COMMUNICATION NETWORK FOR TRANSFERRING INFORMATION BETWEEN A MOBILE TERMINAL AND SOURCE SERVERS, AND TERMINAL AND METHOD FOR MANAGING THE TRANSFER OF INFORMATION IN SUCH A NETWORK

• US 20090176498A1
• Filed: 03/31/2008
• Published: 07/09/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 01/08/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Synchronoss Technologies France
• Original Assignee: Synchronoss Technologies France
• Inventors: COLON, Francois
• Granted Patent: US 8,315,611 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/445
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/95 Retrieval from the web
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/567 Integrating service provisioning from a plurality of service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/18 Multiprotocol handlers, e.g. single devices capable of handling multiple protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/4509 Unified messaging with single point of access to voicemail and other mail or messaging systems unified messaging in packet switching networks H04L51/56

Abstract

The invention aims to reduce the number of computer applications to be integrated in a mobile terminal in order to implement the functionalities offered to a user: IM, MAIL, BLOG, etc.

The invention also aims to simplify the communication networks, the exchanges between mobile terminals and source servers, and also the management of formats.

A communication network comprises at least one mobile terminal (TM) designed to receive information in a target format, and source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4) designed to deliver information in source formats. According to the invention, an intermediate server (SPV), which is independent of the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4), is arranged between the mobile terminal (TM) and said source servers so that the information destined for said mobile terminal passes via the intermediate server. The intermediate server (SPV) is designed to receive information in the source formats from the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4). The intermediate server (SPV) is designed to convert to the target format the information received in the source formats, and the intermediate server (SPV) is designed to transmit to the mobile terminal (TM) the information in the target format.

Claims

1-25. -25. (canceled)

26. A communication network for transferring information between a mobile terminal and a plurality of source servers, comprising:

at least one mobile terminal (TM) designed to receive information in a target format,

source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4) designed to deliver information in source formats,

wherein;

an intermediate server (SPV), which is independent of the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4), is arranged between the mobile terminal (TM) and said source servers so that the information destined for said mobile terminal goes through said intermediate server,

the intermediate server (SPV) is designed to receive information in the source formats from the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4),

the intermediate server (SPV) is designed to convert to the target format the information received in the source formats, and

the intermediate server (SPV) is designed to transmit the information in the target format to the mobile terminal (TM).

27. Network according to claim 26, wherein:

the mobile terminal (TM) is designed to transmit initial requests to the intermediate server (SPV) which allows to receive information available in the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4), said initial requests being in the target format, and

the intermediate server (SPV) is designed to;

analyse the initial requests received and identify the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4) in which the requested information is available, and

transmit relay requests to the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4) in order to receive the requested information, said relay requests being transmitted in source formats compatible with said source servers.

28. The network of claim 26, wherein:

the mobile terminal (TM) is designed to transmit initial requests which allow to receive information available in the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4), said initial requests being in the target format,

the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4) are designed to process directly the initial requests in the target format transmitted by the mobile terminal (TM), and

the intermediate server (SPV) is designed to intercept said initial requests and to redirect them as such to said source servers.

29. The network of claim 26, wherein the mobile terminal (TM) integrates a computer application for instant messaging, the target format being a format used for instant messaging, all the information and requests exchanged between said mobile terminal and the intermediate server (SPV) going only through one information channel (Ci1) used for instant messaging.

30. The network of claim 29, wherein all the information and requests exchanged between the mobile terminal (TM) and the intermediate server (SPV) are in HTML format.

31. The network of claim 29 or 30, wherein:

the mobile terminal (TM) is designed to transmit initial requests to the intermediate server (SPV) which allows to receive information available in the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4), said initial requests being in the target format, and

the intermediate server (SPV) is designed to;

analyze the initial requests received and identify the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4) in which the requested information is available, and

transmit relay requests to the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4) in order to receive the requested information, said relay requests being transmitted in source formats compatible with said source servers; and

wherein the mobile terminal (TM) is designed to display on its screen the initial requests as contacts in the list of instant messaging contacts.

32. The network of claim 29 or 30, wherein:

the mobile terminal (TM) is designed to transmit initial requests which allow to receive information available in the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4), said initial requests being in the target format,

the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4) are designed to process directly the initial requests in the target format transmitted by the mobile terminal (TM), and

the intermediate server (SPV) is designed to intercept said initial requests and to redirect them as such to said source servers; and

wherein the mobile terminal (TM) is designed to display on its screen the initial requests as contacts in the list of instant messaging contacts.

33. The network of claim 31, wherein the initial requests displayed on the screen of the mobile terminal (TM) are associated with predefined text messages, the intermediate server (SPV) comprising a memory zone in which these text messages are associated with the relay requests designed to be transmitted to the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4) in order to receive the requested information.

34. The network of claim 33, wherein the intermediate server (SPV) is designed to store in its memory the chronology of the different initial requests transmitted by the mobile terminal (TM) so that one and the same text message can be associated with different relay requests according to the point in time at which said initial requests are transmitted by said mobile terminal.

35. The network of claim 26, wherein the intermediate server (SPV) is designed to transmit to the mobile terminal (TM), at the same time as the requested information, a list of initial requests which is designed to be displayed in the form of text messages on the screen of said mobile terminal.

36. The network of claim 26, wherein:

the mobile terminal (TM) is designed to transmit an initial presence request to the intermediate server (SPV), said initial presence request containing identification information of the user of said terminal, and

the intermediate server (SPV) is designed to analyse the identification information of the user and, after verification, to authorise the connection to the mobile terminal (TM) and to allocate a memory space in which it will store a copy of the information and requests that will circulate.

37. The network of claim 26, wherein:

the intermediate server (SPV) is designed to transmit relay presence requests to the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4), said relay presence requests being in a source format associated with the source servers and containing identification information of the user of the mobile terminal (TM), and

the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4) are designed to analyse the identification information of the user and, after verification, to authorise the connection to the intermediate server (SPV).

38. The network of claim 37, wherein:

the mobile terminal (TM) is designed to transmit an initial presence request to the intermediate server (SPV), said initial presence request containing identification information of the user of said terminal, and

the intermediate server (SPV) is designed to analyze the identification information of the user and, after verification, to authorise the connection to the mobile terminal (TM) and to allocate a memory space in which it will store a copy of the information and requests that will circulate; and

wherein the relay presence requests transmitted by the intermediate server (SPV) are similar to the initial presence request transmitted by the mobile terminal (TM) so that said intermediate server is perceived by the source servers (SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4) as being said mobile terminal.

52. A mobile terminal equipped with a screen and integrating a computer application for instant messaging, this terminal being designed to exchange information with a plurality of source servers in the communication network of claim 26, wherein the mobile terminal is designed to display requests on its screen as contacts in its list of instant messaging contacts, said requests being associated with predefined text messages.