User identification in cell phones based on skin contact

• US 10,743,182 B2
• Filed: 07/17/2018
• Issued: 08/11/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 08/15/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Pratt, James, Everett, Sarah, Sullivan, Marc
• Primary Examiner(s): Obayanju, Omoniyi
• Application Number:
  US16/037,103
• Publication Number:
  US 20180352437A1
• Time in Patent Office: 756 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3203 Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3231 Monitoring the presence, absence or movement of users
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0861 using biometrical features, e.g. fingerprint, retina-scan cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using biological data H04L9/3231
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/66 with means for preventing unauthorised or fraudulent calling verifying user identity or authority in secret or secure digital communications H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/67 by electronic means
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72448 with means for adapting the functionality of the device according to specific conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/12 including a sensor for measuring a physical value, e.g. temperature or motion telephones including GPS signal receivers H04M2250/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/22 including a touch pad, a touch sensor or a touch detector digitizers for touch screens G06F3/041
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/065 Continuous authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0254 detecting a user operation or a tactile contact or a motion of the device
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0258 controlling an operation mode according to history or models of usage information, e.g. activity schedule or time of day
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/027 by controlling a display operation or backlight unit
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

Screen time-outs on a portable electronic device can be customized based on user activity. In one aspect, a sensing component receives data from one or more sensors located on the portable electronic device, for example, skin conductivity sensors and determines whether the user is using the portable device, either actively or passively and also determines the identity of the user. A configuring component is employed to change one or more features or functions of the portable electronic device based on the information determined by the sensing component. In particular, the configuring component changes one of more features of the portable electronic device based on the preferences predefined by the identified user and device usage (active and passive usage).

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a processor; and

a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, facilitate performance of operations, comprising;

obtaining touch data from a sensor of a user equipment relating to a touching of the user equipment, wherein the touch data comprises body mass index data associated with a user identity and surface acoustic wave data associated with the user identity;

in response to the obtaining the touch data, identifying the user identity, resulting in an identified user identity;

in response to determining, based on the touch data, that the user equipment is being utilized in association with the identified user identity;

modifying a ringer capability of the user equipment, from a first ringer volume to a second ringer volume less than the first ringer volume,

based on the identified user identity, adjusting a display screen brightness, a font, and a screen saver to be displayed on a display screen of the user equipment; and

in response to a determination that a user associated with the identified user identity is not touching the user equipment and based on a preference data associated with the identified user identity, restoring the ringer capability to the first ringer volume; and

in response to the modifying the ringer capability, assigning a guest user identity to an unauthorized user identity based on the body mass index data.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the determining, based on the touch data, that the user equipment is being utilized in association with the identified user identity comprises determining that the user equipment is being utilized in association with an authorized user identity.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the operations further comprise:

in response to the determining that the user equipment is being utilized in association with the authorized user identity, adjusting a setting of the user equipment.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the determining, based on the touch data, that the user equipment is being utilized in association with the identified user identity comprises determining that the user equipment is being utilized in association with the unauthorized user identity, and wherein the operations further comprise:

in response to the determining that the user equipment is being utilized in association with the unauthorized user identity, granting a limited access to a feature of the user equipment.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the granting the limited access comprises initiating a display protocol pursuant to which a characteristic of a display of the user equipment is modified.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the initiating the display protocol comprises modifying a brightness of the display of the user equipment.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the modifying the brightness comprises reducing the brightness to dim the display.

8. The user equipment of claim 6, wherein the display protocol is based on preference data received during a setup procedure associated with the user equipment when previously used in association with the identified user identity.

9. A method, comprising:

obtaining, by a mobile device comprising a processor, touch data from a sensor of the mobile device relating to a touching of the mobile device, wherein the touch data comprises body mass index data representative of a body mass index and surface acoustic wave data associated with a user identity;

in response to the obtaining the touch data;

determining, by the mobile device, the user identity associated with the body mass index; and

determining, by the mobile device, that the mobile device is being utilized in association with the user identity;

in response to the determining that the mobile device is being utilized in association with the user identity;

adjusting, by the mobile device, a display screen brightness of a display screen of the mobile device, a font depicted on the display screen, and a screen saver to be displayed on the display screen; and

modifying, by the mobile device, a ringer volume of the mobile device, resulting in a reduced ringer volume;

in response to the modifying the ringer volume, assigning a guest user identity to an unauthorized user identity based on the body mass index data; and

in response to determining that the mobile device is not being utilized in association with the user identity, restoring, by the mobile device, the ringer volume of the mobile device.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the touch data comprises conductivity data representative of a conductivity of skin associated with the user identity.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the touch data is associated with a currently touched area of the mobile device.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the user identity is a first user identity, and further comprising:

in response to determining that a second user identity determined to be accessing the mobile device is not an authorized user identity, restricting, by the mobile device, access to a feature of the mobile device.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the restricting the access to the feature is based on a preference of the first user identity related to a security feature associated with the ringer volume of the mobile device.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the touch data is indicative of the mobile device not being utilized in association with the user identity, and wherein the restoring the ringer volume further comprises:

restoring the ringer volume from the reduced ringer volume to a default ringer volume, wherein the default ringer volume is a setting for the ringer volume that is louder than the reduced ringer volume.

15. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium, comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, facilitate performance of operations, comprising:

based on first measurement data received from a sensor of a communication device, verifying that the communication device is not being utilized in association with a first user identity of the communication device, wherein the measurement data comprises body mass index data, surface acoustic wave data associated with the first user identity, and wherein the first user identity is an authorized user identity;

based on second measurement data received from the sensor of the communication device, determining that the second measurement data is associated with a second user identity of the communication device, wherein the second user identity is determined to be an unauthorized user identity;

based on the second measurement data indicating that the second user identity is no longer in contact with the sensor of the communication device, restoring a ringer volume to a default ringer volume, wherein the default ringer volume is higher than the adjusted ringer volume; and

in response to the determining;

adjusting a display screen brightness of a display screen of the communication device;

adjusting a ringer volume associated with a ringer of the communication device, resulting in an adjusted ringer volume, wherein the adjusted ringer volume is based on the first user identity,

adjusting a font depicted via the display screen;

adjusting a screen saver displayed via the display screen; and

in response to the adjusting the ringer volume, initiating a vibration mode associated with the communication device and assigning a guest user identity to the unauthorized user identity based on the body mass index data.

16. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the ringer volume is a first ringer volume, and wherein the adjusting the ringer volume comprises reducing the ringer volume from the first ringer volume to a second ringer volume lower than the first ringer volume.

17. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 16,

wherein the initiating the vibration mode is based on a preference setting associated with the communication device.

18. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the touch data comprises salt level data representative of a salt level associated with the first user identity.

19. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the operations further comprise:

in response to the restoring the ringer volume to the default ringer volume, restricting access of the unauthorized user identity with respect to a feature associated with the ringer volume of the communication device.

20. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise:

in response to the determining that the second measurement data is associated with the second user identity, restricting use of the communication device by further adjusting the ringer volume to be a silent state.