Management server

• US 10,659,287 B2
• Filed: 05/16/2013
• Issued: 05/19/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 05/23/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Uefuji, Takashi, Ukai, Hiroki
• Primary Examiner(s): Bates, Kevin T
• Assistant Examiner(s): Scott, Mark A
• Application Number:
  US14/402,655
• Publication Number:
  US 20150156058A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,560 Days
• Field of Search: 709223
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/046 comprising network management agents or mobile agents therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks

Abstract

A management server capable of improving the convenience of a content distribution service for a user who purchases a vehicular device is disclosed. The management server manages provision of a content distribution service for content execution device, which includes a vehicular device and a mobile communication terminal each installed with a cooperative application to execute content based on mutual cooperation. When user identification information transmitted from the content execution device may match user identification information managed by the user identification information management portion, the management server permits provision of the content distribution service for the content execution device regardless of whether or not a vehicular device included in the content execution device is registered.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a content execution device located in a vehicle and including a navigation system device and a mobile communication terminal provided separately from each other;

a management server including a content access server and a content authentication information management server;

a content distribution device;

the management server managing provisions for the content execution device located in the vehicle;

the navigation system device and the mobile communication terminal both having a cooperative application installed which executes content based on mutual cooperation with each other, the content being acquired by the mobile communication terminal from the content distribution device through the content access server based on a user request, the navigation system device and the mobile communication terminal each executing the cooperative application to cooperatively execute the content, and, while the navigation system device and the mobile communication terminal each execute the cooperative application to cooperatively execute the content, the mobile communication terminal also functions as a communication medium between the navigation system device and the content access server; and

the content authentication information management server including;

a registered vehicular device enabling portion that configures the navigation system device included in the content execution device as a registered vehicular device when the content execution device, including the navigation system device and the mobile communication terminal provided separately from each other and each installed with the cooperative application for executing the content based on the mutual cooperation with each other, starts the cooperative application for the first time; and

a user identification information management portion that manages user identification information in association with vehicular device identification information of the registered vehicular device, identifying the registered vehicular device, the user identification information being registered only with the associated vehicular device identification information when the content execution device including the registered vehicular device starts the cooperative application for the first time and transmits the user identification information and the associated vehicular device identification information to the user identification information management portion of the content authentication information management server;

wherein the management server permits the provision of a content distribution service for the content execution device by the content distribution device when the user identification information transmitted from the content execution device matches the user identification information managed by the user identification information management portion regardless of whether the navigation system device included in the content execution device is the registered vehicular device.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein:

when the user identification information received from the content execution device including the registered vehicular device differs from the managed user identification information, the user identification information management portion manages the received user identification information in association with the vehicular device identification information of the registered vehicular device.

3. The system according to claim 2, wherein:

when the user identification information received from the content execution device including the registered vehicular device differs from the managed user identification information, the user identification information management portion manages the received user identification information in association with the vehicular device identification information of the registered vehicular device under a condition where a total number of user identification information managed in association with the vehicular device identification information of the registered vehicular device does not reach a predetermined count.

4. The system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a user identification information removal portion of the content authentication information management server that removes the user identification information managed by the user identification information management portion in response to a removal request from the content execution device.

5. The system according to claim 4, wherein:

the user identification information removal portion removes the user identification information selected in the content execution device.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the management server permits the provision of the content distribution service without the use of a vehicle identification.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the management server permits the provision of the content distribution service based only on the user identification of the registered vehicular device.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the content distribution service provided by the content distribution device for the content execution device includes distributing streaming music content to the content execution device.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein the content distribution service provided by the content distribution device for the content execution device includes distributing non-streaming search content to the content execution device, the non-streaming search content including at least one of facility search content for searching restaurants or tourist facilities, new distribution content, and social networking service content.

10. The system according to claim 1, wherein the cooperative application of the navigation system device and the cooperative application of the mobile communication terminal are configured to execute the content based on mutual cooperation with each other by the mobile communication terminal transferring data for the content between the navigation system device and the content distribution service.

11. The system according to claim 10, wherein the cooperative application of the navigation system device and the cooperative application of the mobile communication terminal each display a menu screen of the respective cooperative application and a user can execute a start button on the menu screen of either cooperative application to start execution of the content.

12. A system comprising:

a content execution device located in a vehicle and including a first navigation system device, a second navigation system device, and a mobile communication terminal provided separately from each other;

a management server including a content access server and a content authentication information management server;

a content distribution device;

the management server managing provisions for the content execution device located in the vehicle;

the first navigation system device and the mobile communication terminal both having a cooperative application installed which executes content based on mutual cooperation with each other, the content being acquired by the mobile communication terminal from the content distribution device through the content access server based on a user request, the navigation system device and the mobile communication terminal each executing the cooperative application to cooperatively execute the content, and, while the first navigation system device and the mobile communication terminal each execute the cooperative application to cooperatively execute the content, the mobile communication terminal also functions as a communication medium between the first navigation system device and the content access server; and

the content authentication information management server including;

a registered vehicular device enabling portion that configures the first navigation system device included in the content execution device as a registered vehicular device when the content execution device, including the first navigation system device and the mobile communication terminal, starts the cooperative application for the first time; and

a user identification information management portion that manages user identification information in association with vehicular device identification information of the registered vehicular device, identifying the registered vehicular device, the user identification information being registered only with the associated vehicular device identification information when the content execution device including the registered vehicular device starts the cooperative application for the first time and transmits the user identification information and the associated vehicular device identification information to the user identification information management portion of the content authentication information management server;

wherein the management server permits the provision of a content distribution service for the content execution device by the content distribution device when the user identification information transmitted from the content execution device matches the user identification information managed by the user identification information management portion regardless of whether the second navigation system device is included in the content execution device.

13. The system according to claim 12, wherein the management server permits the provision of the content distribution service without the use of a vehicle identification.

14. The system according to claim 12, wherein the management server permits the provision of the content distribution service based only on the user identification of the registered vehicular device.