Object name service for RFID tags

• US 20080157930A1
• Filed: 12/29/2006
• Published: 07/03/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP SE
• Inventors: Burdett, David, Winkler, Steve
• Application Number:
  US11/647,194
• Publication Number:
  US 20080157930A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.3
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4552 Lookup mechanisms between a plurality of directories; Synchronisation of directories, e.g. metadirectories
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/457 containing identifiers of data entities on a computer, e.g. file names
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services

Abstract

An Object Name Service (ONS) is provided through an electronic product code information service (EPCIS) interface that allows one or more accessing applications residing on a variety of systems and associated with a plurality of enterprises/organizations to locate a network accessible service that provides EPC-related data associated with an EPC. A root server of the ONS may identify the network accessible service using a look-up system based on Domain Name System.

Claims

1. A method for providing an Object Name Service (ONS) through a plurality of distributed ONS root servers that are managed by different entities, comprising:

providing an interface capable of allowing one or more accessing applications residing on a variety of systems and associated with a plurality of enterprises/organizations to receive sensor-related data;

receiving from an accessing application a unique code at one of the ONS root servers, wherein the ONS root server uses at least a portion of the unique code to identify a network accessible service that provides data associated with the unique code; and

responding to the accessing application with a pointer to the network accessible service to allow the accessing application to receive data associated with the unique code from the network accessible service.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the ONS root server identifies the network accessible service using a look-up system based on Domain Name System.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the ONS root server has access to a directory that matches headers of unique codes with object servers that manage network accessing services directed to those unique codes and the ONS root server uses a header associated with the received unique code to identify, from the directory, a server that has information on the network accessing service that provides data associated with the received unique code.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the ONS root server uses a manager number associated with the unique code to identify a server dedicated to providing data associated with unique codes having that manager number.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the ONS root server that received the unique code queries another of the plurality of ONS root server to identify the network accessible service that provides data associated with the unique code and locally caches the pointer to the identified network accessible service.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the ONS root server replicates data associated with the other of the plurality of ONS servers.