Environment customization based on location

• US 8,635,154 B2
• Filed: 05/24/2012
• Issued: 01/21/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Chen, Jennifer H., Sayko, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Jagdish
• Application Number:
  US13/479,503
• Publication Number:
  US 20120233297A1
• Time in Patent Office: 607 Days
• Field of Search: 705/39, 709/227, 455/417
• US Class Current: 705/39
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/50 Service provisioning or reconfiguring
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/20 Transfer of user or subscriber data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/26 Network addressing or numbering for mobility support

Abstract

A user'"'"'s location is automatically transmitted to a network, and the network automatically customizes one or more environments, such as by customizing communication devices, other types of devices, or the like, based on the detected location and on profile information. Customizing an environment may include enabling services, such as setting up a public telephone or hotel telephone with a user'"'"'s home base telephone settings and/or services, and/or may include disabling functions, such as disabling long-distance service when the user is away from home.

Claims

1. A customization system comprising:

a network interface; and

a controller coupled to the network interface, the controller;

receiving over a network user identification and location information for a user;

extracting a current location from the location information;

retrieving a profile for the user, the profile including customization information for a plurality of customizable devices at a plurality of locations including the current location;

communicating over the network with a customizable device, of the plurality of customizable devices, at the current location to customize the customizable device based on the customization information in the profile for the current location of the user;

extracting a reference location from the profile; and

generating a list of environments to customize based on a relationship between the reference location and the current location.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller retrieves customization logic from the profile and executes the customization logic to generate the list of environments.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the customization logic comprises:

a table listing of environments that are to be customized based on a difference between the current location and the reference location; and

an expression of a logical function of status parameters in the profile, the current location and the reference location.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the controller extracts customization commands from the profile, retrieves configuration data from sources specified in the customization commands, and maps the configuration data to customizable devices in a list of customizable devices.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the sources specified in the customization commands comprise a customized environment and a database of configuration data for particular customizable devices.

6. The system of claim 4, wherein the controller matches portions of the configuration data with customizable devices in the list of customizable devices for environments in the list of environments, collects configuration data for customizable devices in the list of customizable devices for the environments in the list of environments, and integrates configuration data for the customizable devices.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the controller identifies a network address for the customizable devices, and sets, via the network, the customizable devices to operate in a manner consistent with corresponding configuration data.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the customizable devices include communication devices.

9. A computer program embodied on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, the computer program including instructions for causing a processor to implement a process for environment customization, the process comprising:

receiving over a network user identification and location information for a user;

extracting a current location from the location information;

retrieving a profile for the user, the profile including customization information for a plurality of customizable devices at a plurality of locations including the current location;

communicating over the network with a customizable device, of the plurality of customizable devices, at the current location to customize the customizable device based on the customization information in the profile for the current location of the user;

extracting a reference location from the profile; and

generating a list of environments to customize based on a relationship between the reference location and the current location.