Media Server Storage Management via Network Offload
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
HDD portable players face capacity limitations when storing large amounts of digital content, leading to the need to delete existing content to accommodate new media, which complicates playback and sharing across networks.
Innovation Solution
A server device with internal storage that transfers part of its digital content to a network storage device, allowing seamless playback by stream-delivering data from the network storage device, while maintaining a list of both locally and remotely stored content, enabling increased storage capacity without deleting existing media.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If the HDD portable player stores a large number of digital contents locally, then the storage capacity is sufficient, but the device cannot maintain seamless playback when contents are transferred to network storage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces network storage as an intermediary component between the local HDD and the playback system. When digital contents are transferred to the network storage device, the system uses this intermediary to maintain playback continuity by retrieving contents from the network storage rather than requiring them to remain in the local HDD, thus resolving the contradiction between storage capacity and playback reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic content management where the system can flexibly switch between local and network storage based on availability and requirements. The playback system dynamically adjusts its data source based on whether contents are stored locally or transferred to network storage, enabling seamless playback experience while maintaining large storage capacity through dynamic resource allocation.
2Quantity of substance
If the system transfers digital contents to network storage to increase capacity, then more media can be stored, but the complexity of managing multiple storage locations increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal storage management approach where the system can handle multiple storage locations (local HDD and network storage) through a unified interface and management mechanism. The playback system and content management functions work universally across both storage types, abstracting the complexity of multi-location management while enabling expanded total storage capacity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses copying as a key mechanism to transfer digital contents from the local HDD to network storage. By creating copies of contents in the network storage device, the system maintains the original files locally while adding copies to network storage, thereby increasing total accessible capacity without permanently deleting or losing any content, thus managing complexity through systematic copying rather than deletion.
3Reliability
If the HDD portable player maintains all digital contents locally for seamless access, then playback is reliable, but the storage capacity becomes insufficient for large collections
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the storage system into two distinct parts: local storage for frequently accessed contents and network storage for the broader collection. This segmentation allows the local HDD to maintain reliable playback for active content while the network storage accommodates the larger total collection, resolving the contradiction between reliability and capacity through spatial division of storage functions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-transferring and pre-loading digital contents to the network storage device before they are needed for playback. This allows the system to maintain playback reliability by having contents readily available from network storage while managing the large total collection capacity, as contents are prepared in advance rather than accessed on-demand from potentially slower or more complex storage locations.
Data Source
AI summary
Transfer control means (41) transfers part of held digital contents in an internal storage device (51) to a network storage device (57). List information presentation means (42) returns list information which makes the digital contents stored in the internal storage device (51) and the network storage device (57) as the held digital contents in response to a list presentation request for the held digital contents. Upon reception of a data transmission request, search means (43) searches where the held digital contents are currently stored. If the result of the search shows the network storage device (57), content data transmission processing means (44) allows the stream-delivery of the data from the network storage device (57) to a network player (56). There is provided a server device for media (40) capable of maintaining the convenience of playback in a network player, while properly dealing with the large total size of held digital contents.