# US 8,543,135 B2 · Contextually aware mobile device > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 8,543,135 B2 - Document ID: US8543135B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 13/469,254 - Filed: 2012-05-11 - Published: 2012-11-15 - Granted: 2013-09-24 - Earliest claimed: 2011-05-12 - Applicants: Amit Goyal - Inventors: Amit Goyal - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US8543135B2 ## CPC - G01S 19/34: Power consumption - H04W 4/027: {using movement velocity, acceleration information} - G01C 21/36: Input/output arrangements for on-board computers - H04W 64/006: {with additional information processing, e.g. for direction or speed determination} - G01S: RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES - H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72) - G01C: MEASURING DISTANCES, LEVELS OR BEARINGS; SURVEYING; NAVIGATION; GYROSCOPIC INSTRUMENTS; PHOTOGRAMMETRY OR VIDEOGRAMMETRY (measuring liquid level G01F; radio navigation, determining distance or velocity by use of propagation effects, e.g. Doppler effects, propagation time, of radio waves, analogous arrangements using other waves G01S) ## Abstract A method for determining if a mobile device is in a vehicle includes monitoring an acceleration of the mobile device for a time interval during a period of time. The method also includes calculating one or more characteristics of the acceleration of the mobile device during the time interval and comparing the one or more characteristics of the acceleration to a set of threshold values. The method further includes determining the state of the mobile device based on the comparison of the one or more characteristics of the acceleration to the set of threshold values, wherein the state of the mobile device includes an in-vehicle state, a non-vehicle state. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method for determining if a mobile device is in a vehicle comprising: monitoring an acceleration of the mobile device for a first time interval during a first period of time, and a rotation of the mobile device for a second time interval during a second period of time; calculating one or more characteristics of the acceleration of the mobile device during the first time interval and one or more characteristics of the rotation of the mobile device during the second time interval; comparing the one or more characteristics of the acceleration to a first set of threshold values and the one or more characteristics of the rotation to a second set of threshold values; and determining a state of the mobile device based on the comparison of the one or more characteristics of the acceleration to the first set of threshold values, and the one or more characteristics of the rotation to the second set of threshold values, wherein the state of the mobile device comprises an in-vehicle state if the acceleration is greater than a first minimum threshold and the rotation is less than a first maximum threshold and a non-vehicle state if the acceleration is less than the first minimum threshold or the rotation is greater than the first maximum threshold, wherein the one or more characteristics of the acceleration include at least one of mean magnitude, maximum magnitude, minimum magnitude, standard deviation, other statistical metrics, information theoretic metrics, or combinations thereof and the one or more characteristics of the rotation include at least one of mean change in yaw, mean change in pitch, mean change in roll, maximum change in yaw, maximum change in pitch, maximum change in roll, minimum change in yaw, minimum change in pitch, minimum change in roll, standard deviation of the change in yaw, standard deviation of the change in pitch, standard deviation of the change in roll, other statistical metrics of yaw, other statistical metrics of pitch, other statistical metrics of roll, information theoretic metrics of yaw, information theoretic metrics of pitch, information theoretic metrics of roll, or combinations thereof. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the first time interval is less than ten percent of the first time period or the second time interval is less than ten percent of the second time period. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising: based on determining that the mobile device is in the in-vehicle state, increasing the first time interval during the first period of time or the second time interval during the second period of time. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising: based on determining that the mobile device is in the in-vehicle state, increasing a sampling rate for monitoring the acceleration of the mobile device or a sampling rate for monitoring the rotation of the mobile device. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising: based on determining that the mobile device is in the in-vehicle state, activating a GPS sensor and calculating a location and speed of the mobile device. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising: based on determining that the mobile device is in the in-vehicle state: continuously monitoring the acceleration of the mobile device during a third period of time; calculating one or more characteristics of the acceleration of the mobile device during the third period of time; comparing the one or more characteristics of the acceleration to a third set of threshold values; and determining the state of a vehicle based on the comparison of the one or more characteristics of the acceleration to the third set of threshold values, wherein the state of the vehicle comprises a traffic state. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The method of claim 6, further comprising: based on determining that the vehicle is in the traffic state, activating a GPS sensor and calculating the location and speed of the mobile device and transmitting a traffic alert message. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The method of claim 7, wherein the traffic alert message includes a latitude, a longitude, a heading, and the speed of the vehicle. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising: monitoring the rotation of the mobile device with an accelerometer or a gyroscope. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising the in-vehicle state if the acceleration is less than a second maximum threshold and the non-vehicle state if the acceleration is greater than the second maximum threshold. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising the in-vehicle state if the rotation is greater than a second minimum threshold and the non-vehicle state if the rotation is less than the second minimum threshold. ### Claim 12 A method for determining a location of a user associated with a mobile device comprising: monitoring an acceleration of the mobile device for a first time interval during a first period of time, and a rotation of the mobile device for a second time interval during a second period of time; calculating one or more characteristics of the acceleration of the mobile device during the first time interval and one or more characteristics of the rotation of the mobile device during the second time interval; comparing the one or more characteristics of the acceleration to a first set of threshold values and the one or more characteristics of the rotation to a second set of threshold values; and determining a state of the mobile device based on the comparison of the one or more characteristics of the acceleration to the first set of threshold values, and the one or more characteristics of the rotation to the second set of threshold values, wherein the state of the mobile device comprises an in-motion state if the rotation is greater than a first maximum threshold, an in-vehicle state if the acceleration is greater than a first minimum threshold and the rotation is less than the first maximum threshold, and a stationary state if the acceleration is less than the first minimum threshold and the rotation is less than the first maximum threshold, wherein the one or more characteristics of the acceleration include at least one of mean magnitude, maximum magnitude, minimum magnitude, standard deviation, other statistical metrics, information theoretic metrics, or combinations thereof and the one or more characteristics of the rotation include at least one of mean change in yaw, mean change in pitch, mean change in roll, maximum change in yaw, maximum change in pitch, maximum change in roll, minimum change in yaw, minimum change in pitch, minimum change in roll, standard deviation of the change in yaw, standard deviation of the change in pitch, standard deviation of the change in roll, other statistical metrics of yaw, other statistical metrics of pitch, other statistical metrics of roll, information theoretic metrics of yaw, information theoretic metrics of pitch, information theoretic metrics of roll, or combinations thereof; and based on determining a change of the state of the mobile device, calculating and updating the location of the mobile device. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, further comprising updating the location of the user in a social networking application to the calculated location of the mobile device. ### Claim 14 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, further comprising updating the location of a user in a user tracking application to the calculated location of the mobile device. ### Claim 15 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein calculating of the location of the mobile device includes activating a GPS sensor. ### Claim 16 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein calculating of the location of the mobile device includes activating a Wifi positioning system. ### Claim 17 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein the mobile device must be in a stationary state for a fixed amount of time prior to updating the location of the user in the social networking application to the calculated location of the mobile device. ### Claim 18 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein the mobile device must be in a stationary state for a fixed amount of time prior to updating the location of the user in the user tracking application to the calculated location of the mobile device. ### Claim 19 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, further comprising the in-motion state if the acceleration is greater than a second maximum threshold and the in-vehicle state if the acceleration is less than the second maximum threshold. ### Claim 20 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, further comprising the in vehicle state if the rotation is greater than a second minimum threshold and the in-motion state if the rotation is less than the second minimum threshold.