System and method for enabling a person to switch use of computing devices

• US 7,623,892 B2
• Filed: 04/12/2005
• Issued: 11/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/02/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Palm, Inc. (TCL Technology Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Hawkins, Jeffrey
• Primary Examiner(s): RAMPURIA, SHARAD K
• Application Number:
  US11/105,197
• Publication Number:
  US 20060242278A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,687 Days
• Field of Search: 455418-420, 4555561-557, 455/566, 455/66.1, 455/41.2, 379/428.01, 709/221, 345/169
• US Class Current: 455/556.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2757 by data transmission, e.g. downloading
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72409 by interfacing with external accessories hands-free H04M1/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/7243 with interactive means for internal management of messages

Abstract

A method is provided to enable the person to switch use of computing devices when working with records and/or documents. A method such as described may be implemented for an individual operating two (or more) computing devices that share and synchronize sets of records. One or more operations may be performed to update and maintain correspondence between the two sets of records. A switchover event may be detected, where the event corresponds to the individual using a second computing device while already using a first computing device. Once the switchover event is detected, state of use information may be received on the second computing device. This information indicates the state of use of one or more records on the first computing device. This information may be used to affect the state of use of corresponding records on the second computing device. In particular, the corresponding records on the second computing device may be placed in a state of use, or in a selected state for subsequent use.

Claims

1. A computing device comprising:

a communication port; and

one or more processors configured to;

establish a communication link with an associate device communicatively coupled with the communication port,

detect an event corresponding to a switchover of an operation from a first application operating directly on the associate device to a second application operating directly on the computing device,

acquire through the communication link, in response to detecting the event, state information corresponding to (1) a first state of use of the first application operational on the associate device, the first state of use reflecting the operation performed on the associate device and (2) a state of use of one or more application resources on the associate device, and

perform one or more actions at the computing device on the second application, in response to acquiring the state information, for placing the second application in a second state of use equivalent to the first state of use, the one or more actions including;

(i) identifying one or more application resources that reside on the computing device and that correspond to the one or more application resources on the associate device for which the state information corresponds to,

(ii) providing the identified one or more application resources in a corresponding state of use in response to the state of use of the one or more application resources on the associate device, and

(iii) displaying the operation on the computing device at the switchover to continue the operation on the computing device at where it is left off on the associate device.

2. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the one or more application resources that reside on the computing device include a set of one or more records that have correspondence to a set of one or more records on the associate device.

3. The computing device of claim 2, wherein

the one or more processors configured to acquire the state information are further configured to acquire the state information that identifies one or more records in the set of one or more records on the associate device that are opened;

and

the one or more processors configured to perform the one or more actions are further configured to open one or more records on the computing device that have correspondence to the one or more records in the set of one or more records on the associate device that are opened.

4. The computing device of claim 2, wherein

the one or more processors configured to acquire the state information are further configured to acquire the state information that identifies one or more records in the set of one or more records on the associate device that are in a selected state;

and

the one or more processors configured to perform the one or more actions are further configured to present one or more records on the computing device in a corresponding selected state, wherein the one or more records on the computing device have correspondence to the one or more records in the set of one or more records on the associate device that are in the selected state.

5. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the one or more application resources that reside on the computing device include a set of one or more messages that have correspondence to a set of one or more messages on the associate device.

6. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the one or more application resources that reside on the computing device include a resource selected from a group consisting of a record, a document, a program, an executable, a script, and a macro.

7. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors configured to acquire the state information are further configured to acquire the state information that includes system data about a setting of the associate device.

8. The computing device of claim 7, wherein the one or more processors configured to perform the one or more actions are further configured to configure a corresponding setting on the computing device corresponding to the setting of the associate device based on the system data.

9. The computing device of claim 8, wherein the setting of the associate device and the corresponding setting of the computing device include an account designation that determines one or more application resources that are to be made available for access and use.

10. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors configured to acquire the state information are further configured to acquire the state information that includes system data about a folder view of the associate device.

11. The computing device of claim 10, wherein the one or more processors configured to perform the one or more actions are further configured to create a folder view on the computing device that corresponds to the folder view of the associate device based on the system data.

12. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

establish correspondence between a set of records on the computing device and a set of records on the associate device using one or more synchronization processes.

13. The computing device of claim 12, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to perform, at least selectively, the one or more synchronization processes concurrently with acquiring the state information.

14. The computing device of claim 13, wherein the one or more synchronization processes performed by the one or more processors include:

determining whether a given record on the associate device is new and without a corresponding record on the computing device, and

responding to the given record on the associate device being determined new and without a corresponding record on the computing device, creating a corresponding record of the given record on the associate device.

15. The computing device of claim 14, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to perform the one or more synchronization processes in response to acquiring the state information, wherein the state information indicates the given record is opened on the associate device.

16. The computing device of claim 14, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to generate a body or an address for the corresponding record created by the one or more synchronization processes in response to acquiring the state information, wherein the state information indicates the given record on the associate device is opened and contains the body or the address.

17. The computing device of claim 13, wherein the one or more synchronization processes includes:

(i) determining whether a given record on the associate device is modified in relation to a corresponding record on the computing device, and

(ii) updating the corresponding record on the computing device.

18. The computing device of claim 17, wherein the one or more processors configured to perform the one or more actions are further configured to open the corresponding record with the modification based on the state information, wherein the state information indicates the given record is opened on the associate device and contains the modification.

19. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the communication port is a local wireless link, and wherein the one or more processors configured to establish the communication link are further configured to establish the communication link through the local wireless link over a local wireless medium.

20. The computing device of claim 19, wherein the one or more processors configured to detect the switchover event are further configured to detect the switchover event by (i) communicating with the associate device over the local wireless link immediately upon the computing device being activated, and (ii) detecting that the associate device was already activated when the computing device was activated.

21. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors configured to acquire the state information are further configured to automatically acquire state information through the communication link corresponding to the first state of use of the first application operational on the associate device in response to detecting the switchover event.

22. A method for enabling a person to switch use of computing devices, the method comprising:

establishing a communication link between a first computing device and a second computing device;

detecting at the second computing device an event corresponding to a switchover of an operation from a first application operating directly on the first computing device to a second application operating directly on the second computing device;

receiving at the second computing device through the communication link, in response to detecting the event, (1) state information corresponding to a first state of use of the first application operational on the first computing device, the first state of use reflecting the operation performed on the first computing device, and (2) information identifying a record or document in an open state on the first computing device; and

performing one or more actions at the second computing device on the second application, in response to acquiring the state information, for placing the second application in a second state of use equivalent to the first state of use, the one or more actions including;

(1) displaying the operation on the second computing device at the switchover to continue the operation on the second computing device at where it is left off on the first computing device,

(2) identifying a record or document on the second computing device that has correspondence to the identified record or document on the first computing device, and

(3) providing the record or document on the second computing device in the open state.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising performing one or more synchronization processes to establish correspondence between a first set of records on the first computing device and a second set of records on the second computing device, the identified record on the first computing device in the first set of records, the identified record on the second computing device in the second set of records.

24. A method for exchanging communication between a first computing device and a second computing device, wherein the first computing device maintains a first set of records and the second computing device maintains a second set of records that corresponds to the first set of records, the method comprising:

performing one or more operations to establish correspondence between the first set of records and the second set of records, and to update the second set of records residing on the second computing device based on the first set of records residing on the first computing device;

detecting a switchover event corresponding to a user operating the second computing device after operating the first computing device;

in response to detecting the switchover event, causing state information to be received on the second computing device, wherein the state information identifies one or more records in the first set of records that are in an open or selected state;

automatically identifying from the state information one or more records in the second set of records that correspond to the one or more records in the first set of records;

causing the identified one or more records in the second set of records to be in the open or selected state.

25. A method for preserving state of use of application resources in applications, comprising:

executing a first instance of an application, where the first instance of the application uses a first application resource, the first application resource including a record or document;

detecting an event;

responding to the event, performing;

(1) identifying the record or document in an open state, and

(2) preserving information about a state of use of the first application resource in the first instance of the application, the state of use including the record or document being in the open state;

executing a second instance of the application;

retrieving the information about the state of use; and

placing the second instance of the application in a state of use that corresponds to the retrieved information about the state of use of the first instance of the application, comprising;

(1) identifying the record or document, and

(2) providing the record or document in the open state.