Data processing method and device

• US 6,430,600 B1
• Filed: 10/12/1999
• Issued: 08/06/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/14/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Yokote, Yasuhiko
• Primary Examiner(s): Dinh, Dung C.
• Application Number:
  US09/416,412
• Time in Patent Office: 1,029 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709/201, 709/202, 709/310, 709/331, 709/332, 713/1
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/445 Program loading or initiating bootstrapping G06F9/4401; security arrangements for program loading or initiating G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/465 Distributed object oriented systems remote method invocation [RMI] G06F9/548
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/54 Interprogram communication

Abstract

A data processing method for a data processing system having: a server comprising an application program constructed from a plurality of objects, an execution environment constructed from a plurality of objects for specifying operations of the application program and an application program interface for specifying an interface between the application program and the execution environment; and a client for being downloaded with the application program from the server, the data processing method comprising the steps of:

having the server execute a check whether or not the client has the execution environment for the application environment to be downloaded when the application program is to be downloaded to the client; and

having the server download the application program to the client in accordance with the results of the check.

Claims

1. A data processing system, comprising:

a storage medium for storing a plurality of objects comprising execution environment objects for forming a plurality of execution environments, and also comprising processing objects for performing a predetermined processing;

a server for determining whether a client has an execution environment required for supporting execution of a requested processing object; and

a communication channel for transferring said requested processing object from said server to said client when it is determined that said required execution environment exists at said client;

wherein said server transfers one or more execution environment objects from said storage medium to said client via said communication channel when it is determined that said required execution environment does not exist at said client so that said required execution environment is transferred via said communication channel to said client, each of said execution environment objects being adapted to support more than one object that may be requested by a user.

2. The data processing system of claim 1, wherein said execution environment is formed of at least one execution environment object, and all of the objects are concurrent objects, each executing a single thread of control.

3. The data processing system of claim 1, wherein all of the objects are concurrent objects, each executing a single thread of control.

4. The data processing system of claim 1, wherein execution environment objects are transferred incrementally from said server to said client via said communication channel in accordance with the needs of said requested processing object.

5. The data processing system of claim 4, wherein transferred execution environment objects are executed concurrently with the transfer of additional objects by said server via said communication channel.

6. The data processing system of claim 5, wherein a transferred requested processing object is executed upon the transfer of said required execution environment objects by said server from said storage medium, and further objects are transferred thereafter.

7. The data processing system of claim 6, wherein objects that are required first for processing are transferred first.

8. The data processing system of claim 7, wherein an object is employed by said server for controlling the sequence and timing of the transfer of objects.

9. The data processing system of claim 1, wherein said server transfers to said client via said communication channel an updated execution environment object to replace an existing execution environment object if it is determined that said existing execution environment object includes a performance problem.

10. The data processing system of claim 1, wherein said server generates an application program to be executed at said client by utilizing a combination of at least an existing processing object and a newly transferred processing object.

11. The data processing system of claim 1, wherein said server removes an execution environment object from said client when the execution environment object is no longer required to support a next requested processing object.

12. The data processing system of claim 1, wherein said server removes said transferred desired processing object when a new desired processing object is to be transferred to said client.

13. The data processing system of claim 1, wherein said client constructs an execution environment as a combination of said transferred execution environment objects.

14. The data processing system of claim 13, wherein said client determines whether all required execution environment objects are present to construct said execution environment to support said desired processing object.

15. The data processing system of claim 14, wherein said client constructs a second execution environment in response to the needs of a new desired processing object, said new execution environment employing at least one execution environment object from said execution environment objects comprising said execution environment.

16. The data processing system of claim 1, wherein said execution environment comprises at least:

a transfer function for transferring an object from said server to said client via said communication channel; and

a checking function for checking whether said client has an execution environment required for supporting execution of said requested processing object.

17. The data processing system of claim 1, wherein said client comprises a plurality of execution environments, comprising at least:

a device driver execution environment including objects for implementing device drivers transferred from said server to said client via said communication channel;

a system execution environment including objects for implementing system functions; and

a core execution environment supporting objects included in the remainder of said plurality of said execution environments.

18. The data processing system of claim 1, wherein said server passes to said client via said communication channel a feature structure including a description of said requested object and said required execution environment, for checking by said server.

19. A data processing method, comprising the steps of:

storing on a storage medium at a server a plurality of objects comprising execution environment objects for forming a plurality of execution environments, and also comprising processing objects for performing a predetermined processing;

determining whether a client has an execution environment required for supporting execution of a requested processing object;

transferring said requested processing object from said server to said client via a communication channel when it is determined that said required execution environment exists at said client; and

transferring via said communication channel one or more execution environment objects from said storage medium to said client when it is determined that said required execution environment does not exist at said client so that said required execution environment is transferred via said communication channel to said client, each of said execution environment objects being adapted to support more than one first object that may be maintained in or transferred to said first memory means.

20. The data processing method of claim 19, wherein said execution environment is formed of at least one execution environment object, and all of the objects are concurrent objects, each executing a single thread of control.

21. The data processing method of claim 19, wherein all of the objects are concurrent objects, each executing a single thread of control.

22. The data processing method of claim 19, wherein execution environment objects are transferred incrementally from said server to said client in accordance with the needs of said requested processing object.

23. The data processing method of claim 22, wherein transferred execution environment objects are executed concurrently with the transfer of additional objects by said server via said communication channel.

24. The data processing method of claim 23, wherein a transferred requested processing object is executed upon the transfer of said required execution environment objects by said server from said storage medium, and further objects are transferred thereafter.

25. The data processing method of claim 24, wherein objects that are required first for processing are transferred first.

26. The data processing method of claim 25, wherein an object is employed by said server for controlling the sequence and timing of the transfer of objects.

27. The data processing method of claim 19, further comprising the step of transferring to said client from said server via said communication channel an updated execution environment object to replace an existing execution environment object if it is determined that said existing execution environment object includes a performance problem.

28. The data processing method of claim 19, further comprising the step of passing to said client from said server via said communication channel a feature structure including a description of said requested processing object and said required execution environment, for checking by said server.