Communication Protocol For Use With Portable Electronic Devices
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method comprising:
- sending, by a portable media device to an accessory, a first command requesting information about asynchronous data transfer capabilities of the accessory;
receiving, by the portable media device from the accessory, information about the asynchronous data transfer capabilities of the accessory;
sending, by the portable media device to the accessory, a second command requesting an address associated with the accessory;
receiving, by the portable media device from the accessory, the address associated with the accessory;
sending, by the portable media device to the accessory, a third command, the third command including a data frame and a destination address for a destination device; and
instructing, by the portable media device, the accessory to transmit the data frame to the destination device, wherein a source address assigned to the data frame transmitted to the destination device is the address associated with the accessory.
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Abstract
Improved techniques for communicating between a portable electronic device and an accessory (or auxiliary) device are disclosed. The accessory device can augment or supplement the functionality or capabilities of the portable electronic device. For example, in one embodiment, the accessory device can provide wireless communication capabilities to the portable electronic device. In one embodiment, the portable electronic device pertains to a portable media player and thus provide media data for storage, playback or transmission. In one embodiment, the accessory device is attachable to the portable electronic device.
28 Citations
18 Claims
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1. A method comprising:
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sending, by a portable media device to an accessory, a first command requesting information about asynchronous data transfer capabilities of the accessory; receiving, by the portable media device from the accessory, information about the asynchronous data transfer capabilities of the accessory; sending, by the portable media device to the accessory, a second command requesting an address associated with the accessory; receiving, by the portable media device from the accessory, the address associated with the accessory; sending, by the portable media device to the accessory, a third command, the third command including a data frame and a destination address for a destination device; and instructing, by the portable media device, the accessory to transmit the data frame to the destination device, wherein a source address assigned to the data frame transmitted to the destination device is the address associated with the accessory. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
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4. A portable media device communicably coupled to an accessory, the portable media device comprising:
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a processor; and a network interface coupled to the processor, wherein the processor in conjunction with the network interface is configured to; receive information about asynchronous data transfer capabilities of the accessory; send a command to the accessory requesting an address associated with the accessory; receive the address associated with the accessory; send a second command to the accessory, the second command including a first data frame and a destination address for a destination device; and instruct the accessory to transmit the first data frame to the destination device, wherein a source address assigned to the first data frame transmitted to the destination device is the address associated with the accessory. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6)
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7. A method comprising:
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receiving, by an accessory from a portable media device, a first command requesting information about asynchronous data transfer capabilities of the accessory; sending, by the accessory to the portable media device, information about the asynchronous data transfer capabilities of the accessory; receiving, by the accessory from the portable media device, a second command, the second command including a data frame and a destination address for a destination device, wherein a source address for the data frame is an address of the portable media device; receiving an instruction, by the accessory from the portable media device, to transmit the data frame to the destination device; replacing, by the accessory, the address of the portable media device with an address of the accessory; and transmitting, by the accessory to the destination device, the data frame received from the portable media device, wherein the source address for the data frame is the address of the accessory. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9)
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10. An accessory communicably coupled to a portable media device, the accessory comprising:
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a microcontroller; and a transceiver coupled to the microcontroller, wherein the microcontroller in conjunction with the transceiver is configured to; receive a first command from a portable media device, the first command requesting information about asynchronous data transfer capabilities of the accessory; send information about the asynchronous data transfer capabilities of the accessory to the portable media device; receive, by the accessory from the portable media device, a second command, the second command including a data frame and a destination address for a destination device, wherein a source address for the data frame is an address of the portable media device; receive an instruction, from the portable media device, to transmit the data frame to the destination device; replace the address of the portable media device for the data frame with an address of the accessory; and transmit the data frame received from the portable media device to the destination device, wherein the source address for the data frame is the address of the accessory.
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11. A method comprising:
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receiving, by an accessory, a listing including one or more approved network node addresses from a portable media device, the listing informing the accessory that the portable media device will only accept data from the one or more network node addresses in the listing; receiving, by an accessory, a data frame from a first network node, the first network node having a first network address; receiving, by the accessory, instructions to transmit the date frame to a portable media device; verifying, by the accessory, whether the first network address is one of approved network node addresses defined by the portable media device; and transmitting, by the accessory, the data frame to the portable media device, if the first network address one of the approved network node address.
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12. A method comprising:
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sending, by a portable media device to an accessory, a first command requesting information about whether the accessory supports beacon-type transmissions; receiving, by the portable media device from the accessory, a response indicating whether the accessory supports the beacon-type transmissions; if the accessory supports the beacon-type transmissions, sending, by the portable media device to the accessory, a second command including; a data frame to be transmitted; a notification identifier associated with the data frame; a timing schedule for transmitting the data frame; and instructions for sending the notification identifier to the portable media device when the data frame is transmitted. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14)
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15. A method comprising:
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receiving, by an accessory from a portable media device, a first command inquiring whether the accessory supports beacon-type transmission capability; sending, by the accessory to the portable media device, a reply confirming that the accessory supports the beacon-type transmission capability; receiving, by the accessory from the portable media device, a second command, the second command including; a data frame to be transmitted by the accessory; an identifier associated with the data frame; timing information specifying when to transmit the data frame; and instructions for sending the identifier to the portable media device upon transmission of the data frame. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18)
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Specification