System and method for controlling device usage

• US 8,548,452 B2
• Filed: 02/05/2007
• Issued: 10/01/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Coskun, Risvan, Martin, Daryl J., Hassan, Ahmed E., Wilson, John F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Batista, Marcos
• Assistant Examiner(s): DONADO, FRANK E
• Application Number:
  US11/671,263
• Publication Number:
  US 20070243862A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,430 Days
• Field of Search: 709/208, 709/211, 709/223, 709/225
• US Class Current: 455/419
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/16 Communication-related supplementary services, e.g. call-transfer or call-hold

Abstract

Mobile device usage may be monitored and restricted by pushing enabling/disabling events from an administrator the device. The events impose a certain set of rules that can “lock” certain features provided by the device, according to permissions and pre-established policies, for a certain period of time. Such restricted periods may coincide with meetings or other events in which distractions should be kept to a minimum or be during regular, predetermined time periods. Preferably, the rules include conditional locks that allow a user to use a feature a reasonable number of times before the lock is activated to place the onus on the user for minimizing such distractions, while enabling the user to maintain access to such a vital communication tool. Cancel packets may also be used to not only control but to monitor the application of the rule sets and when certain conditions are breaches, which provides an employer with sufficient information to use in auditing device usage or in reprimanding users for misuse of a privilege such as the use of mobile data communications devices.

Claims

1. A method for controlling usage of features provided by a first mobile device in a communication system, the features requiring user interaction, said method comprising:

receiving at said first mobile device, from a second mobile device, a set of rules having been selected from a calendar application on said second mobile device for imposing feature restriction, said calendar application used for selecting at least one restricted period during which said feature restriction is imposed, said set of rules having been broadcast by said second mobile device to a plurality of mobile devices for controlling usage of particular features on said plurality of devices during said at least one restricted period, said set of rules comprising at least one feature restriction and at least one time restriction for restricting usage of said particular features during said at least one restricted period, said feature restrictions capable of restricting both local features not requiring a connection to said communication system and communication-based features requiring a connection to said communication system, said set of rules being selected on said second mobile device from a plurality of rules, which of said plurality of rules can be assigned to said plurality of devices being limited by permissions to impose particular rules;

storing said set of rules on said first mobile device; and

applying said feature restrictions for the duration of said at least one restricted period according to said set of rules.

2. The method according to claim 1 wherein said set of rules further comprises one or more exemptions related to circumstances where triggering said feature restrictions should not be implemented.

3. The method according to claim 1 wherein said set of rules is provided to said first mobile device via a policy packet, said set of rules also being modifiable using other policy packets.

4. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising computer executable instructions executable by a processor of said first device for causing said first mobile device to implement the method according to claim 1.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

during said one or more predetermined restricted periods, providing as an output on said first mobile device, an option to override one or more of said feature restrictions in said set of rules during said restricted period to thereby permit access to one or more corresponding features; and

if said first mobile device detects an input to said first device indicating that said option to override has been used, sending a cancel indicator to said second mobile device to enable said second mobile device to monitor usage of said first mobile device.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising, upon receiving a policy packet comprising a change to the set of rules, applying one or more changes to at least one of said one or more feature restrictions and said one or more time restrictions in said set of rules on said first mobile device, to thereby dynamically change said set of rules on said first mobile device to accommodate a change in category level or to enable a temporary exemption.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein said set of rules is received from the second mobile device via a direct non-network supported link.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein said set of rules comprises at least one conditional rule, each conditional rule allowing a corresponding one of said particular features to be used a predetermined number of times during said restricted period, said method further comprising:

enabling at least one of said corresponding one of said particular features to be used during said at least one restricted period;

detecting that said predetermined number of times has been exceeded during one of said restricted periods; and

preventing further use of said corresponding one of said particular features during a remainder of said one of said restricted periods.

9. A first mobile device configured for providing one or more features requiring user interaction, said first mobile device being communicably connectable to a communication system for receiving data from other entities, said first mobile device comprising a memory for storing a set of rules received by said first mobile device from a second mobile device, said set of rules having been selected from a calendar application on said second mobile device for imposing feature restriction, said calendar application used for selecting at least one restricted period during which said feature restriction is imposed, said set of rules having been broadcast by said second mobile device to a plurality of mobile devices for controlling usage of particular features on said plurality of mobile devices during said at least one restricted period, said set of rules comprising at least one feature restriction and at least one time restriction for restricting usage of said particular features during said at least one restricted period, said feature restrictions capable of restricting both local features not requiring a connection to said communication system and communication-based features requiring a connection to said communication system, said set of rules being selected on said second mobile device from a plurality of rules, which of said plurality of rules can be assigned to said plurality of devices being limited by permissions to impose particular rules;

said first mobile device being configured to;

receive said set of rules from said second mobile device;

store said set of rules in said memory; and

apply said feature restrictions for the duration of said at least one predetermined restricted period according to said set of rules.

10. The first mobile device according to claim 9, wherein said set of rules comprises at least one conditional rule, each conditional rule allowing a corresponding one of said particular features to be used a predetermined number of times during said restricted period, said first mobile device further configured to:

enable at least one of said corresponding one of said particular features to be used during said at least one restricted period;

detect that said predetermined number of times has been exceeded during one of said restricted periods; and

prevent further use of said corresponding one of said particular features during a remainder of said one of said restricted periods.

11. The method according to claim 10 further comprising providing a conditional indicator to an administrator for monitoring usage according to said conditional rule.

12. The first mobile device according to claim 10 further configured for providing a conditional indicator to an administrator for monitoring usage according to said conditional rule.

13. The first mobile device according to claim 9, wherein said set of rules further comprises one or more exemptions related to circumstances where triggering said feature restrictions should not be implemented.

14. The first mobile device according to claim 9 wherein said set of rules is provided to said first mobile device via a policy packet, said set of rules also being modifiable using other policy packets.

15. The first mobile device according to claim 9, further configured for:

during said one or more predetermined restricted periods, providing as an output on said first mobile device, an option to override one or more of said feature restrictions in said set of rules during said restricted period to thereby permit access to one or more corresponding features; and

if said first mobile device detects an input to said first device indicating that said option to override has been used, sending a cancel indicator to said second mobile device to enable said second mobile device to monitor usage of said first mobile device.

16. The first mobile device according to claim 9, further configured for, upon receiving a policy packet comprising a change to the set of rules, applying one or more changes to at least one of said one or more feature restrictions and said one or more time restrictions in said set of rules on said first mobile device, to thereby dynamically change said set of rules on said first mobile device to accommodate a change in category level or to enable a temporary exemption.

17. The first device according to claim 9, wherein said set of rules is received from the second mobile device via a direct non-network supported link.

18. A method of controlling usage of features provided by a plurality of first mobile devices in a communication system, said features requiring user interaction, said method comprising a second mobile device:

selecting a set of rules from a plurality of rules to be broadcast by said second mobile device to said plurality of first mobile devices in a calendar application on said second mobile device for imposing feature restriction, said calendar application used for selecting at least one restricted period during which said feature restriction is imposed, which of said plurality of rules can be assigned to said plurality of first devices being limited by permissions to impose particular rules, said set of rules comprising at least one feature restriction and at least one time restriction for restricting usage of said particular features during said at least one restricted period, said feature restrictions capable of restricting both local features not requiring a connection to said communication system and communication-based features requiring a connection to said communication system, said set of rules causing said plurality of first mobile devices to apply said feature restrictions for the duration of said at least one restricted period according to said set of rules; and

broadcasting said set of rules to said plurality of first mobile devices to have said set of rules stored on respective ones of said plurality of first mobile devices.

19. The method according to claim 18 wherein said set of rules further comprises one or more exemptions related to circumstances where triggering said feature restrictions should not be implemented.

20. The method according to claim 18 wherein said set of rules is provided to said plurality of first mobile devices via a policy packet, said set of rules also being modifiable using other policy packets.

21. The method according to claim 18, wherein said set of rules comprises at least one conditional rule, each conditional rule allowing a corresponding one of said particular features to be used a predetermined number of times during said restricted period.

22. The method according to claim 21 further comprising said second mobile device receiving from at least one of said plurality of first devices, a conditional indicator for monitoring said usage according to said conditional rule.

23. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising computer executable instructions executable by a processor of a second mobile device for causing said second mobile device to implement the method according to claim 18.

24. The method according to claim 18, said second mobile device enabling, during said one or more predetermined restricted periods, an output to be provided on said plurality of first mobile devices comprising an option to override one or more of said feature restrictions in said set of rules during said restricted period to thereby permit access to one or more corresponding features;

and receiving a cancel indicator from at least one of said plurality of mobile devices for monitoring usage of said at least one of said plurality of mobile devices, wherein receipt of said cancel indicator is indicative of said at least one of said plurality of mobile devices detecting an input indicating that said option to override has been used.

25. The method according to claim 18, said second mobile device providing a policy packet to at least one of said plurality of first mobile devices, said policy packet comprising a change to the set of rules for having said at least one of said plurality of first mobile devices apply one or more changes to at least one of said one or more feature restrictions and said one or more time restrictions in said set of rules on said at least one of said plurality of first mobile devices, to thereby dynamically change said set of rules on said device to accommodate a change in category level or enable a temporary exemption.

26. The method according to claim 18, wherein said set of rules is broadcast by the second mobile device via a direct non-network supported link.

27. A second mobile device configured for controlling usage of features provided by a plurality of first mobile devices in a communication system, said features requiring user interaction, said second mobile device being communicably connectable to said plurality of first mobile devices over said communication system, said second mobile device comprising a memory for storing a plurality of rules for controlling said usage of said features, and a processor configured for:

selecting a set of rules from a plurality of rules to be broadcast by said second mobile device to said plurality of first mobile devices in a calendar application on said second mobile device for imposing feature restriction, said calendar application used for selecting at least one restricted period during which said feature restriction is imposed, which of said plurality of rules can be assigned to said plurality of first devices being limited by permissions to impose particular rules, said set of rules comprising at least one feature restriction and at least one time restriction for restricting usage of said particular features during said at least one restricted period, said feature restrictions capable of restricting both local features not requiring a connection to said communication system and communication-based features requiring a connection to said communication system, said set of rules causing said plurality of first mobile devices to apply said feature restrictions for the duration of said at least one restricted period according to said set of rules; and

broadcasting said set of rules to said plurality of first mobile devices to have said set of rules stored on respective ones of said plurality of first mobile devices.

28. The second mobile device according to claim 27 wherein said set of rules further comprises one or more exemptions related to circumstances where triggering said feature restrictions should not be implemented.

29. The second mobile device according to claim 27 wherein said set of rules is provided to said plurality of first mobile devices via a policy packet, said set of rules also being modifiable using other policy packets.

30. The second device according to claim 27, wherein said set of rules comprises at least one conditional rule, each conditional rule allowing a corresponding one of said particular features to be used a predetermined number of times during said restricted period.

31. The second mobile device according to claim 30 wherein said processor is further configured for receiving from at least one of said plurality of first mobile devices, a conditional indicator for monitoring said usage according to said conditional rule.

32. The second mobile device according to claim 27, wherein the processor is further configured for enabling, during said one or more predetermined restricted periods, an output to be provided on said plurality of first mobile devices comprising an option to override one or more of said feature restrictions in said set of rules during said restricted period to thereby permit access to one or more corresponding features;

and receiving a cancel indicator from at least one of said plurality of first mobile devices for monitoring usage of said at least one of said plurality of first mobile devices, wherein receipt of said cancel indicator is indicative of said at least one of said plurality of first mobile devices detecting an input indicating that said option to override has been used.

33. The second mobile device according to claim 27, wherein said processor is further configured for providing a policy packet to at least one of said plurality of first mobile devices, said policy packet comprising a change to the set of rules for having said at least one of said plurality of first mobile devices apply one or more changes to at least one of said one or more feature restrictions and said one or more time restrictions in said set of rules on said at least one of said plurality of first mobile devices, to thereby dynamically change said set of rules on said device to accommodate a change in category level or enable a temporary exemption.

34. The second mobile device according to claim 27, wherein said set of rules is broadcast by the second mobile device via a direct non-network supported link.