System and method for handling digital content delivery to portable devices

• US 20040143652A1
• Filed: 01/17/2003
• Published: 07/22/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 01/17/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SBC Knowledge Ventures LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: SBC Properties, L.P. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Patron, David, Suryanarayana, Lalitha, Grannan, Michael
• Granted Patent: US 7,533,158 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/101 applying security measures for digital rights management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0815 providing single-sign-on or federations
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/63 Location-dependent; Proximity-dependent

Abstract

The present disclosure is directed generally to a method and system to handle downloads of digital data files to portable computing devices. In a particular embodiment, the system includes a first system access point responsive to a first wireless access point at a first location; a second system access point responsive to a second wireless access point at a second location; and a central facility. The central facility includes a computer having a user sign-on module to permit wireless download access to digital data files by a portable device within communication range of at least one of the first wireless access point and the second wireless access point. The central facility includes a digital data file download status memory, the status memory including an indication of download status and including an indication of the portion of a requested digital data file that has been downloaded. In a particular embodiment, the method includes starting a download of digital data from a server to a portable computing device, the portable computing device in remote communication with the server via a wireless communication channel. The method further includes determining that the download is interrupted prior to completion of the download digital data and storing data associated with a user of the portable computing device and data associated with the download of digital data in a status registry memory.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a first system access point responsive to a first wireless access point at a first location;

a second system access point responsive to a second wireless access point at a second location; and

a central facility, the central facility including a computer having a user sign-on module to permit wireless download access to digital data files by a portable device within communication range of at least one of the first wireless access point and the second wireless access point, the central facility including a digital data file download status memory, the digital data file download status memory including an indication of download status and including an indication of the portion of a requested digital data file that has been downloaded.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the digital data file download status memory includes an entry that indicates a particular digital data file download is temporarily suspended due to a download interruption.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the download interruption is in response to the central facility determining that a portable device has moved out of range for continued data communication.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the central facility further includes a storage area network and wherein the digital data files to be downloaded are stored on the storage area network.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the first and second system access points are network access connections selected from a wide area network and a direct network connection.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the computer and associated portable devices are SyncML compliant and the SyncML protocol is used to facilitate discontinuous download of a digital data file.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein before resuming the download after establishing a connection with the second access point, a server communicates in real time with a portable device client to query its capabilities and carries out any capabilities negotiation that might be required for download purposes, such capabilities including available disk space.

8. A system coupled to a first wireless access point via a first network and coupled to a second wireless access point via a second network, the system comprising:

a server computer having a mobile user sign-on module to permit wireless download access to digital data files by a portable device within communication range of the first wireless access point and a second portable device within communication range of the second wireless access point; and

a digital data file download status memory, the digital data file status memory including at least one field to store an entry to indicate the portion of a requested digital data file that has been downloaded to a first portable computing device via the first wireless access point.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the digital data file status memory further includes a second field to store a second entry to indicate the portion of a second requested digital data file that has been downloaded to a second portable computing device via the second wireless access point.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein when the first portable computing device moves from a first location within range of the first wireless access point to a second location within range of the second wireless access point a first portion of a digital data file is downloaded to the first computing portable device via the first wireless access point and a second portion of the digital data file is downloaded to the first portable computing device via the second wireless access point.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the first and second wireless access points are the same.

12. A method comprising:

starting a download of digital data from a server to a portable computing device, the portable computing device in remote communication with the server via a wireless communication channel;

determining that the download is interrupted prior to completion of the download of digital data; and

storing data associated with a user of the portable computing device and data associated with the download of digital data in a status registry memory.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein determining includes determining that the portable computing device moved outside the range of the wireless communication channel, resulting in interruption of the download.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the data stored in the status registry memory includes a byte count indicating the amount of data downloaded to the portable computing device prior to a download interruption.

15. The method of claim 12, further comprising establishing a second connection with the portable computing device via a second network.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the second network is an alternative access network selected from a wide area network and a local area network connection.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising continuing the download of the digital data at the point where the download delivery was previously interrupted, the remainder of the download communicated to the portable computing device via the second connection.

18. The method of claim 15, further comprising completing the download of the digital data to the portable computing device.

19. The method of claim 12, wherein the status registry memory includes fields that identify devices, users, and content uniquely.

20. The method of claim 12, wherein the digital data is selected from music, video, software content, application synchronization data, downloadable software radio modules for configuring portable device to support a new wireless data transmission protocol, and software upgrade modules.

21. The method of claim 12, further comprising determining that a user associated with the portable computing device selected and purchased a licensed copy of the digital data prior to the download.

22. A method of operating a computer network with access to digital data content available for download, the method comprising:

determining that a portable device is in communication with a first wireless access point coupled to the computer network, the first wireless access point at a first location;

authenticating the portable device;

authenticating the user;

receiving a selection from the portable device of digital data content to be downloaded;

starting a download of the digital data content to the portable device via the first wireless access point;

determining that the download of the digital data content is interrupted prior to completion;

determining that the portable device is in communication with a second wireless access point coupled to the computer network, the second wireless access point at a second location;

re-authenticating the portable device;

re-authenticating the user;

optionally prompting the portable device with an option to continue the download of the digital data content; and

restarting the download of the digital data content to the portable device via the second wireless access point at the point in the digital data content where the download was interrupted.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the first and second wireless access points are the same, and wherein the user is authenticated and re-authenticated with a single sign-on mechanism.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the first and second wireless access points are on separate physical networks.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein the digital data content download is initiated from a secondary device but directed to be performed on the portable device.