Media data storage device capable of determining whether requested media data is reproducible and transmission method thereof

• US 20060026172A1
• Filed: 07/15/2005
• Published: 02/02/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/16/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Roh, Ui-cheol
• Application Number:
  US11/181,750
• Publication Number:
  US 20060026172A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/40 of multimedia data, e.g. slideshows comprising image and additional audio data retrieval of still image data G06F16/50; retrieval of audio data G06F16/60; retrieval of video data G06F16/70
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/48 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually

Abstract

A media data storage device having an interface to communicate data with an external electronic device comprises a first memory to store at least one media data object, a second memory to store predetermined reproducibility information including whether the at least one media data object is reproducible in the external electronic device, and a controller to determine whether a requested media data object is reproducible in the external electronic device according to the predetermined reproducibility information when the external electronic device requests the media data object stored in the first memory and to transmit a result of the determination to the external electronic device when the requested media data object is not reproducible in the external electronic device.

Claims

1. A media data storage device having an interface to communicate data with an external electronic device, comprising:

a first memory to store at least one media data object;

a second memory to store predetermined reproducibility information including whether the at least one media data object is reproducible in the external electronic device; and

a controller to determine whether a requested media data object is reproducible in the external electronic device according to the predetermined reproducibility information when the external electronic device requests the media data object stored in the first memory, and to transmit a result of the determination to the external electronic device when the requested media data object is not reproducible in the external electronic device.

2. The media data storage device according to claim 1, wherein the controller transmits the requested media data object to the external electronic device when the external electronic device requests the media data object within a predetermined allowable period of time after the result of the determination is transmitted to the external electronic device.

3. The media data storage device according to claim 1, wherein the external electronic device transmits the predetermined reproducibility information to the controller, and the controller controls the second memory to store the predetermined reproducibility information.

4. The media data storage device according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined reproducibility information includes at least one of information about a CODEC used in the external electronic device and information about a reproducible format of the external electronic device.

5. The media data storage device according to claim 3, wherein the predetermined reproducibility information includes at least one of information about a CODEC used in the external electronic device and information about a reproducible format of the external electronic device.

6. The media data storage device according to claim 1, further comprising a data transformer to transform a data format of the requested media data object to a reproducible format of the external electronic device, wherein the controller determines whether the requested media data object can be transformed by the data transformer to have the reproducible format of the external electronic device, controls the data transformer to transform the requested media data object to have the reproducible format of the external electronic device if the requested media data object is transformable, and transmits the transformed media data object to the external electronic device.

7. The media data storage device according to claim 1, wherein the second memory further stores predetermined reproducibility information associated with a plurality of external electronic devices including whether the at least one media data object is reproducible in each of the plurality of external electronic devices.

8. The media data storage device according to claim 1, wherein the controller controls the second memory to store predetermined reproducibility information including whether the at least one media data object is reproducible in the external electronic device at a time that the external electronic device is connected to the controller through an interface.

9. The media data storage device according to claim 1, wherein the controller stores the result of the determination such that the determination for the requested media data object need not be repeated at a later time.

10. A media data storage device comprising:

a memory to store at least one media data object and predetermined reproducibility information of the at least one media data object reproducible in a predetermined media data player; and

a controller to determine whether a media data object stored in the memory and requested by a media data player is reproducible in the media data player according to the predetermined reproducibility information, and to prevent the requested media data object from being transmitted to the media data player when the requested media data object is not reproducible in the media data player.

11. The media data storage device according to claim 10, wherein the controller transmits data instructing that the requested media data object is not reproducible if the controller determines from the predetermined reproducibility information that the requested media data object is not reproducible at the requesting media data player.

12. The media data storage device according to claim 10, further comprising:

a data transformer to transform a data format of the requested media data object to a reproducible format of the requesting media data player if the controller determines from stored predetermined reproducibility information associated with the requesting media data player that the requested media data object is not reproducible, and then the controller transmits the transformed reproducible data format.

13. A media data storage device comprising:

a memory to store at least one media data object; and

a controller to transmit information about a data format of a media data object requested by a media data player to the media data player, to receive a response about whether the requested media data object is reproducible in the media data player, and to prevent the requested media data object from being transmitted to the media data player when the controller receives a response that the requested media data object is not reproducible.

14. A media data storage device comprising:

a memory to store a plurality of media data objects;

an input unit to receive a command to transmit at least one of the media data objects to an external electronic device; and

a controller to determine whether the at least one media data object to be transmitted is reproducible in the external electronic device when the command is transmitted from the input unit.

15. The media data storage device according to claim 14, wherein the controller does not transmit the at least one media data object and transmits a result of the determination to the external electronic device when the at least one media data object to be transmitted is not reproducible in the external electronic device.

16. The media data storage device according to claim 14, wherein the memory stores predetermined reproducibility information including whether the plurality of media data objects are reproducible in the external electronic device, and

the controller determines whether the at least one media data object is reproducible according to the predetermined reproducibility information.

17. The media data storage device according to claim 14, wherein the controller stores a result of the determination for the at least one media data object such that the determination for the at least one media data object need not be repeated at a later time.

18. A network system comprising a client and a server storing media data objects, wherein the server determines whether a requested media data object is reproducible in the client when the client requests the media data object.

19. The network system according to claim 18, wherein the server does not transmit the requested media data object and transmits a result of the determination to the client when the requested media data object is not reproducible in the client.

20. The network system according to claim 18, wherein the server receives from the client and stores information about reproducibility of the requested media data object including whether the requested media data object is reproducible in the client, and determines whether the requested media data object is reproducible according to the reproducibility information.

21. The network system according to claim 18, wherein the server transmits the requested media data object to the client according to a selection made by a user through at least one of the server and the client even when the controller determines that the requested media data object is not reproducible in the client.

22. A method of transmitting media data objects, the method comprising:

selecting a media data object to be transmitted and an external electronic device to receive the selected media data object;

determining whether the selected media data object is reproducible in the external electronic device; and

preventing the selected media data object from being transmitted to the external electronic device when the selected media data object is not reproducible in the external electronic device.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein selecting the media data object and the external electronic device further comprises selecting the media data object and the external electronic device according to one of a request information from the external electronic device and a selection information inputted by a user.

24. The method according to claim 22, wherein determining whether the selected media data object is reproducible in the external electronic device comprises comparing reproducibility information including whether media data objects are reproducible in the external electronic device with data format information about the selected media data object.

25. The method according to claim 24, wherein the reproducibility information includes information about a CODEC used in the external electronic device and information about a reproducible format in the external electronic device.

26. A method of transmitting media data objects, the method comprising:

storing a plurality of media data objects in a first memory and predetermined reproducibility information associated with one or more external electronic devices in a second memory;

receiving a request for at least one media data object from an external electronic device;

determining whether the at least one media data object requested is reproducible at the external electronic device end; and

transmitting the at least one media data object to the external electronic device if the at least one media data object is reproducible at the external electronic device end.

27. The method according to claim 26, further comprising:

if the at least one media data object is not reproducible at the external electronic device end, providing a user an option to request transmission of the at least one media data object even if the at least one media data object is not reproducible at the external electronic device end and transmitting the at least one media data object to the external electronic device.

28. The method according to claim 26, further comprising:

if the at least one media data object is not reproducible at the external electronic device end, determining a reproducible format of the external electronic device and transforming a data format of the at least one media data object to the reproducible format and transmitting the at least one media data object in the reproducible format to the external electronic device.

29. The method according to claim 26, further comprising:

if the at least one media object is not reproducible at the external electronic device end, transmitting a message to the external electronic device to notify a user that the at least one media data object is not reproducible at the external electronic device end.

30. The method according to claim 26, wherein the determining whether the at least one media data object is reproducible at the external electronic device end further comprises accessing predetermined reproducibility information associated with the external electronic device from the second memory and comparing the predetermined reproducibility information associated with the external electronic device with information about the at least one media data object.

31. The method according to claim 30, wherein the predetermined reproducibility information comprises at least one of a reproducible format of the external electronic device, an encoder/decoder version of the external electronic device, and a data storage size of the external electronic device.

32. A method of transmitting media data objects to one of a plurality of external electronic devices, the method comprising:

receiving a request for at least one media data object from an external electronic device;

receiving predetermined reproducibility information associated with the external electronic device from the external electronic device and storing the predetermined reproducibility information associated with the external electronic device in the memory;

determining whether the at least one media data object is reproducible at the external electronic device end;

transmitting the at least one media data object to the external electronic device if the at least one media data object is reproducible at the external electronic device end; and

if the at least one media data object is not reproducible, transmitting a message informing the external electronic device that the at least one media data object is not reproducible at the external electronic device end.