Method and apparatus for synchronizing contents of home network devices

• US 8,271,625 B2
• Filed: 04/11/2007
• Issued: 09/18/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Kwon, Won-seok, Lee, Joo-yeol, Oh, Seung-jae, Jung, Dong-shin, Han, Se-hee
• Primary Examiner(s): Moore, Ian N
• Assistant Examiner(s): ALEXANDER, JENEE LAUREN
• Application Number:
  US11/734,125
• Publication Number:
  US 20070239864A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,987 Days
• Field of Search: 709201-203, 709/248
• US Class Current: 709/221
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2812 describing content present in a home automation network, e.g. audio video content retrieval from the Internet G06F16/95
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes

Abstract

A method and apparatus for synchronizing contents of devices in a home network are provided. The apparatus includes a determination unit which determines whether a first device and a second device support a common synchronization protocol. A synchronization request unit then requests at least one device to synchronize the contents using the common synchronization protocol determined by the determination unit.

Claims

1. A method of synchronizing a first object stored in a first device with a second object stored in a second device by a control point in a Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) network, the method comprising:

storing first metadata of the first object in the first device along with the first object;

storing second metadata of the second object in the second device along with the second object;

determining a synchronization protocol supported by both the first device and the second device which can be used in synchronizing the first object and the second object based on Browse( ) responses of Content Directory Services (CDS) of the first device and the second device; and

requesting the first device to synchronize the first object using the determined synchronization protocol by calling a predetermined synchronization action provided by the first device,

wherein when the synchronization action is called, the first device synchronizes the first object with the second object using the determined synchronization protocol without further intervention of the control point, and

a first Browse( ) response of the CDS of the first device includes information on a synchronization protocol which is available to be used to synchronize the first object as the first metadata of the first object, and a second Browse( ) response of the CDS of the second device includes information on a synchronization protocol which is available to be used to synchronize the second object as the second metadata of the second object.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the synchronization action is defined in the CDS of the first device.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising identifying whether the CDS of the first device or the second device provides the synchronization action.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the identifying is performed based on a GetFeatureList( ) response provided by the CDS of the first device or the second device.

5. A non-transitory computer readable medium having embodied thereon a computer program for executing the method of claim 1.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising, managing by a Content Directory Service (CDS) of the first device information on the second device with respect to the first object of the first device and information on the second object as the first metadata of the first object.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the requesting includes sending a request from the control point to the first device, the request including information consisting of an identification of the first object, the determined synchronization protocol, and a call to a predetermined synchronization action provided by a Content Directory Service (CDS) of the first device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first device is a first media server which stores objects, including the first object, and corresponding contents therein, and the second device is a second media server which stores objects, including the second object, and corresponding contents therein.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the first object and the second object are stored in the first device and the second device, respectively, prior to the synchronizing.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the first object and the second object are synchronized with each other through a communication link which directly connects the first device to the second device.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the first metadata of the first object is attached to the first object.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the first metadata is included in the first object, and the second metadata is included in the second object.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the first metadata comprises an identifier of the second device, an identifier of the second object, and a first list of synchronization protocols available to synchronize the first object,

the second metadata comprises an identifier of the first device, an identifier of the first object, and a second list of synchronization protocols available to synchronize the second object;

and

wherein the determining the synchronization protocol supported by both the first device and the second device comprises, by a control point, receiving the first list and the second list from the first device and the second device, respectively, comparing the first list and the second list, and determining a common synchronization protocol supported by both the first device and the second device as the determined synchronization protocol.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein, when the synchronization action is called, the first device extracts the identifier of the second device and the identifier of the second object from the first metadata, and calls another predetermined synchronization action provided by the second device corresponding to the extracted identifier of the second device and the extracted identifier of the second object,

and the first device and the second device exchange resources of the first object and the second object.

15. A control point apparatus for synchronizing a first object stored in a first device with a second object stored in a second device in a Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) network, the apparatus comprising:

a determination unit which receives a first Browse( ) response of Content Directory Services (CDS) of the first device which includes first information on a synchronization protocol which is available to be used to synchronize the first object as first metadata of the first object, receives a second Browse( ) response of the CDS of the second device which includes second information on a synchronization protocol which is available to be used to synchronize the second object as second metadata of the second object, and determines a synchronization protocol supported by both the first device and the second device which can be used to synchronize the first object and the second object based on the first information on the synchronization protocol provided by first metadata and the second information on the synchronization protocol provided by the second metadata; and

a synchronization requesting unit which requests the first device to synchronize the first object using the synchronization protocol determined by the determination unit by calling a predetermined synchronization action provided by the first device,

wherein when the synchronization action is called, the first device synchronizes the first object with the second object using the synchronization protocol without further intervention of the control point.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the requesting is performed by calling a synchronization action provided by a CDS of the first device or the second device.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, further comprising an identifying unit which identifies whether the CDSs of the first device and the second device provide the synchronization action.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the identifying unit identifies whether the synchronization action is provided based on a GetFeatureList( ) response provided by the CDSs of the first device and the second device.

19. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the first device is a first media server which stores the content of the first device, and the second device is a second media server which stores the content of the second device, and the content of the first device and the content of the second device are synchronized with each other through a communication link which directly connects the first device to the second device after the first device receives the request.

20. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the content of the first device and the content of the second device are stored in the first device and the second device, respectively, prior to the synchronizing.

21. A method of synchronizing a first object stored in a first device with a second object stored in a second device in a Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) network, the method comprising:

registering in the first device, by the first device, metadata of the first object, wherein the metadata of the first object comprises an identification of the second object stored in the second device, an identification of the second device, and at least one synchronization protocol which is available to be used to synchronize the first object of the first device;

transmitting, by the first device, information on the at least one synchronization protocol which is available to be used to synchronize the first object to a control point as the metadata of the first object via a Browse( ) response of a Content Directory Service (CDS) of the first device;

receiving, by the first device, a request to synchronize the first object from the control point according to one of the at least one synchronization protocol;

analyzing, by the first device, the metadata of the first object and determining, by the first device, the identification of the second device and the identification of the second object stored in the second device which is to be synchronized with the first object from the first metadata of the first object; and

synchronizing, by the first device, the first object and the second object according to one of the at least one synchronization protocol which is available to be used to synchronize the first object and based on the registered identification of the second object and the identification of the second device without further intervention of the control point.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the receiving is a process of receiving a message for calling a synchronization action defined in a CDS of the first device.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein the synchronizing comprises calling, by the first device, a synchronization action defined in a CDS of the second device in order for the second device to obtain update information of the first object,

wherein, the second device receives a call for the synchronization action from the first device, and upon receiving the call for the synchronization action, the second device:

transmits a request for updating information corresponding to the first object to the first device, wherein the request includes an identification of the first object stored in the first device, wherein the identification of the first object is retrieved from metadata of the second object registered in the second device,

receives the updating information corresponding to the first object from the first device, and

updates the second object based on the received updating information corresponding to the first object.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising:

informing the control point that a CDS of the first device can provide the synchronization action.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the informing is performed by using a GetFeatureList( ) response defined in the CDS of the first device.

26. A non-transitory computer readable medium having embodied thereon a computer program for executing the method of claim 21.

27. The method of claim 21, wherein the control point, the first device and the second device are separate and distinct devices, and the first object and the second object are synchronized with each other through a communication link which directly connects the first device to the second device.

28. The method of claim 21, wherein the first device is a first media server which stores objects, including the first object, and corresponding contents therein, and the second device is a second media server which stores objects, including the second object, and corresponding contents therein.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the first object and the second object are stored in the first device and the second device, respectively, prior to the synchronizing.

30. The method of claim 21, further comprising registering in the second device, by the second device, metadata of the second object, wherein the metadata of the second object includes an identification of the first object stored in the first device, an identification of the first device, and at least one synchronization protocol which is configured to synchronize the first object that corresponds to the content of the first device.

31. An apparatus for synchronizing a first object stored in a first device with a second object stored in a second device in a Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) network, the apparatus comprising:

an object managing unit of the first device which registers metadata of the first object, wherein the metadata of the first object comprises an identification of the second object stored in the second device, an identification of the second device, and at least one synchronization protocol which is available to be used to synchronize a first object;

a transmitting unit which transmits information on the at least one synchronization protocol which is available to be used to synchronize the first object to a control point as metadata of the first object via a Browse( ) response of a Content Directory Service (CDS) of the first device; and

a synchronizing unit of the first device which analyzes the metadata of the first object, determines the identification of the second device and the identification of the second object stored in the second device which is to be synchronized with the first object from the metadata of the first object, and synchronizes the first object and the second object according to one of the at least one synchronization protocol based on the identification of the second object and the identification of the second device without further intervention of the control point.

32. The apparatus of claim 31, further comprising a request receiving unit which receives a request to synchronize the first object from the control point,

wherein the synchronization unit synchronizes the first object and the second object in response to the request.

33. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the request receiving unit receives a request to synchronize by receiving a message for calling a synchronization action defined in a CDS of the first device.

34. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein the synchronizing unit calls a synchronization action defined in a CDS of the second device in order for the second device to obtain update information of the first object.

35. The apparatus of claim 34, further comprising an informing unit which informs a control point that the CDS of the first device can provide the synchronization action.

36. The apparatus of claim 35, wherein the informing unit sends information as to whether the first device can provide the synchronization action to the control point using a GetFeatureList( ) response defined in the CDS of the first device.

37. The apparatus of claim 31, further comprising a Content Directory Service (CDS) of the first device which manages information on the second device with respect to the first object and information on the second object to be synchronized as the first metadata of the first object.

38. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein the first device is a first media server which stores objects, including the first object, and corresponding contents therein, and the second device is a second media server which stores objects, including the second object, and corresponding contents therein, and the first object and the second object are synchronized with each other through a communication link which directly connects the first device to the second device.

39. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein the first object and the second object are stored in the first device and the second device, respectively, prior to the synchronizing.

40. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein the metadata of the first object is attached to the first object.