Field of the invention

The present invention relates to a computer-implemented content and application management and delivery system, in particular, it relates to a system that is easy to use whereby it customises the content that is to be displayed to a user into an easy-to-navigate and easy-to-view format and it provides updates to the operating system that runs the user's system whenever the user device boots up.

Background of the invention As a move to bridge the digital divide between population which consists of people who are information technology (IT) literate and population which consists of people who are non-IT literate or have low IT literacy level, governments of some countries have launched initiatives that are aimed towards this. Generally speaking, the latter group of population belongs to low income demographic group and normally lives in rural areas. One of the initiatives taken by these governments is to develop and deploy an ecosystem which enables grouping of software applications in the client system which can be one of personal computer, notebook, netbook, personal digital assistant, smartphone, mobile device or mobile internet device.

Normally, when the user wants to access the content, he would type in the Uniform Resource Locator (URL) address or click on an item inside a list which will then be delivered over the Internet. If the content is a web page, he needs to scroll down to view further and scroll back up to return to the beginning of the page. If the content is one of multimedia-based, then he needs the mechanism to play, pause and stop the content. To summarise, there must be a mechanism to control the display of content. US patent no. 6,571 ,279 discloses a system which customises information displayed to an information recipient based on optimising a match between information purveyors, such as advertisers, and the information recipients who are local to an information delivery system. This invention has a means of determining the presence of a user by combining a location identifier with a user identifier to form a unique identifier. This invention also prioritised a plurality of information segments from each of a plurality of data items which are available from said at least one data source; and providing data to said user terminal device, identifying a selected data item by a first of said prioritising information segments of said selected data item. However, the method of customising delivery of information is only limited to information recipients who are located within a pre-determined vicinity of the information server. Also, there is a need to identify the population within the vicinity. There is no method of viewing information in a manner that facilitates navigation which is suitable for population that is IT-illiterate or has low IT literacy level. Furthermore, there is no method for synchronising the list of applications available in a system with the list of applications that developers inside a community shared to the system for the system to publish it so that client computer systems can download it to view the content.

Another US patent publication no. 2002/0090934 also discloses a content delivery and management system. The content management system is configured to transmit content published by content provider over a network. The content management system supports initialisation of one channel supporting templates for mapping data fields and content. The web management subsystem is configured to receive input from an end user regarding at least one content request of the end user. The system relates to a method of receiving user-specific information from the end user during a user registration process in which information is received from the end user via a user interface associated with a web site associated with a content delivery and management system. However, there is no system-specific component configured to interact with content-provider specific component to transmit request from end user to content-provider specific component. There is also no method of user receiving content on device or computer using mobile device subscription manager or desktop subscription manager. There is no mention of method for delivering content based on user profile values or demographics. Furthermore, there is no method for viewing information in a manner that facilitates navigation which is suitable for population that is IT-illiterate or has low IT literacy level. There is no method for updating the software running this system at client side the moment the computer boots up. There is no method for synchronising the list of applications available in a system with the list of applications that developers inside a community shared to the system for the system to publish it so that client computer systems can download it to view the content.

The US patent no. 6,976,090 also discloses a system for delivering content and application. The system is configured to derive second version of original web content based on service policy. The communication between content server and policy control server as well as origin web server is using http or https protocol. The second version of web site is derived from the distributed first version of origin or source web site. According to this invention, the origin web server and edge server are located at a third party site. The second version is derived based on predetermined criteria which is later stored inside second memory, which comprises cache memory.

The drawbacks of this system include that the first, second and third versions as disclosed in this patent document are identical. The second and third versions have an identical URL as the first version. Therefore, there is no method of viewing information in a manner that facilitates navigation which is suitable for population that is IT-illiterate or has low IT literacy level, and there is no method for synchronising the list of applications available in a system with the list of applications that developers inside a community shared to the system for the system to publish it so that client computer systems can download it to view the content. In view of the above, a simplified content delivery and management system that facilitates navigation and maintenance especially for those who are non-IT literate or have low IT literacy level is required. Summary of the invention

An object of the present invention is to provide a computer-implemented content and application management and delivery system which facilitates the maintenance at the user end wherein the system is provided in a computer- readable unit, and the system comprising a means for updating the operating system that runs the system whenever the user device boots up.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a simplified computer- implemented content and application management and delivery system that can facilitate users, particularly the populations who are IT-illiterate or have low IT literacy level, to navigate easily through the content.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a computer-implemented content and application management and delivery system which comprises a means to transform the content of a web site into a predetermined format that is easy-to-navigate.

The predetermined format that is easy-to-navigate is in a hierarchy of categories, sub-categories and the contents are generated to form a derived web site.

The system of the present invention comprising applications representing selected internet web sites in a predetermined format and manner that can facilitate navigation as described herein.

It is also another object of the present invention to provide a computer- implemented content and application management and delivery system comprising a method for controlling the display of content on a secondary display device by adjusting the font size so that it is viewable by elderly and those who have poor vision.

Still, another object of the present invention is to provide a computer- implemented system comprising a means to allow user community to create and share applications together with their associated content by uploading the community contributing applications, uploading the applications together with their information to the system that make the applications available for download and installation on the user device within the community.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a mechanism for the application developers and users within a community to interact with each other directly. A further object of the present invention is to provide a computer-implemented content and application management and delivery system wherein the content delivery is based on user profile values or demographic.

A computer-implemented content and application management and delivery system which facilitates the users to navigate through the content and application, the system is provided in a computer-readable unit and the system comprising:

a), an application framework component incorporated therein comprising

- an operating system,

- a means for identifying user profile for each registered user,

- a means for categorising types of information, and

- a plurality of applications with at least one of the applications representing web sites that have been transformed into a predetermined format which facilitates easier navigate by users;

b). a content aggregator component incorporated therein comprising

- a means for clipping content from an original web site and process it in such a way that a hierarchy of categories, sub-categories and contents are generated to become a derived web site; - a means for formatting a clipped content with appropriate templates which matches user profile characteristics;

- a means for streaming multimedia contents so that they will have smooth appearance on the display device.

c). a portal component incorporated therein to allow community to create and share applications comprising

- a means for clipping content from an original web site and process it in such a way that a hierarchy of categories, sub-categories and contents are generated to become a derived website,

- a means for uploading of community contributing applications to make them available for download and installation on the user device,

- a means for providing a mechanism for application developers and users within community to interact with each other;

d). an application manager component incorporated therein for repository of applications and allow customisation of software applications available in user system based on user profile comprising

- a means for updating the list of applications available for users to receive new applications;

- a means for synchronising the list of applications available in the system with the applications contributed by community;

- a means for providing list of applications which available in user system based on user profile;

- a means for defining the mappings between user profile characteristics against list of application available to it;

characterised in that the application manager further comprising a means for synchronising the list of applications available in the system with the list of applications contributed by community, and

the operating system in the application framework component is updated whenever there is a newly available version at the application manager whenever the user device having the operating system boots up.

Brief description of the drawings For a better understanding, the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanied drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a system architectural diagram that illustrates the relations between application framework, application manager, content aggregator and portal together with a user device having a primary display device (for example personal computer, notebook, netbook, personal digital assistant, smartphone, mobile device, mobile internet device, or any devices that have internet access etc.) and a secondary display device (for example television or display screen) which will be explained in detail in the following description.

Figure 2 is a flowchart illustrating the sequence of steps for displaying the transformed version of an original web site according to one embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 3 is a flowchart illustrating the sequence of steps for updating the application framework when the user device first boots up, if there is a new version of operating system available in the application manager. Figure 4 is a flowchart illustrating the sequence of steps for a developer in the community to share an application together with the information in relation to the targeted recipients based on their profile characteristic values. This includes the steps for the portal to synchronise with the application manager, the application shared by a developer so that the application is available for download and installation by application framework.

Detailed description of the preferred embodiments

The present invention now will be described in more details with reference to the accompanied drawings, in which the preferred embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art.

In one embodiment, the present invention relates to a computer-implemented system that enables grouping of applications and provides applications which represent selected internet web sites in a format and manner that facilitates users to navigate through.

These applications are handled and ran by a custom-made operating system. Due to the fact that the fundamental operating system features must be made available before applications that make use of them are downloaded, installed and viewed, the operating system must be updated to a newer version that provide such features. As such, the update must be done upon starting up of the computer or device running the operating system.

Referring to Figure 1 , the present invention provides an architecture for seamless application and content delivery, wherein the system is provided in a computer-readable unit and the system comprising an application framework component cooperatively operable with an application manager component, a content aggregator component, a portal component and a plurality of display devices. For the ease of describing the invention and for the readers to have a better understanding of the invention, these specific terms will be used throughout the specification and their general definitions and scopes are defined herein.

As the first main component, application framework plays the central role of unifying all components together. It comprises the sub-components of an operating system, a profiler, an information delivery channel, and a plurality of software applications.

The operating system is to provide standard utility features such as connections to internet or wireless networking for instance WiFi, media player, calibration tool, web browser together with its controller, multiple display switches, content navigator and update facilities based on profile.

In the context of application framework, the term profiler refers to a means for identifying user profile for each registered user. Profiler is responsible in identifying user in which client system is registered to. This is done by allowing user profile to be registered which later on followed by storing user information in client system and providing mechanism to load and update it. The term information delivery channel refers to a means for categorising types of information available. In this instance, the information can be categorised into Home, Community, Services Available Online, Family, Information Channel, Knowledge Center, Business, Government Public service etc. As an example of the present invention, the category Home is to contain standard applications such as calculator, Short Message Service (SMS), email, calendar and Moslem praying times according to regions.

Community is to group applications related to organisations and communities surrounding the user registered to client system.

Services Available Online is to house applications for companies that provide their services online. Family is to place applications which represent family-related web sites.

Information Channel is to contain applications which represent news.

Knowledge Center is to group applications related to general knowledge.

Business is to house applications providing information for local businesses. Government Public Service is to provide applications which enable access to government-related services and information.

Software applications can be one of the standard applications such as calculator or an application representing a web site in a manner that facilitates browsing or any other applications.

The second main component, content aggregator component is to allow customisation of contents available in client system that is also based on demographics. It comprises the sub-components of mashup, formatter and streaming.

In the present specification, the term mashup refers to a means for clipping content from an original web site (from third party server) and process it in such a way that a hierarchy of categories, sub-categories and contents are generated to become a derived web site. After clipping, the information is stored into content aggregator database. In addition, profile customisations are applied to the contents generated. According to the present invention, the method of communication between this server and the origin web site is via Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) or Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS).

The clipped content will be formatted with an appropriate template. This is done by the sub-component formatter. In the present specification, the term formatter refers to a means for formatting a clipped content with appropriate templates which matches user profile characteristics.

A flow chart illustrating the sequence of steps for transforming the content of an original web site into a predetermined format that facilitates users to navigate through is shown in Figure 2. The process comprising the steps of:

a), setting content from the content aggregator component or third party server as application landing page on a display device by application framework; b). downloading markup that represents top-level navigation or content that represents an original web site from the content aggregator component or third party server into a temporary folder available in end user device by application framework;

c). parsing the markup and present the list of items representing contents or navigation level to user by the application framework;

d) . examining the item selected, the item selected comprises any one of navigation level or content;

e) . for navigation level selected, the application framework downloads markup representing next-level navigation or contents that represent the original web site from the content aggregator component or third party server into a temporary folder in end user device; and

f) . for content selected, the application framework presents the content in browser window in a display device.

Preferably, the markup is Extensible Markup Language (XML).

Another sub-component of the content aggregator component, streaming refers to a means for streaming multimedia contents so that they will have smooth appearance on the display device. Streaming is a server component that enables multimedia contents such as video, audio or Internet Protocol television (IPTV) to be provided on demand to devices to be in a streaming manner so that they appear as smooth as possible regardless of the Internet connection speed.

The user device as used herein is a computer, notebook, netbook, personal digital assistant, smartphone, mobile internet device or any devices that have internet access. The user device has a primary display device and it can be connected to at least a secondary display device which is a television or a display screen for displaying the content requested by the user over the network. When a web site is viewed on the primary display of the user device, the landing page which denotes the associated web site is loaded and displayed on the secondary display device. The display is in a predetermined format as described herein and the font size can be adjusted so that to facilitate the elderly those with poor vision. According to the present invention, the versions displayed on the primary and secondary display devices have completely different URL.

As one of the embodiments of the present invention, an origin web site named www.newspaper.com is represented as an application called Newspaper and it is located at information delivery channel. However, an application can also be derived from a plurality of original web sites. Based on features available in the content aggregator, developers can generate a version of www.newspaper.com in the manner which is navigable and viewable via application framework. The new and derived version has contents with font size which are viewable by the elderly. The template of content is also tailored according to the user profile requesting the content. It is also assigned with new URL called www.server.com/newspaper.xml and placed at content aggregator server. After developing application Newspaper which links to the derived version of www.server.com/newspaper.xml, a user can access the contents available via content navigator of application framework, according to profile characteristic values that match with. For this instant, browser page which acts as landing page of the application is shown. If device has been switched to dual display mode, the landing page is shown on the secondary display device, which is, for example a television or a display screen. In the present specification, dual display mode refers to a situation where the user device having a primary display device is connected to a secondary display device.

When user selects a content item, the next level of hierarchy of categories is shown as a list of contents. If the user chooses a content item out of the list of items, the content would be made available on the television together with appropriate controllers. If it's a web page, browser scroller is visible. If the content is one of video, audio or IPTV, media player or controller such as play, pause and stop would be shown. The content is presented screen-wide either if client system is in single display mode or dual display mode. The contents which are made available via applications are updated on a determined periodic basis which therefore makes them dynamic.

The third main component, portal, is to allow community to create and share applications. It comprises the sub-components of mashup, community and networking.

The sub-component mashup has the similar features as that of the content aggregator counterpart. Community enables developers to download development toolkit and framework apart from accessing resources for application development. Networking of the portal component provides a mechanism for developers and users within community of the ecosystem to interact with each other. The system of the present invention allows the community surrounding the ecosystem to develop and share their applications. The developer from the community is able to associate application that has been developed against the targeted demographic groups. As shown in Figure 4, the portal adding new application together with its information in relation to community and targeted user, into application manager comprising the steps of:

a) , the portal inserting application name into application table of application manager database located at the application manager;

b) . the portal getting associated application identification (id) inside the application table of application manager database located at the application manager;

c) . the portal redirecting the executable application into a folder that hosts all applications to be available for download in application manager;

d) . the portal traversing the selected profile characteristics list;

e) . the portal examining whether there is an associated value for a profile characteristics;

f) . the portal mapping the value with the application id and insert both of them as a record into profile characteristic application joint table of application manager database located at the application manager; g) . the portal examining whether there is more profile characteristics to be traversed; and

h) . traversing the application which updates its file in application manager which list down applications available for download based on the profile characteristic values and invoke them accordingly to add in the new applications into the system.

Through portal, the community is able to contribute applications. In this embodiment, an application called CommunityOne represents www.communityone.com which is developed by a developer in the community is to be placed under Community channel. After downloading development toolkit and framework and having awareness on how to develop an application, the developer uploads it. Therefore, CommunityOne application has been made available within the ecosystem. The next step is to enable users of client system to download and install it.

The other main component, application manager component is to provide repository of applications and allow customisation of software applications available in client system based on demographic group the user belong to. It comprises the sub-components of update, push and profiler. Update is responsible in updating the list of applications available for users to receive new applications, bug fixes and application upgrades. Beside that, it is also responsible in synchronising the list of applications available in the system with the applications that has been contributed by the community of the ecosystem via portal component. In this preferred embodiment, CommunityOne application is synchronised or loaded from portal component to here. Push is to provide list of applications which users can download based on matching profile characteristic values. Profiler is to define the mappings between profile characteristics against list of applications available to it. In addition, it is to maintain the information of the users which own installation of application framework. This ecosystem with its subsystems is distributed in nature. Client systems with application framework installed can be located at different geographical regions, as long as there are Internet connections. The content delivery is based on user characteristic values and demographic.

As explained above, the operating system of the present invention is updated whenever there is a newly available version at application manager when the user device having the operating system boots up. This is illustrated in Figure 3 wherein when user starts the computer or device, a main component is created in the operating system. The main component is then creates application framework update manager that will download new version of application framework, uninstall old version and install new version of the operating system.

It is understood that the above description does not limit the invention to the above given details. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modification may be made therein without departing from the principle of the invention or from the scope of the appended claims.