Controlling access to a hardware resource of an electronic device by a magnetically attachable electronic device

• US 10,455,375 B2
• Filed: 11/20/2016
• Issued: 10/22/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 11/21/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nanoport Technology Inc. (Nano Magnetics Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Nanoport Technology Inc. (Nano Magnetics Ltd.)
• Inventors: Szeto, Timothy Jing Yin
• Primary Examiner(s): Coby, Frantz
• Application Number:
  US15/356,647
• Publication Number:
  US 20170149902A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,066 Days
• Field of Search: 709218, 709225, 709227, 709228
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 7/0242 Magnetic drives, magnetic coupling devices
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6205 Two-part coupling devices held in engagement by a magnet
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1097 for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/026 Details of the structure or mounting of specific components
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 Direct-mode setup
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/18 Network protocols supporting networked applications, e.g. including control of end-device applications over a network

Abstract

In an embodiment, a mobile electronic device comprises: a transceiver; at least one magnetic connector; connectedness detection circuitry operable to dynamically detect a connection event at each of the at least one magnetic connector; and a processor, coupled to the connectedness detection circuitry, operable to: automatically establish a communications link, via the transceiver, with an other electronic device upon detection, by the connectedness detection circuitry, of the connection event at a predetermined set of the at least one magnetic connector; send, from the mobile electronic device to a remote server, a request for access to a hardware resource of the other electronic device; and based on a positive response from the remote server, access, via the wireless communications link, a hardware resource of the other electronic device.

Claims

1. A method at a mobile electronic device having at least one magnetic connector, the method comprising:

upon magnetic attachment of the mobile electronic device to an other electronic device using the at least one magnetic connector, detecting a connection event at each of the at least one magnetic connector used for the magnetic attachment;

in response to the detecting, automatically establishing a communications link between the mobile electronic device and the other electronic device;

sending, from the mobile electronic device to a remote server, a request for access to a hardware resource of the other electronic device; and

based on a positive response from the remote server, accessing, from the magnetically attached mobile electronic device, via the communications link, the hardware resource of the other electronic device,

wherein the sending, from the mobile electronic device to the remote server, of the request for access to the hardware resource of the other electronic device occurs prior to the magnetic attachment of the mobile electronic device to the other electronic device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the request for access comprises a unique ID of a hardware resource of the other electronic device to which access is sought.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the request for access comprises a unique ID of the other electronic device containing the hardware resource to which access is sought.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the request for access further comprises a user ID, or user profile ID, of a user associated with the mobile electronic device.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising receiving a positive response from the remote server and, based on the positive response, storing at the mobile electronic device an indication of the hardware resource to which access is granted.

6. A mobile electronic device comprising:

a transceiver;

at least one magnetic connector;

connectedness detection circuitry operable to dynamically detect a connection event at each of the at least one magnetic connector;

a processor, coupled to the connectedness detection circuitry, operable to;

automatically establish a communications link, via the transceiver, with an other electronic device upon detection, by the connectedness detection circuitry, of the connection event at a predetermined set of the at least one magnetic connector;

send, from the mobile electronic device to a remote server, a request for access to a hardware resource of the other electronic device; and

based on a positive response from the remote server, access, via the wireless communications link, a hardware resource of the other electronic device,

wherein the sending, from the mobile electronic device to the remote server, of the request for access to the hardware resource of the other electronic device occurs prior to the detection of the connection event at the predetermined set of the at least one magnetic connector.

7. The mobile electronic device of claim 6 wherein the at least one magnetic connector comprises a plurality of magnetic connectors.

8. The mobile electronic device of claim 7 wherein the predetermined set of the magnetic connectors comprises a subset of the plurality of magnetic connectors.

9. The mobile electronic device of claim 7 wherein the predetermined set of the magnetic connectors comprises all of the magnetic connectors of the plurality.

10. A cloud server comprising:

a network interface controller; and

a processor operable to;

receive, via the network interface controller, a request, from a mobile electronic device having at least one magnetic connector, for access to a hardware resource of an other electronic device, the other electronic device having at least one complementary magnetic connector selectively attachable to the magnetic connector of the mobile electronic device for mutual magnetic attachment of the devices, the request containing a unique ID associated with the other electronic device, the request being sent from the mobile electronic device prior to the mutual magnetic attachment of the devices;

based at least upon on the unique ID in the request, determining access rights to the hardware resource for the mobile electronic device; and

based on the determined access rights to the hardware resource, sending to the mobile electronic device, via the network interface controller, one of a positive response indicating that access to the hardware resource is granted and a negative response indicating that access to the hardware resource is denied.

11. The cloud server of claim 10 wherein the request from the mobile electronic device contains a user profile ID and wherein the access rights are specific to a user profile associated with the user profile ID.

12. The cloud server of claim 10 wherein the request from the mobile electronic device contains a user ID and wherein the access rights are specific to a user associated with the user ID.

13. The cloud server of claim 10 wherein the request from the mobile electronic device contains a device ID of the mobile electronic device and wherein the access rights are specific to the mobile electronic device.

14. The cloud server of claim 10 wherein the access rights to the hardware resource specify a time limit for the mobile electronic device to access the hardware resource of the other electronic device.

15. The cloud server of claim 14 wherein the time limit for the mobile electronic device to access the hardware resource of the other electronic device is user-specific or user profile-specific.

16. The cloud server of claim 14 wherein the unique ID in the request is a device ID of the other electronic device.

17. The cloud server of claim 14 wherein the unique ID in the request is an ID of the hardware resource to which access is sought.