Patent EA-004078-B1 (EA)
Title: Method and system for transmitting a chain of messages database
Inventor: NICOLAS CHRISTOPHE
IPC: G06F9/445
Filed: 2000-09-14
Abstract: 1. Method of transmission of chain of database managing messages between a management centre and a plurality of subscriber databases, each management message comprising a chain header (HD), a chain identifier (FM) allowing the simultaneous transmission of several chains and a chain index (FI) allowing to identify the message in the chain, characterized in that it consists in adding to each message a conditional block (CD) which determines if this message is to be processed without references to all or part of elements of the chain or to be processed according to the conditions linked to the previous processing of all or part of elements of the chain. 2. Method of transmission according to claim 1, characterised in that it consists in determining according to the conditional block (CD) if all or part of elements of the chain can, or must, or must not have been processed first. 3. Method of transmission according to claim 1, characterized in that it consists in managing a table to the heart of the subscriber database containing a piece of information representing the processing state of each element of the chain, and to update said table every time that an element of the chain is processed, and to restart said table either on request of the managing centre, or after a predefined time. 4. Method of transmission according to claims 1 to 3, characterised in that the subscriber database is linked to a subscriber unit and in that it consists in memorising the management messages in a memory of the subscriber unit and to present them on request to the database. 5. Method of transmission according to claim 4, characterised in that it consists in memorising in series the incoming messages, each incoming message causing the increasing of a stack pointer of incoming messages, and to allow a direct access of the messages asked from the database. 6. Method of transmission according to claim 4, characterised in that it consists in using the memory of the subscriber unit working as a serial memory buffer in a fixed length. 7. Method of transmission according to claims 4 to 6, characterised in that it consists in receiving in the database, a message element of a chain, and to allocate in the subscriber unit, the memory necessary for receiving all the elements of the chain. 8. Method of transmission according to claims 4 to 7, characterised in that it consists, on request, to allow the composition by the subscriber module of a managing message describing its software and hardware resources and in sending said message, either to the database (SM), or to the management centre. 9. Method of transmission according to claim 8, characterised in that this request is transmitted, either by the management centre under the form of a management message, or by the database (SM) under the form of an instruction by the I/O line. 10. Transmission system of chain of managing database messages comprising a management centre and a plurality of subscriber's unit, each unit comprising a database, each message comprising a header (HD), a chain identifier (FM) allowing the simultaneous transmission of several chains, and a chain index (FI) allowing to identify the message in the chain, characterised in that it includes a conditional block (CD) which determines if the message has to be processed without reference to all or part of the elements of the chain, or to be processed according to conditions linked to the previous processing of all or part of elements of the chain. 11. Transmission system of chain of messages according to claim 10, characterised in that the conditional block (CD) contains a condition determining if all or part of the elements of the chain can, or must, or must not have been processed first. 12. Transmission system of chain of messages according to claims 10 and 11, characterised in that the security module (SM) includes a message manager (GM) able to store in a memory the state of the processing of each message of the chain, and that it includes comparison means of this state with the conditions mentioned in the conditional block (CD) of the message in processing. 13. Transmission system of chain of messages according to claims 10 to 12, characterised in that the subscriber unit includes a memory (M) of messages, each incoming message causing the displacement of the previous message in the memory (M), and in that the security module (SM) includes means to read and process these messages. 14. Transmission system of chain of messages according to claims 10 to 13, characterised in that the subscriber unit (STB) includes a connection line (I/O) towards the security module (SM) and that it includes means to determine the size of the memory (M) according to the instructions received from the security module (SM), and to answer about the composition and the sending of a managing message to the security module (SM). 15. Transmission system of chain of messages according to claims 10 to 13, characterised in that the subscriber unit (STB) includes a selection module (SW) allowing to connect the separator of management messages (SEL), the processing centre (CTR) of the subscriber module, the security module (SM) and the memory (M), and means to recognise the management messages destined only to the processing centre (CTR), and switching by the selection module (SW) these messages only towards the processing centre (CTR).