COMMUNICATION METHOD AND APPARATUS USING HYPERTEXT TRANSFER PROTOCOL

• US 20080256254A1
• Filed: 12/31/2007
• Published: 10/16/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Choi, Sang-hoon, Cho, Joon-ho, KIM, Yoon-soo
• Granted Patent: US 8,078,744 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/231
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/65 Network streaming protocols, e.g. real-time transport protocol [RTP] or real-time control protocol [RTCP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/70 Media network packetisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/142 Managing session states for stateless protocols; Signalling session states; State transitions; Keeping-state mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2381 Adapting the multiplex stream to a specific network, e.g. an Internet Protocol [IP] network transmission of MPEG streams over ATM H04L12/5601
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/643 Communication protocols network streaming protocols, e.g. real-time transport protocol [RTP] or real-time control protocol [RTCP], H04L65/65
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64322 IP

Abstract

A communication method for implementing a real-time streaming using hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) in a network is provided. Chunked encoding of HTTP is applied so that information can be exchanged between a server and a client while an HTTP request is being progressed. Therefore, bidirectional communication between the client and the server using HTTP is possible without modifying an existing HTTP protocol, and real-time transmission can be implemented.

Claims

1. A communication method using hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), the method comprising:

setting a streaming connection and a control connection between a client and a server;

transmitting an HTTP streaming request from the client to the server;

at the server, constructing a chunked encoding for the HTTP streaming request, and transmitting a first chunk response to the client through the streaming connection, wherein the first chunk response comprises the chunked encoding,; and

transmitting a second chunk response from the server to the client through the streaming connection, wherein the second chunk response comprises a notification of the server.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting, from the server, a third chunk response to the client through the streaming connection;

wherein the third chunk response comprises a query of a state of the client.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

transmitting an HTTP post request from the client to the server through the control connection;

wherein the HTTP post request comprises a response to the query of the state of the client; and

transmitting a dummy HTTP response from the server to the client through the control connection, in response to the HTTP post request.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting an HTTP post request from the client to the server through the control connection;

wherein the HTTP post request comprises a control request; and

transmitting a dummy HTTP response from the server to the client through the control connection, in response to the HTTP post response.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising transmitting, from the server, a fourth chunk response to the client through the streaming connection;

wherein the fourth chunk response comprises a response to the control request.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein, when the first or second chunk response is transmitted, timestamping is performed on each of the chunks using chunk-extension.

18. A computer-readable medium having embodied thereon a computer program for performing the method of claim 1.

7. A communication method using hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), the method comprising:

at a control handler, receiving session information from a session manager, converting the session information into a chunk-extension message, and transmitting, from the control handler, the chunk-extension message to an HTTP scheduler;

at the HTTP scheduler, checking whether chunk transmission to an HTTP client is being performed, and if the chunk transmission is being performed, buffering the chunk-extension message until the next chunk is transmitted;

at the HTTP scheduler, generating chunk data by multiplexing multimedia content received from a streaming server and the chunk-extension message, and transmitting the chunk data to an HTTP server; and

at the HTTP server, transmitting the chunk data to the HTTP client through a streaming connection.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the session information comprises a session change notification message, a session control request message from the HTTP server to the HTTP client, and a control response message for a session control request from the HTTP client to the HTTP server.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the chunk-extension message comprises a session identification.

10. A communication method using hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), the method comprising:

at a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) client, receiving chunk data from an HTTP server through a streaming connection and transmitting the chunk data to an HTTP dispatcher, wherein the chunk data is obtained by multiplexing multimedia content and a chunk-extension message;

at an HTTP dispatcher, demultiplexing the chunk data into the multimedia content and the chunk-extension message, transmitting the chunk-extension message to a control handler, and transmitting the multimedia content to a streaming client; and

at the control handler, converting the chunk-extension message into session information and transmitting the session information to a session synthesizer.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the session information comprises a session change notification message from the HTTP server to the HTTP client, a session control request message from the HTTP server to the HTTP client, and a control response message for a session control request from the HTTP client to the HTTP server.

12. A communication method using hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), the method comprising:

at a control handler, receiving a session control request from a session synthesizer, converting the session control request into an HTTP control request, and transmitting the HTTP control request to an HTTP dispatcher;

at the HTTP dispatcher, constructing an HTTP request by adding an HTTP header to the HTTP control request and transmitting the HTTP request to an HTTP client which manages a control connection; and

transmitting the HTTP request from the HTTP client to an HTTP server through the control connection.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the HTTP control request comprises a session identification and sequence information.

14. A communication method using hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), the method comprising:

(a) at an HTTP server, receiving an HTTP request from an HTTP client through a control connection and transmitting the HTTP request to an HTTP scheduler;

(b) at the HTTP scheduler, analyzing the HTTP request, and based on a result of the analyzing, extracting a control request excluding an HTTP header from the HTTP request, and transmitting the control request to a control handler; and

(c) at the control handler, converting the control request to a session control message and retrieving and calling callback, of a session manager, corresponding to the session control message.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein (b) further comprises:

at the HTTP scheduler, constructing a dummy HTTP response to the HTTP request and transmitting the HTTP response to the HTTP server; and

at the HTTP server, transmitting the dummy HTTP response to the HTTP client through the control connection.

16. A communication method using hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), the method comprising:

(a) at a control handler of a client, receiving a session control response from a session synthesizer, converting the session control response into an HTTP message, and transmitting the HTTP message to an HTTP dispatcher;

(b) at the HTTP dispatcher, generating an HTTP request by adding an HTTP header to the HTTP message, selecting an HTTP client which manages a control connection, and transmitting the HTTP request to the HTTP client;

(c) at the HTTP client, transmitting the HTTP request through the control connection to an HTTP server, and the HTTP server transmitting the HTTP request to an HTTP scheduler; and

(d) at the HTTP scheduler, analyzing the HTTP request, and based on a result of the analyzing, extracting the session control response from the HTTP request, and transmitting the extracted session control response to a control handler of a server.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein (d) further comprises:

at the HTTP scheduler, constructing a dummy HTTP response to the HTTP request and transmitting the dummy HTTP response to the HTTP server;

at the HTTP server, transmitting the HTTP response to the HTTP client through the control connection;

at the HTTP client, transmitting the dummy HTTP response to the HTTP dispatcher; and

at the HTTP dispatcher, analyzing the dummy HTTP response, and if the dummy HTTP response is detected, dropping the dummy HTTP response.

19. A communication apparatus using hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), the apparatus comprising:

a client which is connected with a server through a streaming connection and a control connection;

wherein the client requests an HTTP streaming request through the streaming connection and transmits an HTTP post request to the server through the control connection, and

wherein the HTTP post request includes a control request and a response to a query of a state of the client from the server to the client.

20. A communication apparatus using hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), the apparatus comprising:

a server which is connected with a client through a streaming connection and a control connection;

wherein the server receives an HTTP streaming request from the client through the streaming connection, constructs chunked encoding for the HTTP streaming request and transmits a first chunk response to the client through the streaming connection, and transmits a second chunk response to the client through the streaming connection;

wherein the first chunk response comprises the chunked encoding, and the second chunk response comprises a notification of the server.

21. The communication apparatus of claim 20, wherein the server transmits a third chunk response to the client through the streaming connection, and

wherein the third chunk response comprises a query of a state of the client.

22. The communication apparatus of claim 21, wherein the server transmits a dummy HTTP response to an HTTP post request to the client through the control connection, and

wherein the HTTP post request comprises a response to the query of a state of the client or a control request from the client.

23. The communication apparatus of claim 20, wherein the server transmits the fourth chunk response to the client through the streaming connection, and

wherein the fourth chunk response comprises a response to the control request from the client in a fourth chunk response and.