Transferring application state across devices

• US 8,171,137 B1
• Filed: 09/28/2011
• Issued: 05/01/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Pelly, Nicholas Julian, Parks, Jason, Hamilton, Jeffrey William, Hsieh, Cheng-Hsueh Andrew, Chen, Chinyue, Lo, Yung-Chieh
• Primary Examiner(s): DINH, KHANH Q
• Application Number:
  US13/247,755
• Time in Patent Office: 216 Days
• Field of Search: 709/220, 709/224, 709/228, 348/14.08, 705/6
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4856 resumption being on a different machine, e.g. task migration, virtual machine migration G06F9/5088 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/025 Coordination of plural reservations, e.g. plural trip segments, transportation combined with accommodation
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/0062 in RFID [Radio Frequency Identification] Systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/77 for interrogation
• 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: H04M 1/72406 by software upgrading or downloading
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/04 including near field communication means, e.g. RFID
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

A first client device or system performs a method that includes retaining in memory registration information for a respective application indicating the respective application is registered for sharing application state with other client devices or systems. The method further includes storing an application state of a respective application, and detecting a transfer triggering condition. The transfer triggering condition includes presence of a second client device or system within a predefined proximity of the first client device or system, and the predefined proximity is a predefined proximity for near field communication. Furthermore, upon detecting the triggering condition, the first client device or system determines, in accordance with the stored registration information, that the respective application is registered for application state sharing, and transmits the application state of the respective application to the second client device or system.

Claims

1. A method, performed by a first client device or system having one or more processors and memory storing one or more programs for execution by the one or more processors, the method comprising:

retaining in the memory of the first client device of system registration information for a respective application indicating the respective application is registered for sharing application state with other client devices or systems;

storing an application state of a respective application;

detecting a transfer triggering condition, the transfer triggering condition comprising presence of a second client device or system within a predefined proximity of the first client device or system, wherein the predefined proximity is a predefined proximity for near field communication; and

upon detecting the triggering condition,

determining in accordance with the stored registration information that the respective application is registered for application state sharing, and

transmitting the application state of the respective application to the second client device or system.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the application state further comprises requesting a copy of the application state from the respective application.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the application state comprises transmitting at least a portion of the application state using near field communication.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein transmitting the application state further comprises transmitting at least another portion of the application state using wireless communication other than near field communication.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the application state comprises transmitting the application state using a near field communication connection between the first client device or system and the second client device or system.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the transfer triggering condition further comprises establishing a near field communication connection between the first client device or system and the second client device or system.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the respective application is a foreground application, of the first client device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the application state of the respective application includes at least one of the group consisting of:

one or more unsent message drafts, state information for an ongoing telephone call, a playback position for video content, a playback position for audio content, a message account identifier, a message identifier for an unsent message draft, a message identifier for a currently viewed message, and a mime type associated with the respective application.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising notifying the respective application that the application state has been transmitted to the second client device or system.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising changing the application state of the respective application in response to the notification.

11. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing one or more programs for execution by one or more processors of a client device or system, the one or more programs comprising instructions to:

retain in memory of the first client device or system registration information for a respective application indicating the respective application is registered for sharing application state with other client devices or systems;

store an application state of a respective application;

detect a transfer triggering condition, the transfer triggering condition comprising presence of a second client device or system within a predefined proximity of the first client device or system, wherein the predefined proximity is a predefined proximity for near field communication; and

upon detecting the triggering condition,

determine in accordance with the stored registration information that the respective application is registered for application state sharing, and transmit the application state of the respective application to the second client device or system.

12. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the instructions to transmit the application state further comprise instructions to request a copy of the application state from the respective application.

13. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the instructions to transmit the application state comprise instructions to transmit at least a portion of the application state using near field communication.

14. The computer readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the instructions to transmit the application state further comprise instructions to transmit at least another portion of the application state using wireless communication other than near field communication.

15. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the instructions to transmit the application state comprises instructions to transmit the application state using a near field communication connection between the first client device or system and the second client device or system.

21. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the instructions to detect the transfer triggering condition further comprise instructions to establish a near field communication connection between the first client device or system and the second client device or system.

22. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the respective application is a foreground application of the first client device.

23. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the application state of the respective application includes at least one of the group consisting of:

one or more unsent message drafts, state information for an ongoing telephone call, a playback position for video content, a playback position for audio content, a message account identifier, a message identifier for an unsent message draft, a message identifier for a currently viewed message, and a mime type associated with the respective application.

24. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the one or more programs further comprise instructions to notify the respective application that the application state has been transmitted to the second client device or system.

25. The computer readable storage medium of claim 24, wherein the one or more programs further comprise instructions to change the application state of the respective application in response to the notification.

16. A client device or system, comprising:

one or more communication interfaces, including a near field communication transceiver;

one or more processors; and

memory storing one or more programs for execution by the one or more processors, the one or more programs comprising instructions to;

retain in memory of the client device or system registration information for a respective application indicating the respective application is registered for sharing application state with other client devices or systems;

store an application state of a respective application;

detect a transfer triggering condition, the transfer triggering condition comprising presence of a second client device or system within a predefined proximity of the first client device or system, wherein the predefined proximity is a predefined proximity for near field communication; and

upon detecting the triggering condition,

determine in accordance with the stored registration information that the respective application is registered for application state sharing,

and transmitting the application state of the respective application to the second client device or system.

17. The client device or system of claim 16, wherein the instructions to transmit the application state further comprise instructions to request a copy of the application state from the respective application.

18. The client device or system of claim 16, wherein the instructions to transmit the application state comprise instructions to transmit at least a portion of the application state using near field communication.

19. The client device or system of claim 18, wherein the instructions to transmit the application state further comprise instructions to transmit at least another portion of the application state using wireless communication other than near field communication.

20. The client device or system of claim 16, wherein the instructions to transmit the application state comprises instructions to transmit the application state using a near field communication connection between the first client device or system and the second client device or system.

26. The client device or system of claim 16, wherein the instructions to detect the transfer triggering condition further comprise instructions to establish a near field communication connection between the first client device or system and the second client device or system.

27. The client device or system of claim 16, wherein the respective application is a foreground application of the first client device.

28. The client device or system of claim 16, wherein the application state of the respective application includes at least one of the group consisting of:

one or more unsent message drafts, state information for an ongoing telephone call, a playback position for video content, a playback position for audio content, a message account identifier, a message identifier for an unsent message draft, a message identifier for a currently viewed message, and a mime type associated with the respective application.

29. The client device or system of claim 16, wherein the one or more programs further comprise instructions to notify the respective application that the application state has been transmitted to the second client device or system.

30. The client device or system of claim 29, wherein the one or more programs further comprise instructions to change the application state of the respective application in response to the notification.