Apparatus and method for managing content data using content data information in an information terminal

• US 8,224,878 B2
• Filed: 04/04/2005
• Issued: 07/17/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Samsung Group)
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Samsung Group)
• Inventors: Moon, Byoung-Seoup
• Primary Examiner(s): Ng, Amy
• Application Number:
  US11/098,691
• Publication Number:
  US 20060085382A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,661 Days
• Field of Search: 707/104.1, 707/1, 707/3, 707/101, 707/822, 707/830
• US Class Current: 707/822
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/48 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/90 Details of database functions independent of the retrieved data types

Abstract

Disclosed is an apparatus and method for managing content data in an information terminal. Content data information corresponding to content data is stored in a content information database (DB). Whenever an application requests content data information, a content manager provides the application with index information of content data. Then, the application accesses the content information DB and reads content data information corresponding to the provided index information.

Claims

1. An apparatus for managing application-specific content data in an information terminal, the apparatus comprising:

a control unit in the information terminal; and

a memory module in the information terminal, the memory module comprising;

a plurality of data storage units for storing the application-specific content data, wherein each of the plurality of data storage units stores application-specific content data provided by a different one of a plurality of data generation applications;

a content information database (DB) for storing only content data information corresponding to the application-specific content data according to a plurality of categories being set according to at least one of an application type, a data format type and a data storage location type; and

a content manager for receiving a request message for specific content data information from an application of the information terminal, for searching a category corresponding to the request message in the content information DB and for providing content-information-DB index information of the content data information, which is generated by combining an index number of the searched category with an index number of the content data information stored in the searched category, in response to the request message, whereby the application can obtain content data information about the application-specific content data corresponding to the request message without directly accessing at least one of the plurality of data storage units of the plurality of data generation applications to search for the application-specific content data;

wherein, when the user selects a category, a list of content data stored in the selected category is displayed so as to enable the user to select one of the displayed content data, and index information of content data selected by the user is provided.

2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the content data information is stored according to categories, the categories being set according to applications or services.

3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the content data information is stored according to categories, the categories being set according to data format information.

4. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the content data information is stored according to categories, the categories being set according to data storage location information.

5. The apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the request message includes information relating to the category.

6. The apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein the request message includes information relating to the category.

7. The apparatus as claim in claim 4, wherein the request message includes information relating to the category.

8. A method for managing application-specific content data in an information terminal, the method comprising the steps of:

storing application-specific content data in a plurality of data storage units in the information terminal, wherein each of the plurality of data storage units stores application-specific content data provided by a different one of a plurality of data generation applications;

storing only content data information of the application-specific content data according to a plurality of categories being set according to at least one of an application type, a data format type and a data storage location type in a content information database DB in the information terminal;

receiving a request message for specific content data of the application-specific content data from an application of the information terminal;

searching the content information DB for a category corresponding to the request message; and

providing specific content-information-DB index information of content data information, which is generated by combining an index number of the searched category with an index number of the content data information stored in the searched category, in response to the request message, whereby the application can obtain content data information about the application-specific content data corresponding to the request message without directly accessing at least one of the plurality of data storage units of the plurality of data generation applications to search for the application-specific content data;

wherein, when the user selects a category, a list of content data stored in the selected category is displayed so as to enable the user to select one of the displayed content data, and index information of content data selected by the user is provided.

9. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein, in the content data information storage step, the content data information is stored according to categories, the categories being set according to applications or to services.

10. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein, in the content data information storage step, the content data information is stored according to categories, the categories being set according to data format information of content data corresponding to the content data information.

11. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein, in the content data information storage step, the content data information is stored according to categories, the categories being set according to data storage location information.

12. The method as claimed in claim 9, wherein the request message includes the category of the specific content data information.

13. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the request message includes the category of the specific content data information.

14. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the request message includes the category of the specific content data information.

15. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the search step comprises the steps of:

searching the content information DB for a category corresponding to category information included in the request message; and

selecting specific content data information included in the searched category.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein the search step further comprises a step of selecting a specific category when a user wants to move content data information of specific content data into the specific category.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein the search step further comprises a step of selecting a specific category when a user wants to move content data information of specific content data into the specific category.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein the search step further comprises a step of selecting a specific category when a user wants to move content data information of specific content data into the specific category.

19. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the category selection step comprises:

reading content data information of content data selected by the user;

displaying categories of the content information DB;

selecting one of the displayed categories by the user; and

inputting the read content data information into a category selected by the user.

20. The method as claimed in claim 19, wherein the category selection step further comprises the steps of:

checking whether the user selects creation of a new user category; and

creating the user category.

21. The method as claimed in claim 20, wherein the user category creation step comprises the steps of:

receiving category information of the user category from the user; and

creating the user category according to the received category information and storing the created user category in the content information DB.

22. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the list of content data has one of a thumbnail, an icon and a list item, which is corresponding to the content data.

23. The method as claimed in claim 22, wherein the list of a content data has one of a thumbnail, an icon and a list item, which is corresponding to the content data which can be selected by the user.

24. The method of claim 10, wherein the content data information storage step further comprises a step in which the content data information, which is classified and stored according to the categories, is further classified according to categories which are subdivided according to applications or services.

25. The method of claim 11, wherein the content data information storage step further comprises a step in which the content data information, which is classified and stored according to the categories, is further classified according to categories which are subdivided according to applications or services.