Method and system for providing remote control from a remote client computer

• US 9,247,120 B2
• Filed: 01/04/2012
• Issued: 01/26/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/04/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Calgary Scientific Inc.
• Original Assignee: Calgary Scientific Inc.
• Inventors: Thomas, Monroe M., Stephure, Matthew James, Robinson, Kevin Glen
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Thai
• Assistant Examiner(s): Smith, Stephen
• Application Number:
  US13/343,042
• Publication Number:
  US 20120169874A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,483 Days
• Field of Search: 348/143, 348/153
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/52 Program synchronisation; Mutual exclusion, e.g. by means of semaphores
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/617 Upgrading or updating of programs or applications for camera control
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/62 Control of parameters via user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/661 Transmitting camera control signals through networks, e.g. control via the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/04 Synchronising for television systems using pulse code modulation H04N7/56
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources

Abstract

A method and system for remotely controlling a device via a computer network is provided. A client computer generates a client difference program indicative of a change of a state of the device last received from a server computer and transmits the same to the server computer. Upon receipt, the server computer executes the client difference program and determines an updated state of the device, generates control data indicative of the updated state of the device, provides the control data to the device, and generates and transmits a server difference program having encoded a difference between the state of the device and a state of the device last transmitted to the client computer. The client computer executes the server difference program for updating the state of the device last received from the server computer and for displaying the same in a human comprehensible fashion.

Claims

1. A method of providing remote control of a device, comprising:

providing a remote connection to a server computer executing a server remote access program that is accessible by a client computer executing a client remote access program, the server computer being in communication with a control program that controls the device by communicating control data over a control communication link, and the server remote access program establishing the remote connection with the client remote access program;

communicating, by the remote connection, a client difference program containing encoded data representing a change in a state of the device made by the client computer since the state of the device was last received by the server computing device;

communicating, by the remote connection, a server difference program containing encoded data representing a change in a state of the device made by the control program since the state of the device was last received by the client computing device; and

communicating, in accordance with information in the difference program, the control data to the device over the control communication link; and

synchronizing the state of the device using the difference program between the control program and the client computer.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the device is a camera.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

generating view data of image data captured by the camera; and

transmitting the view data to the client computer in accordance with hardware capabilities of the client computer.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the hardware capabilities comprising one of processing capacity, memory size, type of graphical display, and type of user interface.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising causing the client computer to display a predetermined portion of the state of the control program.

6. The method of claim 2, further comprising controlling functions of the camera using the control data.

7. The method of claim 6, where the functions of the camera comprise one of pan, tilt and zoom.

8. The method of claim 2, further comprising transmitting the image data as a video stream of successive image frames between a server remote access program executing on the server computer and a client remote access program executing on the client computer.

9. The method of claim 2, further comprising transmitting only image data related to pixel values that have been changed between successive image frames generated by the camera.

10. The method of claim 2, wherein plural client computers control functions of the camera, the method further comprising:

determining a prioritization of the plural client computers;

managing access to the camera in accordance with the prioritization; and

providing image data from the camera to each of the plural client computers during the control of the functions of the camera.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising capturing changes in the state of the control program in the difference program since a last difference program was communicated by the client computer or the server computer.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing a server remote access program executing on a server computer, the server remote access program being in communication with the control program;

providing the remote connection to a client remote access program executing on a client computer;

communicating the difference program over the remote connection between the server remote access program and the client remote access program.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising managing access of plural client computers that remotely control the device.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

receiving a request from at least one of the plural client computers at the server computer;

determining a priority of the plural client computers in accordance with information stored in a database; and

allowing a client computer having a predetermined priority to control the device.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising providing a functionality of the device to the plural client computers while at least one of the plural client computers remotely controls the device.

16. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising computer executable instructions that when executed by a processor of a computing device perform a method of providing remote control of a device, comprising:

providing a remote connection to accessible by a client remote access program to enable remote access of the device using a control program;

instantiating a server remote access program on a server computer that is in communication with the control program and the client remote access program;

communicating, over the remote connection, a client difference program containing encoded data representative of changes in a state of the device since the state of the device was last received by the server computer;

communicating, over the remote connection, a server difference program containing encoded data representative of a state of the device since the state of the device was last received by a client computing device associated with the client remote access program;

communicating, in accordance with information in the difference program, control data over a control communication link to the device; and

synchronizing the state of the device using the difference program between the control program and a client computer.

17. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16, further comprising instructions for:

managing access of plural client computers that remotely control the device in accordance with a predetermined priority.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 17, further comprising instructions for providing a functionality of the device to the plural client computers while at least one of the plural client computers remotely controls the device.

19. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16, further comprising instructions for generating the control data from the data contained in the difference program representative of the state of the device.

20. A method of providing remote control of a camera, comprising:

providing a server remote access program on a server computer, the server remote access program being in communication with a camera control program that controls the camera via a control communication link;

providing a remote connection to a client remote access program executing on a client computer, the remote connection enabling remote access to the control program;

communicating a difference program containing encoded data representative of a state of the camera over the remote connection between the client computer and the server computer and between the server computer and the client computer, the difference program capturing changes in the state of the device since the state of the device was last received by the server computer and the client computer, respectively;

communicating image data from the camera to the client computer;

communicating, in accordance with information in the difference program, control data to the camera to affect operation of the camera; and

synchronizing the state of the camera using the difference program between the control program and the client computer to enable concurrent control by the client computer and presentation of the image data on a display associated with the client computer.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising managing access of plural client computers that remotely control the camera,

wherein a request from one of the plural client computers to control the camera is evaluated in accordance with prioritization information;

and

wherein the image data is provided to each of the plural computers while the one of the plural computers controls the camera.