Remotely controlling a computer via simulated keyboard events

• US 20030122856A1
• Filed: 12/28/2001
• Published: 07/03/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Hubbard, Thomas
• Granted Patent: US 7,177,902 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/700
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/023 Arrangements for converting discrete items of information into a coded form, e.g. arrangements for interpreting keyboard generated codes as alphanumeric codes, operand codes or instruction codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/08 specially adapted for terminal emulation, e.g. Telnet
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

A keyboard event server (KES) allows an end user to remotely control a computer. The KES accepts a uniform resource locator having a query string that specifies one or more keyboard events to be simulated. The query string may include mnemonics corresponding to one or more keyboard-key presses that can be simulated one after another and/or simultaneously. An end user can use a wireless-access browser running on a wireless-client device to remotely control a target computer through a wireless-access gateway.

Claims

1. A method of allowing a target computer to be remotely controlled through a browser, the method comprising:

accepting a connection from the browser;

downloading to the browser a web page containing remote-control user-interface elements;

receiving a message generated in response to a user interacting with at least one of the remote-control user-interface elements, wherein the message indicates at least one keyboard event to be simulated on the target computer; and

simulating at least one keyboard event based on the received message.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the accepted connection is an HTTP connection from a wireless-access gateway.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the browser is a wireless-access browser.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the wireless-access browser and the target computer communicate through a wireless-access gateway.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the remote-control user-interface elements comprise virtual keyboard keys.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the remote-control user-interface elements comprise hypertext markup language buttons.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the remote-control user-interface elements comprise wireless markup language select elements.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the accepting, the downloading, the receiving, and the simulating are each performed by the target computer.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the received message is contained in a query portion of an HTTP request.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein simulating the at least one keyboard event comprises sending an operating system key event to an active application on the target computer.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein simulating the at least one keyboard event comprises simulating a press-and-hold operation for at least a first key while simulating a press and then a release of at least a second key.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the received message is part of an HTTP POST.

20. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for causing a target computer to perform the steps recited in claim 4.

13. A method of using a wireless-access browser to remotely control a target computer, the method comprising:

connecting to a wireless-access gateway to establish a wireless-access-browser connection to a keyboard event server running on the target computer;

using the wireless-access browser to download from the keyboard event server a web page containing remote-control user-interface elements; and

sending a message to the keyboard event server, wherein the message is generated in response to a user interacting with at least one of the remote-control user-interface elements and wherein the message indicates at least one keyboard event to be simulated by the keyboard event server on the target computer.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the remote-control user-interface elements comprise wireless markup language select elements.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the sent message is contained in a query portion of an HTTP request.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the sent message is part of an HTTP POST.

21. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for causing a wireless-access browser to perform the steps recited in claim 16.

17. A method of allowing a wireless-access browser to remotely control a target computer, the method comprising:

establishing, through a wireless-access gateway, a wireless-access-browser connection to a keyboard event server running on the target computer;

downloading through the wireless-access gateway from the keyboard event server to the wireless-access browser a web page containing remote-control user-interface elements;

converting a wireless protocol-encoded (WP-encoded) message received from the wireless-access browser at the wireless-access gateway into an HTTP message, wherein the WP-encoded message is generated in response to a user interacting with at least one of the remote-control user-interface elements and wherein the WP-encoded message indicates at least one keyboard event to be simulated by the keyboard event server on the target computer; and

transmitting the HTTP message from the wireless-access gateway to the keyboard event server.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

receiving an HTTP response from the keyboard event server at the wireless-access gateway;

converting the HTTP response to a WP-encoded response; and

transmitting the WP-encoded response from the wireless-access gateway to the wireless-access browser.

19. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for causing a wireless-access gateway to perform the steps recited in claim 18.

22. A mobile terminal that allows an end user to remotely control a target computer, the mobile terminal comprising:

a wireless-access browser that

downloads remote-control user-interface elements, and

sends a message to a keyboard event server executing on the target computer, wherein

the message is generated in response to the end user interacting with at least one of the remote-control user-interface elements, and

the message indicates at least one keyboard event to be simulated by the keyboard event server on the target computer.

23. The mobile terminal of claim 22, wherein the wireless-access browser and the target computer communicate through a wireless-access gateway.

24. The mobile terminal of claim 22, wherein the remote-control user-interface elements comprise wireless markup language select elements.

25. The mobile terminal of claim 22, wherein the sent message is wireless-protocol encoded.

26. The mobile terminal of claim 22, wherein the at least one keyboard event to be simulated comprises simulating a press-and-hold operation for at least a first key while simulating a press and then a release of at least a second key.

27. A remote-control system comprising:

a mobile terminal running a wireless-access browser that receives remote-control user-interface elements;

a wireless-access gateway; and

a target computer coupled to the wireless-access gateway, wherein

the target computer is running a keyboard event server that receives a message through the wireless-access gateway from the wireless-access browser,

the message is generated in response to a mobile-terminal user interacting with at least one of the remote-control user-interface elements, and

the keyboard event server simulates at least one keyboard event on the target computer based on the received message.

28. The remote-control system of claim 27, wherein the received message comprises at least one mnemonic corresponding to the at least one simulated keyboard event.