Relay functionality of battery powered devices

• US 10,045,291 B2
• Filed: 07/10/2015
• Issued: 08/07/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 07/16/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Itron Global Sarl (Itron, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Itron Global Sarl (Itron, Inc.)
• Inventors: Mani, Mehdi, Van Wyk, Hartman
• Primary Examiner(s): Javaid, Jamal
• Assistant Examiner(s): Khawar, Saad
• Application Number:
  US14/796,189
• Publication Number:
  US 20160021613A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,124 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 4/002 Remote reading of utility meters
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 4/004 Remote reading of utility meters to a fixed location
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/60 for transmitting utility meters data, i.e. transmission of data from the reader of the utility meter
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0209 in terminal devices terminal devices per se H04W88/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/001 Synchronization between nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 90/20 Smart grids as enabling technology in buildings sector smart grids supporting the management or operation of end-user stationary applications in general, or like technologies with no associated climate change mitigation effect Y04S20/00
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/30 Smart metering, e.g. specially adapted for remote reading

Abstract

Disclosed are techniques to minimize the electricity consumption of battery powered devices during network communications and performance of other functions. Example techniques include efficiently discovering other mains powered and battery powered devices within communication range of the battery powered device. In another example, techniques enable a battery powered device to serve as a relay for one or more other battery powered devices. In another example, techniques ensure that transmissions to and/or from battery powered devices are delivered efficiently and with low latency. In yet another example, techniques determine whether and under what conditions a battery powered device should migrate from one network to another. In the event of migration, example techniques minimize battery consumption associated with the migration.

Claims

1. A method implemented at least in part by a battery powered device, the method comprising:

performing a short range discovery scan using a first transmission mode having a first data rate;

determining that no reply has been received in response to the short range discovery scan;

performing a long range discovery scan using a second transmission mode having;

longer transmission range than the first transmission mode, and

a second data rate which is lower than the first data rate, wherein the first data rate comprises at least 50 kilobytes per second (kbps) and the second data rate comprises at most 10 kbps;

receiving a reply from a mains powered device, the reply including synchronization information;

performing a targeted short range discovery scan on a control channel that, based at least in part on the synchronization information, is a current control channel of one or more neighboring battery powered devices in a vicinity of the battery powered device;

determining that a response to the targeted short range discovery scan has been received; and

designating the mains powered device to serve as a parent for the battery powered device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the mains powered device comprises an electricity meter and the battery powered device comprises, or is associated with, a water meter or a gas meter.

3. A battery powered device comprising a battery, one or more processors electrically coupled to the battery, and memory storing instructions that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to perform the method of claim 1.

4. One or more computer-readable media storing instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a battery-powered device (BPD), configure the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:

determining if migration conditions have been met for the BPD to migrate from a first network to a second network;

responsive to determining that the migration conditions have been met, caching network credentials for the first network in memory of the BPD;

migrating the BPD from the first network to the second network by actions comprising;

sending a discovery beacon from the BPD using a long-range transmission mode having a first data rate;

receiving a reply from a mains-powered device (MPD) using the long-range transmission mode, the reply including synchronization information of the second network;

sending a notification to one or more other battery powered devices of the second network that are children of the MPD, the notification being sent using a short-range transmission mode having a second data rate, which is higher than the first data rate, the notification instructing the children of the MPD to monitor for a discovery beacon from the BPD;

determining that the discovery beacon has not been received; and

using the cached network credentials of the first network to migrate the BPD back to the first network from the second network without the BPD going through network layer registration to obtain network credentials for the first network.

5. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 4, wherein the synchronization information includes a control channel used by the second network and/or a coordinated universal time of the second network.

6. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 4, wherein the notification includes an indication of a time at which to monitor for the discovery beacon from the BPD.

7. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 4, further comprising receiving a notification from one of the children of the MPD indicating that it is serving as a relay for the BPD.

8. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 4, wherein the MPD comprises or is associated with an electricity meter.

9. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 4, wherein the MPD comprises an electricity meter and the BPD comprises, or is associated with, a water meter or a gas meter.

10. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 4, wherein the synchronization information includes a control channel used by the second network and/or a coordinated universal time of the second network.

11. A method implemented at least in part by a mains powered device, the method comprising:

receiving a discovery beacon from a battery powered device that was sent using a long-range transmission mode having a first data rate;

sending a reply to the battery powered device using the long-range transmission mode, the reply including synchronization information of a network;

sending a notification to one or more other battery-powered devices of the network that are children of the mains powered device, the notification being sent using a short-range transmission mode having a second data rate, which is higher than the first data rate, wherein the first data rate comprises at least 50 kilobytes per second (kbps) and the second data rate comprises at most 10 kbps, the notification instructing the children of the mains-powered device to monitor for a second discovery beacon from the battery powered device;

determining that the second discovery beacon has not been received; and

utilizing the mains powered device as a parent for the battery powered device.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the synchronization information includes a current control channel used by the network and/or a coordinated universal time of the network.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the notification includes an indication of a time at which to monitor for the discovery beacon from the battery-powered device.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising receiving a notification from one of the children of the mains-powered device indicating that it is serving as a relay for the battery-powered device.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the mains-powered device comprises, or is associated with, an electricity meter.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the mains-powered device comprises an electricity meter and the battery-powered device comprises a water meter or a gas meter.