METHOD FOR MANAGING, ROUTING, AND CONTROLLING DEVICES AND INTER-DEVICE CONNECTIONS

• US 20070282748A1
• Filed: 05/03/2007
• Published: 12/06/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/03/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CLOUD SYSTEMS HOLDCO IP LLC (Pueblo Nuevo LLC)
• Original Assignee: Cloud Systems HoldCo LLC
• Inventors: Shah, Kamal, Saint Clair, Gordon, Badore, Amy, Rotter, Charles, Johnson, Frederick
• Granted Patent: US 8,533,326 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/51
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/06 Management of faults, events, alarms or notifications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0631 using root cause analysis; using analysis of correlation between notifications, alarms or events based on decision criteria, e.g. hierarchy, tree or time analysis
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/069 using logs of notifications; Post-processing of notifications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0803 Configuration setting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0806 for initial configuration or provisioning, e.g. plug-and-play
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0856 by backing up or archiving configuration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43615 Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805

Abstract

A system and method for managing, routing and controlling devices and inter-device connections located within an environment to manage and control the environment using a control client is presented. A user provides commands via the control client to a server that maintains a representation of the environment and the devices within the environment. The server provides commands to devices present within the environment in response to user commands and other events, including events from the environment. The commands cause the devices in the environment to adopt specific desired states thereby causing the environment and the devices within the environment to create desired connections by and between the devices and to otherwise control and effect the environment.

Claims

1. A method for controlling an environment, comprising:

Accessing a server associated with the environment via a control client;

Logging into said server as a user, wherein said server queries a user database to retrieve rights and configuration data associated with said user;

Rendering a control panel on said control client, wherein said control panel is adapted to the environment based on said rights and said configuration data;

Creating a user defined configuration of a source device, an output device, and a device associated with the environment;

Generating a desired path in the environment based on an environment model to connect said source device to said output device and adapted to allow signal transfer between said source device and said output device, wherein said environment model is stored in a data structure on said server;

Communicating one or more commands from said server to a control switch to selectively interconnect an output port of said source device to an input port of said output device;

Commanding said source device to output a signal; and

,

Outputting said signal on said output device.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

Transmitting said signal to a conversion device adapted to receive said signal;

Communicating desired conversion type information from said server to said conversion device;

Converting said signal to a reformatted signal using said desired conversion type information; and

,

Outputting said reformatted signal from said conversion device to said output device.

3. A method of claim 1, further comprising:

Identifying an identified device from a list of said source device, said control device, and said configuration device;

Contacting a remote server and requesting a license to use a device driver adapted to interface with said identified device;

Encrypting and transmitting said license to said server using a one-way key stored on said remote server;

Decrypting said driver using a second one-way key located on said server, wherein said one-way key and said second one-way key are related asymmetric encryption an decryption keys; and

,

Installing said device driver for said identified device.

4. A method of claim 1, further comprising:

Determining whether an additional device driver installation is authorized;

Contacting a remote server to request a license modification;

Generating said license modification specific to said server to allow said server to install and operate said additional device driver using a one-way key located on said remote server;

Transmitting said license modification to said server;

Decrypting said license modification using a second one-way key located on said server; and

,

Installing said license modification on said server authorizing the installation and operation of said additional device driver.

5. A method of claim 1, whereby said rendering said control panel is adapted to said control client'"'"'s capabilities using a control client driver dataset stored on said server and said rendering further comprises creating a control sub-panel for a permitted device on said control panel, wherein said control sub-panel is based upon said control client driver dataset and said user.

6. A method of claim 1, further comprising controlling a first device associated with the environment and controlling a second device associated with the environment by issuing commands to said first device and said second device from said server.

7. A method of claim 6, wherein said rendering creates a zone control interface adapted to accept a single user input and translate said single user input into a first output and a second output, whereby said translate uses a pre-defined relationship between said first output and said single user input and said second output and said single user input, and whereby said controlling further comprises issuing said first output to said first device and said second output to said second device.

8. A method of claim 1, whereby said output port of said source device is connected to an input node of said control switch by a first static connection and said output node of said control switch is connected to said input port of said output device by a second static connection, wherein said control switch responds to said commands by forming an operable connection between said input node and said output node to allow said signal to flow through said first static connection and said second static connection.

9. A method of claim 8, further comprising:

Inputting a set of environment elements comprising said first static connection, said second static connection, said source device, said output device, and said control switch to create said environment model and storing said environment model in a device interconnection and routing database;

Identifying said desired path by applying a recursive algorithm to said environment model to identify a reverse path from said output device to said source device; and

,

Updating said environment model with an attribute to indicate which said environment elements are part of said desired path.

10. A method of claim 9, further comprising:

Storing said user defined configuration in said device interconnection and routing database; and

,

Retrieving said environment model and said user defined configuration from said device interconnection and routing database.

11. A method for configuring information flow in an environment, comprising:

mapping static connections in the environment between a plurality of devices associated with the environment, wherein said static connections define paths between said plurality of devices, and allow the information flow;

selecting a source device from said plurality of devices, wherein said source device possesses at least a first source device output port;

selecting an output device from said plurality of devices, wherein said output device possess at least a first output device input port;

applying a means for identifying a reverse path through said static connections from said first output device input port to said first source device output port with a recursive algorithm;

selecting a subset of devices from said plurality of devices that are connected by said reverse path through said static connections; and

, configuring said subset of devices to accept the information flow from said first source device output port and route the information flow to said first output device input port.

12. A method of claim 11, further comprising:

storing said mapping of and a set of attributes for said static connections and said plurality of devices in a database;

loading into a working model said set of attributes;

updating said working model with an indictor that at least one of said static connections and said subset of devices are interconnected; and

,

reducing said static connections in said working model to create a reduced set of static connections by removing said static connections marked with said indicator such that said applying only identifies a reverse path through said reduced set of static connections.

13. A method of claim 12, whereby said configuring further comprises querying said working model to retrieve said indicator, using said indicator to determine if a specific device, of said plurality of devices is configured to accept the information flow, and only performing said configuring if said specific device is not configured to accept the information flow.

14. A method of claim 11, further comprising:

selecting a switch device from said plurality of devices, said switch device comprising a first input node, a second input node, a first output node, and a second output node, whereby at least one static connection terminates at each of said first input node and said second input node and at least one static connection terminates at each of said first output node and said second output node;

selectively connecting said first input node to one of the following selected from the group consisting of said first output node, said second output node, and a termination;

selectively connecting said second input node to one of the following selected from the group consisting of said first output node, said second output node and a termination; and

,

whereby said configuring said subset of devices is triggered by an event.

15. A method of claim 11, further comprising:

grouping said subset of devices into a logical grouping stored in a database;

addressing said subset of devices via said logical grouping; and

,

retaining configuration information for each of said subset of devices in said database.

16. A method of claim 15, further comprising:

retrieving device information from said database for representing a selected device from one of said subset of devices;

retrieving a device driver associated with said selected device; and

,

whereby said configuring said subset of devices further comprises addressing said selected device using said device information and communicating a command to said selected device using said device information and said device driver.

17. A method of claim 11, whereby said recursive algorithm is a depth first search.