Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput – Computer-to-computer data modifying
Reexamination Certificate
2000-09-27
2004-12-21
Jean, Frantz B. (Department: 2153)
Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput
Computer-to-computer data modifying
C709S231000, C709S236000, C709S247000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06834312
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to a method and apparatus for communicating information over a network and more particularly, to a method and apparatus for communicating information generated by a software application from one computer to another computer over a network.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
With the growth in computer based activities, there has been a concomitant growth in the sophistication and diversity of application software offering solutions to virtually all business and personal needs. Within a given application environment, a software user may select, depending on his/her needs or preferences, from among a large number of competing software products offering similar or differing levels of sophistication from the relatively simplistic and low cost application offering limited functionality to high-end software systems offering a wide range of functionality accompanied by high costs and user expertise in operating the software. One notable feature of commercial application software is the lack of data compatibility between competing application software or the need for obtaining additional software in order to use data communicated from application software residing on other computers. Incompatibility between application software prevents users from readily communicating data. Compatibility problems also exist between subsequent versions of the same application software (i.e., software is usually forward compatible but rarely backwards compatible). The cause for this incompatibility between application software is believed to be rooted in the need to provide incentives for users to continuously update their software, to purchase the same brand of software or the desire to not disclose proprietary file formats to competitors. Thus, from the perspective of the software manufacturer, there is simply no desire to provide complete compatibility with competing software. At best, only a portion of the data can be imported seamlessly into other software applications. Although application software will sometimes provide a user with a standard data type for importing or exporting data to competing application software (or earlier software versions), the export/import procedure is burdensome on the user, especially where the user only has a limited use for the data, the data is frequently being updated or the user is pressured by the demands of extracting or using the data a timely manner. Moreover, this imported/exported data is usually functionally limited or incomplete. The result is that the data cannot be communicated in an effective manner between users unless each user purchases the same application software as well as the same version of the software application. This drawback in today's application software creates a significant barrier to the flow of digital information.
The above limitations in application software have become more evident in recent years with the increased demand for communicating information over computer networks and in particular, the increased demand for communicating data that is far more complex than, for example, electronic mail messages or the standard data formats supported by network browsers. In today's business environment, computer networks (e.g., the Internet) offer significant advantages in speed, convenience, cost savings, and drastically expanded communication networks for delivering information. However, the potential for delivering information over computer networks will not be fully realized so long as there remains the central problem of data compatibility between software applications. A network exchange of data that requires each user to share the same proprietary software, or purchase additional software, may be advantageous to the software manufacturer, but it serves only to frustrate those who wish to take advantage of communicating over computer networks.
One example of where application software incompatibility between sender and recipient has presented significant obstacles to network communications is in the context of communicating information contained in Computer Aided Design (CAD) or Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM) files to/from the designer/engineer to other designers/engineers or manufacturing suppliers utilizing different computers/software.
In the later case, for example, a designer may wish to solicit, from a pool of suppliers, a quote for manufacturing a part described in the designer's CAD/CAM file. Without the compatible CAD/CAM software, a prospective supplier cannot inspect the design requirements. Moreover, since the supplier only has a limited use for the data (e.g., to review the shape, dimensions, material requirements and annotations) and only needs to view the data for the purposes of providing a quote to the designer, the supplier has no desire for investing the thousands of dollars necessary for purchasing and/or upgrading a plurality of CAD/CAM software applications containing superfluous software functionality (e.g., design capabilities) in order to respond to a request.
The above example highlights similar obstacles facing businesses that require exchanges of data across different disciplines. The demand is “give me access” to your information, whether it be from manufacturing, marketing & communications, publications, sales, or QA personnel, to name a few. The information is needed in a timely manner without the need for procuring specialized application software. Having to negotiate through software compatibility or procurement problems does little to optimize business operations, especially in the face of ever shrinking lead times, product life cycles, budgets and cost targets. These concerns are magnified with the requirement for higher quality for increasingly more complex and sophisticated products. Moreover, the obstacles presented by software incompatibility are not just limited to the frequent business contacts or between intra-business personnel. The trend towards creating a global network of business contacts for outsourcing jobs (e.g., as in the CAD/CAM example above), responding to business requests for proposals, or simply providing business products has created a present and growing need for delivering complex information to virtually anywhere in the world without operating under the restraint of software compatibility.
One approach to communicating information over networks is provided by the well known Adobe Acrobat Reader™ (Adobe). This software may be downloaded for free over the Internet and allows a user with a basic networked computer platform (e.g., storage medium, operating system, Internet connection and browser software) to view text or graphical data that has been converted to a Portable Document Format (PDF). Although Adobe™ provides the user with the ability to view and print textual or graphical images of almost any level of sophistication received over the Internet, the sender of information must still purchase or otherwise procure the software for storing the data in a PDF file format, convert the data into a PDF and then transmit this converted data to the recipient, then the recipient of the converted data will need to separately procure and load the viewer software. Additionally, Adobe™ is limited to data which are essentially printable documents stored in an electronic form. Adobe™ does not provide the sender/recipient with a medium of exchange for communicating electronic models or other types of complex data that require the user to interrogate the data to select a desired view or access a particular portion of the data which is not stored in a document-type format.
As a result of the foregoing drawbacks and limitations in application software compatibility and the delivery of information in a timely and efficient manner to meet the needs for communicating information over networks, there exists a need for providing a data delivery system adapted for transmitting information over a network in a secure, reliable and efficient manner and which does not require the sender of such information to be
Edwards Robert David
Peterson Thomas G.
Wallack John Stephen
Brancolini John R
CADopener.com 11c
Jean Frantz B.
Morgan & Lewis & Bockius, LLP
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