Mobile Device Availability Detection Using NFC and GPS
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing wireless communication devices lack efficient mechanisms to automatically and accurately communicate availability status to wireless networks, leading to potential delays in message responses due to users' unavailability, as manual updates are often forgotten or not feasible.
Innovation Solution
A wireless communication system with a Near Field Communications (NFC) device and a processor that determines and broadcasts availability status by using NFC tags, GPS, and Bluetooth connections, allowing automatic updates based on proximity and geospatial location, reducing the need for manual input and enhancing network communication.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual availability status updates are implemented, then user availability information can be communicated to contacts, but users may forget or fail to update their status in a timely manner
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables automatic availability status updates by having the mobile device autonomously detect its own operational state (online/offline, in-use/idle) and broadcast this information to the wireless network without requiring manual user input. The device serves itself by monitoring its own status and communicating it to contacts.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements a feedback mechanism where the mobile device continuously monitors its operational status and automatically updates the availability information stored in the wireless network. This closed-loop feedback ensures that contacts always receive accurate, real-time availability information without manual intervention.
2Measurement precision
If automatic availability detection is implemented using multiple sensors and systems, then availability status accuracy is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The mobile device leverages its existing multi-functional capabilities (cellular communication, WLAN, GPS, accelerometer, gyroscope) already present in modern smartphones. These components serve dual purposes: their primary functions for communication and navigation, and secondary function for availability status detection, thereby avoiding additional dedicated hardware.
Solution Approach 2:
The system combines multiple existing sensors and systems (cellular radio status, WLAN connection state, GPS location data, motion sensor information) into a unified availability detection mechanism. By merging these existing functionalities, the system achieves accurate availability detection without adding separate dedicated detection hardware.
Data Source
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AI summary
A wireless communications system (20) includes a wireless communications network (35) and a plurality of wireless communications devices 21, 36). The wireless communications devices are each configured to communicate via the wireless communications network. At least one of the plurality of wireless communications devices has a portable housing (31), a wireless transceiver (24) carried by the portable housing, and a wireless-based, availability detector (29) carried by the portable housing. A processor (22) is carried by the portable housing and is configured to determine a first availability status based upon the NFC device (25) at a first time. The processor is further configured to activate the wireless-based, availability detector based upon the NFC device to thereby determine a second availability status based upon the wireless-based, availability detector at a second time after the first time. The processor is additionally configured to communicate the first and second availability status to the wireless communications network via the wireless transceiver.