INTELLIGENT CACHING OF MEDIA FILES

• US 20090125677A1
• Filed: 05/04/2008
• Published: 05/14/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/13/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Masimo Corporation
• Original Assignee: Vantrix Corporation
• Inventors: Leveque, Xavier, Norton, Richard Elliott, Lavalliere, Joseph Leo Claude Mario
• Granted Patent: US 8,171,167 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/113
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/303 Terminal profiles
• 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 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching

Abstract

A method of receiving and forwarding a multimedia message is provided. The multimedia message is adapted with a first adaptation profile into a first adapted message to be received in a first device. The multimedia message and the first adapted message are stored in a media cache. The message may then be forwarded from the first device to a second device that has a second adaptation profile by retrieving the first adapted message from the media cache and sending it to the second device if the first and second adaptation profiles match, otherwise the multimedia message is retrieved from the media cache and adapted with the second adaptation profile into a second adapted message that is then sent to the second device. In addition, the second adapted message is stored in the media cache.

Claims

1. A method of sending a source media file of a multimedia message from a service center to a first and second devices via one or more adaptation servers, at least one of the servers having a media cache, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) computing a signature of the source media file;

(b) using the signature of the source media file as index for locating an original copy of the source media file in the media cache;

(c) locating a first adapted version of the original copy of the source media file in the media cache;

(d) sending the first adapted version to the first device;

(e) locating the second adapted version of the original copy of the source media file in the media cache; and

(f) sending the second adapted version to the second device.

2. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the step (c) comprises performing adaptation of the original copy of the source media file into the first adapted version if the locating of the first adapted version has not been successful.

3. The method as described in claim 2, wherein the step (c) further comprises

computing a signature of the first adapted version;

and

using the signature of the first adapted version as index for storing the first adapted version in the media cache.

4. The method as described in claim 2, wherein the step (c) further comprises storing the source media file in the media cache as the original copy, and transcoding the source media file into the first adapted version if the locating of the original copy of the source media file in the step (b) has not been successful.

5. The method as described in claim 4, wherein the step (c) further comprises:

computing a signature of the first adapted version; and

using the signature of the first adapted version as index for storing the first adapted version in the media cache.

6. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the step (e) comprises performing adaptation of the original copy of the source media file into the second adapted version if the locating of the second adapted version has not been successful.

7. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the step (e) further comprises storing the source media file in the media cache as the original copy, and transcoding the source media file into the second adapted version if the locating of the original copy of the source media file in the step (b) has not been successful.

8. The method as described in claim 7, wherein the step (e) further comprises:

computing a signature of the second adapted version; and

using the signature of the second adapted version as index for storing the second adapted version in the media cache.

9. The method as described in claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

determining capabilities of the first and second devices; and

locating first and second adapted versions that are compatible with the capabilities of the first and second devices respectively.

10. A media cache system for intelligent caching of a plurality of original and adapted versions of media files, the system comprising:

a media files repository, containing original versions and adapted versions of media files, in which each adapted version is adapted from one of the plurality of original versions according to one of a plurality of transcoding profiles;

a signatures repository, containing signatures of the original versions and the adapted versions; and

a database engine, comprising a computer readable software program code means stored in a computer readable medium to be executed by a processor, for providing access to the media files repository, to signatures repositories, and to links carrying multimedia messages to be cached by the media cache system; and

for keeping track of the original versions and the adapted versions by maintaining index schemas based on the signatures of the respective media files.

11. The media cache system as described in claim 10, wherein the signatures are generated in the processor, by computing a digest function over each said media file.

12. The media cache system as described in claim 11, wherein the digest function is the standard Message Digest 5 (MD5) function.

13. The media cache system as described in claim 11, wherein the plurality of transcoding profiles includes transcoding profiles for at least one type of device capable of receiving media files.

14. An adaptation server for adapting source media files, received over a link, into adapted versions according to the capabilities of destination devices, including:

a processor for performing the adapting; and

a media cache for intelligent caching of a plurality of original and adapted versions of media files, the media cache including;

a media files repository, containing original versions and adapted versions of media files, in which each adapted version is adapted from one of the plurality of original versions according to one of a plurality of transcoding profiles;

a signatures repository, containing signatures of the original versions and the adapted versions; and

a database engine, comprising a computer readable software program code means stored in a computer readable medium to be executed by a processor, for providing access to the media files repository, to signatures repositories, and to links carrying multimedia messages to be cached by the media cache system; and

for keeping track of the original versions and the adapted versions by maintaining index schemas based on the signatures of the respective media files.

15. A method for forwarding an original multimedia message from a first device to a second device, each device being characterized by a transcoding profile, through an adaptation server having a media cache, comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving the original multimedia message from a service center;

(b) transcoding the original message into a first adapted message in accordance with a first transcoding profile;

(c) sending the first adapted message to the first device;

(d) storing the original multimedia message in the media cache;

(e) storing the first adapted message, and the first transcoding profile in the media cache;

(f) receiving the first adapted message from the first device;

(g) generating a second adapted message; and

(h) sending the second adapted message to the second device.

16. The method as described in claim 15, wherein:

the step (f) further includes locating the first transcoding profile, the first adapted message and the stored original message stored in the media cache; and

the step (g) further includes;

verifying that the first and a second transcoding profiles are identical, and copying the first adapted message to generate the second adapted message instead of transcoding;

otherwise, verifying that the first and a second transcoding profiles are not identical, and transcoding the original message into the second adapted message in accordance with the second transcoding profile.

17. The method as described in claim 16, wherein the step (g) further includes:

determining added elements of the received first adapted message compared with the original multimedia message stored in the media cache, and

transcoding a combination of the original multimedia message augmented by the added elements into the second adapted message.

18. The method as described in claim 16, wherein:

the step (d) further includes computing and storing a signature of the original multimedia message;

the step (e) further includes computing and storing signatures of the first adapted message and of the first transcoding profile; and

the step (f) further includes using the stored signatures in locating the first transcoding profile, the first adapted message and the stored original message.

19. A method for forwarding an original message from a first device to a second device through an adaptation server having a media cache, comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving the original message from a service center;

(b) transcoding media file components of the original message into a first adapted message in accordance with a first transcoding profile;

(c) sending the first adapted message to the first device;

(d) storing the media file components of the original message and signatures of the media file components in the media cache;

(e) storing the first adapted message and the first transcoding profile in the media cache;

(f) receiving the first adapted message from the first device;

(g) generating a second adapted message; and

(h) sending the second adapted message to the second device.

20. The method as described in claim 19, wherein:

the step (f) further includes locating the first transcoding profile, the first adapted message and the stored original message stored in the media cache; and

the step (g) further includes;

verifying that the first and a second transcoding profiles are identical, and copying the first adapted message to generate the second adapted message instead of transcoding;

otherwise, verifying that the first and a second transcoding profiles are not identical, and transcoding the original message into the second adapted message in accordance with the second transcoding profile.

21. The method as described in claim 20, wherein:

the step (d) further includes computing and storing signatures of the media file components of the original message;

the step (e) further includes computing and storing signatures of the first adapted message and of the first transcoding profile; and

the step (f) further includes using the stored signatures in locating the first transcoding profile, the first adapted message and the media file components of the stored original message.

22. A method for adapting an original media file into adapted media files, and sending an appropriate one of said adapted media files to each of a plurality of devices, comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving the original media file from a service center;

(b) storing the original media file in the media cache;

(c) determining a transcoding profile for the first device;

(d) locating an adapted media file corresponding to the original media file according to said transcoding profile in a media cache;

otherwise transcoding the original media file into the adapted media file with said transcoding profile and storing it in the media cache;

(e) sending the adapted media file to the first device; and

(f) repeating the steps (c) to (e) for each of the devices.

23. The method as described in claim 22, wherein the steps (b), (c) (d) comprise computing respective signatures of the original media file, the adapted media file, and the transcoding profiles;

and

using the computed signatures as indices for storing and retrieving the original media file, the adapted media file, and the transcoding profiles respectively.

24. A method of sending a multimedia message from a first device to a second device, comprising the steps of:

receiving the multi-media message in the first device having a first adaptation profile; and

forwarding the multi-media message from the first device to the second device having a second adaptation profile;

wherein the step of receiving comprises;

adapting with the multimedia message into a first adapted message according to the first adaptation profile;

sending the first adapted message to the first device; and

storing the multimedia message and the first adapted message in a media cache; and

wherein the step of forwarding comprises;

retrieving the first adapted message from the media cache and sending it to the second device provided the first and second adaptation profiles match;

otherwise;

retrieving the multimedia message from the media cache;

adapting the retrieved multi-media message into a second adapted message according to the second adaptation profile;

sending the second adapted message to the second device, and

storing the second adapted message in the media cache.