Context based connectivity for mobile devices

Abstract

A system for automatically creating a preferred wireless connection medium order in a wireless communication device (WCD) for connecting to a network. A server on the network detects when a new device has entered a designated space, identifies the device, determines its capabilities and creates a wireless connection medium order for the device. The preferred connection medium order may be determined in view of a device profile corresponding to the WCD. The server may then set the preferred medium order in the WCD. The server may also control further information synchronization once the WCD is connected to the network.

1 . A method for determining at least one preferred wireless communication medium for connecting a wireless communication device to a network, comprising: 
 obtaining information regarding a location of a wireless communication device;    determining the communication capabilities of the wireless communication device;    determining at least one preferred wireless communication medium for connecting to a network; and    transmitting information to the wireless communication device regarding the at least one preferred wireless communication medium for connecting to the network.    
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the wireless communication medium is a short-range wireless communication medium including at least one of a Bluetooth™ Network, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), or an Ultra Wide Band Network (UWB).  
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein, the wireless communication medium is a long-range wireless communication medium including at least one of Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) or Short Messaging Service (SMS).  
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the location of the wireless communication device includes information provided by at least one of a cellular network, a global positioning system or machine-readable data.  
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein machine-readable data includes information provided by at least one of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) communication, Infra-Red communication (IR), Bar Code Reader (BCR) communication including processes related to interpreting UPC labels, Optical Character Recognition (OCR) communication or Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR) communication.  
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the location of the wireless communication device includes information provided by a network access point.  
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein determining the communication capabilities of the wireless communication device further comprises determining whether an identification of the wireless communication device is stored on a server.  
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein determining the communication capabilities of the wireless communication device further comprises determining whether a device profile for the wireless communication device is stored on a server.  
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the at least one preferred wireless communication medium is determined in consideration of the device profile.  
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the information regarding the preferred wireless communication medium is transmitted to the wireless communication device using short-range communication.  
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein a server further determines whether a synchronization may occur for the wireless communication device by evaluating the status of the wireless communication device and the status of the network.  
     
     
         12 . A method for determining a preferred wireless connection for a wireless communication device, comprising: 
 connecting a wireless communication device via a first wireless connection to an access service manager;    determining by the access service manager a second wireless connection available for the wireless communication device;    sending access setting information including second wireless connection information from the access service manager to the wireless communication device via the first connection; and    setting the second wireless connection as the preferred wireless connection for the wireless communication device.    
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the first wireless connection and the second wireless connection each use a short-range wireless communication medium including at least one of a Bluetooth™ Network, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), or an Ultra Wide Band Network (UWB).  
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein the first wireless connection and the second wireless connection use different short-range wireless communication mediums.  
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein, the second wireless connection uses a long-range wireless communication medium including at least one of Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) or Short Messaging Service (SMS).  
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the access service manager determines the second connection by considering at least one of authentication information, device type and capabilities, device identity, user identity, user profile, user preferences, service provider preferences, application(s) used in the wireless communication device, connected access point and information on available networks.  
     
     
         17 . A wireless communication device which receives an indication of at least one preferred communication medium for connecting to a network, comprising: 
 transmitting logic for accessing an access point via a first wireless communication medium;    receiving logic for receiving information via a first wireless communication medium to the wireless communication device regarding the at least one preferred wireless communication medium for connecting to the network from the access point.    
     
     
         18 . The wireless communication device of  claim 17 , wherein the first wireless communication medium is a short-range wireless communication medium including at least one of a Bluetooth™ Network, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), or an Ultra Wide Band Network (UWB), or a long-range wireless communication medium including at least one of Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) or Short Messaging Service (SMS).  
     
     
         19 . The wireless communication device of  claim 17 , wherein the preferred wireless communication medium is a short-range wireless communication medium including at least one of a Bluetooth™ Network, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), or an Ultra Wide Band Network (UWB).  
     
     
         20 . The wireless communication device of  claim 17 , wherein, the preferred wireless communication medium is a long-range wireless communication medium including at least one of Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) or Short Messaging Service (SMS).  
     
     
         21 . The wireless communication device of  claim 17 , wherein the receiving logic further receives information from a server that determines whether a synchronization may occur for the wireless communication device by evaluating the status of the wireless communication device and the status of the network.  
     
     
         22 . A server for determining at least one preferred wireless communication medium for connecting a wireless communication device to a network, comprising: 
 obtaining logic for receiving information regarding a location of the wireless communication device;    determining logic for determining the communication capabilities of the wireless communication device and at least one preferred wireless communication medium for connecting to the network; and    transmitting logic for transmitting information to the wireless communication device regarding the at least one preferred wireless communication medium for connecting to the network.    
     
     
         23 . The server of  claim 22 , wherein the preferred wireless communication medium is a short-range wireless communication medium including at least one of a Bluetooth™ Network, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), or an Ultra Wide Band Network (UWB).  
     
     
         24 . The server of  claim 22 , wherein, the preferred wireless communication medium is a long-range wireless communication medium including at least one of Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) or Short Messaging Service (SMS).  
     
     
         25 . The server of  claim 22 , wherein the location of the wireless communication device includes information provided by at least one of a cellular network, a global positioning system or machine-readable data.  
     
     
         26 . The server of  claim 25 , wherein machine-readable data includes information provided by at least one of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) communication, Infra-Red communication (IR), Bar Code Reader (BCR) communication including processes related to interpreting UPC labels, Optical Character Recognition (OCR) communication or Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR) communication.  
     
     
         27 . The server of  claim 22 , wherein determining the communication capabilities of the wireless communication device further comprises determining whether an identification of the wireless communication device is stored on the server.  
     
     
         28 . The server of  claim 22 , wherein determining the communication capabilities of the wireless communication device further comprises determining whether a device profile for the wireless communication device is stored on a server.  
     
     
         29 . The server of  claim 28 , wherein the at least one preferred wireless communication medium is determined in view of the device profile.  
     
     
         30 . The server of  claim 22 , wherein the information regarding the preferred wireless communication medium is transmitted to the wireless communication device using short-range communication.  
     
     
         31 . The server of  claim 22 , wherein a server further determines whether a synchronization may occur for the wireless communication device by evaluating the status of the wireless communication device and the status of the network.  
     
     
         32 . A computer program product comprising a computer usable medium having computer readable program code embodied in said medium for determining at least one preferred wireless communication medium for connecting a wireless communication device to a network, comprising: 
 a computer readable program code for obtaining information regarding a location of a wireless communication device;    a computer readable program code for determining at least one preferred wireless communication medium for connecting to a network; and    a computer readable program code for transmitting information to the wireless communication device regarding the at least one preferred wireless communication medium for connecting to the network.    
     
     
         33 . The computer program product of  claim 32 , wherein the wireless communication medium is a short-range wireless communication medium including at least one of a Bluetooth™ Network, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), or an Ultra Wide Band Network (UWB).  
     
     
         34 . The computer program product of  claim 32 , wherein, the wireless communication medium is a long-range wireless communication medium including at least one of Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) or Short Messaging Service (SMS).  
     
     
         35 . The computer program product of  claim 32 , wherein the location of the wireless communication device includes information provided by at least one of a cellular network, a global positioning system or machine-readable data.  
     
     
         36 . The computer program product of  claim 35 , wherein machine-readable data includes information provided by at least one of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) communication, Infra-Red communication (IR), Bar Code Reader (BCR) communication including processes related to interpreting UPC labels, Optical Character Recognition (OCR) communication or Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR) communication.  
     
     
         37 . The computer program product of  claim 32 , wherein determining the communication capabilities of the wireless communication device further comprises determining whether an identification of the wireless communication device is stored on a server.  
     
     
         38 . The computer program product of  claim 32 , wherein determining the communication capabilities of the wireless communication device further comprises determining whether a device profile for the wireless communication device is stored on a server.  
     
     
         39 . The computer program product of  claim 38 , wherein the at least one preferred wireless communication medium is determined in view of the device profile.  
     
     
         40 . The computer program product of  claim 32 , wherein the information regarding the preferred wireless communication medium is transmitted to the wireless communication device using short-range communication.  
     
     
         41 . The computer program product of  claim 32 , wherein a server further determines whether a synchronization may occur for the wireless communication device by evaluating the status of the wireless communication device and the status of the network.  
     
     
         42 . A system for determining a preferred wireless communication medium for connecting a wireless communication device to a network, comprising: 
 a wireless communication device;    an access point at a location, for providing location information about the wireless communication device; and    a server, coupled to the access point, using a device profile to determine at least one preferred wireless communication medium for connecting the wireless device to a network in response to the location information;    the server transmitting information to the wireless communication device regarding the at least one preferred wireless communication medium for connecting to the network;    the wireless communication device setting the at least one preferred wireless communication medium as a preferred communication medium for connecting the wireless device to the network.    
     
     
         43 . A system for determining a preferred wireless connection for a wireless communication device, comprising: 
 a wireless communication device;    an access service manager connected via a first wireless connection to said wireless communication device;    said access service manager determining a second wireless connection available for the wireless communication device;    said access service manager sending access setting information including the second wireless connection to the wireless communication device via the first connection; and    said wireless communication device setting the second wireless connection as its preferred wireless connection.    
     
     
         44 . A network server for determining a preferred wireless access point for a wireless communication device, comprising: 
 network connections to at least a first access point and a second access point;    a service manager coupled to said network connections for executing the steps of: 
 receiving information of a location of a wireless communication device;  
 determining availability of said first and second wireless access points at the location of the wireless communication device;  
 selecting a preferred wireless access point from said first and second wireless access points;  
 transmitting information via said preferred wireless access point to said wireless communication device.  
   
     
     
         45 . A method for determining a preferred wireless access point for a wireless communication device, comprising: 
 receiving information of a location of a wireless communication device;    determining availability of a first and second wireless access points at the location of the wireless communication device;    selecting a preferred wireless access point from said first and second wireless access points;    transmitting information via said preferred wireless access point to said wireless communication device.    
     
     
         46 . A wireless communication device for communicating via a preferred wireless access point, comprising: 
 a communications interface for providing network access for a wireless communication device via WLAN, Bluetooth, or wireless telecommunications network;    a connection manager coupled to said communications interface for selecting a preferred access point from WLAN, Bluetooth, or wireless telecommunications network access points for communicating with said communications interface;    a context middleware coupled to said connection manager for determining a context for said wireless communication device used in said selecting;    a CPU coupled to said connection manager and context middleware, for executing the steps of: 
 connecting said wireless communication device to a wireless access point;  
 receiving information on a preferred wireless access point based on a context of the connected access point;  
 setting the preferred wireless access point as the accessing path to the network for the wireless communication device; and  
 using the preferred wireless access point to access the network.  
   
     
     
         47 . A method for a wireless communication device to communicating via a preferred wireless access point, comprising: 
 connecting a wireless communication device to a wireless access point;    receiving information on a preferred wireless access point based on a context of the connected access point;    setting the preferred wireless access point as the accessing path to a network for the wireless communication device; and    using the preferred wireless access point to access the network.