Standard mobile communication device distraction prevention and safety protocols

• US 9,294,603 B2
• Filed: 09/16/2010
• Issued: 03/22/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/16/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cell Command, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Try Safety First, Inc.
• Inventors: Fischer, John J., Nguyen, Hap
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, John J
• Application Number:
  US12/883,583
• Publication Number:
  US 20110063098A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,014 Days
• Field of Search: 455/1, 455/418, 455/419, 455/420, 455/550.1, 455/67.11, 455/69, 455/515, 455/434, 455/552.1, 455/90.1, 455/569.2
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2009/00793 by Hertzian waves
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00674 with switch-buttons
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/29 the pass containing active electronic elements, e.g. smartcards
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/017 identifying vehicles G08G1/015, G08G1/054 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6075 adapted for handsfree use in a vehicle H04M1/6058 takes precedence; arrangements for holding telephones in a vehicle B60R11/0241
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/67 by electronic means
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72454 according to context-related or environment-related conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72463 to restrict the functionality of the device
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/02 including a Bluetooth interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/06 Selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS]; Services to user groups; One-way selective calling services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/40 for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/90 Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/04 based on user or terminal location or mobility data, e.g. moving direction, speed
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices

Abstract

Methods and systems for providing standardized mobile device distraction prevention and safety protocols are disclosed. In particular, an embodiment of a method for activating a distraction prevention or safety protocol behavior in a mobile device when the mobile device satisfies a specific condition is disclosed. The method includes discovering one or more protocol activators configured to transmit discovery information associated with a specific condition. The method further includes activating distraction prevention safety protocol behavior in the mobile device based at least in part on the discovery information. In an implementation, the specific condition may be a specified environment itself and or include an event when the mobile device enters a specified environment or a specified sequence of numbers is dialed from the mobile device.

Claims

1. A method for activating a distraction prevention safety protocol behavior in a mobile device when the mobile device satisfies a specific condition, the method comprising:

discovering, by the mobile device, a discovery information trigger signal transmitted by at least one protocol activator, the discovery information trigger signal associated with the specific condition, wherein the discovery information trigger signal corresponds to a modified unique universal identification (UUID) code comprising a safety code according to a safety protocol of the protocol activator, and wherein at least a portion of the safety code identifies at least one of;

a specified environment in which the protocol activator operates, and

a specified working group information in the specified environment in which the protocol activator operates; and

activating, by the mobile device, the distraction prevention safety protocol behavior in the mobile device based at least in part on the discovery information trigger signal, the protocol behavior being based on the safety code according to the safety protocol in the modified UUID code corresponding to a state law or enacted rule created by a state or protocol enforcement agency.

2. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the discovering comprises searching for at least one protocol activator in the specified environment.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the discovering further comprises transmitting at least one request to obtain the discovery information trigger signal.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the discovery information associated with the trigger signal corresponds to a device name and a device class associated with the at least one protocol activator, the device class being informative of the specific condition.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the discovering further comprises accessing a look up table and determining an entry corresponding to the discovery information trigger signal associated with the specific condition.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the activation comprises determining from a look up table, the safety protocol behavior corresponding to the discovery information trigger signal.

7. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the protocol activator corresponds to at least one transmitter characterized by at least one of a predetermined device name and class associated with the specified environment.

8. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the specified environment corresponds to at least one of a transportation vehicle, a class room, a correctional facility, an airport, an airplane, a court room, a hospital, a church, a theatre, a fly zone, a danger zone, a bedroom, and an auditorium.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the safety protocol behavior corresponds to at least partial disablement of functionality of the mobile device.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one protocol activator corresponds to at least one of a Bluetooth sensor, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag reader, a EdOcean sensor, a TransferJet sensor, an Ultra wideband sensor, a UWB sensor, a Wireless USB, a DSRC sensor, an IrDAa sensor, Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) sensor, a Zigbee sensor, a Near Field Communication (NFC) sensor, and a Wireless Personal Area Network (WPAN) sensor.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising discovering, by the mobile device, the discovery information trigger signal transmitted by the at least one protocol activator without establishing a connection pairing between the mobile device and the at least one protocol activator.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the at least one protocol activator corresponds to at least one Bluetooth sensor.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the discovering by the mobile device is in response to the mobile device entering a proximity range of at least one protocol activator.

14. A method of controlling functionality of a mobile device within a specified environment comprising:

broadcasting, by at least one transmitter, a trigger signal within the specified environment;

receiving, by a mobile device, a modified unique universal identification (UUID) code comprising a safety code according to a safety protocol of the at least one transmitter associated with the trigger signal, wherein at least a portion of the safety code identifies a specified working group in the specified environment in which the at least one transmitter operates; and

implementing, by the mobile device, a set of protocol instructional behaviors in the mobile device based at least in part on the safety code according to the safety protocol in the modified UUID code received from the at least one transmitter to restrict functionality of the mobile device.

15. The method as in claim 14, wherein the specified environment corresponds to at least one of the following environments:

transportation vehicle, a class room, a correctional (prison) facility, an airport, an airplane, a court room, a hospital, a church, a theatre, a fly zone;

a danger zone, a bedroom, and an auditorium.

16. The method as in claim 14, wherein broadcasting the trigger signal comprises activating the at least one transmitter based on an actuating mechanism that detects the onset of a specific condition.

17. The method as in claim 16, wherein the at least one transmitter corresponds to at least one of:

a Bluetooth sensor, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag reader, a EdOcean sensor, a TransferJet sensor, an Ultra wideband sensor, a UWB sensor, a Wireless USB, a DSRC sensor, an IrDAa sensor, Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) sensor, a Zigbee sensor, a Near Field Communication (NFC) sensor, and a Wireless Personal Area Network (WPAN) sensor.

18. The method as in claim 14, wherein receiving the modified UUID code of the at least one transmitter comprises intercepting the trigger signal being broadcast, and identifying at least one of the specified working group and the specified environment.

19. The method as in claim 18, wherein the implementing is based on the trigger signal from at least one of the specified working group, and the specified environment.

20. The method as in claim 14, wherein the implementing comprises determining the set of protocol instructional behaviors corresponding to the trigger signal associated with at least one of a device name and an address of the at least one transmitter, and the specified working group.

21. The method as in claim 20, wherein the implementing comprises at least partial disablement of the functionality of the mobile device and the partial disablement is based on a state law or enacted rule created by a state or protocol enforcement agency.

22. The method as in claim 14, wherein the set of protocol instructional behaviors permits emergency calls to at least one pre-determined programmable numbers.

23. The method as in claim 14, wherein the functionality corresponds to at least one of:

a calling function, a texting function, a mailing function, a social networking function associated with the mobile device.

24. The method as in claim 14, wherein the at least one transmitter comprises at least one of:

a device name and a class associated with the specified environment.

25. The method of claim 14, further comprising receiving, by the mobile device, the modified UUID code without establishing a connection pairing between the mobile device and the transmitter.

26. A system operating in a mobile device for implementing safety protocols in the mobile device, the system comprising:

a memory configured to store software instructions;

a processor configured to access the software instructions from the memory;

the processor configured to access the software instructions from the memory to;

execute the accessed software instructions to receive a modified unique universal identification (UUID) code comprising a safety code according to a safety protocol transmitted from at least one transmitter, wherein at least a portion of the safety code identifies at least a specified working group information in a specified environment in which the at least one transmitter operates; and

execute the accessed software instructions to execute a protocol behavior in the mobile device based at least in part on the safety code according to the safety protocol in the modified UUID code, the safety code corresponding to the protocol behavior being based on a state law or enacted rule created by a state or protocol enforcement agency.

27. The system as claimed in claim 26, wherein the at least one transmitter comprises a device name with class information of the specified environment.

28. The system as claimed in claim 26, wherein the specified environment corresponds to at least one of:

a transportation vehicle, a class room, a correctional facility, an airport, an airplane, a court room, a hospital, a church, a theatre, a fly zone, a danger zone, a bedroom, and an auditorium.

29. The system as claimed in claim 26, wherein the processor is further configured to execute the software instructions from the memory to determine the protocol behavior based at least in part on the modified UUID code.

30. The system as claimed in claim 26, wherein the at least one transmitter corresponds to at least one of:

a Bluetooth sensor, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag reader, a EdOcean sensor, a TransferJet sensor, an Ultra wideband sensor, a UWB sensor, a Wireless USB, a DSRC sensor, an IrDAa sensor, Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) sensor, a Zigbee sensor, a Near Field Communication (NFC) sensor, and a Wireless Personal Area Network (WPAN) sensor.

31. The system of claim 26, wherein the communications module is further configured to execute the software instructions from the memory to receive the modified UUID code transmitted from the at least one transmitter without establishing a connection pairing between the mobile device and the at least one transmitter.

32. A method of activating distraction prevention safety protocol behavior in a mobile device within a specified environment comprising:

broadcasting, by a protocol activator, a trigger signal within the specified environment; and

including, by the protocol activator, a discovery information in the broadcast trigger signal, wherein the discovery information associated with the trigger signal corresponds to a modified unique universal identification (UUID) code of the protocol activator, and wherein at least a portion of the modified UUID code identifies at least a specified working group information in the specified environment in which the protocol activator operates;

wherein the discovery information broadcast from the protocol activator in the trigger signal causes activation of the distraction prevention safety protocol behavior in the mobile device within the specified environment, without establishing a connection pairing between the mobile device and the protocol activator, the protocol behavior being based on a state law or enacted rule created by a state or protocol enforcement agency.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the broadcasting by the protocol activator comprises broadcasting the trigger signal within a pre-determined limited range inside the specified environment.

34. The method of claim 32, wherein the universal unique identification code associated with the protocol activator is informative of a specific condition.

35. The method of claim 32, wherein the discovery information corresponds to at least one of a device name and a device class associated with the protocol activator, at least one of the device name and the device class being informative of a specific condition.

36. The method of claim 32, wherein the protocol activator corresponds to at least one transmitter characterized by a predetermined device name and class associated with the specified environment.

37. The method of claim 32, wherein the specified environment corresponds to at least one of a transportation vehicle, a class room, a correctional facility, an airport, an airplane, a court room, a hospital, a church, a theatre, a fly zone, a danger zone, a bedroom, and an auditorium.

38. The method of claim 32, wherein broadcasting the trigger signal by the protocol activator comprises activating at least one transmitter based on an actuating mechanism that detects the onset of a specific condition.

39. The method of claim 38, wherein the specified environment is within a transportation vehicle and wherein activation of the at least one transmitter is based on a state or a position of at least one of a transportation vehicle component, the activation being based on the state law or enacted rule created by a state or protocol enforcement agency.

40. The method of claim 32, further comprising responding to at least one request to obtain the discovery information.

41. A protocol activator configured to perform the method of claim 32.

42. A method for activating a distraction prevention safety protocol behavior in a mobile device, comprising:

in response to the mobile device entering a proximity range of at least one protocol transmitter, discovering a discovery information trigger signal transmitted by the at least one protocol transmitter corresponding to a modified unique universal identification (UUID) code comprising a distraction prevention safety code, wherein at least a portion of the distraction prevention safety code identifies at least one of;

a specified environment corresponding to a distraction prevention safety protocol behavior, and

a specified working group information in the specified environment corresponding the distraction prevention safety protocol behavior to which the at least one protocol transmitter operates; and

activating, by the mobile device, the distraction prevention safety protocol behavior in the mobile device based on the distraction prevention safety code in the modified UUID code and corresponding to a state law or enacted rule created by a state or protocol enforcement agency.

43. A mobile device comprising:

a memory configured to store software instructions in at least one program module;

a processor configured to executed the software instructions from the at least one program module in the memory;

wherein the processor is configured to execute the software instructions in the at least one program module to;

discover a discovery information trigger signal transmitted by at least one protocol transmitter corresponding to a modified unique universal identification (UUID) code comprising a distraction prevention safety code, wherein at least a portion of the distraction prevention safety code identifies at least one of;

a specified environment corresponding to a distraction prevention safety protocol behavior, and

a specified working group information in the specified environment corresponding to a distraction prevention safety protocol behavior to which the at least one protocol transmitter operates; and

activate the distraction prevention safety protocol behavior in the mobile device based on the distraction prevention safety code in the modified UUID code and corresponding to a state law or enacted rule created by a state or protocol enforcement agency.