Home network device information architecture

• US 8,032,833 B1
• Filed: 06/12/2000
• Issued: 10/04/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/27/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Wang, Dongyan, Humpleman, Richard
• Primary Examiner(s): Lo; Weilun
• Assistant Examiner(s): TRAN, MYLINH T
• Application Number:
  US09/592,599
• Time in Patent Office: 4,131 Days
• Field of Search: 345733-740, 345/700, 345/764, 345/835, 345/853, 345/969, 709/203, 709/220, 709/223, 709/224, 715733-740, 715/700, 715/764, 715/835, 715/853, 700/19, 700/20, 700/17, 700/83
• US Class Current: 715/734
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2809 indicating that an appliance service is present in a home automation network monitoring functionality H04L43/0817; discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services, H04L67/51
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/40091 Bus bridging LAN interconnection over a bridge based backbone H04L12/462; single bridge functionality H04L12/462
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/40117 Interconnection of audio or video/imaging devices home automation networks H04L12/2803; bitstream network arrangements specially adapted for distribution of digital video signals H04N7/24
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2841 Wireless
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2849 Audio/video appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/285 Generic home appliances, e.g. refrigerators
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0253 using browsers or web-pages for accessing management information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/046 comprising network management agents or mobile agents therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/18 Delegation of network management function, e.g. customer network management [CNM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/025 for remote control or remote monitoring of applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/303 Terminal profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/75 Indicating network or usage conditions on the user display
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A method and system for providing a user interface for a user to discover and control devices that are currently connected to a network, such that at least one of the devices performs steps, by: (a) obtaining information from one or more of the devices currently connected to the network, the information including device information; and (b) generating a user interface description based at least on the obtained information, the user interface description including a reference associated with the device information of each of the devices currently connected to the network, such that the reference includes at least one link to information contained in the devices currently connected to the network. As such, a user interface can be displayed using the references in the user interface description, for controlling the devices currently connected to the network.

Claims

1. A method for controlling devices that are currently connected to a physical layer of a network, the method comprising the steps of:

for at least one of said devices;

(a) discovering a plurality of devices that are currently connected to the network;

(b) obtaining information for commanding and controlling at least one of the plurality of devices by at least one other device currently connected to physical layer of the network, wherein the information includes at least a device name and service type, and wherein the physical layer provides a communication medium that can be used by the plurality of devices to communicate with each other;

wherein the service type comprises a type of service that each device can provide and the user control interface is generated and displayed based on at least an attribute and capability of the service type, each reference in the user interface includes at least one hyper-text link providing direct access from the user interface to at least the user control interface description, the user interface includes device data corresponding to each device based on the information obtained from each device, and upon the one link in the user interface being user activated, the activated link is used for accessing the associated device and retrieving control interface description contained in the associated device for generating and displaying a device user interface based on the retrieved control interface description, for user interaction with that associated device;

(c) generating a graphical user interface based at least on the obtained information, the user interface including one or more references associated with each of the devices currently connected to the network; and

(d) displaying the generated user interface such that a user can use each reference of the displayed user interface to access each device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the service type comprises a type of service that each device can provide and the user control interface is generated and displayed based on at least an attribute and capability of the service type.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein each reference in the user interface includes at least one electronic link providing direct access from the user interface to at least the user control interface description.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the user interface includes device data corresponding to each device based on the information obtained from each device, and wherein when the one link in the user interface is user activated the activated link is used to access the associated device and retrieve control interface description contained in the associated device to generate and display a device user interface based on the retrieved control interface description, for user interaction with that associated device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the user interface further includes device data corresponding to each device based on the information obtained from each device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the step (c) of generating the user interface further includes the step of associating a hyper-text link with the information in each of said devices currently connected to the network, such that each hyper-text link provides access from the user interface to the information in an associated device.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said information in each device comprises an HTML page for user interaction with and/or control of that device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the device information in each device includes device identification information for that device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the network is a home network.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the graphical user interface employing browser technology to allow users to control and command devices over the home network.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the generated user interface includes at least one icon graphic for a device.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the generated user interface includes a hierarchy of control pages.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one of said devices, that performs steps (a)-(d), can be controlled by another device currently connected to the network.

14. A network system for performing a service, comprising:

a physical layer providing a communication medium that can be used by connected devices to communicate with each other;

at least one of the connected devices storing information for user interaction with the at least one device;

an agent in the at least one device for;

(a) discovering the plurality of devices that are currently connected to the physical layer of the network;

(b) obtaining information for commanding and controlling at least one of the plurality of devices by at least one other device currently connected to the physical layer of the network,

wherein the information includes at least a device name and service type;

wherein the service type comprises a type of service that each device can provide and the user control interface is generated and displayed based on at least an attribute and capability of the service type, each reference in the user interface includes at least one hyper-text link providing direct access from the user interface to at least the user control interface description, the user interface includes device data corresponding to each device based on the information obtained from each device, and upon the one link in the user interface being user activated, the activated link is used for accessing the associated device and retrieving control interface description contained in the associated device for generating and displaying a device user interface based on the retrieved control interface description, for user interaction with that associated device;

(c) generating a graphical user interface based at least on the obtained information, the user interface including one or more references associated with each of the devices currently connected to the network; and

(d) displaying the generated user interface such that a user can use each reference of the displayed user interface to access each device.

15. The network system of claim 14 wherein the service type comprises a type of service that each device can provide and the user control interface is generated and displayed based on at least an attribute and capability of the service type.

16. The network system of claim 15, wherein the agent generates the user interface such that the user interface further includes device data corresponding to each device based on the information obtained from each device, the device data providing at least one electronic link to the user interface in each device, such that when the one link is user activated the activated link is used to access the associated device and retrieve control interface description contained in the associated device to generate and display a device user interface based on the retrieved control interface associated for user interaction with that corresponding device.

17. The network system of claim 14, wherein the user interface further includes device data corresponding to each device based on the information obtained from each device.

18. The network system of claim 14, wherein the agent further associates a hyper-text link in the with the information in each of said devices currently connected to the network, such that each hyper-text link provides access from the user interface to the information in an associated device.

19. The network system of claim 14, wherein each reference in the user interface includes at least one electronic link providing direct access from the user interface to at least the user control interface description.

20. The network system of claim 14 further comprising means for using each link in the user interface to access the information in each associated device, and generating the user interface including device data corresponding to each device using the accessed information in each device.

21. A network system for performing a service, comprising:

a physical layer, wherein the physical layer provides a communication medium than can be used by connected devices to communicate with each other in the network;

multiple devices connected to the physical layer, one or more of the multiple devices storing information for user interaction with that device, and one or more of the multiple devices each including an agent for;

(a) discovering a plurality of devices that are currently connected to the network in an autonomous manner;

(b) obtaining information for commanding and controlling at least one of the plurality of devices by at least one other device currently connected to the physical layer of the network, wherein the information includes at least a device name and service type;

wherein the service type comprises a type of service that each device can provide and the user control interface is generated and displayed based on at least an attribute and capability of the service type, each reference in the user interface includes at least one hyper-text link providing direct access from the user interface to at least the user control interface description, the user interface includes device data corresponding to each device based on the information obtained from each device, and upon the one link in the user interface being user activated, the activated link is used for accessing the associated device and retrieving control interface description contained in the associated device for generating and displaying a device user interface based on the retrieved control interface description, for user interaction with that associated device;

(c) generating a graphical user interface based at least on the obtained information, the user interface including one or more references associated with each of the devices currently connected to the network; and

(d) displaying the generated user interface such that a user can use each reference of the displayed user interface to access each device.

22. The network system of claim 21, wherein the service type comprises a type of service that each device can provide and the user control interface is generated and displayed based on at least an attribute and capability of the service type.

23. The network system of claim 22, wherein each agent generates the user interface such that the user interface further includes device data corresponding to each device based on the information obtained from each device, the device data providing a link to the user interface in each device, such that when the link is user activated the activated link is used to access the associated device and retrieve control interface description contained in the associated device to generate and display a device user interface based on the retrieved control interface description, for user interaction with that associated device.

24. The network system of claim 21, wherein the user interface further includes device data corresponding to each device based on the information obtained from each device.

25. The network system of claim 21, wherein each agent further associates a hyper-text link in the user interface with the information in each of said devices currently connected to the network, such that each hyper-text link provides access from the user interface to the information in an associated device.

26. The network system of claim 21, wherein each reference in the user interface includes at least one electronic link providing direct access from the user interface to at least the user control interface description.