DISTRIBUTED IMAGE ACQUISITION, STORAGE, AND BACKUP SYSTEM

• US 20130019073A1
• Filed: 07/14/2011
• Published: 01/17/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/14/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Monument Peak Ventures, LLC (Dominion Harbor Enterprises, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Intellectual Ventures Fund 83 LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Cok, Ronald Steven
• Granted Patent: US 8,713,269 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/162
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1456 Hardware arrangements for backup

Abstract

A distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system includes a digital camera and a plurality of functionally identical independent storage devices storing digital images. Each digital image is stored as a working copy and a corresponding backup copy on a storage device different from the storage device storing the working copy. One or more storage devices store both a working copy of a first digital image and a backup copy of a second digital image different from the first digital image. Each storage device automatically sends a working copy or backup copy to another of the plurality of storage devices, automatically receives a working copy or backup copy from another of the plurality of storage devices, and automatically stores a received working copy or backup copy.

Claims

1. A distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system, comprising:

a digital camera that acquires digital images and transmits digital images;

a plurality of functionally identical independent storage devices, each storage device receiving digital images from the digital camera and storing digital images, wherein each digital image is stored as a working copy on a storage device and is stored as a corresponding backup copy on a storage device different from the storage device storing the working copy, and one or more storage devices storing both a working copy of a first digital image and a backup copy of a second digital image different from the first digital image;

each storage device automatically sending a working copy or backup copy to another of the plurality of storage devices, automatically receiving a working copy or backup copy from another of the plurality of storage devices, and automatically storing a received working copy or backup copy;

means for causing the digital camera to transmit a digital image to a first storage device;

means for storing the transmitted digital image as a working copy in the first storage device and a backup copy of the working copy in a second storage device different from the first storage device; and

means for storing a working copy of the transmitted digital image in a second storage device different from the first storage device and a backup copy of the working copy in a storage device different from the second storage device.

2. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 1, wherein one or more of the storage devices form a single, logical storage repository.

3. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 1, wherein the system includes only three storage devices or includes an odd number of storage devices.

4. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 1, further including a network connected to the storage devices, and means for independently accessing each of the storage devices through the network.

5. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 1, wherein the digital camera or a storage device includes means for requesting a working copy from another storage device and wherein the other storage device includes means for retrieving and transmitting the working copy of digital images to the digital camera or to the requesting storage device.

6. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 5, wherein the digital camera includes means for requesting and receiving a working copy from a storage device, the storage device including means for determining the absence of the working copy in the storage device, and requesting the working copy from another storage device, receiving the requested working copy from the another storage device, and transmitting the received working copy to the digital camera.

7. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 1, wherein at least one storage device stores a unique combination of working and backup copies.

8. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 1, wherein a backup copy is stored in a different format from a corresponding working copy.

9. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 8, wherein a backup copy is more compressed than a corresponding working copy.

10. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 8, wherein a working copy is accessible faster than a corresponding backup copy.

11. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 1, further including means to reconstitute and store on one or more other storage devices the stored contents of a single damaged storage device.

12. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 1, wherein each storage device is on a common local network and stores information about other storage devices on the common local network or stores information about the working or backup copies stored on other storage devices on the common local network.

13. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 1, wherein each storage device is on a common local network and does not include information about all of the other storage devices on the common local network or does not include information about all of the other working or backup copies stored on the other storage devices on the common local network.

14. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 1, wherein the storage devices are grouped into two or more storage groups, the storage devices in each storage group forming a single logical storage repository separate from the single logical storage repository of any other storage group.

15. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 14, wherein at least one storage device is a member of two or more storage groups.

16. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 1, wherein a storage device includes means to transfer a working copy or backup copy from the storage device to another storage device and the other storage device includes means to receive and store the working copy or backup copy.

17. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 1, wherein a storage device includes means to make a working copy from a backup copy on the storage device and to transfer the working copy to another storage device that includes means to receive and store the working copy.

18. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 1, wherein a storage device includes means to make a backup copy from a working copy on the storage device and includes means to transfer the backup copy to another storage device that includes means to receive and store the backup copy.

19. The distributed image acquisition, storage, and backup system of claim 1, wherein a backup copy is made in the storage device in which the backup copy is stored.

20. The distributed image acquisition, storage and backup system of claim 1, wherein the digital camera physically connects to a storage device to transmit digital images from the digital camera to the storage device.