Appliance Control Rights Sharing via Server Mediation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current smart home management systems do not allow for easy sharing of control rights of appliances between users, making it cumbersome for multiple family members or friends to manage devices collectively.
Innovation Solution
A method and device for sharing control rights of appliances, which includes receiving a sharing request from a first user to share control rights with a second user, and performing a sharing operation to establish a control relationship between the second user and the appliance, allowing both users to manage the appliance jointly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If control rights of appliances are managed through a single management account, then system security and control authority are maintained, but ease of operation deteriorates when multiple users need to access appliances
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments control rights by creating distinct user roles (owner and co-owner) with different permission levels. The owner retains full control including the ability to revoke access, while co-owners gain operational access without full administrative privileges. This segmentation allows multiple users to access appliances without consolidating all control in a single account, resolving the contradiction between ease of operation for multiple users and system security.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism through the server that mediates control rights between the owner and co-owners. The server manages the authorization process, verifying owner credentials and granting appropriate permissions to co-owners without requiring direct access to the owner's account credentials. This intermediary layer enables secure multi-user access while maintaining the owner's ultimate control authority.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple family members manage appliances through a management account, then joint management is enabled, but operation becomes troublesome when friends need to control appliances
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic control rights where the owner can add and remove co-owners at any time based on current needs. This dynamic adjustment allows the system to adapt between different usage scenarios: family members can be added for ongoing joint management, while friends can be temporarily added as co-owners during visits and then removed. The flexibility of dynamically modifying the co-owner list resolves the contradiction between adaptability for different user groups and ease of operation.
3Adaptability or versatility
If control rights are shared with multiple users, then joint management capability is improved, but control authority of the original owner may be diluted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by differentiating permission levels for different users. The owner retains special local quality of full administrative control including device management, firmware updates, and the ability to revoke co-owner access. Co-owners receive localized permissions for operational control only. This differentiation ensures that joint management capability is provided to co-owners while the owner's control authority remains intact and undiluted through the hierarchical permission structure.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure provides a method and device for sharing control rights of appliances, a storage medium, and a server. The method includes that: a sharing request is received from a first user for sharing a control right of at least one appliance with at least one second user; and in response to the sharing request, a sharing operation of sharing the control right of the at least one appliance with the at least one second user is performed, so that both the first user and the at least one second user share the control right of the at least one appliance.