Downloading system

• US 6,529,946 B2
• Filed: 10/19/1998
• Issued: 03/04/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 11/07/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Otsuka, Satoshi, Yokono, Shigeru, Misawa, Seiichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Sheikh, Ayaz
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tran, Philip B.
• Application Number:
  US09/174,769
• Publication Number:
  US 20020029241A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,597 Days
• Field of Search: 709/202-203, 709/227-229, 709/217-219, 360/59-60
• US Class Current: 709/217
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/34 involving the use of external additional devices, e.g. dongles or smart cards
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0014 for vending, access and use of specific services not covered anywhere else in G07F17/00 meter-controlled dispensing of liquid, gas or electricity G07F15/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/16 for devices exhibiting advertisements, announcements, pictures or the like
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00086 Circuits for prevention of unauthorised reproduction or copying, e.g. piracy indicating unauthorised use of record carriers in general G11B23/28; scrambling for television signal recording H04N5/913; network architectures or network protocols for network security H04L63/00; cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for secret or secure communication H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00115 wherein the record carrier stores a unique medium identifier
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00144 involving a user identifier, e.g. a unique customer ID
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00152 involving a password
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/0071 involving a purchase action

Abstract

A downloading system which can be used freely by many and unspecified persons. A recording medium is loaded in a public downloading apparatus, and use condition confirmation processing is performed by using information recorded on the medium. Processing for downloading various sorts of information using the public downloading apparatus is allowed to be started according to a result of the use condition confirmation processing. Communication of information necessary for use condition confirmation processing with respect to use of the public downloading apparatus or for downloading processing can be performed between the public downloading apparatus and a server system.

Claims

1. A downloading system comprising:

a downloading apparatus;

a server system communicably connected to said downloading apparatus; and

a recording medium detachably loaded in said downloading apparatus used for recording and reproducing information, said recording medium having download identification information stored thereon for designating the information to be downloaded,

said downloading apparatus including means for performing use condition confirmation processing using information recorded on said recording medium loaded in said downloading apparatus, and means for controlling starting downloading according to a result of the confirmation processing performed by said use condition confirmation means, said control means executing downloading of information to said recording medium based on the download identification information,

wherein communication of information necessary for the use condition confirmation processing with respect to use of said downloading apparatus and the downloading is executed between said downloading apparatus and said server system.

2. A downloading system according to claim 1, wherein discrimination code information, which enables said recording medium to be recognized as a recording medium adapted to be used with the downloading system, is recorded on said recording medium, and said use condition confirmation means performs the use condition confirmation processing based on the discrimination code information.

3. A downloading system according to claim 1, wherein user identification information freely set by a user is recorded on said recording medium, and said use condition confirmation means performs the use condition confirmation processing based on the user identification information.

4. A downloading system according to claim 3, wherein said downloading apparatus further includes means for recording information input by the user as said user identification information on the loaded recording medium.

5. A downloading system according to claim 1, wherein one of a plurality of items of serial number information respectively provided for a plurality of recording mediums adapted to be used with the downloading system is recorded on said recording medium, and said use condition confirmation means performs the use condition confirmation processing based on said serial number information.

6. A downloading system according to claim 1, wherein serial number information to be provided on each of recording mediums adapted to be used with the downloading system is recorded on said recording medium, and an area is defined on said recording medium usable for recording user identification information freely set by a user,

wherein the user identification information, serial number information of the recording medium used by each of the users and password information freely set by each of the users are registered as user collation information in said server system, and

wherein said use condition confirmation means performs the use condition confirmation processing based on password information input by the user, the serial number information and the user identification information recorded on said recording medium, and the user-collation information registered in said server system.

7. A downloading system according to claim 6, wherein said use condition confirmation means performs the use condition confirmation processing by communicating serial number information, user identification information and password information between said downloading apparatus and said server system, the communication of serial number information, user identification information and password information being executed by being separated into at least two communications.

8. A downloading system according to claim 6, wherein payment information of payment methods is registered in said server system related to the user collation information, and wherein said downloading apparatus communicates fee information to said server system, and said server system manages fee charging with respect to the users using the fee information and the payment information.

9. A downloading system according to claim 1, wherein said downloading apparatus further includes means for collecting a fee paid in currency or with a currency substitute card.

10. A downloading system according to claim 1, wherein said downloading apparatus further includes means for storing information internally, and said control means automatically downloads information designated by the download identification information recorded on the loaded recording medium from one of said internal storage means and said server system to the loaded recording medium.

11. A downloading system according to claim 1, wherein said downloading apparatus further includes means for selecting information to be downloaded and means for storing information internally, and said control means downloads, to the loaded recording medium, information selected by said selecting means in information stored in one of said internal storage means and said server system.

12. A downloading system according to claim 1, wherein said downloading apparatus records information about downloading for a user as use record information on the loaded recording medium.

13. A downloading system according to claim 1, wherein said downloading apparatus records information about a fee paid for downloading for a user as fee record information on the loaded recording medium.

14. A downloading system according to claim 1, further comprising means for enabling a user to input information and means for changing said input means between a usable state and an unusable state, said change means setting said input means in the usable state after said recording medium has been loaded in said downloading apparatus, and said change means setting said input means in the unusable state when use of said downloading apparatus is finished.

15. A downloading system according to claim 1, wherein said downloading apparatus has a public telephone function and is connected to a public telephone network, said downloading apparatus being usable as a public telephone regardless of whether or not the recording medium is loaded.

16. A downloading system according to claim 1, wherein each of said downloading apparatus and said server system includes means for wireless communication, and wherein said downloading apparatus is capable of being loaded with downloadable information from said server system by said wireless communication means.

17. A downloading system comprising:

a downloading apparatus; and

a recording medium detachably loaded in said downloading apparatus used for recording and reproducing information, said recording medium having download identification information stored thereon for designating the information to be downloaded,

said downloading apparatus including means for performing use condition confirmation processing using information recorded on said recording medium loaded on said downloading apparatus, and means for controlling starting downloading according to a result of the confirmation processing performed by said use condition confirmation means, said control means executing downloading of information to said recording medium based on the download identification information.

18. A downloading system according to claim 17, wherein discrimination code information, which enables said recording medium to be recognized as a recording medium adapted to be used with the downloading system, is recorded on said recording medium, and said use condition confirmation means performs the use condition confirmation processing based on the discrimination code information.

19. A downloading system according to claim 17, wherein user identification information freely set by a user is recorded on said recording medium, and said use condition confirmation means performs the use condition confirmation processing based on the user identification information.

20. A downloading system according to claim 19, wherein said downloading apparatus further includes means for recording information input by the user as said user identification information on the loaded recording medium.

21. A downloading system according to claim 17, wherein said downloading apparatus further includes means for collecting a fee paid in currency or with a currency substitute card.

22. A downloading system according to claim 17, wherein said downloading apparatus further includes means for storing information internally, and said control means automatically downloads information designated by the download identification information recorded on the loaded recording medium from said internal storage means to the loaded recording medium.

23. A downloading system according to claim 17, wherein said downloading apparatus further includes means for selecting information to be downloaded and means for storing information internally, and said control means downloads, to the loaded recording medium, information selected by said selecting operation means in information stored in said internal storage means.

24. A downloading system according to claim 17, wherein said downloading apparatus records information about downloading for a user as use record information on the loaded recording medium.

25. A downloading system according to claim 17, wherein said downloading apparatus records information about a fee paid for downloading for a user as fee record information on the loaded recording medium.

26. A downloading system according to claim 17, further comprising input means for enabling a user to input information and means for changing said input means between a usable state and an unusable state, said change means setting said input means in the usable state after said recording medium has been loaded in said downloading apparatus, and said change means setting said input means in the unusable state when use of said downloading apparatus is finished.

27. A method for providing information to a downloading apparatus communicably connected to a server system, said method comprising:

detachably loading a recording medium in said downloading apparatus used for recording and reproducing information, said recording medium having download identification information stored thereon for designating the information to be downloaded,

performing use condition confirmation processing using information recorded on said recording medium loaded in said downloading apparatus;

controlling starting downloading of information according to a result of the confirmation processing;

executing downloading of information to said recording medium based on the download identification information; and

executing communication of information necessary for the use condition confirmation processing with respect to use of said downloading apparatus and the downloading between said downloading apparatus and said server system.

28. A downloading apparatus communicably connected to a server system, said apparatus comprising:

means for performing use condition confirmation processing using information recorded on a recording medium detachably loaded in said downloading apparatus, the recording medium used for recording and reproducing information and having download identification information stored thereon for designating the information to be downloaded,

means for controlling starting downloading according to a result of the confirmation processing performed by said use condition confirmation means, the controlling means executing downloading of information to the recording medium based on the download identification information,

wherein communication of information necessary for the use condition confirmation processing with respect to use of said downloading apparatus and the downloading is executed between said downloading apparatus and said server system.

29. A downloading apparatus communicably connected to a server system, said apparatus comprising:

means for loading a recording medium detachably, said recording medium having download identification information for designating the information to be downloaded;

means for performing use condition confirmation processing using information recorded on said recording medium loaded on said downloading apparatus; and

means for controlling starting downloading according to a result of the confirmation processing performed by said use condition confirmation means, said control means executing downloading of information to said recording medium based on the download identification information,

wherein communication of information for the condition confirmation processing with respect to use of said downloading apparatus and the downloading is executed between said downloading apparatus and said server system.