Enhancing user experiences using aggregated device usage data

• US 8,713,090 B2
• Filed: 12/15/2006
• Issued: 04/29/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Sadovsky, Vladimir, Stokes, Michael D., Schwarz, Jonathan R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheema, Umar
• Application Number:
  US11/611,730
• Publication Number:
  US 20080147684A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,692 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 707/100
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34

Abstract

Enhancing user experiences using aggregated device usage data includes receiving aggregated usage data for a device, such as a computing device and/or a peripheral device. A current user context for the device is identified, and based on the aggregated usage data and the current user context an enhanced user interface is generated.

Claims

1. One or more system memory or computer storage devices having stored thereon a plurality of instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to:

transfer data representing usage information for a user device of a user from the user device to a server, wherein the data was collected while the user device was previously used by the user, and wherein the data pertains at least in part to usage of the user device while one or more peripheral devices are coupled to the user device;

receive aggregated usage data at the user device of the user, the received aggregated usage data being an aggregation of device usage data from a plurality of users of a plurality of devices which is based at least in part on the transferred data representing usage information for the user device of the user, the device usage data from each user of the plurality of users reflects how a respective device of the plurality of devices was previously used in a variety of different contexts;

identify a current user context; and

alter an aspect of the user device, based on the received aggregated usage data and the current user context, to provide an enhanced user experience.

2. One or more system memory or computer storage devices as recited in claim 1, wherein to alter an aspect of the user device, based on the received aggregated usage data and the current user context, is to:

generate, based on the received aggregated usage data and the current user context, a list of possible actions; and

select, from the list of possible actions, a most likely desired action.

3. One or more system memory or computer storage devices as recited in claim 2, wherein the plurality of instructions further causes the one or more processors to send an indication of the list of possible actions to a source of the current received aggregated usage data for inclusion in subsequently received aggregated usage data.

4. One or more system memory or computer storage devices as recited in claim 2, wherein the plurality of instructions further causes the one or more processors to send an indication of the selected most likely desired action to a source of the current received aggregated usage data for inclusion in subsequently received aggregated usage data.

5. One or more system memory or computer storage devices as recited in claim 1, wherein to alter an aspect of the user device, based on the received aggregated usage data and the current user context, is to:

generate, based on the received aggregated usage data and the current user context, a list of possible actions; and

re-order the list of possible actions so that those actions that are determined to be more likely desired by the user are presented more prominently than those that are determined to be less likely desired by the user.

6. One or more system memory or computer storage devices as recited in claim 1, wherein to alter an aspect of the user device, based on the received aggregated usage data and the current user context, is to alter one or more colors used in a user interface based on the received aggregated usage data and the current user context.

7. One or more system memory or computer storage devices as recited in claim 1, wherein to alter an aspect of the user device, based on the received aggregated usage data and the current user context, is to alter hyperlinks embedded in a user interface based on the received aggregated usage data and the current user context.

8. One or more system memory or computer storage devices as recited in claim 1, wherein the received aggregated usage data includes an aggregation of device usage data from a plurality of users of a plurality of computing devices.

9. One or more system memory or computer storage devices as recited in claim 1, wherein the plurality of devices comprises one or more peripheral devices.

10. One or more system memory or computer storage devices as recited in claim 1, wherein the instructions further cause the one or more processors to:

receive, from a peripheral device of the one or more peripheral devices coupled to the user device, data representing usage information for the peripheral device captured during normal operation of the peripheral device; and

transfer the data representing the usage information for the peripheral device to the server for inclusion in subsequently received aggregated usage data.

13. One or more system memory or computer storage devices as recited in claim 1, wherein the plurality of instructions further causes the one or more processors to:

receive peripheral device usage data from a peripheral device of the one or more peripheral devices communicatively coupled to the user device, the peripheral device usage data representing usage information for the peripheral device captured at a prior time during normal operation of the peripheral device;

remove private information from the peripheral device usage data in accordance with a privacy level established by the user; and

provide the server with at least a portion of the peripheral device usage data, the portion of the peripheral device usage data being free of the private information.

14. One or more system memory or computer storage devices as recited in claim 13, wherein the plurality of instructions further causes the one or more processors to:

receive user input indicative of a first privacy level associated with a first device and a second privacy level associated with a second device, and wherein remove private information from the peripheral device usage data in accordance with a privacy level established by the user comprises,

removing private information from peripheral device usage data gathered by the first device in accordance with the first privacy level established by the user, and

removing private information from peripheral device usage data gathered by the second device in accordance with the second privacy level established by the user.

11. A system comprising:

a user device including at least one processor and at least one computer-readable storage medium;

the computer-readable storage medium comprising the following modules to be executed by the processor of the user device, a usage data control module configured, upon execution by the processor, to capture user device usage data representing usage data for the user device while a peripheral device is coupled to the user device and transfer device usage data to a server, wherein the transferred device usage data includes at least a portion of the captured user device usage data, a list generation module configured, upon execution by the processor, to receive aggregated usage data, from a server, and a current context, and to generate a list of possible actions based at least in part on the received aggregated usage data and the current context, the received aggregated usage data was provided by the server and is an aggregation of device usage data from a plurality of users of a plurality of devices that is based at least in part on the transferred device usage data, and an action selection module configured, upon execution by the processor, to receive the list of possible actions and select one or more actions from the list of possible actions.

12. A system as recited in claim 11, wherein the usage data control module is further configured to transfer the peripheral device usage data to the server for inclusion in the aggregated usage data.

15. A system as recited in claim 11, wherein the computer-readable storage medium further comprises:

an anonymization module configured to remove private information from the captured user device usage data in accordance with a privacy level established by the user, wherein the transferred device usage data is free of the private information.

16. A system as recited in claim 15, wherein the user device is configured to receive user input indicative of a first privacy level associated with a first device and a second privacy level associated with a second device, and wherein the anonymization module is configured to remove private information from device usage data gathered by the first device in accordance with the first privacy level established by the user and remove private information from device usage data gathered by the second device in accordance with the second privacy level established by the user, wherein the transferred device usage data includes at least a portion of the device usage data gathered by the first device free of private information and at least a portion of the device usage data gathered by the second device free of private information.

17. A server to facilitate enhancement of user experiences for users of devices in a network, the server comprising:

at least one processor;

a computer-readable storage media having stored thereon a plurality of instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, causes the at least one processor to;

receive a privacy level from each user of a plurality of users of a plurality of devices, each user of the plurality of users establishing a respective privacy level;

receive device usage data from each user of the plurality of users of the plurality of devices;

for each user of the plurality of users, remove private information from the device usage data of the user in accordance with the privacy level of the user;

aggregate the received device usage data in accordance with the respective privacy levels of the plurality of users, wherein the aggregated device usage data is free of private information; and

provide each device of the plurality of devices with at least a portion of the aggregated device usage data.

18. The server of claim 17, wherein the plurality of instructions further causes the one or more processors to remove private information from the received device usage data from a specific user of the plurality of users in accordance with the privacy level established by the specific user, and wherein the portion of the aggregated device usage data provided to the plurality of devices is free of the removed private information.

19. The server of claim 17, wherein device usage data from each user of the plurality of users reflects how a respective device of the plurality of devices was previously used in a variety of different contexts.