FIELD OF THE INVENTION:
The present invention relates to methods and apparatus for sharing data between devices and in particular relates to method and apparatus for increasing level of pairing in the paired devices.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION:

In the modern world, people use their mobile devices for various types of communications like calling, sending messages, transferring information etc. A variety of communication mediums are involved in such communications. Communication mediums include wireless communication mediums like Wifi, Bluetooth, NFC or wired communication medium via cable, optical fiber etc. Wireless Communication is convenient as it does not inhibit the mobility of the device.

Referring to Figure 1, an existing data sharing system is illustrated. In the existing data sharing systems, when a sender (device 1) wants to send some data to a receiver (device 2), first it sends a pairing request, and then an authentication step is performed via exchange of a code, i.e. a same code is displayed on both the devices and both the sender and receiver have to manually match the code with each other (as can be seen in step 1). Post pairing, the sender sends some data to the receiver (device 2) and there is a notification that appears on the receiver's device asking for acceptance or rejection of data sent by the sender (as can be seen in step 2). Once paired, either of the devices can send data to each other. Thus, it may be noticed that in the existing data sharing systems, both pairing and authentication of devices and, data transfer and its acceptance or rejection require human intervention. In situations where multiple files are received on a device, more human intervention is required for accepting each file. Some of the present data sharing systems also permit automatic data acceptance but such automatic data sharing is only for specific time duration after a first data acceptance. The existing systems further involve unnecessary popup notifications at the receiver’s side that causes interruptions while the data is shared between the sender and receiver.

Thus, a need exists wherein a receiver can automatically receive data from a sender with minimal human intervention and avoids unnecessary popup notifications at the receiver’s side. An intelligent system needs to be created to overcome the drawbacks in the present data sharing data systems and which can automatically allow pairing with another device on request and subsequently accept data.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION:

In an embodiment, the present invention describes a method of sharing one or more data items between a sending device and a receiving device. The method includes receiving a request for accepting the one or more data items from the sending device and determining a pairing level assigned to the sending device. The method further includes identifying a first set of data items amongst the one or more data items that match a pre-defined criteria for the pairing level and receiving the first set of data items.

In another embodiment, the present invention describes an apparatus for sharing one or more data items between a sending device and a receiving device. The apparatus includes a first receiver for receiving a request for accepting the one or more data items from the sending device. A controller is provided for determining a pairing level assigned to the sending device. The apparatus further includes a processor for identifying a first set of data items, amongst the one or more data items, that matches a pre-defined criteria for the pairing level and a second receiver for receiving the first set of data items.

In another embodiment, a method of sharing one or more data items between a sending device and a receiving device is disclosed. The method includes receiving said one or more data items from said sending device and determining an association level between said sending device and said receiving device. The method further includes identifying a first set of data items amongst said one or more data items that match a pre-defined criteria for said association level and transmitting said first set of data items to said receiving device.

The present invention creates an intelligent system using contextual information that can automatically allow pairing with another device on request and subsequently accept data. Based on the relationship shared between two devices, the receiving device can give permission to sender about the type of data it will accept. The relationship is derived from the past interactions, including, include Social Networking Sites data, any user data on phone etc. between the sender and receiver. In such a smart data sharing system as proposed by the present invention, the entire data sharing process can be done with minimal human intervention and interruptions caused by unnecessary pop up notifications.

To further clarify advantages and features of the present invention, a more particular description of the invention will be rendered by reference to specific embodiments thereof, which is illustrated in the appended drawings. It is appreciated that these drawings depict only typical embodiments of the invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope. The invention will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES:

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood when the following detailed description is read with reference to the accompanying drawings in which like characters represent like parts throughout the drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 schematically illustrates a data sharing system existing in the prior art;
Figure 2 shows a flow chart for a method for sharing one or more data items between a sending device and a receiving device in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;
Figure 3 schematically illustrates a system architecture for assigning / changing a pairing level in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 4 shows an exemplary block diagram depicting quantifying contributions from various communication channels in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;
Figure 5 illustrates a block diagram of an apparatus for sharing one or more data items between a sending device and a receiving device in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;
Figure 6 shows a flow chart for a method for sharing one or more data items between a sending device and a receiving device in accordance with another embodiment of the invention;

Figures 7-10 illustrate example manifestations depicting the usefulness of the present invention; and
Figure 11 illustrates a typical hardware configuration of a computer system, which is representative of a hardware environment for practicing the present invention.

Further, skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the drawings are illustrated for simplicity and may not have been necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the flow charts illustrate the method in terms of the most prominent steps involved to help to improve understanding of aspects of the present invention. Furthermore, in terms of the construction of the device, one or more components of the device may have been represented in the drawings by conventional symbols, and the drawings may show only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the drawings with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having benefit of the description herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION:

For the purpose of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention, reference will now be made to the embodiment illustrated in the drawings and specific language will be used to describe the same. It will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the invention is thereby intended, such alterations and further modifications in the illustrated system, and such further applications of the principles of the invention as illustrated therein being contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory of the invention and are not intended to be restrictive thereof.

Reference throughout this specification to “an aspect”, “another aspect” or similar language means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, appearances of the phrase “in an embodiment”, “in another embodiment” and similar language throughout this specification may, but do not necessarily, all refer to the same embodiment.

The terms "comprises", "comprising", or any other variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process or method that comprises a list of steps does not include only those steps but may include other steps not expressly listed or inherent to such process or method. Similarly, one or more devices or sub-systems or elements or structures or components proceeded by "comprises...a" does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of other devices or other sub-systems or other elements or other structures or other components or additional devices or additional sub-systems or additional elements or additional structures or additional components.

Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. The system, methods, and examples provided herein are illustrative only and not intended to be limiting.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure 2 illustrates a flow chart for a method of sharing one or more data items between a sending device and a receiving device in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. The method 200 includes receiving a request for accepting the one or more data items from the sending device as indicated in step 202. The one or more data items may include, but not limited to, at least one of a multimedia content including video files, images files, audio files, graphics or animation, SMS, an MMS, an email message, a spreadsheet, a text or pdf file, contact from a phonebook etc.. In an embodiment, the one or more data items are shared between the sending and receiving device by means of wireless communication mediums including, but not limited to, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, ZigBee, RFID, Wi-Fi-Direct etc. The sending and receiving device may be selected from a group comprising a smartphone, smart glass, smart watch, smart television, PDA, tablets, netBooks, e-readers, a laptop, a desktop computer, and other information sharing smart devices etc.. Generally, the sending device selects one or more data items stored within its device memory and looks for devices with whom it wants to share the selected one or more data items. On selecting the one or more data items and the sharing/ receiving device, a request is sent by the sending device to the receiving device for accepting the selected one or more data items.

The method 200 on receiving a request in step 202, determines a pairing level assigned to the sending device as indicated in step 204. In an embodiment, the step 204 of determining a pairing level assigned to the sending device includes fetching the pairing level stored in memory. In an embodiment, the step 204 of determining the pairing level includes analysing contextual information derived from previous communications of the receiving device with the sending device and/or analysing contextual information derived from previous communications with additional sending devices. The pairing level determined based on the analysed contextual information is thereafter stored in memory. In an embodiment, the contextual information includes information derived from various communication channels including, but not limited to, Sender’s information from contact book; Chats; Call Logs, Device communication logs, Previous Sharing sessions Logs, Device Proximity based Logs, Device Same Network Access Logs, Social Networking Site profile, etc..
The method further includes, at step 206, identifying a first set of data items amongst the one or more data items that match a pre-defined criteria for the pairing level. In the preferred embodiment, the pre-defined criteria is independent of the sending device and includes at least one of type of data items or size of data items. In an embodiment, the step 206 of identifying the first set of data items includes identifying at least one of: format, category/ version, meta data, size, application linked to each data item.

Thereafter, once the first set of data items that match the pre-defined criteria are identified, the first set of data items are received by the receiving device as indicated in step 208. In an embodiment, the first set of data items is a non-null set.

In an embodiment, the method 200 further includes receiving a request for changing/ upgrading the pairing level assigned to the sending device; and providing a notification for changing/ upgrading pairing level in response to receipt of the request. In another embodiment, the method 200 further includes providing a notification for changing/ upgrading pairing level corresponding to a remaining set of data items, the remaining set of data items including one or more data items that do not match the criteria defined in the pairing level. In a preferred embodiment, the notification may be in the form of, but not limited to, a pop-up message, a beep, a flash message, etc. On receiving a user input for changing the pairing level, the pairing levels are changed and stored based on user input. Thereafter, the one or more data items are received that match with criteria defined in changed pairing level. In an embodiment, the user of the receiving device may manually override the pairing level assigned to a sending device.

Referring to Figure 3, a system architecture for assigning / changing a pairing level in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is illustrated. Initially, when a sending device sends a pairing request, the user level assignment system 302 assigns a pairing level to a sending device. For analysing the profile and assigning the pairing level, the present invention incorporates communication distributions between two users over various communication channels (CC), including, but not limited to, Chats; Call Logs, Device communication logs, Previous Sharing sessions Logs, Device Proximity based Logs, Device Same Network Access Logs, Social Networking Site profile, etc.. The communication distribution that is based on the contextual information derived from the aforesaid communication channels is analysed by the user level assignment system 302. The contextual information (block 304) in respect of each of different users (User 1, User 2, User 3, User 4, User 5, User 6) (block 306) is stored in a look table in a rule book 308 in the in user level assignment system 302. The mechanism to ascertain the pairing level adapts to each user differently i.e. if any user is interacting just via messages but the interaction is very frequent then that person may be ranked above a person who is interacting meagrely but over two or three different mediums. After analysing the information obtained from the above mentioned mediums, different users (User 1, User 2, User 3, User 4, User 5, User 6) are assigned different levels of sharing. Higher level indicates more content sharing freedom. For example pairing level 1 indicates that only text files can be shared whereas pairing level 2 indicates that both text files and pictures can be shared. Various categories of the data items (eg: D1: text, D2: image, D3: video) (block 308) that are compatible and permitted to be received for each of the assigned pairing level are stored in the user level assignment system 302. The pairing level thus assigned is maintained until there is different suggestion (up-gradation or degradation) by the system or the user manually overrides the assigned pairing level. When a request for accepting one or more data items is received, a first set of data items amongst the one or more data items that match a pre-defined criteria defined in the pairing level assigned to the particular sending device is identified as indicated in block 310. The pre-defined criteria provide the types of data categories that are permitted to be received from a particular sending device. Based on the particular criteria defined in respect of the assigned pairing level, the first set of data items that match the criteria are received as illustrated in block 312. In an embodiment, the user of the receiving device may be notified (block 314) to change/ upgrade the pairing level in case the all or a set amongst one or more data items do not match the criteria defined in the pairing level. Thereafter, the pairing level may be changed/upgraded by the user level assignment system 302 on receiving an input from the user.

Referring to Figure 4, an exemplary block diagram for quantifying contributions from various communication channels in accordance with an embodiment of the invention is illustrated. To calculate the contribution, the user level assignment system 302 as referred in Figure 3 analyses two communication distributions of a particular receiving device. First distribution presents the contextual information that is derived from previous communications of the receiving device with a sending device. And second distribution presents the overall contextual information derived from previous communications with all sending devices over various communication channels. The first distribution gives an idea about how much receiver and sender interacts through a communication channel. This helps in assigning contextual weight to this channel for a particular sending device. The second distribution gives an idea about how much a particular communication channel is used among all available communication channels for interaction between receiver and all other users. This helps in deciding weight given to a communication channel. Thereafter, a final contribution of a particular communication channel towards extracting the context is calculated that is a product of component of a particular channel from first distribution and the second distribution.

As can be seen in Figure 4, communication distributions between two users over various communication channels (CC), including information from contact book, Call Logs, Chats, Device communication logs, Social Networking Site profile is illustrated. An example of weights assigned in respect of the aforesaid communication channel shall be discussed below:

Sender's information from contact book (C)
If sending device is saved in contacts of receiving device, then a pre-defined contact weight is assigned based on the contact category (C) of sending device. This amounts to 30% of total weight. For example,
Contact Category Contact Weight (W_C¬¬¬)
Family (c1) 0.3
Friends (c2) 0.2
Colleagues (c3) 0.15
Acquaintance/Commercial (c4) 0.1
Others (c5) 0.05

If the sending device is not present in contacts, then Contact Weight is set to zero.
Call Logs (L)
Total call duration from call logs of a receiving device is 'L', in which call duration with sending device is 'l'.
Call weight (W_L¬¬¬ )=l/L

Chat (T)
Total text messages from various chat apps (SMS/MMS (t1), WhatsApp (t2), Viber (t3), Facebook Messenger (t4), others (t5) such as hike, messenger etc. of a receiving device is 'T', in which messages transferred with user B is 't'.
text weight (W_T¬¬¬ )=t/T

Device Communication Logs (D)
Means of previous communication between two users via Bluetooth (d1), Wi-Fi-direct (d2), Wi-Fi hotspot/ Bluetooth Tethering (d3), S-play (d4) etc. is also monitored. 'd' is the number of previous communication count between receiving device and sending device and 'D' is the total number of previous communication count between receiving device and all users.

Communication log weight (W_D¬¬¬ )= d/D

SNS Profile (S)
For this communication channel, how the two users interact on different social media channels (Facebook (s1), Twitter (s2), LinkedIn (s30, Others (s4)) is calculated, and thereafter weight to be assigned to each channel is identified, and finally weighted average to estimate a single value indicating their closeness via SNS channel is calculated.
SNS weight (W_S¬¬¬ )=?_(i=1)^n¦?S_i*c_i ?

where, Si is communication weight between receiving device and sending device on ith social media platform ci is the weight assigned to ith social media platform interaction units are comments, likes etc. on Facebook ; tweets, messages etc on Twitter and so on. Si is calculated by dividing Interaction units (I_(A-B)) between receiving device and sending device on the ith social media platform and receiving device's interaction units (I) with all users on that platform.
S_i=I_(A-B)/I

Scoring Function
Final contextual weight is calculated as follows
Weight=W_C*C_C+ W_L*C_L+ W_T*C_T+ W_S*C_S + W_D*C_D
where W_C,?W_L ,W?_T ,W_S can be calculated from previously defined equations
C_C,?? C?_L (0.25),C?_T (0.18),C_S (0.15),C_D (0.12) represents the weight given to each communication channel.

Thereafter, the final levels are assigned based on the above calculated score functions. For instance, top 25% of final contextual weight may be assigned Level 1; next 25% of final contextual weight may be assigned Level 2; next 25% of final contextual weight may be assigned Level 3 and Bottom 25% of final contextual weight may be assigned Level 4. Higher level indicates more content sharing freedom. For example pairing Level 1 indicates that only text files can be shared whereas pairing Level 2 indicates that both text files and pictures can be shared. The initial configuration of the pairing level may be done using the above mechanism. However, the same can be modified by the device user and the final assignment will take into account user's input.

Figure 5 illustrates a block diagram of an apparatus for sharing one or more data items between a sending device and a receiving device in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. The apparatus 500 includes a first receiver 502 for receiving a request for accepting the one or more data items from the sending device. A controller 504 is provided for determining a pairing level assigned to the sending device. The apparatus 500 further includes a processor 506 for identifying a first set of data items, amongst the one or more data items, that matches a pre-defined criteria for the pairing level and a second receiver 508 for receiving the first set of data items. The apparatus 500 further includes a memory 510 for storing the details in respect of the pairing levels assigned to various sending devices. Each of the modules/units of apparatus 500 may be implemented in hardware or software or combination of both. An input/ output unit 512 is further provided for receiving one or more inputs from the user. The apparatus 500 further includes a power supply unit 514 for supplying power to various units of the apparatus 500. Each of the aforesaid units including are operably interconnected to each other. In an embodiment, the controller 504 and the processor 506 may form a standalone module.

Referring to Figure 6, a method of sharing one or more data items between a sending device and a receiving device in accordance with another embodiment of the invention is disclosed. The method 600 includes the step 602 of receiving the one or more data items from the sending device and step 604 of determining an association level between the sending device and the receiving device. The method further includes identifying, at step 606. a first set of data items amongst the one or more data items that match a pre-defined criteria for said association level and transmitting the first set of data items to the receiving device as indicated at step 608. The association level between the sending device and receiving device are defined in similar manner as the pairing level are defined as discussed in reference to previous Figures 2-5. The embodiment of the present invention as illustrated in Figure 6 may be implemented at the server end and is beneficial in cases where the sending and receiving device are not in close to proximity to each other but are connected to each other by means of internet, WLAN etc. For example, consider a scenario where a sending device A wishes to send one or more data items to a receiving device B through a chat messenger such as WhatsApp. When the server receives the request from sending device A containing said one or more data items to be transmitted receiving device B, the server determines the association level between the sending device A and receiving device B. Based on the determination, the server identifies the data items that match the criteria defined in the determined association level. Thereafter, the server transmits only those data items to the receiving device B that match the criteria defined in the determined association level and does not transmit the remaining data items. The remaining data items may transmitted if the association level is changed based on inputs received from the user for changing the association level.

EXEMPLARY MANIFESTATION OF THE PRESENT INVENTION:

The forthcoming description of Figures 7-10 depicts examples to illustrate the usefulness of the present invention. However, it may be strictly understood that the forthcoming examples shall not be construed as being limitations towards the present invention and the present invention may be extended to cover analogous manifestations through other type of like mechanisms.

Figure 7 illustrates a block diagram illustrating the various levels assigned to different people in the contact list based on the interactions via the sources of contextual information. As can be noticed from Figure 7, various levels assigned to the 6 users namely: John, Paula, Alice, Bob, Vince, Carla have been indicated. The various levels have been calculated and assigned using the mechanism as discussed in reference to Figure 4. The communication distributions over various communication channels (CC), including information from contact book (C), Chats (T), Call Logs (L), Device communication logs (D), Social Networking Site profile (S) have been monitored and a score function has been calculated. Thereafter, based on the final scores and user input, if any, the levels have been assigned. For instance, as can be noticed, Bob has been assigned level 4, Vince and Alice have been assigned level 2, Carla has been assigned level 3, John and Paula have been assigned level 1. Higher level indicates more content sharing freedom. For example pairing level 1 indicates that only text files can be shared, pairing level 2 indicates that both text and image files can be shared and similarly pairing level 3 indicates that text, image and video files can be shared and so on. The following use case scenarios would be discussed in reference to Figure 7.

Figure 8 illustrates a use case scenario wherein data sent by a user has the permission to be automatically received i.e. the permission/ paring level is same as of the data category. As can be noticed from Figure 8, Paula’s phone who has been assigned permission/pairing level 1 is trying to send data that includes only the text files to the receiving device. In steps 1 and 2, the data sent from Paula is identified and checked from the look up table if it matches with the criteria/ permission level assigned to Paula. Since level 1 that has been assigned to Paula implies permission of acceptance of only text files, all text files sent by Paula will be accepted.

Figure 9 illustrates a use case scenario wherein a portion of data sent by a user does not have permission to be automatically received. As can be noticed from the Figure 9, Vince’s phone who has been assigned permission/pairing level 2 is trying to send data that includes text, image and video files to the receiving device. In steps 1 and 2, the data sent from Vince is identified and checked from the look up table if it matches with the permission level assigned to Vince. Since level 2 implies permission of acceptance of only text and image files, all text and image files sent by Vince will automatically be accepted and the video files will be rejected.

Figures 10a and 10b illustrate a use case scenario wherein a request for temporary upgrade of the permission level is sent along with the data by a sending device. As can be noticed from the Figure 10a, Vince’s phone who has been assigned permission level 2 is trying to send data that includes text, image and video files to the receiving device. In steps 1 and 2, the data sent from Vince is identified and checked from the look up table if it matches with the criteria/ permission level assigned to Vince. Since level 2 implies permission of acceptance of only text and image files, all text and image files sent by Vince will be automatically accepted and the video files will be rejected. In the present case, Vince has sent a request for upgrading the pre-assigned level so that all the files including the video files are also accepted by the receiving device. Such an upgrade request is read in step 3 and a notification is sent to the user of the receiving device seeking permission for upgrading the pre-assigned level. In case, the level is upgraded as indicated in step 4, then all the files i.e. text, image and video files are accepted. Figure 10b illustrates the scenario wherein the permission level is upgraded based on a request and all the sent data is accepted. Initially, as indicated in step 1, only the text and image files are accepted based on the pre-assigned level 2. However, based on the meta data request, the pre-assigned level 2 assigned to Vince is changed to level 3 as indicated in step 2. Thereafter, the remaining sent data including video file is automatically accepted as per the upgraded permission level 3.

Referring to Figure 11, a hardware configuration of the apparatus 500 in the form of a computer system 1100 is shown. The computer system 1100 can include a set of instructions that can be executed to cause the computer system 1100 to perform any one or more of the methods disclosed. The computer system 1100 may operate as a standalone device or may be connected, e.g., using a network, to other computer systems or peripheral devices.

In a networked deployment, the computer system 1100 may operate in the capacity of a server or as a client user computer in a server-client user network environment, or as a peer computer system in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. The computer system 1100 can also be implemented as or incorporated into various devices, such as a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a mobile device, a palmtop computer, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a communications device, a wireless telephone, a land-line telephone, a control system, a camera, a scanner, a facsimile machine, a printer, a pager, a personal trusted device, a web appliance, a network router, switch or bridge, or any other machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. Further, while a single computer system 1100 is illustrated, the term "system" shall also be taken to include any collection of systems or sub-systems that individually or jointly execute a set, or multiple sets, of instructions to perform one or more computer functions.

The computer system 1100 may include a processor 1102 e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), or both. The processor 1102 may be a component in a variety of systems. For example, the processor 1102 may be part of a standard personal computer or a workstation. The processor 1102 may be one or more general processors, digital signal processors, application specific integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays, servers, networks, digital circuits, analog circuits, combinations thereof, or other now known or later developed devices for analysing and processing data. The processor 1102 may implement a software program, such as code generated manually (i.e., programmed).

The computer system 1100 may include a memory 1104, such as a memory 1104 that can communicate via a bus 1108. The memory 1104 may be a main memory, a static memory, or a dynamic memory. The memory 1104 may include, but is not limited to computer readable storage media such as various types of volatile and non-volatile storage media, including but not limited to random access memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, electrically programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable read-only memory, flash memory, magnetic tape or disk, optical media and the like. In one example, the memory 1104 includes a cache or random access memory for the processor 1102. In alternative examples, the memory 1104 is separate from the processor 1102, such as a cache memory of a processor, the system memory, or other memory. The memory 1104 may be an external storage device or database for storing data. Examples include a hard drive, compact disc ("CD"), digital video disc ("DVD"), memory card, memory stick, floppy disc, universal serial bus ("USB") memory device, or any other device operative to store data. The memory 1104 is operable to store instructions executable by the processor 1102. The functions, acts or tasks illustrated in the figures or described may be performed by the programmed processor 1102 executing the instructions stored in the memory 1104. The functions, acts or tasks are independent of the particular type of instructions set, storage media, processor or processing strategy and may be performed by software, hardware, integrated circuits, firm-ware, micro-code and the like, operating alone or in combination. Likewise, processing strategies may include multiprocessing, multitasking, parallel processing and the like.

As shown, the computer system 1100 may or may not further include a display unit1110, such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), an organic light emitting diode (OLED), a flat panel display, a solid state display, a cathode ray tube (CRT), a projector, a printer or other now known or later developed display device for outputting determined information. The display 1110 may act as an interface for the user to see the functioning of the processor 1102, or specifically as an interface with the software stored in the memory 1104 or in the drive unit 1116.

Additionally, the computer system 1100 may include an input device 1112 configured to allow a user to interact with any of the components of system 1100. The input device 1112 may be a number pad, a keyboard, or a cursor control device, such as a mouse, or a joystick, touch screen display, remote control or any other device operative to interact with the computer system 1100.

The computer system 1100 may also include a disk or optical drive unit 1116. The disk drive unit 1116 may include a computer-readable medium 1122 in which one or more sets of instructions 1124, e.g. software, can be embedded. Further, the instructions 1124 may embody one or more of the methods or logic as described. In a particular example, the instructions 1124 may reside completely, or at least partially, within the memory 1104 or within the processor 1102 during execution by the computer system 1100. The memory 1104 and the processor 1102 also may include computer-readable media as discussed above.

The present invention contemplates a computer-readable medium that includes instructions 1124 or receives and executes instructions 1124 responsive to a propagated signal so that a device connected to a network 1126 can communicate voice, video, audio, images or any other data over the network 1126. Further, the instructions 1124 may be transmitted or received over the network 1126 via a communication port or interface 1120 or using a bus 1108. The communication port or interface 1120 may be a part of the processor 1102 or may be a separate component. The communication port 1120 may be created in software or may be a physical connection in hardware. The communication port 1120 may be configured to connect with a network 1126, external media, the display 1111, or any other components in system 1100 or combinations thereof. The connection with the network 1126 may be a physical connection, such as a wired Ethernet connection or may be established wirelessly as discussed later. Likewise, the additional connections with other components of the system 1100 may be physical connections or may be established wirelessly. The network 1126 may alternatively be directly connected to the bus 1108.

The network 1126 may include wired networks, wireless networks, Ethernet AVB networks, or combinations thereof. The wireless network may be a cellular telephone network, an 802.11, 802.16, 802.20, 802.1Q or WiMax network. Further, the network 1126 may be a public network, such as the Internet, a private network, such as an intranet, or combinations thereof, and may utilize a variety of networking protocols now available or later developed including, but not limited to TCP/IP based networking protocols.

In an alternative example, dedicated hardware implementations, such as application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arrays and other hardware devices, can be constructed to implement various parts of the system 1100.

Applications that may include the systems can broadly include a variety of electronic and computer systems. One or more examples described may implement functions using two or more specific interconnected hardware modules or devices with related control and data signals that can be communicated between and through the modules, or as portions of an application-specific integrated circuit. Accordingly, the present system encompasses software, firmware, and hardware implementations.

The system described may be implemented by software programs executable by a computer system. Further, in a non-limited example, implementations can include distributed processing, component/object distributed processing, and parallel processing. Alternatively, virtual computer system processing can be constructed to implement various parts of the system.

The system is not limited to operation with any particular standards and protocols. For example, standards for Internet and other packet switched network transmission (e.g., TCP/IP, UDP/IP, HTML, HTTP) may be used. Such standards are periodically superseded by faster or more efficient equivalents having essentially the same functions. Accordingly, replacement standards and protocols having the same or similar functions as those disclosed are considered equivalents thereof.

The drawings and the forgoing description give examples of embodiments. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that one or more of the described elements may well be combined into a single functional element. Alternatively, certain elements may be split into multiple functional elements. Elements from one embodiment may be added to another embodiment. For example, orders of processes described herein may be changed and are not limited to the manner described herein. Moreover, the actions of any flow diagram need not be implemented in the order shown; nor do all of the acts necessarily need to be performed. Also, those acts that are not dependent on other acts may be performed in parallel with the other acts. The scope of embodiments is by no means limited by these specific examples. Numerous variations, whether explicitly given in the specification or not, such as differences in structure, dimension, and use of material, are possible. The scope of embodiments is at least as broad as given by the following claims.

Benefits, other advantages, and solutions to problems have been described above with regard to specific embodiments. However, the benefits, advantages, solutions to problems, and any component(s) that may cause any benefit, advantage, or solution to occur or become more pronounced are not to be construed as a critical, required, or essential feature or component of any or all the claims.

Claims:We claim:

1. A method of sharing one or more data items between a sending device and a receiving device, said method comprising:
receiving (202) a request for accepting said one or more data items from said sending device;
determining (204) a pairing level assigned to said sending device;
identifying (206) a first set of data items amongst said one or more data items that match a pre-defined criteria for said pairing level; and
receiving (208) said first set of data items.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein determining (204) said pairing level assigned to said sending device includes fetching pairing level stored in memory of said receiving device.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein determining (204) the pairing level includes:
a. analysing contextual information derived from previous communications with said sending device;
b. analysing contextual information derived from previous communications with additional sending devices.

4. The method as claimed in claim 3 further comprising:
determining the pairing level based on said analysed contextual information;
storing determined pairing level in memory.

5. The method as claimed in claim 3, wherein said contextual information includes information derived from various communication channels including:
a. Sender’s information from contact book;
b. Chats;
c. Call Logs;
d. Device communication logs;
e. Previous Sharing sessions Logs;
f. Device Proximity based Logs;
g. Device Same Network Access Logs;
h. Social Networking Site profile.
6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first set of data items is a non-null set.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said pre-defined criteria is independent of the sending device and includes at least one of:
a. type of data items;
b. size of data items.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein identifying (206) the first set of data items includes identifying at least one of:
a. format;
b. category/ version;
c. meta data;
d. size;
e. application linked to each data item.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1 further comprising:
receiving a request for changing/ upgrading the pairing level assigned to said sending device; and
providing a notification for changing/ upgrading pairing level in response to receipt of said request.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1 further comprising:
providing a notification for changing pairing level corresponding to a remaining set of data items, said remaining set of data items including one or more data items that do not match said criteria defined in said pairing level.

11. The method as claimed in claim 9 or 10 further comprising:
receiving a user input for changing/ upgrading said pairing level; and
storing said changed/upgraded pairing level based on the user input.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11 further comprising:
receiving one or more data items that match with criteria defined in said changed/upgraded pairing level.

13. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said one or more data items are shared by means of wireless communication mediums including Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, ZigBee, RFID, Wi-Fi-Direct.

14. An apparatus (500) for sharing one or more data items between a sending device and a receiving device, said apparatus (500) comprising:
a first receiver (502) for receiving a request for accepting said one or more data items from said sending device;
a controller (504) for determining a pairing level assigned to said sending device;
a processor (506) for identifying a first set of data items amongst said one or more data items that match a pre-defined criteria for said pairing level; and
a second receiver (508) for receiving said first set of data items.

15. A method (600) of sharing one or more data items between a sending device and a receiving device, said method (600) comprising:
receiving (602) said one or more data items from said sending device;
determining (604) an association level between said sending device and said receiving device;
identifying (606) a first set of data items amongst said one or more data items that match a pre-defined criteria for said association level; and
transmitting (608) said first set of data items to said receiving device.