Presence managing method and apparatus

• US 20070124158A1
• Filed: 03/30/2006
• Published: 05/31/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Okuyama, Satoshi, Ohno, Takashi, Kakuta, Jun
• Granted Patent: US 8,527,600 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/204
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0637 Strategic management or analysis, e.g. setting a goal or target of an organisation; Planning actions based on goals; Analysis or evaluation of effectiveness of goals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/54 Presence management, e.g. monitoring or registration for receipt of user log-on information, or the connection status of the users
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/567 Integrating service provisioning from a plurality of service providers

Abstract

It is an object of the present invention to relieve the burden on a watcher that uses a presence system to subscribe to the presence information of people and objects. For example, an attribute is a product name, and products A, B, C have the identical attribute value “DVDRecorder.” The server generates aggregate presence information, which includes the presence information of the products A, B, C (corresponds to the providers), and sends a notification of such to a watcher W (corresponds to the notification recipient) of the presence information of the products A, B, C. The watcher W collectively receives the presence information for every product name, and the watcher W is therefore relieved of the burden of classifying the presence information for every product name.

Claims

1. A presence managing method executed by a presence managing apparatus, which is connected to a plurality of clients, comprising the steps of:

a managing step that receives presence information, which includes an attribute value, from said client, and associates and stores the provider client of the received presence information and said presence information;

a notification recipient managing step that stores a notification recipient management table, wherein the provider client of the presence information managed by said managing step and the notification recipient client of presence information of each provider client are associated;

an aggregating step that generates aggregate presence information that includes, of the presence information of a plurality of provider clients of which a notification is sent to the same notification recipient client, the presence information that has the identical attribute value; and

an aggregation notifying step that notifies said notification recipient client of the aggregate presence information generated by said aggregating step.

2. A presence managing method according to claim 1, wherein

said notification recipient managing step accepts the registration of a new association of the provider client of the presence information managed by said managing step, and the notification recipient client of the presence information thereof, and further stores the accepted association in said notification recipient management table;

said aggregating step comprises the substeps of;

extracting the attribute value included in the presence information of the provider client in said new association;

searching said notification recipient management table for an existing provider client, which is an existing provider client associated with the notification recipient client in said new association and wherein said extracted attribute value is included in the presence information thereof; and

generating aggregate presence information, which includes presence information of the searched existing provider client, and presence information of said new provider client; and

said aggregation notifying step notifies said new notification recipient client of said aggregate presence information.

3. A presence managing method according to claim 1, wherein

said managing step accepts the registration of a new client and the presence information thereof;

and

said aggregating step comprises the substeps of;

specifying the provider client of presence information that has the same attribute value as that of the presence information of said new client, and the notification recipient client of the presence information thereof; and

generating aggregate presence information, which includes presence information of said specified provider client and presence information of said new client; and

said aggregation notifying step notifies the notification recipient client specified by said aggregating step of aggregate presence information generated by said aggregating step.

4. A presence managing method according to claim 1, wherein

said aggregating step comprises the substeps of:

accepting the specification of an aggregation condition, including an attribute value, from an arbitrary client;

specifying the provider client of presence information, from among presence information wherein said specifier client in said notification recipient management table is the notification recipient, that has said specified attribute value; and

generating aggregate presence information that includes presence information of said specified provider client; and

said aggregation notifying step sends notification of said generated aggregate presence information to the specifier client of said aggregation condition.

5. A presence managing method according to claim 1, wherein

said managing step accepts an update of presence information from an arbitrary client;

said aggregating step comprises the substeps of;

specifying the provider client of presence information that has an attribute value identical to the updated presence information;

specifying a notification recipient client associated with said specified provider client in said notification recipient management table; and

generating aggregate presence information, which includes presence information of said specified provider client, and said updated presence information; and

said aggregation notifying step sends notification of aggregate presence information generated by said aggregating step to the notification recipient client specified by said aggregating step.

6. A presence managing method according to claim 1, wherein

said aggregating step stores an aggregation information table that associates:

said identical attribute value;

the provider client of aggregation target presence information, which is presence information that has said identical attribute value;

an identifier of aggregate presence information generated based on said aggregation target presence information; and

the notification recipient client of said aggregate presence information; and

said managing step associates and manages aggregate presence information generated by said aggregating step; and

the identifier of said aggregate presence information.

7. A presence managing method according to claim 6, further comprising the step of:

a canceling step that comprises the substeps of;

accepting the specification of any attribute value stored in said aggregation information table from an arbitrary client; and

deleting from said aggregation information table the entry of the aggregate presence information, from among the aggregate presence information wherein said client is the notification recipient client, that has the specified attribute value.

8. A presence managing method according to claim 1, said aggregating step comprises the substeps of:

updating said aggregation information table if an attribute value of arbitrary presence information managed by the managing step changes;

judging whether the number of provider clients of presence information, which has an attribute value identical to the attribute value before the change in the presence information, has fallen below a prescribed value; and

deleting the entry associated with the attribute value in said aggregation information table if it is judged that the number of said provider clients has fallen below the prescribed value.

12. A presence managing method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of:

a notification rule storing step that stores the notification rule, which defines the notification condition of aggregate presence information;

wherein, said aggregating step judges whether to generate aggregate presence information based on said notification rule; and

said aggregation notifying step judges whether to transmit the aggregate presence information based on said notification rule.

9. According to a ninth aspect of the presence invention, the presence managing method further comprises the step of an aggregation permission acquiring step that transmits an inquiry regarding the appropriateness of aggregation to the provider client of presence information that has said identical attribute value prior to the generation of said aggregate presence information, and acquires the response to that inquiry. Moreover, the aggregating step generates aggregate presence information in accordance with the response acquired in the aggregation permission acquiring step.

10. According to a tenth aspect of the invention, the presence managing method further comprises the step of an aggregation permission acquiring step that transmits an inquiry concerning whether it is appropriate to aggregate to the notification recipient client of said aggregate presence information prior to the generation of said aggregate presence information, and acquires the response to that inquiry. Moreover, the aggregating step generates aggregate presence information in accordance with the response acquired in the aggregation permission acquiring step.

11. According to a eleventh aspect of the present invention, the presence managing method further comprises the step of a notification rule storing step that stores a notification rule, which defines a notification condition of aggregate presence information. Moreover, the aggregating step judges whether to generate aggregate presence information based on the notification rule.

13. According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, the presence managing method further comprises the step of a notification rule storing step that stores the notification rule that defines a notification condition of aggregate presence information. Moreover, the aggregation notifying step judges whether to transmit the aggregate presence information based on the notification rule.

14. A presence managing apparatus connected to a plurality of clients, comprising:

a managing means that receives presence information, which includes an attribute value, from said client, and associates and stores the provider client of the received presence information and said presence information;

a notification recipient managing means that stores a notification recipient management table that associates the provider client of the presence information managed by said managing means and the notification recipient client of the presence information of each provider client;

an aggregating means that generates aggregate presence information, which includes presence information, from among presence information of a plurality of provider clients for which a notification is to be sent to the same individual notification recipient client, that has the identical attribute value; and

an aggregation notifying means that notifies said notification recipient client of aggregate presence information generated by said aggregating means.

15. A presence managing program that is executed by a computer connected to a plurality of clients, said program causing said computer to function as:

a managing means that receives presence information, which includes an attribute value, from said client, and associates and stores the provider client of the received presence information and said presence information;

a notification recipient managing means that stores a notification recipient management table that associates the provider client of the presence information managed by said managing means and the notification recipient client of the presence information of each provider client;

an aggregating means that generates aggregate presence information, which includes presence information, from among presence information of a plurality of provider clients for which a notification is to be sent to the same individual notification recipient client, that has the identical attribute value; and

an aggregation notifying means that notifies said notification recipient client of aggregate presence information generated by said aggregating means.

16. A computer readable recording medium whereon a presence managing program is recorded that causes a computer to function as a presence managing apparatus connected to a plurality of clients, said program causing said computer to function as:

a managing means that receives presence information, which includes an attribute value, from said client, and associates and stores the provider client of the received presence information and said presence information;

a notification recipient managing means that stores a notification recipient management table that associates the provider client of the presence information managed by said managing means and the notification recipient client of the presence information of each provider client;

an aggregating means that generates aggregate presence information, which includes presence information, from among presence information of a plurality of provider clients for which a notification is to be sent to the same notification recipient client, that has the identical attribute value; and

an aggregation notifying means that notifies said notification recipient client of aggregate presence information generated by said aggregating means.

17. A presence referring apparatus connected to a presence managing apparatus that manages and distributes presence information of a plurality of presence providing apparatuses, comprising:

a receiving means that receives said presence information, which includes an attribute value, from said presence managing apparatus; and

a displaying means that classifies and displays said received presence information in accordance with said attribute value.

18. A presence referring program executed by a computer connected to a presence managing apparatus that manages and distributes presence information of a plurality of presence providing apparatuses, said program causing said computer to function as:

a receiving means that receives said presence information, which includes an attribute value, from said presence managing apparatus; and

a displaying means that classifies and displays said received presence information in accordance with said attribute value.

19. A computer readable recording medium whereon is recorded a presence referring program executed by a computer connected to a presence managing apparatus that manages and distributes presence information of a plurality of presence providing apparatuses, said program causing said computer to function as:

a receiving means that receives said presence information, which includes an attribute value, from said presence managing apparatus; and

a displaying means that classifies and displays said received presence information in accordance with said attribute value.