Decentralized Network Reward Tracking to Curb Hotspot Data Gaming
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Solution Overview
Problem
In decentralized networks, hotspot owners may game the system by using devices with unlimited data plans to generate excessive data usage for rewards, leading to financial incentives that are not aligned with actual network usage.
Innovation Solution
Implement mechanisms to track data usage per carrier, per hotspot, and per user equipment (UE) without identifying the UE owner, using temporary and permanent identifiers to aggregate usage and cap rewards, ensuring fair compensation based on actual usage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If usage-based rewards are provided to hotspot owners, then legitimate data usage is compensated, but system gaming and abuse increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms by tracking data usage patterns across multiple sessions and hotspots, analyzing whether usage appears legitimate or artificial. The system provides feedback through selective reward distribution - rewarding genuine usage while penalizing or ignoring gaming behavior, thereby creating a self-correcting system that discourages abuse.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary analysis layer between raw usage data and reward distribution. This intermediary system correlates temporary and permanent identifiers, aggregates usage across sessions, and determines legitimacy before rewards are issued, acting as a mediator that filters out gaming behavior while preserving legitimate usage rewards.
2Adaptability or versatility
If unlimited data plans are allowed, then user flexibility is improved, but excessive data pumping for rewards occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by making reward eligibility conditional rather than static. The system dynamically evaluates each usage session against legitimacy criteria, allowing flexible unlimited usage for legitimate purposes while automatically restricting rewards for excessive or artificial data pumping, thus adapting the reward system to actual usage patterns.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameter of reward eligibility from a fixed unlimited allowance to a dynamic threshold based on usage pattern analysis. By monitoring data volume, session frequency, and usage characteristics, the system adjusts effective reward thresholds in real-time, permitting high usage when legitimate but capping rewards when gaming is detected.
3Area of stationary object
If decentralized hotspot deployment is enabled, then network coverage expands, but usage tracking and reward management complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal tracking framework that handles multiple hotspots, carriers, and user devices through a single correlated identifier system. This multi-functional approach allows the same infrastructure to track usage across diverse decentralized locations, managing complexity through standardization rather than requiring separate systems for each hotspot.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the tracking system into modular components: identifier correlation modules, usage aggregation modules, legitimacy analysis modules, and reward distribution modules. This segmentation allows independent optimization of each function while reducing overall system complexity through clear separation of concerns in the decentralized tracking architecture.
Data Source
AI summary
Aspects of the subject disclosure may include, for example, a device comprising: a processing system including a processor; and a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processing system, facilitate performance of operations, the operations comprising: receiving, based upon a first communication between first user equipment and a first wireless network, a first temporary identifier of the first user equipment; correlating the first temporary identifier to a first permanent identifier of the first user equipment; tracking a first amount of data that is carried by the first wireless network and that is associated with the first user equipment, resulting in first tracked data usage, wherein the tracking is based upon the correlating of the first temporary identifier to the first permanent identifier; determining whether the first tracked data usage exceeds a first threshold, resulting in a first determination; and responsive to the first determination being that the first tracked data usage does not exceed the first threshold, providing a first reward to a first operator of the first wireless network. Other embodiments are disclosed.