:

one or more processors; and

a computer-readable medium coupled to the one or more processors having instructions stored thereon which, if executed by the one or more processors, cause the mobile device to perform operations comprising;

receiving a policy from a wireless carrier that specifies one or more data usage thresholds allotted by the wireless carrier for data transferred over a wireless carrier network during a billing cycle;

determining an amount of data that has been transferred by the mobile device over the wireless carrier network during a particular period of time within the billing cycle;

determining that (i) the amount is trending to exceed one or more of the data usage thresholds, and (ii) the amount also exceeds a predetermined minimum warning amount, or the particular period of time exceeds a predetermined minimum period of time; and

based on determining that (i) the amount is trending to exceed one or more of the data usage thresholds, and (ii) the amount also exceeds a predetermined minimum warning amount, or the particular period of time exceeds a predetermined minimum period of time, outputting a bandwidth throttling warning.

2. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

displaying representations of the one or more data usage thresholds and the amount.

3. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining that the amount is within a predetermined range of one or more of the data usage thresholds; and

displaying a warning based on determining that the amount is within the predetermined range.

4. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining a first value representing a percentage of one or more of the data usage thresholds that corresponds to the amount of data that has been transferred by the mobile device during the particular period of time within the billing cycle;

determining a second value representing a percentage of the billing cycle that has elapsed;

determining that the first value is outside of a predetermined range from the second value; and

displaying a warning based on determining that the first value is outside of a predetermined range from the second value.

5. The mobile device of claim 4, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining that the first value exceeds a predetermined third value,

wherein the warning is only displayed after determining that the first value is outside of the predetermined range from the second value, and that the first value exceeds the predetermined third value.

6. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein:

the policy comprises a Fair Access Policy for the wireless carrier; and

one or more of the data usage thresholds comprises a bandwidth cap.

7. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

detecting that the mobile device has been booted, that a subscriber identity module (SIM) card associated with the mobile device has been changed, or that a second, different particular period of time within the billing cycle has elapsed; and

wherein the amount is determined based on detecting that the mobile device has been booted, that the SIM card associated with the mobile device has been changed, or that the second particular period of time within the billing cycle has elapsed.

8. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein determining the amount further comprises:

determining a first amount representing an amount of data that has been transferred by the mobile device during the particular period of time within the billing cycle while the mobile device is roaming;

determining a second amount representing an amount of data that has been transferred by the mobile device during the particular period of time within the billing cycle while the mobile device is not roaming; and

establishing the second amount as the amount.

9. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein determining the amount further comprises:

determining a first amount representing an amount of data that has been transferred by the mobile device through a wide-area network connection during the particular period of time within the billing cycle;

determining a second amount representing an amount of data that has been transferred by the mobile device through a local area network data connection during the particular period of time within the billing cycle; and

establishing the first amount as the amount.

10. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

throttling the bandwidth of the mobile device over the wireless carrier network based on determining that (i) the amount is trending to exceed one or more of the data usage thresholds, and (ii) the amount also exceeds a predetermined minimum warning amount, or the particular period of time exceeds a predetermined minimum period of time.

11. The mobile device of claim 10, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining that the billing cycle has elapsed; and

unthrottling the bandwidth of the mobile device over the wireless carrier network.

12. The mobile device of claim 10, where the operations further comprise:

receiving an updated policy from the wireless carrier that specifies one or more increased data usage thresholds allotted by the wireless carrier for data transferred over the wireless carrier network during the billing cycle;

determining that the amount does not exceed one or more of the increased data usage thresholds; and

unthrottling the bandwidth of the mobile device over the wireless carrier network based on determining that the amount does not exceed one or more of the increased data usage thresholds.

13. The mobile device of claim 12, wherein the operations further comprise:

displaying a control that allows a user of the mobile device to purchase the updated policy; and

determining that the user has selected the control,

wherein the updated policy is received based on determining that the user has selected the control.

14. The mobile device of claim 10, wherein:

the one or more data usage thresholds comprise a first data usage threshold and a second data usage threshold; and

throttling the bandwidth further comprises;

throttling the bandwidth to a first extent based on determining that the amount exceeds the first data usage threshold, and

throttling the bandwidth to a second, different extent based on determining that the amount exceeds the second data usage threshold.

15. The mobile device of claim 10, wherein the bandwidth of the mobile device over the wireless carrier network is throttled to a non-zero rate of data transfer.

16. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving a policy from a wireless carrier that specifies one or more data usage thresholds allotted by the wireless carrier for data transferred over a wireless carrier network during a billing cycle;

determining an amount of data that has been transferred by the mobile device over the wireless carrier network during a particular period of time within the billing cycle;

determining that (i) the amount is trending to exceed one or more of the data usage thresholds, and (ii) the amount also exceeds a predetermined minimum warning amount, or the particular period of time exceeds a predetermined minimum period of time; and

based on determining that (i) the amount is trending to exceed one or more of the data usage thresholds, and (ii) the amount also exceeds a predetermined minimum warning amount, or the particular period of time exceeds a predetermined minimum period of time, outputting a bandwidth throttling warning.

17. The method of claim 16, comprising:

displaying representations of the one or more data usage thresholds and the amount.

18. The method of claim 16, comprising:

determining that the amount is within a predetermined range of one or more of the data usage thresholds; and

displaying a warning based on determining that the amount is within the predetermined range.

19. The method of claim 16, comprising:

throttling the bandwidth of the mobile device over the wireless carrier network based on determining that (i) the amount is trending to exceed one or more of the data usage thresholds, and (ii) the amount also exceeds a predetermined minimum warning amount, or the particular period of time exceeds a predetermined minimum period of time.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing software comprising instructions executable by one or more computers which, upon such execution, cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

receiving a policy from a wireless carrier that specifies one or more data usage thresholds allotted by the wireless carrier for data transferred over a wireless carrier network during a billing cycle;

determining an amount of data that has been transferred by the mobile device over the wireless carrier network during a particular period of time within the billing cycle;

determining that (i) the amount is trending to exceed one or more of the data usage thresholds, and (ii) the amount also exceeds a predetermined minimum warning amount, or the particular period of time exceeds a predetermined minimum period of time; and

based on determining that (i) the amount is trending to exceed one or more of the data usage thresholds, and (ii) the amount also exceeds a predetermined minimum warning amount, or the particular period of time exceeds a predetermined minimum period of time, outputting a bandwidth throttling warning.