System and method for controlling mobile services using sensor information
A system includes a database of image data associated with a vehicle; and control logic configured to cause a user device to capture one or more images and compare data associated with the one or more images with the image data to determine if a user is present in a vehicle and disable a text messaging function at least in part responsive to the determination using the image data.
1. A method for controlling access to one or more functions available to respective ones of a plurality of user devices, comprising:
receiving at least one service request from a plurality of the user devices;
allowing or disallowing each of the user devices to access the respective requested one or more functions based on an application of one or more pre-defined matching rules for matching access policies of the respective user devices with a respective representation of an environment for each of the user devices, at least one of the representations being based on information obtained from one or more updates received from the respective user devices, the information including state information concerning a physical environment of the respective user devices obtained from one or more sensors associated with the respective user devices, wherein updates are periodically received from one of the user devices after initiation of monitoring the environment of the user device using the one or more sensors associated with the user device, the monitoring generating the state information included in the update.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein allowing or disallowing at least one of the user devices to access a requested function includes disallowing access to the requested function if the state information indicates that the user device is in a specified physical environment.
3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the specified physical environment is an automobile.
4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the requested one or more functions is a texting function.
5. The method of claim 1 wherein the one or more functions available to the respective user devices includes a service available to the respective user devices.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the requested one or more functions includes communication functionality.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the requested one or more functions includes a texting function.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the monitoring is triggered when a specified application residing on the mobile device is launched.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein disallowing access to the requested one or more functions includes disallowing access to the requested function for a limited period of time.
10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the state information includes an orientation of the user device.
11. A server platform, comprising:
a representation database for storing sensory data obtained from transmissions received from a plurality of user devices;
a user profile database for storing one or more pre-defined matching rules for matching access policies of the respective user devices with a respective representation of an environment for each of the user devices, at least one of the representations being based on information obtained from one or more updates received from the respective user devices, the information including state information concerning a physical environment of the respective user devices obtained from one or more sensors associated with the respective user devices;
a network interface for receiving the sensory data, at least one service request from a plurality of the user devices to access one or more functions of the user devices and periodic updates from the user devices, wherein the periodic updates are periodically received from one of the user devices after initiation of monitoring the environment of the user device using the one or more sensors associated with the user device, the monitoring generating the state information included in the update; and
a recognition engine for allowing or disallowing allowing or disallowing each of the user devices to access the respective requested one or more functions based on the application of the one or more pre-defined matching rules for matching the access policies of the respective user devices with the respective representation of an environment for each of the user devices.