Wireless software upgrades with version control

• US 20040038675A1
• Filed: 08/18/2003
• Published: 02/26/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 08/07/1996
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telxon Corporation (Zebra Technologies Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Telxon Corporation (Zebra Technologies Corporation)
• Inventors: Criss, Mark A., Cowan, Paul A.
• Granted Patent: US 6,968,184 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/419
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/38 Transceivers, i.e. devices in which transmitter and receiver form a structural unit and in which at least one part is used for functions of transmitting and receiving
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/00 Automatic or semi-automatic exchanges
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42178 by downloading data to substation equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/02 Arrangements for optimising operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/22 Processing or transfer of terminal data, e.g. status or physical capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/245 from a network towards a terminal

Abstract

A wireless communication system includes a system backbone, a host computer coupled to the system backbone, at least one base station coupled to the system backbone, the at least one base station including a base station transceiver for communicating wirelessly with mobile devices within the system, and at least one mobile device having a mobile device transceiver for communicating wirelessly with the host computer on the system backbone via the at least one base station. A method of operation includes the steps determining whether a version of operating software stored in the at least one mobile device is a current version of the operating software, and wirelessly updating the operating software stored in the at least one mobile device if it is determined that the operating software stored in the at least one mobile device is not the current version.

Claims

1. In a wireless communication system comprising a system backbone;

a host computer coupled to the system backbone;

at least one base station coupled to the system backbone, the at least one base station including a base station transceiver for communicating wirelessly with mobile devices within the system; and

at least one mobile device having a mobile device transceiver for communicating wirelessly with the host computer on the system backbone via the at least one base station, a method of operation comprising the steps of;

storing a version of operating software that provides instruction code in the at least one mobile device;

the operating software, when executed, allowing the at least one mobile device to carry out its intended function;

determining whether the version of operating software stored in the at least one mobile device is a current version of the operating software; and

wirelessly updating the operating software stored in the at least one mobile device if it is determined that the operating software stored in the at least one mobile device is not the current version.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of determining includes the steps of:

the host computer requesting from the at least one mobile device indicia indicative of a version of mobile device operating software stored in the at least one mobile device;

the at least one mobile device transmitting the indicia indicative of the version of mobile device operating software stored in the at least one mobile device to the host computer;

the host computer receiving the indicia indicative of the version of mobile device operating software stored in the at least one mobile device; and

the host computer determining whether updating of the mobile device operating software is appropriate based on an initial comparison in which the indicia indicative of mobile device operating software stored in the at least one mobile device is compared to an indicia of the current version of mobile device operating software.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of the host computer requesting from the at least one mobile device indicia indicative of a version of mobile device operating software occurs following completion of a boot-up routine during which the at least one mobile device establishes an identity in the wireless communication system.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of determining includes the steps of:

the at least one mobile device transmitting to the host computer a request to receive indicia indicative of the current version of mobile device operating software;

the host computer transmitting the indicia indicative of the current version to the at least one mobile device;

the at least one mobile device receiving the indicia indicative of the current version; and

the at least one mobile device determining whether updating of the mobile device operating software is appropriate based on an initial comparison in which the indicia indicative of current version of operating software is compared to an indicia of a version of the operating software stored in the at least one mobile device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication system further includes an FTP server coupled to the system backbone and the step of wirelessly updating the operating software stored in the at least one mobile device includes the step of:

the at least one mobile device downloading the current version of the operating software from the FTP server.

6. A wireless communication system, comprising:

a system backbone;

a host computer coupled to the system backbone;

an FTP server coupled to the system backbone;

at least one base station coupled to the system backbone, the at least one base station including a base station transceiver for communicating wirelessly with mobile devices within the system; and

at least one mobile device having a mobile device transceiver for communicating wirelessly with the host computer and FTP server on the system backbone via the at least one base station;

wherein a version of operating software that provides instruction code is stored in the at least one mobile device and, when executed, allows the at least one mobile device to carry out its intended function; and

wherein the host computer and the at least one mobile device are operatively configured to determine whether to selectively update mobile device operating software therebetween based on an initial comparison in accordance with a predetermined criteria indicative of whether updating of the mobile device operating software is appropriate, and the FTP server and the at least one mobile device are operatively configured to communicate selectively the mobile device operating software determined to be appropriate for updating.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the initial comparison includes a comparison of an indicia of a version of mobile device operating software stored in the host computer and an indicia of a version of mobile device operating software presently stored in the mobile device.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the initial comparison is carried out by the host computer based on indicia information provided by the mobile device.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the indicia information provided by the mobile device is provided in response to a request by the host computer for such indicia information.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein in the event the version of mobile device operating software stored in the mobile device is different from the version of mobile device operating software stored in the host computer, the host computer request the mobile device to download updated operating software from the FTP server.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the mobile device replaces the mobile device operating software presently stored therein with the mobile device operating software provided from the FTP server.

12. A wide area network (WAN), comprising:

a WAN based system backbone having a plurality of wireless communication systems as recited in claim 6 coupled thereto;

a WAN based host computer coupled to the respective host computers in the plurality of wireless communication systems via the WAN based system backbone; and

a WAN based FTP server coupled to the respective FTP servers in the plurality of wireless communication systems via the WAN based system backbone;

wherein the WAN based FTP server is operatively configured to communicate updated mobile device operating software to the respective FTP servers via the WAN based system backbone and the WAN based host computer is operatively configured to communicate updated information related to the mobile device operating software to the respective host computers via the WAN based system backbone.

13. In a wireless communication system comprising a system backbone;

a host computer coupled to the system backbone;

at least one base station coupled to the system backbone, the at least one base station including a base station transceiver for communicating wirelessly with mobile devices within the system; and

at least one mobile device having a mobile device transceiver for communicating wirelessly with the host computer on the system backbone via the at least one base station;

a method of operation comprising the steps of;

storing a version of operating software which provides instruction code in the at least one mobile device;

executing the operating software, whereby the least one mobile device carries out its intended function;

determining whether the version of operating software stored in the at least one mobile device is a current version of the operating software; and

wirelessly updating the operating software stored in the at least one mobile device if it is determined that the operating software stored in the at least one mobile device is not the current version.