US 9,071,923 B2Granted

Automatic archiving of an application on a mobile device

AssigneeCellco Partnership

InventorsNing Zhang, Charles Lane

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Abstract

A mobile device includes an automatic archiver program which configures a processor to identify an unused application which satisfies one or more predetermined archiving criteria, and prompts a user to archive the identified application via a user interface. A user interface is provided such that the user may either confirm or decline archiving of the identified application. Upon receiving user input that confirms archiving of the identified application, the application is archived. Several techniques are disclosed to effectively render the application inaccessible by the operating system, so as to prevent the application from executing any background tasks associated with the archived application. The automatic archiver program has root level access to an operating system of a mobile device such that the program may perform access, create, modify and/or delete operations for archiving private data as part of archiving of the application.

Claims21

Dependent claims

A mobile device, comprising:

a wireless transceiver configured to enable wireless data communication via a network;
a processor coupled to the wireless transceiver;
a memory accessible by the processor;
and
programming stored in the memory for execution by the processor, the programming including:
a plurality of applications each comprising programming and associated data;
and
an automatic archiver program, wherein execution of the automatic archiver program by the processor configures the mobile device to perform functions, including functions to:
determine an expected-use time that is specific to a first application of the plurality of applications by averaging a plurality of actual uses times of the first application, wherein each actual use time is length of time between when the first application is opened and then closed on the mobile device;
in response to determining the expected-use time, track a length of use time that is time between when the first application is opened beginning at an opening time and when the first application is closed ending at a closing time;
upon determining that the tracked length of use time of the first application exceeds the expected-use time, store the opening time and the tracked length of use time for the first application in an application log in the memory;
in response to storing the opening time and the tracked length of use time in the application log, determining free storage space of the memory of the mobile device;
when the determined free storage space of the memory of the mobile device falls below a predetermined free space amount, adjust predetermined archiving criteria downwards, the predetermined archiving criteria including an unused application period of time that is length of time of no application use;
determine usage of the first application by calculating a period of time the first application has gone unused since closing of the first application based on the opening time and the tracked length of use time in the application log;
and
upon determining the usage of the first applications satisfies the predetermined archiving criteria by exceeding the adjusted unused application period of time, modify status of the first application so as to archive the first application.

13 more elements

An article of manufacture comprising:

a non-transitory machine readable medium, and
programming embodied in the medium, including an automatic archiver program, wherein execution of the automatic archiver program by a processor of a mobile device configures the mobile device to perform functions, including functions to:
determine an expected-use time that is specific to a first application of a plurality of applications by averaging a plurality of actual uses times of the first application, wherein each actual use time is length of time between when the first application is opened and then closed on the mobile device;
in response to determining the expected-use time, track a length of use time that is time between when the first application is opened beginning at an opening time and when the first application is closed ending at a closing time;
upon determining that the tracked length of use time of the first application exceeds the expected-use time, store the opening time and the tracked length of use time for the first application in an application log in the memory;
in response to storing the opening time and the tracked length of use time in the application log, determining free storage space of the memory of the mobile device;
when the determined free storage space of the memory of the mobile device falls below a predetermined free space amount, adjust predetermined archiving criteria downwards, the predetermined archiving criteria including an unused application period of time that is length of time of no application use;
determine usage of the first application by calculating a period of time the first application has gone unused since closing of the first application based on the opening time and the tracked length of use time in the application log;
and
upon determining the usage of the first application satisfies the predetermined archiving criteria by exceeding the adjusted unused application period of time, modify status of the first application so as to archive the first application;
upon determining the usage of the first applications satisfies the predetermined archiving criteria by exceeding the adjusted unused application period of time, prompt a user of the mobile device to archive the first application;
upon user input responsive to the prompt to archive the first application, modify status of the first application so as to archive the first application.

9 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 13/722,756Filed 20 Dec 2012
Published: US 2014/0179272 A126 Jun 2014
Granted: 30 Jun 2015
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification8 codes

H04W 4/60
Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor: subscription-based services using application servers or…
H04L 67/34
Network arrangements or protocols for supporting network services or applications: involving the movement of software or configuration parameters
H04M 1/72403
User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones: with means for local support of applications that increase the functionality
H04W 4/50
Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor: service provisioning or reconfiguring