Communication method and apparatus

• US 20010054069A1
• Filed: 12/05/2000
• Published: 12/20/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Horiguchi, Mari, Kawamura, Harumi
• Granted Patent: US 6,745,276 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/204
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2805 Home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2809 indicating that an appliance service is present in a home automation network monitoring functionality H04L43/0817; discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services, H04L67/51
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2849 Audio/video appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

Communication method and apparatus for allowing restriction-free transmission of various kinds of information, such as control information, among devices constituting, for example, an IEEE 1394 network. At least one of the network-linked devices is provided with a storage region to/from which data can be written/read out by any other device on the network upon transmission of a predetermined command, so that data can be transmitted throughout the network by using the storage region.

Claims

1. A communication method for allowing communications among devices linked to a predetermined network, wherein:

at least one of the devices linked to said network is provided with a storage region to/from which data is written/read out when a predetermined command is transmitted from any other device on said network; and

data transmission throughout said network is allowed by using said storage region.

2. The communication method according to

claim 1

, wherein:

said storage region is set when a predetermined command is transmitted from any other device on said network.

3. The communication method according to

claim 1

, wherein:

said storage region is set by using one of boards that are set within a predetermined subunit defined by an AV/C command set.

4. A communication apparatus linked to a predetermined network, comprising:

control means for controlling communications with any other device within said network; and

a storage unit to/from which data is written/read out at a command from any other device within said network judged by said control means.

5. The communication apparatus according to

claim 4

, wherein:

data transmitted through said network is written to said storage unit when said control means judges transmission of a predetermined command through said network.

6. The communication apparatus according to

claim 4

, wherein:

predetermined data stored in said storage unit is sent to said network when said control means judges transmission of a predetermined command through said network.

7. The communication apparatus according to

claim 4

, wherein:

a data storing region is secured in said storage unit when said control means judges transmission of a predetermined command through said network.