WO2009109980A2

WO2009109980A2 - Method and system for transfer of application between devices

Info

Publication number: WO2009109980A2
Application number: PCT/IN2008/000120
Authority: WO
Inventors: Attray Hemant; Rao Polisetti Nageswara; Jha Krishna
Original assignee: Onmobile Global Limited
Priority date: 2008-03-03
Filing date: 2008-03-03
Publication date: 2009-09-11
Also published as: WO2009109980A3

Abstract

A method for transferring at least one application from a second device to at least one first device is disclosed. The method includes obtaining device information of the first device and determining availability of a compatible version of the application. Compatibility of the application is determined using the device information. The compatible version of the application is obtained from the third party on the second device. Then second device transfers the compatible version of the application to the first device.

Description

TITLE: METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR TRANSFER OF APPLICATION

BETWEEN DEVICES.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to sharing applications among devices, and more specifically, to a method and system for transferring compatible version of an application from one device to another.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

There has been an increase in the number of tasks that are performed on a mobile device. These tasks range from simply listening to music, to executing complex business applications (such as MS Word, etc.) on the mobile device. With greater penetration of the mobile device, and greater usage of the device for various activities, there has been a surge in the number of new applications being developed for use in the mobile device.

One major hurdle in the wide acceptance of new applications is the mode of distribution of these applications among users. Currently, there are a limited number of ways in which users can obtain an application on their mobile devices.

Typically, the user obtains an application by downloading the application from the Internet. The user may go to a particular website and search for the application. The user then downloads the compatible version of the application from the Internet. However, searching for a particular application from the Internet can be very time consuming. Also, the user might not be able to find a suitable version of the application. Another limitation of this method is that the user must have an Internet connection on her mobile device. Further, different versions of an application are regularly updated on the Internet, making the task of keeping track of the available versions of the application difficult for the user.

PCT application WO/2002/044892, titled 'Method and system for maintaining and distributing wireless applications' published on June 6, 2002 discloses a system and a method in which a mobile device requests a system for a particular application. Thereafter, the system verifies the compatibility of the application with the user's device. After verification, if a compatible version of the particular application is found, it may then be provided to the user. Another method for obtaining a particular application by a user of a mobile device is to request transfer of the application from a second mobile device. This transfer is typically via some near- field private connections like Infrared or Bluetooth. The main limitation of this method is that the second mobile device might not possess a version compatible with the first mobile device.

An application typically works on a mobile device only if the application is compatible with the mobile device. Hence an application which works on the first mobile device may not work on the second mobile device. Compatibility of an application on a device depends on the operating system (OS) of the device, as well as the system specifications of the device. For example, instant messaging application 'Fring' has one version for devices with Symbian OS, and a different version for devices with Windows mobile OS. Further, there may be an elementary version of the application that can run on a mobile device with minimum system requirements, e.g., 20 MB RAM, while there may be another heavy version of the application that requires at least 256 MB of RAM. Thus the application that could run on a phone with Symbian OS and 256MB RAM may not work on a device with Windows mobile OS and 20MB RAM. This means that the user of first device might face compatibility issues when using the application on the first device.

In light of above mentioned limitations, .there is a need for a method in which users of mobile devices can directly transfer applications between themselves without facing any compatibility issues of the applications with mobile devices.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A method for transferring at least one application from a second device to a first device is disclosed. The method includes obtaining device information of the first device and determining availability of a version of the application compatible with the device. Compatibility of the application is determined using the device information. The compatible version of the application is obtained on the second device from a third party. Then second device transfers the compatible version of the application to the first device.

According to another embodiment of the invention, the step of obtaining the device information comprises displaying a list of device information at the second device to a user of second device. The step of obtaining further comprises receiving a selection of the at least one device information from the list of devices from the user of second device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an overview of the environment of the invention, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram illustrating method for distributing applications between devices according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3A - B is a schematic representation of a display unit of a second device in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic representation of a display unit of a second device in accordance with another embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 5 is a schematic depicting a system for distributing applications between devices according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 6 is a detailed flow diagram illustrating a method for distributing applications between devices according to an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, for the purposes of explanation, specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the invention. However, it will be apparent that the invention may be practiced without these specific details. Various aspects and features of example embodiments of the invention are described in more detail hereinafter.

FIG. 1 is an overview of an environment 100 of the invention, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. Environment 100 comprises at least one first device 102, at least one second device 104, an application server 106, and a communication network 108.

According to an embodiment of the invention, first device 102 and second device 104 are mobile devices communicating through a telecommunication network. Examples of mobile devices include, but are not limited to mobile phones, PDAs, laptops, blackberrys, pagers, and the like. Mobile devices can also be standalone electronic devices that have capability to communicate through a near- field private connection. Examples of such devices include programmable home appliances, navigation systems and the like. The invention enables the user of second device 104 to seamlessly transfer a compatible version of an application to the first device 102. The compatible version of the application is compatible with first device 102. When user of second device 104 want to send a compatible version of an application present in second device 104, the application finds a compatible version from a third party and provides it to the user of second device 104.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the compatible version of the application is compatible with first device 102 and is able to perform all the tasks in first device 102 which the application is able to perform in second device 104. The compatible version of the application compatible with first device 102 is hereinafter referred to as compatible application. Compatible application can be obtained by second device 104 from an application server 106 over communication network 108. Second device 104, then, transfers the compatible application to first device 102 through near field private connections. In an embodiment of the invention, application server 106 contains a database of various applications. The database also contains several versions of the application. Different versions of an application are operable on different devices.

According to an embodiment of the invention communication network 108 is a telecommunication network. Communication network 108 could also be Local Area Network, Wide Area Network, or the Internet.

Examples of near-field private connections include but are not limited to Bluetooth or Infrared. It must be apparent to a person skilled in the art, that any mode of near-field private connections can be used without deviating from the scope of the invention.

It must also be apparent to a person skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the types of communication network 108 mentioned above. Any gateway wherein a user can interact with another system can be used without deviating from the scope of the invention. Examples of other systems include, but are not limited to a mobile telecommunication system, an interactive television system and the like.

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram illustrating a method for distributing applications between devices according to an embodiment of the invention. The method of FIG. 2 is executed when first device 102 sends a request for an application to second device 104. The request comprises device information of first device 102 and information of the application which is requested by first device 102. According to an embodiment, the request can be sent to second device 104 from first device 102 through a near-field private connection. According to another embodiment of the invention, the request can also be communicated verbally by the user of first device 102 to the user of second device 104.

At step 202, second device 104 obtains device information of first device 102. According to an embodiment of the invention, second device 104 displays a list of device information to the user of second device 104. Thereafter, second device 104 receives a selection, from the user of second device 104, of at least one target device from the list of device information. The selected target device is associated with target device information. Second device 104 identifies the target device information as device information of first device 102. According to another embodiment, user of second device 104 may manually enter the target device information in second device 104. The selection process has been explained in detail in conjunction with FIG. 3A, 3B and 4.

At step 204, second device 104 connects to a third party via communication network 108. According to an embodiment of the invention the third party is an application server 106. Second device 104 determines the availability of at least one compatible application in application server 106. Compatible application is a particular version of the application which is compatible with first device 102. According to an embodiment of the invention, determining availability comprises searching of the compatible application in application server 106.

At step 206, second device 104 obtains the compatible application from application server 106.

At step 208, second device 104 transfers the compatible application to first device 102. Transfer of the compatible application to first device 102 may be done using near-field private connections.

According to an embodiment, device information of first device 102 is the model number of first device 102. For example, for a Nokia mobile phone having model number N71 , Nokia - N71 is the device information. According to another embodiment, device information of first device 102 is operating system software version of the device. For example, symbian 9.0 indicating that the device has version 9.0 of Symbian operating system. Another example of device information could be Windows Mobile 5.0 indicating that the device has version 5.0 of Windows mobile operating system. According to yet another embodiment, device information of first device 102 is the application programing runtime version present on the device. For example, J2ME indicating that the device has application programming runtime Java Micro-edition version 2. Another example could be Flashlite 2.0 indicating that the device has application programming runtime Adobe Flashlite version 2.0. According to another embodiment, device information of first device 102 is the manufacturer identification or serial number of the first device 102 (commonly known as IMEI). An example of an IMEI serial number is 359743000343774

It must be apparent to a person skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the types of device information used. Any means through which application server 106 identifies a compatible application for first device 102 could be used without deviating from the scope of the invention.

FIG. 3A - B is a schematic representation of a display unit 302 of second device 104 in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. According to the embodiment of the invention, display unit 302 displays an application list 304, a target application 306, a device information list 310, and a target device information 312 to the user of second device 104. Display unit 302 aids the user of second device 104 to select the target device information as discussed at step 202 of FIG. 2.

According to an embodiment of the invention, application list 304 is a list of the names of the applications, present in second device 104. Further, applications list 304 enables the user of second device 104 to select any application displayed on display unit 302.

Target application 306 is an application, from application list 304, selected by the user of second device 104. Second device 104 identifies target application 306 as the application requested by first device 102 from second device 104. After the user of second device, 104 has selected target application 306, display unit 302 displays a device information list 310 to the user of second device 104. The device information list 310 displays device information for various devices for which the compatible version of target application 306 exists in application server 106. Further, device information list 310 enables the user of second device 104 to select any of the device information present on the display.

The target device information 312 is the device information selected by the user of second device 104 from device information list 310. Second device 104 identifies target device information 312 as the device information of first device 102. The availability of the compatible application is determined using target device information 312.

FIG. 4 is a schematic representation of display unit 302 of second device 104 in accordance with another embodiment of the invention. FIG. 4 shows a particular arrangement of application list 304 and device information list 310. The particular arrangement displays application list 304 and device information list 310 simultaneously on display unit 302. It must be apparent to a person skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to a particular display of application list 304 and device information list 310 alone. Any gateway wherein the user of second device 104 can communicate application requested by the user of first device 102 and the device information of first device 102 can be used without deviating from the scope of the invention.

According to an embodiment of the invention, application list 304 and device information list 310 may be obtained by second device 104 from application server 106 using communication network 108.

According to another embodiment of the invention, user of second device 104 may send device information of first device 102 to application server 106 via SMS.

According to an embodiment of the invention, application server 106 may periodically update device information list 310 associated with the at least one application present in application list 304. Such an update may be initiated by second device 104 or from application server 106. In one embodiment, updating of the list is initiated when a request is sent from the user of second device 104. In another embodiment, second device 104 initiates updating of the list without any inputs from the user of second device 104. In yet another embodiment application server 106 may send a request to second device 104 for the initiation of updating of the device information list 310. In the process of updating of the list, an application present in second device 104 identifies the request for updating of the list and establishes a connection with application server 106 using a communication network 108. The at least one application present in second device 104 then updates the list present in second device 104 based on availability or non-availability of a version of the at least one application.

It must be apparent to a person skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to abovementioned method of updating of application list 304 and device information list 310. FIG. 5 is a schematic depicting a system for distributing applications between devices according to an embodiment of the invention. The system includes a second device application 502, a device database 504, a provisioning manager 506, and a master database 508. Second device 104 includes second device application 502 and device database 504. Application server 106 includes provisioning manager 506 and master database 508. Second device application 502 is an application in second device 102 requested by first device 102. Device database 504 contains various applications and different versions of the various applications which, for example, are previously downloaded by the user of second device 104 at second device 104. Provisioning manager 506 of application server 102 receives a request from second device application 502 for compatible application of second device application 502 through communication network 108. Provisioning manager 504 obtains the compatible application from master database 508. Master database 508 stores different versions of the various applications. Second device application 502 then downloads the compatible application in device database 504.

FIG. 6 is a detailed flow diagram illustrating a method for distributing applications between devices according to an embodiment of the invention. The method of FIG. 6 is executed when first device 102 sends a request for at least one application to second device 104. At least one version of the application is already present in second device 104 which is compatible with the device information of second device 104. The request can be sent via various means for example, SMS or the user of first device 102 verbally communicating the request to the user of first device 102.

At step 602, second device 104 receives a request for second device application 502 from first device 102. The request includes device information of first device 102. The user of second device 104 may then select second application 306 from application list 304 and device information of first device 102 from device information list 310.

At step 604, second device application 502 of second device 104 checks whether the device information of first device 102 is similar to device information of second device 104. According to an embodiment of the invention, second device 104 checks whether the model number of first device 102 and model number of second device 104 are same. At step 606, second device application 502 transfers a copy of second device application 502 in second device 104 through near-field private connection. Step 606 is executed when second device application 502 finds that the device information of first device 102 is similar to device information of second device 104 at step 604.

At step 608, second device application 502 searches for a compatible application which is compatible with device information of first device 102, inside device database 504. Step 608 is performed when second device 104 did not found that the device information of first device 102 is similar to device information of second device 104 at step 604.

At step 610, second device 104 transfers the at least one version of second device application 502 in second device 104 which is compatible with the device information^' of first device 102 to first device 102. Transfer could be done through near-field private connection. Step 610 is performed when second device 104 finds at least one compatible application which is compatible with device information of first device 102, in device database 504.

If the compatible application is not found at step 608, second device application 502, according to an embodiment of the invention, displays list of devices information 310 on the display unit 302 of second device 104. Second device application 502 then obtains a selection of at least one device information from device information list 310. The selection is provided by the user of second device 104. Second device 104 then sends a request to application server 106 for accessing a compatible version of application which is compatible with device information of first device 102. The request contains the selection from device information list 310. The request is sent through communication network 108. At step 612, second device 104 obtains the compatible version of application from a third party. According to an embodiment of the invention the third party is application server 106. At step 614, second device 104 transfers the compatible version of application to first device 102 via a near- field private connections like Infrared or Bluetooth.

An embodiment of the present invention or any of its components may be embodied in the form of a processing machine. Typical examples of a processing machine include a computer, a programmed microprocessor, an integrated circuit, and other devices or arrangements of devices that are capable of implementing the steps of the method of the current invention. The processing machine executes a set of instructions that are stored in one or more storage elements, in order to process input data. The storage elements may also hold data or other information as desired. The storage element may be in the form of an information destination or a physical memory element present in the processing machine.

The set of instructions may include various commands that instruct the processing machine to perform specific tasks such as the steps that constitute the method of the present invention. The set of instructions may be in the form of a software program. The software may be in various forms such as system software or application software. Further, the software might be in the form of a collection of separate programs, a program module with a larger program or a portion of a program module. The software might also include modular programming in the form of object-oriented programming. The processing of input data by the processing machine may be in response to user commands, or in response to results of previous processing or in response to a request made by another processing machine.

A person skilled in the art can appreciate that the various processing machines and/or storage elements may not be physically located in the same geographical location. The processing machines and/or storage elements may be located in geographically distinct locations and connected to each other to enable communication. Various communication technologies may be used to enable communication between the processing machines and/or storage elements. Such technologies include session of the processing machines and/or storage elements, in the form of a network. The network can be an intranet, an extranet, the Internet or any client server models that enable communication. Such communication technologies may use various protocols such as TCP/IP, UDP, ATM or OSI.

While example embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, it will be clear that the invention is not limited to these embodiments only. Numerous modifications, changes, variations, substitutions and equivalents will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as described in the claims.

Claims

CLAIMS :

1. A method of transferring at least one application from a second device to at least one first device, the method comprising: a. obtaining device information of the at least one first device; b. determining availability of at least one compatible application, the availability being determined by device information; c. obtaining the at least one compatible version of an application from a third party at the second device, the compatible application being compatible with the device information; and d. transferring compatible version of the at least one application from the second device to the at least one first device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of obtaining the device information comprises: a. displaying a device information list at the second device; b. receiving a selection of the at least one first device information from the device information list ; and

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the device information is model name of the first device.

4. The method of claim 2 wherein the device information list is updated by the third party periodically.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of obtaining the at least one compatible application comprises transferring of the at least one compatible application onto the second device through a communication network.

6. A method of transferring at least one application from a second device to at least one first device, the method comprising: a. obtaining device information of the at least one first device; b. determining availability of at least one compatible application, the availability being determined by device information; c. sending a request for the at least one compatible application to a third party, the compatible application being compatible with the device information; d. obtaining the at least one compatible application from the third party; and e. transferring the at least one compatible application to the at least one first device.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the step of obtaining the device information comprises: a. displaying a device information list at the second device; b. receiving a selection of the at least one first device information from the device information list; and

8. The method of claim 6 wherein the device information is model name of the first device.

9. The method of claim 7 wherein the device information list is updated by the third party periodically.

10. The method of claim 6 wherein the step of obtaining the at least one compatible application comprises transferring of the at least one compatible application onto the second device through a communication network.

11. A computer program product for use with a computer, the computer program product comprising a computer usable medium having a computer readable program code embodied therein for transferring at least one application from a second device to at least one first device, the method comprising, the computer program product performing the steps of: a. obtaining device information of the at least one first device; b. determining availability of at least one compatible application, the availability being determined by device information; c. obtaining the at least one compatible version of an application from a third party at the second device, the compatible application being compatible with the device information; and d. transferring compatible version of the at least one application from the second device to the at least one first device.