Apparatus and method for managing digital contents distributed over network

• US 9,229,937 B2
• Filed: 04/05/2007
• Issued: 01/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/06/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Shin, Ho Chul, Bae, Young Kyu, Kim, Chul Seung, Oh, Yun Je, Kim, Joon Oo
• Primary Examiner(s): Park, Grace
• Application Number:
  US11/696,784
• Publication Number:
  US 20070239668A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,197 Days
• Field of Search: 707/10
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/40 of multimedia data, e.g. slideshows comprising image and additional audio data retrieval of still image data G06F16/50; retrieval of audio data G06F16/60; retrieval of video data G06F16/70

Abstract

A content management system entails analyzing similarity of the contents distributed among at least one network element (e.g., contents server) and managing the contents on the basis of the analysis result. The content management server analyzing similarities of content files and providing the similarities information includes a communication unit that collects content information from at least one content server stored the content files and the content information corresponding to the content files; a digital content management (DCM) control unit which analyzes similarities of the content files received from the content server; a storage which stores information on the similarities analyzed by the DCM control unit; a content information comparison unit which detects the content information in response to a similar content file request transmitted from a client on the basis of the similarities information.

Claims

1. A content management server which analyzes similarities of content files distributed over a network and provides similarities information, comprising:

a communication unit which collects content information from at least one content server storing the content files and the content information corresponding to the content files;

a digital content management (DCM) control unit which analyzes similarities of the content files received from the content server;

a DCM storage unit which is locally coupled to the DCM control unit and stores information on the similarities of the content files analyzed by the DCM control unit; and

a content information comparison unit which detects the content information in response to a similar content file request transmitted from a client on the basis of the similarities information of the content files;

wherein when content information stored in the DCM storage unit and analyzed by the DCM control unit differs from received content information from said at least one content server, the content information comparison unit requesting a particular content file corresponding to the received content information from the at least one content server accessed over a network through the communication unit to update the content information in the DCM storage unit to match identically with the content information received from the content server after updating the content information in the storage unit.

2. The content management server of claim 1, wherein the DCM control unit checks preset content collection conditions and controls the communication unit to collect the content information from the content server if the content collection conditions are satisfied.

3. The content management server of claim 2, wherein the communication unit requests the content information to the content server and receives the content information from the content server.

4. The content management server of claim 2, wherein the DCM control unit determines whether a CPU occupancy rate of the content management server is less than a preset reference occupancy rate for checking that the content collection conditions are satisfied.

5. The content management server of claim 2, wherein the DCM control unit determines whether a counter for starting content information collection cycle is expired for checking that the content collection conditions are satisfied.

6. The content management server of claim 2, wherein the DCM control unit determines, in checking that the content collection conditions are satisfied, whether an input command for collecting the content information has been received.

7. The content management server of claim 2, wherein the communication unit requests a content file corresponding to the location information contained in the content information, receives the content file from the content server, and transmits the content file received from the content server to client through a communication network.

8. The content management server of claim 1, wherein the communication unit communicates with the content server and clients using a digital living network association (DLNA) protocol.

9. The content management server of claim 1, wherein the content information includes content identification information and content location information.

10. The content management server of claim 9, wherein the DCM control unit requests, from the content server, the content file on the basis of location information contained in the different content information and receives the corresponding content file from the content server.

11. The content management server of claim 10, wherein the DCM control unit analyzes the similarities of the collected content files and stores information on the similarities.

12. The content management server of claim 10, wherein the DCM control unit removes the collected content files after completing the similarity analysis.

13. The content management server of claim 1, wherein the communication unit transmits the content information having content identification information and content location information.

14. The content management server of claim 1, wherein the content files and content information are distributed over a Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA).

15. A content management method for a content management server which analyzes and provides similarities of a plurality of content files distributed over a communication network, comprising:

collecting content information from at least one content server which stores at least one content file corresponding to the content information;

on the basis of the content information, analyzing and storing similarities of the contents files distributed over the communication network among a plurality of content servers;

retrieving similar content information on the basis of the similarities when a similar content file request is received through the communication network; and

transmitting the similar content information through the communication network;

wherein the step of analyzing and storing the similarities includes;

comparing the previously stored content information from a local digital content management (DCM) storage unit coupled to a DCM control unit with the collected content information;

receiving a content file in which at least some of the collected content information is not in the previously stored content information;

analyzing similarities of the received content file, and

storing the similarity analysis result; and

updating the content information stored in the local DCM storage unit to match identically with the content file received from the content server after updating the content information in the storage unit.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the step of collecting the content information includes:

determining whether or not preset content information collection conditions are satisfied;

requesting content information to content servers which store content files corresponding to the content information; and

receiving the content information from the respective content servers.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the step of determining whether or not the preset content information collection conditions are satisfied includes determining whether or not CPU occupancy rate of the content management server is less that a predetermined reference occupancy rate.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the step of determining whether or not the preset content information collection conditions are satisfied includes determining whether or not a counter for starting a content information collection cycle is expired for checking that the content collection conditions are satisfied.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the step of determining whether or not the present content information collection conditions are satisfied includes determining whether an input command for collecting the content information has been received.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein the content information is collected using a digital living network association (DLNA) protocol.

21. The method of claim 15, wherein the content information includes content identification information and content location information.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the content file is received using location information contained in the content information which is informed in the collected content information but not in the previously stored content information.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the content file is received using a digital living network association (DLNA) protocol.

24. The method of claim 21, the step of storing the similarity analysis result includes removing the collected content file.

25. The method of claim 15, wherein the content information includes identification information and location information of the corresponding content file.

26. The method of claim 15, wherein the step of transmitting the similar content information includes:

requesting, from the content server, content file corresponding to location information of the content file;

receiving the requested content file from the content server; and

transmitting the content file received from the content server.

27. The method of claim 15, wherein the similar content information is transmitted using a digital living network association (DLNA) protocol.

28. The method of claim 15, wherein the content files and content information are distributed over a Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA).