Providing user-spot (U-spot) services in a communication system

• US 9,204,274 B2
• Filed: 08/16/2013
• Issued: 12/01/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/03/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Broadcom Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Karaoguz, Jeyhan, Bennett, James D.
• Primary Examiner(s): MEW, KEVIN D
• Application Number:
  US13/969,120
• Publication Number:
  US 20130336217A1
• Time in Patent Office: 837 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/20 Services signaling; Auxiliary data signalling, i.e. transmitting data via a non-traffic channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 Connection setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals

Abstract

A mobile communication device may be utilized to establish a localized user network that is accessible by client devices when the client devices are communicatively coupled to the mobile communication device. The mobile communication device is then operable to determine services that may be provided in the user network to the client devices, and to advertise these services within the user network. The services comprise network and/or data accessibility, and bandwidth availability. Mobile communication devices are also operable to provide, directly or via local and/or remote resources, additional services, comprising audio/video processing capability, storage, and/or processing. Offering of services in user networks is incentivized to the mobile communication devices and/or to client devices. Incentives comprise offering pay and/or credit to the mobile communication devices. Providing access to, blocking, limiting and/or modifying available/offered services is managed in U-Spot networks, based on incentives and/or availability of resources.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

at a mobile communication device,

establishing data communication with a network servicing device over a serving network;

establishing a user network accessible by one or more communication devices for providing network services over the serving network from the network servicing device to respective communication devices of the one or more communication devices over the user network, including;

receiving, from a respective communication device over the user network, data defining a session request message,

in response to receiving the session request message, communicating data defining a connection request message over the serving network to the network servicing device;

receiving, over the serving network, data defining an access granted message from the network servicing device; and

in response to receiving the access granted message, communicating data to the respective communication device over the user network to provide services from the network servicing device to the respective communication device.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

at the mobile communication device, communicating over the user network to the one or more communication devices data advertising network services available from the network servicing device.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein communicating data advertising network services comprises broadcasting beacon signals including information advertising the network services available in the user network.

4. The method of claim 2 wherein communicating data advertising network services comprises:

at the mobile communication device,

creating a web page including information advertising the network services available in the user network; and

communicating data over the user network to one or more respective communication devices.

5. The method of claim 2 wherein communicating data advertising network services comprises:

at the mobile communication device,

creating a personalized interface including a web page including information advertising the network services available in the user network; and

communicating data defining the web page over the user network to a respective communication device of the one or more communication devices.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising:

at the mobile communication device,

receiving, over the user network from the respective communication device, data of the personalized interface, the data defining a user inquiry about available network services.

7. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

at the mobile communication device,

receiving, from the network servicing device over the serving network, data defining an advertising web page including data about network services available over the serving network;

creating a personalized interface for a selected communication device of the one or more communication devices; and

communicating data defining the advertising web page over the user network to the selected communication device.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprising:

at the mobile communication device,

providing over the personalized interface to the selected communication device data defining incentives.

9. A mobile communication device comprising circuits to receive a wireless communication over a serving network from a network servicing device, the wireless communication including data defining advertisement of network services available over the serving network;

circuits to create a personalized interface for the respective communication device for communication between the respective communication device and the mobile communication device;

circuits to establish a local network to provide data communication and network services to one or more communication devices proximate the mobile communication device;

circuits to broadcast data about the network services available over the serving network to the one or more communication devices proximate the mobile communication device; and

circuits to receive from a respective communication device of the one or more communication devices, using the personalized interface of the respective communication device, an inquiry about the network services available to the respective communication device over the serving network and the mobile communication device.

10. The mobile communication device of claim 9 wherein the circuits to create a personalized interface comprise:

circuits to create a service advertisement web page using the data defining advertisement of the network services available over the user network,

and wherein the circuits to broadcast data about the network services comprise;

circuits to broadcast data defining the service advertisement web page to the one or more communication devices in the local network.

11. The mobile communication device of claim 10 wherein the circuits to receive an inquiry comprise circuits to receive from the respective communication device a web-based communication including the inquiry about the network services available to the respective communication device over the serving network and the mobile communication device.

12. The mobile communication device of claim 9 wherein the circuits to receive a wireless communication over the serving network from the network servicing device comprise circuits to receive from the network servicing device data defining an advertising web page including data about network services available over the serving network.

13. The mobile communication device of claim 12 wherein the circuits to broadcast data about the network services comprise circuits to communicate data defining the advertising web page over the user network to the one or more communication devices proximate the mobile communication device.

14. The mobile communication device of claim 9 further comprising circuits to negotiate incentivized arrangements with the respective communication device.

15. The mobile communication device of claim 9 further comprising circuits to negotiate incentivized arrangements with the network servicing device.

16. The mobile communication device of claim 9 wherein the circuits to create a personalized interface are configured to throttle bandwidth allocation among the communication devices including the respective communication device.

17. The mobile communication device of claim 9 further comprising circuits to request or receive payment or credit for providing services from the network servicing device to the respective communication device.

18. A method comprising:

at an operation support server in data communication over a serving network with a mobile communication device, the mobile communication device configured to establish a local network with one or more communication devices,

receiving a connection request message from the mobile communication device, the connection request generated by the mobile communication device in response to receipt by the mobile communication device of a session request message from a respective communication device over the local network;

providing a challenge message to the mobile communication device;

verifying a response to the challenge message received from the mobile communication device to enable network access by the respective communication device; and

establishing an account for the respective communication device for management of service provision to the respective communication device over the serving network and the local network.

19. The method of claim 18 further comprising:

at the operation support server, receiving from the mobile communication device a request for billing adjustments to the account for the respective communication based on network services provided over the local network to the respective communication device by the mobile communication device.

20. The method of claim 18 further comprising:

at the operation support server, creating an advertising web page including data defining network services available over the serving network to the respective communication device; and

pushing the advertising web page to the mobile communication device for communication to the respective communication device.