Automatic protocol determination for portable devices supporting multiple protocols

• US 20060026269A1
• Filed: 07/30/2004
• Published: 02/02/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Dunn, John C., Sadovsky, Vladimir, Guo, Yonghong, Handley, Stephen R.
• Granted Patent: US 7,536,486 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/222
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/18 Multiprotocol handlers, e.g. single devices capable of handling multiple protocols

Abstract

In accordance with certain aspects of the automatic protocol determination for portable devices supporting multiple protocols, a portable device detects which one of the multiple protocols is being used by the host device for subsequent communication with the portable device. This detection is based on the content of a command received from a host device. The detected protocol is then used by the portable device for subsequent communication with the host device. The host device may also send, to the portable device, a notification of which of the multiple protocols is being used by the host device.

Claims

1. A method, implemented in a portable device, the method comprising:

detecting, based on the content of a command received from a host device, which one of multiple protocols is being used by the host device for subsequent communication with the portable device; and

using, for subsequent communication with the host device, the detected one of the multiple protocols.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising communicating with the host device over a Universal Serial Bus (USB) connection.

3. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the detecting comprises:

determining which of the multiple protocols the command is part of; and

detecting, as the protocol that is being used by the host device for subsequent communication with the portable device, the one of the multiple protocols that the command is part of.

4. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the detecting comprises:

checking whether a particular signature, associated with one of the multiple protocols, is included in a data structure of the command; and

detecting, as the protocol that is being used by the host device for subsequent communication with the portable device, the one of the multiple protocols associated with the particular signature if the particular signature is included in the data structure of the command.

5. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the detecting comprises:

checking whether the command is a protocol identification command, and if so then detecting, as the protocol that is being used by the host device for subsequent communication with the portable device, the one of the multiple protocols identified by the protocol identification command.

6. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the multiple protocols include a base functionality protocol and an enhanced functionality protocol.

7. A method as recited in claim 6, wherein the base functionality protocol comprises the Universal Serial Bus (USB) Mass Storage Class—

UFI Command Specification, and wherein the enhanced functionality protocol comprises the Media Transfer Protocol (MTP).

8. One or more computer readable media having stored thereon a plurality of instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a portable device, causes the one or more processors to:

send, to a host device coupled to the portable device, a class descriptor identifying a class of the portable device;

if no request for an operating system (OS) descriptor is received from the host device, then use a base functionality protocol for subsequent communication with the host device; and

if a request for the OS descriptor is received from the host device, then;

send the OS descriptor to the host device;

detect whether the host device is using, for subsequent communication with the portable device, the base functionality protocol or an enhanced functionality protocol; and

use the enhanced functionality protocol for subsequent communication with the host device if it is detected that the host device is using the enhanced functionality protocol for subsequent communication with the portable device, and otherwise using the base functionality protocol for subsequent communication with the host device.

9. One or more computer readable media as recited in claim 8, wherein to detect whether the host device is using the base functionality protocol or the enhanced functionality protocol is to:

determine whether a command received from the host device is part of the base functionality protocol or the enhanced functionality protocol; and

detect that the host device is using the one of the base functionality protocol and the enhanced functionality protocol that the command is part of.

10. One or more computer readable media as recited in claim 8, wherein to detect whether the host device is using the base functionality protocol or the enhanced functionality protocol is to:

check whether a particular signature, associated with one of the base functionality protocol or the enhanced functionality protocol, is included in a data structure of a command received from the host device; and

if the particular signature is included in the data structure of the command, then detect that the host device is using the one of the base functionality protocol and the enhanced functionality protocol that the particular signature is associated with.

11. One or more computer readable media as recited in claim 8, wherein to detect whether the host device is using the base functionality protocol or the enhanced functionality protocol is to:

check whether a command received from the host device is a protocol identification command, and if so then detect that the host device is using the one of the base functionality protocol and the enhanced functionality protocol that is identified by the protocol identification command.

12. One or more computer readable media as recited in claim 8, wherein the plurality of instructions further cause the one or more processors to determine, if a request for the OS descriptor is not received within a particular time limit, that no request for the OS descriptor is received from the host device.

13. One or more computer readable media as recited in claim 8, wherein the base functionality protocol comprises the Universal Serial Bus (USB) Mass Storage Class—

UFI Command Specification, and wherein the enhanced functionality protocol comprises the Media Transfer Protocol (MTP).

14. One or more computer readable media as recited in claim 8, wherein both the class descriptor and the OS descriptor being sent to the host device indicates to the host device that the portable device supports both the base functionality protocol and the enhanced functionality protocol.

15. A system comprising:

a protocol detection module to detect, based on the content of one or more commands received from a host device, whether the host device is using, for subsequent communication with the system, a base functionality protocol or an enhanced functionality protocol; and

a notification module, coupled to the protocol detector module, to notify a communication module of the system whether the host device is using, for subsequent communication with the system, the base functionality protocol or the enhanced functionality protocol as determined by the protocol detector module.

16. A system as recited in claim 15, wherein the communication module is to communicate with the host device using the base functionality protocol or the enhanced functionality protocol as indicated by the notification module.

17. A system as recited in claim 15, wherein:

the communication module is further to send, to the host device, a class descriptor identifying a class of the system; and

the protocol detection module is to detect that, if no request for an operating system (OS) descriptor is received from the host device, the host device is using the base functionality protocol for subsequent communication with the system.

18. A system as recited in claim 15, wherein the protocol detection module is further to:

determine whether the one or more commands are part of the base functionality protocol or the enhanced functionality protocol; and

detect that the host device is using the one of the base functionality protocol and the enhanced functionality protocol that the one or more commands are part of.

19. A system as recited in claim 15, wherein the protocol detection module is further to:

check whether a particular signature, associated with one of the base functionality protocol or the enhanced functionality protocol, is included in a data structure of the one or more commands; and

if the particular signature is included in the data structure of the one or more commands, then detect that the host device is using the one of the base functionality protocol and the enhanced functionality protocol that the particular signature is associated with.

20. A system as recited in claim 15, wherein to detect whether the host device is using the base functionality protocol or an enhanced functionality protocol is to:

check whether the one or more commands are a protocol identification command, and if so then detect that the host device is using the one of the base functionality protocol and the enhanced functionality protocol that is identified by the protocol identification command.

21. A portable device comprising:

means for detecting, based on the content of a command received from a host device, which one of multiple protocols is being used by the host device for subsequent communication with the portable device; and

means for using, for subsequent communication with the host device, the detected one of the multiple protocols.

22. A portable device as recited in claim 21, further comprising means for sending, to the host device, a class descriptor identifying a class of the portable device, and wherein the means for detecting is further for detecting that, if no request for an operating system descriptor is received from the host device, a particular one of the multiple protocols is being used by the host device for subsequent communication with the portable device.

23. A portable device as recited in claim 21, wherein the multiple protocols comprise a base functionality protocol and an enhanced functionality protocol.

24. One or more computer readable media having stored thereon a plurality of instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device, causes the one or more processors to:

select, based on one or more identifiers received from a portable device, one of a plurality of protocols to use in communicating with the portable device over a Universal Serial Bus (USB) connection; and

send, to the portable device, a protocol identification command identifying the one of the plurality of protocols selected by the device.

25. One or more computer readable media as recited in claim 24, wherein the plurality of protocols includes a base functionality protocol and an enhanced functionality protocol.

26. One or more computer readable media as recited in claim 24, wherein the plurality of instructions further cause the one or more processors to send the protocol identification command only if the selected protocol is an enhanced functionality protocol.