KR20000056176A - Data &program trasnmitting/receiving method using cable modem - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A method for sending and receiving data using cable modem is provided to satisfy the North American standards for cable modems and cable modem division systems and to supply supplementary functions by using high speed internet communication. CONSTITUTION: A method for sending and receiving data using cable modem is composed of determination, reception, examination, and transference. PC is checked to determine whether the power is on or off(S10). If power is off, in accordance to operation command previously received from user, a request for software or data needed by cable modem division system is made(S12). Presence of reply from cable modem division system is checked(S14), if there is a reply, the presence of transmission data is determined(S16). If transmission data exists, incoming data and software are received and stored in additional memory(12b)(S18), and completion status of normal transmission is examined(S20). When normal transmission is completed, process returns to S10, if normal transmission is not completed, process proceeds to S10 and returns to S10 after waiting for a fixed waiting time, for example 5 minutes. If a reply is not present in S14 or transmission data does not exist in S16, proceed to S26, wait for a fixed waiting time and return to S10. In S10, if PC is currently operating, which means power is on, determine whether user is currently reading data(S22). If user is currently reading the data, proceed to S26, wait for a fixed waiting time and return to S10. If not reading the data, operate software received from service company and begin transferring data to PC.

Description

Data transmission and reception method using cable modem {DATA & PROGRAM TRASNMITTING / RECEIVING METHOD USING CABLE MODEM}

The present invention relates to a method for transmitting and receiving data using a cable modem, and in particular, a cable modem capable of receiving various services by using the computing environment of the cable modem and the equipment of the Internet service provider in transmitting information using the cable modem for internet access. It relates to a data transmission and reception method using.

In recent years, as the number of cable television subscribers increases, it has been proposed that a cable modem relays data communication using coaxial cables installed in each home to provide cable television services. If the cable modem uses a telephone line, the maximum download speed of the existing modem is currently about 56 [Kbps]. The cable modem has a download speed of about 8 [Mbps] and an upload speed of about 2 [Mbps]. It was born because of the fast data communication.

Comparing such cable modem devices with existing telephone network modems, since most telephone network modems use the power of the personal computer while being embedded in the personal computer, when the user turns off the personal computer, the modem does not operate at all. In order to solve this problem, a wake-up function has been proposed and a personal computer can always be turned on, but there are many problems such as a telephone charge due to the occupation of a telephone line.

Meanwhile, in the North American standard (MCNS / DOCSIS) of cable modems currently being developed by companies around the world, the cable modem's normal operating state merely performs bridging function that carries IP (Internet Protocol). It has a higher-level communication entity for acquiring IP and configuration files, or for acting as a simple network management protocol agent. However, the user cannot set the cable modem using his personal computer, and furthermore, there is a problem in that it does not perform all the intelligent functions such as running a software task by the service company and reporting the status of the personal computer.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems. The present invention provides a data transmission / reception method using a cable modem, which satisfies the North American standard for cable modem and cable modem termination system, and provides additional functions using high-speed Internet communication. The purpose is to provide.

The data transmission and reception method using the cable modem of the present invention for achieving the above object is to use a cable modem that connects the cable modem termination system connected to the Internet service provider through the Internet network and the user side computer to transmit and receive data. A data transmitting / receiving method, comprising: (a) determining whether a power of a user's computer is currently on; (b) requesting, transmitting, and storing data necessary for the cable modem end system when the user side computer is powered on; (c) determining whether the user's computer is currently viewing data when the user's computer is powered on; And (d) transmitting the data stored in the step (b) to the user-side computer when the user-side computer is not currently reading the data as a result of the determination in step (c). It is done.

1 is a block diagram of an intelligent cable modem apparatus to which the method of the present invention is applied;

2 is a flowchart illustrating a data transmission and reception method using a cable modem of the present invention.

*** Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawing ***

10: microprocessor, 12: memory,

12a: main memory, 12b: additional memory,

14: memory for basic S / W, 16: RF receiver,

18: cable MAC, 20: Ethernet MAC

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail a data transmission and reception method using a cable modem according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, the present invention is to find the necessary data when looking at the composition ratio of the time required for using the Internet service using a personal computer in the home, and also the time wasted to read or analyze the data wasted in downloading the data The focus is on the fact that there are never a few.

In order to enable the present invention, a service provider must first be able to transmit data requested by the user, such as newspapers, magazines, or stock quotes, through the cable modem termination system (CMTS). . The service provider must also transmit the necessary software on the cable modem side through the cable modem termination system, for example, software related to intelligent functions, such as easily viewing the transmitted data or checking the status of the personal computer.

On the other hand, the cable modem device detects that the personal computer on the user's side is turned off and thus receives relevant data from the service provider when the user does not use the personal computer. The cable modem can also detect that the user is booting the personal computer and show the data that has been sent. At this time, the personal computer and the cable modem may be connected by LAN cable, USB, and IEEE (1394, etc .. The cable modem may also start software having functions such as accessing data sent by a service provider. will be.

In the above concept, the cable modem termination system requires no modification other than satisfying the above North American standard. In other words, it is enough if the server of the service provider can transmit the completed data transparently and securely.

1 is a block diagram of an intelligent cable modem apparatus to which the method of the present invention is applied. As shown in FIG. 1, the intelligent cable modem apparatus to which the method of the present invention is applied performs the basic functions of the cable modem, that is, IP packet forwarding and media access control (MAC) message processing. The microprocessor 10 having the computing capability to perform additional functions according to the present invention, the main memory 12a for temporarily storing data or programs necessary for the operation of the cable modem and the data and software transmitted from the service provider A memory unit 12 comprising an additional memory 12b capable of storing, a memory unit 14 for basic software having an operating system inside a cable modem capable of running software transmitted from a service provider, RF (Radio Frequency) data transmitted from the cable modem termination system can be received via coaxial cable. Receiving RF receiver 16, system clock 20 providing system clock signal to microprocessor 10, cable MAC logic 18 associated with cable termination system side and Ethernet MAC logic 22 associated with personal computer side ) And so on.

In the above-described configuration, the additional memory 12a includes advertising data, such as data such as moving pictures, pictures, and audio, and additional function software, such as data display, voice data playback, or personal computer download, and the like. A flag indicating normal reception is stored. In addition, a speaker and a display device for reproducing voice data may be added to the intelligent cable modem apparatus of the present invention.

2 is a flowchart illustrating a data transmission and reception method using a cable modem of the present invention. As shown in Fig. 2, in step S10, it is determined whether the personal computer is currently operating, that is, whether the personal computer is powered on. If the personal computer is turned off in step S10, the process proceeds to step S12 to request transmission of data or software required for the cable modem end system according to a work instruction previously requested by the user. Next, in step S14, it is determined whether there is a response from the cable modem termination system. If there is a response in step S14, the flow advances to step S16 to determine whether there is transmission data. If there is transmission data in step S16, the flow proceeds to step S18 again to receive the data and software to be transmitted, stores it in the additional memory 12b, and then proceeds to step S20 again to complete normal reception. Judge whether or not.

If the normal reception is completed in step S20, the process returns to step S10 again. If not, the process proceeds to step S10 and waits for a predetermined retry time interval, for example, 5 minutes, and then again in step S10. Will return. On the other hand, if there is no response in step S14 or if there is no transmission data in step S16, the process proceeds to step S26, waits for a predetermined retry time interval, and then returns to step S10. .

On the other hand, when the personal computer is currently operating in step S10, that is, when the power is turned on, that is, when the user boots the personal computer, etc., the process proceeds to step S22 where the current user is reading data. Judge. In step S22, if the user is currently viewing the data, the process proceeds to step S26, and after a predetermined retry time interval elapses, the process returns to step S10, and if the data is not being viewed, step S24. In step 1), the software transmitted from the service provider is driven to perform data transfer to the personal computer.

As described above, in the data transmission / reception method using the cable modem of the present invention, a cable modem company uses advertisement characteristics such as 24-hour access and high-speed transmission, and sends out advertisements as in conventional airwave or cable television broadcasting. You can earn income. On the other hand, subscribers can receive discounts on service charges instead of watching advertisements, and boot up or view data for a certain period of time by turning on the personal computer with the information set up by the service provider. You can see the data you've transferred to your back.

The data transmission / reception method using the cable modem of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the range allowed by the technical idea of the present invention.

As described above, according to the data transmission / reception method using the cable modem of the present invention, the data is transmitted at a time when the computer is not in use by using the characteristics of the cable network, the 24-hour connection and the high-speed transmission. By enabling it to run at the same time as booting, it reduces the time required for searching and downloading information of the user, and provides various additional functions.

Claims (2)

In the data transmission and reception method using a cable modem that connects the cable modem termination system connected to the Internet service provider through the Internet network and the user's computer to transmit and receive data, (a) determining whether the power of the user's computer is currently on; (b) requesting, transmitting, and storing data necessary for the cable modem end system when the user side computer is powered on; (c) determining whether the user's computer is currently viewing data when the user's computer is powered on; And (d) if the user's computer is not currently viewing the data as a result of the determination in step (c), transmitting the data stored in the step (b) to the user's computer. Data transmission and reception method using a cable modem. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmitted data includes data or software for processing the data.