Proximity synchronizing audio gateway device

• US 7,890,661 B2
• Filed: 05/16/2001
• Issued: 02/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/16/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AOL Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Andrews, Hoyet Harrison III, Gladwin, Stephen Christopher, Spurgat, Jeffrey Jonathan
• Primary Examiner(s): Refai; Ramsey
• Application Number:
  US09/858,810
• Publication Number:
  US 20020174269A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,562 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709/400, 709/248, 709/227, 709/246
• US Class Current: 709/248
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/88 which are wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1026 at the edge
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1036 at the edge
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/289 Intermediate processing functionally located close to the data consumer application, e.g. in same machine, in same home or in same sub-network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41265 having a remote control device for bidirectional communication between the remote control device and client device unidirectional remote control device H04N21/42204

Abstract

A digital audio gateway device for use in a wireless network of digital audio playback devices. The gateway device is wirelessly linked to one or more digital audio playback devices to provide a gateway to the Internet for the digital audio playback devices. In addition to functioning as a gateway, the device provides additional functionality and may act as a cache of digital audio data for the various digital audio players connected in the wireless network and may also act to automatically update digital audio content on the audio players, synchronize digital audio content and playlists between the digital audio players and continue automatically or upon user request a particular playlist as the user moves from one digital audio player to another.

Claims

1. A digital gateway device comprising:

a system bus;

a microprocessor coupled to said system bus;

one or more storage devices coupled to said system bus for storing digital content;

a wireless communications platform for automatically establishing a communication link with one or more mobile devices that come into range of the digital gateway device and automatically downloading said stored digital content to said one or more mobile devices; and

an interface for establishing a communication link between said wireless communication platform and said one or more mobile devices,

said digital gateway device configured to automatically synchronize said stored digital content stored in said one or more storage devices with stored content in said one or more mobile devices whenever said one or more mobile devices is in range, and

said digital gateway device further configured to;

automatically identify playlist information on a first of said one or more mobile devices, the playlist information comprising a playlist and a position in the playlist currently playing on said first mobile device, and

transmit the playlist information to at least a second of said one or more mobile devices that is in range, wherein the second mobile device plays digital content associated with the position in the playlist upon receipt of the playlist information, and wherein the second mobile device seamlessly continues playback of the digital content associated with the position in the playlist and currently playing on the first mobile device, when the first mobile device comes into range.

2. The digital gateway device as recited in claim 1, wherein said wireless communications platform is coupled to external sources of digital content.

3. The digital gateway device as recited in claim 1, wherein said wireless communication platform includes a system for automatically detecting when said one or more mobile devices come into range.

4. The digital gateway device as recited in claim 1 wherein said one or more mobile devices include a microprocessor.

5. The digital gateway device as recited in claim 4, wherein said one or more mobile devices includes a user input system.

6. The digital gateway device as recited in claim 5, wherein said one or more mobile devices includes a display.

13. The digital gateway device of claim 1, wherein the one or more mobile devices are at least one of a PDA, MP3 player, mobile phone, and a handheld computer.

14. The digital gateway device of claim 1, wherein the digital content includes audio files and the playlist information indicates a playback sequence of the audio files.

7. A method for automatically transmitting audio content to a mobile device comprising:

storing audio content in a computer system;

detecting when the mobile device moves to a first location sufficiently proximate to the computer system to create a wireless communications link with the mobile device; and

automatically synchronizing the stored audio content to the mobile device when the wireless communications link is created;

automatically identifying playlist information on the mobile device, the playlist information comprising a playlist and a position in the playlist currently playing on the mobile device; and

transmitting the playlist information to at least one other mobile device that is at a second location sufficiently proximate to the computer system to create a wireless communication link to the computer system, wherein the other mobile device plays audio content associated with the position in the playlist upon receipt of the playlist information, and wherein the other mobile device seamlessly continues playback of the audio content associated with the position in the playlist and currently playing on the mobile device, when the mobile device moves to the first location.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

receiving digital content from external sources.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

automatically detecting when the mobile device comes into range.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the mobile device includes at least one of a microprocessor, an input system, and a display.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the playlist information is transmitted as part of a broadcast message to the at least one other mobile device.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the mobile device is at least one of a PDA, MP3 player, mobile phone, and a handheld computer.

15. The method of claim 7, wherein the playlist information indicates a playback sequence of audio content.

16. A method for providing audio content from a gateway, comprising:

detecting when a first mobile device moves to a location sufficiently proximate to the gateway to create a wireless communications link with the gateway;

automatically synchronizing audio content stored on the first mobile device with audio content stored on the gateway when the wireless communications link is created; and

sending playlist information stored on the mobile device to at least a second mobile device or a fixed device that is sufficiently proximate to the gateway to create the wireless communication link with the gateway, the playlist information comprising a playlist and a position in the playlist currently playing on the first mobile device, wherein the second mobile device or fixed device plays audio content associated with the position in the playlist upon receipt of the playlist information, and wherein the second mobile device or fixed device seamlessly continues playback of the audio content associated with the position in the playlist and currently playing on the first mobile device, when the first mobile device moves to the location.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the first mobile device and the second mobile device includes at least one of a microprocessor, an input system, and a display.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the playlist information is received as part of a broadcast message by the second mobile device or the fixed device.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the first mobile device and the second mobile device is at least one of a PDA, MP3 player, mobile phone, and a handheld computer.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein the playlist information indicates a playback sequence of audio content.

21. A method for automatically synchronizing playback among players comprising:

storing multimedia content in a computer system;

detecting when a mobile player moves to a first location sufficiently proximate to the computer system to establish a wireless communications link to the mobile player;

automatically synchronizing the stored content in the computer system with content stored in the mobile player upon establishment of the wireless communications link;

automatically identifying playlist information on the mobile player, the playlist information including an identification of a multimedia content sequence playing on the mobile device and a position in the multimedia content sequence that is currently playing on the mobile player; and

transmitting the playlist information to at least one other player that is at a second location sufficiently proximate to the computer system to establish a wireless communication link to the computer system, wherein the other player plays multimedia content associated with the position in the multimedia content sequence upon receipt of the playlist information, and further wherein the other player seamlessly continues playback of the multimedia content associated with the position in the multimedia content sequence and playing on the mobile player, when the mobile player moves to the first location.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the other player comprises at least one of a fixed player or a mobile player.