Systems and methods for establishing connections between devices communicating over a network

• US 8,838,810 B2
• Filed: 04/27/2012
• Issued: 09/16/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/17/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sling Media LLC (Dish Network Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sling Media Incorporated (Dish Network Corporation)
• Inventors: Lucas, Brian, Asnis, Ilya
• Primary Examiner(s): SALL, EL HADJI MALICK
• Application Number:
  US13/458,852
• Publication Number:
  US 20120215929A1
• Time in Patent Office: 872 Days
• Field of Search: 709/228, 709/203, 709/231, 709/227
• US Class Current: 709/227
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/02 for separating internal from external traffic, e.g. firewalls
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1043 Gateway controllers, e.g. media gateway control protocol [MGCP] controllers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/765 intermediate
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/141 Setup of application sessions admission control or resource allocation in data switching networks H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/567 Integrating service provisioning from a plurality of service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/16 Implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/18 Multiprotocol handlers, e.g. single devices capable of handling multiple protocols

Abstract

Systems and methods are described for establishing a connection between a client and a server that are each communicating via a network. The methods and techniques may be used, for example, to establish a media streaming connection between a media player and a placeshifting device when a firewall or other impediment to direct network connections exists. A relay server receives connection requests from the client and from the server via the network. In response to receiving the requests, a first connection is established between the relay server and the client and a second connection between the relay server and the server. Data received by the relay server on each of the first and second connections is relayed to the other of the first and second connections to thereby establish the connection between the client and the server via the relay server.

Claims

1. A method executable by a relay server to establish a media streaming connection between a media player and a placeshifting device that are each communicating with the relay server via a network, the method comprising:

receiving, by the relay server, a first request associated with the media player and a second request associated with the placeshifting device, wherein both the first and second requests are received by the relay server via the network;

in response to receiving the first and second requests, the relay server establishing a first connection between the relay server and the media player and a second connection between the relay server and the placeshifting device, wherein the first connection is established as an outgoing connection from the media player to the relay server and the second connection is established as an outgoing connection from the placeshifting device to the relay server; and

the relay server relaying data received by the relay server on each of the first and second connections to the other of the first and second connections to thereby establish the media streaming connection between the media player and the placeshifting device in which the first and second connections form the media streaming connection as a bridged connection between the media player and the placeshifting device for delivering a placeshifted media stream from the placeshifting device to the media player.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising the relay server directing the placeshifting device to limit a bandwidth of the placeshifted media stream transmitted via the relay server.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the receiving occurs in response to an unsuccessful user datagram protocol (UDP) connection between the media player and the placeshifting device.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the receiving occurs in response to an unsuccessful attempt to establish a direct connection between the media player and the placeshifting device.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising directing the placeshifting device to send the second request to the relay server.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the directing comprises directing a message to be sent to the placeshifting device across a pre-established connection with the placeshifting device via the network.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising discontinuing the media streaming connection after a pre-determined time has elapsed.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising discontinuing the media streaming connection after a pre-determined amount of data has been relayed.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising approving the media streaming connection prior to establishing the first and second connections based upon identification information associated with at least one of the placeshifting device, the media player, and a user of the placeshifting device.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising approving the media streaming connection prior to establishing the first and second connections based upon identification information contained in at least one of the first and second requests.

11. A method of establishing a network connection via a relay server between a media player client and a placeshifting server that are each communicating via a network, the method comprising:

first directing at least one of the media player client and the placeshifting server to establish a connectionless session across the network between the media player client and the placeshifting server;

if the connectionless session is unsuccessful, directing both the media player client and the placeshifting server to contact the relay server via the network;

in response to the client and the placeshifting server subsequently contacting the relay server via the network, directing the media player client to establish a first connection to the relay server via the network and also directing the placeshifting server to establish a second connection via the network from the placeshifting server to the relay server, wherein the first connection is an outgoing connection made from the media player client to the relay server and the second connection is an outgoing connection made from the placeshifting server to the relay server; and

relaying data received by the relay server on each of the first and second connections via the network to the other of the first and second connections via the network to thereby establish the network connection between the media player client and the placeshifting server via the relay server in which the first and second connections form a bridged connection between the media player client and the placeshifting server for delivering a placeshifted media stream from the placeshifting server to the media player client.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising the relay server directing the placeshifting server to limit a bandwidth of the placeshifted media stream transmitted via the relay server.

13. A system for establishing a media streaming connection between a media player and a placeshifting device that are each communicating via a network, the system comprising:

a relay manager module configured to receive a request to establish the media streaming connection between the media player and the placeshifting device; and

a relay instance module configured to establish, in response to the request, a first connection with the media player and a second connection with the placeshifting device, and to relay data received on each of the first and second connections to the other of the first and second connections to thereby establish the media streaming connection between the media player and the placeshifting device, wherein the relay instance module is configured to establish the first and second connections by directing the media player and the placeshifting device to establish outgoing connections to the relay instance module via the network.

14. The system of claim 13 wherein the system is further configured to direct the placeshifting device to limit a bandwidth of the placeshifted media stream transmitted via the media streaming connection.

15. The system of claim 13 further comprising a database configured to store information, and wherein the relay manager module is configured to allow or disallow the media streaming connection based upon the information stored in the database.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein the information stored in the database comprises an elapsed time that the media streaming connection has been established, and wherein the relay manager module is further configured to disallow the media streaming connection when the elapsed time exceeds a pre-determined value.

17. The system of claim 15 wherein the information stored in the database comprises a total time that the placeshifting device has used the system, and wherein the relay manager module is further configured to disallow the media streaming connection when the total time exceeds a pre-determined allowed value.

18. The system of claim 15 wherein placeshifting device is directed to establish the second connection by a message transmitted via a pre-existing connection over the network.

19. The system of claim 15 further comprising a mediation server configured to attempt to connect the placeshifting device and the media player via the network using a connectionless protocol, and, if the attempt to connect via the connectionless protocol is unsuccessful, to initiate the request to establish the media streaming connection between the media player and the placeshifting device via a connection-based protocol.

20. The system of claim 15 further comprising a message server configured to establish a pre-existing connection with the placeshifting device across the network using a connection-based protocol and to send a message to the placeshifting device across the pre-existing connection that directs the placeshifting device to establish the second connection.