Scheduling data pushes to a mobile device based on usage and applications thereof

• US 9,246,989 B1
• Filed: 11/27/2013
• Issued: 01/26/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/10/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Chan, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Uzma
• Application Number:
  US14/092,502
• Time in Patent Office: 790 Days
• Field of Search: 709/703, 709/205, 709/224, 709/225, 709/248, 455/405, 713/320
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• 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 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/54 Presence management, e.g. monitoring or registration for receipt of user log-on information, or the connection status of the users
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/62 Establishing a time schedule for servicing the requests

Abstract

Embodiments relate to pushing data to mobile devices more efficiently. In a first embodiment, a computer-implemented method receives pushed data on a mobile device. The method includes: (a) recording, at a memory of the mobile device, information describing activity occurring on the mobile device during a first time period; (b) sending, from the mobile device to a server, data indicating the first time period and activity data indicating whether the mobile device was active during the first time period; and (c) during a second time period occurring after the recording (a) and sending (b), receiving application data pushed to the mobile device at a first rate determined based at least in part on the activity data sent to the server in (b), wherein the second time period is determined by the server based at least in part on the data indicating the first time period.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by a mobile device and during a first time period, first application data at a first frequency, wherein the mobile device is inactive during the first time period;

receiving, by the mobile device and during a second time period, second application data at a second frequency greater than the first frequency, wherein the mobile device is active during the second time period;

sending, by a mobile device to a server, an indication of whether the mobile device was active during the first time period and during the second time period different from the first time period; and

receiving, by the mobile device, third application data, wherein;

the third application data is received according to a schedule determined based at least in part on whether the mobile device was active during the first time period or the second time period,

the schedule specifies a respective frequency at which data is pushed to the mobile device during each of a plurality of future time periods, and

the third application data is not received in response to the mobile device sending a request for the application data.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, based at least in part on whether a particular application is in use, whether the mobile device is active during the first time period and the second time period, wherein;

the specific application is not in using during the first time period, and

the specific application is in use during the second time period.

3. The method of claim 1,

wherein the indication of whether the mobile device was active during the first time period includes an amount of usage of a specific application of the mobile device during the first time period, and

wherein a frequency at which the mobile computing device receives the third application data corresponds to the amount of usage of the specific application during the first time period.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the third application data includes one or more of push email data, calendar data, social networking data, and media data.

5. A mobile device comprising:

one or more processors;

a memory that stores usage data associated with activity of the mobile device;

a push data receiver module operable by the one or more processors to receive, during a first time period, first application data at a first frequency, and receive, during a second time period, second application data at a second frequency greater than the first frequency, wherein the mobile device is inactive during the first time period, and wherein the mobile device is active during the second time period; and

a usage data provider module operable by the one or more processors to send, from the mobile device to a server, an indication of a whether the mobile device was active during the first time period and during the second time period different from the first time period,

wherein the push data receiver module is further operable by the one or more processors to receive third application data, wherein;

the third application data is received according to a schedule determined based at least in part on whether the mobile device was active during the first time period or the second time period,

the schedule specifies a respective frequency at which data is pushed to the mobile device during each of a plurality of future time periods, and

the third application data is not received in response to the mobile device sending a request for the application data.

6. The mobile device of claim 5, wherein:

a specific application is not in use during the first time period,

the specific application is in use during the second time period.

7. The mobile device of claim 5,

wherein the indication of whether the mobile device was active during the first time period includes an amount of usage of a specific application of the mobile device during the first time period, and

wherein a frequency at which the mobile computing device receives the third application data corresponds to the amount of usage of the specific application during the first time period.

8. The mobile device of claim 5, wherein the third application data includes one or more of push email data, calendar data, social networking data, and media data.

9. A method comprising:

receiving, by a server device and from a mobile device, an indication of an amount of usage of the mobile computing device during a prior time period, wherein the amount of usage of the mobile computing device during the prior time period indicates that a user was not using the mobile device during the prior time period;

determining, by the server device and based at least in part on an indication of a different amount of usage of the mobile computing device during a different prior time period, that the mobile computing device was active during the different prior time period; and

determining, by the server device, a future time period that corresponds to the prior time period;

determining, by the server device and based at least in part on the indication of the amount of usage of the mobile computing device during the prior time period, a first frequency at which to send first application data to the mobile device during the future time period;

sending, by the server device and to the mobile device, the first application data at the first frequency during the future time period; and

sending, by the server device and to the mobile computing device, second application data during a different future time period that corresponds to the different prior time period, the second application data being sent at a second frequency greater than the first frequency.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

determining, by the server device and based at least in part on the indication of the amount of usage of the mobile computing device during the prior time period, that the mobile device was in a sleep mode during the prior time period.

11. The method of claim 9,

wherein the indication of the amount of usage of the mobile computing device during the prior time period specifies an amount of usage of a specific application of the mobile device during the prior time period;

and

wherein the frequency at which to send the application data to the mobile device corresponds to the amount of usage of the specific application during the prior time period.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein one or more of the first application data and the second application data includes one or more of push email data, calendar data, social networking data, and media data.

13. A system comprising:

one or more processors;

a usage data recorder module operable by the one or more processors to receive an indication of an amount of usage of the mobile computing device during a prior time period, wherein the amount of usage of the mobile computing device during the prior time period indicates that a user was not using the mobile device during the prior time period;

a push scheduler module operable by the one or more processors to determine, based at least in part on an indication of a different amount of usage of the mobile computing device during a different prior time period, that the mobile computing device was active during the different prior time period, determine a future time period that corresponds to the prior time period and determine, based at least in part on the indication of the amount of usage of the mobile computing device during the prior time period, a first frequency at which to send first application data to the mobile device during the future time period; and

a data push module operable by the one or more processors to send, to the mobile device, the first application data at the first frequency during the future time period, and send, to the mobile computing device, second application data at a second frequency during a different future time period that corresponds to the different prior time period, the second frequency being greater than the first frequency.