# US 12,120,361 B2 · Multimedia server intended to be installed on board an aircraft, electronic entertainment system comprising such a server, method for configuring software of such a server and associated computer program > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,120,361 B2 - Document ID: US12120361B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/775,960 - Filed: 2020-11-05 - Published: 2022-12-01 - Granted: 2024-10-15 - Earliest claimed: 2019-11-12 - Assignees: Thales - Applicants: Thales - Inventors: Guillaume Maquinay - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12120361B2 ## CPC - H04N 21/2146: {located in mass transportation means, e.g. aircraft, train or bus (flight-deck installations for entertainment or communications B64D11/0015; arrangements specially adapted for transportation systems in broadcast systems H04H20/62; moving wireless networks H04W84/005)} - B64D 11/0015: {Arrangements for entertainment or communications, e.g. radio, television} - G06F 9/45558: {Hypervisor-specific management and integration aspects} - H04N 21/47202: {for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand} - H04N 21/8166: {involving executable data, e.g. software (arrangements for executing specific programs G06F9/44; broadcasting computer programmes in broadcast systems H04H20/91; involving the movement of software or configuration parameters H04L67/34)} - G06F 2009/4557: {Distribution of virtual machine instances; Migration and load balancing} - H04N: PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION - B64D: EQUIPMENT FOR FITTING IN OR TO AIRCRAFT; FLIGHT SUITS; PARACHUTES; ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF POWER PLANTS OR PROPULSION TRANSMISSIONS IN AIRCRAFT - G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N) ## Abstract This multimedia multimedia server for installation on board an aircraft comprises at least one network switch card configured to manage communications with at least one network of an on-board local-area network and an external communication network; and at least one other electronic card selected from the group consisting of: a data storage card and a compute card. At least one network switch card also includes a software configuration module suited to obtain a list of software function(s) to be installed on at least one other electronic card; to download, from electronic equipment external to the multimedia server the one or more software functions from the list obtained; and to provide the corresponding downloaded software functions to each other respective electronic card. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A Multimedia server aiming at being installed on board an aircraft and connected to at least one entertainment terminal installed on board the aircraft via an on-board local-area network, wherein the multimedia server comprises: at least one network switch card configured to manage communications with at least one network of the on-board local-area network and an external communications network, and at least one other electronic card selected from the group consisting of: a data storage card and a compute card, wherein at least one network switch card further includes a software configuration module, wherein the software configuration module is adapted to obtain a list of software function(s) to be installed on at least one other electronic card; adapted to download, from electronic equipment external to the multimedia server, the one or more software functions from the list obtained; and adapted to provide the corresponding downloaded software function(s) to each other respective electronic card, wherein each network switch card further includes a same software configuration module, and wherein several other electronic cards are network switch cards. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The multimedia server according to claim 1, wherein the software configuration module is included in a virtual machine. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The multimedia server according to claim 2, at least one respective network switch card including a hypervisor layer adapted to download, from the external electronic equipment, an image of the virtual machine and then to run the image of the virtual machine. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The multimedia server according to claim 1, wherein the software configuration module is further adapted to verify the integrity of each downloaded software function. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The multimedia server according to claim 1, wherein the software configuration module is further adapted to verify the integrity of each downloaded software function by calculating a checksum for each downloaded software function and then comparing each calculated checksum with a respective reference checksum contained in the obtained list. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The multimedia server according to claim 1, wherein each other electronic card includes a hypervisor layer adapted to communicate with the network switch card and to request the one or more software functions previously downloaded by the network switch card. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The multimedia server according to claim 6, wherein a downloaded software function is an image of a virtual machine suited to be run on the respective other electronic card, and the hypervisor layer of the respective other electronic card being then further adapted to run the image obtained via the respective network switch card. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The multimedia server according to claim 7, wherein if the hypervisor layer of the respective network switch card detects an absence of a respective virtual machine for the network switch card, the hypervisor layer starts by downloading, from external electronic equipment, an image of the virtual machine. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The multimedia server according to claim 1, wherein the multimedia server is in the form of an electronics case including a backplane card and a plurality of electronic cards connected to the backplane card, each electronic card being selected from the group consisting of: a network switch card, a data storage card, and a compute card. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The multimedia server according to claim 9, wherein the plurality of electronic cards includes electronic cards of various types. ### Claim 11 (depends on 9) The multimedia server according to claim 9, wherein the plurality of electronic cards includes electronic cards of each of the types, of the group consisting of: the network switch card, the data storage card, and the compute card. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The multimedia server according to claim 1, wherein several additional other electronic cards are of the same type selected from the group consisting of: a data storage card, and a compute card. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The multimedia server according to claim 12, wherein several electronic cards are of the same type for each of the types of the group consisting of: the network switch card, the data storage card, and the compute card. ### Claim 14 (depends on 11) An electronic entertainment system aiming at being installed on board an aircraft, wherein the system comprises: at least one entertainment terminal; and a multimedia server connected to each entertainment terminal via an on-board local-area network, the multimedia server being according to claim 11. ### Claim 15 A method for software configuration of a multimedia server aiming at being installed on board an aircraft and connected to at least one entertainment terminal installed on board the aircraft via an on-board local-area network, the multimedia server comprising at least one network switch card configured to manage communications with at least one network of the on-board local-area network and an external communications network, and at least one other electronic card selected from the group consisting of: a data storage card and a compute card, at least one network switch card further including a software configuration module; wherein the method is carried out by the software configuration module and includes the following steps: obtaining a list of software function(s) to be installed on at least one other electronic card; downloading, from an external electronic equipment, the one or more software functions from the list obtained; and providing the one or more corresponding downloaded software functions to each respective other electronic card, wherein each network switch card further includes a same software configuration module, and wherein several other electronic cards are network switch cards. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) A non-transitory computer program including software instructions that, upon being executed by a computer, carry out the method according to claim 15.