KR101533835B1 - Method for firmware update of Portable Terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for updating a firmware of a portable terminal, and more particularly, to a method for updating a firmware of a mobile terminal by downloading the update files to a user storage area of a storage unit when a plurality of update files (e.g., delta files) To the file storage area to update the firmware of the portable terminal.

Delta file, firmware, update, porta, FOTA, file system

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a method for updating a firmware of a portable terminal,

The present invention relates to a portable service, and in particular, when there are a plurality of update files, the plurality of update files are downloaded to a user storage area, and the downloaded update files are sequentially moved to a delta file storage area of an update agent, To a firmware update method of a portable terminal.

The operating system (OS) of the portable terminal generally operates through firmware. The firmware refers to a program used as hardware by storing core software that does not need to change data or information in a ROM or the like. Such a firmware can be continuously developed even after the product is released for stable performance and bug correction of the portable terminal. When a new version of the firmware is developed, the user of the portable terminal can update the firmware of the portable terminal. At this time, the user can update the firmware of the portable terminal by using various methods such as wire or wireless. Particularly, in recent years, a method of updating firmware using wireless has attracted attention. A typical example is the Firmware Over The Air (FOTA) service.

The porta service is a service that allows the firmware to be updated by providing a delta file (Differential file or Differential file) that compares the existing firmware with the new version of the firmware and extracts only different parts through the wireless network. To this end, the mobile terminal may include an update agent, which may include a delta file storage area. A general firmware update process includes downloading a delta file to the delta file storage area, and confirming to the user whether the update agent confirmed the update. However, in the firmware update method, when a firmware update has not been performed for a long time or a large number of update files exist due to a lot of firmware changes, one update file is downloaded due to capacity limitation of the delta file storage area, It is necessary to repeat the process of downloading the update file and updating the firmware. This method is inconvenient for the user to check whether the firmware is updated every time. Accordingly, in the case where a plurality of update files exist, there is a demand for a firmware update method capable of applying a plurality of update files to the firmware by confirming whether or not to update one time.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems occurring in the prior art, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a firmware update method and a firmware update method, And a method for updating firmware of a portable terminal that can apply the plurality of update files to firmware of the portable terminal.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for updating firmware of a portable terminal, the method comprising: downloading a plurality of update files to a user storage area when a plurality of update files exist; The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of: copying one of the downloaded plurality of update files to a delta file storage area included in the update agent and rebooting the firmware; updating the firmware by activating the update agent upon rebooting; And an update process of deleting and rebooting the stored update file.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a portable terminal including a wireless communication unit for forming a wireless communication channel with a portal server and receiving a plurality of update files; A storage unit including a user storage area for storing the plurality of update files received through the wireless communication unit and an update agent for updating the firmware; And a controller for copying one of the plurality of update files stored in the user storage area to a delta file storage area and rebooting the portable terminal, wherein the update agent updates the firmware using the update file stored in the delta file storage area, Updating the firmware, deleting the update file stored in the delta file storage area, and rebooting the update file to update the firmware.

As described above, according to the present invention, when a plurality of update files exist, a plurality of update files are downloaded to a user storage area, and all the update files are applied to the firmware by checking whether the firmware is updated .

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that, in the drawings, the same components are denoted by the same reference symbols as possible. Further, the detailed description of known functions and configurations that may obscure the gist of the present invention will be omitted.

It should be noted that the embodiments of the present invention disclosed in the present specification and drawings are only illustrative of the present invention in order to facilitate the understanding of the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. It is to be understood by those skilled in the art that other modifications based on the technical idea of the present invention are possible in addition to the embodiments disclosed herein.

Prior to detailed description of the present invention, a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described as a mobile communication terminal for convenience of description, but the present invention is not limited thereto. That is, the portable terminal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention is a terminal that can use a porta service, and preferably a mobile terminal, a mobile phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smart phone, (GSM) terminal, a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) terminal, a Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) terminal, a Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) terminal, a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) (Enhanced Data GSM Evironment) terminal, a Universal Mobile Telecommunication Service (UMTS) terminal, a Digital Broadcasting (UMTS) terminal, and the like, and applications therefor.

Hereinafter, the "update file" is a file that is generated by extracting only the different parts by comparing the existing firmware version of the portable terminal with the new firmware version, and extracts only the extracted part of the new firmware from the existing firmware And address information on which the data is to be installed. The update file may be a delta file or a differential file.

Hereinafter, the "Update Agent" is a program for updating the firmware of the portable terminal using the update file. The update agent is generally provided in a module form and may include a delta file storage area where the update file is stored.

Hereinafter, the "user storage area" is an allocated storage area for storing data generated according to use of the portable terminal. For example, it is an area for storing photographs or moving pictures photographed using the camera function, music files (e.g., MP3 files), and the like.

1 is a schematic diagram of a firmware update system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the firmware update system according to the present invention may include a portable terminal 100, a base station 300, and a portal server 400.

The mobile terminal 100 includes a firmware update agent, an update agent for updating the firmware, an operating system and a boot program for performing overall operations of the mobile terminal, . The portable terminal 100 may update the firmware by receiving an update file, such as a delta file, from the portal server 400. In particular, if there are a plurality of the update files and download is impossible in the delta file storage area, the mobile terminal 100 according to the present invention can update the firmware by downloading the plurality of update files to the user storage area. The detailed firmware update process will be described later.

The base station 300 is a wireless base station installed by a mobile communication provider to provide a mobile communication service, and can provide a communication path between the mobile terminal 100 and the portal server 400. In particular, the base station 300 according to the present invention can transmit the update file provided by the porta server 400 to the mobile terminal 100. [

The porta server 400 is a server for providing a firmware update service to notify the portable terminal user of the new firmware and update the firmware when the new firmware is developed. The porta server 400 extracts the difference by comparing the old firmware and the new firmware, Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > a < / RTI > When the new firmware is developed, the portal server 400 may generate an update file and transmit it to the portable terminal 100 through the base station 300. [ Alternatively, when the portable terminal 400 accesses the portable terminal 400 and requests an update file, the portable server 400 can receive the current firmware version information from the portable terminal 100 and search for the updated version of the firmware version. If there is a later version of the update file, the porta server 400 can check whether there is a plurality of update files of the later version, and transmit the update file to the portable terminal 100. The portal server 400 may be included in a mobile communication service provider server.

2 is a block diagram schematically showing a configuration of a mobile terminal 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

1 and 2, the portable terminal 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a controller 110, a wireless communication unit 120, an input unit 130, a storage unit 140, a display unit 160, . ≪ / RTI >

The wireless communication unit 120 may form a communication channel with a base station for data communication and voice communication with other mobile terminals. For this, the wireless communication unit 120 may include a radio frequency transmitter for up-converting and amplifying the frequency of a transmitted signal, a radio frequency receiver for low-noise amplifying the received signal and down-converting the frequency of the received signal. In particular, the wireless communication unit 120 according to the embodiment of the present invention can receive a plurality of update files provided by the portal server 400 through the base station 300. [ The wireless communication unit 120 may transmit the current firmware version information of the portable terminal 100 to the portable server 400 under the control of the controller 110. [

The input unit 130 may include a plurality of input keys and function keys for receiving numeric or character information and setting various functions. The function keys may include a direction key, a side key, and an accelerator key set for performing a specific function. Also, the input unit 130 may generate a key input signal that is input in connection with the function control of the portable terminal 100, and may transmit the generated key input signal to the control unit 110. In particular, if there are a plurality of update files, the input unit 130 according to the present invention can transmit a key signal to the controller 110 about firmware update. Also, the input unit 130 may generate a key input signal for setting an update file reception time when a plurality of update files exist. It is preferable that the update file reception time is set to the morning time when the portable terminal 100 is not used.

The storage unit 140 includes a boot program for booting the portable terminal 100, an update agent for updating the firmware, an operating system for controlling the overall operation of the portable terminal 100, , OS) and an application program necessary for reproducing multimedia contents. Also, the storage unit 140 may store data generated according to use of the portable terminal 100. For this, the storage unit 140 may include a user storage area for storing photographs, moving pictures, and user data.

The boot program is a program for booting the portable terminal. The boot program checks the delta file storage area when booting up. When the update file exists, the boot program runs the update agent. If the update file does not exist It is possible to drive an operating system.

The update agent is a program for updating the firmware of the portable terminal using an update file, for example, a delta file, and may be driven by the boot program if an update file exists in the delta file storage area. The update agent may include a delta file storage area for receiving and storing the update file. The delta file storage area has a limited capacity of several megabits because the update file is not large in capacity and is used only at the time of firmware update.

The user storage area is a storage area allocated for storing data generated according to use of the portable terminal. For example, the user storage area is an area in which a photograph or a moving image photographed by a user of the portable terminal 100 is stored. In particular, the user storage area according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention may store the plurality of update files when a plurality of update files exist when the firmware is updated.

The storage unit 140 may include a read only memory (ROM), a flash memory, a random access memory (RAM), and the like. The storage unit 140 may include a ROM, Memory, etc., or two memories, for example, an MCP (Multi Chip Package) memory.

The display unit 160 may display various menu screens of the mobile terminal 100, user data input by the user, function setting information, or various information provided to the user. The display unit 160 may be a liquid crystal display (LCD), and may be included in an input unit when the LCD is formed as a touch screen. The display unit 160 may display a screen informing that the firmware is being updated or may display a screen informing that the update file is being received. The screen indicating that the firmware is being updated or the update file is being received may be expressed in various ways such as a simple phrase or an image. In particular, the display unit 160 according to the present invention can notify the user of a plurality of update files when the firmware is updated, and can display a pop-up window for checking whether the update files are updated. In addition, the display unit 160 may display a pop-up window for setting a time for downloading a plurality of update files.

The controller 110 controls the overall operation of the portable terminal 100 and the signal flow between the internal blocks, and controls the data processing functions and the like. In particular, the control unit 110 according to the present invention accesses the portal server 400 to check whether an update file exists, and when there is a plurality of update files, notifies the user of the update file, and a pop- It is possible to control the display unit 160 to display it. More specifically, the controller 110 confirms the current firmware version information of the portable terminal 100, transmits the current firmware version information to the portable server 400 through the wireless communication unit 120, Of the update file exists. At this time, the control unit 110 can notify the user of a plurality of update files and can control to display a pop-up window for confirming downloading.

 Thereafter, when the user selects to update the firmware, the control unit 110 downloads a plurality of update files to the user storage area, and copies any one of the update files downloaded in the user storage area to the delta file storage area And delete the copied update file from the user storage area. At this time, it is preferable that the controller 110 compares the version or creation date of the downloaded update file to the user storage area, and copies the oldest update file to the delta file storage area. The control unit 110 may reboot the portable terminal 100 when the copy of the update file is completed in the delta file storage area.

Although not shown, the portable terminal 100 may include a camera module, a broadcast receiving module, a connection terminal for exchanging data with an external digital device, a charging terminal, and a digital sound source reproducing module such as an MP3 module Elements. ≪ / RTI > These components may not be enumerated in all of the variations according to the convergence trend of the digital device, but the mobile terminal 100 may further include components of the same level as the above-mentioned components It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited thereto.

Hereinabove, the schematic configuration of the portable terminal 100 according to the present invention has been described with reference to FIG. Hereinafter, the firmware updating process of the portable terminal 100 will be described with reference to FIG.

3 is a flowchart illustrating a firmware updating process of the mobile terminal 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

1 to 3, the portable terminal 100 may access the portal server 400 to update the firmware in step S301. Thereafter, the controller 110 may check whether a plurality of update files exist in step S303. The control unit 110 transmits the current firmware version information to the porta server 400. The porta server 400 receives the current firmware version information and searches for the latest version of the update file And confirms whether the searched update file is a singular or plural, and transmits the update file to the portable terminal 100.

If it is determined in step S303 that the update file is a single file, the controller 110 proceeds to step S307 and updates the firmware by downloading the update file to the delta file storage area. On the other hand, if there are a plurality of update files in step S303, the controller 110 may download a plurality of update files to the user storage area in step S305. The user storage area is an area allocated to store data generated according to the use of the portable terminal. The user storage area may be a predetermined area of a built-in memory (e.g., flash memory) of the portable terminal, Memory (e.g., SD card, T-Flash card).

If the download of the plurality of update files is completed in step S305, the controller 110 proceeds to step S309 to copy one of the downloaded plurality of update files to the delta file storage area, . In this case, it is preferable that the control unit 110 checks the version information or the creation date of the plurality of update files and copies the update file generated the longest ago to the delta file storage area.

When the step S309 is completed, the controller 110 proceeds to step S311 and reboots the portable terminal 100. [ Here, the boot program that is initially operated upon rebooting checks whether an update file exists in the delta file storage area. If the update file does not exist, the boot program runs the operating system of the mobile terminal 100. If an update file exists And can drive the update agent. At this time, since the update file is copied to the delta file storage area in step S309, the mobile terminal 100 rebooted in step S311 can drive the update agent in step S315. The update agent is a program for updating the firmware of the portable terminal.

Thereafter, the update agent updates the firmware using the update file stored in the delta file storage area in step S319, and when the firmware update is completed, the update agent proceeds to step S321 and deletes the update file stored in the delta file storage area . The update agent may reboot the portable terminal in step S323. Since the update file does not exist in the delta file storage area at the time of the reboot, the portable terminal 100 can be operated as an operating system. Upon completion of the reboot, the controller 110 proceeds to step S325 and determines whether an update file exists in the user storage area. At this time, if the update file exists, the controller 110 may return to step S309. The above steps S309 to S325 are repeated until all the downloaded update files are deleted. If the update file does not exist in step S325, the firmware update process may be terminated. Alternatively, the controller 110 compares the version of the current firmware with the version of the update file without deleting the update file stored in the user storage area, and ends the firmware update process if the current firmware version does not exist later . Thereafter, the controller 110 notifies the user that all the updates are completed, and confirms whether the update file is deleted.

As described above, according to the present invention, when a plurality of update files exist, the plurality of update files can be downloaded to the user storage area, and the firmware can be updated by one confirmation. Therefore, the present invention can overcome the inconvenience of the conventional firmware update method which requires to check whether the firmware is updated each time by repeating the process of receiving one update file, updating the firmware, receiving the next update file, and updating the firmware.

Meanwhile, although not shown in FIG. 3, a download time setting process of the plurality of update files may be further included between steps S303 and S305. This is to prevent the normal use of the portable terminal 100 from being difficult due to a load occurring in the portable terminal 100 due to the download of the plurality of update files. The download time setting process will be described later with reference to FIG.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a download time setting process according to an embodiment of the present invention.

1 to 4, if a plurality of update files exist in step S303, the controller 110 may check whether a plurality of update files are downloaded in step S401. If the user selects not to download in step S401, the controller 110 disconnects the connection with the portable server 400 and ends the firmware update process. On the other hand, if the user selects downloading in step S401, the controller 110 proceeds to step S403 and determines whether the download time is set. If the download time is not set, the controller 110 proceeds to step S405 and displays a pop-up window for setting a download time on the display unit 160 so that the user can set a download time. Here, it is preferable that the download time is set to a time when the portable terminal is not used, for example, dawn.

On the other hand, if the download time is set in step S403, the controller 110 proceeds to step S407 to check whether the download time is a predetermined download time, and if the download time is not the predetermined download time, Lt; / RTI > When the predetermined download time is reached, the controller 110 proceeds to step S305 and downloads a plurality of update files to the user storage area. The subsequent process is the same as that described in FIG.

In the above description, the firmware is updated by copying one update file to the delta file storage area, but the present invention is not limited thereto. That is, when the mobile terminal 100 can store a plurality of update files among the plurality of downloaded update files in the delta file storage area, the mobile terminal 100 can update the firmware after copying the plurality of update files into the delta file storage area have. For example, if the delta file storage area has a size of 3 mega, there are 10 update files, and the update files each have a size of 1 mega, the controller 110 stores 3 update files at a time You will be able to copy it to the delta file storage area.

Hereinafter, a method for updating firmware of a portable terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the present specification and drawings. Although specific terms are used, The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. That is, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that various embodiments based on the technical idea of the present invention are possible.

1 is a schematic view of a firmware update system according to an embodiment of the present invention;

2 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a configuration of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a flowchart illustrating a firmware updating process of the portable terminal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a downloading time setting process according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Claims (18)

A method for updating a firmware of a portable terminal, Downloading the plurality of update files to a user storage area when a plurality of update files exist; The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of: copying one of the downloaded plurality of update files to a delta file storage area included in the update agent and rebooting the firmware; updating the firmware by activating the update agent upon rebooting; And updating the stored update file by deleting and rebooting the stored update file. The method according to claim 1, The update process Checking the delta file storage area upon rebooting or rebooting after copying, and if the update file exists in the delta file storage area, driving the update agent; And And controlling an overall operation of the portable terminal when an update file does not exist in the delta file storage area. The method according to claim 1, The downloading process Accessing a portal server providing the update file; Transmitting the current firmware version to the portable server; Checking whether there is a later version of the update file in the portable server that received the current firmware version; And And checking if there is a plurality of update files of the later version when the update file of the later version exists. The method according to claim 1, The update process Checking whether an update file exists in the user storage area; And Wherein the update process is repeated when an update file exists in the user storage area, and when the update file does not exist, the update process is terminated. The method according to claim 1, The downloading process Checking whether the plurality of update files are downloaded; Checking whether download time is set when downloading is selected; And Determining whether the download time is a preset download time, and downloading the plurality of update files at the predetermined download time. 6. The method of claim 5, The downloading process And setting a download time when the download time is not set. The method according to claim 1, The update process Checking at least one of version information and creation date of the plurality of update files, and copying the oldest update file to the delta file storage area. The method according to claim 1, The update process Further comprising the step of copying one of the downloaded update files to the delta file storage area and deleting the copied file in the user storage area. The method according to claim 1, The user storage area Wherein the firmware includes an internal memory or an external memory. A wireless communication unit for forming a wireless communication channel with the portal server and receiving a plurality of update files; A storage unit including a user storage area for storing the plurality of update files received through the wireless communication unit and an update agent for updating the firmware; And And a controller for copying one of the plurality of update files stored in the user storage area to a delta file storage area and rebooting the portable terminal Wherein the update agent updates the firmware using the update file stored in the delta file storage area, deletes the update file stored in the delta file storage area after the firmware is updated, and reboots the update file to update the firmware. . 11. The method of claim 10, The control unit Checking whether an update file exists in the user storage area and repeating the firmware update when the update file exists, and terminating the firmware update if the update file does not exist. 11. The method of claim 10, The storage unit A boot program for operating an operating system that controls the overall operation of the portable terminal when the update file does not exist by checking the delta file storage area at the boot time and when the update file exists in the delta file storage area, The mobile terminal further comprising: 11. The method of claim 10, The control unit Transmits the current firmware version information to the porta server, and receives from the porta server whether there is a plurality of update files of a later version. 11. The method of claim 10, The control unit Checking whether or not a download time is set when downloading the plurality of update files, and downloading the plurality of update files at a predetermined download time when the download time is set. 15. The method of claim 14, Further comprising a display unit for displaying a pop-up window for setting a download time when the download time is not set. 11. The method of claim 10, The control unit Checking at least one of version information or creation date of the plurality of update files, and copying the oldest update file to the delta file storage area. 11. The method of claim 10, The control unit And deletes one of the plurality of update files from the user storage area after copying one of the plurality of update files to the delta file storage area. 11. The method of claim 10, The user storage area A built-in memory or an external memory.

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