System and method for remote application management of a wireless device

• US 20020183051A1
• Filed: 05/31/2001
• Published: 12/05/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Orative Corp. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Poor, Graham V., Mahoney, Margaret Mary
• Granted Patent: US 7,123,933 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/418
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72406 by software upgrading or downloading
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces

Abstract

The invention links or associates commands supported by application programs in the wireless device or by the platform itself to remote devices or to other application programs or similar processes by means of a software mechanism referred to as a bus. The commands can be any that a user could initiate manually or that the platform could receive from a remote device or an application program or other process.

Claims

1. A method for managing application programs in a digital electronic device, the method comprising the steps of:

creating a plurality of bus listener objects in an object framework of the device;

defining a plurality of bus addresses, each corresponding to one and only one of the plurality of bus listener objects;

receiving a value from a process;

writing the value in a bus address; and

a bus listener object to which the bus address corresponds responding to a change in value stored in the bus address by invoking an object method associated with the address.

2. The method claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of receiving a value comprises wirelessly receiving an activation signal from a remote source, the activation signal including a representation of a value.

3. The method claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of receiving a value from a process comprises receiving a value from an application program method in the device.

4. The method claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of receiving a value from a process comprises receiving a value from a framework method in the device.

5. The method claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of creating a plurality of bus listener objects is performed in response to a control file specifying the bus address and corresponding method associated with the bus address of each bus listener.

6. The method claimed in claim 1, wherein the object framework is a software layer between an application program layer and a platform layer.

7. The method claimed in claim 6, wherein the object method is of an application program.

8. The method claimed in claim 6, wherein the object method is of the framework.

9. The method claimed in claim 8, wherein the object method runs an application program.

10. The method claimed in claim 8, wherein the object method installs an application program.

11. The method claimed in claim 8, wherein the object method monitors application program usage.

12. The method claimed in claim 8, wherein the object method enables an application program.

14. The device claimed in claim 13, wherein the processing system includes a wireless network interface that receives the value wirelessly from a remote source.

15. The device claimed in claim 13, wherein the processing system receives a value from an application program method.

16. The device claimed in claim 13, wherein the processing system receives a value from a framework method in the device.

17. The device claimed in claim 13, wherein the processing system creates the plurality of bus listener objects in response to a control file specifying the bus address and corresponding method associated with the bus address of each bus listener.

18. The device claimed in claim 13, wherein the object framework is a software layer between an application program layer and a platform layer.

19. The device claimed in claim 18, wherein the object method is of an application program.

20. The device claimed in claim 18, wherein the object method is of the framework.

21. The device claimed in claim 20, wherein the object method runs an application program.

22. The device claimed in claim 20, wherein the object method installs an application program.

23. The device claimed in claim 20, wherein the object method monitors application program usage.

24. The device claimed in claim 20, wherein the object method enables an application program.

13. An electronic device, comprising:

a memory in which is storable an object framework and a plurality of application programs; and

a processing system programmed to effect a method using the object framework comprising the steps of;

creating a plurality of bus listener objects;

defining a plurality of bus addresses, each corresponding to one and only one of the plurality of bus listener objects;

receiving a value from a process;

writing the value in a bus address; and

a bus listener object to which the bus address corresponds responding to a change in value stored in the bus address by invoking an object method associated with the address.