Software upgrades with centralized preparation

• US 20060271925A1
• Filed: 05/31/2005
• Published: 11/30/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens Healthineers AG (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Strobl, Gerhard, Gartner, Klaus, Schuelein, Horst
• Granted Patent: US 7,770,164 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 717/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44505 Configuring for program initiating, e.g. using registry, configuration files

Abstract

Interactive software applications are upgraded at a remote service center. The software applications are used at customer locations. Each software application may rely upon customer specific data and customer protocols. Periodically, a revised version of a software application becomes available for use. The customer specific data and/or customer protocols that the previous version of the software application implemented at a customer location may be identified at the remote service center. Subsequently, the revised version of the software application may be modified at the remote service center using the customer specific data and/or customer protocols. The modified revised software application may be transferred to the customer location for installation. The customer specific data may pertain to user interface settings of the software application. The customer protocols may pertain to the type of machines on which the software application operates or specific imaging or other modules of the software application.

Claims

1. A method for upgrading software at a remote service center, the method comprising:

receiving customer specific data related to a previous version of a software application from a customer location at a remote service center; and

modifying a revised version of the software application at the remote service center using the customer specific data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the customer specific data is necessary to substantially restore the customized user interface of the previous version of the software application as used at the customer location on a machine running the modified revised version of the software application.

3. The method of claim 1, comprising modifying the revised version of the software application at the remote service center to become compatible with customer protocols related to the previous version of the software application as used at the customer location.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the customer protocols account for the type of machine at the customer location on which the software application operates.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the customer location is a medical facility and the software application assists medical treatment.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the software application displays medical images on a screen located at the customer location and the customer protocols account for the medical imaging modules of the software application.

7. The method of claim 1, comprising reissuing software license agreements at the remote service center.

8. The method of claim 1, comprising transferring the modified revised version of the software application to the customer location.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the modified revised version of the software application is transferred to the customer location via remote connection.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the modified revised version of the software application is transferred to the customer location via storage medium.

11. A method for upgrading software at a remote service center, the method comprising:

receiving customer protocol data identifying customer protocols related to a previous version of a software application from a customer location at a remote service center; and

modifying the customer protocol data to become compatible with a revised version of the software application at the remote service center.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the software application displays medical images on a screen located at the customer location and the customer protocol data accounts for the medical imaging modules of the software application and the type of machine at the customer location on which the software application operates.

13. The method of claim 11, comprising receiving customer specific data related to the previous version of the software application from the customer location at the remote service center and modifying the revised version of the software application at the remote service center using the customer specific data.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the customer specific data is used by the modified revised version of the software application to substantially replicate the customized user interface of the previous version of the software application as used at the customer location.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the modified revised version of the software application is transferred to the customer location via remote connection.

16. The method of claim 11, comprising reissuing software license agreements at the remote service center.

17. A data processing system for upgrading software at a remote service center, the system comprising:

a memory unit located at a remote service center operable to store a revised version of a software application; and

a processing unit located at the remote service center operable to receive customer specific data related to a previous version of the software application from a customer location and store the customer specific data in the memory unit, wherein the processing unit modifies the revised version of the software application using the customer specific data.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the processing unit is operable to modify the revised version of the software application using the customer specific data such that the user interface of the modified revised version of the software application is substantially identical to the customized user interface of the previous version of the software application as used at the customer location.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the processing unit is operable to receive customer protocol data identifying customer protocols related to the previous version of the software application from the customer location at the remote service center and modify the revised version of the software application at the remote service center to become compatible with the customer protocols.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the software application is operable to display medical images on a screen located at the customer location and the customer protocols account for the medical imaging modules of the software application and the type of machine at the customer location on which the software application operates.

21. The system of claim 17, wherein the processing unit is operable to generate an updated software license agreement.

22. The system of claim 17, wherein the processing unit is operable to transfer the modified revised version of the software application to the customer location via remote connection.

23. The system of claim 17, wherein the processing unit at the remote service center is operable to receive customer specific data from a plurality of customer locations and produce a modified revised version of the software application for each set of customer specific data received, each modified revised version of the software application being unique.

24. The system of claim 17, wherein the processing unit at the remote service center is operable to transmit the modified revised version of the software application to the customer location via a network.

25. A computer-readable medium having instructions executable on a computer stored thereon, the instructions comprising:

receiving customer specific data from a customer location related to a customized user interface of a previous version of a software application;

modifying a revised version of the software application using the customer specific data; and

transferring the modified revised version of the software application to the customer location, wherein, when the modified revised version of the software application is run on a machine located at the customer location, the user interface employed by the modified revised version of the software application is substantially identical to the customized user interface of the previous version of the software application.

26. The computer-readable medium of claim 25, the instructions comprising modifying the revised version of the software application to become compatible with customer protocols related to the previous version of the software application.

27. The computer-readable medium of claim 26, wherein the software application displays medical images on a screen located at the customer location and the customer protocols account for the medical imaging modules of the software application and the type of machine at the customer location on which the software application operates.

28. The computer-readable medium of claim 27, wherein the type of machine is a magnetic resonance imaging or a computer tomography device.

29. The computer-readable medium of claim 27, wherein the medical images include angiographic or orthopedic images.