Apparatus for managing home-devices remotely in home-network and method thereof

• US 20050038875A1
• Filed: 07/29/2004
• Published: 02/17/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 08/11/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Park, Chang-hawn
• Granted Patent: US 8,612,555 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2818 from a device located outside both the home and the home network access arrangements H04L12/2856; for remote control or remote monitoring of applications H04L67/025; arrangements for transmitting signals characterised by the use of a wireless eletrical link G08C17/00; telephonic communication systems adapted for combination with remote control systems H04M11/007
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/025 for remote control or remote monitoring of applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

An apparatus for providing an interface between a home-network and a external network and remotely managing the home-device connected to the home-network. The apparatus includes a transmit data processing unit for transmitting information on the home-device to a provider server connected to the external network, and requesting environment setting data for setting a driving environment of the home-device; a receive data processing unit for receiving a response message based on the request, from the provider server, and extracting the environment setting data included in the response message; and an environment setting unit for setting the driving environment for the operation of the home-device, based on the environment setting data.

Claims

1. An apparatus for providing a communication interface between a home-network and a external network, and remotely managing a home-device connected to the home-network, comprising:

a transmit data processing unit for transmitting information on the home-device to a provider server connected to the external network, and requesting environment setting data for setting a driving environment of the home-device;

a receive data processing unit for receiving a response message based on the request, from the provider server, and extracting the environment setting data included in the response message; and

an environment setting unit for setting the driving environment for operation of the home-device, based on the environment setting data.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the receive data processing unit confirms whether or not a notification message notifying of the environment setting data of the home-device being updated, has been received from the provider server;

and if the notification message has been received, the transmit data processing unit transmits the information on the home-device corresponding to the notification message to the provider server.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the notification message includes at least one of a name and uniform resource locater (URL) of a manufacturer of the home-device, a model name and model version of the home-device, a user'"'"'s serial number, a time the environment setting data of the home-device is updated, and a user'"'"'s IP address.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein if the home-device corresponding to the notification message is not connected to the home-network, the transmit data processing unit transmits an absence message indicating an absence of the home-device, to the provider server.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the information on the home-device includes at least one of a name of the home-device, a name and web site of a manufacturer of the home-device, and a detailed model name and model serial number of the home-device.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the transmit data processing unit prepares a request message including the information on the home-device in XML(Extensible Markup Language)-based HTTP(Hypertext Transfer Protocol) data format.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the response message includes at least one of a model name, a model version, a model serial number, a drive code, a drive code version, a drive code size, a checksum, and a drive hash algorithm of the home-device.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the response message is prepared according to an XML (Extensible Markup Language)-based HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) data format.

9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the receive data processing unit confirms whether or not the environment setting data has been normally received by verifying the checksum that is included in the response message of the home-device.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the transmit data processing unit generates a complete message and transmits it to the provider server if the environment setting data has been normally received, and generates a failure message and transmits the failure message to the provider server if the environment setting data has not been normally received.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein at least one of the complete message and the failure message includes at least one of a manufacturer'"'"'s name of the home-device, a model name, a model version, and a model serial number of the home-device, and a user'"'"'s IP address.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein at least one of the complete message and the failure message are prepared according to an XML-based HTTP data format.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the receive data processing unit confirms whether the environment setting data has been normally executed by experimentally executing the environment setting data included in the response message.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the environment setting unit generates an execution script for executing the environment setting data, and transmits the environment setting data and the execution script to the home-device.

15. A method for communicating between a home-network and an external network and remotely managing a home-device connected to the home-network, the method comprising:

transmitting information on the home-device to a provider server connected to the external network, and requesting environment setting data for setting a driving environment of the home-device;

receiving a response message based on the request, from the provider server and extracting the environment setting data included in the response message; and

setting the driving environment for the operation of the home-device, based on the environment setting data.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein requesting the environment setting data includes confirming whether or not a notification message notifying of the environment setting data of the home-device being updated, has been received from the provider server;

said method further comprising if the notification message has been received, transmitting the information on the home-device corresponding to the notification message to the provider server and requesting the environment setting data for setting the driving environment for the operation of the home-device.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the notification message includes at least one of a name and uniform source locator (URL) of a manufacturer of the home-device;

model name and model version of the home-device, a user'"'"'s serial number, the time the environment setting data of the home-device is updated, and a user'"'"'s IP address.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein when requesting the environment setting data, an absence message indicating the absence of the home-device is transmitted to the provider server, if the home-device corresponding to the notification message is not connected to the home-network.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the information on the home-device includes at least one of a name of the home-device, a name and web site of manufacturer of the home-device, and a detailed model name and model serial number of the home-device.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein requesting the environment setting data includes preparing a request message including the information on the home-device in XML(Extensible Markup Language)-based HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) data format.

21. The method of claim 15, wherein the response message includes at least one of a model name, a model version, a model serial number, a drive code, a drive code version, a drive code size, a checksum, and a drive hash algorithm of the home-device.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the response message is prepared inXML(Extensible Markup Language)-based HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) data format.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the extracting of the environment setting data includes confirming whether or not the environment setting data has been normally received by verifying the checksum included in the response message from the provider server.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the requesting of the environment setting data includes generating a complete message and transmitting it to the provider server if the environment setting data has been normally received, and generating a failure message and transmitting it to the provider server if the environment setting data has not been normally received.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein at least one of the complete message and the failure message includes at least one of a manufacturer'"'"'s name of the home-device, the model name, the model version, and the model serial number of the home-device, and a user'"'"'s IP address.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein at least one of the complete message,and the failure message are prepared based on an XML-based HTTP data format.

27. The method of claim 15, wherein the extracting of the environment setting data includes confirming whether the environment setting data has been normally executed, by experimentally executing the environment setting data included in the response message.

28. The device of claim 15, wherein the setting of the driving environment includes generating an execution script for executing the environment setting data, and transmitting the environment setting data and the execution script to the home-device.