Cooperative Web Browsing Using Multiple Devices

• US 20140053054A1
• Filed: 08/14/2012
• Published: 02/20/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/14/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Shen, Huifeng, Li, Shipeng, Lu, Yan, Pan, Zhaotai, Wang, Jianfeng
• Granted Patent: US 9,721,036 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/234
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents

Abstract

A proxy-based thin-client web browsing framework enables cooperative web browsing of multiple devices. The multiple devices may include devices that are not intended for web browsing and have limited or no web browsers and/or user input capabilities. The proxy-based thin client web browsing framework employs a virtual browser at a proxy server to perform all browser-engine logics, and retrieve, render and encode web pages on behalf of the multiple devices. The multiple devices therefore only need to have limited decoding and display capabilities to perform web browsing. The proxy-based thin client web browsing framework further includes a touch controller as a remote controller for a device that has no or limited user texting or manipulating capabilities.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

one or more processors;

memory communicatively coupled to the one or more processors;

a proxy server stored in the memory and executable by the one or more processors that is configured to;

receive a browsing request from a first device of a plurality of devices of a user to browse a website,

obtain content associated with the website for the user in response to receiving the browsing request from the first device,

parse and render the obtained content associated with the website on behalf of the plurality of devices of the user, and

selectively provide portions of the rendered content associated with the website to the plurality of devices for consumption by the user.

2. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the proxy server is not affiliated with or part of the website.

3. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the obtained content comprises video content, image content, audio content and/or textual content, and the proxy server is further configured to separate the obtained content associated with the website based on respective types of the obtained content.

4. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the proxy server is further configured to detect or obtain information of capabilities of the plurality of devices of the user, and wherein the proxy server selectively provides the portions of the rendered content associated with the website to the plurality of devices based on respective capabilities of the plurality of devices.

5. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the capabilities of the plurality of devices comprise display resolution, audio quality, data input function and/or processing power.

6. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the proxy server provides different subsets of the rendered content associated with the website to different devices of the plurality of devices.

7. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the plurality of devices comprises a computer, a tablet, a phone and/or a television.

8. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the proxy server is further configured to transfer a browsing session of a second device of the plurality of devices to a third device of the plurality of devices automatically in response to detecting a presence of the third device in a neighborhood of the second device and determining that the third device has a better capability of serving a type of content that is currently provided to the second device by the proxy server in comparison with the second device.

9. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the proxy server is further configured to transfer a browsing session of a second device of the plurality of devices to a third device of the plurality of devices in response to receiving a transfer request by the user, the transfer request comprising:

a move request that prompts the proxy server to move the browsing session of the second device to the third device,

a copy request that prompts the proxy server to copy the browsing session of the second device to the third device, or

a switch request that prompts the proxy server to switch the browsing session of the second device with a browsing session of the third device.

10. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the proxy server is further configured to perform scalable screen encoding to support multiple decodable spatial regions and temporal frame rates in a single stream, and send the single stream to the plurality of devices of the user.

11. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the proxy server is further configured to provide a framework for controlling browsing experience of the website associated with one device of the plurality of devices through another device of the plurality of devices.

12. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the proxy server is further configured to create an instance of a virtual browser in the proxy server for rendering content of a web page to be displayed in each of the plurality of devices of the user.

13. A method comprising:

under control of one or more processors configured with executable instructions;

displaying, at a first device, a portion less than all of a web page currently displayed at a second device that is incapable of manipulating the web page; and

receiving, in the first device, a manipulation gesture from a user to manipulate the portion of the web page that is displayed at the first device; and

in response to receiving the manipulation gesture from the user, sending information associated with the manipulation gesture to a proxy server to cause updating of the web page that is currently displayed at the second device, the proxy server configured to selectively serve data of the web page to the first device and the second device.

14. The method as recited in claim 13, wherein the portion of the web page that is displayed in the first device comprises a control or link associated with the web page, and wherein the manipulation gesture comprises actuating the control or link associated with the web page.

15. The method as recited in claim 13, further comprising receiving, at the first device, an input gesture of the user to alter the portion of the web page displayed in the first device without causing a change to the web page currently displayed in the second device.

16. The method as recited in claim 15, wherein the input gesture comprises a move gesture that prompts the first device to display another portion of the web page in the first device.

17. The method as recited in claim 15, wherein the input gesture comprises a zoom-in gesture that prompts the first device to zoom in the portion of the web page that is displayed in the first device.

18. One or more computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, configure the one or more processors to perform acts comprising:

receiving, at a proxy server, a request to transfer a browsing session of a first device to a second device;

in response to receiving the request, redirecting a connection of an instance of a virtual browser associated with the browsing session of the first device at the proxy server from the first device to the second device; and

selectively serving new content of the browsing session to the second device based on one or more capabilities of the second device.

19. The one or more computer-readable media as recited in claim 18, wherein the one or more capabilities comprises display resolution, audio quality, data input function and/or processing power.

20. The one or more computer-readable media as recited in claim 18, wherein the request comprises:

a move request that prompts the proxy server to move the connection of the instance of the virtual browser associated with the browsing session of the first device to the second device and create a new instance of the virtual browser for a new browsing session of the first device,

a copy request that prompts the proxy server to copy the browsing session of the first device to the second device, or

a switch request that prompts the proxy server to switch the browsing session of the first device with a browsing session of the second device.