System and method for connecting to and viewing live data using a standard user agent
First Claim
1. A method for displaying live measurement data from a measurement device, the method comprising:
- providing a URL to a user agent, wherein the URL references the measurement device;
connecting to the measurement device specified by the URL;
the measurement device generating live measurement data representing a physical phenomenon;
the measurement device providing the live measurement data in response to said connecting to the measurement device;
receiving the live measurement data from the measurement device after said connecting to the measurement device; and
displaying the received live measurement data. 2.The method of claim 1, wherein the URL specifies a protocol scheme, the method further comprising;
determining an appropriate component for performing said connecting to the measurement device specified by the URL using the protocol scheme.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method for viewing live data, such as measurement data from an instrumentation system, using a standard user agent or client, such as a web browser. A uniform resource locator (URL) identifying a data source is provided to the user agent. The URL includes a protocol scheme identifying the protocol to use for connecting to the data source. A protocol plug-in may be installed to enable the user agent to display a default view of a live data source. The protocol plug-in may handle the URL by returning standard HTML code to the user agent, wherein the HTML code refers to a data viewer component. The data viewer component may then connect to the data source identified by the URL and receive and display data. In one embodiment, the plug-in or the data viewer may configure the data source to begin generating the live data. The data source may be idle until the plug-in or the data viewer connects to the data source and optionally configures the data source to start providing data. Upon receiving the data, the data viewer component may display the data in the user agent in various ways, depending on the type of data received. The invention thus enables a user to connect to a wide variety of data sources using standard software, such as web browsers, and see a graphical representation of the data without having to write any program code. The user can connect to a data source and view live data, e.g., data that is generated “live” and which was not previously stored in a memory. Advantageously, users may connect to a data source and view live data from the data source in a manner similar to connecting to a traditional web HTTP server and viewing a web page, but without interacting with an HTTP server at any point.
117 Citations
74 Claims
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1. A method for displaying live measurement data from a measurement device, the method comprising:
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providing a URL to a user agent, wherein the URL references the measurement device;
connecting to the measurement device specified by the URL;
the measurement device generating live measurement data representing a physical phenomenon;
the measurement device providing the live measurement data in response to said connecting to the measurement device;
receiving the live measurement data from the measurement device after said connecting to the measurement device; and
displaying the received live measurement data. 2.The method of claim 1, wherein the URL specifies a protocol scheme, the method further comprising; determining an appropriate component for performing said connecting to the measurement device specified by the URL using the protocol scheme. - View Dependent Claims (2, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
determining an appropriate protocol handler to process the URL using the protocol scheme; and
the protocol handler processing the URL, wherein said processing comprises specifying a data viewer to perform said connecting to the measurement device.
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6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:
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configuring the measurement device to begin generating the live measurement data after said connecting;
wherein the measurement device generates the measurement data after said configuring.
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8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:
instantiating a data viewer to perform said displaying the received live measurement data.
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9. The method of claim 1,
wherein the URL references a channel of a data acquisition device. -
10. The method of claim 1,
wherein the URL references a signal to be acquired by the measurement device. -
11. The method of claim 1,
wherein said connecting to the measurement device specified by the URL does not include connecting to a web server. -
12. The method of claim 1,
wherein said connecting to the measurement device specified by the URL does not utilize a standard web server protocol. -
13. The method of claim 1, wherein said displaying the received live measurement data includes:
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examining the received live measurement data;
determining a display method based on the received live measurement data;
using the determined display method to display the received live measurement data.
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15. The method of claim 1,
wherein the method operates in a computer system; wherein the measurement device is comprised in the computer system.
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16. The method of claim 1,
wherein the method operates in a computer system coupled to a network; wherein the measurement device is coupled to the network.
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17. The method of claim 1,
wherein the live measurement data comprises data acquired in real time from a physical system. -
18. The method of claim 1, further comprising:
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the measurement device measuring a unit under test after said connecting;
wherein the measurement device generates the live measurement data in response to the measurement device measuring the unit under test.
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19. The method of claim 1,
wherein the user agent is a web browser application. -
20. The method of claim 1,
wherein the user agent is an application including web-browsing functionality.
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3. The method of claim 3,
wherein said protocol handler specifying a data viewer comprises the protocol handler generating markup language code identifying a data viewer; -
wherein the method further comprises;
the user agent receiving the markup language code;
the user agent processing the markup language code; and
the user agent instantiating the data viewer identified by the markup language code, in response to said processing the markup language code. - View Dependent Claims (4, 5)
the data viewer performing said connecting to the measurement device specified by the URL;
the data viewer performing said receiving the live measurement data from the measurement device after said connecting to the measurement device; and
the data viewer performing said displaying the received live measurement data.
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5. The method of claim 3,
wherein the protocol handler is a plug-in component constructed according to a plug-in framework supported by the user agent.
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7. The method of claim 7, wherein said configuring the measurement device includes loading one or more software drivers to initiate the measurement device.
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14. The method of claim 14,
wherein the received live measurement data is a waveform; wherein the received live measurement data is displayed in a graph.
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21. A system for displaying live measurement data, the system comprising:
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a processor;
a memory medium coupled to the processor;
a user agent stored in the memory medium;
a measurement device;
wherein the user agent is operable to receive a URL referencing the measurement device;
wherein, in response to said user agent receiving the URL referencing the measurement device, the user agent is operable to invoke program instructions stored in the memory medium, wherein said program instructions are executable to connect to the measurement device specified by the URL;
wherein the measurement device is operable to generate live measurement data representing a physical phenomenon;
wherein, in response to said connecting to the measurement device, the measurement device is operable to provide the live measurement data;
wherein the program instructions are further executable to implement;
receiving the live measurement data from the measurement device after said connecting to the measurement device; and
displaying the received live measurement data.
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22. The system of claim 22,
wherein the URL specifies a protocol scheme; -
wherein the user agent is operable to use the protocol scheme to determine an appropriate component for connecting to the measurement device specified by the URL;
wherein said user agent invoking program instructions comprises executing the component. - View Dependent Claims (23, 27, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41)
a protocol handler;
a data viewer;
wherein the user agent is operable to use the protocol scheme to determine the protocol handler to process the URL;
wherein said user agent invoking program instructions comprises the user agent calling the protocol handler;
wherein the protocol handler is operable to process the URL, wherein said processing comprises specifying the data viewer to perform said connecting to the measurement device.
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27. The system of claim 22,
wherein the program instructions are further executable to implement: -
configuring the measurement device to begin generating the live measurement data after said connecting;
wherein the measurement device generates the live measurement data after said configuring.
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29. The system of claim 22, wherein the program instructions are further executable to implement:
instantiating a data viewer to perform said displaying the received live measurement data.
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30. The system of claim 22,
wherein the URL references a channel of a data acquisition device. -
31. The system of claim 22,
wherein the URL references a signal to be acquired by the measurement device. -
32. The system of claim 22,
wherein said connecting to the measurement device specified by the URL does not include connecting to a web server. -
33. The system of claim 22,
wherein said connecting to the measurement device specified by the URL does not utilize a standard web server protocol. -
34. The system of claim 22, wherein said displaying the received measurement data includes:
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examining the received live measurement data;
determining a display method based on the received live measurement data;
using the determined display method to display the received live measurement data.
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36. The system of claim 22,
wherein the processor and the memory medium are comprised in a computer system; wherein the measurement device is comprised in the computer system.
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37. The system of claim 22,
wherein the processor and the memory medium are comprised in a computer system coupled to a network; wherein the measurement device is coupled to the network.
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38. The system of claim 22,
wherein the live measurement data comprises data acquired in real time from a physical system. -
39. The system of claim 22,
wherein the measurement device is operable to measure a unit under test after said connecting; wherein the measurement device generates the live measurement data in response to said measurement device measuring the unit under test.
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40. The system of claim 22,
wherein the user agent is a web browser application. -
41. The system of claim 22,
wherein the user agent is an application including web-browsing functionality.
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24. The system of claim 24,
wherein said protocol handler specifying the data viewer comprises the protocol handler generating markup language code identifying the data viewer; -
wherein the user agent is operable to receive and process the markup language code;
wherein, in response to said user agent processing the markup language code, the user agent is operable to instantiate the data viewer identified by the markup language code. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26)
wherein the data viewer is operable to receive the live measurement data from the measurement device after said connecting to the measurement device; - and
wherein the data viewer is operable to display the received live measurement data.
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26. The system of claim 24,
wherein the protocol handler is a plug-in component constructed according to a plug-in framework supported by the user agent.
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28. The system of claim 28,
wherein said configuring the measurement device includes loading one or more software drivers to initiate the measurement device.
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35. The system of claim 35,
wherein the received live measurement data is a waveform; wherein the received live measurement data is displayed in a graph visible on a user interface of the user agent.
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42. A system for displaying live measurement data, the system comprising:
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a processor;
a memory medium coupled to the processor, wherein the memory medium stores a user agent for obtaining files stored on a network, wherein the memory medium also stores a data viewer for displaying received live measurement data;
wherein the user agent is operable to receive a URL which references a measurement device, wherein the URL also references a protocol scheme for display of live measurement data;
wherein the user agent is operable to;
instantiate the data viewer using the protocol scheme referenced in the URL;
wherein the data viewer is operable to;
connect to the measurement device specified by the URL;
receive the live measurement data from the measurement device and display the received live measurement data.
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43. The system of claim 43,
wherein the measurement device measures a unit under test and generates the live measurement data after the data viewer connects to the measurement device.
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47. The system of claim 47,
wherein the protocol handler is further operable to generate markup language data in response to receiving the URL; wherein the markup language data references the data viewer.
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51. A system for displaying live measurement data, the system comprising:
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a computer system, comprising;
a CPU; and
a memory medium coupled to the CPU, wherein the memory medium stores a user agent for obtaining files stored on a network, wherein the memory medium further stores a data viewer for displaying received live measurement data; and
a measurement device coupled to the computer system;
wherein the user agent is operable to receive a URL which references the measurement device, wherein the URL also references a protocol scheme for display of live measurement data;
wherein the user agent is operable to;
instantiate the data viewer based on the protocol scheme referenced in the URL;
wherein the data viewer is operable to connect to the measurement device specified by the URL;
wherein the measurement device is operable to generate the live measurement data after the user agent connects to the measurement device;
wherein the data viewer is operable to receive the live measurement data from the measurement device and display the received live measurement data.
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52. The system of claim 52,
wherein the data viewer is operable to configure the measurement device to begin generating the live measurement data after connecting to the measurement device; - and
wherein the measurement device generates the live measurement data after being configured. - View Dependent Claims (53, 54, 55, 56)
wherein the measurement device is operable to measure a unit under test after the user agent connects to the measurement device; wherein the measurement device generates the live measurement data in response to the measurement device measuring the unit under test.
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54. The system of claim 52,
wherein the live measurement data comprises data acquired in real time from a physical system. -
55. The system of claim 52,
wherein the memory medium also stores a protocol handler for handling the protocol scheme for display of live measurement data; -
wherein the user agent is operable to provide the URL to the protocol handler;
wherein the protocol handler is operable to;
instantiate the data viewer using the protocol scheme referenced in the URL.
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56. The system of claim 52,
wherein the computer system is coupled to a network; wherein the measurement device is coupled to the network.
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57. A method for viewing live data in a system, the method comprising:
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providing a URL to a user agent, wherein the URL references a protocol scheme for viewing the live data;
instantiating a data viewer using the protocol scheme referenced in the URL;
connecting to the data source specified by the URL;
the data source generating the live data after said connecting;
the data viewer receiving the live data from the data source after said connecting to the data source;
the data viewer displaying the received live data.
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58. The method of claim 58, further comprising:
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configuring the data source to begin generating the live data after said connecting; and
wherein the data source generating the live data comprises the data source acquiring the live data and providing the live data after said configuring. - View Dependent Claims (60, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68)
the user agent providing the URL to a protocol handler for handling;
wherein the protocol handler instantiates the data viewer based on the protocol scheme referenced in the URL;
wherein the data viewer connects to the data source specified by the URL.
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63. The method of claim 58,
wherein the data viewer connects to the data source specified by the URL without connecting to a web server. -
64. The method of claim 58,
wherein the data viewer connects to the data source specified by the URL without utilizing standard web server protocols. -
65. The method of claim 58, wherein the data viewer displaying the received live data includes:
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the data viewer examining the received live data; and
the data viewer determining a display method based on the received live data;
the data viewer displaying the received live data using the determined display method.
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66. The method of claim 58,
wherein the method operates in a computer system; wherein the data source is comprised in the computer system.
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67. The method of claim 58,
wherein the method operates in a computer system coupled to a network; wherein the data source is coupled to the network.
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68. The method of claim 58,
wherein the live data is measurement data.
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59. The method of claim 59,
wherein said configuring the data source includes loading one or more software drivers to initiate the data source.
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61. The method of claim 61,
wherein the protocol handler plug-in instantiating the data viewer includes the protocol handler plug-in generating markup language data in response to receiving the URL; -
wherein the markup language data references the data viewer. - View Dependent Claims (62)
the data viewer configuring the data source to begin generating the live data after said connecting; and
the data source generating the live data in response to said configuring.
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69. A method for viewing live data in a network system, the method comprising:
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a user agent receiving a URL, wherein the URL references a protocol scheme for viewing the live data;
the user agent providing the URL to a protocol handler for handling;
the protocol handler instantiating a data viewer using the protocol scheme referenced in the URL;
the data viewer connecting to the data source specified by the URL;
the data source generating the live data after said connecting;
the data viewer receiving the live data from the data source after said connecting to the data source; and
the data viewer displaying the received live data.
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70. A system for displaying live data, the system comprising:
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a CPU;
a memory medium coupled to the CPU, wherein the memory medium stores a user agent for obtaining files stored on a network, wherein the memory medium also stores a data viewer for displaying received live data;
wherein the user agent is operable to receive a URL which references a data source, wherein the URL also references a protocol scheme for display of live data;
wherein the user agent is operable to;
instantiate the data viewer based on the protocol scheme referenced in the URL; and
connect to the data source specified by the URL;
wherein the data viewer is operable to receive the live data from the data source and display the received live data.
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71. A method for viewing live data from the context of a user agent, the method comprising:
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providing a URL to the user agent, wherein the URL comprises a protocol scheme not included in default protocol schemes supported by the user agent;
the user agent delegating the URL to a protocol handler plug-in for handling;
the protocol handler plug-in generating HTML code in response to receiving the URL, wherein the HTML code references a data viewer component;
the user agent instantiating the data viewer component referenced in the HTML;
the data viewer component connecting to the data source specified by the URL;
the data viewer component receiving live data from the data source;
the data viewer component displaying the received live data in a user interface of the user agent.
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72. The method of claim 72,
wherein the user agent is a web browser application.
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73. A memory medium comprising program instructions executable to:
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receive a URL, wherein the URL references a measurement device;
connect to the measurement device specified by the URL;
wherein the measurement device is operable to provide live measurement data in response to said connecting to the measurement device;
wherein the program instructions are further executable to;
receive the live measurement data from the measurement device after said connecting to the measurement device; and
display the received live measurement data.
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74. A memory medium comprising program instructions executable to:
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receive a URL, wherein the URL references a protocol scheme for viewing live data;
instantiate a data viewer using the protocol scheme referenced in the URL;
connect to the data source specified by the URL;
wherein the data source is operable to generate the live data after said connecting;
wherein the data viewer is operable to receive the live data from the data source;
wherein the data viewer is operable to display the received live data.
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Specification