Method and apparatus for supporting cooperative activity

• US 6,298,346 B1
• Filed: 11/29/1995
• Issued: 10/02/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Kurosawa, Takahiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Black, Thomas G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): RONES, CHARLES
• Application Number:
  US08/564,634
• Time in Patent Office: 2,134 Days
• Field of Search: 395/684, 395/677, 395/670, 395/614, 395/187.01, 395/674, 707/2, 707/8, 707/9, 707/10, 707/103, 707/11, 380/25, 711/163, 711/100, 709/223, 709/300, 709/104
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/959 Network
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99939 Privileged access

Abstract

Provided are a method and apparatus for supporting a cooperative activity in which an activity is performed by cooperation among a plurality of participants, as in a television conference system. When another user attempts to participate in the cooperative activity (session), a guardian is assigned to the session and a guardian is assigned also to the user attempting to participate. Allowance or refusal of participation by the user in the session is decided based upon the access control level of the guardian corresponding to the user, a guardian tree defining the path of the guardian and the mutual relationship between the guardians.

Claims

1. A method of supporting a cooperative activity in which an activity is performed by cooperation over a network among a plurality of participants each comprising a terminal connected to the network, said method comprising:

a step of assigning access control information specifying a level of an allowable access operation for a respective one of a plurality of predetermined relationships between a resource and a requesting participant with respect to each of the resources;

a step of entering one of a group of access requests from a requesting participant with a respective access level to one of the resources, the group of access requests including an access request to the shared data, a request for participating in the cooperative activity, or a request for executing a program as an access request for the program; and

a decision step of deciding whether to allow or refuse the request entered in said entering step as the access request for the one resource, wherein said decision step allows the request if the respective access level is not higher than the level specified in the access control information assigned to the relationship between the one resource and the requesting participant.

2. A method of supporting a cooperative activity in which an activity is performed by cooperation among a plurality of participants, said method comprising:

a step of entering an access request with respect to the cooperative activity; and

a decision step of deciding whether to allow or refuse the access request in relation to at least a list of participants in the cooperative activity, shared data, and an executable program,

wherein said decision step includes a step of assigning access control information to each participant in the list of participants in the cooperative activity, each shared data, and each executable program, respectively, and rendering a decision based upon the access control information and the access request, and

wherein the access control information has at least the following three access control levels;

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the access control information includes an access control level in which a level “

_consult”

, which is for negotiating with a program, has been added.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein the access control information further includes any of the following four access control levels or a combination thereof:

5. A method of supporting a cooperative activity in which an activity is performed by cooperation among a plurality of participants, said method comprising:

a step of entering an access request with respect to the cooperative activity; and

a decision step of deciding whether to allow or refuse the access request in relation to at least a list of participants in the cooperative activity, shared data, and an executable program,

wherein said decision step includes a step of assigning access control information to each participant in the list of participants in the cooperative activity, each shared data, and each executable program, respectively, and rendering a decision based upon the access control information and the access request, and

wherein the access control information uses a group of access control information arranged in a tree structure and a relationship between access control information corresponding to a node thereof is defined by at least the following;

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the tree structure maintains a relative positive relationship between nodes constructing a tree.

7. The method according to claim 5, wherein the tree structure is such that an absolute position in the tree structure is maintained within individual items of access control information.

8. The method according to claim 5, wherein the access control information further includes any of the following five mutual relationships or combinations thereof:

9. An apparatus for supporting a cooperative activity in which an activity is performed by cooperation over a network among a plurality of participants each comprising a terminal connected to the network, said apparatus comprising:

an assignment circuit adapted to assign access control information specifying a level of an allowable access operation for a respective one of a plurality of predetermined relationships between a resource and a requesting participant with respect to each of the resources;

an input circuit adapted to enter one of a group of access requests from a requesting participant with a respective access level to one of the resources, the group of access requests including an access request to the shared data, a request for participating the cooperative activity, or a request for executing a program as an access request for the program; and

a decision circuit adapted to decide whether to allow or refuse the request entered by said input circuit as the access request for the one resource, wherein said decision circuit allows the request if the respective access level is not higher than the level specified in the access control information assigned to the relationship between the one resource and the requesting participant.

10. An apparatus for supporting a cooperative activity in which an activity is performed by cooperation among a plurality of participants, said apparatus comprising:

an input circuit adapted to enter an access request with respect to the cooperative activity; and

a decision circuit adapted to decide whether to allow or refuse the access request in relation to at least a list of participants in the cooperative activity, shared data, and an executable program;

an assignment circuit adapted to assign access control information to each participant in the list of participants in the cooperative activity, each shared data, and each executable program, respectively; and

an evaluation circuit adapted to render a decision to allow or refuse participation based upon the access control information and the access request,

wherein the access control information has at least the following three access control levels;

11. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the access control information includes an access control level in which a level “

_consult”

, which is for negotiating with a program, has been added.

12. The method according to claim 10, wherein the access control information further includes any of the following four access control levels or a combination thereof:

13. An apparatus for supporting a cooperative activity in which an activity is performed by cooperation among a plurality of participants, said apparatus comprising:

an input circuit adapted to enter an access request with respect to the cooperative activity; and

a decision circuit adapted to decide whether to allow or refuse the access request in relation to at least a list of participants in the cooperative activity, shared data, and an executable program;

an assignment circuit adapted to assign access control information to each participant in the list of participants in the cooperative activity, each shared data, and each executable program, respectively; and

an evaluation circuit adapted to render a decision to allow or refuse participation based upon the access control information and the access request,

wherein the access control information uses a group of access control information arranged in a tree structure and a relationship between access control information corresponding to a node thereof is defined by at least the following;

14. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the access control information further includes any of the following five mutual relationships or combinations thereof: