Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02292385 1999-12-16
A METHOD TO DELIVER SERVICES TO MOBILE USERS
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to the means of delivering online services to mobile
users in a pervasive
computing environment. In particular, an apparatus and a method for delivering
information about
services that can be used in disconnected mode to request specific services.
BACKGROUND
1o Pervasive computing environment generally involves using mobile devices
such as portable
computers, pagers, smart phones, personal digital assistants, set top boxes,
etc., enabling access to
data and services from anywhere at anytime. Mobile devices owe their
popularity to their ability of
functioning in disconnected mode, and to their small size permitting them to
be carried anywhere
on person. At present, one can download electronic content and browse it in
disconnected mode. It
is even possible to fill any request forms and then connect to submit the
completed forms for
approval etc. Typically, end-user requirements demands services from more than
one enterprise due
to reasons including but not limited to, convenience and efficiency. At this
point there is no
alternative to micro managing interactions with individual enterprises.
It is, however, desirable to have the following system and a method to enable
a end-user to
2o custom build a virtual enterprise per request basis from existing service
providers. This need and its
benefits are illustrated by the following example. For instance, let's assume
the existence of
following unrelated enterprises: an information research company
KnowledgeStore, a copy and
printing services company SuperPrint, and a delivery service OminiDelivery.
Further more assume
that the above companies offer their services online, and make their menu of
services and associated
forms in a format suitable for disconnected operation as mentioned earlier.
Now the end user builds
a custom virtual enterprise that does the following: 1) collect a research
report XYZ from
KnowledgeStore, 2) print it in both hard-copy format, and 35-mm slides at
SuperPrint, and 3) deliver
them the next day before 10 AM.
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SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Central to the invention is the concept of electronic envelope (eEnvelope),
wherein a structured electronic
message is exchanged among entities in a virtual enterprise, similar to the
one discussed above. At a
minimum, eEnvelope comprises of the following elements: 1 ) address of sender
(electronic or otherwise),
2) address of recipient (electronic or otherwise), and 3) content message. The
content message may further
include other eEnvelopes.
In terms of the above example, the menu of services/products offered by the
KnowledgeStore, the
SuperPrint, and the OminiDelivery are available to the mobile user in the form
of eEnvelopes. The
eEnvelopes could be sent to the user unsolicited as a part of promotional
offer, or downloaded by the user
as needed. On the mobile device a computer program interprets the electronic
message and displays its
content to the mobile user both in connected or disconnected mode. For
example, in the case of the
KowledgeStore the user is shown the types research reports, and a brief
description of each of them. At the
end of selection process a eEnvelope, EV 1 comprising of details regarding the
report selected, is prepared.
The eEnvelopes EV2, and EV3 are similarly prepared, and contain the print
options, and the delivery
instructions respectively.
In addition EV 1 should contain instructions to authorize the SuperPrint to
obtain the document for
printing, and EV2 should contain the credentials to authenticate itself to the
KnowledgeStore. The exact
content and format of the authorization, and authentication instructions
depend on the protocol used. In the
same manner, EV2 and EV3 should also have authorization and authentication
instructions.
Now, the virtual enterprise comprising of the KnowledgeStore, the SuperPrint,
and the
OminiDelivery to service this specific request is setup as follows. A
eEnvelope EV4 is prepared for this
purpose. Among other things, it includes eEnvelopes EV 1, EV2, and EV3, and
instructions to and address
of a personal enterprise agent (PEA), a computer program, on a remote server.
In essence the mobile user
is contracting out the administrative and coordination responsibilities of the
virtual enterprise to a PEA. In
not so distant future it is possible receive bids form multitude of virtual
enterprise agents and choose one.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Fig. 1 Shows a basic mobile device
Fig. 2 Shows a block diagram of a simple computer network
Fig. 3 Shows a block diagram of a mobile application
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION
As shown in Figure 1, a mobile computer is made up of the following hardware
components:
processor 110, storage 120, display 130, any data input mechanism such as
voice, handwriting, pen,
keyboard, and others 140, any communication mechanism such as wired or
cellular modem,
infrared, and others 150. In addition to a power supply 160.
Figure 2, describes a plurality of mobile computers 210, a connection of the
mobile computer
to a network 220, a computer network 230, and plurality of resources residing
on servers 240.
As proposed a typical mobile application 300 consists of three modules: 1) a
user interface
(UI) 310 module, 2) a message formatter (MF) 320 module, and 3) a message
communicator (MC)
to module. The UI is used to gather input from the user and to display output
messages to the user. The
MF formats user input into messages suitable for transmission over
communication medium, and
translates messages received from communication medium into a format suitable
for user
presentation. The MC is responsible for sending and receiving messages over
the network.
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