METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR REAL-TIME SYNCHRONIZATION ACROSS A DISTRIBUTED SERVICES COMMUNICATION NETWORK

• US 20090168760A1
• Filed: 10/17/2008
• Published: 07/02/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Voxer IP LLC (Voxer, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rebelvox LLC (Voxer, Inc.)
• Inventors: RANNEY, Matthew J., PANTTAJA, James T., PANTTAJA, Mary G., KATIS, Thomas E.
• Granted Patent: US 8,099,512 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1831 Tracking arrangements for later retrieval, e.g. recording contents, participants activities or behavior, network status
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/224 providing notification on incoming messages, e.g. pushed notifications of received messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1083 In-session procedures
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1094 Inter-user-equipment sessions transfer or sharing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4015 where at least one of the additional parallel sessions is real time or time sensitive, e.g. white board sharing, collaboration or spawning of a subconference
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/752 adapting media to network capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/764 at the destination reformatting of additional data in video clients H04N21/4355

Abstract

A method for progressively synchronizing stored copies of indexed media transmitted between nodes on a network. The method includes progressively transmitting available indexed media from a sending node to a receiving node with a packet size and packetization interval sufficient to enable the near real-time rendering of the indexed media, wherein the near real-time rendering of the indexed media provides a recipient with an experience of reviewing the transmitted media live. At the receiving node, the transmitted indexed media is progressively receive and any indexed media that is not already locally stored at the receiving node is noted. The receiving node further continually generates and transmits to the sending node requests as needed for the noted indexed media. In response, the sending node transmits the noted indexed media to the receiving node. Both the sending node and the receiving node store the indexed media. As a result, both the sending node and the receiving node each have synchronized copies of the indexed media.

Claims

1. A method for progressively synchronizing stored copies of media transmitted between nodes on a network, comprising:

(a) progressively transmitting available media from a sending node to a receiving node with a packet size and packetization interval sufficient to enable the near real-time rendering of the media, wherein the near real-time rendering of the media provides a recipient with an experience of reviewing the transmitted media live;

(b) progressively receiving the transmitted media at the receiving node;

(c) continually noting any media that is not already locally stored at the receiving node as the media is progressively received;

(d) continually generating requests as needed for any noted media that is not already locally stored at the receiving node;

(e) transmitting the noted media from the sending node to the receiving node in response to the requests; and

(f) storing at the sending node and the receiving node the media so that the sending node and the receiving node each have complete synchronized copies of the media.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising notifying the receiving node of the media available for transmission.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the notification occurs either (i) prior to or (ii) substantially concurrent with the transmission.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein notifying the receiving node of the availability of the media available for transmission further comprises one of the following:

(i) transmitting the available media from the sending node to the receiving node, whereby the notification occurs by virtue of the transmission;

(ii) when the sending node logs onto the network;

(iii) each time the sending node sends media to the receiving node;

(iv) the sending node periodically notifies the receiving node;

(v) the receiving node periodically asks the sending node for the status of media to be transmitted from the sending node to the receiving node;

(vi) the sending node sends to the receiving node a synchronization update message;

or

(vii) any combination of (i) through (vi).

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

creating media at the sending node;

progressively encoding the created media at the sending node as the media is being created;

indexing the encoded media in an indexed format;

progressively storing the encoded media at the sending node in the indexed format as the media is progressively transmitted to the receiving node.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising progressively rendering the media at the receiving node in a near real-time rendering mode as the media is progressively received.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing the received media in the format at the receiving node.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising rendering the media at the receiving node at an arbitrary time defined by a user at the receiving node by rendering the media from storage.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the sending node comprises a communication device, the communication device consisting of one of the following:

land-line phone, wireless phone, cellular phone, satellite phone, computer, radio, server, satellite radio, tactical radio or tactical phone.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving node comprises a communication device, the communication device consisting of one of the following:

land-line phone, wireless phone, cellular phone, satellite phone, computer, radio, server, satellite radio, tactical radio or tactical phone.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein sending node is a server on the network, the server being a hop on the network between a node where the media was originated and the recipient.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving node is a server on the network, the server being a hop on the network between a node where the media was originated and the recipient.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving node and the sending node are first and second servers on the network respectively.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein either the sending node or the receiving node is a server on the network.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the server on the network is an access server that provides an access point for one or more users to connect to the network.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the server on the network is a home server for one or more users, the home server storing the media associated with the one or more users respectively.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the server is a gateway server that straddles the network and a second network, the gateway server performing one or more of the following functions when routing traffic between the network and the second network:

mapping, trans-coding, re-encapsulation, and/or security.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the server is a gateway client server that acts as an intermediary for a communication device connected to the network but unable to store the media, the gateway client server storing the media on behalf of the communication device.

19. The method of claim 14, further comprising a directory server, the directory server maintaining a directory of the access and home servers for each user of the network.

20. The method of claim 14, wherein the server performs as one of the following:

(i) an access server that provides an access point for one or more users to connect to the network;

(ii) a home server for one or more users, the home server storing the media associated with the one or more users respectively;

(iii) a gateway server that straddles the network and a second network, the gateway server performing one or more of the following functions when routing traffic between the network and the second network;

mapping, trans-coding, re-encapsulation, and/or security;

(iv) a gateway client server that acts as an intermediary for a communication device connected to the network but unable to store the media, the gateway client server storing the media on behalf of the communication device;

(v) a directory server for maintaining a directory of the access and home servers for each user of the network;

or

(vi) any combination of (i) through (v).

21. The method of claim 1, wherein progressively transmitting the available media from the sending node to the receiving node further comprises:

(i) defining a transmission loop;

(ii) determining the media available for transmission during the defined transmission loop;

(iii) ascertaining the bandwidth on the network between the sending node and the receiving node during the transmission loop;

(v) comparing the ascertained bandwidth on the network with the bandwidth necessary to transmit the available media; and

(vi) transmitting the available media if the ascertained bandwidth is sufficient during the transmission loop.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

(vii) determining if the ascertained bandwidth is not sufficient for transmitting the available media during the transmission loop;

(viii) generating a reduced bit rate representation of the available media; and

(iix) transmitting the reduced bit rate representation of the available media when the available bandwidth on the network is not sufficient during the transmission loop, whereby the transmission of the reduced bit rate representation of the media enhances the timeliness of the delivery of the media so as to increase the ability of the recipient to review the media upon receipt when the available bandwidth on the network is not sufficient.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein generating the reduced bit rate representation of the available media further comprises performing one or more of the following:

(a) using fewer bits per media unit of time when packetizing the reduced bit rate representation of the media relative to a full bit rate representation of the media as originally encoded;

(b) adjusting the packetization interval for packets used to packetized the reduced bit rate representation of the media;

(c) adjusting the rate of transmission of the packets used to packetized the reduced bit rate representation of the media;

or

(d) any combination of (a) through (c).

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising continually defining transmission loops and performing (i) through (iix) and (a) through (c) as needed for each transmission loop.

25. The method of claim 1, wherein continually noting any media that is not already locally stored at the receiving node as the media is progressively received further comprises:

checking the media received at the receiving node from the sending node;

noting missing, corrupted or reduced bit rate representations of the media as the media is received at the receiving node;

maintaining a data quality store at the receiving node for the noted media; and

removing the noted media from the data quality store as the noted media is received at the receiving node.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein continually generating requests as needed for any noted media that is not already locally stored at the receiving node further comprises:

continually scanning the data quality store;

continually generating receipt reports, the receipt reports including requests for retransmission of the media noted in the data quality store; and

continually transmitting the receipt reports from the receiving node to the sending node.

27. The method claim 1, wherein the media further comprises one or more of the following types of media:

voice, video, text, sensor data, position or GPS information, radio signals, or a combination thereof.

28. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

ascertaining one or more hops on the network for delivering the media from a first node to the one or more recipient nodes, wherein each of the one or more hops is defined by a sending-receiving pair of nodes on the network; and

performing (a) through (e) between the sending-receiving pair of nodes defined by the one or more ascertained hops so that each of the one or more sending nodes and receiving nodes each has synchronized copies of the media.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the individual sending node and receiving node of each of the one or more sending-receiving pairs consists of:

a communication device configured generate the media, a communication device configured to render the media;

or a server on the network.

30. The method of claim 1, wherein the media is indexed using one of the following indexing schemes:

(i) time-based indexing;

(ii) bit or byte based indexing;

(iii) hashing type indexing;

(iv) binary-tree type indexing;

(v) file directory based indexing;

or

(vi) any combination of (i) through (v).