Managing a mobile device's communications

• US 8,699,996 B1
• Filed: 12/07/2009
• Issued: 04/15/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sprint Communications Company LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Sprint Communications Company LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Reeves, Raymond Emilio, Wick, Ryan Alan
• Primary Examiner(s): TORRES, MARCOS L
• Application Number:
  US12/632,468
• Time in Patent Office: 1,590 Days
• Field of Search: 455410-411, 455418-419, 455/441, 4554561-457, 455/550.1, 455/556.1, 455/560, 455/565, 455/345
• US Class Current: 455/410
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/667 Preventing unauthorised calls from a telephone set H04M1/677 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72463 to restrict the functionality of the device

Abstract

A system and method for managing communication rules on a mobile device are provided. In one embodiment, the communication rules are enforced by the mobile device without assistance from outside components. The communication rules a mobile device needs to enforce may be controlled by a component that is apart from the mobile device. The communication rules may take into account the application that requested the communication and the mobile device'"'"'s present physical surroundings.

Claims

1. A method for enforcing a communication rule on behalf of a corporate entity at a mobile device given to an employee of the corporate entity, the method comprising:

receiving, at the mobile device, the communication rule, wherein the communication rule forbids communications matching a criteria in the communication rule;

storing the communication rule in a communication-rule data store located on the mobile device;

receiving at the mobile device, a request for the mobile device to initiate a communication over a wireless interface on the mobile device;

identifying that the mobile device is within a corporate entity'"'"'s vehicle by receiving a communication containing the corporate entity'"'"'s vehicle'"'"'s identification information;

determining, at the mobile device, that the communication violates the communication rule by comparing a present context of the mobile device to a context characteristic specified in the criteria, wherein the present context of the mobile device includes being located within the corporate entity'"'"'s vehicle; and

preventing the communication from occurring.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises displaying a notification on the mobile device'"'"'s display indicating the communication violates the communication rule.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises communicating a notification over the wireless interface indicating that the communication violates the communication rule.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the criteria includes an application from which the request was received.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the present context of the mobile device further includes the mobile device'"'"'s present velocity within the corporate entity'"'"'s vehicle.

6. One or more computer-readable media having computer-executable instructions embodied thereon that when executed by a computing device perform a method of managing enforcement rules on a plurality of employee mobile devices, the method comprising:

creating a plurality of subgroups in the plurality of employee mobile devices, wherein each subgroup in the plurality of subgroups is based on a classification designated by an employer entity with supervision over the plurality of mobile devices;

receiving a request to propagate an individualized communication rule to each employee mobile device within the plurality of subgroups based on the classification of each subgroup, wherein the individualized communication rule is enforced by each individual employee mobile device in the plurality of employee mobile devices that receives the individualized communication rule, and wherein enforcement of the individualized communication rule prevents wireless communications from occurring based on each individual employee mobile device'"'"'s context in the plurality of employee mobile devices, wherein an individual employee mobile device'"'"'s context comprises the individual employee mobile device being located within a moving vehicle;

in response to receiving the request, communicating the individualized communication rule to each of the plurality of employee mobile devices over a wireless interface;

storing the individualized communication rule in a data store associated with each employee mobile device; and

when the individualized communication rule is violated, enforcing the individualized communication rule in each employee mobile device that violated the rule.

7. The media of claim 6, wherein the method further comprises communicating an application to each of the plurality of employee mobile devices, wherein the application allows each individual employee mobile device to determine a context for each individual employee mobile device.

8. The media of claim 7, wherein the application is not accessible to a user of each individual employee mobile device.

9. The media of claim 6, wherein the method further comprises receiving an indication from each individual employee mobile device that a user requested a communication that violated the communication rule.

10. The media of claim 6, wherein the request is generated by the employer entity with supervision over the plurality of mobile devices, and wherein an individual employee mobile device'"'"'s context further comprises a present geographic location of the individual mobile device.