Crowdsourced device cloud for application testing

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9760476-B2
Application number	US-201514885310-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 16, 2015
Priority date	Oct 16, 2015
Publication date	Sep 12, 2017
Grant date	Sep 12, 2017

Abstract

Methods and arrangements for a method of managing crowdsourced devices for application testing, said method comprising: utilizing at least one processor to execute computer code that performs the steps of: receiving, from a mobile device, a request to register itself as a rentable device; receiving, from a remote device, a request to test an application; transmitting, to the remote device, a list of rentable devices available; receiving a selection, from the remote device, of at least one rentable device for testing; and responsive to receiving the selection, transmitting instructions to the at least one rentable device to execute the instructions, the instructions comprising at least one test step for an application. Other variants and embodiments are broadly contemplated herein.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of managing crowdsourced devices for application testing, said method comprising:
utilizing at least one processor to execute computer code that performs the steps of:
receiving, from a mobile device, a request to register itself as a rentable device;
receiving, from a remote device, a request to test an application, wherein the request comprises an identification of parameters of the rentable device;
transmitting, to the remote device, a list of available rentable devices meeting the requested parameters;
receiving a selection, from the remote device, of at least one rentable device for testing; and
responsive to receiving the selection, transmitting instructions to the at least one rentable device to execute the instructions, the instructions comprising at least one test step for an application and wherein the instructions are executed and performed automatically without user intervention.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the instructions are executed in a manner selected from the group consisting of: automatic testing and manual testing;
wherein the automatic testing comprises: receiving a test script from the remote device; and transmitting the test script to the rentable device for execution; and
wherein the manual testing comprises: receiving a single test step from the remote device; and transmitting the single test step to the rentable device for execution.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the transmitting a list of rentable devices is based on at least one parameter, received from the remote device, required for testing.

4. The method according to claim 3 , further comprising, transmitting, to the remote device, a notification when a new rentable device becomes available based on the at least one parameter.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the transmitting a list of rentable devices comprises transmitting device context associated with each rentable device.

6. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving a payment, based on the instructions executed on the at least one rentable device, from a remote device; and
transmitting a payment, based on the instructions executed on the at least one rentable device, to a mobile device.

7. The method according to claim 6 , wherein the payment may include incentives, wherein the incentives are based on at least one of: device context, device demand, and degree of interruption.

8. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
creating a security profile for the mobile device prior to registering the mobile device as a rentable device;
wherein the security profile is at least one of: user customizable and mandatory.

9. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving, from the remote device, an application for testing;
scanning, using a processor, the application for testing;
identifying, based on the scanning, at least one test step requiring access to personal information; and
responsive to identifying the at least one test step, transmitting instructions to the at least one rentable device to execute the instructions, the instructions comprising executing the identified at least one step in at least one of: guest mode and dummy mode.

10. An apparatus for managing crowdsourced devices for application testing, said computer program product comprising:
at least one processor; and
a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith and executable by the at least one processor, the computer readable program code comprising:
computer readable program code that receives, from a mobile device, a request to register itself as a rentable device;
computer readable program code that receives, from a remote device, a request to test an application, wherein the request comprises an identification of parameters of the rentable device;
computer readable program code that transmits, to the remote device, a list of available rentable devices meeting the requested parameters;
computer readable program code that receives a selection, from the remote device, of at least one rentable device for testing; and
computer readable program code that responsive to receiving the selection, transmits instructions to the at least one rentable device to execute the instructions, the instructions comprising at least one test step for an application and wherein the instructions are executed and performed automatically without user intervention.

11. A computer program product for managing crowdsourced devices for application testing, said computer program product comprising:
a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code comprising:
computer readable program code that receives, from a mobile device, a request to register itself as a rentable device;
computer readable program code that receives, from a remote device, a request to test an application, wherein the request comprises an identification of parameters of the rentable device;
computer readable program code that transmits, to the remote device, a list of available rentable devices meeting the requested parameters;
computer readable program code that receives a selection, from the remote device, of at least one rentable device for testing; and
computer readable program code that responsive to receiving the selection, transmits instructions to the at least one rentable device to execute the instructions, the instructions comprising at least one test step for an application and wherein the instructions are executed and performed automatically without user intervention.

12. The computer program product according to claim 11 , wherein the instructions are executed in a manner selected from the group consisting of: automatic testing and manual testing;
wherein the automatic testing comprises: receiving a test script from the remote device; and transmitting the test script to the rentable device for execution; and
wherein the manual testing comprises: receiving a single test step from the remote device; and transmitting the single test step to the rentable device for execution.

13. The computer program product according to claim 11 , wherein the transmitting a list of rentable devices is based on at least one parameter, received from the remote device, required for testing.

14. The computer program product according to claim 13 , wherein the computer readable program code further comprises:
computer readable program code that transmits, to the remote device, a notification when a new rentable device becomes available based on the at least one parameter.

15. The computer program product according to claim 11 , wherein the transmitting a list of rentable devices comprises transmitting device context associated with each rentable device.

16. The computer program product according to claim 11 , wherein the computer readable program code further comprises:
computer readable program code that receives a payment, based on the instructions executed on the at least one rentable device, from a remote device; and
computer readable program code that transmits a payment, based on the instructions executed on the at least one rentable device, to a mobile device.

17. The computer program product according to claim 15 , wherein the payment may include incentives, wherein the incentives are based on at least one of: device context, device demand, and degree of interruption.

18. The computer program product according to claim 11 , wherein t

Assignees

• IBM

Inventors

• Ekambaram Vijay
• Mathur Ashish Kumar
• Rajput Nitendra
• Sharma Vivek

Classifications

• G06F11/3688 Primary

  for test execution, e.g. scheduling of test suites · CPC title

• H04L67/02

  based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP] · CPC title

• G06F8/70

  Software maintenance or management · CPC title

• G06Q30/0207

  Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates · CPC title

• G06Q30/0645

  Rental transactions; Leasing transactions · CPC title