System And Method For Providing Remote Data Access And Transcoding For A Mobile Communication Device

• US 20090296657A1
• Filed: 08/04/2009
• Published: 12/03/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/12/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Yach, David P., Brown, Michael S., Little, Herbert A., Owen, Russell N., Omar, Salim H., Rybak, Tomasz K.
• Granted Patent: US 8,554,950 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/331
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking
• 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 61/00 Network arrangements, protocols or services for addressing or naming
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/02 for separating internal from external traffic, e.g. firewalls
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0281 Proxies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0464 using hop-by-hop encryption, i.e. wherein an intermediate entity decrypts the information and re-encrypts it before forwarding it
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/083 using passwords cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using a predetermined code H04L9/3226
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1045 Proxies, e.g. for session initiation protocol [SIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/765 intermediate
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/2871 Implementation details of single intermediate entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/288 Distributed intermediate devices, i.e. intermediate devices for interaction with other intermediate devices on the same level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/561 : Adding application-functional data or data for application control, e.g. adding metadata
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/564 : Enhancement of application control based on intercepted application data
• 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 67/566 : Grouping or aggregating service requests, e.g. for unified processing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/567 : Integrating service provisioning from a plurality of service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 : in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 : Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/03 : Protecting confidentiality, e.g. by encryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 : Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/18 : Information format or content conversion, e.g. adaptation by the network of the transmitted or received information for the purpose of wireless delivery to users or terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/11 : Allocation or use of connection identifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/26 : Network addressing or numbering for mobility support

Abstract

A system for providing information content over a network to a mobile communication device includes a transcoding system and a first network device. The transcoding system includes a plurality of transcoders. Each transcoder is operable to transcode the information content from a respective input content type into a respective output content type. The first network device is in communication with the transcoding system and includes a connection handler system. The first network device is operable to receive a first connection request that includes transcoder request data and to select a corresponding connection handler. The connection handler is operable to select one or more transcoders from the plurality of transcoders based on the transcoder request data.

Claims

1. A system for providing data access between an information source and a mobile communication device, the system comprising:

a transcoding system comprising a first storage medium containing a plurality of processor executable transcoders, each transcoder executable to transcode information content from a respective first content type into a respective second content type; and

a first network device physically located at a location remote from the transcoding system, the first network device comprising a connection handler system, the connection handler system operable to receive connection data for a connection between the information source and the mobile communication device and to select a corresponding connection handler from a plurality of connection handlers based on the connection data, the selected connection handler operable to transmit information content received from the information source to the transcoding system and operable to specify to the transcoding system one or more transcoders from the plurality of transcoders to use to transcode the information content, the selected connection handler further operable to receive transcoded information content from the transcoding system and to send the transcoded information content to the mobile communication device.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the connection handler system comprises a connection handler directory, the connection handler directory storing connection handler data.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the connection handler data comprises connection handler data associated with at least one connection handler.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the connection handler data comprises a network address specifying the location of a connection handler.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the connection handler system is operable to access the location specified by the network address, retrieve the connection handler, and store connection handler data associated with the connection handler in the connection handler directory.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the connection data includes accept data indicating an acceptable content type that the mobile communication device is operable to receive.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the selected connection handler is operable to determine a received content type of the information content received from the information source and determine whether the received content type matches the acceptable content type.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the selected connection handler is operable to specify a list of content types in order of preference and to provide the list of content types to the information source.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the selected connection handler is operable to determine a received content type of the information content received from the information source, to determine an acceptable content type that the mobile communication device is operable to receive, and to select the one or more transcoders to transcode the information content from the received content type into the acceptable content type.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the information content includes multiple different content types and the selected connection handler is operable to select a respective transcoder to transcode the information content of each of the multiple different content types.

11. A method for providing remote data access to a mobile communication device, comprising the steps of:

receiving a connection request at a first location and selecting one of a plurality of connection handlers based on the connection request;

establishing a connection with an information source responsive to the connection request using the selected connection handler;

receiving information content from the information source via the selected connection handler;

selecting via the selected connection handler one or more transcoders associated with an identifier of the mobile communication device, each transcoder being configured to transcode information content from a respective input content type into a respective output content type;

retrieving the one or more transcoders from a storage medium at a second location over a network;

transcoding the information content at the first location using the retrieved one or more transcoders to create transcoded information content; and

forwarding via the selected connection handler the transcoded information content to the mobile communication device.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein:

the connection request identifies one or more accepted content types; and

the step of transcoding the information content using the retrieved one or more transcoders to create transcoded information content comprises the step of determining if a received content type of the information content may be transcoded into one or more accepted content types.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of determining if a received content type of the information content may be transcoded into one or more accepted content types comprises the steps of:

determining whether any of the plurality of transcoders are configured to transcode the received content type into the one or more of the accepted content types; and

selecting a transcoder for transcoding the information content into one of the accepted content types where any of the plurality of transcoders are configured to transcode the received content type into the one or more of the accepted content types.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein:

the information content comprises multiple content types; and

the step of determining if a received content type of the information content may be transcoded into one or more of the accepted content types comprises the step of;

determining whether any of the transcoders are configured to transcode any of the multiple content types into the one or more of the accepted content types; and

selecting a respective transcoder for transcoding the information content of each of the multiple content types into one of the accepted content types where any of the transcoders are configured to transcode any of the multiple content types into the one or more of the accepted content types.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein:

the information content comprises multiple content types; and

the step of transcoding the information content using the retrieved one or more transcoders to create transcoded information content comprises the step of selecting a respective transcoder for transcoding the information content of each of the multiple content types.

16. The method of claim 11, further comprising the step of mapping the plurality of transcoders to create a plurality of transcoding chains, each transcoding chain associating one or more transcoders to transcode a respective input content type into a respective output content type.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the connection request identifies one or more accepted content types, and wherein the step of transcoding the information content using the retrieved one or more transcoders to create transcoded information content comprises the steps of:

determining a received content type of the information content;

searching the transcoding chains for a respective input content matching the received content type and a respective output content type matching one of the one or more accepted content types; and

selecting a transcoding chain to transcode the information content.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein the connection request identifies one or more accepted content types, and wherein the step of establishing a connection with the information source comprises the steps of:

searching the plurality of transcoders for a set of transcoders configured to transcode information content into the one or more accepted content types;

generating a list of respective input content types corresponding to the set of transcoders; and

sending the list of respective input content types and the one or more accepted content types to the information source.

19. The method of claim 11, further comprising the steps of:

generating a list of transcoders according to an order of preference; and

selecting one of the transcoders in the list of transcoders based on the order of preference.

20. A method for providing remote data access to a mobile communication device, comprising the steps of:

receiving a connection request at a first location and selecting one of a plurality of connection handlers based on the connection request;

establishing a connection with an information source responsive to the connection request using the selected connection handler;

receiving information content at the first location from the information source via the selected connection handler;

sending the information content to a transcoding system at a second location, the transcoding system comprising a storage medium containing a plurality of processor executable transcoders, each transcoder being configured to transcode information content from a respective input content type into a respective output content type;

selecting via the selected connection handler one or more transcoders associated with an identifier of the mobile communication device to transcode the information content to create transcoded information content;

receiving at the first location the transcoded information content from the transcoding system; and

forwarding via the selected connection handler the transcoded information content to the mobile communication device.