Node device, information communication system, method for retrieving content data, and computer readable medium

• US 8,315,979 B2
• Filed: 03/26/2010
• Issued: 11/20/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Matsuo, Hideki, Nakamura, Kazuhiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham, Hung Q
• Assistant Examiner(s): CHEUNG, HUBERT G
• Application Number:
  US12/732,785
• Publication Number:
  US 20100250594A1
• Time in Patent Office: 970 Days
• Field of Search: 707/622
• US Class Current: 707/622
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2471 Distributed queries
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1065 Discovery involving distributed pre-established resource-based relationships among peers, e.g. based on distributed hash tables [DHT] pre-configuration of logical or physical connections H04L67/1053
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739

Abstract

A node device connected to other node devices has a particular obtaining unit that obtains search information including, a first determination unit that applies a predetermined rule to determine whether the search information obtained by the particular obtaining unit is required to be stored in the node device. The node device has a first storage unit that stores search information when required, and a second determination unit that determines whether the search information obtained by the particular obtaining unit is newly published in the network. A second storage unit stores the search information when the second determination unit determines that the storage information is newly published. A search unit searches the content data, based on the search information stored in at least one of the first storage unit and the second storage unit.

Claims

1. A node device configured to communicate with a plurality of other node devices via a network as part of an information communication system, the node device comprising:

a memory configured to store first content data, first catalogue information that includes a first predetermined value that identifies the node device for storing the first content data in the memory, second catalogue information that includes a second predetermined value that identifies one or more of the plurality of the other node devices for storing second content data, and third catalogue information; and

a processor configured to execute computer-readable instructions to cause the node device to;

receive catalogue information comprising at least one of the first catalogue information and the second catalogue information, in combination with publication time information corresponding to a time that the first content data or the second content data was published in the network, respectively;

apply a predetermined rule to determine whether the catalogue information received by the node device includes at least one of the first predetermined value and the second predetermined value;

determine whether the catalogue information received by the node device is newly published in the network based on the publication time information received with that catalogue information;

store the catalogue information received by the node device as the first catalogue information in the memory when the catalogue information received by the node device includes the first predetermined value;

store the catalogue information received by the node device as the second catalogue information in the memory when the catalogue information received by the node device includes the second predetermined value;

store the catalogue information received by the node device as the third catalogue information in the memory when the catalogue information received by the node device is determined to be newly published; and

search at least one of the first catalogue information and the third catalogue information stored in the memory for the first content data and the second content data prior to searching the second catalogue information stored on the memory.

2. The node device according to claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to store the second catalogue information in the memory when the catalogue information received by the node device currently is not stored in the memory.

3. The node device according to claim 1, wherein:

the processor is configured to obtain present time information corresponding to a present time information,

determining whether the catalogue information received by the node device is newly published in the network comprises determining whether a difference between the publication time information and the present time information is less than a third predetermined value, and

when the difference is less than the third predetermined value, storing the catalogue information received by the node device as the third catalogue information in the memory, including the publication time information.

4. The node device according to claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to:

determine whether the memory has a sufficient storage area for storing the third catalogue information; and

delete at least one of the first catalogue information, the second catalogue information, and the third catalogue information currently stored in the memory based on a predetermined rule when the processor determines the memory does not have the sufficient storage area for storing the third catalogue information.

5. The node device according to claim 4, wherein the processor is configured to:

to obtain present time information corresponding to a present time;

determine a difference between the publication time information in the third catalogue information and the present time information; and

delete the third catalogue information currently stored in the memory in order from the third catalogue information having a greater difference to the catalogue information having a lesser difference.

6. The node device according to claim 5, wherein the processor is configured to delete the third catalogue information currently stored in the memory when the publication time information is prior to the present time information, in order from the third catalogue information having a greatest difference to the third catalogue information having a least difference.

7. The node device according to claim 5, wherein the processor is configured to delete the third catalogue information currently stored in the memory when the publication time information is later than the present time information, in order from the catalogue information having the greater difference to the catalogue information having the lesser difference.

8. The node device according to claim 1, wherein a greater amount of storage capacity in the memory is allocated to the third catalogue information than to the first catalogue information.

9. The node device according to claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to store identification information in the memory, the identification information comprising information that identifies one node device from among the node device and the plurality of the other node devices on which the identification information is stored,

wherein the predetermined rule applied by the processor to determine whether the catalogue information received by the node device includes at least one of the first predetermined value and the second predetermined value is based on a comparison result between the identification information and the catalogue information received by the node device.

10. The node device according to claim 9, wherein:

the identification information received by the node device comprises at least one number;

the catalogue information received by the node device comprises at least one number; and

for each of the catalogue information received by the node device, the predetermined rule applied by the processor to determine whether the catalogue information received by the node device includes at least one of the first predetermined value and the second predetermined value is also based on a comparison result of whether the at least one number of the identification information corresponds with the at least one number of the catalogue information received by the node device.

11. The node device according to claim 10, wherein the predetermined rule applied by the processor to determine whether the catalogue information received by the node device includes at least one of the first predetermined value and the second predetermined value is based on a comparison result of whether a high rank digit of the at least one number of the identification information corresponds with a high rank digit of the at least one number of the catalogue information received by the node device.

12. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable medium having computer readable instructions stored thereon, the computer readable instructions configured to be executed by a processor in at least one node device of a plurality of node devices connected via a network in an information communication system in which content data is stored in the at least one node device and is accessible from the other of the plurality of the node devices, the computer program product causing the processor to perform steps comprising:

receiving catalogue information comprising at least one of first catalogue information that includes a first predetermined value that identifies the at least one node device for storing first content data in a memory of the at least one node device and second catalogue information that includes a second predetermined value that identifies one or more of the plurality of the node devices for storing second content data, in combination with publication time information corresponding to a time the first content data or the second content data was published, respectively;

applying a predetermined rule to determine whether the received catalogue information includes at least one of the first predetermined value and the second predetermined value;

determining whether the received catalogue information is newly published based on the publication time information received with that catalogue information;

storing the received catalogue information as first catalogue information in the memory of the at least one node device when the received catalogue information includes the first predetermined value;

storing the received catalogue information as second catalogue information in the memory of the at least one node device when the received catalogue information includes the second predetermined value;

storing the received catalogue information as third catalogue information in the memory of the at least one node device when the received catalogue information is determined to be newly published; and

searching at least one of the first catalogue information and the third catalogue information stored in the memory for the first content data and the second content data prior to searching the second catalogue information stored on the memory.

13. A method for retrieving content data in an information communication system in which a plurality of node devices are connected via a network and communicate with each other, the content data being stored in a memory of at least one node device of the plurality of the node devices and being accessible from other node devices of the plurality of the node devices, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving catalogue information comprising at least one of first catalogue information that includes a first predetermined value that identifies the at least one node device for storing the first content data in the memory and second catalogue information that includes a second predetermined value that identifies one or more of the other node devices for storing second content data, in combination with publication time information corresponding to a time that the first content data or the second content data was published, respectively;

applying a predetermined rule to determine whether the received catalogue information includes at least one of the first predetermined value and the second predetermined value;

determining whether the received catalogue information is newly published based on the publication time information received with that catalogue information;

storing the received catalogue information as first catalogue information in the memory of the at least one node device when the received catalogue information includes the first predetermined value;

storing the received catalogue information as second catalogue information in the memory of the at least one node device when the received catalogue information includes the second predetermined value;

storing the received catalogue information as third catalogue information in the memory when the received catalogue information is determined to be newly published; and

searching at least one of the first catalogue information and the third catalogue information stored in the memory for the first content data and the second content data prior to searching the second catalogue information stored on the memory.

14. An information communication system comprising:

a first device comprising;

a first memory configured to store first content data, first catalogue information, second catalogue information, and third catalogue information, wherein the first catalogue information includes a first predetermined value that identifies the first device for storing the first content data in the first memory;

a first processor configured to execute first computer-readable instructions to cause the first device to perform as a first node in the information communication system;

a second device comprising;

a second memory configured to store second content data, the first catalogue information, the second catalogue information, and the third catalogue information, wherein the second catalogue information includes a second predetermined value that identifies the second device for storing the second content data in the second memory;

a second processor configured to execute second computer-readable instructions to cause the second device to perform as a server or a second node in the information communication system,

wherein the first processor executes the first computer-readable instructions to;

receive catalogue information comprising at least one of the first catalogue information and the second catalogue information, in combination with publication time information corresponding to a time that the first content data or the second content data was published, respectively, in the information communication system;

apply a predetermined rule to determine whether the catalogue information received by the first device includes at least one of the first predetermined value and the second predetermined value;

determine whether the catalogue information received by the first device is newly published in the information communication system, based on the publication time information received with that catalogue information;

store the catalogue information received by the first device as the first catalogue information in the first memory when the catalogue information received by the first device includes the first predetermined value;

store the catalogue information received by the first device as the second catalogue information in the first memory of the first device when the catalogue information received by the first device includes the second predetermined value;

store the catalogue information received by the first device as the third catalogue information in the first memory of the first device when the catalogue information received by the first device is determined to be newly published; and

search at least one of the first catalogue information and the third catalogue information stored in the first memory for the first content data and the second content data prior to searching the second catalogue information stored on the first memory.

15. The information communication system according to claim 14, wherein:

the second processor is configured to execute the second computer-readable instructions to cause the second device to perform as the server in the information communication system; and

the information communication system further comprises at least one third device comprising;

a third memory configured to store the second content data, the first catalogue information, the second catalogue information, and the third catalogue information; and

a third processor configured to execute third computer-readable instructions to cause the at least one third device to perform as at least one second node in the information communication system.

16. The information communication system according to claim 15, wherein the second processor executes the second computer-readable instructions to transmit the first catalogue information, the second catalogue information, and the third catalogue information to the first device and the at least one third device.