System using position detector to determine location and orientation between computers to select information to be transferred via wireless medium

• US 6,374,306 B1
• Filed: 03/12/1999
• Issued: 04/16/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/01/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sun Microsystems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sun Microsystems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Tognazzini, Bruce
• Primary Examiner(s): Luu, Le Hien
• Application Number:
  US09/266,851
• Time in Patent Office: 1,131 Days
• Field of Search: 709/248, 709/213, 709/217, 707/201, 705/35, 128/671, 455/2
• US Class Current: 709/248
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A handheld computing device is used to copy files from the screen of a fixed computer. The display of the handheld device is linked to that of the underlying computer and file and directory icons together with their underlying files are copied to the handheld device. Files from the handheld device can also be transferred to the fixed computer. When a user is running a program on the fixed computer, he may capture the state of that computer and transfer everything needed to permit execution of that program to continue uninterrupted on the handheld device. Thus files and executing programs may be lifted from the fixed computer and used on the handheld device.

Claims

1. A method of copying one or more files from a first computer to a second computer, comprising the steps of:

a. providing an element for performing a step of linking screens of said first computer and said second computer over a wireless transceiver to display the same information;

b. providing an element for performing a step of selecting said one or more files for copying; and

c. providing an element for performing a step of transmitting said one or more files from said first computer to said second computer over said wireless transceiver,

wherein the step of linking the screens includes providing an element for determining location and orientation of the second computer with respect to the first computer.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein a position of the screen of the first computer lies directly underneath a location on the display screen of the first computer.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein

the step of transmitting one or more files is performed when a distance separating the display screen of the first computer and the display screen of the second computer is less than or equal to a fixed amount, and

when the distance separating the display screen of the first computer and the display screen of the second computer is greater than the fixed amount, freezing the