Systems and methods for projecting content from computing devices

• US 7,716,273 B2
• Filed: 02/25/2004
• Issued: 05/11/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Zink, Ronald O., Soin, Ravipal S., Fuller, Andrew J., Manion, Todd R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nawaz; Asad M
• Assistant Examiner(s): RECEK, JASON D
• Application Number:
  US10/786,313
• Publication Number:
  US 20050091302A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,267 Days
• Field of Search: 709/200, 709/202, 709/203, 709/230, 345/1.1, 345/1.2, 345/2.1, 345/2.3, 715/730, 715/733
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1827 Network arrangements for conference optimisation or adaptation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/20 Services signaling; Auxiliary data signalling, i.e. transmitting data via a non-traffic channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/50 Service provisioning or reconfiguring

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided that enable an alternate display device to wirelessly receive content from a computing device, freeing users from the burden of physically connecting the computing device via a cable. The content sent to the display device can also be simultaneously or separately viewed on the computing devices of other nearby computing devices. Generic mechanism(s) and corresponding user interfaces are provided for computing devices to engage in discovery of devices to which content may be delivered, for accepting delivery and for initiating transmission of content.

Claims

1. A method for projecting content from a sender device to an alternate display device, the method comprising:

discovering in the sender device, at least one of a plurality of alternate display devices by using a meeting room multimon (MRM) service comprising one of (A) a wireless Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) search or (B) listening for a wireless advertisement emitted by the at least one of the plurality of alternate display devices;

establishing a remote session, via a remoting protocol, between the sender device and the at least one alternate display device, the establishing comprising;

receiving in the sender device, a service document of the at least one alternate display device;

generating in the sender device, a ticket that provides information on a) how to connect to the sender device and b) which one amongst a plurality of projection modes is to be used; and

sending the ticket from the sender device to the at least one alternate display device; and

transmitting from the sender device to the at least one alternate display device, said content that is rendered thereon, on the at least one alternate display device.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the remoting protocol is the remote desktop protocol and the remote session is a terminal services (TS) session.

3. A method according to claim 1, further comprising authoring said content.

4. A method according to claim 3, further comprising publishing said content.

5. A method according to claim 4, wherein content authored before said publishing comprises private content and public content.

6. A method according to claim 3, wherein said authoring includes designating via a second user interface mechanism at least one portion of the content as private content.

7. A method according to claim 6, wherein said authoring includes designating at least one alteration of said public content as private content.

8. A method according to claim 7, wherein said authoring includes designating at least one of a masking, a deletion, an annotation and a highlighting of said content as private content.

9. A method according to claim 1, wherein the content is substantially simultaneously displayed on the at least one alternate display device in response to said transmitting.

10. A method according to claim 1, further comprising controlling the display of a public portion of the content, on said at least one alternate display device via a second user interface mechanism on said sender device.

11. A method according to claim 10, wherein said controlling includes controlling a rate of viewing of said content via at least one input device of said sender device.

12. A method according to claim 1, wherein said content is a slide presentation.

13. A method according to claim 1, further including, for each remote session between the sender device and the at least one alternate display device, displaying via a second user interface mechanism an indication of a signal strength associated with the remote session.

14. A method according to claim 1, wherein said transmitting includes transmitting only a public portion of said content, to the at least one alternate display device.

15. A computer readable storage medium comprising computer executable modules having computer executable instructions for carrying out the method of claim 1.

16. A computing device comprising means for performing the method of claim 1.

17. A computer readable storage medium comprising computer executable instructions for implementing a method of interfacing with a user of a computing device having content including at least one public portion and at least one private portion capable of being projected to other computing devices, the method comprising:

displaying a user interface on the computing device;

selecting via the user interface the content including the at least one public portion;

establishing a remote session, via a remoting protocol, between the computing device and at least one of the other computing devices, the establishing comprising;

generating in the computing device, a ticket that provides information on a) how to connect to the computing device and b) which one amongst a plurality of projection modes is to be used; and

sending the ticket from the computing device to the at least one of the other computing devices; and

via said user interface, transmitting at least said at least one public portion of the selected content to the other computing devices, whereby when said content is rendered on at least one of the other computing devices, only the at least one public portion is rendered.

18. A computer readable storage medium according to claim 17, further comprising generating a first content version including the at least one public portion and altering said first content version thereby forming a second content version, whereby the difference in display between said first and second content versions comprises said at least one private portion.

19. A computer readable storage medium according to claim 18, wherein said generating includes publishing said at least one public portion.

20. A computer readable storage medium according to claim 19, wherein said computing device is a stylus pen input device and said publishing includes printing said at least one public portion to a journal.

21. A computer readable storage medium according to claim 18, wherein said altering includes at least one of adding to, masking, highlighting, annotating and deleting from said first content version.

22. A computer readable storage medium according to claim 17, further comprising using a session token for controlling the at least one of the other computing devices.

23. A computer readable storage medium according to claim 17, further comprising placing said computing device in an “

available for discovery”

state.

24. A computer readable storage medium according to claim 17, further comprising displaying a client projection window which shows said at least one public portion.

25. A computer readable storage medium according to claim 17, further comprising rendering said at least one private portion and said at least one public portion on said computing device, whereby in response to said transmitting, the at least one public portion rendered on said at least one of the other computing devices is rendered substantially simultaneously with said at least one public portion and said at least one private portion rendered on said computing device.

26. A computer readable storage medium according to claim 17, further comprising controlling the rendering of the at least one public portion on said at least one of the other computing devices via said user interface.

27. A computer readable storage medium according to claim 26, wherein said controlling includes controlling a rate of viewing of said at least one public portion via at least one input device of said computing device.

28. A computer readable storage medium according to claim 26, wherein said controlling correspondingly controls rendering of said at least one public portion and said at least one private portion on said computing device.

29. A computer readable storage medium according to claim 17, wherein said transmitting comprises utilizing a communication and collaboration API for operating a multi-shadowing session whereby a 1:

N projection is carried out upon N other computing devices.

30. A computer readable storage medium according to claim 17, wherein the other computing devices include at least one of (A) at least one projector device and (B) at least one available other notebook computer.