Electronic mail communications system with client email internet service provider (ISP) polling application and related methods

• US 8,301,711 B2
• Filed: 11/07/2011
• Issued: 10/30/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Research In Motion Limited (Blackberry Limited)
• Inventors: Roberts, Aaron
• Primary Examiner(s): Hussain, Imad
• Application Number:
  US13/290,324
• Publication Number:
  US 20120054291A1
• Time in Patent Office: 358 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]

Abstract

An electronic mail (email) communications system may include a mobile wireless communications device, a wireless communications network connected to the Internet, and an Internet Service Provider (ISP) server connected to the Internet for receiving emails for a given user. The system may further include an email proxy server connected to the Internet for pushing emails from the ISP server to the mobile wireless communications device via the wireless communications network. A user computer may be connected to the Internet and may include a client email application for periodically polling the ISP server to detect new emails. The client email application may also send new email notifications to the email proxy server upon detection of new emails to cause the email proxy server to push the new emails to the mobile wireless communications device.

Claims

1. An electronic mail (email) system comprising:

a first server configured to push emails from a second server to at least one mobile wireless communications device; and

a processor configured to poll the second server to detect new emails, and to send new email notifications without the new emails to said first server upon detection of new emails to cause said first server to push the new emails to the at least one mobile wireless communications device.

2. The email system of claim 1 wherein said processor is configured to periodically poll the second server.

3. The email system of claim 1 wherein each email has a respective unique identification (UID) associated therewith;

and wherein said processor is configured to poll the second server for new emails based upon the UIDs.

4. The email system of claim 3 wherein the new email notifications comprise the UIDs of the new emails.

5. The email system of claim 1 wherein said processor is configured to establish a semi-permanent Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) connection with said first server for sending new email notifications.

6. The email system of claim 5 wherein said first server is configured to poll the second server to detect new emails if the semi-permanent HTTP connection is terminated.

7. The email system of claim 5 wherein said processor is configured to initiate the semi-permanent connection using an HTTP GET request.

8. The email system of claim 5 wherein said processor is configured to send the new email notifications using an HTTP POST request.

9. The email system of claim 1 wherein said processor is configured to further provide an operational status confirmation notification to said first server after a period during which no new email notifications are sent.

10. The email system of claim 1 wherein said processor is configured so that a period of polling is user selectable.

11. An electronic mail (email) system comprising:

a first server configured to push emails from a second server to at least one mobile wireless communications device, each email having a respective unique identification (UID) associated therewith; and

a processor configured to

establish a semi-permanent Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) connection with said first server,

poll the second server to detect new emails based upon the UIDs, and

send new email notifications without the new emails to said first server upon detection of new emails to cause said first server to push the new emails to the at least one mobile wireless communications device.

12. The email system of claim 11 wherein said processor is configured to periodically poll the second server.

13. The email system of claim 11 wherein said first server is configured to poll the second server to detect new emails if the semi-permanent HTTP connection is terminated.

14. The email system of claim 11 wherein said processor is configured to initiate the semi-permanent connection using an HTTP GET request.

15. The email system of claim 11 wherein said processor is configured to send the new email notifications using an HTTP POST request.

16. The email system of claim 11 wherein said processor is configured to further provide an operational status confirmation notification to said first server after a period during which no new email notifications are sent.

17. The email system of claim 11 wherein said processor is configured so that a period of polling is user selectable.

18. An electronic mail (email) communications method comprising:

polling a second server connected to detect new emails for a processor;

sending new email notifications without the new emails to a first server using the processor upon detection of new emails; and

pushing emails from the second server to a mobile wireless communications device user using the first server.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein polling comprises periodically polling.

20. The method of claim 18 wherein each email has a respective unique identification (UID) associated therewith;

and wherein polling comprises polling the second server for new emails based upon the UIDs.

21. The method of claim 18 further comprising establishing a semi-permanent Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) connection between the processor and the first server.

22. The method of claim 21 further comprising polling the second server to detect new emails if the semi-permanent HTTP connection is terminated.

23. The method of claim 21 wherein the processor initiates the semi-permanent connection using an HTTP GET request;

and wherein sending comprises sending the new email notifications using an HTTP POST request.