Aggregation Server Email Metadata Synchronization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for providing email access on mobile wireless communications devices, such as polling e-mail servers or accessing email through web pages, face issues with bandwidth conservation and timely notification of new emails, as well as inconsistencies in metadata updates between the server and the device.
Innovation Solution
A message aggregation server that downloads metadata sets at different times, generates hash values, and pushes updated metadata to the device, ensuring metadata synchronization and reducing bandwidth usage by only transmitting changed data.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If the device polls the e-mail server at regular intervals for new e-mail messages, then the user receives timely indication of new e-mail messages, but bandwidth is consumed unnecessarily and metadata updates are not synchronized
Solution Approach 1:
The server pushes email metadata to the device only when changes occur, creating a feedback mechanism where the server responds to state changes rather than the device continuously querying. This eliminates unnecessary bandwidth consumption while maintaining real-time synchronization.
Solution Approach 2:
The server prepares and pushes metadata updates to the device in advance of when the device might need them, ensuring the device has current information without requiring active polling. This preliminary action maintains synchronization while conserving bandwidth.
2Ease of operation
If the device downloads the entire web page for e-mail access, then e-mail can be accessed through the browser, but significantly more information is transmitted than necessary
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts only the essential email metadata from the complete web page structure and pushes it directly to the device. This eliminates the need to transmit unnecessary HTML, CSS, and other webpage elements while maintaining full email access functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The email data is segmented into essential metadata elements (subject, sender, timestamp, read status) that are pushed separately from the complete webpage. This segmentation allows the device to receive only necessary information while maintaining ease of access.
3Ease of operation
If search results are communicated to the mobile device, then the user can access search results, but metadata updates are not reflected if changes occur on the server
Solution Approach 1:
The server implements a feedback mechanism that continuously monitors metadata changes and automatically pushes updated search result metadata to the device. This ensures the device always reflects the current server state without requiring the user to re-initiate searches.
Solution Approach 2:
The metadata synchronization operates continuously in the background, maintaining an ongoing update process that keeps search results current. This continuous action ensures information consistency without interrupting user access to search results.
Data Source
AI summary
A communications system includes a mobile wireless communications device and an e-mail server configured to store pushed e-mail data and metadata associated therewith already pushed to the mobile wireless communications device. An aggregation server is configured to download a first set of metadata of pushed e-mail data at a first time, and generate and store a first set of hash values corresponding to the first set of metadata. The aggregation server is also configured to download a second set of metadata of pushed e-mail data at a second time after the first time, and generate and store a second set of hash values corresponding to the second set of metadata. The aggregation server is further configured to determine an updated set of metadata based upon a comparison of the first and second sets of hash values, and push the updated metadata to the mobile wireless communications device.