Network dynamic service availability

• US 7,398,216 B2
• Filed: 12/12/2000
• Issued: 07/08/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Inventors: Oksoy, Osmon R., Barnett, Janet A., Williams, Bassel O., Schechter, Jesse N., Interrante, John A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vig; Naresh
• Application Number:
  US09/735,058
• Publication Number:
  US 20020111814A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,765 Days
• Field of Search: 709/1, 709/201, 705/1
• US Class Current: 705/1.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5055 considering software capabilities, i.e. software resources associated or available to the machine
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10015 Access to distributed or replicated servers, e.g. using brokers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1008 based on parameters of servers, e.g. available memory or workload monitoring of computer activity G06F11/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1029 using data related to the state of servers by a load balancer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A Jini™-based distributed computing platform architecture constructed to facilitate dynamic availability of eCommerce services over the Internet by which new services made available by a service provider are instantly accessible to a user through a web server.

Claims

1. A distributed computing system constructed to facilitate a dynamic availability of an eCommerce service to a user over the Internet, comprising:

a web server in communication with a browser of a user, the web server configured to authenticate the user and to communicate group information to the browser of the user;

means for providing the eCommerce service to the browser, said browser configured to communicate said group information to a Lookup Server; and

said Lookup Server configured to act as a registry for tracking at least one eCommerce service available to the user and, in response to said group information, said Lookup Server configured to provide dynamic updates to the browser of new and/or updated eCommerce service, until said browser logs off said web server.

2. The distributed computing platform of claim 1, wherein said eCommerce service is comprised of at least one of:

a) remote event notification for commercial transactions;

b) service registration; and

c) dynamic downloading of software from anywhere at anytime.

3. The distributed computing platform of claim 1, wherein said eCommerce service includes use of a variety of payment models, further facilitating commercial transactions and dynamic pricing.

4. The distributed computing platform of claim 1, wherein user access to the eCommerce service registered with said web server is controlled by exchange of a client applet between the user and said web server.

5. The distributed computing platform of claim 4, wherein user information received from the user is compared by said web server with corresponding user information stored in a lightweight directory access protocol (LDAP) database.

6. The distributed computing platform of claim 1, wherein said web sewer provides for the sale of commercial software products.

7. The distributed computer platform of claim 1, wherein said platform is Jini based.