Retrieval of offline instant messages

• US 20070078935A1
• Filed: 02/09/2006
• Published: 04/05/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Garcia-Martin, Miguel, Haruna, Adamu
• Granted Patent: US 9,258,259 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1831 Tracking arrangements for later retrieval, e.g. recording contents, participants activities or behavior, network status
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/224 providing notification on incoming messages, e.g. pushed notifications of received messages

Abstract

Retrieving messages stored in a mail server and pending to be retrieved by a user is disclosed. A summary of the messages stored in the mail server and pending to be retrieved by the user is received at a terminal device of the user, each message associated with a unique identifier. At least one of the messages to be retrieved from the mail server is selected on the basis of the summary of messages. From the unique identifier associated with the at least one message an identifier valid for retrieval of the at least one message is determined, and a retrieval request with the identifier valid for retrieval is sent to the mail server. Upon receiving the retrieval request with the at least one identifier valid for retrieving the at least one of the stored messages, the mail server sends the at least one message towards the terminal device.

Claims

1. A terminal device comprising:

means for receiving a summary of messages stored in a mail server and pending to be retrieved by a user, each message associated with a unique identifier;

means for selecting at least one of the messages to be retrieved from the mail server, based on the summary of messages;

means for determining an identifier valid for retrieval of the at least one message based on the unique identifier associated with the at least one message, thereby obtaining at least one identifier valid for retrieval; and

means for sending a retrieval request with the at least one identifier valid for retrieval to the mail server.

2. The terminal device of claim 1, wherein the unique identifier is a message identifier provided by the mail server.

3. The terminal device of claim 1, wherein the unique identifier is a Uniform Resource Identifier (URI).

4. A network device for storing messages pending to be retrieved by a user, the network device comprising:

receiving means for receiving a retrieval request with at least one identifier valid for retrieving at least one message of the stored messages; and

sending means for sending the at least one message towards a terminal device of the user originating the retrieval request.

5. The network device of claim 4, wherein the sending means is configured to send the at least one message in a Message Session Relay Protocol (MSRP) SEND message.

6. The network device of claim 4, further comprising:

providing means for providing a message identifier for each of the stored messages, wherein the sending means is configured to send a summary of the stored messages to the user, each message associated with the provided message identifier.

7. The network device of claim 6, wherein the providing means is configured to use a Call-ID header field included in a Session Initiation Protocol request of each of the stored messages for the provided message identifier.

8. The network device of claim 6, wherein the providing means is configured to use a Message-ID header field of a Message Session Relay Protocol request of each of the stored messages for the provided message identifier.

9. The network device of claim 6, wherein the providing means is configured to generate a unique Uniform Resource Identifier (URI), the URI being routable to the network device and wherein the provided message identifier is part of the URI.

10. A method of retrieving messages stored in a mail server and pending to be retrieved by a user, the method comprising:

receiving a summary of the messages stored in the mail server and pending to be retrieved by the user, each message associated with a unique identifier;

selecting at least one message of the messages to be retrieved from the mail server, based on the summary of messages;

determining an identifier valid for retrieval of the at least one message based on the unique identifier associated with the at least one message, thereby obtaining at least one identifier valid for retrieval; and

sending a retrieval request with the at least one identifier valid for retrieval to the mail server.

11. A method of retrieving stored messages pending to be retrieved by a user, the method comprising:

receiving a retrieval request with at least one identifier valid for retrieving at least one message of the stored messages; and

sending the at least one message towards a terminal device of the user originating the retrieval request.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

providing a message identifier for each of the stored messages; and

sending a summary of the stored messages to the user, each message associated with the provided message identifier.

13. A network device for storing messages pending to be retrieved by a user, the network device comprising:

a conference server; and

virtual endpoints corresponding to the stored messages, wherein the conference server is configured to receive a retrieval request from the user comprising a list of identifiers each pointing to a selected message of the stored messages, the retrieval request establishing a first session for delivering the selected messages, to establish second sessions for each of the selected messages identified in the list with the virtual endpoints corresponding to the selected messages, and to receive the selected messages within said second sessions and forward the selected messages to the user within said first session.

14. The network device of claim 13, wherein the virtual endpoints are virtual Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) User Agents.

15. A method of retrieving messages stored in a mail server and pending to be retrieved by a user, the method comprising:

receiving a retrieval request from the user comprising a list of identifiers each pointing to a selected message of the stored messages, the retrieval request establishing a first session for delivering the selected messages, establishing second sessions for each of the selected messages identified in the list; and

receiving the selected messages within said second sessions and forwarding the selected messages to the user within said first session.

16. A computer program product including a program for a processing device, comprising software code portions for performing steps when the program is run on the processing device, wherein the steps comprise:

receiving a summary of the messages stored in the mail server and pending to be retrieved by the user, each message associated with a unique identifier;

selecting at least one message of the messages to be retrieved from the mail server, based on the summary of messages;

determining an identifier valid for retrieval of the at least one message based on the unique identifier associated with the at least one message, thereby obtaining at least one identifier valid for retrieval; and

sending a retrieval request with the at least one identifier valid for retrieval to the mail server.

17. The computer program product according to claim 16, wherein the computer program product comprises a computer-readable medium on which the software code portions are stored.

18. The computer program product according to claim 16, wherein the program is directly loadable into an internal memory of the processing device.