Apparatus and method for pushing e-mail to portable terminal in e-mail system

• US 9,053,463 B2
• Filed: 04/09/2008
• Issued: 06/09/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/10/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Samsung Group)
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Samsung Group)
• Inventors: Lee, Chul-Hwan, Oh, Youn-Taek
• Primary Examiner(s): Baturay, Alicia
• Application Number:
  US12/100,173
• Publication Number:
  US 20080256206A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,617 Days
• Field of Search: 709204-211, 709217-219
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/214 using selective forwarding
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication

Abstract

Provided is an apparatus and method for pushing an e-mail to a portable terminal in an e-mail system. In an e-mail system for pushing an e-mail, an e-mail agent checks reception of a new e-mail, receives and stores the new e-mail, and generates a mail notification message, a message server receives the mail notification message and transmits it to an e-mail client, the e-mail client generates a mail request message and transmits it to the e-mail agent.

Claims

1. An e-mail system for pushing an e-mail, the e-mail system comprising:

an e-mail agent for checking if a new e-mail exists in an e-mail server by using periodic polling operations, receiving and storing the new e-mail when the new e-mail exists in the e-mail server, generating a mail notification message notifying reception of the new e-mail, transmitting the mail notification message to a message server, receiving a mail request message from an e-mail client, and transmitting the new e-mail to the e-mail client, wherein the mail notification message includes a current Internet Protocol (IP) address of the e-mail agent which stores the received new e-mail and information indicating existence of the new e-mail in the e-mail agent;

the message server for receiving the mail notification message and transmitting the received mail notification message to the e-mail client; and

the e-mail client for generating the mail request message requesting the new e-mail upon reception of the mail notification message from the message server, transmitting the generated mail request message to the e-mail agent corresponding to the current IP address included in the mail notification message, and receiving the new e-mail from the e-mail agent.

2. The e-mail system of claim 1, wherein the e-mail agent determines, upon reception of the mail request message from the e-mail client, if the e-mail client is an authorized user by using user identification information included in the mail request message, and transmits the received new e-mail to the e-mail client when the e-mail client is the authorized user.

3. The e-mail system of claim 1, wherein the e-mail agent performs the polling operation using a Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), a Post Office Protocol version 3 (POP3), or an Internet Message Access Protocol version 4 (IMAP4).

4. The e-mail system of claim 1, wherein the message server provides a Short Message Service (SMS) or a Multimedia Messaging System (MMS).

5. The e-mail system of claim 1, wherein the e-mail client is a portable terminal that is capable of wireless communication.

6. The e-mail system of claim 1, wherein the e-mail agent is a personal computer.

7. An e-mail agent for pushing an e-mail through a message server in an e-mail system, the e-mail agent comprising:

an e-mail storage for storing an e-mail from an e-mail server;

a client database for storing information on an e-mail client;

an e-mail processor for periodically checking if a new e-mail exists in the e-mail server, receiving the new e-mail when the new e-mail exists in the e-mail server, and storing the received new e-mail into the e-mail storage; and

a message processor for generating a mail notification message notifying that the new e-mail exists when the e-mail processor receives the new e-mail, and transmitting the mail notification message to the message server, wherein the mail notification message includes a current Internet Protocol (IP) address of the e-mail agent which stores the received new e-mail and information indicating existence of the new e-mail in the e-mail agent;

wherein the e-mail processor receives a mail request message from the e-mail client and transmits the new e-mail in the e-mail storage to the e-mail client, and

wherein the e-mail client transmits the mail request message to the e-mail agent corresponding to the current IP address included in the mail notification message.

8. The e-mail agent of claim 7, wherein the e-mail processor checks if the new e-mail exists in the e-mail server by performing a polling operation using a Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), a Post Office Protocol version 3 (POP3), or an Internet Message Access Protocol version 4 (IMAP4).

9. The e-mail agent of claim 7, wherein the client database stores authentication information for authenticating the e-mail client and comprises an authentication unit for determining if the e-mail client is an authorized user by comparing user identification information included in the mail request message with the authentication information stored in the client database, and the e-mail processor controls the authentication unit to determine if the e-mail client transmitting the mail request message is the authorized user upon reception of the mail request message from the e-mail client and transmits the new e-mail stored in the e-mail storage to the e-mail client when the e-mail client is the authorized user.

10. The e-mail agent of claim 9, wherein the mail request message includes the user identification information and information requesting the new e-mail.

11. The e-mail agent of claim 7, wherein upon reception of a remote control message from the e-mail client, the e-mail agent controls an operation, which corresponds to a control command included in the received remote control message, to be performed.

12. The e-mail agent of claim 11, wherein the remote control message includes user identification information and the control command.

13. The e-mail agent of claim 12, wherein the control command includes a turn on, a turn off, or a power saving mode activation command.

14. A portable terminal for checking reception of an e-mail using a message server in an e-mail system, the portable terminal comprising:

a message processor for receiving a mail notification message notifying of existence of a new e-mail from the message server, wherein the mail notification message includes a current Internet Protocol (IP) address of an e-mail agent which stores the received new e-mail and information indicating existence of the new e-mail in the e-mail agent; and

an e-mail processor for performing communication connection with the e-mail agent transmitting the mail notification message when the message processor receives the mail notification message, generating and transmitting a mail request message requesting the new e-mail to the e-mail agent corresponding to the current IP address included in the mail notification message, and receiving the new e-mail from the e-mail agent.

15. The portable terminal of claim 14, wherein the e-mail processor stores the received new e-mail.

16. The portable terminal of claim 14, wherein the mail request message includes user identification information and information requesting the new e-mail.

17. The portable terminal of claim 14, further comprising a remote processor for generating and transmitting a remote control message to control the e-mail agent remotely,

wherein the e-mail processor controls the remote processor to generate the remote control message including a control command requesting that the e-mail agent be turned on when the e-mail processor does not receive the new e-mail for a predetermined period after transmitting the mail request message, and transmits the remote control message to the e-mail agent.

18. The portable terminal of claim 17, wherein the remote control message includes user identification information and the control command.

19. The portable terminal of claim 18, wherein the control command is a turn on, a turn off, or a power saving mode activation command.

20. A method for pushing an e-mail using a message server in an e-mail agent of an e-mail system, the method comprising:

periodically checking if a new e-mail exists in an e-mail server;

generating a mail notification message notifying existence of the new e-mail and transmitting the mail notification message to the message server, wherein the mail notification message includes a current Internet Protocol (IP) address of the e-mail agent which stores the received new e-mail and information indicating existence of the new e-mail in the e-mail agent; and

receiving a mail request message from an e-mail client and transmitting the new e-mail to the e-mail client,

wherein the e-mail client transmits the mail request message to the e-mail agent corresponding to the current IP address included in the mail notification message.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

determining, upon reception of the mail request message requesting the new e-mail from the e-mail client, if the mail request message is sent by an authorized user; and

transmitting the new e-mail to the e-mail client when the mail request message is sent by the authorized user.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the mail request message includes user identification information and information requesting the new e-mail.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein determining if the e-mail client is an authorized user comprises determining if the e-mail client is the authorized user by comparing the user identification information included in the mail request message with authentication information pre-stored in the e-mail agent.

24. The method of claim 20, wherein periodically checking comprises checking if the new e-mail exists in the e-mail server by performing a polling operation using a Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), a Post Office Protocol version 3 (POP3), or an Internet Message Access Protocol version 4 (IMAP4).

25. The method of claim 20, further comprising performing, upon reception of a remote control message, an operation corresponding to a control command included in the remote control message.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the remote control message includes user identification information and the control command.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the control command is a turn on, a turn off, or a power saving mode activation command.

28. A method for recognizing existence of a new e-mail through a message server and receiving the new e-mail in a portable terminal of an e-mail system, the method comprising:

receiving a mail notification message notifying existence of the new e-mail from the message server, wherein the mail notification message includes a current Internet Protocol (IP) address of an e-mail agent which stores the received new e-mail and information indicating existence of the new e-mail in the e-mail agent;

performing a communication connection with the e-mail agent transmitting the mail notification message;

generating and transmitting a mail request message requesting the new e-mail to the e-mail agent corresponding to the current IP address included in the mail notification message; and

receiving the new e-mail from the e-mail agent.

29. The method of claim 28, further comprising storing the received new e-mail.

30. The method of claim 28, wherein performing the communication connection comprises performing a communication connection with the e-mail agent by using the current IP address of the e-mail agent included in the mail notification message.

31. The method of claim 28, wherein the mail request message includes user identification information and information requesting the new e-mail.

32. The method of claim 28, after transmitting the mail request message, further comprising:

generating, at a remote processor, a remote control message including a control command requesting that the e-mail agent be turned on when the new e-mail from the e-mail agent is not received for a predetermined period; and

transmitting the generated remote control message to the e-mail agent.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the remote control message includes user identification information and the control command.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein the control command is a turn on, a turn off, or a power saving mode activation command.