Phone thermal context

• US 9,565,081 B2
• Filed: 05/19/2014
• Issued: 02/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/19/2014
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Original Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Inventors: He, Robert, Luk, Bryant Genepang, O'Toole, Christopher Diebold
• Primary Examiner(s): SCOTT, RANDY A
• Application Number:
  US14/281,823
• Publication Number:
  US 20150333960A1
• Time in Patent Office: 995 Days
• Field of Search: 709/221, 709/222, 709/223, 709/224, 250/341.1, 250/349
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/14 specially adapted for specific applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0816 the condition being an adaptation, e.g. in response to network events
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/08 Monitoring or testing based on specific metrics, e.g. QoS, energy consumption or environmental parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• 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: H04M 1/72454 according to context-related or environment-related conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/026 using orientation information, e.g. compass

Abstract

A thermal context manager (hereinafter “TCM”) detects a thermal state and a position of a computing device. Based on the detected thermal state(s) and the detected position(s) of the computing device, the TCM initiates an action associated with the computing device. The TCM continually monitors the computing device in order to create a thermal state profile of the computing device. To create the thermal state profile, the TCM stores data representing each detected instance of the thermal state of the computing device and data representing each detected position of the computing device.

Claims

1. A computer system comprising:

a processor;

a memory device holding an instruction set executable on the processor to cause the computer system to perform operations comprising;

detecting a thermal state of the computer system comprising a change of temperature of at least a portion of the computer system during a period of time;

detecting multiple instances of a physical orientation of the computer system comprising;

detecting the multiple instances of the physical orientation of the computer system, wherein each of the multiple instances of the physical orientation of the computer system occur during the period of time of the change of temperature; and

detecting respective differences between each of the multiple instances of the physical orientation of the computer system; and

initiating a notification to be displayed at the computer system based on the change of temperature indicated by the thermal state and due to a first subset of the respective differences falling within a first range of physical orientation differences and a second subset of the respective differences falling within a second range of physical orientation differences, the first range and the second range being different than each other.

2. The computer system as in claim 1, further comprising:

detecting a change in a geographical location of the computer system with respect to the period of time.

3. The computer system as in claim 2, further comprising:

upon detecting the change of temperature, the first subset falling within the first range of physical orientation differences and the second subset falling within the second range of physical orientation and the change in the geographical location, performing at the computer system at least one of;

an adjustment of at least one setting of the computer system; and

an execution of at least one background process of the computer system.

4. The computer system as in claim 2, wherein initiating a notification to be displayed at the computer system comprises:

identifying a particular geographical location proximate to a current location of the computer system; and

initiating a particular notification at the computer system based on the current location of the computer system being proximate to the particular geographical location.

5. The computer system as in claim 4, further comprising:

initiating a change in temperature of at least the portion of the computer system.

6. The computer system as in claim 1, further comprising:

creating a thermal state profile of the computer system, which comprises;

storing data representing each detected instance of the thermal state of the computer system; and

storing data representing each detected instance of the physical orientation of the computer system.

7. The computer-implemented method as in claim 1, further comprising:

creating a thermal state profile of the computing device, which comprises;

storing data representing each detected instance of the thermal state of the computing device; and

storing data representing each detected instance of the physical orientation of the computing device.

8. The computer system as in claim 1, wherein detecting respective differences between each of the multiple instances of the physical orientation of the computer system comprises:

detecting a first difference between a first physical orientation of the computer system and a second physical orientation of the computer system; and

detecting a second difference between the second physical orientation and a third physical orientation of the computer system, wherein the first physical orientation, the second physical orientation and the third physical orientation occur during the period of time.

9. The computer system as in claim 8, wherein the first physical orientation, the second physical orientation and the third physical orientation are detected via at least one of an accelerometer of the computer system and at least a portion of a global positioning system included in the computer system.

10. The computer system as in claim 8, wherein initiating the notification to be displayed at the computer system comprises:

initiating the notification based in part on the first difference and at least one of the second and third differences being within the first range of physical orientation differences.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing executable instructions thereon, which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations including:

detecting a thermal state of a computing device comprising a change of temperature of at least a portion of the computing device during a period of time;

detecting multiple instances of a physical orientation of the computer system comprising;

detecting the multiple instances of the physical orientation of the computer system, wherein each of the multiple instances of the physical orientation of the computer system occur during the period of time of the change of temperature; and

detecting respective differences between each of the multiple instances of the physical orientation of the computer system; and

initiating a notification to be displayed at the computer system based on the change of temperature indicated by the thermal state and due to a first subset of the respective differences falling within a first range of physical orientation differences and a second subset of the respective differences falling within a second range of physical orientation differences, the first range and the second range being different than each other.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium as in claim 11, further comprising:

detecting a change in a geographical location of the computing device with respect to the period of time.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium as in claim 12, further comprising:

upon detecting the change of temperature, the first subset falling within the first range of physical orientation differences and the second subset falling within the second range of physical orientation and the change in the geographical location, performing at the computer system at least one of;

an adjustment of at least one setting of the computing device; and

an execution of at least one background process of the computing device.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium as in claim 12, wherein initiating a notification to be displayed at the computing device comprises:

identifying a particular geographical location proximate to a current location of the computing device; and

initiating a particular notification at the computing device based on the current location of the computing device being proximate to the particular geographical location.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium as in claim 14, further comprising:

initiating a change in temperature of at least the portion of the computing device.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium as in claim 11, further comprising:

creating a thermal state profile of the computing device, which comprises;

storing data representing each detected instance of the thermal state of the computing device; and

storing data representing each detected instance of the physical orientation of the computing device.

17. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

detecting a thermal state of a computing device comprising a change of temperature of at least a portion of the computing device during a period of time;

detecting multiple instances of a physical orientation of the computer system comprising;

detecting the multiple instances of the physical orientation of the computer system, wherein each of the multiple instances of the physical orientation of the computer system occur during the period of time of the change of temperature; and

detecting respective differences between each of the multiple instances of the physical orientation of the computer system; and

initiating a notification to be displayed at the computer system based on the change of temperature indicated by the thermal state and due to a first subset of the respective differences falling within a first range of physical orientation differences and a second subset of the respective differences falling within a second range of physical orientation differences, the first range and the second range being different than each other.