Server device, user interface appliance, and media processing network
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method of operation of a server device connected within a network of media processing devices, comprising:
- initiating respective connections with multiple media processing devices;
initiating a connection with a display, printer or rendering appliance, or combinations thereof, which itself initiates one or more connections with one or more same and/or different media processing devices;
receiving and responding to a connection request from an initiating media processing device by providing a list of said connections between said initiating media processing device and said multiple media processing devices comprising responder media processing devices;
requesting and receiving device information from each connected device of the multiple media processing devices, said device information defining a user interface for each of said multiple media processing devices;
constructing a single user interface based on said user interface information for controlling more than one of said multiple connected media processing devices including at least one of said different media processing devices connected to said display, printer, or rendering appliance, or combinations thereof, wherein said user interface comprises multiple user-executable tabs indicating;
multiple functional server devices that are accessible via at least one secondary server device;
any data filters offered by a selected functional server;
media types for processing; and
any devices containing a selected data type;
connecting a chained series of peer-to-peer connections between said initiating processing device and said responder media processing devices via at least one server device and said at least one secondary server device comprising a same or different display, printer, or rendering appliance, or combinations thereof; and
requesting and receiving from the secondary server device a list of media processing devices connected to the secondary server device;
requesting and receiving from the connected secondary server device information defining a user interface for said media processing devices connected to said secondary server device;
arranging network transport of a unit of digital media from a media source or storage device, or both, to at least one media filtering device or media conversion device, or both;
actuating a media filtering or conversion operation, or both, on said media filtering device or media conversion device, or both;
arranging network transport of a filtered or converted version, or both, of said unit of digital media from the at least one media filtering device or media conversion device, or both, to at least one same or different media display, print, or rendering device, or combinations thereof; and
actuating an associated display, print or rendering function, or combinations thereof.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Components for a control and data processing infrastructure for multiple networked media peripherals are based on chained device connections using a transport-layer independent asymmetric control protocol such as PTP. These components provide a user interface which mirrors the chain of device connections, provides remote access to the media data distributed across said connected devices, can respond to events originating from members of the device chain and enables control and management of the underlying media processing capabilities of the connected devices.
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Citations
36 Claims
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1. A method of operation of a server device connected within a network of media processing devices, comprising:
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initiating respective connections with multiple media processing devices; initiating a connection with a display, printer or rendering appliance, or combinations thereof, which itself initiates one or more connections with one or more same and/or different media processing devices; receiving and responding to a connection request from an initiating media processing device by providing a list of said connections between said initiating media processing device and said multiple media processing devices comprising responder media processing devices; requesting and receiving device information from each connected device of the multiple media processing devices, said device information defining a user interface for each of said multiple media processing devices; constructing a single user interface based on said user interface information for controlling more than one of said multiple connected media processing devices including at least one of said different media processing devices connected to said display, printer, or rendering appliance, or combinations thereof, wherein said user interface comprises multiple user-executable tabs indicating; multiple functional server devices that are accessible via at least one secondary server device; any data filters offered by a selected functional server; media types for processing; and any devices containing a selected data type; connecting a chained series of peer-to-peer connections between said initiating processing device and said responder media processing devices via at least one server device and said at least one secondary server device comprising a same or different display, printer, or rendering appliance, or combinations thereof; and requesting and receiving from the secondary server device a list of media processing devices connected to the secondary server device; requesting and receiving from the connected secondary server device information defining a user interface for said media processing devices connected to said secondary server device; arranging network transport of a unit of digital media from a media source or storage device, or both, to at least one media filtering device or media conversion device, or both; actuating a media filtering or conversion operation, or both, on said media filtering device or media conversion device, or both; arranging network transport of a filtered or converted version, or both, of said unit of digital media from the at least one media filtering device or media conversion device, or both, to at least one same or different media display, print, or rendering device, or combinations thereof; and actuating an associated display, print or rendering function, or combinations thereof. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A method of operation of a graphical user interface appliance, comprising:
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providing a connection to a server device; receiving device information from the server device for multiple media processing devices connected to said server device, said device information defining a user interface for each respective media processing device; receiving further device information from an image rendering appliance for at least one different media processing device connected to said image rendering appliance, said further device information defining a user interface for said at least one different media processing device; constructing a single user interface based on said user interface information for controlling more than one of said multiple connected media processing devices including at least one media processing device that is connected to said server device and said at least one different media processing device connected to said image rendering appliance, wherein said user interface comprises multiple user-executable tabs indicating; multiple functional server devices that are accessible via at least one image rendering appliance; any data filters offered by a selected functional server; media types for processing; and any devices containing a selected data type; connecting a chained series of peer-to-peer connections between said at least one media processing device and said at least one different media processing device via said at least one server device and said image rendering appliance; requesting and receiving from the image rendering appliance a list of media processing devices connected to the image rendering appliance; requesting and receiving from the image rendering appliance information defining a user interface for said media processing devices connected to said image rendering appliance; arranging network transport of a unit of digital media from a media source or storage device, or both, to at least one media filtering device or media conversion device, or both; actuating a media filtering or conversion operation, or both, on said media filtering device or media conversion device, or both; arranging network transport of a filtered or converted version, or both, of said unit of digital media from the at least one media filtering device or media conversion device, or both, to at least one media display, print, or rendering device, or combinations thereof and actuating an associated display, print or rendering function, or combinations thereof. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. One or more processor readable storage devices having processor readable code embodied thereon, said processor readable code for programming one or more processors to perform a method of operation of a server device connected within a network of media processing devices, the method comprising:
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initiating respective connections with multiple media processing devices; initiating a connection with a further appliance which itself initiates a connections with at least one different media processing device; receiving and responding to a connection request from an initiating media processing device by providing a list of said connections between said initiating media processing device and said multiple media processing devices comprising responder media processing devices; requesting and receiving device information from each connected device of the multiple media processing devices, said device information defining a user interface for each of said multiple media processing devices; constructing a single user interface based on said user interface information for controlling more than one of said multiple connected media processing devices including said at least one different media processing device, wherein said user interface comprises multiple user-executable tabs indicating; multiple functional server devices that are accessible via at least one secondary server device; any data filters offered by a selected functional server; media types for processing; and any devices containing a selected data type; connecting a chained series of peer-to-peer connections between said initiating processing device and said responder media processing devices via at least one server device and said at least one secondary server device comprising a display, printer or rendering appliance, or combinations thereof; requesting and receiving from the secondary server device a list of media processing devices connected to the secondary server device; requesting and receiving from the connected secondary server device information defining a user interface for said media processing devices connected to said secondary server device; arranging network transport of a unit of digital media from a media source or storage device, or both, to at least one media filtering device or media conversion device, or both; actuating a media filtering or conversion operation, or both, on said media filtering device or media conversion device, or both; arranging network transport of a filtered or converted version, or both, of said unit of digital media from the at least one media filtering device or media conversion device, or both, to at least one same or different media display, print, or rendering device, or combinations thereof; and actuating an associated display, print or rendering function, or combinations thereof. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. One or more processor readable storage devices having processor readable code embodied thereon, said processor readable code for programming one or more processors to perform a method of operation of a graphical user interface appliance, the method comprising:
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providing a connection to a server device; receiving device information from the server device for multiple media processing devices connected to said server device, said device information defining a user interface for each respective media processing device; receiving further device information from a display, printer or rendering appliance, or combinations thereof, for at least one different media processing device connected to said display, printer or rendering appliance, or combinations thereof, said further device information defining a user interface for said at least one different media processing device; and constructing a single user interface based on said user interface information for controlling more than one of said multiple connected media processing devices including at least one media processing device that is connected to said server device and said at least one different media processing device connected to said display, printer or rendering appliance, or combinations thereof, wherein said user interface comprises multiple user-executable tabs indicating; multiple functional server devices that are accessible via at least one display, printer, or rendering appliance, or combination thereof; any data filters offered by a selected functional server; media types for processing; and any devices containing a selected data type; connecting a chained series of peer-to-peer connections between said at least one media processing device and said at least one different media processing device via said at least one server device and said display, printer or rendering appliance, or combinations thereof; requesting and receiving from the printer appliance a list of media processing devices connected to the display, printer or rendering appliance, or combinations thereof; requesting and receiving from the display, printer or rendering appliance, or combinations thereof, information defining a user interface for said media processing devices connected to said display, printer or rendering appliance, or combinations thereof; arranging network transport of a unit of digital media from a media source or storage device, or both, to at least one media filtering device or media conversion device, or both; actuating a media filtering or conversion operation, or both, on said media filtering device or media conversion device, or both; arranging network transport of a filtered or converted version, or both, of said unit of digital media from the at least one media filtering device or media conversion device, or both, to at least one same or different media display, print, or rendering device, or combinations thereof; and actuating an associated display, print or rendering function, or combinations thereof. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28)
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29. A networked control point appliance, comprising
(a) a user interface subsystem; -
(b) a user input subsystem; (c) a user interface configuration that is determined dynamically from a plurality of devices registered on the network; and (d) a control point subsystem; (e) wherein the user interface configuration includes a user interface component associated with each of the plurality of devices, and (e2) wherein said user interface configuration comprises multiple user-executable tabs indicating; multiple functional server devices that are accessible via at least one control point subsystem; any data filters offered by a selected functional server; media types for processing; and any devices containing a selected data type; (f) wherein the plurality of devices comprises (i) a media source or storage device or both; (ii) a media display, print or rendering device, or combinations thereof; and (iii) a media filtering device or media conversion device, or both; and (g) wherein responsive to a first user selection of a unit of digital media on the media source or storage device, or both, a second user selection of at least one media filtering device or media conversion device, or both, and a third user selection of at least one media display, print or rendering device, or combinations thereof, said control point subsystem is configured to; (1) arrange network transport of said unit of digital media from the media source or storage device, or both, to the at least one media filtering device or media conversion device, or both; (2) actuate a media filtering or conversion operation, or both, on said media filtering device or media conversion device, or both; (3) arrange network transport of a filtered or converted version, or both, of said unit of digital media from the at least one media filtering device or media conversion device, or both, to the at least one media display, print, or rendering device, or combinations thereof; and (4) actuate an associated display, print or rendering function, or combinations thereof. - View Dependent Claims (30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36)
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Specification