System and method for forwarding messages to multiple devices or over multiple paths

• US 20010034791A1
• Filed: 12/14/2000
• Published: 10/25/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2000
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Aether Systems, Inc. (Comtech Telecommunications Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Aether Systems, Inc. (Comtech Telecommunications Corporation)
• Inventors: Zombek, James M., Sutton, Lyle, Clubb, Kenneth
• Application Number:
  US09/735,529
• Publication Number:
  US 20010034791A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/238
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1635 Cumulative acknowledgement, i.e. the acknowledgement message applying to all previous messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2001/0092 Error control systems characterised by the topology of the transmission link
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0681 Configuration of triggering conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/065 related to network devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0817 by checking functioning
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/10 Active monitoring, e.g. heartbeat, ping or trace-route
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0281 Proxies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0407 wherein the identity of one or more communicating identities is hidden cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for anonymous credentials or for identity based cryptographic systems H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/083 using passwords cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using a predetermined code H04L9/3226
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/00 Network arrangements or protocols for supporting network services or applications user-to-user messaging H04L51/00; network arrangements, protocols or services for supporting real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/025 for remote control or remote monitoring of applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/133 Protocols for remote procedure calls [RPC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/563 : Data redirection of data network streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5651 : Reducing the amount or size of exchanged application data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 : Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/08 : Protocols for interworking; Protocol conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/16 : Implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/164 : Adaptation or special uses of UDP protocol
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/18 : Multiprotocol handlers, e.g. single devices capable of handling multiple protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 : in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 : Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/00 : Wireless network protocols or protocol adaptations to wireless operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/045 : involving different protocol versions, e.g. MIPv4 and MIPv6

Abstract

A method of sending messages from servers to client devices is provided. The message can be generated with the server application and may include customer information. The message may then be sent to the message router. The message router retrieves a station ID of the client device based on the customer information. A communication type of the client device can be determined based on the station ID and one or more of the plurality of protocol gateways can be selected based on the communication type. The message can be forwarded to the selected one or more of the plurality of protocol gateways where is may be formatted for the selected client device. The formatted message may then be forwarded via the network to the selected client device. A non-acknowledgement message may be received at the message router. The non-acknowledgement message indicates a message indented for a client device failed to reach the client device. A database can be searched with the message router to determine an alternative path to deliver the message. The message may then be delivered to a client device based on the alternative path.

Claims

1. In a communications system including a server, which is adapted to run a server application, a message router communicating with the server, a plurality of protocol gateways communicating with the message routers, and a network, which is adapted to couple the server, through the message routers and the protocol gateways, to client devices, a method for delivering messages over alternate paths to client devices, comprising:

receiving a non-acknowledgement message at the message router, the non-acknowledgement message indicating a message failed to reach a first client device;

searching a database with the message router to determine an alternate path over which to deliver the message; and

transmitting the message via the alternate path.

2. The method of

claim 1

, wherein the alternate path indicates transmitting the message to a protocol gateway and then to the first client device.

3. The method of

claim 2

, wherein the alternate path indicates transmitting the message to the first client device using a different wireless protocol.

4. The method of

claim 1

, wherein the alternate path indicates transmitting the message to a protocol gateway and then to a second client device.

5. The method of

claim 4

, wherein the alternate path indicates sending the message to the second client device over a different wireless network than a wireless network of the first client device.

6. The method of

claim 1

, wherein the database associates multiple client devices with a customer and defines a sequence in which to send the message to the multiple client devices.

7. The method of

claim 6

, further comprising:

determining with the message router a communication type associated with a next client device in the sequence;

forwarding the message to the protocol gateway associated with the determined communication type; and

transmitting the message with the associated protocol gateway over a network to the next client device.

8. The method of

claim 1

, wherein the message is an unsolicited alert.

9. A method for sending messages to client devices, comprising:

creating a customer record associated with a customer ID;

storing the customer record in a database;

generating a message at a server, the message including the customer ID;

forwarding the message to a message router;

determining with the message router a first client device and a communication type associated with the first client device, based on the customer ID;

forwarding the message to a first protocol gateway associated with the determined communication type;

transmitting the message with the first protocol gateway over a first wireless network to the first client device;

sending a non-acknowledgement message from the first protocol gateway to the message router;

retrieving the customer record from the database with the message router, in response to the non-acknowledgement message;

determining from the customer record an alternate path to deliver the message;

determining a communication type associated with the alternate path;

forwarding the message to a second protocol gateway based on the communication type of the alternative path; and

transmitting the message to a second client device.

10. The method of

claim 9

, wherein the alternate path specifies sending the message via a second wireless network.

11. The method of

claim 9

, wherein the first client device and the second client device are the same client device and the alternate path specifies sending the message via the alternate path using a different protocol.

12. In a communications system including a server, which is adapted to run a server application, a message router communicating with the server, a plurality of protocol gateways communicating with the message routers, and a network, which is adapted to couple the server, through the message routers and the protocol gateways, to client devices, a method for sending messages over multiple paths to client devices, comprising:

a) generating a message at a server, the message including a customer ID;

b) forwarding the message to a message router;

c) retrieving a customer record with the message router based on the customer ID,

d) sending the message from the message router over multiple paths to protocol gateways based on the customer record;

e) formatting the message for client devices with the protocol gateways; and

f) forwarding the message with the protocol gateways over networks to the client devices.

13. The method of

claim 12

, wherein the customer record specifies a plurality of client devices associated with the customer ID.

14. The method of

claim 13

, wherein the customer record specifies sequentially sending the message from the message router over the multiple paths.

15. The method of

claim 13

, wherein step d) comprises:

d1) determining which of the plurality of client devices to send to the message;

d2) determining a communication type of the determined client device;

d3) forwarding the message to the appropriate protocol gateway based on the communication type; and

d4) repeating steps d1)-d3).

16. The method of

claim 13

, further comprising:

g) attempting to deliver the message to the client device, but being unable to do so;

h) sending a NACK message from the protocol gateway to the message router;

i) determining a subsequent one of the plurality of client devices to send the message;

j) determining a communication type of the subsequent client device;

k) forwarding the message to an appropriate protocol gateway based on the communication type of the subsequent client device;

l) attempting to deliver the message to the client device; and

m) repeating steps h)-l) until the message is delivered to the client device or no more client devices are specified.

17. The method of

claim 15

, wherein the customer record specifies sending the message from the message router in parallel over the multiple paths.

18. The method of

claim 17

, further comprising:

determining a communication type of each of the plurality of client devices; and

selecting protocol gateways based on the communication type.

19. The method of

claim 12

, further comprising:

g) segmenting the message into message segments with a transport layer application running on the protocol gateway;

h) transmitting the message segments to the client device;

i) sending an acknowledgement from the client device to the protocol gateway after each message segment is received; and

j) after receiving the acknowledgements for all the message segments from the client device, sending an acknowledgement from the protocol gateway to the message router.

20. The method of

claim 19

, further comprising, when a last one of the message segments is received by the client device, sending a complete message acknowledgement from the client device to the protocol gateway.

21. The method of

claim 19

, wherein the transport layer encapsulates the message segments with a message header.

22. The method of

claim 19

, further comprising, if the acknowledgement of any message segment is not received by the protocol gateway, automatically retransmitting that message segment to the client device.

23. In a communications system including a server, which is adapted to run a server application, a message router communicating with the server, a plurality of protocol gateways communicating with the message routers, and a network, which is adapted to couple the server, through the message routers and the protocol gateways, to client devices, a method for sending messages over multiple paths to client devices, comprising:

generating an alert with the server application, the alert including a query of customer conditions;

sending the alert to the message router;

querying a database based on the query to determine a status of the customer conditions;

determining client devices that match the status of the customer conditions;

determining communication types of each of the determined client devices;

locating protocol gateways for each communication type of the determined client devices;

forwarding the alert to each of the located protocol gateways;

formatting the alert for the determined client devices with the protocol gateways; and

forwarding the alert with the protocol gateways over networks to the client devices.

24. The method of

claim 23

, wherein the message router forwards the alert to each of the protocol gateways in parallel.

25. The method of

claim 23

, wherein the protocol gateway forwards the alert to the protocol gateways sequentially.

26. The method of

claim 25

, further comprising:

i) determining a first device in the sequence;

ii) attempting to send the message to the first device;

iii) if a non-acknowledgement message is received or no acknowledgement message is received within a predetermined period of time, determining a next device in the sequence; and

iv) attempting to deliver the message to the next device in the sequence.

27. The method of

claim 26

, further comprising repeating steps iii) and iv) until the message is delivered or there are no more devices in the sequence.

28. A method for forwarding messages to wireless devices, comprising:

transmitting a message for a first wireless device from a network operations center; and

if a non-acknowledgement message is received at the network operation center or no acknowledgement message is received at the network operations center within a pre-determined period of time, transmitting the message to a wireless device using at least one of a different wireless network and a different wireless protocol.

29. The method of

claim 28

, wherein the wireless device is a different wireless device than the first wireless device.

30. The method of

claim 28

, wherein the wireless device is the first wireless device.