Mobility device platform

• US 20050071439A1
• Filed: 04/30/2004
• Published: 03/31/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2003
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Inaura, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Inaura, Inc.
• Inventors: Bookman, Peter, White, Rick Charles
• Application Number:
  US10/837,426
• Publication Number:
  US 20050071439A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/217
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/033 of the user plane, e.g. user's traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication

Abstract

A mobility device platform allowing for secure mobile computing is provided. In an illustrative implementation, an exemplary mobility device platform comprises a mobility device operable to communicate with at least one computing environment through a communications interface and wherein the mobility device is operable to process and store secure web services, a communications network operable to communicate data and computing applications using web services, and a mobility device management server operable to generate, process, store, communicate and encrypt web services to the mobility device. Further, the mobility device management server is operable to perform one or more mobility device management functions to provide encryption keys to cooperating mobility devices and to authenticate and verify cooperating mobility devices requesting web services from the mobility device management server. The mobility device management server and mobility device may further operate to perform authentication and verification using user identification and password information.

Claims

1. A mobility device platform comprising:

a mobility device having independent computing capabilities operable to interface with a computing environment; and

a mobility device server cooperating with the mobility device to provide data to the mobility device.

2. The platform as recited in claim 1 further comprising a communications network operative to communicate data between the mobility device and the mobility device server.

3. The platform as recited in claim 1 further comprising an encryption protocol for use by the mobility device and the mobility device server when communicating data between each other.

4. The platform as recited in claim 3 wherein the encryption protocol is applied to data storage architecture used by the mobility device and the mobility device server.

5. The platform as recited in claim 4 wherein the data storage architecture comprises any of a file allocation table (FAT) file system and a new technology file system (NTFS).

6. The platform as recited in claim 3 further comprising an authentication and verification module that allows the mobility device and mobility device server to authenticate and verify each other to allow the communication of data.

7. The platform as recited in claim 6 wherein the authentication and verification module operates on data comprising any of:

user identification information, user password information, public key information and private key information.

8. The platform as recited in claim 1 further comprising a communications interface operative to connect the mobility device with the computing environment.

9. The platform as recited in claim 8 wherein the communications interface is embedded in the mobility device.

10. The platform as recited in claim 8 wherein the communications interface comprises any of universal serial bus (USB), IEEE 1394 communications interface (Firewire), 802.XX communications interface, blutetooth communications interface, personal computer interface, small computer serial interface, and wireless application protocol (WAP) communications interface.

11. The platform as recited in claim 10 wherein the computing environment comprises any of a stand alone computing environment, a networked computer environment, and an embedded computing environment.

12. The platform as recited in claim 11 wherein the computing environment is an automotive embedded computing environment.

13. The platform as recited in claim 11 wherein the computing environment is a consumer electronic embedded computing environment.

14. The platform as recited in claim 11 wherein the computing environment is a building automated control embedded computing environment.

15. The platform as recited in claim 1 wherein the data comprises any of data for use with one or more computing applications and control information.

16. The platform as recited in claim 1 wherein the communications network comprises any of:

a fixed wire local area network (LAN), a wireless local area network (LAN), a fixed wire wide area network (WAN), a wireless wide area network (WAN), a fixed wire peer-to-peer communications network, a wireless peer-to-peer communications network, a code division multiple access (CDMA) communications network, a time division multiple access (TDMA) communications network, a global system for mobile communications (GSM) communications network, the wireless Internet, and the Internet.

17. The platform as recited in claim 1 wherein in the mobility device maintains a plurality of workspaces operative to allow the mobility device to cooperate with disparate mobility device servers.

18. The platform as recited in claim 17 wherein the mobility device operates cooperates with the disparate mobility device servers using an encryption protocol.

19. The platform as recited in claim 18 wherein the mobility device employs an independent encrypted communication tunnel for each of the plurality of workspaces.

20. The platform as recited in claim 19 wherein the mobility device supports unique authentication and verification for each of the plurality of workspaces.

21. The platform as recited in claim 1 wherein the mobility device cooperates with the computing environment to display a user interface operative to receive and process commands from participating users to the computing environment to control, manipulate, and manage data and applications.

22. The platform as recited in claim 21 wherein mobility device management server cooperates with other mobility management device management servers to provide web services to the mobility device.

23. The platform as recited in claim 22 wherein the mobility device management server cooperates with third party web services providers to provide web services to the mobility device.

24. The platform as recited in claim 1 wherein the mobility device comprises any of a processing unit, a mobility device communications interface unit, ROM storage, RAM storage, and an operating system.

25. A method to allow secure communications of data in a computing environment comprising:

providing a mobility device having independent computing capabilities operable to interface with a computing environment; and

providing a mobility device server cooperating with the mobility device to provide data to the mobility device.

26. The method as recited in claim 25 further comprising establishing a communications link between the mobility device and the computing environment.

27. The method as recited in claim 26 further comprising establishing a communications link between the mobility device and the mobility device management server.

28. The method as recited in claim 27 further comprising authenticating the mobility device at the mobility device management server to determine the rights and privileges of the mobility device.

29. The method as recited in claim 28 further comprising receiving a request for a web service from the mobility device to the mobility device management server.

30. The method as recited in claim 29 further comprising receiving a request for a web service from the mobility device to the mobility device management server using server object access protocol (SOAP).

31. The method as recited in claim 29 further comprising retrieving the requested web service at the mobility device management server using mobility device authentication information.

32. The method as recited claim 31 further comprising translating the retrieved web service into a mobility device native web service format.

33. The method as recited in claim 31 further comprising encrypting the retrieved web service using mobility device authentication information.

34. The method as recited in claim 33 further comprising communicating the retrieved encrypted web service to the mobility device from the mobility device management server.

35. The method as recited in claim 34 further comprising processing the communicated encrypted web service at the mobility device for display and control on the cooperating computing environment.

36. A computer readable medium having computer readable instructions to instruct a computer to perform the method as recited in claim 35.

37. A system to securely communicate web services across a computing environment comprising:

a first means for interfacing with a cooperating computing environment, the first means having independent computing capabilities; and

a second means for providing web services securely to the first means.

38. The system as recited in claim 37 further comprising a third means for operatively linking the first and second means together.

39. The system as recited in claim 38 further comprising a fourth means for authenticating and verifying the rights and privileges of the first means to access web services from the second means.

40. The system as recited in claim 39 further comprising a fifth means for encrypting the web service cooperating with the fourth means for authentication.

41. The system as recited in claim 40 wherein web services comprise any of user management web services, computing applications, and data.

42. A method to remotely obtain secure web services comprising:

configuring a mobility device with a cooperating computing environment such that the mobility device is operable to execute one or more computing applications capable of operating web services on the cooperating computing environment;

establishing communications with at least one cooperating mobility device management server;

authenticating at the mobility device management server the mobility device to determine the rights, access, and privileges of the mobility device to access web services on the mobility device management server;

receiving requests for web services from the mobility device at the mobility device management server;

processing the requests for web services using the mobility device authentication information;

retrieving web services to satisfy web service requests by the mobility device;

encrypting the web services according to a selected encryption protocol; and

communicating the requesting mobility services to the mobility device for execution on the cooperating computing environment.

43. The method as recited in claim 42 further comprising authenticating the mobility device on the cooperating computing environment using user identification and user password information.

44. The method as recited in claim 42 further comprising performing an auto-run of at least one application or routine found on the mobility device when configuring the mobility device with the cooperating computing environment.

45. The method as recited in claim 42 further comprising cooperating with third party web services providers to retrieve requested web services.

46. The method as recited in claim 42 further comprising cooperating with a java virtual machine to obtain legacy applications and data.

47. A computer readable medium having computer readable instructions to instruct a computer to perform the method as recited in claim 42.