Mobile application and device feature regulation based on profile data

• US 9,854,405 B2
• Filed: 11/10/2015
• Issued: 12/26/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2015
• 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: Yoo, Kenneth
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, CONGVAN
• Application Number:
  US14/937,862
• Publication Number:
  US 20170134906A1
• Time in Patent Office: 777 Days
• Field of Search: 4554561- 3, 4554042, 4554141, 340933, 340936, 340938, 34099528, 340571, 34053922
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/027 using movement velocity, acceleration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/22 Processing or transfer of terminal data, e.g. status or physical capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices

Abstract

A drive safety application (app) that is controls other mobile app(s) and/or functionality of a communication device is centrally regulated via a network device. A manual override instruction can be provided to the network device by an authorized subscriber (e.g., via an online portal) and accordingly, the network device can instruct the communication device to disable the drive safety app. Profiling data is collected from various sources, such as, but not limited to, device sensors, location calculators, a vehicle'"'"'s onboard diagnostic system (e.g., OBD2) sensors (e.g., via wireless link), scanned access points, etc. The profiling data can be utilized to calibrate device sensors of the communication device and to determine a location and/or context of the user. Further, a set of the mobile apps can be disabled/enabled based on an analysis of the location and/or context.

Claims

1. A user equipment, comprising:

a processor; and

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

during a first time period, receiving first motion data from a first sensor of the user equipment and supplementary data from a second sensor associated with the user equipment, wherein the first motion data indicative of a speed of the user equipment, and wherein the supplementary data supplements the first motion data to determine context data associated with the user equipment;

based on the first motion data and the supplementary data, determining profiling data associated with a context of the user equipment, wherein the profiling data is directed to a network storage device, and

during a second time period, utilizing the profiling data to calibrate second motion data received from the first sensor, wherein the second sensor is unavailable during the second time period.

2. The user equipment of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

based on an analysis of the profiling data and the second motion data, determining location data indicative of a geographical location of the user equipment.

3. The user equipment of claim 2, wherein the context data comprises first context data and the operations further comprise:

based on the analysis, determining second context data associated with the user equipment.

4. The user equipment of claim 3, wherein the operations further comprise:

based on the location data and the second context data, determining that an application executed via the user equipment is to be enabled.

5. The user equipment of claim 3, wherein the operations further comprise:

based on the location data and the second context data, determining that an application executed via the user equipment is to be disabled.

6. The user equipment of claim 5, wherein the operations further comprise:

based on the location data and the second context data, determining a time period for which the application is disabled.

7. The user equipment of claim 5, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving, from the network storage device, override data that instructs the user equipment to prohibit disabling of the application, and wherein the override data is transmitted to the network device by an authorized device via a web server.

8. The user equipment of claim 5, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining hardware data associated with the first sensor, and wherein the determining that the application of the user equipment is to be disabled comprises determining that the application of the user equipment is to be disabled based on the hardware data.

9. The user equipment of claim 5, wherein the determining that the application of the user equipment is to be disabled comprises determining that the application of the user equipment is to be disabled based on determining that a subscriber of the user equipment is driving a vehicle.

10. The user equipment of claim 1, wherein the profiling data is determined based on preference data associated with the user equipment.

11. The user equipment of claim 1, wherein the profiling data is determined based on historical data associated with the user equipment.

12. The user equipment of claim 1, wherein the first sensor comprises an accelerometer.

13. The user equipment of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

directing the profiling data to the network device.

14. A method, comprising:

during a first time period, sensing, by a mobile device comprising a processor, first motion data indicative of a first speed of the mobile device, wherein the first motion data is combined with supplementary data that supplements the first motion data to generate profile data associated with the mobile device that is to be stored within a network device of a communication network coupled to the mobile device, and wherein the supplementary data is sensed by a sensor associated with the mobile device;

during a second time period, sensing, by the mobile device, second motion data indicative of a second speed of the mobile device;

subsequent to the sensing the second motion data and in response to determining that the sensor is inaccessible, receiving, by the mobile device, the profile data from the network device; and

based on the profile data, calibrating, by the mobile device, the second motion data.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

in response to determining that the profile data and the second motion data satisfy a defined criterion, disabling, by the mobile device, an application of the mobile device.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the disabling comprises disabling the application in response to determining that a user identity associated with the mobile device is also associated with driving a vehicle.

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

based on first sensor data received from a first sensor of the communication device during a first time period, determining first motion data related to a speed of the communication device;

utilizing first motion data and supplementary data that supplements the first motion data to determine profile data associated with the user equipment, wherein the supplementary data has been received from a second sensor associated with the communication device;

based on the profile data, calibrating second motion data that is determined based on second sensor data received from the first sensor during a second time period, wherein the second sensor is unavailable during the second time period; and

in response to determining that the second motion data satisfies a defined criterion, determining that an application of the communication device is to be deactivated.

18. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving, from a network device, override data that instructs the communication device to deny deactivation of the application.

19. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the determining that the application is to be deactivated comprises determining that the application is to be deactivated in response to determining that a user of the communication device is driving a vehicle.

20. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the first sensor is an accelerometer.