Home networking resource management

• US 20060150244A1
• Filed: 01/05/2005
• Published: 07/06/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SBC Knowledge Ventures LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: SBC Knowledge Ventures LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Klein, Adam Lee, Fisher, Jamie, Grantges, James Bert, Dallessandro, Lona Noelle, Cansler, James L. Jr.
• Granted Patent: US 7,603,494 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/281 indicating a format for calling an appliance service function in a home automation network for remote control or remote monitoring of applications H04L67/025
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/025 for remote control or remote monitoring of applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services

Abstract

In a particular embodiment, the disclosure is directed to a method of configuring a computer coupled to a residential gateway. The method includes executing resource sharing software on the computer, receiving a message from the residential gateway requesting identification of available resources of the computer, and sending a response message to the residential gateway. The response message identifies a set of available resources of the computer. The method further includes receiving access settings corresponding to each of the set of available resources and configuring the computer to provide access to each of the set of available resources in accordance with the access settings.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

displaying a list of configurable devices accessible to a residential gateway;

selecting a device from the list of configurable devices;

sending a request message to view available resources, the request message sent from the residential gateway to the selected device;

receiving a response message at the residential gateway from the selected device, the response message identifying a set of available resources of the selected device;

identifying sharing properties with respect to the selected device and the other configurable devices for each of the set of available resources of the selected device; and

sending a message identifying the sharing properties from the residential gateway to the selected device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the selected device is configured to share the set of available resources based on the sharing properties.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the list of configurable devices is displayed on a web-based interface to the residential gateway.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein a first of the configurable devices is a set top box and a second of the configurable devices is a personal computer.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the set top box is coupled to the residential gateway over a local area network and the personal computer is coupled to the residential gateway over the local area network.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the residential gateway has an interface to a public computer network.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the residential gateway is coupled to the Internet via an internet service provider.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein a third of the configurable devices is a laptop computer.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the selected device is the personal computer and wherein a first group of the available resources are assigned a global sharing property that allows sharing to the set top box and to the laptop computer and wherein a second group of the available resources has a restricted sharing property.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the restricted sharing property does not permit any sharing.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of available resources includes files and peripheral devices.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the peripheral devices are selected from the group of a printer, a scanner, and a USB device.

13. A method of configuring a computer coupled to a residential gateway, the method comprising:

executing resource sharing software on the computer;

receiving a message from the residential gateway requesting identification of available resources of the computer;

sending a response message to the residential gateway, the response message identifying a set of available resources of the computer;

receiving access settings corresponding to each of the set of available resources; and

configuring the computer to provide access to each of the set of available resources in accordance with the access settings.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising installing the resource sharing software on the computer prior to executing the resource sharing software.

15. The method of claim 13 wherein the access settings indicate that global access is to provided to a set of files and wherein the set of files are sharable with a set top box coupled to the computer.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein an operating system on the computer is configured to manage sharing of the set of available resources in accordance with the access settings.

17. A residential gateway comprising:

a first interface to a first configurable device;

a second interface to a second configurable device;

a network interface to an external network;

a processor responsive to the first interface, the second interface and to the network interface, the processor includes user interface logic to;

communicate a list of accessible configurable devices, the list of accessible configurable devices including the first configurable device and the second configurable device; and

select a device from the list of configurable devices, wherein the selected device is the first configurable device; and

wherein the processor further includes communication logic to;

send a request message for available resources over the first interface to the first configurable device;

receive a response message from the first configurable device, the response message identifying a set of available resources of the first configurable device; and

send a message identifying sharing properties assigned to each of the set of available resources, the sharing properties sent to the first configurable device.

18. The residential gateway of claim 17, wherein the sharing properties identify sharing of access between the first configurable device and at least the second configurable device.

19. The residential gateway of claim 18, wherein the first configurable device is a computer and the second configurable device is a set top box.

20. The residential gateway of claim 17, wherein the first configurable device is a trusted device on a local network coupling the first interface to the first configurable device and wherein the second configurable device is a trusted device on the local network further coupling the second interface to the second configurable device.

21. The residential gateway of claim 20, wherein the first configurable device is physically connected to the first interface and the second configurable device is physically connected to the second interface.

22. The residential gateway of claim 20, wherein the first configurable device is coupled to the first interface over a secure wireless connection.

23. The residential gateway of claim 17, wherein the communication logic includes authentication logic to authenticate communications between the first interface and the first configurable device.

24. The residential gateway of claim 23, wherein the authentication logic authenticates communications between the second interface and the second configurable device.