JP2009153126A - System, apparatus and method for synchronizing presence information with schedule information - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system and method for synchronizing presence information with schedule information, a presence server and a calendar server. <P>SOLUTION: After a schedule information distributor distributes schedule information, on the basis of the distributed schedule information, a calendar server generates current state information of the relevant schedule information distributor and automatically notifies a presence server of the presence information of the relevant schedule information distributor to be updated. After the presence information distributor manually changes and distributes his/her own presence information, the presence server generates event information on the basis of the received presence information and notifies the calendar server of the schedule information of the relevant presence information distributor to be updated. User operation is simplified and different user groups subscribing presence information and schedule information of a user can timely acquire the current state of the relevant user. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to communication technology, and more particularly to a system, method, presence server, and calendar server that realizes synchronization between presence information and schedule information by combining a presence service and a calendar service.

  The presence service is one of the services widely used in current instant messaging (IM) applications, in which an IM user is in an on-line state or in an off-line state. The main purpose is to make the current state as if it exists in other IM users. Currently, with the development of mobile communication technology, the Presence service is also applied to mobile instant messaging as a service enabler (Service Enabler) of Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) and can provide services to mobile users. In general, in the presence service, information present in the user is called presence information. In addition to the current state of the user, various kinds of complicated information such as the user's communication intention can be included in the presence information. The format of presence information is standardized by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), and includes RPID (Rich Presence Information Data Format).

  In addition to the presence service, a calendar service is also provided by a network operator in order to make it convenient for the user to schedule time and arrange work. The conventional Calendar service mainly includes two implementation methods. One is a calendar based on personal information manager (PIM), for example, various software having a calendar function that operates on a personal computer or a notebook computer, or a mobile terminal or a personal digital assistant (PDA). Calendar software that works. Using such a PIM-based Calendar, a user can customize his / her own Calendar to schedule time and arrange work. However, since the Calendar based on PIM mainly provides services to individuals and cannot be shared among a plurality of users, other related users of the user cannot inquire about the Calendar customized by the user. The other is a calendar based on the Internet, such as the conventional Yahoo Calendar and Google Calendar. In the case of the Internet-based Calendar, a dedicated server for storing schedule information including information such as a calendar and time management customized by the user is usually placed on the Internet. According to the Internet-based Calendar, the user can not only customize his own Calendar but also distribute the customized Calendar to a subscriber who is authorized to inquire about his schedule information. The IETF has been working on a Calendar standard since 1996, and includes the iCalendar standard for defining the Calendar format.

  At this stage, the presence service and the calendar service are independent from each other. That is, when a user uses the Presence service and the Calendar service provided by the network operator at the same time, the user needs to distribute his / her presence information and schedule information to different groups of users. Network resources are wasted. For example, for a busy CEO, there is a strict schedule every day, and in order to notify other parties such as secretaries, family members or subordinates about the CEO's current status and schedule, the CEO Using the presence service provided by the network operator and the current calendar service based on the Internet, the presence information and the schedule information are customized to each subscriber who has the authority to inquire about the presence information or the schedule information. Can be delivered. In this way, subscribers authorized to query the CEO's presence information or schedule information, such as the CEO's secretary, family or subordinate, can know the current status or schedule of the CEO. However, since the conventional Presence service and the Calendar service are independent from each other, in order to ensure the consistency between the presence information and the schedule information, if the schedule does not change, the CEO will change its presence information according to the schedule. If it is necessary to update manually and the schedule changes, it is also necessary to update the presence information and schedule information at the same time. Updating such presence information and schedule information is very troublesome and usually takes a lot of time. In addition, if presence information or schedule information is not updated in a timely or complete manner, presence information and schedule information may not match, ensuring that subscribers obtain reliable presence information or schedule information. Can not.

  In order to solve the above technical problem, the present invention discloses a system and method for realizing synchronization of presence information and schedule information. In this manner, the user may update only his / her presence information, and the schedule information can be synchronized with the updated presence information automatically or at the user's instruction. Alternatively, the user may update only his / her schedule information, and the presence information is automatically synchronized with the schedule information. This provides great convenience to the user's operation, ensures consistency between the user's presence information and schedule information, and ensures that different subscriber groups acquire accurate information.

A system for realizing synchronization of presence information and schedule information according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a presence information distributor, a schedule information subscriber, a presence server (Presence Server), and a calendar server (Calendar Server).
The Presence Server generates event information of the presence information distributor based on presence information received from the presence information distributor, distributes the generated event information to the Calendar Server,
The Calendar Server updates the presence information distributor's schedule information stored in itself based on the event information distributed from the Presence Server, and updates the updated schedule information to the presence information distributor's schedule. Distribute information to subscribed schedule information subscribers.

Other systems for realizing synchronization between presence information and schedule information according to an embodiment of the present invention include a schedule information distributor, a presence information subscriber, a calendar server, and a presence server.
The Calendar Server generates status information of the schedule information distributor at the start of a new event based on an event included in the schedule information received from the schedule information distributor, and generates the generated status information. Deliver to Presence Server,
The Presence Server updates the presence information of the schedule information distributor stored therein based on the status information distributed from the Calendar Server, and updates the presence information of the schedule information distributor. Distribute information to subscribed presence information subscribers.

The Presence Server according to an embodiment of the present invention is:
A presence information receiving module for receiving presence information distributed from a presence information distributor;
A presence information storage module for storing received presence information;
A presence information distribution module that distributes presence information stored in the presence information storage module to a presence information subscriber who has already subscribed to presence information of the presence information distributor;
An event information generation module that generates event information of the presence information distributor based on the received presence information;
And an event information distribution module that distributes the generated event information to a calendar server (Calendar Server).

 The presence server includes a status information receiving module that receives status information of the presence information distributor distributed from the calendar server, and the presence information distribution stored in the presence information storage module based on the received status information. And a presence information update module that updates the presence information of the person.

The Calendar Server according to an embodiment of the present invention is:
A schedule information receiving module for receiving schedule information distributed from a schedule information distributor;
A schedule information storage module for storing the received schedule information;
A schedule information distribution module for distributing the schedule information stored in the schedule information storage module to a schedule information subscriber who has already subscribed to the schedule information of the schedule information distributor;
A status information generation module that generates status information of the schedule information distributor at the start of a new event based on an event included in the received schedule information;
A status information distribution module that distributes the generated status information to a presence server (Presence Server).

 The Calendar Server includes an event information receiving module for receiving event information of the schedule information distributor distributed from the Presence Server, and the schedule information stored in the schedule information storage module based on the received event information. And a schedule information update module that updates the schedule information of the distributor.

 In the method for updating presence information based on schedule information according to an embodiment of the present invention, an event included in the received schedule information after the Calendar Server receives the schedule information distributed from the schedule information distributor. Based on the above, at the start of a new event, the schedule information distributor status information is generated, the generated status information is distributed to the presence server Presence Server, and the Presence Server is based on the received status information. Updating the presence information of the schedule information distributor.

 According to an embodiment of the present invention, the schedule information is updated based on the presence information based on the received presence information after the presence server receives the presence information distributed from the presence information distributor. The event information of the information distributor is generated, the generated event information is distributed to the calendar server Calendar Server, and the Calendar Server updates the schedule information of the presence information distributor based on the received event information. Including. The process in which the presence server generates the event information of the presence information distributor based on the received presence information may be executed automatically or may wait for an instruction from the presence information distributor. If the presence information distributor thinks that the updated presence information is maintained only for a short time and does not instruct the Presence Server to synchronize the schedule information, the Presence Server does not generate event information and distribute it to the Calendar Server. . In this way, after the presence information distributor manually changes his / her presence information, the presence server distributes the presence information distributor automatically or without the presence information distributor manually updating his / her schedule information. With this command, presence information can be distributed to the Calendar Server, and the Calendar Server can be made to update the schedule information of the presence information distributor.

 According to the system and method according to the above-described embodiment, it is possible not only to ensure that the presence information and schedule information of a user consistently match for different users who have subscribed to the presence information and schedule information of a user. The operation of the user has been greatly simplified. User time has been saved, user efficiency has been improved, and the user experience when using the Presence and Calendar services has been enhanced. Further, according to the above system and method, the user can synchronize the presence information and the schedule information between the network side, that is, the Presence Server and the Calendar Server, without transmitting the same information to the two servers. By transmitting the information to realize, the use of resources on the access network side has been reduced.

 In order to further clarify the object and solution of the present invention, the present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

 In order to solve the problems of the prior art, an embodiment of the present invention discloses a system that realizes synchronization of presence information and schedule information. As shown in FIG. 1, the internal configuration of the system mainly includes a user agent on the user side, and a presence server and calendar server on the network side.

 Here, the user agent may be integrated into the mobile terminal or may be integrated into the fixed terminal. When a user agent is integrated in a mobile terminal, the user agent is connected to a presence server and a calendar server on the network side via a mobile communication system such as a third generation mobile communication system. When a user agent is integrated in a fixed terminal, the user agent is connected to a Presence Server and a Calendar Server on the network side via the PSTN or the Internet. In order to realize the presence service and / or the calendar service, the user agent may include a presence information client-side module if the user agent is a presence information distributor, and if the user agent is a schedule information distributor, the schedule information client-side module If it is a subscriber who subscribed to other users 'presence information, it may include a presence information subscriber client-side module, and if it is a subscriber who subscribed to other users' schedule information, the schedule information A subscriber client side module may be included. The user agent may have two or more functions of the presence information distributor, the schedule information distributor, the presence information subscriber, and the schedule information subscriber.

 Here, the presence information client side module may be referred to as a presence information distributor, and mainly the presence information distributor via its own access network and core network (for example, a mobile communication system or the Internet). Presence information is distributed to Presence Server.

 The schedule information client side module may be referred to as a schedule information distributor, and mainly receives the schedule information of the schedule information distributor via its own access network and core network (for example, mobile communication system or the Internet). Deliver to the Calendar Server.

 The presence information subscriber client-side module, which may be referred to as a presence information subscriber, mainly subscribes to other users' presence information via their access network and core network (eg, mobile communication system or the Internet). To the Presence Server, and receives and displays the subscribed user's presence information from the Presence Server.

 A schedule information subscriber client-side module, which may be referred to as a schedule information subscriber, mainly subscribes to other users' schedule information via their access network and core network (eg, mobile communication system or the Internet). To the Calendar Server, and receives and displays the schedule information of the subscribed user from the Calendar Server.

 The Presence Server mainly receives and stores presence information distributed from presence information distributors, receives requests to subscribe to presence information from presence information subscribers, and subscribes to the presence information subscribers. And a general function including a function of inquiring the presence information of the subscribed user stored therein and returning the inquiry result to the presence information subscriber. Specifically, if the presence information subscriber does not have the authority to subscribe to the presence information of the subscribed user, the presence information subscriber returns the information on the subscription failure of the presence information to the presence information subscriber. If the user has the right to subscribe to the presence information of the subscribed user, the presence information distributed from the subscribed user is returned to the presence information subscriber. In actual application, the presence server may store the received presence information in the external presence information data management server.

 The Calendar Server mainly receives a function for receiving and storing the schedule information distributed from the schedule information distributor and a request for subscribing the schedule information from the schedule information subscriber, and subscribe authority of the schedule information subscriber. In addition, a general function including a function of inquiring the stored schedule information of the subscribed user and returning a result of the inquiry to the schedule information subscriber is realized. Specifically, if the schedule information subscriber does not have the authority to subscribe to the schedule information of the subscribed user, the schedule information subscriber returns information on the subscription failure of the schedule information to the schedule information subscriber. If the user has the right to subscribe to the schedule information of the subscribed user, the schedule information distributed from the subscribed user is returned to the schedule information subscriber. In actual application, the Calendar Server may store the received schedule information in the external schedule information data management server.

 In addition to the general functions described above, Presence Server and Calendar Server should further realize synchronization of presence information and schedule information. That is, after the schedule information distributor distributes his / her schedule information, the Calendar Server automatically generates the current status information of the schedule information distributor based on the schedule information distributed from the schedule information distributor, and automatically By notifying the presence server, the presence information of the schedule information distributor can be updated in real time. On the other hand, after the presence information distributor changes the schedule temporarily and manually distributes and distributes his / her presence information, the presence server receives the presence information received automatically or at the request of the presence information distributor. The schedule information of the presence information distributor can be updated by generating event information based on the information and notifying the Calendar Server.

 The above system can be applied to any network, for example, an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) network. When the above system is applied to the IMS network, the Presence Server and the Calendar Server may be arranged in the application layer of the IMS network as application servers. The IMS network can provide functions such as signaling transmission, compression, user authentication, authorization, and accounting. When a user uses a presence service and a calendar service, the information synchronization mechanism according to the present invention is utilized to reduce the signaling overhead on the access side, save time, improve efficiency, and greatly improve the user experience. .

 As can be seen from the above description, the synchronization of presence information and schedule information is a two-way process, and both the process of synchronizing presence information based on schedule information and the process of synchronizing schedule information based on presence information. Including the process of direction. The system for realizing the synchronization between the presence information and the schedule information according to the embodiment of the present invention may realize only one of the above-mentioned information synchronization, or may realize the above-mentioned two-way information synchronization at the same time. Good.

 In addition to the system that realizes the synchronization between the presence information and the schedule information, the embodiment of the present invention also discloses the configurations of a Presence Server and a Calendar Server having the above functions.

As shown in FIG. 2, the Presence Server according to the embodiment of the present invention mainly includes:
A presence information receiving module for receiving presence information distributed from a presence information distributor;
A presence information storage module for storing received presence information;
A presence information distribution module that distributes presence information stored in the presence information storage module to presence information subscribers who have already subscribed to presence information of the presence information distributor;
An event information generation module that generates event information of the presence information distributor based on the received presence information;
And an event information distribution module that distributes the generated event information to the Calendar Server.

 Further, in actual application, the event information generation module further receives a schedule information synchronization request from the presence information distributor, and executes the event information generation process after receiving the schedule information synchronization request.

According to the above module, the Presence Server generates the event information of the presence information distributor based on the presence information distributed from the presence information distributor, and distributes the event information to the Calendar Server, thereby scheduling based on the presence information. A process of synchronizing information can be realized. In order to realize the process of synchronizing presence information based on the schedule information, the Presence Server
A status information receiving module for receiving status information of the presence information distributor distributed from the Calendar Server;
A presence information update module that updates presence information of the presence information distributor stored in the presence information storage module based on the received status information.

 In this case, the presence information distribution module further distributes the updated presence information to the presence information subscriber.

As shown in FIG. 3, the Calendar Server according to the embodiment of the present invention mainly includes:
A schedule information receiving module for receiving schedule information distributed from a schedule information distributor;
A schedule information storage module for storing the received schedule information;
A schedule information distribution module for distributing the schedule information stored in the schedule information storage module to a schedule information subscriber who has already subscribed to the schedule information of the schedule information distributor;
A status information generation module that generates status information of the schedule information distributor at the start of a new event based on an event included in the received schedule information;
And a status information distribution module that distributes the generated status information to the presence server.

According to the above module, the Calendar Server generates the status information of the schedule information distributor based on the schedule information distributed from the schedule information distributor, and distributes the status information to the Presence Server. A process of synchronizing information can be realized. In order to realize the process of updating the schedule information based on the presence information, the above Calendar Server is:
An event information receiving module for receiving event information of the schedule information distributor distributed from the presence server;
A schedule information update module that updates the schedule information distributor's schedule information stored in itself based on the received event information may be further included.

 In this case, the schedule information distribution module further distributes the updated schedule information to the schedule information subscriber.

 Hereinafter, a method of synchronizing presence information and schedule information will be described in detail according to an embodiment of the present invention.

 FIG. 4 shows a process of synchronizing presence information based on schedule information. This synchronization process mainly relates to entities such as schedule information distributors, presence servers, calendar servers and presence information subscribers. As can be seen from FIG. 4, the process of synchronizing presence information based on schedule information mainly includes the following steps.

 In step 401, the schedule information distributor distributes his schedule information to the Calendar Server.

 In step 402, the Calendar Server receives and stores the schedule information, and based on the start time of each event recorded in the received schedule information, the status information of the schedule information distributor at the start of a new event And the generated status information is distributed to the Presence Server. The presence server updates the presence information of the schedule information distributor based on the received state information (that is, schedule information).

 During the execution of steps 401 to 402, each time the presence server receives the status information distributed from the calendar server, the presence server updates the presence information of the schedule information distributor stored in itself, and the updated presence information is received. The information is distributed to presence information subscribers who have already subscribed to the presence information of the schedule information distributor.

 In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the above process may be implemented by fully utilizing a session initiation protocol (SIP) event notification mechanism. FIG. 5 shows a process for realizing synchronization of presence information based on schedule information by mounting schedule information, presence information, and status information using the SIP protocol. This process mainly includes the following steps.

 In step 511, the schedule information distributor uses the SIP distribution (PUBLISH) message to load the schedule information to be distributed and distribute the schedule information to the Calendar Server, or using the PUBLISH message, After notifying the Calendar Server that the schedule information is to be distributed, the specific contents of the schedule information are distributed to the Calendar Server using HTTP or other methods. Here, the title header of the event in the PUBLISH message may be extended to Event: Calendar to indicate that the schedule information is to be distributed this time. In the IMS system, the IMS system can route the PUBLISH message to the application server Calendar Server based on the title header Event: Calendar of the event.

 In step 512, the Calendar Server receives a PUBLISH message from the schedule information distributor and then returns a 200 OK message to the schedule information distributor.

 In steps 513 to 516, the Calendar Server generates status information of the schedule information distributor at the start of a new event based on the start time of each event recorded in the received schedule information, and generates a SIP PUBLISH message. The generated status information is distributed to the Presence Server via After receiving the status information of the schedule information distributor distributed from the Calendar Server, the Presence Server returns a 200 OK message to the Calendar Server, and updates the presence information of the schedule information distributor stored in itself. Thereafter, the updated presence information is distributed to the presence information subscriber through the SIP notification (NOTIFY) message by the event notification mechanism. After receiving the NOTIFY message from the presence server, the presence information subscriber returns a 200 OK message to the presence server (see steps 525 to 526).

 In parallel with the process of steps 511 to 516, the subscription and notification of presence information can be realized by SIP between the presence server and the presence information subscriber. This process includes the following steps.

 In step 521, the presence information subscriber mounts a request for subscribing the presence information of the schedule information distributor to the Presence Server using a SIP subscribe (SUBSCRIBE) message.

 In step 522, the presence server receives the SUBSCRIBE message and confirms that the presence information subscriber has the right to subscribe to the presence information of the schedule information distributor, and then sends a 200 OK message to the presence information subscriber. Reply to

 In step 523, the presence server distributes the presence information of the schedule information distributor stored therein to the subscriber via the SIP NOTIFY message.

 In step 524, the presence information subscriber receives a NOTIFY message from the presence server, and then returns a 200 OK message to the presence server.

 In Step 525, when the Presence Server receives the status information of the schedule information distributor distributed from the Calendar Server, it updates the presence information of the schedule information distributor stored in itself (Steps 513 to 516). ), And the event notification mechanism distributes the updated presence information to the presence information subscriber via the SIP NOTIFY message.

 In step 526, after receiving the updated presence information, the presence information subscriber returns a 200 OK message to the Presence Server.

 As can be seen, the process of synchronizing the presence information based on the schedule information is an automatic process, and is realized by the Calendar Server without the user manually changing the setting of the presence information.

 Thereafter, in Step 402 and Steps 513 to 516, the Calendar Server generates status information of the schedule information distributor at the start of a new event based on the start time of each event recorded in the received schedule information. The method to do is explained in detail. In this embodiment, the state information should include at least the contents of the state, and may further include a start time and an end time of the state.

 In the present embodiment, it is assumed that presence information is recorded in the RPID format and schedule information is recorded in the iCalendar format.

上記構成からわかるように、上記ｉＣａｌｅｎｄａｒフォーマットのＥｖｅｎｔにおいて、ユーザ識別子（ＵＩＤ）、タイムスタンプ（ＤＴＳＴＡＭＰ）、イベントの開始時間（ＤＴＳＴＡＲＴ）と終了時間（ＤＴＥＮＤ）、１つのイベントの内容を記録したサマリー（ＳＵＭＭＡＲＹ）、クラス（ＣＬＡＳＳ）、分類（ＣＡＴＥＧＯＲＩＥＳ）、透明度（ＴＲＡＮＳＰ）などの内容を定義することができる。上記フォーマットのＥｖｅｎｔによって、スケジュール情報配信者は、自分のスケジュール情報に含まれている各イベントをＣａｌｅｎｄａｒ Ｓｅｒｖｅｒへ配信することができる。Ｃａｌｅｎｄａｒ Ｓｅｒｖｅｒは、当該スケジュール情報配信者が１つのＥｖｅｎｔの開始時間から終了時間まで当該ＥｖｅｎｔのＳＵＭＭＡＲＹに記録されている状態にあることを知ることができる。これにより、Ｃａｌｅｎｄａｒ Ｓｅｒｖｅｒは、当該Ｅｖｅｎｔの開始時に少なくとも状態内容を含む状態情報を生成して、Ｐｒｅｓｅｎｃｅ Ｓｅｒｖｅｒへ配信することができる。例えば、上記Ｅｖｅｎｔの構成によって、Ｃａｌｅｎｄａｒ Ｓｅｒｖｅｒは、スケジュール情報配信者の１９９７年４月１日の１６：３０：００から１９９７年４月２日の０１：００：００までのスケジュールが「Ｌａｕｒｅｌ ｉｓ ｉｎ ｓｅｎｓｉｔｉｖｉｔｙ ａｗａｒｅｎｅｓｓ ｃｌａｓｓ．」であることを知ることができる。これにより、１９９７年４月１日の１６：３０：００に、Ｃａｌｅｎｄａｒ Ｓｅｒｖｅｒは、状態内容が「Ｌａｕｒｅｌ ｉｓ ｉｎ ｓｅｎｓｉｔｉｖｉｔｙ ａｗａｒｅｎｅｓｓ ｃｌａｓｓ．」である状態情報を生成して、Ｐｒｅｓｅｎｃｅ Ｓｅｒｖｅｒへ配信する。上記のように、生成された状態情報は当該状態の開始時間と終了時間をさらに含むようにしてもよい。 As is known, the structure of one event (Event) in schedule information recorded in the iCalendar format is as follows.

As can be seen from the above configuration, in the event of the iCalendar format, the user identifier (UID), time stamp (DTTSAMP), event start time (DTSTART) and end time (DTEND), and a summary (1) Contents such as “SUMMARY”, class (CLASS), classification (CATEGORIES), and transparency (TRANSP) can be defined. The event in the above format allows the schedule information distributor to distribute each event included in his / her schedule information to the Calendar Server. The Calendar Server can know that the schedule information distributor is in a state of being recorded in the SUMmary of the Event from the start time to the end time of one Event. Thereby, the Calendar Server can generate state information including at least the state contents at the start of the event, and can distribute the state information to the Presence Server. For example, according to the configuration of the above event, the Calendar Server has a schedule from 16:30 on April 1, 1997 to 01:00 on April 2, 1997, which is a schedule information distributor. It is possible to know that it is “sensitivity awardness class.” As a result, at 16:30 on April 1, 1997, the Calendar Server generates state information whose state content is “Laurel in sensitivity awareness class.” And distributes it to the Presence Server. As described above, the generated state information may further include the start time and end time of the state.

 In the present embodiment, the status information may be recorded in the RPID format or may be recorded in another format. When the status information is recorded in a non-standard presence information format, the presence server needs to analyze the status information in order to update the presence information stored in the presence server after receiving the status information. There is.

 Hereinafter, a method for synchronizing schedule information based on presence information will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7.

 FIG. 6 shows a process of synchronizing schedule information based on presence information. This synchronization process mainly relates to entities such as presence information distributors, presence servers, calendar servers and schedule information subscribers. As can be seen from FIG. 6, the process of synchronizing the schedule information based on the presence information mainly includes the following steps.

 In step 601, the presence information distributor distributes his / her presence information to the Presence Server.

 In step 602, the presence server receives the presence information, updates the presence information stored in the presence server, and if the presence information includes time information, the presence information is recorded in the received presence information. Event information is generated based on the content of the operation and the start time and end time of the operation, and the generated event information is distributed to the Calendar Server, so that the presence information distributor recorded in the Calendar Server The schedule information may be updated.

 In this step, the presence server receives the presence information, receives the schedule information synchronization request based on the schedule information synchronization request from the presence information distributor, and then receives the event information based on the received presence information. Information may be generated, and the generated event information may be distributed to the Calendar Server.

 FIG. 7 shows a process for realizing synchronization of schedule information based on presence information by mounting schedule information and presence information using the SIP protocol. This process mainly includes the following steps.

 In step 711, the presence information distributor loads the presence information using a SIP PUBLISH message, and distributes the presence information to the presence server.

 At this time, if the Presence Server needs to determine whether to update the schedule information of the presence information distributor to the Calendar Server according to an instruction from the presence information distributor, the Presence Server responds to the received PUBLISH message. Perform analysis. When the presence information distributor does not need to update the schedule information, the event title header of the event in the PUBLISH message is set to Event so that the presence information is distributed this time and the schedule information does not need to be updated. : Presence may be set. At this time, it is not necessary to execute Steps 713-714. When the presence information distributor needs to update the schedule information simultaneously, the title header of the event in the PUBLISH message may be set as Event: Presence-sync-calendar. When analyzing the message header, the presence server generates the event information based on the received presence information, and distributes the generated event information to the calendar server, that is, executes steps 713 to 714. When the Presence Server is set to automatically update the schedule information of the presence information distributor, the Presence Server executes the steps 713 to 714 after receiving the SIP PUBLISH message from the presence information distributor. .

 In step 712, the presence server receives the PUBLISH message from the presence information distributor and then returns a 200 OK message to the presence information distributor.

 In step 713, when the Presence Server analyzes that the title header of the event in the PUBLISH message from the presence information distributor is Event: Presence-sync-calendar, or when the Presence Server analyzes the schedule information of the presence information distributor Is set to automatically update, the Presence Server synchronizes the schedule information of the presence information distributor stored in the Calendar Server based on the received presence information.

 Specifically, the Presence Server generates one event information based on the content of the operation recorded in the received presence information and the start time and end time of the operation, and through the SIP PUBLISH message, By distributing the generated event information to the Calendar Server, the schedule information of the presence information distributor recorded in the Calendar Server is updated.

 In step 714, the Calendar Server updates the presence information distributor's schedule information stored in itself based on the received event information, and then returns a 200 OK message to the Presence Server.

 Thereafter, when the schedule information subscriber subscribes to the schedule information of the presence information distributor and the subscription is within the valid period, the Calendar Server distributes the updated schedule information to the schedule information subscriber ( (See steps 723-724).

 In parallel with the process of steps 711 to 715, it is possible to realize the schedule information subscription by SIP between the Calendar Server and the schedule information subscriber. This process includes the following steps.

 In step 721, the schedule information subscriber mounts a request to subscribe the schedule information of the presence information distributor to the Calendar Server in a SIP subscribe (SUBSCRIBE) message.

 In step 722, the Calendar Server receives the SUBSCRIBE message and confirms that the schedule information subscriber has the authority to subscribe to the schedule information of the presence information distributor, and then sends a 200 OK message to the schedule information subscriber. Reply to

 In step 723, the Calendar Server receives the event information from the Presence Server, updates the presence information distributor's schedule information, and then transmits the presence information distributor's schedule information via the SIP NOTIFY message. Deliver to schedule information subscribers.

 In step 724, after receiving the NOTIFY message from the Calendar Server, the schedule information subscriber returns a 200 OK message to the Calendar Server.

 Hereinafter, in step 602 and step 713, the presence server determines that one event information included in the schedule information based on the content of the operation recorded in the received presence information and the start time and end time of the event. A method of generating the will be described in detail. In this embodiment, the event information includes at least the content of the event and its start time and end time.

 In the present embodiment, it is assumed that presence information is recorded in the RPID format and schedule information is recorded in the iCalendar format.

ここで、１つのｔｕｐｌｅで定義される要素には動作（ａｃｔｉｖｉｔｉｅｓ）が含まれ、開始時間と終了時間を含む時間属性が定義されるだけでなく、当該動作の内容も定義される。上記構成のｔｕｐｌｅによって、プレゼンス情報配信者は、自分の現在の動作並びに当該動作の開始時間および終了時間をＰｒｅｓｅｎｃｅ Ｓｅｒｖｅｒへ配信することができる。その後、Ｐｒｅｓｅｎｃｅ Ｓｅｒｖｅｒも、プレゼンス情報配信者から配信されたプレゼンス情報から必要な情報を抽出して、当該プレゼンス情報配信者のスケジュール情報内の１つのイベント情報を生成することができる。例えば、上記ｔｕｐｌｅによって、Ｐｒｅｓｅｎｃｅ Ｓｅｒｖｅｒは、プレゼンス情報配信者の１９９７年４月１日の１６：３０：００から１９９７年４月２日の０１：００：００までの動作が「Ｌａｕｒｅｌ ｉｓ ｉｎ ｓｅｎｓｉｔｉｖｉｔｙ ａｗａｒｅｎｅｓｓ ｃｌａｓｓ．」であることを知ることができる。このように、Ｐｒｅｓｅｎｃｅ Ｓｅｒｖｅｒは、イベント内容が「Ｌａｕｒｅｌ ｉｓ ｉｎ ｓｅｎｓｉｔｉｖｉｔｙ ａｗａｒｅｎｅｓｓ ｃｌａｓｓ．」、イベントの開始時間が１９９７年４月１日の１６：３０：００、イベントの終了時間が１９９７年４月２日の０１：００：００であるイベント情報を生成することができる。Ｃａｌｅｎｄａｒ Ｓｅｒｖｅｒは、Ｐｒｅｓｅｎｃｅ Ｓｅｒｖｅｒから配信された上記イベント情報を受信した後、当該イベント情報に基づいて、自身に記録されているスケジュール情報を更新する。 As is known, a configuration example of a minimum set tuple of presence information recorded in the RPID format is as follows.

Here, an element defined by one tuple includes operations (activities), not only a time attribute including a start time and an end time, but also the content of the operation. With the tuple having the above-described configuration, the presence information distributor can distribute his / her current operation and the start time and end time of the operation to the presence server. Thereafter, the Presence Server can also extract necessary information from the presence information distributed from the presence information distributor and generate one event information in the schedule information of the presence information distributor. For example, with the above-mentioned tuple, the Presence Server operates the presence information distributor from 16:30 on April 1, 1997 to 01:00 on April 2, 1997 as “Laurel is in sensitivity awareness”. class. ". In this way, the Presence Server has an event content of “Laurel in sensibility awareness class”, an event start time of April 1, 1997 16:30, and an event end time of April 2, 1997. Event information of 01: 00: 00: 00 can be generated. After receiving the event information distributed from the presence server, the calendar server updates the schedule information recorded in itself based on the event information.

 In the present embodiment, the event information may be recorded in the iCalendar format, or may be recorded in any other format. When the event information is recorded in a non-standard schedule information format, the Calendar Server needs to analyze the event information in order to update the schedule information stored in itself after receiving the event information. There is.

 As can be seen from the above embodiment, after the schedule information distributor distributes the schedule information to the Calendar Server, the schedule information distributor does not manually distribute his / her presence information to the Presence Server, but the Calendar Server is based on the schedule information. Thus, the present state of the schedule information distributor can be automatically notified to the Presence Server, and automatic update of the presence information of the schedule information distributor can be realized. On the other hand, after the presence information distributor manually changes his / her presence information, the presence server does not manually distribute his / her schedule information to the Calendar Server, but the presence server distributes automatically or the presence information distributor. The presence information can be distributed to the Calendar Server and the schedule information of the presence information distributor can be updated. According to the system and method according to the above embodiment, the user's operation is simplified. A network-side synchronization mechanism is used to ensure that a user's presence information and schedule information are consistently consistent for different subscriber groups that have subscribed to the user's presence information and schedule information. This saves user time, improves user efficiency, and enhances the user experience when using the Presence service and the Calendar service.

 Further, according to the above system and method, the user can synchronize the presence information and the schedule information between the network side, that is, the Presence Server and the Calendar Server, without transmitting the same information to the two servers. By transmitting the information to realize, the use of resources on the access network side has been reduced.

  The above are only preferred embodiments of the present invention and do not limit the protection scope of the present invention. Various modifications, equivalent replacements, improvements and the like made within the spirit and principle of the present invention should all be included in the protection scope of the present invention.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the system which implement | achieves the synchronization with presence information and schedule information which concern on the Example of this invention. It is a figure which shows the internal structure of the presence server based on the Example of this invention. It is a figure which shows the internal structure of the calendar server which concerns on the Example of this invention. 4 is a flowchart of a method for synchronizing presence information based on schedule information according to an embodiment of the present invention. 3 is a flowchart of a method for realizing synchronization of presence information based on schedule information according to a session start protocol according to an embodiment of the present invention; 4 is a flowchart of a method for synchronizing schedule information based on presence information according to an embodiment of the present invention. 4 is a flowchart of a method for realizing synchronization of schedule information based on presence information by a session start protocol according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (20)

A system that realizes synchronization between presence information and schedule information,
Including presence information distributor, schedule information subscriber, presence server (Presence Server) and calendar server (Calendar Server),
The Presence Server generates event information of the presence information distributor based on presence information received from the presence information distributor, distributes the generated event information to the Calendar Server,
The Calendar Server updates the presence information distributor's schedule information stored in itself based on the event information distributed from the Presence Server, and updates the updated schedule information to the presence information distributor's schedule. Deliver information to subscribed schedule information subscribers,
A system characterized by that.  The system according to claim 1, wherein the presence server distributes the generated event information to the calendar server by a session start protocol.  The presence server further processes a schedule information synchronization request from the presence information distributor before generating event information of the presence information distributor based on presence information received from the presence information distributor. The system of claim 1, characterized in that: A schedule information distributor and a presence information subscriber;
The Calendar Server further generates state information of the schedule information distributor at the start of a new event based on an event included in the schedule information received from the schedule information distributor, and the generated state information To the Presence Server,
The presence server further updates the presence information of the schedule information distributor stored in the presence server based on the status information distributed from the calendar server, and the updated presence information is updated to the schedule information distributor. Deliver presence information to subscribed presence information subscribers,
The system according to claim 1.  The system according to claim 4, wherein the Calendar Server distributes the generated state information to the Presence Server according to a session start protocol. A system that realizes synchronization between presence information and schedule information,
Including a schedule information distributor, a presence information subscriber, a calendar server, and a presence server.
The Calendar Server generates status information of the schedule information distributor at the start of a new event based on an event included in the schedule information received from the schedule information distributor, and generates the generated status information. Deliver to Presence Server,
The presence server updates the presence information of the schedule information distributor stored in itself based on the status information distributed from the calendar server, and updates the presence information of the schedule information distributor to the presence information of the schedule information distributor. Deliver information to subscribed presence information subscribers,
A system characterized by that.  The system of claim 6, wherein the Calendar Server distributes the generated state information to the Presence Server according to a session initiation protocol. Presence server (Presence Server),
A presence information receiving module for receiving presence information distributed from a presence information distributor;
A presence information storage module for storing received presence information;
A presence information distribution module that distributes presence information stored in the presence information storage module to presence information subscribers who have already subscribed to presence information of the presence information distributor;
An event information generation module that generates event information of the presence information distributor based on the received presence information;
An event information delivery module for delivering the generated event information to a calendar server (Calendar Server);
Including a presence server.  The event information generation module further waits for reception of a schedule information synchronization request from the presence information distributor before generating event information of the presence information distributor based on the received presence information. The presence server according to claim 8. A status information receiving module for receiving status information of the presence information distributor distributed from the Calendar Server;
A presence information update module for updating presence information of the presence information distributor stored in the presence information storage module based on the received status information;
Further including
The presence information distribution module further distributes the updated presence information to the presence information subscriber;
The presence server according to claim 8. Calendar server (Calendar Server),
A schedule information receiving module for receiving schedule information distributed from a schedule information distributor;
A schedule information storage module for storing the received schedule information;
A schedule information distribution module for distributing the schedule information stored in the schedule information storage module to a schedule information subscriber who has already subscribed to the schedule information of the schedule information distributor;
A status information generation module that generates status information of the schedule information distributor at the start of a new event based on an event included in the received schedule information;
A status information distribution module for distributing the generated status information to a presence server (Presence Server);
A calendar server characterized by including: An event information receiving module for receiving event information of the schedule information distributor distributed from the presence server;
A schedule information update module for updating the schedule information of the schedule information distributor stored in the schedule information storage module based on the received event information;
Further including
The schedule information distribution module further distributes the updated schedule information to the schedule information subscriber.
The calendar server according to claim 11. A method for updating presence information based on schedule information,
After receiving the schedule information distributed from the schedule information distributor, based on the event included in the received schedule information, generate status information of the schedule information distributor at the start of a new event,
The generated status information is distributed to a presence server, and the presence server updates the presence information of the schedule information distributor based on the received status information.
A method comprising:  Based on the event included in the received schedule information, generating the status information of the schedule information distributor at the start of a new event means that for each event recorded in the received schedule information The method according to claim 13, further comprising: extracting event contents of corresponding events from schedule information as the state information at the start time.  Based on the event included in the received schedule information, generating the status information of the schedule information distributor at the start of a new event, when extracting the event content of the corresponding event from the schedule information, 15. The method according to claim 14, further comprising: extracting a start time and an end time of the corresponding event, and using the extracted start time and end time as the state information together with the extracted event content. the method of.  The method of claim 13, wherein delivering the generated state information to a presence server includes mounting the state information in a session initiation protocol delivery message. A method for updating schedule information based on presence information,
After receiving the presence information distributed from the presence information distributor, the event information of the presence information distributor is generated based on the received presence information,
The generated event information is distributed to a calendar server (Calendar Server), and the Calendar Server updates the schedule information of the presence information distributor based on the received event information.
A method comprising:  18. The method of claim 17, further comprising waiting for a schedule information synchronization request from the presence information distributor before generating event information of the presence information distributor based on the received presence information. The method described.  Generating event information of the presence information distributor based on the received presence information extracts the contents of the recorded operation and the start time and end time of the operation from the received presence information. The method according to claim 17, further comprising: making the event information.   18. The method of claim 17, wherein delivering the generated event information to a Calendar Server includes mounting the event information in a session initiation protocol delivery message.

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