Method and device for establishing a content mirroring session

• US 9,641,884 B2
• Filed: 11/15/2008
• Issued: 05/02/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Adobe Inc.
• Original Assignee: Adobe Systems Incorporated (Adobe Inc.)
• Inventors: Pimmel, Kim P., Weskamp, Marcos
• Primary Examiner(s): BURGESS, BARBARA N
• Application Number:
  US12/271,858
• Publication Number:
  US 20140032635A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,090 Days
• Field of Search: 709201, 709204, 709205, 709209, 709211, 709212, 709216, 709217, 709218, 709220, 709222, 709223, 709224, 709227, 709231, 709237
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/04 including near field communication means, e.g. RFID
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4126 The peripheral being portable, e.g. PDAs or mobile phones
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42202 environmental sensors, e.g. for detecting temperature, luminosity, pressure, earthquakes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42225 characterized by types of remote control, e.g. universal remote control
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4223 Cameras H04N23/00 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43615 Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44008 involving operations for analysing video streams, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in the video stream arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of video in broadcast systems H04H60/59
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44227 Monitoring of local network, e.g. connection or bandwidth variations; Detecting new devices in the local network configuring of peripheral devices in general G06F9/4411; monitoring connectivity in data switched networks H04L43/0811
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4518 involving characteristics of one or more peripherals, e.g. peripheral type, software version, amount of memory available or display capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4524 involving the geographical location of the client retrieval from the Internet by querying based on geographical locations G06F16/9537; systems specially adapted for using geographical information in broadcast systems H04H60/70; protocols in which the network application is adapted for the location of the user terminal in communication control or processing H04L67/52; services making use of the location of users or terminals in wireless networks H04W4/02; locating users or terminals in wireless networks H04W64/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104

Abstract

Computer-based methods and devices for establishing a content mirroring session during which two devices concurrently present or display the same content are disclosed. Consistent with an embodiment of the invention, a first device displays a visual indicator when the first device is physically positioned and oriented to target a second device, with which the first device is authorized to establish a content mirroring session. The visual indicator, which may be a graphical user interface element such as a button or icon, identifies the device that is being targeted by the first device, and in some embodiments, indicates to a user that a content mirroring session can be established with the targeted device.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

determining that a first device is targeting a second device based on a location and an orientation of the first device relative to the second device;

responsive to determining that the first device is targeting the second device, displaying a user interface element on a display of the first device, the user interface element identifying the second device and indicating that the first device is authorized to establish a content mirroring session with the second device, the content mirroring session involving the simultaneous presentation of content on the first device and on the second device; and

communicating a request from the first device to establish the content mirroring session with the second device.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting a user-input at the first device, the request to establish the content mirroring session with the second device being generated as a result of detecting the user-input.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining that the first device is targeting a second device comprises:

determining a location and orientation of the first device relative to a location of the second device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining that the first device is targeting a second device comprises:

analyzing location information for the first device and location information for the second device to determine the location of the first device relative to the location of the second device; and

analyzing orientation information for the first device in combination with the location of the first device relative to the location of the second device to determine that the first device has a particular orientation with respect to the location of the second device.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the location information for the first device and the orientation information for the first device are generated by one or more sensors at the first device, and the location information for the second device is read from an environment model associated with a physical environment in which the second device is located.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

prior to determining that the first device is targeting the second device, communicating location information for the first device to a server and, in response, receiving the environment model from the server.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the environment model includes location information for a plurality of devices with which the first device has been authorized to establish a content mirroring session.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

prior to determining that the first device is targeting the second device, communicating location information for the first device to a server, and, in response, receiving information identifying devices i) within a predetermined proximity of the first device, and ii) with which the first device has been authorized to establish a content mirroring session.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining that the first device is targeting a second device comprises:

analyzing an image received from an image sensor of the first device and object recognition information for the second device to determine that the image sensor captured an image of the second device, or a portion thereof, and that the first device has a particular orientation with respect to the location of the second device.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

prior to determining the first device is targeting the second device, communicating location information for the first device to a server and, in response, receiving object recognition information for the second device from the server.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

prior to the determining that the first device is targeting the second device, communicating location information for the first device to a server and, in response, receiving from the server object recognition information for a plurality of devices with which the first device has been authorized to establish a content mirroring session.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the first device is at least one of a mobile phone, smart phone, personal digital assistant, portable media player (PMP), handheld global positioning system (GPS) device, handheld game device, laptop computer, notebook computer, or netbook computer.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving content at the first device that is communicated responsive to the request to establish a content mirroring session with the second device; and

presenting the content using the first device as the content is simultaneously presented using the second device.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving content at the first device that is communicated responsive to the request to establish a content mirroring session with the second device;

presenting the content using the first device as the content is simultaneously presented using the second device; and

presenting additional content using the first device, the additional content being selected based upon the additional content having an association with the content being presented simultaneously by the first and second devices.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein an authorization permitting the first device to establish the content mirroring session with the second device is dependent upon the first device being within a predefined proximity of the second device.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the content is video content, textual content, graphical content, photographic content, or any combination thereof.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the simultaneous presentation of content on the first device and second device includes synchronizing respective views of separate instances of the content on the first device and second device.

18. A processor-implemented method comprising:

receiving, from a first device, location information for the first device;

analyzing the location information to determine that the first device is in a physical environment that includes a second device with which the first device has authority to establish a content mirroring session involving the simultaneous presentation of content on the first device and second device;

in response to determining that the first device is in the physical environment, causing display of a user interface element on a display of the first device, the user interface element identifying the second device and indicating that the first device is authorized to establish a content mirroring session with the second device;

receiving a request to establish a content mirroring session between the first device and the second device; and

initiating a content communication to the first device so as to enable the first and second devices to concurrently present content.

19. The processor-implemented method of claim 18, further comprising:

communicating location information to the first device, the location information indicating the location of the second device within the physical environment.

20. The processor-implemented method of claim 18, wherein the determining that the first device is in the physical environment comprises:

comparing the location information for the first device with location information of the second device to determine that the first device is in a determinable proximity of the second device; and

querying authorization information for the second device to determine that the authorization information indicates the first device is authorized to establish a content mirroring session with the second device.

21. A mobile computing device comprising:

a display to present content concurrently being displayed on a display of a second device during a content mirroring session;

a wireless communication interface to exchange information with other computing devices;

real-time targeting logic to determine the mobile computing device is targeting the second device based on a location and an orientation of the first device relative to the second device;

user interface logic to present a user interface element on the display of the mobile device, the user interface element identifying the second device and indicating the mobile device is authorized to establish the content mirroring session with the second device; and

an input device to detect an input, wherein the mobile device causes the wireless communication device to communicate a request to establish a content mirroring session with the second device in response to detecting the input.

22. The mobile computing device of claim 21, further comprising:

a location sensor to generate location information for the mobile device;

an orientation sensor to generate orientation information for the mobile device; and

location logic to analyze location information for the first device and location information for the second device and to determine the location of the first device relative to the location of the second device; and

orientation logic to analyze orientation information for the first device in combination with the location of the first device relative to the second device to determine the first device is pointing in a direction of the location of the second device.

23. The mobile computing device of claim 21, further comprising:

an image sensor to capture images in real time; and

object recognition logic to analyze an image received from the image sensor of the mobile device and object recognition information for the second device to determine the image sensor captured an image of the second device, or a portion thereof, and therefore the mobile device has a particular orientation with respect to the location of the second device.

24. A method comprising:

executing instructions on a first computing device to determine the first computing device is targeting a second device based on a location and orientation of the first computing device relative to the second device;

executing instructions on the first computing device that, responsive to determining that the first computing device is targeting the second device, display a user interface element on a display of the first computing device, the user interface element identifying the second device and indicating that the first computing device is authorized to establish a content mirroring session with the second device; and

executing instructions on the first computing device to communicate a request from the first computing device to establish the content mirroring session with the second device.