Context sensitive web services

• US 20020173295A1
• Filed: 05/15/2001
• Published: 11/21/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Nykanen, Petri, Paloniemi, Jari, Kangas, Petri
• Granted Patent: US 6,714,778 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/414.1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0018 Transmission from mobile station to base station
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/30 Profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/303 Terminal profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72406 by software upgrading or downloading
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72445 for supporting Internet browser applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72454 according to context-related or environment-related conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72457 according to geographic location
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/30 Determination of the location of a subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/493 Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice portals
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4938 comprising a voice browser which renders and interprets, e.g. VoiceXML
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/02 Protecting privacy or anonymity, e.g. protecting personally identifiable information [PII]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/60 Context-dependent security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/65 Environment-dependent, e.g. using captured environmental data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 : Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 : Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/02 : Inter-networking arrangements

Abstract

The context sensitive web services method enables a mobile phone or wireless device to use context inference techniques to sense the user'"'"'s environment and in response, to provide useful information to the user that is appropriate to the user'"'"'s perceived environment. The method includes the steps of receiving sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device; processing the sensor signals with a context inference engine; outputting a current context result from the processing by context inference engine; and providing useful information to the user in response to the current context result. A further aspect of the method provides user control of access by application programs to the user'"'"'s private data, including private data in a server. Still further, this can also include providing user control of access by application programs in a web server, to the user'"'"'s private data. Another aspect of the method is providing the current context result to an application program in response to the user control and receiving the useful information from the application program. The invention enables the user to grant access permission to the application program to access the current context result. This can be performed in the user'"'"'s wireless device or in the network server. The network server can carry out the control of access by application programs in web servers, in response to a user privacy profile received from the user'"'"'s wireless device.

Claims

1. A method to enable a wireless device to provide useful information to its user that is appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:

receiving sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;

processing the sensor signals with a context inference engine;

outputting a current context result from the processing by context inference engine; and

providing useful information to the user in response to the current context result.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the processing of the sensor signals with a context inference engine is embodied as programmed instructions executed within the user'"'"'s wireless device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the processing of the sensor signals with a context inference engine is embodied as programmed instructions executed within a separate network server in response to signals from the user'"'"'s wireless device.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the server accesses files from a web server, for selective forwarding to the user'"'"'s wireless device.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the wireless device offloads a portion of the processing of the sensor signals with a context inference engine to the server.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein a personal profile of the user is maintained by the server.

7. The method of claim 1, which further comprises:

providing user control of access by application programs to the user'"'"'s private data.

8. The method of claim 3, which further comprises:

providing user control of access by application programs to the user'"'"'s private data in the server.

9. The method of claim 1, which further comprises:

providing user control of access by application programs in a web server, to the user'"'"'s private data.

10. The method of claim 1, which further comprises:

providing the current context result to an application program; and

receiving the useful information for the user from the application program.

11. The method of claim 1, which further comprises:

providing user control of access by an application program to the current context result;

providing the current context result to the application program in response to the user control; and

receiving the useful information from the application program.

12. The method of claim 11, which further comprises:

granting access permission to the application program to access the current context result, based on the user'"'"'s data stored in a privacy profile.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein providing user control of access is embodied as programmed instructions executed within a separate network server in response to signals from the user'"'"'s wireless device.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the server accesses files from a web server, for selective forwarding to the user'"'"'s wireless device.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the wireless device offloads a portion of the processing of providing user control of access, to the server.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein a personal profile of the user is maintained by the server.

17. The method of claim 16, which further comprises:

providing user control of access by application programs to the user'"'"'s personal profile.

18. The method of claim 13, which further comprises:

providing user control of access by application programs to the user'"'"'s personal profile in the server.

19. The method of claim 11, which further comprises:

providing user control of access by application programs in a web server, to the user'"'"'s private data.

20. The method of claim 19, which further comprises:

enabling context sensitive applications and services within the wireless device while providing to the user control over the privacy user'"'"'s current context result.

21. The method of claim 19, which further comprises:

enabling context sensitive applications and services within the network server while providing to the user control over the privacy user'"'"'s current context result.

22. An apparatus to enable a wireless device to provide useful information to its user that is appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:

a processor;

a memory coupled to the processor, programmed to perform the steps of receiving sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;

processing the sensor signals with a context inference engine;

outputting a current context result from the processing by context inference engine; and

providing useful information to the user in response to the current context result.

23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the processing of the sensor signals with a context inference engine is embodied as programmed instructions executed within the user'"'"'s wireless device.

24. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the processing of the sensor signals with a context inference engine is embodied as programmed instructions executed within a separate network server in response to signals from the user'"'"'s wireless device.

25. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the server accesses files from a web server, for selective forwarding to the user'"'"'s wireless device.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the processing of the sensor signals with a context inference engine is embodied as programmed instructions executed within the user'"'"'s wireless device.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the step of running a program occurs in the wireless device.

32. The method of claim 29, wherein the processing of the sensor signals with a context inference engine is embodied as programmed instructions executed within a separate network server in response to signals from the user'"'"'s wireless device.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the step of running a program occurs in a web server coupled to the network server.

35. The system of claim 34, wherein the processing of the sensor signals and the application data with a context inference engine is embodied as programmed instructions executed within the user'"'"'s wireless device.

36. The system of claim 35, wherein the step of running a program occurs in the wireless device.

37. The system of claim 34, wherein the processing of the sensor signals and the application data with a context inference engine is embodied as programmed instructions executed within a separate network server in response to signals from the user'"'"'s wireless device.

38. The system of claim 37, wherein the step of running a program occurs in a web server coupled to the network server.

26. A wireless device to provide useful information to its user that is appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:

a sensor for providing sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;

a context inference engine coupled to the sensor, for processing the sensor signals;

said context inference engine providing a current context result from the processing; and

an output device coupled to the context inference engine, for providing useful information to the user in response to the current context result.

27. A wireless device to provide useful information to its user that is appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:

a privacy control for providing the user control of access by an application program to the user'"'"'s private data;

a sensor for providing sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;

a context inference engine coupled to the sensor, for processing the sensor signals;

said context inference engine coupled to the privacy control, for providing a current context result from the processing to the application program; and

an output device coupled to the privacy control, for providing useful information to the user in response to the application program.

28. A system to provide useful information to the user of a wireless device that is appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:

a privacy control in a server for receiving a user privacy profile from the wireless device and providing the user control of access by an application program to the user'"'"'s private data;

a sensor in the wireless device for providing sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;

a context inference engine in the server coupled to the wireless device, for processing sensor information derived from the sensor signals;

said context inference engine coupled to the privacy control, for providing a current context result from the processing to the application program; and

an output device in the server, coupled to the privacy control, for transmitting useful information to the wireless device in response to the application program.

29. A method to enable a wireless device to provide useful information to its user that is appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:

running a program that provides application data to the wireless device;

receiving sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;

processing the sensor signals and the application data with a context inference engine;

outputting a current context result from the processing by context inference engine; and

providing useful information to the user in response to the current context result.

34. A system to enable a wireless device to provide useful information to its user that is appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:

a processor;

a memory coupled to the processor, programmed to perform the steps of;

running a program that provides application data to the wireless device;

receiving sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;

processing the sensor signals and the application data with a context inference engine;

outputting a current context result from the processing by context inference engine; and

providing useful information to the user in response to the current context result.

39. A method to enable a wireless device to provide useful information to its user that is appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:

receiving sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;

partially processing the sensor signals with a first context inference engine within the user'"'"'s wireless device;

sending the partially processed sensor signals to a second context inference engine within a separate network server;

completing the processing the sensor signals with the second context inference engine;

sending a current context result from the second context inference engine to the wireless device; and

providing useful information to the user in response to the current context result.

40. A system to enable a wireless device to provide useful information to its user that is appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:

a wireless device for receiving sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;

a first context inference engine within the user'"'"'s wireless device for partially processing the sensor signals;

a second context inference engine within a separate network server for receiving the partially processed sensor signals sent from the wireless device and completing the processing the sensor signals;

said second context inference engine sending a current context result from the second context inference engine to the wireless device; and

said wireless device providing useful information to the user in response to the current context result.

41. A method to enable a wireless device to provide useful information to its user that is appropriate to the device'"'"'s current environment, comprising:

receiving sensor signals characterizing a current environment of the wireless device;

partially processing the sensor signals with a first context inference engine within the user'"'"'s wireless device;

sending the partially processed sensor signals to a second context inference engine within a separate network server;

completing the processing the sensor signals with the second context inference engine;

forwarding a current context result from the network server to a second server; and

sending useful information from the second server to the user'"'"'s wireless device in response to the current context result.