Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput – Distributed data processing – Client/server
Reexamination Certificate
1998-07-31
2002-03-05
Maung, Zarni (Department: 2154)
Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput
Distributed data processing
Client/server
C709S200000, C709S202000, C709S217000, C709S219000, C709S228000, C709S232000, C709S245000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06353848
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The field of the present invention pertains to digital image capture devices. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method for remotely accessing a digital camera via a communication network.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Modern digital cameras typically include an imaging device which is controlled by a computer system running a software program. When an image is captured, the imaging device is exposed to light and generates raw image data representing the image. The raw image data are typically stored in an image buffer, where they are processed and compressed by the computer system's processor. Many types of compression schemes can be used to compress the image data, such as the joint photographic expert group (JPEG) standard. After the processor processes and compresses the raw image data into image files, the processor stores the image files in an internal memory or on an external memory card.
Some digital cameras are also equipped with a liquid-crystal display (LCD) or another type of display screen on the back of the camera. Through the use of the LCD, the processor can cause the digital camera to operate in one of two modes, play and record, although some cameras only have a record mode. In the play mode, the LCD is used as a playback screen allowing the user to review previously captured images either individually or in arrays of four, nine, or sixteen images. In the record mode, the LCD is used as a viewfinder through which the user may view an object or scene before taking a picture.
Besides the LCD, user interfaces for digital cameras also include a number of buttons or switches for setting the camera into one of the two modes and for navigating between images in play mode. For example, most digital cameras include two buttons, labeled “−” and “+,” that enable a user to navigate or scroll through captured images. For example, if the user is reviewing images individually, then pressing one of navigation buttons causes the currently displayed image to be replaced by the next image.
A digital camera has no film and, as such, there is no incremental cost of taking and storing pictures. Hence, it is possible to take an unlimited number of pictures, wherein the most recent picture replaces the earliest picture, for virtually zero incremental cost. Accordingly, this advantage is best realized when the camera is used as much as possible, taking pictures of practically anything of interest.
One way to best utilize this unique attribute is to make the digital camera and its internally stored images remotely accessible. If the pictures are remotely accessible, the camera could be set to continuously take pictures of scenes and items of interest. Ideally, a user would be able to access those pictures at any time. The user would be able to use a widely available communications medium to access the camera from virtually an unlimited number of locations.
The emergence of the Internet as a distributed, widely accessible communications medium provides a convenient avenue for implementing remote accessibility. Providing remote accessibility via the Internet leverages the fact that the Internet is becoming familiar to an increasing number of people. Many users have become accustomed to retrieving information from remotely located systems via the Internet. There are many and varied applications which presently use the Internet to provide remote access or remote connectivity. Internet telephony is one such application, such as Microsoft's NetMeeting and Netscape's CoolTalk.
NetMeeting and CoolTalk are both real-time desktop audio conferencing and data collaboration software applications specifically designed to use the Internet as their communications medium. Both software applications allow a “local” user to place a “call” to a “remote” user located anywhere in the world. With both NetMeeting and CoolTalk, the software application is hosted on a personal computer system at the user's location and on a personal computer system at the remote user's location. Both NetMeeting and CoolTalk require a SLIP (Serial Line Internet Protocol) or PPP (Point-to-Point Protocol) account where Internet access is via a dial-up modem, and where the user, as is typical, accesses the Internet through an ISP (Internet Service Provider). Both NetMeeting and CoolTalk require personal computer systems for the resources necessary to run these applications (e.g., processing power, memory, communications hardware, and the like). In addition, both NetMeeting and CoolTalk require the one user to input an IP (Internet Protocol) address for the other user in order to establish communication between the users.
To facilitate the process of obtaining appropriate Internet addresses, CoolTalk, for example, allows on-line users to list their respective IP addresses with a proprietary CoolTalk central Web server. This allows a user to obtain a list of users currently on-line to whom communication can be established. Upon locating the desired remote user in the Internet address list maintained by the Web server, the local user places the call.
In this manner, the proprietary CoolTalk Web server maintains a user-viewable and user-updated “address book” in which users list their respective Internet addresses and in which they search for the Internet addresses of others with whom they wish to communicate. However, both NetMeeting and CoolTalk require active user input, in that each require the user to input his current Internet address, and in that each require the local user to search the address book for the Internet address of the remote user to be contacted. This can be quite problematic in the case where users obtain access to the Internet via dial-up connections and hence have different Internet addresses each time their respective dial-up connections are established.
In a manner similar to Internet telephony, Internet desktop video conferencing is another prior art application which uses the Internet as its communications medium. One such application, for example, is CU-SeeMe by White Pine. CU-SeeMe provides real time video conferencing between two or more users. As with NetMeeting and CoolTalk, CU-SeeMe is a software application which runs on both the local user's personal computer system and the remote user's personal computer system. The personal computer systems provide the resources for running the application. As with NetMeeting and CoolTalk, CU-SeeMe requires the local user to enter the IP address of the remote user. Like CoolTalk, CU-SeeMe facilitates this process by allowing on-line users to list their respective IP addresses with a proprietary central Web server such that the addresses can be easily indexed and searched.
Another prior art example of remote access via the Internet is status queries of remote devices using the Internet as the communications medium. A typical prior art application involves interfacing a remote device with a computer system, and accessing the computer system via the Internet. For example, a vending machine can be remotely accessed to determine its status (e.g., the number of sales made, whether the machine needs refills, whether the machine needs maintenance, and the like). The machine is appropriately equipped with sensors, switches, and the like, which in turn are interfaced to a computer system using a software driver. The computer system is coupled to the Internet and interfaces with the machine through the driver, making the relevant information available over the Internet using Web server software. Hence, any interested user (e.g., the vending machine service company) is able to remotely ascertain the status of the machine via the Internet.
A problem with the above described prior art applications is that access to the Internet and communication thereon require a separate host computer system (e.g., a personal computer system) on each side of the Internet connection in addition to the server computer system on the Internet. The two host computer systems provide the computational resources to
Barot Bharat
FlashPoint Technology Inc.
Maung Zarni
Sawyer Law Group LLP
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