Communication system and method

• US 20020137462A1
• Filed: 03/13/2002
• Published: 09/26/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Rankin, Paul J.
• Application Number:
  US10/096,610
• Publication Number:
  US 20020137462A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/41.2
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0962 having an indicator mounted inside the vehicle, e.g. giving voice messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4126 The peripheral being portable, e.g. PDAs or mobile phones
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/08 Access restriction or access information delivery, e.g. discovery data delivery signalling during connection H04W76/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/16 Interfaces between hierarchically similar devices

Abstract

A communication system comprises a network of beacons and a power line carrier arrangement providing a back-end path for the network. The carrier arrangement carries control and/or data signals to and from the beacons. A communication method is also disclosed.

Claims

1. A communication system comprising a network of beacons and a power line carrier arrangement providing a back-end path for said network of beacons, said carrier arrangement for carrying control and/or data signals.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said beacons is a broadcast only beacon.

3. A system according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said beacons is a short-range RF beacon.

4. A system according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said beacons is arranged to communicate with a mobile communication device.

5. A system according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said beacons is a mobile beacon.

6. A system according to claim 1, wherein said carrier arrangement is a two-way channel.

7. A system according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said beacons includes a cache memory.

8. A system according to claim 1, and further comprising a central server for communicating with said beacons via said carrier arrangement.

9. A system according to claim 8 as appended to claim 7, wherein said central server is arranged to periodically update said cache memory.

10. A system according to claim 9, wherein said server is arranged to update said cache memory during a time interval when the associated beacon is not broadcasting.

11. A system according to claim 8, wherein said server is arranged to reconfigure a beacon of said network.

12. A system according to claim 8, wherein said server is arranged to reconfigure said network.

14. A method according to claim 13, wherein at least one of said beacons is a broadcast only beacon.

15. A method according to claim 13, wherein at least one of said beacons is a short-range RF beacon.

16. A method according to claim 13, wherein a beacon of said network is communicating with a mobile communication device.

17. A method according to claim 13, wherein at least one of said beacons is a mobile beacon.

18. A method according to claim 13, wherein said carrying is two-way.

19. A method according to claim 13 wherein at least one of said beacons includes a cache memory.

20. A method according to claim 13 and further comprising communicating with said beacons from a central server.

21. A method according to claim 20 as appended to claim 19, said communicating occurring periodically and for the purpose of updating said cache memory.

22. A method according to claim 21, wherein said updating of said cache memory takes place during a time interval when the associated beacon is not broadcasting.

23. A method according to claim 20 wherein the communicating from said central server is to reconfigure a beacon of said network.

24. A method according to claim 20, wherein the communicating from said central server is to reconfigure said network.

13. A communication method comprising networking a plurality of beacons, providing a back-end path for said beacons in the form of a power line carrier arrangement, and carrying control and/or data signals on said power line carrier arrangement.