Location-Based Functionality Restrictions for Device Compliance

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current solutions fail to effectively manage device functionality based on location, leading to compliance issues and revenue loss for businesses, as they often restrict device use entirely rather than allowing location-specific functionality access.

Innovation Solution

An apparatus and method that perform periodic scans to identify restricted functionality and apply remedial actions, such as disabling hardware or software features, based on compliance rules defined by location, ensuring compliance with location-specific authorization rules.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If conventional solutions restrict device use entirely to prevent restricted functionality, then compliance with location-based rules is improved, but device usability and productivity deteriorate

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecompliance with location-based rulesVSAvoiddevice usability
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments device functionality into multiple independent components that can be individually restricted or permitted. Instead of applying a blanket restriction to the entire device, the system identifies specific functions, applications, or resources that violate location-based compliance rules and restricts only those segments. This allows employees to continue using authorized functions while complying with location-based policies, thereby maintaining productivity while ensuring regulatory compliance.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

2Reliability

If device functionality is entirely restricted to enforce compliance, then location-based compliance is improved, but revenue loss increases due to inability to perform authorized functions

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvelocation-based complianceVSAvoidrevenue loss
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies local quality by implementing location-specific functionality restrictions rather than uniform device-wide restrictions. The system determines the device's current location and applies compliance rules locally to specific functions based on that location context. This allows employees to access authorized resources and perform revenue-generating tasks when in compliant locations, while automatically restricting functionality only when in non-compliant locations, thereby minimizing revenue loss while maintaining compliance.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

3Measurement precision

If periodic scans are performed to identify restricted functionality, then compliance monitoring accuracy is improved, but system complexity and processing overhead increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecompliance monitoring accuracyVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements periodic action by performing compliance scans at scheduled intervals rather than continuously monitoring all device functions. The system periodically scans device functionality to identify restricted operations, determines current location, and applies compliance rules at these discrete time points. This periodic approach maintains adequate compliance monitoring accuracy while significantly reducing system complexity and processing overhead compared to continuous real-time monitoring of all device operations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #19Periodic action

Data Source

PatentEP2974394B1Location-based functionality restrictions
Publication Date: 2019.01.02 AIRWATCH LLC
  • EP2974394B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2974394B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP2974394B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Location-based functionality restrictions may be provided. Periodic scans may be performed to identify requests to perform functions on user devices, to determine whether the functions are compliant with compliance rules associated with the user devices that specify location where the user devices are authorized to perform the functions, and to perform remedial actions if the functions are not compliant with the compliance rules.