METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR TRANSMITTING MESSAGE

• US 20120259932A1
• Filed: 04/04/2012
• Published: 10/11/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/06/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: KANG, Min-kyoung, AHN, Sung-wook, NAMGUNG, Eun, LEE, Jong-ho
• Granted Patent: US 9,015,347 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication

Abstract

A message to be transmitted is converted into an image file. The image file is stored and location information about a location where the image file is stored, is generated. The image file is transmitted to at least one device based on the location information.

Claims

1. A method of transmitting a message by a message transmitting device comprising:

converting a message to be transmitted into an image file;

storing the image file and generating location information about a location where the image file is stored; and

transmitting the image file to at least one device based on the location information.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving the message to be transmitted from an external device.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving the message to be transmitted from a user interface unit.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmitting of the image file to the at least one device comprises:

determining whether the at least one device is capable of receiving the message based on management information of the at least one device;

transmitting the image file to the at least one device based on a technology of sharing contents between devices if the at least one device is not capable of receiving the message; and

transmitting the location information to the at least one device to thereby transmit the image file to the at least one device if the at least one device is capable of receiving the message.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the transmitting the image file to the at least one device comprises:

transmitting the location information and identification information of the at least one device to a gateway; and

transmitting the image file to the gateway when a request for downloading the image file is received from the gateway, based on the location information,

wherein the gateway is connected to the at least one device, and has a function of sharing contents with the at least one device based on the contents sharing technology.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the transmitting the location information to the at least one device comprises:

transmitting the location information to the at least one device; and

transmitting the image file to the at least one device when a request for downloading the image file is received from the at least one device, based on the location information.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising combining a template graphic user interface with an image of the image file.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

generating information for linkage to meta-data of the image file; and

combining the information for linkage to the meta-data with the image of the image file.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the information for linkage to the meta-data comprises at least one of a face image of an object included in the image and a quick response (QR) code.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating information for linkage to meta-data of the image file; and

combining the information for linkage to meta-data with the image of the image file.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the message comprises at least one of a text-based message and a multimedia-based message.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium having recorded thereon a program which, when executed by a processor, causes a message transmitting device to execute a method comprising:

converting a message to be transmitted into an image file;

storing the image file and generating location information about a location where the image file is stored; and

transmitting the image file to at least one device based on the location information.

14. The message transmitting device of claim 12, further comprising a user interface unit into which the message to be transmitted is input.

13. A message transmitting device, comprising:

a storage unit which stores an image file of a message to be transmitted and location information about a location where the image file is stored;

a processor which converts the message to be transmitted into the image file, generates the location information of the image file stored into the storage unit, and controls the storage unit to store the location information into the storage unit; and

a transmitting unit which is controlled by the processor to transmit the image file to at least one device.

15. The message transmitting device of claim 13, further comprising a receiving unit which receives the message to be transmitted from an external device.

16. The message transmitting device of claim 15, wherein the storage unit further stores a management information table of the at least one device, and the processor searches the management information table for the management information of the at least one device to which the message is to be transmitted, determines whether the at least one device to which the message is to be transmitted is capable of receiving the message based on the management information found in the storage unit, and controls transmitting the image file according to a result of a determination.

17. The message transmitting device of claim 16, wherein the processor:

controls the transmitting unit to transmit the location information and identification information of the at least one device, to which the message is to be transmitted, to a gateway through the transmitting unit if the at least one device, to which the message is to be transmitted, is not capable of receiving the message according to the result of the determination, and

controls the transmitting unit to transmit the location information to the at least one device, to which the message is to be transmitted, through the transmitting unit if the at least one device, to which the message is to be transmitted, is capable of receiving the message according to the result of the determination, and

wherein the gateway is connected to the at least one device, and transmits the image file corresponding to the message to the at least one device based on a technology of sharing contents between devices.

18. The message transmitting device of claim 13, wherein the processor combines a template graphic user interface with an image of the image file.

19. The message transmitting device of claim 18, wherein the processor generates information for linkage to meta-data of the image file, and combines the generated information for linkage to the meta-data with the image of the image file.

20. The message transmitting device of claim 19, wherein the information for linkage to the meta-data comprises at least one of a face image of an object included in the image and a quick response (QR) code.

21. A method comprising:

converting a text-based message or a media-based message into a visual message which is an image of a corresponding text-based message or media-based message;

storing an image file containing the image;

generating location information which identifies a location where the image file is stored; and

transmitting the image file to a device based on the location information, in response to a request received from the device.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

in advance, storing management information about the device in a database;

searching the database for the management information of the device, when the request is received; and

locating the management information for the device.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the transmitting the image file comprises:

determining whether the device has an ability to receive the visual message based on the located management information; and

transmitting the image file to the device based on a result of the determining.

24. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

prior to the storing, combining a template graphic user interface with the image representing the corresponding text-based message or media-based message;

obtaining a combined image which represents an image of the template graphic user interface and the image of the corresponding text-based message or media-based message;

storing the combined image in the image file; and

transmitting the image file containing the combined image.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

prior to the transmitting, generating information for linkage to meta-data of the image file;

combining the information for linkage to the meta-data with the combined image; and

transmitting the image file containing the combined image with the linkage to the meta-data.