U.S. patent application number 11/854157 was filed with the patent office on 2008-07-31 for contents management method and apparatus.
This patent application is currently assigned to Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Young-ho RHEE.
Application Number | 20080182558 11/854157 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39668565 |
Filed Date | 2008-07-31 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080182558 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
RHEE; Young-ho |
July 31, 2008 |
CONTENTS MANAGEMENT METHOD AND APPARATUS
Abstract
A contents management method and system, the contents management
method including: generating contents; and transmitting the
generated contents to a Web server, wherein the Web server receives
the contents, stores the contents, manages the contents, and
maintains a list of the contents so that the contents are easily
accessible by a terminal.
Inventors: |
RHEE; Young-ho; (Seoul,
KR) |
Correspondence
Address: |
STEIN, MCEWEN & BUI, LLP
1400 EYE STREET, NW, SUITE 300
WASHINGTON
DC
20005
US
|
Assignee: |
Samsung Electronics Co.,
Ltd.
Suwon-si
KR
|
Family ID: |
39668565 |
Appl. No.: |
11/854157 |
Filed: |
September 12, 2007 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
455/412.1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04L 67/10 20130101;
G06F 16/958 20190101; H04L 67/325 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
455/412.1 |
International
Class: |
H04L 12/58 20060101
H04L012/58 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Jan 31, 2007 |
KR |
2007-10267 |
Claims
1. A contents management method for a portable terminal, the
contents management method comprising: generating contents in the
portable terminal; and automatically transmitting the generated
contents to a Web server, wherein the Web server receives the
contents, stores the contents, manages the contents, classifies the
contents according to attributes of the contents, and maintains a
content list of the contents so that the contents are easily
accessible by the portable terminal.
2. The contents management method as claimed in claim 1, wherein
the transmitting of the contents comprises: transmitting the
generated contents to the Web server when a contents transmission
condition is satisfied.
3. The contents management method as claimed in claim 2, wherein
the contents transmission condition is a prescribed time or a
prescribed time range such that the generated contents are
transmitted to the Web server if a current time is the prescribed
time or within the prescribed time range, or a prescribed
communication method for communicating with the Web server such
that the generated contents are transmitted to the Web server if a
current communication method with the Web server is the prescribed
communication method.
4. The contents management method as claimed in claim 1, wherein
the transmitting of the contents comprises: searching for one or
more usable communication methods; selecting the one or more usable
communication methods from a plurality of usable communication
methods according to a selection criterion; and transmitting the
generated contents to the Web server on the basis of the selected
one or more usable communication methods.
5. The contents management method as claimed in claim 4, wherein: a
priority value is allocated to each of the one or more usable
communication methods; and the selection criterion is based on the
priority values or a communication condition.
6. The contents management method as claimed in claim 5, wherein
the priority values are allocated according to a billing policy of
each of the one or more usable communication methods.
7. The contents management method as claimed in claim 5, wherein
the communication condition includes at least one of a connection
intensity to a repeater and a degree of traffic.
8. The contents management method as claimed in claim 1, further
comprising: transmitting a request for contents search information
to the Web server; receiving the contents search information
including the contents list from the Web server; and generating a
user interface to guide a search of the contents in the content
list.
9. The contents management method as claimed in claim 1, further
comprising: transmitting a search condition to the Web server,
wherein the Web server searches the content list for contents
according to the search condition; and receiving the searched
contents or a list of the searched contents from the Web
server.
10. A computer readable recording medium encoded with the method of
claim 1 and implemented by a computer.
11. A contents management method of a Web server, the contents
management method comprising: receiving contents in the Web server
from a portable terminal; storing the contents; and managing and
classifying the received contents according to attributes of the
contents so that the contents are easily accessible by the portable
terminal, wherein the portable terminal generates the contents and
automatically transmits the contents to the Web server.
12. The contents management method as claimed in claim 11, wherein
the managing and the classifying of the contents comprises:
analyzing meta data of the contents; and classifying the contents
according to the analyzed meta data.
13. The contents management method as claimed in claim 11, wherein
the managing and the classifying of the contents comprises:
analyzing contexts of the contents; and classifying the contents
according to the analyzed contexts.
14. The contents management method as claimed in claim 11, further
comprising: updating a contents list corresponding to a user of the
portable terminal according to the managing and the classifying of
the contents.
15. The contents management method as claimed in claim 14, further
comprising: receiving a request for contents search information
from the portable terminal; and transmitting the contents search
information including the contents list to the portable
terminal.
16. The contents management method as claimed in claim 15, wherein
the contents search information is information for generating a
user interface to guide a search of the contents in the contents
list.
17. The contents management method as claimed in claim 11, further
comprising: transmitting the contents to another terminal.
18. The contents management method as claimed in claim 11, further
comprising: receiving a search condition from the portable
terminal; searching a content list corresponding to the managed and
classified contents for contents according to the received search
condition; and transmitting the searched contents to the portable
terminal.
19. A computer readable recording medium encoded with the method of
claim 11 and implemented by a computer.
20. A portable terminal comprising: a contents generation unit to
generate contents; and a communication unit to automatically
transmit the generated contents to a Web server, wherein the Web
server receives the contents, stores the contents, manages the
contents, classifies the contents according to attributes of the
contents, and maintains a content list of the contents so that the
contents are easily accessible by the terminal.
21. The portable terminal as claimed in claim 20, further
comprising: a control unit to control the communication unit to
transmit the generated contents according to whether a contents
transmission condition is satisfied.
22. The portable terminal as claimed in claim 21, wherein the
contents transmission condition is a prescribed time or a
prescribed time range such that the control unit controls the
communication unit to transmit the generated contents to the Web
server if a current time is the prescribed time or within the
prescribed time range, or a prescribed communication method for
communication with the Web server such that the control unit
controls the communication unit to transmit the generated contents
to the Web server if a current communication method with the Web
server is the prescribed communication method.
23. The portable terminal as claimed in claim 21, further
comprising: a control unit to select for one or more usable
communication methods from a plurality of usable communication
methods according a selection criterion and to transmit the
generated contents to the Web server on the basis of the one or
more usable communication methods.
24. The portable terminal as claimed in claim 23, wherein a
priority value is allocated to each of the one or more usable
communication methods, and the selection criterion is based on the
priority values or a communication condition.
25. The portable terminal as claimed in claim 20, wherein the
communication unit transmits a request for contents search
information to the Web server and receives the contents search
information including the contents list from the Web server, such
that a user interface to guide a search of the contents in the
content list is generated.
26. A Web server to manage contents, the Web server comprising: a
network connection unit to receive contents from a portable
terminal; a storage unit to store the contents; and a contents
reconstruction unit to manage and to classify the received contents
according to attributes of the contents so that the contents are
easily accessible by the portable terminal, wherein the portable
terminal generates the contents and automatically transmits the
contents to the Web server.
27. The Web server as claimed in claim 26, wherein the contents
reconstruction unit analyzes meta data of the contents and
classifies the contents according to the analyzed meta data.
28. The Web server as claimed in claim 26, wherein contents
reconstruction unit analyzes contexts of the contents and
classifies the contents according to the analyzed contexts.
29. The Web server as claimed in claim 26, further comprising: a
contents list updating unit to update a contents list corresponding
to a user of the portable terminal according to the managed and
classified contents, wherein the network connection unit receives a
request for contents search information from the portable terminal
and transmits the contents search information including at least
one the contents list and information for generating a user
interface to guide a search of the contents in the contents list to
the portable terminal.
30. The Web server as claimed in claim 29, wherein the network
connection unit receives a request from the portable terminal for
contents selected from the user interface, and transmits the
selected contents to the portable terminal.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims the benefit of Korean Application
No. 2007-10267, filed on Jan. 31, 2007 in the Korean Intellectual
Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by
reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] Aspects of the present invention relate to a contents
management method and apparatus, and more particularly, to a
terminal that generates contents, a Web server that reconstructs
contents to be transmitted from a terminal, and a contents
management method between a terminal and a Web server.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] With the development of digital technologies, the demand for
various kinds of digital contents (hereinafter, referred to as
"contents"), such as music, movies, photographs, and documents, is
increasing. Since users want to constantly use the contents
regardless of location, portable digital terminals (such as PDAs,
cellular phones, MP3 players, and PMPs) are widely used to receive
such contents. The portable digital terminals are provided with
various kinds of content generating functions so that the users can
use existing contents as well as generate new contents.
[0006] Under this environment, since the number and kinds of
contents and terminals processing the contents are increasing,
managing the contents has become more difficult. Furthermore, since
the contents may be separately distributed to individual terminals,
searching for and obtaining desired contents at a desired time
becomes more difficult.
[0007] Accordingly, there is a need for a technology to efficiently
manage the contents for use at these portable digital
terminals.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] Aspects of the present invention provide a method and
apparatus that can efficiently manage contents for use by portable
digital terminals.
[0009] According to an aspect of the present invention, there is
provided a contents management method, the contents management
method including: generating contents; and transmitting the
generated contents to a Web server, wherein the Web server receives
the contents, stores the contents, manages the contents, and
maintains a contest list of the contents so that the contents are
easily accessible by a terminal.
[0010] According to another aspect of the present invention, there
is provided a contents management method, the contents management
method including: receiving contents from a terminal; storing the
contents; and managing and classifying the received contents
according to attributes of the contents so that the contents are
easily accessible by the terminal.
[0011] According to still another aspect of the present invention,
there is provided a terminal, the terminal including: a contents
generation unit to generate contents; and a communication unit to
transmit the generated contents to a Web server, wherein the Web
server receives the contents, stores the contents, manages the
contents, and maintains a contest list of the contents so that the
contents are easily accessible by a terminal.
[0012] According to yet another aspect of the present invention,
there is provided a Web server, the Web server including: a network
connection unit to receive contents from a terminal; a storage
units to store the received contents; and a contents reconstruction
unit to manage and to classify the received contents according to
attributes of the contents so that the contents are easily
accessible by the terminal.
[0013] According to another aspect of the present invention, there
is provided a system for managing contents, the system including: a
terminal including: a contents generation unit to generate
contents, and a communication unit to transmit the generated
contents; and a Web server including: a network connection unit to
receive the generated contents from the terminal, a storage unit to
store the received contents, and a contents reconstruction unit to
manage and to classify the received contents in a content list
according to attributes of the contents so that the contents are
easily accessible by the terminal.
[0014] Additional aspects and/or advantages of the invention will
be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part,
will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice
of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0015] These and/or other aspects and advantages of the invention
will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the
following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with
the accompanying drawings of which:
[0016] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a contents management system
according to an example embodiment of the present invention;
[0017] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a communication environment of a
terminal according to an example embodiment of the present
invention;
[0018] FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a method in which a terminal
accesses a Web server according to an example embodiment of the
present invention;
[0019] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a method in which a terminal
transmits contents to a Web server according to an example
embodiment of the present invention;
[0020] FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a method in which a terminal
transmits contents to a Web server according to another example
embodiment of the present invention;
[0021] FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a content management method of
a Web server according to an example embodiment of the present
invention;
[0022] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a method in which a terminal
receives contents from a Web server according to an example
embodiment of the present invention;
[0023] FIG. 8A is a diagram showing contents search information
according to an example embodiment of the present invention;
[0024] FIG. 8B is a diagram showing contents search information
according to an example embodiment of the present invention;
[0025] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing contents search information
according to another example embodiment of the present
invention;
[0026] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a method in which a terminal
receives contents from a Web server according to an example
embodiment of the present invention;
[0027] FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a
terminal according to an example embodiment of the present
invention; and
[0028] FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a Web
server according to an example embodiment of the present
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
[0029] Reference will now be made in detail to the present
embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are
illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference
numerals refer to the like elements throughout. The embodiments are
described below in order to explain the present invention by
referring to the figures.
[0030] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a contents management system 100
according to an example embodiment of the present invention. The
contents management system 100 includes a terminal 110 and a Web
server 120.
[0031] The terminal 110 generates contents. According to aspects of
the present invention, the contents represent data objects
including at least one of audio data, video data, and text data.
For example, the contents may include photographs, music, motion
pictures, e-mails, electronic books, schedules, messages, and
memos. However, it is understood that the types of the contents are
not limited thereto.
[0032] The terminal 110 can transmit the generated contents to the
Web server 120. According to an aspect of the present invention,
the terminal 110 may transmit the contents to the Web server 120
automatically (such as when the contents are generated) without a
user manipulation or request.
[0033] The terminal 110 may be a portable digital apparatus, such
as a cellular phone, a digital camera, a PDA (Personal Digital
Assistant), a notebook computer, a PMP (Portable Multimedia
Player), or a MP3 player. However, it is understood that aspects of
the present invention are not limited thereto. For example, the
terminal 110 may also be a fixed digital apparatus, such as a
digital TV, a desktop computer, or a set-top box.
[0034] The Web server 120 stores the contents transmitted from the
terminal 110 and reconstructs the contents according to a
predetermined criterion. The reconstruction of the contents
classifies and manages the contents so that the user can easily
access the contents.
[0035] The contents stored in the Web server 120 can be provided to
the terminal 110 again. The Web server 120 can also provide the
contents to another terminal 130, which belongs to the user (user
A) or another user that has a right to access the contents.
Furthermore, the user (userA) of the terminal 110 can provide the
contents to a terminal 140 of another user (user B). An operation
in which the Web server 120 provides the contents to a specified
terminal can be performed when the corresponding terminal requests
the contents or the operation. However, according to other aspects
of the present invention, the operation in which the Web server 120
provides the contents to the specified terminal may be
automatically performed even if the corresponding terminal does not
request the contents or the operation.
[0036] Other terminals 130 and 140 can also generate contents and
transmit the generated contents to the Web server 120. That is, the
terminal 130 and the terminal 140 can perform the same operation
that is performed by the terminal 110. However, for convenience of
explanation, in the embodiment, it is assumed that the terminal 110
generates the contents and transmits the generated contents to the
Web server 120. Hereinafter, the operations performed by the
terminal 110 and the Web server 120 according to aspects of the
present invention will be described.
[0037] A communication method that is used by the terminal 110 to
access the Web server 120 varies according to a communication
environment of the terminal 110 and/or the Web server 120. An
example is shown in FIG. 2.
[0038] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a communication environment of a
terminal 110 according to an example embodiment of the present
invention. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the terminal 110
is connected to the Internet 210 via a network, such as a WiFi
network 220, a CDMA network 230, and a WiBro network 240, so as to
access the Web server 120.
[0039] When the terminal 110 is located at an office or at home,
for example, the terminal 110 can connect to the Internet 210 on
the basis of WiFi (Wireless Fidelity) network 220. If the terminal
110 is out of a communication range of an access point (AP) 220 at
the office or at home, the terminal 110 can be connected to
Internet 210 on the basis, for example, of a CDMA (Code Division
Multiple Access) network 230. Further, when the terminal 110 is
moving at high speed, the terminal 110 can be connected to Internet
210 using, for example, a WiBro (Wireless Broadband Internet)
network 240. Specifically, network service providers 224, 234, and
244 that support the connection of individual communication
networks 220, 230, and 240 to the Internet 210 can exist, and the
terminal 110 can access the Web server 120 through the network
service providers 224, 234, and 244.
[0040] According to the location of the terminal 110, the terminal
110 may use a plurality of communication methods to access the Web
server 120. For example, the terminal 110 can connect to the
Internet 210 at home on the basis of both WiFi and CDMA.
Accordingly, if a plurality of communication methods can be used to
access the Web server 120, the terminal 110 can select one or more
communication methods from the plurality of communication methods.
The accessing of the Web server 120 by the terminal 110 will now be
described with reference to FIG. 3.
[0041] FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a method in which a terminal
110 accesses a Web server 120 according to an embodiment of the
present invention. Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, when access to the
Web server 120 is needed (for example, when the user requests the
access or the contents are to be transmitted to the Web server 120,
the terminal 110 searches for a currently-usable communication
method in operation S310. For example, if an access point 222 that
supports WiFi exists in the vicinity of the terminal 110, the
terminal 110 receives a beacon cyclically transmitted from the
access point (AP) 222 to thereby recognize that WiFi communication
is usable. Alternatively, if a base station 232 that supports CDMA
communication exists in the vicinity of the terminal 110, the
terminal 110 receives a base station signal cyclically transmitted
from the base station 232 to thereby recognize that CDMA
communication is usable. Similarly, if a base station 242 that
supports WiBro communication exists in the vicinity of the terminal
110, the terminal 110 receives a base station signal cyclically
transmitted from the base station 242 to thereby recognize that
WiBro communication is usable. It is understood that other
communication methods may be searched or used.
[0042] Next, the terminal 110 determines whether the usable
communication method exists in operation S320. If the usable
communication method does not exist (operation S320), the terminal
110 informs the user that access to the Web server 120 cannot be
performed in operation S330.
[0043] Meanwhile, if the usable communication method exists
(operation S320), the terminal 110 determines whether a plurality
of communication methods exist in operation S340. If a plurality of
usable communication methods exist (operation S340), the terminal
110 selects one communication method from the plurality of
communication methods according to a prescribed criterion
(hereinafter, referred to as a "communication method selection
criterion") in operation S350.
[0044] A billing policy of the communication method is an example
of the communication method selection criterion. In this case, the
terminal 110 can use a communication method having the lowest
charge rate from the plurality of communication methods. For
example, if Internet communication based on WiFi is charged
according to a flat rate and Internet communication based on the
CDMA is charged according to an hourly rate, in a communication
environment where both the WiFi and CDMA are usable, the WiFi that
does not require an additional fee is selected according to the
communication method selection criterion. It is understood that,
according to other aspects, the terminal 110 does not necessarily
compare and analyze the fees of the individual communication
methods. For example, if a priority is set in advance for the
individual communication methods on the basis of respective
communication fees, manually, or other characteristics (such as
signal strength), the terminal 110 can select a communication
method to be used according to the set priority. Here, the priority
can be set by the user or a manufacturer of the terminal.
[0045] A communication condition is another example of the
communication method selection criterion. In this case, the
terminal 110 can select a communication method having a lowest
traffic from the plurality of usable communication methods or a
communication method having a strongest connection intensity to a
repeater (for example, the intensity of a signal to be cyclically
transmitted from the repeater). Moreover, is it understood that
other communication method selection criterions may be used.
[0046] Once the communication method is selected (operation S350),
the terminal 110 accesses the Web server 120 using the selected
communication method in operation S360. Meanwhile, if a single
usable communication method exists (operation S340), the terminal
110 can access the Web server 120 using the corresponding
communication method in operation S360.
[0047] When accessing the Web server 120, the terminal 110 may,
although not necessarily, transmit predetermined authentication
information to the Web server 120. The authentication information
is information to authenticate the user of the terminal 110 and may
include, for example, a user ID and a password. It is understood
that other or additional information may be used to authenticate
the user, such as an identifier of the terminal 110 (for example,
an MAC address of the terminal 110). The Web server 120 identifies
and authenticates the user of the terminal 110 through the
authentication information transmitted from the terminal 110. To
this end, the user may register the authentication information in
the Web server 120 in advance. The registration of the
authentication information can be performed in a similar manner to
a subscription process to a Web site. However, it is understood
that aspects of the present invention are not limited thereto.
[0048] When the terminal 110 can communicate with or access the Web
server 120, the terminal 110 can transmit the generated contents to
the Web server 120. The transmitting of the generated contents will
now be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5.
[0049] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a method in which a terminal
110 transmits contents to a Web server 120 according to an
embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing
a method in which a terminal 110 transmits contents to a Web server
120 according to another embodiment of the present invention
[0050] Referring to FIGS. 2 and 4, the terminal 110 generates
contents in operation S410. For example, when the terminal 110
includes an imaging element, the terminal 110 can generate
photographs or motion pictures. Similarly, when the terminal 110
includes a short message editor, the terminal 110 can generate
short messages. In addition, the terminal 110 that has a scheduling
application (hereinafter, referred to as "scheduler") can generate
a schedule of a user according to the user's input. Moreover, it is
understood that the terminal 110 can generate other types of
contents according to functions provided therein.
[0051] As such, the terminal 110 directly creates the contents
using the functions provided therein to generate the contents.
However, aspects of the present invention are not limited thereto.
For example, according to other aspects of the present invention,
the terminal 110 may generate the contents by receiving the
contents from another apparatus or network and/or modifying the
received contents, thereby creating new contents. Furthermore,
according to another example, the terminal 110 may connect to a
portable storage device (such as a multimedia card, an SD card, or
a memory stick) and acquire contents stored in the portable storage
device, wherein the acquired contents can be handled as the
contents generated by the terminal 110. Alternatively, the terminal
110 can receive a short message from another terminal, and the
received short message can be handled as the contents generated by
the terminal 110.
[0052] After generating the contents (operation S410), the terminal
110 transmits the generated contents to the Web server 120 in
operation S420.
[0053] According to the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, whenever new
contents are generated, the terminal 110 transmits the generated
contents to the Web server 120. That is, the generated contents are
transmitted from the terminal 110 to the Web server 120 in real
time. However, aspects of the present invention are not limited
thereto. For example, when a predetermined condition is satisfied,
the terminal 110 may transmit all the generated contents to the Web
server 120 at one time. An example is shown in FIG. 5.
[0054] Referring to FIG. 5, although a method in which the terminal
110 generates the contents is omitted, it is understood that the
terminal 110 generates the contents (as described above with
reference to operation S410 in FIG. 4) and stores the generated
contents. As a separate operation from the generation and storage
of the contents, the terminal 110 determines whether a contents
transmission condition is satisfied in operation S510. The contents
transmission condition may be a default condition or may be set or
changed by the user.
[0055] Information about whether it is a time to transmit the new
contents generated by the terminal 110 to the Web server 120 is an
example of the contents transmission condition. Specifically, if a
time period from midnight to 3 a.m. is set for the contents
transmission condition, the terminal 110 compares a current time
with the time set for the contents transmission condition and then
determines whether the contents transmission condition is
satisfied.
[0056] A communication method that is to be used by the terminal
110 is another example of the contents transmission condition. In
detail, when the terminal 110 is a portable digital apparatus, the
position of the terminal 110 frequently changes. As the position of
the terminal 110 changes, a communication method that is used by
the terminal 110 to access the Web server 120 may also change (as
described above with reference to FIG. 2). Accordingly, if a
specified communication method is set for the contents transmission
condition, whenever the communication method is changed, the
terminal 110 compares the changed communication method with the
communication method set for the contents transmission condition
and then determines whether the contents transmission condition is
satisfied.
[0057] It is understood that aspects of the present invention are
not limited to the above-described examples of the contents
transmission condition, and other contents transmission conditions
may be used.
[0058] If the contents transmission condition is satisfied
(operation S510), the terminal 110 determines whether newly
generated contents exist in operation S520. Here, the newly
generated contents are contents stored in the terminal 110 that
have not already been transmitted to the Web server 120.
[0059] If the newly generated contents exist (operation S520), the
terminal 110 transmits the corresponding contents to the Web server
120 in operation S530. For the contents transmission, the terminal
110 accesses the Web server 120 as described above, for example,
with reference to FIG. 3. The Web server 120 reconstructs the
contents transmitted from the terminal 110. The reconstructing of
the contents will now be described with reference to FIG. 6.
[0060] FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a content management method of
a Web server 120 according to an embodiment of the present
invention. Referring to FIGS. 2 and 6, the Web server 120 receives
contents from the terminal 110 in operation S610. Then, the Web
server 120 reconstructs the received contents according to
attributes of the contents in operation S620. Here, the attributes
are, for example, information explaining the contents or
identifying categories relating to the contents. Examples of the
attributes include the types of the contents (for example, music,
motion picture, photograph, e-mail, memo, short message, or
schedule), meta data in the contents, and contexts of the
contents.
[0061] The meta data can be divided into common information common
to all the contents and individual information specific to each of
the contents. Examples of the common information include a contents
generation position, a contents generation time, and a character
related to the contents. Examples of the individual information
include a genre, an artist, and an album where the contents are
music, and a keyword, a writer, and a genre where the contents are
electronic books. It is understood that other types of common
information and individual information can exist.
[0062] The meta data can be added to the contents on the basis of
information input by the user of the terminal 110. However, aspects
of the present invention are not limited thereto. Alternatively,
the meta data may be automatically added to the contents according
to functions provided by the terminal 110. For example, the
terminal 110 that can confirm the position using information
regarding the GPS or base station can automatically add, to the
contents, positional information when the contents are generated.
Furthermore, the terminal 110 that cyclically receives current time
information from the base station or a timer function can add time
information at which the contents are generated to the contents as
the meta data.
[0063] Meanwhile, in order to reconstruct the contents according to
the contexts of the contents, the Web server 120 can include a
function of analyzing the contents. A technical method of analyzing
the contexts may vary according to the types of the contents. For
example, when the contents are short messages or schedules, the Web
server 120 extracts words from the short messages or the schedules,
compares the extracted words with previously recorded words, and
subsequently lists the contents in an appropriate category. If the
contents are photographs, the Web server 120 extracts a face image
from the photograph, analyzes a feature of the extracted face
image, and subsequently determines whether a previously registered
character exists in the photograph. If the previously registered
character exists in the photograph, the Web server 120 can list the
photograph in a category related to the corresponding
character.
[0064] It is understood that aspects of the present invention are
not limited to the above-described contents reconstruction methods.
The contents reconstruction method may vary according to services
that are provided by the Web server 120. Furthermore, the kinds of
the attributes as the criterion of the contents reconstruction may
also vary according to the embodiments.
[0065] The Web server 120 stores the reconstructed contents, and
updates the contents list stored therein according to the
reconstructed contents in operation S630.
[0066] Though not shown in FIG. 6, it is understood that the
contents reconstruction or contents list update operation can be
performed according to the user. That is, according to the
authentication information or identification information
transmitted from the terminal 110, the Web server 120 can update a
contents list corresponding to the user, or store contents
corresponding to the user transmitting the contents received in
operation S610.
[0067] The contents reconstructed by the Web server 120 can be
provided to the terminals 110, 130, and 140 (illustrated in FIG. 1)
that require the contents. The transmitting of the contents from
the Web server 120 to the terminals 110, 130, and 140 will now be
described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 10.
[0068] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a method in which a terminal 110
receives contents from a Web server 120 according to an embodiment
of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 7, the terminal 110
first requests contents search information from the Web server 120
in operation S710. To request the contents search information
(operation S710), the terminal 110 accesses the Web server 120 as
described above, for example, with reference to FIG. 3. The
contents search information is information used to construct a user
interface for guiding the search of the contents, and can include
the contents list updated in operation S630 of FIG. 6.
[0069] Upon receiving the request from the terminal 110, the Web
server 120 transmits the contents search information stored therein
to the terminal 110 in operation S720. The terminal 110 displays
the contents search information transmitted from the Web server 120
in operation S730.
[0070] The contents search information can be provided in a variety
of ways according to a contents reconstruction criterion or
reconstruction result. For example, the contents search information
can include the contents list, arranged on the basis of at least
one attribute. The contents search information shown in FIG. 8A is
provided such that the contents are searched for on the basis of
time and position attributes. That is, the user can search the
contents according to the contents generation time and position
using the contents search information.
[0071] In the contents search information, the search criterion can
be modified (for example, an attribute can be added or changed).
For example, referring to FIG. 8A, if a request to add a character
attribute is input from the user, the terminal 110 can transmit a
request to the Web server 120 to add the character attribute.
According to the request of the terminal 110, the Web server 120
can transmit the contents search information including the
character attribute to the terminal 110. Then, as shown in FIG. 8B,
the terminal 110 can display the contents search information
including the character attribute. However, it is understood that
according to other aspects of the present invention, the terminal
110 does not need to request the Web server 120 to add or change
the attribute as the search criterion, and the contents search
information transmitted from the Web server 120 in operation S720
may be constructed such that the attribute as the search criterion
can be changed or added solely within the terminal 110.
[0072] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing contents search information
according to another embodiment of the present invention. In the
contents search information shown in FIG. 9, the attribute of the
contents is represented by a text. The size of the text represents
an importance of each attribute. For example, the larger that the
size of the text is, the more the number of contents related to the
corresponding attribute is. It is understood that aspects of the
present invention are not limited to a size representation of the
importance of each attribute. For example, the importance of each
attribute may be represented by the color of the text. Furthermore,
instead of or in addition to the text, an icon may be used.
[0073] The structures of the contents search information shown in
FIGS. 8A through 9 are just examples of the present invention, and
are not intended to limit aspects of the present invention. The
user can search and select desired contents through the contents
search information to be displayed on the terminal 110.
[0074] Returning to FIG. 7, if the user selects specified contents
from the displayed contents search information, the terminal 110
requests the selected contents from the Web server 120 in operation
S740. The Web server 120 transmits the requested contents to the
terminal 110 in operation S750. The Web server 120 may transmit the
requested contents in operation S750 according to a download method
or a streaming method, depending for example on the type of the
contents or setting.
[0075] Although FIG. 7 shows the operation between the terminal 110
that transmitted the contents to the Web server 120 (as shown in
FIGS. 4 and 5) and the Web server 120, the same operation can be
performed between another terminal 130 (illustrated in FIG. 1) of
the same user or the terminal 140 (illustrated in FIG. 1) of
another user and the Web server 120. For example, the user of the
terminal 110 can register authentication information of another
user in the Web server 120 in advance such that the contents
transmitted from the terminal 110 to the Web server 120 and managed
by the Web server 120 can be provided to the terminal 130 of
another user.
[0076] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a method in which a terminal
110 receives contents from a Web server 120 according to an
embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 10, the
terminal 110 transmits a search condition to the Web server 120 in
operation S1010. The search condition can include one or more
keywords for defining the attribute of the contents. According to
an aspect of the present invention, the search condition can be
transmitted to the Web server 120 together with the request to
transmit the contents.
[0077] The Web server 120 searches contents corresponding to the
transmitted search condition transmitted in operation S1020. For
example, if a search condition including a keyword "company" is
transmitted, the Web server 120 can search contents related to a
company. Since the contents stored in the Web server 120 are
classified according to the attributes, the contents corresponding
to the search condition can be easily searched even though there
are a large number of contents to be managed by the Web server 120.
Here, among the contents stored in the Web server 120, the contents
of the user that uses the terminal 110 or the contents of other
users who belong to the same community as the user of the terminal
110 may be included within a search range.
[0078] If the contents corresponding to the search condition are
found (operation S1020), the Web server 120 transmits the found
contents to the terminal 110 in operation S1030.
[0079] Although FIG. 10 shows a case where the Web server 120
immediately transmits the contents found by the search operation to
the terminal 110, aspects of the present invention are not limited
thereto. The Web server 120 may transmit a list of the contents
found in operation S1020 to the terminal 110. In this case, the
terminal 110 can display the contents list. If the user selects
specific contents from the contents list, the terminal 110 can
request the selected contents from the Web server 120. Thereafter,
the Web server 120 can transmit the contents requested by the
terminal 110 to the terminal 110.
[0080] According to an aspect of the present invention, the Web
server 120 can automatically transmit the contents transmitted from
the terminal 110 to another terminal 130 of the user that uses the
terminal 110. For example, the Web server 120 can transmit e-mails,
schedules, and memos to a PDA, transmit music to an MP3 player, and
transmit photographs and motion pictures to a PMP or a digital
TV.
[0081] Furthermore, the user can set contents to be transmitted and
a terminal to which the contents are transmitted. Accordingly, the
user can register, in the Web server 120, an identifier (for
example, a MAC address) of the terminal 130 and the types of the
contents to be transmitted to the terminal 130. The Web server 120
can transmit the contents to the corresponding terminal 130 with
reference to the information.
[0082] In order to allow the Web server 120 to automatically
transmit the contents to the terminal 130 even though the terminal
130 does not request the contents, the terminal 130 must be
connected to a network, such as the Internet, though which the
terminal 130 can connect to the Web server 120. When the terminal
130 is a fixed digital apparatus (such as a digital TV, a set-top
box, or a desktop computer), the terminal 130 can constantly be
connected to the network. Meanwhile, when the terminal 130 is a
portable digital apparatus (such as an MP3 player, a cellular
phone, a PDA, and a PMP), the terminal 130 can be irregularly
connected to the network.
[0083] If the terminal 130 is connected to the network, the Web
server 120 can immediately transmit the contents received from the
terminal 110 to the terminal 130. Meanwhile, if the terminal 130 is
not connected to the network, the Web server 120 can transmit the
contents to the terminal 130 once the terminal 130 connects to the
network. Then, when the terminal 130 is connected to the network,
the Web server 120 can transmit the contents received from the
terminal 110 to the terminal 130.
[0084] In order to allow the Web server 120 to automatically
transmit the contents to the terminal 130, the address of the
terminal 130 on the network (for example, an IP address) is needed.
To this end, when connected to the network, the terminal 130 can
transmit, to the Web server 120, information that the terminal 130
is connected to the network. This information can include a network
address allocated to the terminal 130 (for example, an IP address).
Accordingly, the Web server 120 can automatically transmit the
required contents to the terminal 130.
[0085] FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a
terminal 110 illustrated in FIG. 1 according to an embodiment of
the present invention. It is understood that other terminals 130
and 140 illustrated in FIG. 1 can have the same configuration as
that of the terminal 110.
[0086] Referring to FIG. 11, the terminal 110 includes a
communication unit 1110, a contents generation unit 1120, a storage
unit 1130, a contents execution unit 1140, a display unit 1150, a
user input unit 1160, and a control unit 1170.
[0087] The communication unit 1110 transmits contents, data, and
information to the Web server 120, and receives contents, data, and
information from the Web server 120. To access the Web server 120,
the communication unit 1110 can transmit authentication information
(for example, a user ID and password or MAC address of the terminal
110) to the Web server 120. When the user inputs or requests that
the authentication information be transmitted, the communication
unit 1110 transmits the authentication information to the web
server 120. However, according to other aspects of the present
invention, the communication unit 1110 can transmit the
authentication information to the Web server 120 without a user
request.
[0088] The communication unit 1110 does not necessarily directly
communicate with the Web server 120. As described above with
reference to FIG. 2, the terminal 110 may be connected to a network
(for example, the Internet 210) to which the Web server 120 belongs
through a connection with the service providers 224, 234, and 244.
Here, the terminal 110 can use a communication method that supports
a connection with the network service providers 223, 234, and 244.
The communication unit 1110 communicates based on the communication
method. Although the communication unit 1110 is shown as a single
block in FIG. 11, the communication unit 1110 can include a
plurality of sub-communication units (not shown) that support
individual communication methods when the communication unit 1110
is implemented to use a plurality of communication methods. For
example, the communication unit 1110 can include a WiFi
communication unit, a CDMA communication unit, and/or a WiBro
communication unit, although not limited thereto. The kinds of the
communication methods for the communication unit 1110 or the number
of communication methods to be supported by the communication unit
1110 can be set in various ways according to aspects of the present
invention.
[0089] The contents generation unit 1120 generates the contents
according to a user's request. Although the contents generation
unit 1120 is shown as a single block in FIG. 11, when the contents
generation unit 1120 is implemented to generate various kinds of
contents, the contents generation unit 1120 can include a plurality
of sub-contents generation units (not shown). For example, the
contents generation unit 1120 can include an imaging element and an
encoder that generate photographs or motion pictures, a message
editor that generates short messages, and a scheduler that
generates schedules, although not limited thereto.
[0090] The storage unit 1130 stores the contents generated by the
contents generation unit 1120 and contents, data, and information
received from the Web server 120 through the communication unit
1110. To this end, the storage unit 1130 can include a memory, such
as a flash memory, a hard disk, a ROM, or a RAM.
[0091] The contents execution unit 1140 executes the contents
stored in the storage unit 1130. Here, the contents stored in the
storage unit 1130 may be the contents generated by the contents
generation unit 1120 or the contents received from the Web server
120. Moreover, if the contents are executed, the user can use the
contents. In order to execute different types of contents, the
contents execution unit 1140 can include at least one sub-contents
execution unit (not shown). For example, the contents execution
unit 1140 can include a text viewer that outputs memos or
schedules, and a media player that plays motion pictures or music,
although not limited thereto.
[0092] The display unit 1150 displays the contents to be executed
by the contents execution unit 1140 or displays a user interface,
such as the contents search information, transmitted from the Web
server 120 or generated by the terminal 110 based on the contents
search information.
[0093] The user input unit 1160 receives user inputs. That is, the
user can request to execute the contents, request to generate the
contents, or request the Web server 120 to search the contents
through the user input unit 1160, although not limited thereto. To
this end, the user input unit 1160 can manipulation devices,
including buttons, a touch pad, a touch screen, or a jog
switch.
[0094] The control unit 1170 performs the operations to select a
communication method to be used by the communication unit 1110
(operations S310, S320, S340, and S350 illustrated in FIG. 3) or
the operations to determine whether to transmit the contents to the
Web server 120 through the communication unit 1110 (operations S510
and S520 in FIG. 5). Furthermore, the control unit 1170 can
generate a request message to request the contents search
information from the Web server 120 or to transmit the contents
search condition. In addition, the control unit 1170 can control
the operations of the individual components of the terminal 110 so
that the terminal 110 can appropriately perform the required
operations, as described above with reference to FIGS. 1 through
10.
[0095] FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a Web
server 120 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The
Web server 120 includes a network connection unit 1210, an
authentication unit 1220, a contents reconstruction unit 1230, a
storage unit 1240, a contents list management unit 1250, and a
control unit 1260.
[0096] The network connection unit 1210 receives contents, data,
and information from the terminal 110, and transmits contents,
data, and information to the terminal 110. It is understood that
the network connection unit 1210 does not necessarily directly
communicate with the terminal 110. As described above with
reference to FIG. 2, the network connection unit 1210 can
communicate with the terminal 110 through network service providers
224, 234, and 244.
[0097] The authentication unit 1220 identifies and authenticates
the user of the terminal 110 using authentication information (for
example, the user ID and password or the MAC address of the
terminal 110) transmitted from the terminal 110. Further, the
authentication unit 1220 may manage authentication information of
other users belonging to the same community as the user of the
terminal 110, together with the authentication information of the
user of the terminal 110. Furthermore, the authentication unit 1220
can manage identification information of another terminal 130 of
the user who uses the terminal 110 and the types of the contents to
be automatically transmitted to the other terminal 130.
[0098] The contents reconstruction unit 1230 reconstructs the
contents received from the terminal 110. For example, when the
contents are music files, the contents reconstruction unit 1230 can
classify the music files on the basis of the genre, the artist, and
the album with reference to meta data in the music file. When the
contents are electronic books, the contents reconstruction unit
1230 can classify the electronic books according to the keyword,
the writer, and the genre by referring to meta data in the
electronic books or by analyzing the context of the electronic
books. When the contents are schedule files, the contents
reconstruction unit 1230 can classify the schedule files according
to title, date, and content. When the contents are e-mails, the
contents reconstruction unit 1230 can classify the e-mail according
to transmission time, title, importance, and attachments. These
contents reconstruction methods are just examples of the present
invention, and are not intended to limit aspects of the present
invention. Accordingly, the contents reconstruction unit 1230 can
analyze various attributes of the contents and reconstruct (or
reorganize) the contents according to the attributes of the
contents, as described above, for example, with reference to FIG.
6.
[0099] The storage unit 1240 stores the contents received from the
terminal 110. The storage unit 1240 may store the contents in a
storage area that is allocated to a user authenticated by the
authentication unit 1220 (a user of a terminal from which the
contents are transmitted). The storage area may be logically or
physically separated from storage areas allocated to other
users.
[0100] The contents list management unit 1250 manages a contents
list including information regarding the contents stored in the
storage unit 1240. If the storage unit 1240 stores new contents,
the contents list management unit 1250 updates the contents list to
include information regarding the newly stored contents. The
information regarding the contents in the contents list can be
acquired from the contents reconstruction unit 1230. It is
understood that the contents list managed by the contents list
management unit 1250 may be divided such that there exists a
plurality of contents lists, each corresponding to a user.
Furthermore, the contents list management unit 1250 can manage the
contents search information that is used to provide a user
interface in the terminal 110 to search the contents. The contents
search information includes the contents list. When transmitted to
the terminal 110, the contents search information can be displayed
as a user interface.
[0101] The control unit 1260 searches the contents stored in the
storage unit 1240 and analyzes request messages transmitted by the
terminal 110. Moreover, the control unit 1260 can identify a
terminal to which the contents or the contents search information
are transmitted through information managed by the authentication
unit 1220. In addition, the control unit 1260 can control the
operations of the individual components of the Web server 120 such
that the Web server 120 can appropriately perform the required
operations described above with reference to FIGS. 1 through
10.
[0102] The operations of the components of each of the terminal 110
and the Web server 120 that have been described with reference to
FIGS. 11 and 12 will be apparently understood from the descriptions
of FIGS. 1 through 10.
[0103] The components of each of the terminal 110 and the Web
server 120 that have been described with reference to FIGS. 11 and
12 can be implemented by modules. The term "unit," as used herein,
refers to, but is not limited to, a software or hardware component,
such as a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) or Application
Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), that performs certain tasks. A
unit may advantageously be configured to reside on the addressable
storage medium and configured to execute on one or more processors.
Thus, a unit may include, by way of example, components, such as
software components, object-oriented software components, class
components and task components, processes, functions, attributes,
procedures, subroutines, segments of program code, drivers,
firmware, microcode, circuitry, data, databases, data structures,
tables, arrays, and variables. The functionality provided for in
the components and units may be combined into fewer components and
units or further separated into additional components and units. In
addition, the components and units may be implemented such that
they are executed on one or more computers in a communication
system. If the module is implemented by only software, each of the
terminal 110 and the Web server 120 may further include a processor
that can execute software.
[0104] Aspects of the present invention can also be embodied as
computer-readable codes on a computer-readable recording medium.
Also, codes and code segments to accomplish the present invention
can be easily construed by programmers skilled in the art to which
the present invention pertains. The computer-readable recording
medium is any data storage device that can store data which can be
thereafter read by a computer system or computer code processing
apparatus. Examples of the computer-readable recording medium
include read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM),
CD-ROMs, magnetic tapes, floppy disks, and optical data storage
devices. The computer-readable recording medium can also be
distributed over network-coupled computer systems so that the
computer-readable code is stored and executed in a distributed
fashion. Aspects of the present invention may also be realized as a
data signal embodied in a carrier wave and comprising a program
readable by a computer and transmittable over the internet.
[0105] According to the contents management method and apparatus of
aspects of the present invention, the following effects can be
obtained. First, the contents can be more efficiently managed.
Second, a user can more conveniently use the contents.
[0106] Although a few embodiments of the present invention have
been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled
in the art that changes may be made in this embodiment without
departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the
scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.
* * * * *