System and Method for Accessing Features Offered by an Application Server

• US 20090006638A1
• Filed: 12/20/2007
• Published: 01/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Allen, Andrew, George, Richard, Oliver, Brian
• Granted Patent: US 8,838,818 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/230
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1104 Session initiation protocol [SIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/053 remote terminal provisioning, e.g. of applets
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42178 by downloading data to substation equipment

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided for accessing additional features offered by an application server. The additional features are generally regarded as being specific to the application server. According to an embodiment of the application, a communications device obtains information for accessing the additional features. The communications device accesses an additional feature by instructing the application server to execute the additional feature according to the information that has been obtained. In specific implementations, the information for accessing the additional features is provided by an Extensible Markup Language ‘XML’ file.

Claims

1. A method in a communications device comprising:

the communications device accessing first features offered by an application server using a communication protocol;

the communications device obtaining information for accessing at least one additional feature offered by the application server for which the communications device was not previously configured to access; and

the communications device accessing an additional feature of the at least one additional feature by instructing the application server to execute the additional feature according to the information that has been obtained;

wherein the information comprises a non-executable editable file that describes how to access the at least one additional feature offered by the application server.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the non-executable editable file is an Extensible Markup Language ‘

XML’

file.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the application server is a media server, the at least one additional feature being at least one additional media feature, the communication protocol being based on SIP.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the application server is a Private Branch exchange ‘

PBX’

, the at least one additional feature being at least one additional Voice over Internet Protocol ‘

VoIP’

-based feature, the communication protocol being based on SIP.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the application server is a web server, the at least one additional feature being at least one additional web service-based feature, the communication protocol being based on a Hypertext Transfer Protocol ‘

HTTP’

.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the communication protocol is any one of a SIP, an HTTP, a SOAP, a Remote Method Invocation ‘

RMI’

, Remote Procedure Call ‘

RPC’

, a Computer Telephony Interface ‘

CTI’

, an ECMA 323, web service protocol, a Media Server Markup Language ‘

MSML’

, a Telephony Application Programming Interface ‘

TAPI’

, and a Java Telephony Application Programming Interface ‘

JTAPI’

.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein obtaining information comprises at least one of:

downloading the information, and automatically receiving the information.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

the communications device receiving user input;

wherein the additional feature is selected from the at least one additional feature based on the user input.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

upon obtaining the information for accessing the at least one additional feature, the communications device displaying a representation for each of the at least one additional feature for facilitating a user to provide the user input.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving additional information for displaying a representation of the at least one additional feature; and

displaying a representation for each of the at least one additional feature according to the additional information.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein displaying the representation for each of the at least one additional feature comprises:

dynamically updating an existing Graphic User Interface ‘

GUI’

so as to display the representation for each of the at least one additional feature.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein the information for accessing the at least one additional feature and the additional information for displaying a representation of the at least one additional feature are received together via an XML file.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the communications device is a mobile device.

14. A computer readable medium having computer executable instructions stored thereon for execution on a processor so as to implement the method of claim 1.

15. A communications device comprising:

a processor; and

a feature accessing function for;

accessing first features offered by an application server using a communication protocol;

obtaining information for accessing at least one additional feature offered by the application server for which the communications device was not previously configured to access; and

accessing an additional feature of the at least one additional feature by instructing the application server to execute the additional feature according to the information that has been obtained;

wherein the information comprises a non-executable editable file that describes how to access the at least one additional feature offered by the application server.

16. The communications device of claim 15 wherein the communications device is a mobile device, the mobile device comprising a wireless access radio.

17. The communications device of claim 15 wherein the information comprises a non-executable editable file that describes how to access the at least one additional feature offered by the application server.

18. The communications device of claim 17 wherein the non-executable editable file is an Extensible Markup Language (XML) file.

19. The communications device of claim 15 wherein the communication protocol is based on SIP.