Selective Alert Activation Rules for Communication Devices
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional mobile devices lack the capability to selectively activate or deactivate user alerts for different types of incoming communications, based on criteria such as sender identity, communication type, priority, or time of receipt, leading to unnecessary disturbances, especially during non-urgent periods like nighttime.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a system that allows users to create alert profiles with rules for activating or deactivating alerts based on proximity, time, communication type, sender, and content, enabling selective alert management for various types of communications, including voice calls, SMS, MMS, and emails, with options for rendering alerts as audible, visual, or tactile.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If the device is turned off or set to silent mode to avoid disturbances during non-urgent times, then user alert disturbances are reduced, but the user cannot receive urgent communications
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the alert system into communication-type-specific alerts, allowing different alert behaviors for different communication types (voice calls, SMS, MMS, email). This enables the device to silence non-urgent communications while maintaining alerts for urgent ones, resolving the contradiction between avoiding disturbances and receiving urgent communications.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic alert control based on user-defined rules that can change alert states selectively for different communication types. The system dynamically adjusts which communication types trigger alerts versus which are silenced, allowing flexible adaptation to different situations without completely disabling or enabling all alerts.
2Adaptability or versatility
If manual profile switching is implemented to manage different alert scenarios, then selective alert control is achieved, but user convenience deteriorates due to the need to manually change profiles
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements an automated rule-based system that evaluates incoming communications against user-defined criteria and automatically determines whether to activate or silence alerts. The system serves itself by making real-time decisions based on communication type, sender identity, time of day, and other parameters, eliminating the need for manual profile switching while maintaining selective control.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent allows users to pre-configure rules and criteria for alert activation in advance. These preliminary configurations are then automatically applied when communications are received, eliminating the need for real-time manual intervention. The system acts on pre-established guidelines rather than requiring ongoing user input.
3Loss of information
If all incoming communications trigger alerts, then complete awareness of communications is maintained, but user disturbance increases during non-urgent periods
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different alert qualities to different communication types. Instead of uniform alert behavior, the system assigns specific alert characteristics (activated or silenced) to each communication type based on its urgency and importance. This local differentiation maintains awareness of important communications while reducing disturbance from less important ones.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the alert parameter (activated/silenced state) based on communication type, time of day, sender identity, and other variables. The system dynamically adjusts the alert state parameter for each incoming communication based on evaluated criteria, maintaining awareness when appropriate and reducing disturbance when not.
Data Source
AI summary
A recipient activates or deactivates user alerts associated with the receipt and/or availability of communications using rules in an alert profile stored on a device, a server, or a location accessible to the server. In one embodiment, the device can implement the rules when a communication is received and/or available. If an alert is activated, the device renders the alert. If the alert is deactivated, the device does not render the alert unless and until the alert is activated. In another embodiment, the server can implement the rules. If the alert is activated when the communication is transmitted to the device, the server also transmits alert-rendering instructions, whereupon the device can render the alert as specified in the instructions. If the alert is deactivated when the communication is transmitted to the device, the server does not transmit the instructions unless and until the alert is activated.