Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PREDICTIVE DOWNLOADING OF
ATTACHMENTS
[0001] The present specification relates generaliy to displaying content on
mobile
communication devices, and in particular to predictive downloading of
attachments for
display on mobile communication devices.
[0002] Mobile communication devices are ubiquitous for business and personal
use.
Handheld mobile communication devices, sometimes referred to as mobile
stations, are
essentially portable computers having wireless capability, and come in various
forms.
These include Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), cellular phones and smart
phones.
While their reduced size is an advantage to portability, bandwidth and
processing
constraints of such devices present challenges to the downloading and viewing
of
attachments, such as word processing documents, audio files, tables and
images, which
have been created using various computer programs, such as word processors,
audio
recording software, spreadsheet programs, financial software, and presentation
software, etc. In addition, viewing even a portion of a downloaded attachment
on the
device consumes substantial device CPU/memory/battery resources.
[0003] Consequently, users of such devices tend to be selective in choosing
which
attachments to download. For example, a user may tend to download attachments
of
certain types (e.g. DOC, JPG, etc.), but not other types (e.g. WAV, PDF, etc.)
A user may
be more likely to download attachments received from particular senders but
not from
others. Some users are more likely to download attachments at certain times of
day, or
based on the size of the attachments (e.g. more likely to download attachments
that are
<50k).
[0004] It is known in the art to provide streaming of certain media, such as
audio and
video, to mobile devices, using protocols such as the media server profile of
Session
Initiation Protocol (SIP), as specified in RFC 4240 (Burger, E., "Basic
Network Media
Services with SIP", RFC 4240, December 2005), or MSCML (Van Dyke, J., Burger,
E.,
and A. Spitzer, "Media Server Control Markup Language", RFC 4722, Dec 2006).
The
decision to make use of streaming services is usually predicated on the
content type of
the message part. Using the capabilities of the Internet Message Access
Protocol (IMAP)
FETCH command, a device client determines the Multipart Internet Mail
Extension
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(MIME) Content-Type of particular message parts and based on local policies or
heuristics, makes a decision whether or not to attempt streaming. Streaming
the media
to the device addresses both the latency issue (since the device can start
playing the
media immediately), and the storage issue (since the client does not need to
store the
media locally). However, the media cannot be viewed or played when the device
is
offline.
GENERAL
[0005] In general, a heuristic method is set forth for predictive downloading
of
attachments to a mobile communication device based on historical user
downloading
behaviour.
[0006] According to one aspect, there may be provided a method of predictive
downloading of attachments on an electronic device, said method comprising
receiving
an email having an attachment, maintaining a database, and downloading and
saving
said attachment in cache memory, characterized in that said database comprises
data
indicative of historical attachment downloading patterns; said method further
comprises
comparing information relating to said attachment to predetermined criteria
derived from
said data and in the event said information matches said criteria then
downloading and
saving said attachment in said cache memory, and updating said database.
[0007] According to another embodiment, there may be provided an electronic
device, comprising: a communications subsystem for receiving an email having
an
attachment; a database; and a cache memory; characterized in that said
database
comprises data indicative of historical attachment downloading patterns; and a
content
handling application is provided for comparing information relating to said
attachment to
predetermined criteria derived from said data and in the event said
information matches
said criteria then downloading and saving said attachment in said cache
memory, and
updating said database.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] The embodiments will be better understood with reference to the
following
Figures in which like numerals denote like parts and in which:
[0009] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system;
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[0010] Figure 2 is a block diagram of components of a portable electronic
device
according to an embodiment; and
[0011] Figure 3 is a flowchart showing steps of an exemplary method for
predictive
downloading of attachments to the mobile communication device of Figure 2.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0012] Referring now to Figure 1, a communication system 10 is shown for
facilitating communication with and between portable electronic devices 12.
Each
portable electronic device 12 is operable to effect communications over a
radio
communications channel with a base station (not shown) while located within a
coverage
area that is defined by the base station. The base station is part of a
wireless network
that is in communication with the Internet 16. Data is delivered to the
portable
electronic device 12 via wireless transmission from the base station.
Similarly, data is
sent from the portable electronic device 12 via wireless transmission to the
base station.
[0013] It will be appreciated that the portable electronic device 12 is
movable within
the coverage area and can be moved to coverage areas defined by other base
stations.
A relay 14 is provided to route data, such as email messages, for example,
between the
Internet 16 and the base station of the portable electronic device 12.
Further, as will be
understood by one of ordinary skill in the art, wireless networks include
GSM/GPRS,
CDPD, TDMA, iDEN, Mobitex, DataTAC networks, EDGE, EVDO or UMTS and
broadband networks such as Bluetooth and variants of 802.11.
[0014] A server 18 handles wireless client requests received from the portable
electronic device 12 via the Internet 16. A firewall or a proxy server (not
shown) may
also be provided between the server 18 and the Internet 16. The server 18
includes a
router 24, a dispatcher 26, an agent 28 and an attachment server process 30.
[0015] A mail server 22 communicates with the server 18 to exchange emails
with
an email client 32 such as Microsoft OutlookT"". The agent 28 sends compressed
copies
of emails received at the mail server 22 to the portable electronic device 12
via the
dispatcher 26, the router 24 and the relay 14. Typically, multiple email
clients 32
communicate with the mail server 22. Emails originating from the email clients
are
stored at the mail server 22 before being compressed at server 18 and sent out
over the
Internet. Similarly, emails received from the Internet are decompressed and
transmitted
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to the email clients 32 via the server 18 and the mail server 22
[0016] The server 18 uses attachment server process 30 to process attachment
data
from the mail server 22 (e.g. documents, spreadsheets, presentations, etc.).
Additional
attachment server processes 20, 20' and 20" may reside on additional servers
in
communication with the attachment server process 30 and with one another to
create an
attachment server network. It will be appreciated that any number of
attachment server
processes (hereinafter referred to as attachment servers) may be provided. The
number
of attachment servers may be selected based on the number of portable
electronic
devices 12 communicating with the server 18.
[0017] Also, although server 18 is described as including an attachment
server, it
may alternatively be limited to non-attachment server functions but in
communication
with one or more attachment servers for processing attachment data.
[0018] Referring now to Figure 2, a block diagram of certain components,
including
internal components within the portable electronic device 12, is shown. The
portable
electronic device 12 includes a microprocessor 34 connected to a random access
memory (RAM) 36 and a persistent storage device, which in the present
embodiment is
a flash memory 38 that is responsible for various non-volatile storage
functions of the
portable electronic device 12. Operating system software 40 executable by the
microprocessor 34 is stored in the flash memory 38. It will be appreciated,
however, that
the operating system software 40 can be stored in other types of memory such
as read-
only memory (ROM). In the present embodiment, software applications 42 are
stored in
the persistent storage device 38 for execution by the microprocessor 34 for
carrying out
various functions, as discussed in greater detail below. The microprocessor 34
receives
input from various input devices including a selection device 44 such as a
thumbwheel
or trackball, for example, an escape key 46, a keypad 48 and a microphone 50
and
outputs to various output devices including an LCD display 52, a speaker 54
and an LED
indicator 56.
[0019] The mobile device 12 may send and receive communication signals over
the
wireless network after required network registration or activation procedures
have been
completed. Network access is associated with a subscriber or user of the
mobile device
12 via a SIM/RUIM card (i.e. Subscriber Identity Module or a Removable User
Identity
Module) within the communication subsystem 58. The SIM card (not shown) or
RUIM is
4
. . . . . . . I .. .. . . . . .. . . . . . . ... . ... .. . . .. . . . . . .
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one type of a conventional "smart card" that can be used to identify a
subscriber of the
mobile device 12 and to personalize the mobile device, among other things.
[0020] In a data communication mode, a received signal such as an email
message
or Web page is processed by the communications subsystem 58 and input to the
microprocessor 34 for further processing and output to the LCD display 52. A
user of the
portable electronic device 12 can also compose data items within a software
application
such as messaging application, using the keypad 48, for example, in
conjunction with
the selection device 44 and the LCD display 52. Such composed items can then
be
transmitted over the communications network through the communications
subsystem
58 and antenna 60.
[0021] For voice communications, the overall operation of the mobile device 12
is
substantially similar, except that the received signals are output to the
speaker 54, and
signals for transmission are generated by the microphone 50. Alternative voice
or audio
I/O subsystems, such as a voice message recording subsystem, can also be
implemented on the mobile device 12. Although voice or audio signal output is
accomplished primarily through the speaker 54, the display 52 can also be used
to
provide additional information such as the identity of a calling party,
duration of a voice
call, or other voice call related information.
[0022] As indicated above, the flash memory 38 stores a plurality of
applications 42
executable by the microprocessor 34, such as a message application for
allowing a user
to send and receive electronic messages, an attachment content handling
application,
which operates in conjunction with the message application to provide the user
with
attachment content handling options for messages that have an associated
attachment.
The attachment may be a document converted to plain text, an audio file
compressed to
WAV or an image file, for example. Once the user selects an attachment
document for
viewing according to a preferred attachment content handling option, the
attachment
content handling application generates a request for one or more of the
attachment
servers 30, 20, 20', 20" to download the transcoded/compressed attachment,
which can
thereafter be viewed/played using an attachment viewer application.
[0023] However, as discussed in greater detail below with reference to Figure
3,
according to the exemplary embodiment the content handling application
performs an
assessment of attachment data according to heuristic methods, and
automatically issues
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the view request for downloading the attachment to cache memory (without
requiring
any user intervention) if the attachment data meets predefined criteria, such
that the
attachment is available for immediate viewing/playing upon user opening of the
email.
[0024] In the present embodiment, the portable electronic device 12 is based
on the
computing environment and functionality of a wireless personal digital
assistant (PDA).
It will be understood, however, that the portable electronic device 12 is not
limited to
wireless personal digital assistants. Other portable electronic devices are
possible, such
as smart telephones, and laptop computers.
[0025] Figure 3, in conjunction with Figures 1 and 2, sets forth steps of an
exemplary
method for predictive downloading of attachments from attachment server 20 (or
one or
more of servers 30, 20, 20', 20") to mobile communication device 12. At step
62, an
email having an associated attachment, is received at the device 12. The
content
handling application then evaluates attachment summary (or other relevant)
information
for the attachment based on heuristic data relating to predetermined criteria
(described
below). The application analyzes the attachment summary information forwarded
to the
device 12 by the server (step 64), as described for example in Patent
Publication No.
US/2006/0047729, dated March 2, 2006, the contents of which are incorporated
herein
by reference. The application then retrieves historical data saved in memory
38 (step 66)
indicative of the user's preferences when downloading attachments (e.g. such
as type of
document, sender, time of receipt and/or size of the attachment ) and if one
or more
attachment criteria determined in step 64 matches the historical data (i.e. a
YES at step
68), then the application automatically downloads and stores the attachment in
cache
memory 36 (step 70) so that the attachment is ready for immediate
viewing/playing when
the user opens the email. The historical downloading pattern data is then
updated in
memory 38 (step 72). Otherwise, if the criteria do not match (i.e. a NO at
step 68), then
the historical downloading pattern data is updated in memory 38 (step 73) and
the
method ends (step 74). A person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate
that well
known heuristic learning methods may be used to develop the historical data
stored in
memory 38, based on a user's download history.
[0026] According to one embodiment, at step 64 the content handling
application
parses the attachment to determine attachment type (e.g. DOC, PDF, WAV, JPG,
etc.)
and at step 68 compares the attachment type to a list of types that the user
is more likely
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to download than other attachment types, based on the user's historical
downloading
patterns (step 66). If the attachment type matches (i.e. a YES at step 68),
the attachment
is automatically downloaded and saved (step 70) and the historical downloading
pattern
data is updated in memory 38 (step 72).
[0027] According to another embodiment, which may be preceded or followed by,
or
executed concurrently with the steps set forth in the previous paragraph, at
step 64 the
content handling application parses the attachment to determine the email
address of
the sender and compares the email address to a list of email addresses of
senders from
whom the user is more likely to download attachments than other senders, based
on the
user's historical downloading patterns. If the email address matches, (i.e. a
YES at step
68), the attachment is automatically downloaded and saved (step 70) and the
historical
downloading pattern data is updated in memory 38 (step 72).
[0028] According to another embodiment, which may be preceded or followed by,
or
executed concurrently with the steps set forth in the one or both of the two
previous
paragraphs, at step 64 the content handling application determines the time of
day and
compares the time of day to a range of times during which the user is more
likely to
download attachments than at other times, based on the user's historical
downloading
patterns. If the time of day falls into one of those ranges, (i.e. a YES at
step 68), the
attachment is automatically downloaded and saved (step 70) and the historical
downloading pattern data is updated in memory 38 (step 72).
[0029] According to yet another embodiment, which may be preceded or followed
by,
or executed concurrently with the steps set forth in the one or more of the
three previous
paragraphs, at step 64 the content handling application parses the attachment
to
determine the size of the attachment and compares the size to a threshold
attachment
size value below which the user is more likely to download attachments than
larger
attachments, based on the user's historical downloading patterns. If the size
is equal or
less than the threshold attachment size value, (i.e. a YES at step 68), the
attachment is
automatically downloaded and saved (step 70) and the historical downloading
pattern
data is updated in memory 38 (step 72).
[0030] A person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the criteria
set forth in
Figure 3 for evaluating the attachment, is purely exemplary. Other criteria
may also or
alternatively be used, such as importance of email, sender's domain, etc.
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[0031] It will also be appreciated that the steps set forth in Figure 3 are
executed
without user intervention. Provided that the attachment information matches
the
heuristically developed data, the device 12 automatically issues a view
request to the
server 18 for downloading the attachment and storing it in cache memory 36
such that
the attachment is available for immediate viewing upon user opening of the
email.
Specific embodiments have been shown and described herein. However,
modifications
and variations may occur to those skilled in the art. For example, although
the
exemplary embodiment has been described in terms of implementation on a
portable
handheld electronic device, the principles set forth herein may be applied to
other
devices such as desktop computers, etc. All such modifications and variations
are
believed to be within the sphere and scope of the present embodiment.
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