Distributed information and storage system

• US 6,985,586 B2
• Filed: 02/28/2001
• Issued: 01/10/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nagravision SA (Kudelski SA)
• Original Assignee: NagraCard SA (Kudelski SA)
• Inventors: Hill, Michael John
• Primary Examiner(s): Jung, David
• Application Number:
  US09/796,261
• Publication Number:
  US 20020080962A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,777 Days
• Field of Search: 380/200, 380231-234, 380210-212, 380255-264, 725 1- 5, 725105-134, 370200-205, 213150-154
• US Class Current: 380/231
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/16 for devices exhibiting advertisements, announcements, pictures or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/222 Secondary servers, e.g. proxy server, cable television Head-end provisioning of proxy services in data packet switching networks H04L67/56
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23106 involving caching operations prefetching while addressing of a memory level in which the access to the desired data or data block requires associative addressing means within memory systems or architectures G06F12/0862; caching at an intermediate stage in a data network H04L67/568
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25891 being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/632 using a connection between clients on a wide area network, e.g. setting up a peer-to-peer communication via Internet for retrieving video segments from the hard-disk of other client devices broadcast-related systems characterised by transmission among terminal devices H04H60/80; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/1675 Providing digital key or authorisation information for generation or regeneration of the scrambling sequence pseudo-random number generators in general G06F7/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17336 Handling of requests in head-ends

Abstract

The aim of the present invention is to propose a method that allows the reduction of the bandwidth needs in a structure that implements an operating center and a plurality of user units, ensuring the availability for the final user, of a product amongst a vast choice and being able to be downloaded by said user in a short period of time.

This aim is achieved by a system that implements at least one operating center that has a great number of products, a plurality of user units comprising security and storage means, characterized in that the link between at least one group of user units is of the bidirectional type and that the operating center comprises means for the transfer of a product that is stored in the storage means of a user unit to another user unit.

Claims

1. A system comprising at least one operating centre that has a great number of products and a plurality of user units including security and storage means, wherein all or a part of the user units are connected to at least one local network, the link between a first user unit and a second user unit is of the bi-directional type said user units comprise means for transferring a product encrypted with a transport key and stored in the storage means of the first user unit for sending to the second user unit, the operating centre comprises means for transmitting the authorization to the second unit to decrypt the product.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein the first user unit comprises means for transmitting the encrypted product to the second user unit, said unit comprising decryption means, in its security means, of the transport key sent by the operating centre and encrypted with a key specific to the second user unit.

3. A system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein at least said second user unit comprises means for requiring and reading the list of products that are stored in the storage units of the other user units connected to the same local network and for sending this list to the operating centre.

4. A method for optimizing the transmission upon request of products between an operating and distribution centre and a plurality of user units comprising the following steps:

sending a request for transmission of a product to the operating centre from second user unit connected to a local bi-directional network,

determining if the requested product is already in any first user unit connected to the same local network,

in the negative event, transmitting from the operating centre to the second user unit and storing the product in encrypted form in said second user unit,

in the positive event, ordering the transfer of the product from the first unit to the user unit,

transmitting by the operating centre the necessary data for the decryption of the product.

5. A method according to claim 4, the product is encrypted by a transport key, which key being encrypted with a key specific to the second user unit and sent to the latter by the operating centre.

6. A method according to claim 4, consisting in ordering the storage of the product one user unit among the user units connected to the same local network.

7. A method according to claim 4 wherein the selection of the user unit, chosen among the user units connected to the same local network for receiving the product and not having requested the product, is carried out according to a consumption profile of said unit.

8. A method according to claim 7, wherein the consumption profile is established according to the type of product normally consumed.

9. A method according to claim 7, wherein the consumption profile is established according to the activity ratio of said user unit.

10. A method according to claim 4 consisting in, prior sending a request to the operating centre, determining the products that are stored in the units connected to the same network and transmitting these data to the operating centre.

11. A method according to claim 4 consisting in sending a product, prior to a user request, to at least one user unit among the user units connected to the same local network.

12. A method according to claim 4, consisting in:

encrypting the product with a second key by a data server connected to the operating center or processing center,

transmitting the request for the product to the data server, which after verification, returns the second key encrypted with a transport key defined by the operating or processing centre.

13. A method according to claim 12, wherein the product comprises a header and a transaction registration zone, and consisting in marking this zone with the signature of the emitting unit and with the signature of the receiving unit.

14. A method according to claim 13, wherein the operating centre can at any tune request the re-emission of the transaction zone accompanied by the product header to a user unit for verification.