Patent Publication Number: US-11044601-B2

Title: IoT-connected devices and equipment automated login system

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/359,669, entitled “IOT-CONNECTED DEVICES AND EQUIPMENT AUTOMATED LOGIN SYSTEM” and filed on Mar. 20, 2019, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/959,793, entitled “IOT-CONNECTED DEVICES AND EQUIPMENT AUTOMATED LOGIN SYSTEM” and filed on Apr. 23, 2018, issued as U.S. Pat. No. 10,264,446, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/441,105, entitled “IOT-CONNECTED DEVICES AND EQUIPMENT AUTOMATED LOGIN SYSTEM” and filed on Feb. 23, 2017, issued as U.S. Pat. No. 9,967,395, each of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     A core network (also known as network core or backbone network) is the central part of a telecommunications network that provides various services to telecommunication devices, often referred to as user equipment (“UE”), that are connected by access network(s) of the telecommunications network. Typically, a core network includes high capacity communication facilities that connect primary nodes, and provides paths for the exchange of information between different sub-networks. 
     Conventionally, telecommunications systems are designed such that a single UE is assigned a single telephone number. Thus, a user of a first UE can initiate a communication (e.g., a call, a text message, an electronic mail message, etc.) with a second UE by entering the telephone number assigned to the second UE. The first UE and the second UE can then exchange communications via the access network(s) and the core network. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
       Throughout the drawings, reference numbers may be re-used to indicate correspondence between referenced elements. The drawings are provided to illustrate example embodiments described herein and are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure. 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram of an illustrative UE management and communication routing environment in which a UE management system manages the association of a primary UE and one or more secondary UEs with a user account and in which a call routing system manages the routing of communications between two or more UEs. 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of the UE management and communication routing environment of  FIG. 1  illustrating the operations performed by the components of the UE management and communication routing environment to activate a primary UE and a secondary UE, according to one embodiment. 
         FIG. 3  is a block diagram of the UE management and communication routing environment of  FIG. 1  illustrating the operations performed by the components of the UE management and communication routing environment to establish a connection between a third party UE and the primary UE or a secondary UE, according to one embodiment. 
         FIG. 4  is a block diagram of the UE management and communication routing environment of  FIG. 1  illustrating the operations performed by the components of the UE management and communication routing environment to establish a connection between a secondary UE and a third party UE, according to one embodiment. 
         FIG. 5  is a flow diagram depicting a UE activation routine illustratively implemented by a UE activation system, according to one embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     As described above, a single UE is assigned a single telephone number in conventional telecommunications systems. This, however, may be inconvenient to a subscriber or user. For example, many subscribers own and/or operate multiple UEs, such as a cell phone, a tablet, a wearable device, a laptop, and/or the like. In certain situations, a first UE may be more accessible to a subscriber than a second UE. If a particular telephone number is assigned to the second UE, the subscriber is then prevented from using the first UE to handle communications directed at the telephone number even though the first UE is more accessible. As another example, a single subscriber may have multiple phone numbers—one for work, one for home, one for international calls, and/or the like. In conventional telecommunications systems, the subscriber has no choice but to carry multiple UEs in order to be able to answer communications directed at any one of the phone numbers. 
     Thus, a telecommunications system can be modified to allow a single UE to be assigned multiple phone numbers and to allow a single phone number to be assigned to multiple UEs. One of the ways in which the telecommunications system can be modified is by implementing an activation process that allows UEs to associate with a particular user account and that allows multiple telephone numbers to be associated with a particular user account. Accordingly, described herein is a modified telecommunications system in which UEs can request association with a user account and in which multiple telephone numbers can be associated with a single user account. 
     A user account may be associated with a username and password combination. Thus, in typical scenarios, a subscriber may associate a UE with the subscriber&#39;s user account by entering the username and password combination on the UE. However, this may not be possible with certain UEs. For example, UEs like appliances (e.g., refrigerators, washing machines, dryers, dishwashers, etc.), televisions, control systems (e.g., thermostats, light fixtures, etc.), and/or the like may not have the buttons or interface necessary for a subscriber to enter a username or password. 
     Accordingly, also described herein is a modified telecommunications system in which UEs can be associated with a user account using information other than a username and password combination. For example, when a subscriber activates a user account corresponding to a telephone number, the subscriber may be requested to provide a username, a password, and one or more additional signatures. An additional signature can include a unique personal identification number (PIN), a sample voice command, a fingerprint, a retinal scan, and/or the like. The username, password, and one or more additional signatures may be stored with the telephone number in an entry corresponding to the user account in a data store. 
     If the subscriber selects a UE to associate with the user account and the UE does not include the user input device(s) necessary to allow the subscriber to provide a username and password combination, the subscriber can instead provide one of the signatures via the UE. The UE can then transmit the provided signature and an address of the UE to a UE management system. The UE management system can query the data store to identify which user account is associated with the provided signature and store the UE address in the data store in an entry associated with the identified user account. 
     At a later time, the modified telecommunications network may receive a request from a first UE to establish a connection with a UE associated with a particular telephone number. In response to receiving the request, a call routing system of the modified telecommunications network can query the data store to identify UE(s) associated with the telephone number. Once identified, the call routing system can transmit the connection request to one or more of the associated UEs. 
     Conversely, a subscriber can use any UE associated with the subscriber&#39;s user account to initiate a connection with another UE. For example, the subscriber can provide a telephone number of a third party UE. The call routing system can receive the connection request and, using the UE address, identify a telephone number associated with the UE that is requesting the connection. The call routing system can then forward the request to the appropriate third party UE (or to the sub-network and/or core network of the third part UE), identifying the source as a UE associated with the identified telephone number. Thus, a subscriber can initiate or receive a communication on virtually any network-enabled UE. 
     The foregoing aspects and many of the attendant advantages of this disclosure will become more readily appreciated as the same become better understood by reference to the following detailed description, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     Example User Equipment Management and Communication Routing Environment 
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram of an illustrative UE management and communication routing environment  100  in which a UE management system  140  manages the association of a primary UE  102  and one or more secondary UEs  104  with a user account and in which a call routing system  130  manages the routing of communications between two or more UEs. As used herein, the primary UE  102  refers to a UE operated by a subscriber when the subscriber activates a user account and the secondary UEs  104  refer to UEs that, while not used by a subscriber to activate a user account, may still be associated with the user account and can be used to receive and/or initiate communications with other UEs. In an embodiment, the primary UE  102  and the one or more secondary UEs are operated by the same subscriber or group of subscribers. Third party UEs  106  may refer to UEs that are operated by subscribers other than the subscriber or group of subscribers that operate the primary UE  102  and the one or more secondary UEs  104 . 
     The primary UE  102  can be any computing device, such as a desktop, laptop or tablet computer, personal computer, wearable computer, server, personal digital assistant (PDA), hybrid PDA/mobile phone, electronic book reader, appliance (e.g., refrigerator, washing machine, dryer, dishwasher, etc.), integrated component for inclusion in computing devices, home electronics (e.g., television, set-top box, receiver, etc.), vehicle, machinery, landline telephone, network-based telephone (e.g., voice over Internet protocol (“VoIP”)), cordless telephone, cellular telephone, smart phone, modem, gaming device, media device, control system (e.g., thermostat, light fixture, etc.), and/or any other type of Internet of Things (IoT) device or equipment. In an illustrative embodiment, the primary UE  102  includes a wide variety of software and hardware components for establishing communications over one or more communication networks, including an access network  120 , a core network  110 , and/or other private or public networks. For example, the primary UE  102  may include a subscriber identification module (SIM) card (e.g., an integrated circuit that stores data to identify and authenticate a UE that communicates over a telecommunications network) and/or other component(s) that enable the primary UE  102  to communicate over the access network  120 , the core network  110 , and/or other private or public networks via a radio area network (RAN) and/or a wireless local area network (WLAN). The SIM card may be assigned to a particular user account and the data stored within the SIM card may be stored in user account data store  144  in an entry associated with the user account. 
     The one or more secondary UEs  104  can also each be any computing device, such as a desktop, laptop or tablet computer, personal computer, wearable computer, server, personal digital assistant (PDA), hybrid PDA/mobile phone, electronic book reader, appliance, integrated component for inclusion in computing devices, home electronics, vehicle, machinery, landline telephone, network-based telephone, cordless telephone, cellular telephone, smart phone, modem, gaming device, media device, control system, and/or any other type of IoT device or equipment. In an illustrative embodiment, the one or more secondary UEs  104  includes a wide variety of software and hardware components for establishing communications over one or more communication networks, including the access network  120 , the core network  110 , and/or other private or public networks. Each secondary UE  104  may include component(s) that enables the respective secondary UE  104  to communicate over the access network  120 , the core network  110 , and/or other private or public networks via a WLAN. However, while some secondary UEs  104  may include the same communication components as the primary UE  102 , other secondary UEs  104  may not include a SIM card or other component(s) that enables the respective secondary UE  104  to communicate over the access network  120 , the core network  110 , and/or other private or public networks via a RAN. For example, a tablet may be a secondary UE  104  and may include a SIM card that allows the tablet to communicate over the access network  120 , the core network  110 , and/or other private or public networks via a RAN. On the other hand, an appliance like a refrigerator may have components that allow the refrigerator to communicate over the access network  120 , the core network  110 , and/or other private or public networks via a WLAN, but not a RAN. 
     The primary UE  102  and/or the one or more secondary UEs  104  may further include components and/or be coupled to devices that allow a subscriber to create and store a signature. For example, the primary UE  102  and/or the one or more secondary UEs  104  may include at least one of a fingerprint scanner, a retinal scanner (e.g., a camera), a microphone (e.g., to capture voice commands), a numerical or alphanumerical keypad (e.g., to enter a PIN), and/or the like. 
     Like the primary UE  102  and the one or more secondary UEs  104 , the third party UEs  106  can also each be any computing device, such as a desktop, laptop or tablet computer, personal computer, wearable computer, server, personal digital assistant (PDA), hybrid PDA/mobile phone, electronic book reader, appliance, integrated component for inclusion in computing devices, home electronics, vehicle, machinery, landline telephone, network-based telephone, cordless telephone, cellular telephone, smart phone, modem, gaming device, media device, control system, and/or any other type of IoT device or equipment. In an illustrative embodiment, the third party UEs  106  each include a wide variety of software and hardware components for establishing communications over one or more communication networks, including the access network  120 , the core network  110 , and/or other private or public networks. 
     The UEs  102 ,  104 , and  106  are communicatively connected via the access network  120 , such as GSM EDGE Radio Access Network (GRAN), GSM EDGE Radio Access Network (GERAN), Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN), Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRAN), and/or the like. Illustratively, the access network  120  is distributed over land areas called cells, each served by at least one fixed-location transceiver, known as a cell site or base station. The base station provides the cell with the network coverage which can be used for transmission of voice, messages, or other data. A cell might use a different set of frequencies from neighboring cells, to avoid interference and provide guaranteed service quality within each cell. When joined together these cells provide radio coverage over a wide geographic area. This enables a large number of UEs  102 ,  104 , and  106  to communicate via the fixed-location transceivers. Although the access network  120  is illustrated as a single network, one skilled in the relevant art will appreciate that the access network can be include any number of public or private communication networks and/or network connections. 
     The core network  110  provides various services to UEs  102 ,  104 , and  106  that are connected via the access network  120 . One of the main functions of the core network  110  is to route telephone calls, messages, and/or other data across a public switched telephone network (PSTN) or Internet protocol (IP) Multimedia Subsystem (IMS). For example, the core network  110  may include the call routing system  130 , which routes telephone calls, messages, and/or other data across a PSTN or IMS. The core network  110  may provide high capacity communication facilities that connect various nodes implemented on one or more computing devices, allowing the nodes to exchange information via various paths. 
     Certain core network  110  nodes may be associated with the UE management system  140 , which may manage and store details of each UE  102 ,  104 , and  106  subscriber that is authorized to use the core network  110  (e.g., the home location register (HLR) in GSM networks, home subscriber server (HSS) or user profile server function (UPSF) in IMS networks, and/or the like). The UE management system  140  may communicate with nodes associated with various local systems (e.g., visitor location registers (VLRs), serving GPRS support nodes (SGSNs), mobility management entities (MMEs), and/or the like) within the core network  110  to manage and provide services (e.g., association of UEs with user accounts, authentication, service invocation, and/or the like) to various UEs  102 ,  104 , and  106 . 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , the UE management system  140  may include several components, including a UE activation system  142  and the user account data store  144 . The UE activation system  142  is configured to associate the primary UE  102  and/or the secondary UEs  104  with a particular user account. For example, the UE activation system  142  may receive a request from the primary UE  102  to be associated with a user account. The request may include SIM card data that identifies the subscriber of the primary UE  102  and/or an address of the primary UE  102  (e.g., an IP address, a media access control (MAC) address, and/or another unique address). Upon receiving the request, the UE activation system  142  can verify whether the primary UE  102  is authorized to access the core network  110  and/or access network  120  by querying the user account data store  144  to determine whether the provided SIM card data corresponds to SIM card data stored in association with an authorized user account in the user account data store  144 . If the provided SIM card data matches SIM card data stored in association with a particular user account in the user account data store  144 , then the UE activation system  142  determines that the primary UE  102  is authorized to access the core network  110  and/or the access network  120 . On the other hand, if the provided SIM card data does not match SIM card data stored in association with any user account in the user account data store  144 , then the UE activation system  142  determines that the primary UE  102  is not authorized to access the core network  110  or access network  120 . If the primary UE  102  is authorized to access the core network  110  and/or access network  120 , then the UE activation system  142  may store the primary UE  102  address in an entry associated with the identified user account (e.g., the user account associated with SIM card data that matches the provided SIM card data). Thus, the primary UE  102  may then be recognized as a UE owned or operated by the subscriber or group of subscribers associated with the identified user account. 
     Before or after storing the primary UE  102  address and after determining that the primary UE  102  is authorized to access the core network  110  or access network  120 , the UE activation system  142  may request that the primary UE  102  provide a username and password combination and/or one or more signatures. As an example, the UE activation system  142  can prompt the primary UE  102  to ask the subscriber to provide a signature like a sample fingerprint scan, an alphanumeric PIN, a sample retinal scan, a voice command (e.g., an identification of a keyword and a sample utterance provided by the subscriber saying the keyword), and/or the like. The UE activation system  142  can then store the username and password combination and the one or more signatures in the user account data store  144  in an entry associated with the identified user account. 
     In some embodiments, a subscriber may attempt to activate a secondary UE  104  for use over the core network  110  and/or the access network  120 . The UE activation system  142  may therefore receive a request from the secondary UE  104  to be associated with a user account. As described above, some secondary UEs  104  may include a SIM card and thus the request may include the SIM card data and/or an address of the secondary UE  104 . In this situation, the UE activation system  142  may use the SIM card data as described above in order to verify whether the secondary UE  104  is authorized to access the core network  110  and/or the access network  104  and store the address in the user account data store  144  if the secondary UE  104  is so authorized. 
     However, as described above, other secondary UEs  104  may not include a SIM card. In one illustrative example, while the secondary UE  104  may not include a SIM card, the secondary UE  104  may include an input device (e.g., a keyboard, keypad, infrared reader that receives signals from a remote, a mouse, a touchscreen, etc.) that allows the subscriber or user to enter a username and password combination. Thus, the request may include a username and password combination provided by the subscriber. The UE activation system  142  can query the user account data store  144  to determine whether the provided username and password combination matches a username and password combination stored in the user account data store  144 . If there is a match, then the UE activation system  142  may store the secondary UE  104  address in an entry in the user account data store  144  that corresponds with the user account from which the matching username and password combination was retrieved. 
     In another illustrative example, the secondary UE  104  does not include a SIM card and does not include any input device that allows a subscriber to provide a username and password combination. The secondary UE  104  may, however, include a component or be coupled to a device that allows the subscriber to provide one or more signatures. For example, the secondary UE  104  may include or be coupled to a fingerprint scanner. Thus, the subscriber can be prompted to provide a fingerprint scan and the fingerprint scan can be included in the request. As another example, the secondary UE  104  may include or be coupled to a keypad. Thus, the subscriber can be prompted to provide a PIN and the provided PIN can be included in the request. As another example, the secondary UE  104  may include or be coupled to a camera or a specific device configured to scan retinas. Thus, the subscriber can be prompted to provide a retinal scan and the retinal scan can be included in the request. As another example, the secondary UE  104  may include or be coupled to a microphone. Thus, the subscriber can be prompted to provide a voice command and the captured utterance can be included in the request. The UE activation system  142  can query the user account data store  144  to determine whether the provided signature(s) matches a signature(s) stored in the user account data store  144 . In the case of a voice command, a match may constitute a match of the keyword uttered in the provided signature and the keyword uttered in the stored signature (based on the results of speech recognition processing performed on the provided utterance) and/or a match of the characteristics of the utterance in the provided signature and the characteristics of the utterance in the stored signature (e.g., pitch, accent, speech pattern, etc.). If there is a match, then the UE activation system  142  may store the secondary UE  104  address in an entry in the user account data store  144  that corresponds with the user account from which the matching signature(s) was retrieved. 
     While fingerprint scans, PINs, retinal scans, and voice commands provided as examples of signatures, this is not meant to be limiting. A signature can be any type of data that is capable of uniquely identifying a subscriber (or a group of subscribers). 
     Accordingly, the user account data store  144  may store data for various user accounts. The data stored in association with a single user account may include SIM card data, one or more telephone numbers, a username and password combination, one or more signatures, and one or more UE  102 ,  104  addresses. The one or more telephone numbers may be stored in association with a user account when, for example, a subscriber obtains a communication plan through the operator of the core network  110  and/or access network  120 . 
     The data stored in the user account data store  144  may allow a third party UE  106  to communicate with any UE  102 ,  104  associated with a user account, regardless of whether the UE  102 ,  104  is a traditional type of UE capable of communicating over a RAN (e.g., a cell phone). For example, a third party UE  106  may attempt to establish a connection with a UE associated with a particular telephone number in order to initiate a call, send a text, and/or transfer other data (e.g., an electronic mail message, an instant message, etc.). The call routing system  130  may receive a connection request from the third party UE  106  in which the connection request includes the telephone number. The call routing system  130  can query the user account data store  144  using the telephone number to identify UE  102 ,  104  address(es) that are associated with the user account that is associated with the provided telephone number. Once the UE  102 ,  104  address(es) are identified, the call routing system  130  can forward the connection request to one or more of the UEs  102 ,  104  corresponding to the identified address(es). As an illustrative example, if the third party UE  106  provides a telephone number that corresponds with a first user account, and the first user account is associated with an address corresponding to a first secondary UE  104  and an address corresponding to a second secondary UE  104 , then the call routing system  130  can forward the connection request to the first secondary UE  104 , the second secondary UE  104 , or both. Thus, a single telephone number may be associated with multiple UEs  104  such that the subscriber can accept the connection request using the UE  104  that is most convenient for the subscriber. 
     Similarly, the same UE  102 ,  104  address can be stored in association with different user accounts in the user account data store  144 . As an illustrative example, a first user account may be associated with a first telephone number and a second user account may be associated with a second telephone number. The two telephone numbers, however, may be associated with members of the same family who occasionally use the same first primary UE  102 . Thus, the address of the first primary UE  102  may be associated with both user accounts. If a third party UE  106  attempts to initiate a connection with the first telephone number, the call routing system  130  can forward the request to the first primary UE  102 . Likewise, if a third party UE  106  attempts to initiate a connection with the second telephone number, the call routing system  130  can forward the request to the first primary UE  102  as well. 
     The call routing system  130  and/or the UE management system  140  may be a single computing device or may include multiple distinct computing devices, such as computer servers, logically or physically grouped together to collectively operate as a server system. The components of the call routing system  130  and/or the UE management system  140  can each be implemented in application-specific hardware (e.g., a server computing device with one or more ASICs) such that no software is necessary, or as a combination of hardware and software. In addition, the modules and components of the call routing system  130  and/or the UE management system  140  can be combined on one server computing device or separated individually or into groups on several server computing devices. In some embodiments, the call routing system  130  and/or the UE management system  140  may include additional or fewer components than illustrated in  FIG. 1 . 
     Example Block Diagram for Activating User Equipment 
       FIG. 2  is a block diagram of the UE management and communication routing environment  100  of  FIG. 1  illustrating the operations performed by the components of the UE management and communication routing environment  100  to activate a primary UE  102  and a secondary UE  104 , according to one embodiment. As illustrated in  FIG. 2 , the primary UE  102  may transmit a device activation request to the UE activation system  142  at ( 1 ). The request may include SIM card data and/or an address of the primary UE  102 . 
     The UE activation system  142  may then verify whether the primary UE  102  is authorized to access the core network  110  and/or the access network  120  by querying the user account data store  144  for the identify of an authorized user account that corresponds with the provided SIM card data at ( 2 ). For example, the UE activation system  142  may query the user account data store  144  using the provided SIM card data to identify the identity of a user account that is associated with SIM card data that matches the SIM card data provided by the primary UE  102 , if present. The user account data store  144  may return the identity of the user account that includes SIM card data that matches the SIM card data provided by the primary UE  102  at ( 3 ), if present. The UE activation system  142  may use the results of the query to determine whether the primary UE  102  is authorized to access the core network  110  and/or the access network  120  at ( 4 ). For example, if the user account data store  144  returns the identity of a user account that includes matching SIM card data, then the UE activation system  142  determines that the primary UE  102  is authorized to access the core network  110  and/or access network  120 . Otherwise, if the user account data store  144  does not return the identity of a user account that includes matching SIM card data, then the UE activation system  142  determines that the primary UE  102  is not authorized to access the core network  110  or access network  120 . 
     If the UE activation system  142  determines that the primary UE  102  is authorized, then the UE activation system  142  transmits a request to the primary UE  102  to provide a username and password combination and one or more signatures at ( 5 ). The primary UE  102  may then prompt a subscriber to provide the requested information and the primary UE  102  transmits the username and password combination and the one or more signatures to the UE activation system  142  at ( 6 ). The UE activation system  142  then stores the username and password combination and/or the signature(s) in the user account data store  144  at ( 7 ) in association with an entry corresponding to the user account identified by the user account data store  144  as having matching SIM card data. Before or after transmitting the request to the primary UE  102  to provide the username and password combination and the one or more signatures, the UE activation system  142  also stores the primary UE  102  address in the user account data store  144 . 
     At a future time, a subscriber may attempt to activate or associate a secondary UE  104  with a user account. The secondary UE  104  may not have a SIM card or any mechanism for allowing the subscriber to provide a username and password combination. Thus, the secondary UE  104  may transmit a request to associate with a user account that includes a signature and an address of the secondary UE  104  at ( 8 ). The UE activation system  142  may then query the user account data store  144  using the received signature to identify the user account associated with the received signature at ( 9 ). The user account data store  144  then returns the user account associated with the received signature at ( 10 ). Using the returned user account, the UE activation system  142  can then store the secondary UE  104  address in the user account data store  144  in association with the returned user account. 
     Example Block Diagram for Connecting a Third Party UE to Multiple UEs 
       FIG. 3  is a block diagram of the UE management and communication routing environment  100  of  FIG. 1  illustrating the operations performed by the components of the UE management and communication routing environment  100  to establish a connection between a third party UE  106  and the primary UE  102  or a secondary UE  104 , according to one embodiment. As illustrated in  FIG. 3 , the third party UE  106  requests a connection to a UE associated with a first telephone number to initiate a communication (e.g., telephone call, text, or other data exchange) at ( 1 ). The call routing system  130  receives the request and queries the user account data store  144  using the first telephone number to identify address(es) of UEs associated with a user account that is associated with the first telephone number at ( 2 ). 
     In response to the query, the user account data store  144  returns the address of the primary UE  102  and the address of the secondary UE  104  at ( 3 ) to satisfy the query request. Thus, the call routing system  130  receives information indicating that the primary UE  102  and the secondary UE  104  are both associated with the same user account that is associated with the first telephone number. Accordingly, the call routing system  130  transmits the request to connect with the third party UE  106  to initiate a communication to both the primary UE  102  at ( 4 A) and the secondary UE  104  at ( 4 B). The subscriber can then decide which UE  102 ,  104  to use to initiate the connection with the third party UE  106 , if so desired. 
     Example Block Diagram for Connecting a Secondary UE to a Third Party UE 
       FIG. 4  is a block diagram of the UE management and communication routing environment  100  of  FIG. 1  illustrating the operations performed by the components of the UE management and communication routing environment  100  to establish a connection between a secondary UE  104  and a third party UE  106 , according to one embodiment. As illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the secondary UE  104  requests a connection with the third party UE  106  at ( 1 ) to, for example, initiate a communication. The request may include a telephone number of the third party UE  106  and an address of the secondary UE  104 . In some embodiments, the secondary UE  104  may not have a SIM card or any other components that would allow the secondary UE  104  to communicate over a RAN. Rather, the secondary UE  104  communicates with the core network  110  and/or the access network  120  via a WLAN. Furthermore, the secondary UE  104  may be associated with a particular user account based on a signature provided by a subscriber via the secondary UE  104 . 
     Upon receiving the request, the call routing system  130  queries the user account data store  144  using the secondary UE  104  address to identify a telephone address associated with the same user account as the secondary UE  104  address at ( 2 ). In response to the query, the user account data store  144  transmits the telephone number associated with the same user account as the secondary UE  104  address at ( 3 ). The call routing system  130  then forwards the connection request to the third party UE  106  (e.g., using the telephone number provided by the secondary UE  104 ) at ( 4 ), identifying the telephone number retrieved from the user account data store  144  as the source of the connection request. 
     Example UE Activation Routine 
       FIG. 5  is a flow diagram depicting a UE activation routine  500  illustratively implemented by a UE activation system, according to one embodiment. As an example, the UE activation system  142  of  FIG. 1  can be configured to execute the UE activation routine  500 . The UE activation routine  500  begins at block  502 . 
     At block  504 , a signature is received from a UE. For example, the UE may be a secondary UE  104  that does not include a SIM card or other component that would enable the secondary UE  104  to communicate via a RAN. The UE may also not have any input device that would enable a subscriber to provide a username and password combination. The UE, however, may include a component or be coupled to a device that allows the subscriber to provide a signature, such as a fingerprint scanner, a retinal scanner, a microphone, a keypad, and/or the like. 
     At block  506 , whether the received signature matches a stored signature is determined. For example, the UE activation routine  500  may determine whether the received signature matches any signature stored in the user account data store  144 . If there is a signature match, then the UE activation routine  500  proceeds to block  508 . Otherwise, if there is no signature match, then the UE activation routine  500  proceeds to block  512 . 
     At block  508 , an identity of a user account corresponding to the matching signature is received. For example, in response to the signature query, the user account data store  144  may return the identity of a user account that is associated with a signature that matches the provided signature (if such a match exists). 
     At block  510 , an address of the UE is stored in association with the identified user account. Thus, the UE is now activated and/or associated with the user account such that any connection request directed to the user account may be forwarded to the UE. Similarly, the UE can be used to initiate a communication with another UE, where the communication may appear to originate from a telephone number associated with the identified user account. After the received signature is stored, the UE activation routine  500  is complete, as shown at block  514 . 
     At block  512 , a message is transmitted to the UE indicating that the UE cannot be activated. For example, the UE may not be activated because the subscriber provided an incorrect signature and/or a signature that was not previously provided by the subscriber when using an authorized UE. After the message is transmitted, the UE activation routine  500  is complete, as shown at block  514 . 
     Terminology 
     All of the methods and tasks described herein may be performed and fully automated by a computer system. The computer system may, in some cases, include multiple distinct computers or computing devices (e.g., physical servers, workstations, storage arrays, cloud computing resources, etc.) that communicate and interoperate over a network to perform the described functions. Each such computing device typically includes a processor (or multiple processors) that executes program instructions or modules stored in a memory or other non-transitory computer-readable storage medium or device (e.g., solid state storage devices, disk drives, etc.). The various functions disclosed herein may be embodied in such program instructions, or may be implemented in application-specific circuitry (e.g., ASICs or FPGAs) of the computer system. Where the computer system includes multiple computing devices, these devices may, but need not, be co-located. The results of the disclosed methods and tasks may be persistently stored by transforming physical storage devices, such as solid state memory chips or magnetic disks, into a different state. In some embodiments, the computer system may be a cloud-based computing system whose processing resources are shared by multiple distinct business entities or other users. 
     Depending on the embodiment, certain acts, events, or functions of any of the processes or algorithms described herein can be performed in a different sequence, can be added, merged, or left out altogether (e.g., not all described operations or events are necessary for the practice of the algorithm). Moreover, in certain embodiments, operations or events can be performed concurrently, e.g., through multi-threaded processing, interrupt processing, or multiple processors or processor cores or on other parallel architectures, rather than sequentially. 
     The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, routines, and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented as electronic hardware (e.g., ASICs or FPGA devices), computer software that runs on computer hardware, or combinations of both. Moreover, the various illustrative logical blocks and modules described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented or performed by a machine, such as a processor device, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A processor device can be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor device can be a controller, microcontroller, or state machine, combinations of the same, or the like. A processor device can include electrical circuitry configured to process computer-executable instructions. In another embodiment, a processor device includes an FPGA or other programmable device that performs logic operations without processing computer-executable instructions. A processor device can also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration. Although described herein primarily with respect to digital technology, a processor device may also include primarily analog components. For example, some or all of the rendering techniques described herein may be implemented in analog circuitry or mixed analog and digital circuitry. A computing environment can include any type of computer system, including, but not limited to, a computer system based on a microprocessor, a mainframe computer, a digital signal processor, a portable computing device, a device controller, or a computational engine within an appliance, to name a few. 
     The elements of a method, process, routine, or algorithm described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein can be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor device, or in a combination of the two. A software module can reside in RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. An exemplary storage medium can be coupled to the processor device such that the processor device can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium can be integral to the processor device. The processor device and the storage medium can reside in an ASIC. The ASIC can reside in a user terminal. In the alternative, the processor device and the storage medium can reside as discrete components in a user terminal. 
     Conditional language used herein, such as, among others, “can,” “could,” “might,” “may,” “e.g.,” and the like, unless specifically stated otherwise, or otherwise understood within the context as used, is generally intended to convey that certain embodiments include, while other embodiments do not include, certain features, elements or steps. Thus, such conditional language is not generally intended to imply that features, elements or steps are in any way required for one or more embodiments or that one or more embodiments necessarily include logic for deciding, with or without other input or prompting, whether these features, elements or steps are included or are to be performed in any particular embodiment. The terms “comprising,” “including,” “having,” and the like are synonymous and are used inclusively, in an open-ended fashion, and do not exclude additional elements, features, acts, operations, and so forth. Also, the term “or” is used in its inclusive sense (and not in its exclusive sense) so that when used, for example, to connect a list of elements, the term “or” means one, some, or all of the elements in the list. 
     Disjunctive language such as the phrase “at least one of X, Y, or Z,” unless specifically stated otherwise, is otherwise understood with the context as used in general to present that an item, term, etc., may be either X, Y, or Z, or any combination thereof (e.g., X, Y, or Z). Thus, such disjunctive language is not generally intended to, and should not, imply that certain embodiments require at least one of X, at least one of Y, and at least one of Z to each be present. 
     While the above detailed description has shown, described, and pointed out novel features as applied to various embodiments, it can be understood that various omissions, substitutions, and changes in the form and details of the devices or algorithms illustrated can be made without departing from the spirit of the disclosure. As can be recognized, certain embodiments described herein can be embodied within a form that does not provide all of the features and benefits set forth herein, as some features can be used or practiced separately from others. The scope of certain embodiments disclosed herein is indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description. All changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.