Secure Cloud-Based Clipboard for Touch Devices

• US 20140267339A1
• Filed: 03/15/2013
• Published: 09/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Adobe Inc.
• Original Assignee: Adobe Systems Incorporated (Adobe Inc.)
• Inventors: Dowd, Geoffrey, Memon, Amir Hussain, Donahue, Clark Phillip
• Granted Patent: US 9,647,991 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/581
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/0384 Wireless input, i.e. hardware and software details of wireless interface arrangements for pointing devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03545 Pens or stylus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/038 Control and interface arrangements therefor, e.g. drivers or device-embedded control circuitry
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/543 User-generated data transfer, e.g. clipboards, dynamic data exchange [DDE], object linking and embedding [OLE]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/061 for key exchange, e.g. in peer-to-peer networks cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for key agreement H04L9/0838
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/00 Substation equipment, e.g. for use by subscribers subscriber services or facilities provided at exchanges H04M3/00; prepayment telephone coin boxes H04M17/00; current supply arrangements H04M19/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor

Abstract

Methods and systems for securely transferring assets via a cloud-based clipboard are provided. In an embodiment, input is indicating an asset is received from an input device at a computing device, which transmits to asset to cloud-based storage. The method stores a reference to a storage location of the asset in the cloud-based storage in the input device. The method receives, from the input device, a request for the asset at a second computing device, the request indicating the reference. The requested asset is retrieved from the cloud-based storage and rendered on the second computing device. The asset can be encrypted prior to transmission to the cloud-based storage and a decryption key for the asset is stored in the input device. In response to a request, the encrypted asset is retrieved and provided to a second computing device, where the asset is decrypted using the key from the input device.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, from an input device, an input at a first computing device;

based at least in part on receiving the input, transmitting an asset to a server system remote from the first computing device; and

storing, in a storage medium of the input device separate from the first computing device, information uniquely identifying the asset or a reference to a storage location of the asset in the server system.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, from the server system, a reference to a storage location of the asset in the server system.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the reference is a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) identifying the storage location on a web server of the server system.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, from the input device, a request for the asset at a second computing device, the request indicating at least the information uniquely identifying the asset or the reference to the storage location of the asset in the server system;

based at least in part on receiving the request, retrieving the asset indicated in the request; and

rendering, on a display of the second computing device, the retrieved asset.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first computing device comprises a touch screen interface, and wherein the input device is a stylus comprising a physical button, a tip, and a wireless transceiver configured to communicate with the first computing device, and wherein the input comprises one or more of:

applying an amount of pressure via the tip onto a display of the first computing device;

clicking the physical button; and

causing a movement of the tip against the display.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the input is received via a first application executing on the first computing device, and wherein the storing further comprises storing information identifying the first application, the method further comprising:

based at least in part on receiving the input, copying the asset into a local clipboard of the first computing device;

receiving, from the input device, a request for the asset via a second application executing on the first computing device, the second application being different from the first application, the request identifying the first application and indicating the reference to the storage location of the asset in the server system;

based at least in part on the information identifying the first application, determining if the asset can be provided to the second application from the local clipboard;

in response to determining that the asset can be provided to the second application from the local clipboard, retrieving the asset from the local clipboard;

in response to determining that the asset cannot be provided to the second application from the local clipboard, retrieving the asset from the server system;

rendering, on a display of the first computing device, within an interface of the second application, the retrieved asset.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the input is received via a first application executing on the first computing device, and wherein the storing further comprises storing a rendering attribute for the asset, wherein the rendering attribute has a first value that is specific to rendering the asset via the first application, the method further comprising:

based at least in part on receiving the input, copying the asset into a local clipboard of the first computing device;

receiving, from the input device, a request for the asset via a second application executing on the first computing device, the second application being different from the first application, the request identifying the rendering attribute;

based at least in part on the rendering attribute, determining if the asset can be provided to the second application from the local clipboard;

in response to determining that the asset can be provided to the second application from the local clipboard, retrieving the asset from the local clipboard;

in response to determining that the asset cannot be provided to the second application from the local clipboard, retrieving the asset from the server system;

modifying the rendering attribute to have a second value that is specific to rendering the retrieved asset via the second application; and

rendering, within an interface of the second application on a display of the first computing device, based on the rendering attribute having the second value, the retrieved asset.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the input is received via a first application executing on the first computing device, the method further comprising:

receiving, from the input device, a request for the asset via a second application executing on a second computing device, the second application being different from the first application, the request indicating the reference to the storage location of the asset in the server system;

based at least in part on receiving the request, retrieving the asset indicated in the request; and

rendering, on a display of the second computing device, within an interface of the second application, the retrieved asset.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the input is received via a first application executing on the first computing device, the method further comprising:

receiving, from the input device, a request for the asset via a second application executing on a second computing device, the second application being different from the first application, the request indicating the information uniquely identifying the asset and a plurality of rendering attributes, the plurality of rendering attributes comprising one or more of;

a target location in a display of the second computing device;

a layer of the second application;

a scaling factor used by the second application or to fit a screen size of the display of the second computing device; and

a color attribute used by the second application;

based at least in part on receiving the request, retrieving the asset indicated in the request;

based at least in part on the plurality of rendering attributes, rendering, on the display of the second computing device, within an interface of the second application, the retrieved asset.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising, prior to the transmitting:

encrypting the asset; and

generating a decryption key usable to decrypt the encrypted asset, wherein the storing further comprises storing the decryption key in the storage medium of the input device.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

receiving, from the input device, a request in an application executing on a second computing device, the request indicating the reference to the storage location of the encrypted asset in the server system;

based at least in part on receiving the request, retrieving the encrypted asset indicated in the request;

decrypting, using the decryption key, the retrieved asset; and

rendering, on a display of the second computing device, the decrypted asset.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising, prior to the transmitting:

encrypting the asset using a private key, wherein the private key is usable to decrypt the encrypted asset, wherein the storing further comprises storing the private key in the storage medium of the input device.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

receiving, from the input device, a request in an application executing on a second computing device, the request indicating the reference to the storage location of the encrypted asset in the server system;

based at least in part on receiving the request, retrieving the encrypted asset indicated in the request;

decrypting, using the private key, the retrieved asset; and

rendering, on a display of the second computing device, the decrypted asset.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising, prior to the transmitting:

encrypting the asset using a public encryption key; and

generating a private decryption key usable to decrypt the encrypted asset, wherein the public encryption key is different from the private decryption key, and wherein the storing further comprises storing the private decryption key in the storage medium of the input device.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

receiving, from the input device, a request in an application executing on a second computing device, the request indicating the reference to the storage location of the encrypted asset in the server system;

based at least in part on receiving the request, retrieving the encrypted asset indicated in the request;

decrypting, using the private decryption key, the retrieved asset; and

rendering, on a display of the second computing device, the decrypted asset.

16. A computer readable storage medium having executable instructions stored thereon, that if executed by a processor of a cloud storage device, cause the processor to perform operations for transferring an asset, the instructions comprising:

instructions for storing, in a storage location of the cloud storage device, an asset received from a first computing device in response to a first input to the first computing device from an input device, the first computing device being remote from the cloud storage device;

instructions for creating a reference to the storage location of the asset;

instructions for transmitting the reference to the first computing device for storage in a memory of the input device;

instructions for receiving a request for the asset from a second computing device, the request sent in response to a second input to the second computing device from the input device, wherein the request includes the reference;

instructions for retrieving the asset from the storage location indicated in the reference in response to receiving the request; and

instructions for providing the asset to the second computing device.

17. The computer readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the reference is a Uniform Resource Locator (URL), and wherein the storage location is on a web server of the cloud storage device.

18. The computer readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions for storing comprise instructions for storing an encrypted asset having been encrypted using a private encryption key stored in the memory of the input device, the private encryption key being usable to decrypt the encrypted asset, and wherein the instructions for providing comprise:

instructions for providing the encrypted asset to the second computing device.

19. A system comprising:

a first computing device having a first display and having installed thereon a first application with a first user interface;

an input device comprising a memory and a wireless transceiver configured to communicate with the first computing device; and

a cloud storage device remote from the first computing device, wherein the cloud storage device comprises;

a processor;

a computer readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon, that if executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising;

storing, in a storage location of the cloud storage device, an asset received from the first computing device in response to a first input to the first application from the input device;

transmitting a reference to the storage location to the first computing device for storage in the memory of the input device;

receiving a request for the asset from a second application, the second application being different from the first application, the request sent in response to a second input to the second application from the input device, wherein the request includes the reference; and

providing the asset to the second application.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the storing comprises storing an encrypted asset received from the first computing device, the asset having been encrypted using a private encryption key stored in the memory of the input device, the private encryption key being usable to decrypt the encrypted asset, and wherein the providing comprises providing the encrypted asset to the second application.

21. The system of claim 19, wherein the wireless transceiver is a wireless network transceiver configured to communicate using a Bluetooth protocol.

22. The system of claim 19, wherein the input device is a stylus having a physical button and a tip, and wherein one or more of first input and the first input comprises at least one of:

applying an amount of pressure on the first display using the tip;

clicking the physical button;

or

causing a movement of the tip against the first display.

23. The system of claim 19, further comprising:

a second computing device remote from the cloud storage device, the second computing device having a second display and having installed thereon at least one of the first application and the second application, wherein the input device is further configured to communicate with the second computing device; and

a data network capable of establishing a secure communication link between the cloud storage device and each of the first computing device and the second computing device, wherein the computer readable storage medium has instructions stored thereon, that if executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising;

receiving a request for the asset from the second computing device, the request sent in response to a third input from the input device to one of the first application and the second application on the second computing device, wherein the request includes the reference; and

providing the asset to the one of the first application and the second application on the second computing device.

24. The system of claim 23, wherein the storing comprises storing an encrypted asset received from the first computing device, the asset having been encrypted using a private encryption key stored in the memory of the input device, the private encryption key being usable to decrypt the encrypted asset, and wherein the providing comprises providing the encrypted asset to the second computing device.