METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ENABLING DEVICE COMMUNICATION AND CONTROL USING XMPP

• US 20120117168A1
• Filed: 05/17/2011
• Published: 05/10/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/09/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Sugiyama, Nobukazu, Nguyen, Andy, Wingo, Lobrenzo, Tang, Jeffrey, Sadja, Aran, Douillet, Ludovic, Nanduri, Srivastava, Liu, Kai, Collins, William
• Granted Patent: US 8,782,150 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5055 considering software capabilities, i.e. software resources associated or available to the machine
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/546 Message passing systems or structures, e.g. queues
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/547 Remote procedure calls [RPC]; Web services

Abstract

A method and device is provided for platform independent device communication by detecting a request at a processor-based device to perform a function, determining an external device corresponding to the request, retrieving a tag for the external device for performing a function corresponding to the request and generating a message implemented in XMPP, having embedded therein the tag, wherein the tag is essential at the external device for performing the function corresponding to the request. Receiving the message at a device, determining whether the message comprises a device message, retrieving a tag included in the message, wherein the tag corresponds to an executable command to perform a function and executing the tag to perform the function.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

detecting a request at a processor-based device to perform a function;

determining an external device corresponding to the request;

retrieving a tag for the external device for performing the function corresponding to the request; and

generating a message implemented in XMPP, having embedded therein the tag, wherein the tag is essential at the external device for performing the function corresponding to the request.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending the message to the external device for performing the function.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the request comprises a user command for performing the function at the external device and wherein the tag comprises a command tag executable by the external device to perform the function.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the request comprises a share content request from a user of the external device and wherein the tag comprises a synchronization time stamp specifying a current location of content for synchronized playback.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

detecting a source device for the share content request;

determining a content currently playing at the source device;

determining a current location within the content currently being played back at the source device; and

wherein the tag comprises a link to the content and the synchronization time stamp specifying the current location of content for synchronized playback.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the tag further comprises the synchronization time stamp specifying the current location of content for synchronized playback.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a presence message from one or more devices, wherein the presence message comprises a current status of the one or more devices.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the current status comprises one or more of a current content being played at the one or more devices, current location of content being played at the one or more devices, operational status of the one or more devices, and a user operating the one or more devices.

9. A device comprising:

a processor configured to perform steps comprising;

detecting a request at a processor-based device to perform a function;

determining an external device corresponding to the request;

retrieving a tag for the external device for performing the function corresponding to the request; and

generating a message implemented in XMPP, having embedded therein the tag, wherein the tag is essential at the external device for performing the function corresponding to the request.

10. The device of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to send the message to the external device for performing the function.

11. The device of claim 10, further comprising a communication interface for establishing a connection to one or more devices comprising the external device, wherein sending the message comprises sending the message over the connection.

12. The device of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to receive a presence message from the one or more devices over the connection, wherein the presence message comprises a current status of the one or more devices.

13. The device of claim 12, further comprising a display configured to display the presence message for each of the one or more devices.

14. The device of claim 9, wherein the request comprises a user command for performing the function at the external device and wherein the tag comprises a command tag executable by the external device to perform the function.

15. The device of claim 9, wherein the request comprises a share content request from a user of the external device and wherein the tag comprises a synchronization time stamp specifying a current location of content for synchronized playback.

16. The device of claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured to perform the steps comprising:

detecting a source device for the share content request;

determining a content currently playing at the source device;

determining a current location within the content currently being played back at the source device; and

wherein the tag comprises a link to the content and the synchronization time stamp specifying the current location of content for synchronized playback.

17. The device of claim 16, wherein the tag further comprises the synchronization time stamp specifying the current location of content for synchronized playback.

18. A tangible non-transitory computer readable medium storing one or more computer readable programs adapted to cause a processor based system to execute steps comprising:

detecting a request at a processor-based device to perform a function;

determining an external device corresponding to the request;

retrieving a tag for the external device for performing the function corresponding to the request; and

generating a message implemented in XMPP, having embedded therein the tag, wherein the tag is essential at the external device for performing the function corresponding to the request.

19. A method comprising:

receiving a message implemented in XMPP;

determining whether the message comprises a device message;

retrieving a tag included in the message, wherein the tag corresponds to an executable command to perform a function when it is determined that the message comprises the device message; and

executing the tag to perform the function.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

retrieving a content associated with the message when it is determined that the message does not comprise the device message; and

providing the content to a user.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the content is appended to the message and received along with the message.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein the content comprises a voice message.

23. The method of claim 20, wherein the content comprises multi-media content.

24. The method of claim 20, wherein the message further comprises a current location tag comprising a current location and wherein providing the content to the user comprises beginning playback of the content at the current location specified by the current location tag.

25. A device comprising:

a processor configured to perform steps comprising;

receiving a message implemented in XMPP;

determining whether the message comprises a device message;

retrieving a tag included in the message, wherein the tag corresponds to an executable command to perform a function when it is determined that the message comprises the device message; and

executing the tag to perform the function.

26. The device of claim 25, further comprising a communication interface for establishing a connection, wherein receiving the message comprises receiving the message over the connection.

27. The device of claim 25, wherein the processor is further configured to send a presence message implemented in XMPP, wherein the message comprises one or more of a current content being played at the device, current location of content being played at the device, operational status of the device, and user operating the device.