Mobile device data allocation system

• US 9,635,188 B1
• Filed: 10/30/2015
• Issued: 04/25/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Bradley, Lisa M., O'Donovan, Brian, Quirk, Aaron J., Sun, Lin
• Primary Examiner(s): Doan, Kiet
• Application Number:
  US14/927,646
• Publication Number:
  US 20170126902A1
• Time in Patent Office: 543 Days
• Field of Search: 455407, 455454, 455566, 455411, 455428, 370328, 370235, 370345, 370331, 370338
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/58 based on statistics of usage or network monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/60 based on actual use of network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/765 Linked or grouped accounts, e.g. of users or devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/7652 shared by users
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8214 Data or packet based
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/83 Notification aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/85 characterised by the type of condition triggering a notification
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/852 Low balance or limit reached
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/853 Calculate maximum communication time or volume
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/887 limit per user or user related number
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing

Abstract

A mobile device data allocation system includes a plurality of mobile devices that exchange data with a data service provider via a communication network. The data exchanged by each mobile device during a time period defines a total amount of exchanged data. An electronic shared-account device module is configured to determine a maximum amount of data at which the mobile devices are authorized to exchange during the time period. The shared-account device module further generates a control signal that regulates data exchange of the at least one mobile device in response to determining an upcoming event indicating the total amount of exchanged data will exceed the maximum amount of data.

Claims

1. A mobile device data allocation system, comprising:

a plurality of mobile devices configured to exchange data with a data service provider via a communication network controlled by a data service provider, the data exchanged by each mobile device during a time period defining a total amount of exchanged data; and

an electronic shared-account device module in signal communication with the mobile devices, the shared-account device module configured to determine a maximum amount of data at which the plurality of mobile devices are authorized to exchange during the time period, and to generate a control signal that controls at least one mobile device among the plurality of devices so as to regulate data transmission of the at least one mobile device in response to determining an upcoming event indicating the total amount of exchanged data will exceed the maximum amount of data;

wherein the shared-account device module determines the upcoming event based on at least one of metadata and data usage history of a respective mobile device among the plurality of mobile devices.

2. The mobile device data allocation system of claim 1, wherein the metadata indicates the upcoming event scheduled at a future time period, and wherein the shared-account device module predicts data transmission performed by the respective mobile device will increase during the upcoming event.

3. The mobile device data allocation system of claim 2, wherein the shared-account device module predicts the data transmission increase based on a comparison between the upcoming event and the data usage history.

4. The mobile device data allocation system of claim 2, wherein the shared-account device module calculates a reserved data amount necessary to prevent the total amount of exchanged data from exceeding the maximum amount of data based on a current amount of data available and the maximum amount of data.

5. The mobile device data allocation system of claim 4, wherein the current amount of data available is a difference between a current accumulation of exchanged data among the plurality of mobile devices and the maximum amount of data.

6. The mobile device data allocation system of claim 4, wherein the shared-account device module regulates data transmission of the at least one mobile device in response to controlling at least one of the mobile device to throttle data exchanged via the network and prevent data exchange so as to attain the reserved data amount.

7. The mobile device data allocation system of claim 1, wherein the shared-account device module is installed in a cloud computing network.

8. The mobile device data allocation system of claim 1, wherein the shared-account device module is installed locally on a mobile device among the plurality of mobile devices.

9. A mobile device included in a shared data account, the mobile device comprising:

An electronic device hardware processor configured to control data exchange to and from the mobile device via a communication network control by a data service provider that provides the shared data account with a maximum amount of data available for exchanging during a time period; and

an electronic device share-account device module configured to generate a control signal that controls the electronic hardware processor so as to regulate the data exchange in response to determining an upcoming event indicating a total amount of data exchange by at least one mobile device assigned to the shared data account will exceed the maximum amount of data;

wherein the shared-account device module determines the upcoming event based on at least one of metadata and data usage history of a respective mobile device among the plurality of mobile devices.

10. The mobile device of claim 9, wherein the metadata indicates the upcoming event scheduled at a future time period, and wherein the shared-account device module predicts the data exchange performed by the mobile device will increase during the upcoming event.

11. The mobile device of claim 10, wherein the shared-account device module predicts the data exchange increase based on a comparison between the upcoming event and the data usage history.

12. The mobile device of claim 10, wherein the shared-account device module determines a remaining amount of data available for exchanging among the maximum amount of data, and calculates a reserved data amount necessary to prevent the shared account from exchanging a total amount of data from that exceeds the maximum amount of data.

13. The mobile device of claim 12, wherein the current amount of data available is a difference between a current accumulation of exchanged data by the shared data account and the maximum amount of data.

14. The mobile device of claim 12, wherein the shared-account device module regulates data exchange of the mobile device based on a least one of throttling data exchange and preventing data exchange so as to attain the reserved data amount.

15. A non-transitory computer program product to control a mobile device data allocation system so as to regulate data exchange of at least one mobile device assigned to a shared data account, the computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having program instruction embodied therewith, the program instructions executable by an electronic computer processor such that the mobile device data allocation system performs operations comprising:

exchanging data via a plurality of mobile devices in signal communication with a data network controlled by a data service provider, the data exchanged during the time period defining a total amount of exchanged data; and

determining a maximum amount of data at which the plurality of mobile device are authorized to exchange during the time period; and

controlling at least one mobile device among the plurality of devices so as to regulate data exchange of the at least one mobile device in response to determining an upcoming even indicating the total amount of exchanged data will exceed the maximum amount of data;

wherein the shared-account device module determines the upcoming event based on at least one of metadata and data usage history of a respective mobile device among the plurality of mobile devices.

16. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise predicting the data exchange performed by the respective mobile device will increase during the upcoming event.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the operations further comprise calculating a reserved data amount necessary to prevent the total amount of exchanged data from exceeding the maximum amount of data based on a current amount of data available and the maximum amount of data.