Server-Client Format Identification for Digital Audio Compatibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users face difficulties in playing digital audio content across different formats, as existing systems often restrict handling of various sound sources and formats, requiring users to obtain duplicate content in a compatible format, which is inconvenient and costly.
Innovation Solution
An information processing system comprising a client and server device that manages format identification information, allowing the client to specify and convert content formats, enabling the handling of different content formats as if they were the same, facilitating the use of digital audio content across multiple formats.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a content playing device is restricted to handle only specific formats, then device complexity is reduced and reliability is improved, but adaptability deteriorates and users cannot play different format contents
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a server as an intermediary between the content source and the playback device. The server receives content in various formats, manages format identification information, and converts or selects appropriate formats for delivery to the client device. This mediator approach allows the playback device to remain simple while achieving broad format compatibility through the server's format management capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
The server is designed with multi-functional capabilities including format identification, format conversion, and content delivery. By concentrating multiple format-handling functions in the server, the system achieves universal format support without requiring each client device to handle all formats directly, thus maintaining device simplicity while improving adaptability.
2Adaptability or versatility
If format conversion is performed on the client device, then adaptability is improved, but device complexity and processing burden increase
Solution Approach 1:
The server acts as an intermediary that performs format conversion before delivering content to the client device. The server receives content in various formats, converts it to the appropriate format based on format identification information, and then delivers the converted content to the client. This approach provides format flexibility while keeping the client device simple, as the conversion burden is shifted to the server.
3Adaptability or versatility
If users obtain duplicate content in different formats, then adaptability is improved, but loss of substance increases and user costs rise
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of requiring users to obtain and store multiple duplicate copies of content in different formats, the system uses format identification information to manage and convert content formats centrally on the server. The server maintains the original content and generates format-specific versions on-demand, eliminating the need for users to store redundant copies while ensuring adaptability to different format requirements.
Data Source
AI summary
An information processing method of an information processing system including a client device functioning as a client and a server device functioning as a server which are capable of communication via a network, includes the steps of: at the server device, managing format identification information provided so as to be unique for each content data within the range of each data format, corresponding to the contents of each content; at the client device, causing execution of communication via network, for specifying a content, as to the server device; at the server device, transmitting, to the client device, format identification information correlated with a specified content in response to specification of a content via network from the client device; and at the client device, managing the received and obtained format identification information as corresponding to the specified content.