Public wireless network performance management system with mobile device data collection agents

• US 9,959,244 B2
• Filed: 07/16/2012
• Issued: 05/01/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/01/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Netmotion Wireless Holdings, Inc. (NetMotion Software, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Netmotion Wireless Holdings, Inc. (NetMotion Software, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hofstaedter, Christian E., Canales, III, Reyes, Goziker, Edward, Simpkins, James S., Garcia-Duarte, Fernando, Renouard, Julia, Savarese, Joseph T., Kimmerly, Mark V., Wang, Zhenwu, Dangov, John, Hoover, Paul L., Snyder, Michael L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dinh, Minh
• Application Number:
  US13/549,884
• Publication Number:
  US 20120282933A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,115 Days
• Field of Search: 714 39, 714 471- 473, 340 11- 161, 709224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/173 using an interconnection network, e.g. matrix, shuffle, pyramid, star, snowflake
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5009 Determining service level performance parameters or violations of service level contracts, e.g. violations of agreed response time or mean time between failures [MTBF]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/045 for graphical visualisation of monitoring data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/08 Monitoring or testing based on specific metrics, e.g. QoS, energy consumption or environmental parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/082 using revocation of authorisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/02 Arrangements for optimising operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/08 Testing, supervising or monitoring using real traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/10 Scheduling measurement reports ; Arrangements for measurement reports

Abstract

Controller coupled to a mobile communications environment including at least one of a public and a private network and method of controlling a mobile device in the mobile communications environment. The controller includes a receiver that receives data about network operating parameters at specific locations within the at least one of a public and private network, a processor that evaluates the data about the network operating parameters at the specific locations based upon rules for the mobile device, and a transmitter that sends advisories to a mobile device located within a predetermined proximity to one of the specific locations about the network operating parameters.

Claims

1. An advisory system coupled to a mobile communications environment comprising multiple networks that include at least one of a public and private network, the advisory system comprising:

a receiver that receives data from mobile devices, each mobile device being coupled to a plurality of the multiple networks, the data being respective global positioning locations of the mobile devices and network operating parameters for each of the plurality of coupled multiple networks at the respective global positioning locations of the mobile devices within the mobile communications environment;

a processor that processes the received data about the network operating parameters for each of the plurality of coupled multiple networks at the respective global positioning locations for the mobile device and evaluates network operating parameters for each of the mobile devices in each of the plurality of the multiple networks,

wherein the processor further evaluates whether the evaluated network operating parameters for each of the mobile devices are improvable over the evaluated network operating parameters of current networks to which each of the mobile devices are currently coupled for transmitting data and prepares advisories for certain ones of the mobile devices to alert users of the certain ones of mobile devices of at least one of projected problems and solutions to projected problems; and

a transmitter that transmits the advisories to the certain ones of the mobile devices in order to automatically alert the users of the at least one of projected problems and solutions to projected problems to improve the evaluated network operating parameters of the certain ones of the mobile devices over the evaluated network parameters of the current networks to which the certain ones of the mobile devices are currently coupled for transmitting data, wherein the advisories are based upon rules for the at least one mobile device, a current global positioning location of the at least one mobile device and the evaluated network operating parameters for each of the mobile devices in a predetermined proximity of a current global positioning location of the certain ones of the mobile devices.

2. The advisory system according to claim 1, wherein the advisories include at least one of an automatic sending of real time warnings of projected problems and real time warnings to avoid projected problems.

3. The advisory system according to claim 1, wherein the network operating parameters at the respective global positioning locations comprises strength of signal data.

4. The advisory system according to claim 3, wherein the transmitter automatically alerts each user of the certain ones of the mobile devices with suggestions to improve signal strength over a current signal strength evaluated in respective certain ones of the mobile devices at the respective current global positioning location.

5. The advisory system according to claim 3, wherein the transmitter automatically alerts each user of the certain ones of the mobile devices to change to a different network having improved signal strength over a current active network to which each user of the certain ones of the mobile devices is coupled.

6. The advisory system according to claim 1, wherein, when network trouble is evaluated, a data collection frequency for the data about network operating parameters at the respective global positioning locations within the at least one of the public and private network is increased.

7. The advisory system according to claim 1, wherein the network operating parameters at the respective global positioning locations comprises cost of network usage.

8. The advisory system according to claim 7, wherein the transmitter automatically alerts each user of the certain ones of the mobile devices to change active networks to avoid higher cost.

9. The advisory system according to claim 1, wherein the at least one mobile device comprises a plurality of mobile devices within the at least one of the public and private network.

10. The advisory system according to claim 9, wherein, when network trouble is evaluated, a data collection frequency for the data from the plurality of mobile devices is increased.

11. A method for advising a mobile device coupled to a mobile communications environment comprising multiple networks that include at least one of a public and private network, the method comprising:

receiving data from mobile devices that are each coupled to a plurality of the multiple networks, the data being respective global positioning locations of the mobile devices and network operating parameters for each of the plurality of coupled networks at respective global positioning global positioning locations of the mobile devices within the mobile communications environment;

processing the received data about the network operating parameters for each of the plurality of coupled networks at the respective global positioning global positioning locations for the mobile device;

evaluating network operating parameters for each of the mobile devices in each of the plurality of the multiple networks;

evaluating whether the evaluated network operating parameters for each of the mobile devices are improvable over the evaluated network operating parameters of current networks to which each of the mobile devices are currently coupled for transmitting data;

preparing advisories for certain ones of the mobile devices to alert users of the certain ones of mobile devices of at least one of projected problems and solutions to projected problems; and

transmitting the advisories to the certain ones of the mobile devices in order to automatically alert the users of the at least one of projected problems and solutions to projected problems to improve the evaluated network operating parameters of the certain ones of the mobile devices over the evaluated network parameters of the current networks to which the certain ones of the mobile devices are currently coupled for transmitting data, wherein the advisories are based upon rules for the at least one mobile device, a current global positioning location of the at least one mobile device and the evaluated network operating parameters for each of the mobile devices in a predetermined proximity of a current global positioning location of the certain ones of the mobile devices.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the advisories include at least one of an automatic sending of real time warnings of projected problems and real time warnings to avoid projected problems.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the network operating parameters at the respective global positioning locations comprises strength of signal data.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the transmitting of the advisories automatically alerts each user of the certain ones of the mobile devices with suggestions to improve signal strength over a current signal strength evaluated in respective certain ones of the mobile devices at the respective current global positioning location.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein the transmitting of the advisories automatically alerts each user of the certain ones of the mobile devices with suggestions to change to a different network having improved signal strength over a current active network to each user of the certain ones of the mobile devices is coupled.

16. The method according to claim 11, further comprising determining network trouble from the evaluation, and increasing a data collection frequency for the data about network operating parameters at the respective global positioning locations within the at least one of the public and private network.

17. The method according to claim 11, wherein the network operating parameters at the respective global positioning locations comprises cost of network usage.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein the transmitting of advisories automatically alerts each user of the certain ones of the mobile devices to change from respective current active networks to other networks of the plurality of networks to which the certain ones of the mobile devices are coupled to avoid higher cost.

19. The method according to claim 11, wherein the data received about network operating parameters at the respective global positioning locations within the at least one of the public and private network is from a plurality of mobile devices within the at least one of the public and private network.

20. An advisory system coupled to a mobile communications environment that includes multiple networks with at least one public and/or private network, the advisory system comprising:

a receiver that receives data from at least one mobile device about operating parameters for all of a plurality of multiple networks that are coupled to the at least one mobile device at several respective global positioning locations of the at least one mobile device as the at least one mobile device moves within the plurality of networks;

a processor that processes the received data to evaluate the operating parameters for each of the networks coupled to the at least one mobile device at the several respective global positioning locations, to evaluate whether the evaluated operating parameters for each of the networks coupled to the at least one mobile device are improvable over the evaluated operating parameters of a current network to which the at least one mobile device is currently coupled for transmitting data and to prepare an advisory for the at least one mobile device to alert a user of the at least one mobile device of at least one of projected problems and solutions to projected problems; and

a transmitter that transmits the advisory to at least one mobile device in order to automatically alert the user of at least one of projected problems and solutions to projected problems to improve the evaluated operating parameters of the at least one mobile device over the evaluated parameters of the current network, wherein the advisory includes at least one suggestion to the user to improve performance of the at least one mobile device at a current global positioning location, which is based upon rules for the at least one mobile device, the current global positioning location of the at least one mobile device and the evaluated operating parameters for each of the networks coupled to the at least one mobile device in a predetermined proximity of the current global positioning location of the at least one mobile device.

21. An advisory system according to claim 20, wherein the at least one mobile device comprises a plurality of mobile devices.

22. An advisory system according to claim 21, wherein the receiver collects data about signal strength for all of the plurality of networks coupled to each of the at least one mobile device at respective current locations of the at least one mobile device.

23. An advisory system according to claim 20, wherein the at least one suggestion to improve performance of the at least one mobile device at the current location comprises at least one of advising moving the at least one other mobile device to a different location and advising changing a current active network of the at least one mobile device to a new active network.