Cooperative provision of personalized user functions using shared and personal devices

Abstract

Methods, apparatuses and storage medium associated with cooperative provision of personalized user functions using shared device and personal device are disclosed herein. In various embodiments, a personal device (PD) method may include receiving, by a personal device of a user, a request to perform a user function to be cooperatively provided by the personal device and a shared device (SD) configured for use by multiple users; and cooperating with the shared device, by the personal device, to provide the requested user function personalized to the user of the personal device. In various embodiments, a SD method may include similar receiving and cooperating operations, performed by the SD. Other embodiments may be disclosed or claimed.

1 . A method comprising:
 receiving, by a personal device of a user, a request to perform a user function to be cooperatively provided by the personal device and a shared device configured for use by multiple users; and   cooperating with the shared device, by the personal device, to provide the requested user function personalized to the user of the personal device.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein either
 receiving comprises receiving, by a selected one of a smartphone or a tablet computer of a user, a request from the user to perform a user function cooperatively provided by the selected one of a smartphone or a tablet computer, and a shared device configured for use by multiple users; and wherein cooperating comprises cooperating, by the selected one of a smartphone or a tablet computer, with the shared device; or   receiving comprises receiving, by a personal device of a user, a request from the user to perform a user function cooperatively provided by the personal device, and a selected one of a television or a set-top box coupled to the television; and wherein cooperating comprises cooperating, by the personal device, with the selected one of a television or a set-top box coupled to the television.   
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein receiving comprises receiving, by the personal device, a request to play or re-play a video segment of a video stream on the personal device, the video stream being rendered on the shared device; and wherein cooperating comprises:
 transmitting to the shared device, by the personal device, the request;   receiving from the shared device, by the personal device, the requested video segment; and   playing or re-playing, by the personal device, the video segment.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the video stream comprises a video stream being rendered within a picture-in-picture of the shared device. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein receiving comprises receiving, by the personal device, a request for an image of a video stream being played on the shared device; and wherein cooperating comprises:
 transmitting to the shared device, by the personal device, the request;   receiving from the shared device, by the personal device, the requested image; and   displaying, by the personal device, the image.   
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5 , further comprising either
 uploading the image or an object within the image, by the personal device, to a social network or a cloud computing server;   submitting a search, by the personal device, to an online search service, to perform a search based at least in part on the image or an object within the image;   conducting an e-commerce transaction, by the personal device, with an online e-commerce site, the e-commerce transaction being resulted at least in part because of the image or an object within the image; or   facilitating the user, by the personal device, in selecting an object within the image, via recognition of a hand gesture of the user.   
     
     
         7 . A method comprising:
 receiving, by a shared device configured for use by multiple users, from a personal device of a user, a request from the user to perform a user function to be cooperatively provided by the personal device and the shared device; and   cooperating, by the shared device, with the personal device to provide the requested user function personalized to the user of the personal device.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein either
 receiving comprises receiving, by a selected one of one of a television or a set-top box coupled to the television configured for use by multiple users, from a personal device of a user, a request from the user to perform a user function cooperatively provided by the shared device and the personal device; and cooperating comprises cooperating, by the selected one of a television or a set-top box coupled to the television, with the personal device; or   receiving, by a shared device configured for user by multiple users, from a selected one of a smartphone or a tablet computer of user, a request from the user to perform a user function cooperatively provided by the shared device and the personal device; and cooperating comprises cooperating, by the shared device, with the selected one of a smartphone or a tablet computer.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein receiving comprises receiving, by the shared device, a request to play or re-play a video segment of a video stream on the personal device, the video stream being rendered on the shared device; and wherein cooperating comprises:
 receiving, by the shared device, from the personal device, the request; and   transmitting, by the shared device, to the personal device, the requested video segment.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the video stream comprises a video stream being rendered within a picture-in-picture feature of the shared device. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein receiving comprises receiving, by the shared device, from the personal device, a request for an image of a video stream being played on the shared device; and wherein cooperating comprises:
 receiving, by the shared device, from the personal device, the request; and   transmitting, by the shared device, to the personal device, the requested image.   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein transmitting comprises either
 transmitting, by the shared device, to the personal device, the requested image, for use by the personal device to upload the image or an object within the image to a social network or a cloud computing server;   transmitting, by the shared device, to the personal device, the requested image, for use by the personal device to submit a search to an online search service to perform a search based at least in part on the image or an object within the image; or   transmitting, by the shared device, to the personal device, the requested image, for use by the personal device to conduct an e-commerce transaction with an online e-commerce site, the e-commerce transaction being resulted because of at least the image or an object within image.   
     
     
         13 . At least one computer-readable storage medium having instructions configured to cause a personal device of a user, in response to execution of the instructions by the personal device, to perform the method of  claim 1 . 
     
     
         14 . An apparatus comprising:
 one or more shared device functions configured to provide a user function for a plurality of users; and   one or more personal device cooperation functions operatively coupled with the one or more shared device functions, and configured to cooperate with a personal device of a user to provide user functions personalized to the user of the personal device.   
     
     
         15 . The apparatus of  claim 14 , wherein the one or more shared device functions and the one or more personal device cooperation functions are further configured to perform the method of  claim 8 .