Communnication system, information management apparatus, information management method, information processing apparatus, and information processing method

• US 20080279212A1
• Filed: 04/29/2008
• Published: 11/13/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Tominaga, Takashi
• Granted Patent: US 7,986,710 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/449
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/62 Establishing a time schedule for servicing the requests

Abstract

In a communication system, an information processing apparatus communicates with an information management apparatus via polling communication. In the information management apparatus, specification information including information specifying a timing condition of polling communication is stored, and the specification information is transmitted to the information processing apparatus in response to a request from the information processing apparatus. Transmission of the specification information is performed each time the request is issued via polling communication by the information processing apparatus when the specified timing condition is met. In the information processing apparatus, if the specification information is received, the timing condition is set such that next polling communication is performed when the time condition specified by the specification information is met. The polling communication is started when the timing condition set by the setting unit is met to request the provision of specification information specifying the timing condition of further next polling communication.

Claims

1. A communication system including an information management apparatus and an information processing apparatus, the information processing apparatus being adapted to issue a request to the information management apparatus via polling communication, and the information management apparatus being adapted to respond to the request thereby achieving communication between the information processing apparatus and the information management apparatus,

wherein the information management apparatus includes:

a storage unit adapted to store specification information including information specifying a timing condition of the polling communication; and

a transmitting unit adapted to transmit the specification information stored in the storage unit to the information processing apparatus, in response to the request from the information processing apparatus;

the transmitting unit being adapted to transmit the specification information stored in the storage unit to the information processing apparatus each time the polling communication is performed, when the timing condition specified in current specification information is met, by the information processing apparatus to issue the request for the specification information,

and the information processing apparatus includes;

a setting unit adapted to receive the specification information transmitted from the information management apparatus and set the timing condition of a next polling communication such that the next polling communication is performed when the timing condition specified by the received specification information is met; and

a requesting unit adapted to start polling communication when the timing condition set by the setting unit is met thereby to request the provision of specification information specifying the timing condition of further next polling communication.

2. An information management apparatus adapted to communicate with an information processing apparatus by responding to a request transmitted from the information processing apparatus via polling communication, comprising:

a storage unit adapted to store specification information including information specifying a timing condition of the polling communication; and

a transmitting unit adapted to transmit the specification information stored in the storage unit to the information processing apparatus, in response to the request from the information processing apparatus,

the transmitting unit being adapted to transmit the specification information stored in the storage unit to the information processing apparatus each time the polling communication is performed, when the timing condition specified in current specification information is met, by the information processing apparatus to issue the request for the specification information.

3. An information management method for communicating with an information processing apparatus by responding to a request transmitted from the information processing apparatus via polling communication, the method comprising:

storing specification information including information specifying a timing condition of the polling communication; and

transmitting the specification information in response to the request from the information processing apparatus;

wherein transmission of the specification information to the information processing apparatus is performed each time the polling communication is performed, when the timing condition specified in current specification information is met, by the information processing apparatus to issue a request for the specification information.

4. An information processing apparatus adapted to communicate with an information management apparatus having specification information including information specifying a timing condition of polling communication, comprising:

a setting unit adapted to receive the specification information transmitted from the information management apparatus and set the timing condition of next polling communication such that the next polling communication is performed when the timing condition specified by the specification information is met; and

a requesting unit adapted to start the polling communication when the timing condition set by the setting unit is met thereby to request the provision of the specification information specifying the timing condition of further next polling communication.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the requesting unit further requests the information management apparatus to provide a list of update programs used for updating a program.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising an update control unit adapted to control updating of the program such that if the list transmitted from the information management apparatus in response to the request issued by the requesting unit indicates that an update program for use by the information processing apparatus is available from the information management apparatus, then the update control unit requests the information management apparatus to provide the update program and updates the program in accordance with the update program transmitted from the information management apparatus in response to the request.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein in a case where the specification information transmitted from the information management apparatus includes first information indicating that the polling communication should be deactivated, the setting unit sets a polling communication mode into an inactive mode in which no more polling communication is performed.

8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein in a case where when the polling communication mode is in the inactive mode set by the setting unit such that no more polling communication is performed, if second information is input which instructs that the polling communication should be activated, then the requesting unit performs the polling communication and requests the provision of the specification information specifying the timing condition of next polling communication.

9. An information processing method for communicating with an information management apparatus having specification information including information specifying a timing condition of polling communication, comprising:

receiving the specification information transmitted from the information management apparatus and setting the timing condition of next polling communication such that the next polling communication is performed when the timing condition specified by the specification information is met; and

starting the polling communication when the timing condition set by the setting unit is met thereby to request the provision of the specification information specifying the timing condition of further next polling communication.