Plug-In Network Appliance
First Claim
1. A method for tracking at least one object within an indoor facility, the method comprising:
- establishing a mesh network within the indoor facility, the mesh network comprising a plurality of network appliances and a position location engine, the mesh network established by attaching each network appliance to an electrical outlet within the indoor facility, each of the plurality of network appliances comprising;
an enclosure;
a processor positioned within the enclosure;
at least one wireless local area network interface positioned within the enclosure and in communication with the processor, the wireless local area network interface including at least one transceiver for receiving and transmitting data according to a communication format; and
a connection to an outlet of the indoor facility;
attaching a radiofrequency tag to the at least one object, the radiofrequency tag emitting a periodic signal;
receiving the periodic signal from the radiofrequency tag at least one of the plurality of network appliances;
transmitting the received periodic signal to the position location engine, andgenerating at the position location engine positional location information for the at least one object based on the received periodic signal.
10 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A plug-in network appliance is disclosed. In one aspect, a network appliance performs a bridge between two wireless communication formats. In another aspect, a network appliance is deployed to perform position location services. In another aspect, a mesh network comprising one or more network appliances is deployed. A mesh network comprising one or more network appliances may be deployed to perform position location services. A plug-in form factor is described. A network appliance may convert power received from a plug in a first format to power in a second format for powering various components. A network appliance may connect with a wireless network and/or a network connected through a plug. A plug-in network appliance may connect to a weight-bearing outlet. Various other aspects are also presented.
-
Citations
10 Claims
-
1. A method for tracking at least one object within an indoor facility, the method comprising:
-
establishing a mesh network within the indoor facility, the mesh network comprising a plurality of network appliances and a position location engine, the mesh network established by attaching each network appliance to an electrical outlet within the indoor facility, each of the plurality of network appliances comprising; an enclosure; a processor positioned within the enclosure; at least one wireless local area network interface positioned within the enclosure and in communication with the processor, the wireless local area network interface including at least one transceiver for receiving and transmitting data according to a communication format; and a connection to an outlet of the indoor facility; attaching a radiofrequency tag to the at least one object, the radiofrequency tag emitting a periodic signal; receiving the periodic signal from the radiofrequency tag at least one of the plurality of network appliances; transmitting the received periodic signal to the position location engine, and generating at the position location engine positional location information for the at least one object based on the received periodic signal. - View Dependent Claims (2)
-
-
3. A method for tracking at least one object within an indoor facility, the method comprising:
-
establishing a mesh network within the indoor facility, the mesh network comprising a plurality of network appliances and a position location engine, the mesh network established by attaching each network appliance to an electrical outlet within the indoor facility, each network appliance comprising; an enclosure; a processor positioned within the enclosure; at least one wireless local area network interface positioned within the enclosure and in communication with the processor, the wireless local area network interface including at least one transceiver for receiving and transmitting data according to a communication format; and an electrical and physical connection to an outlet of the indoor facility; attaching a tag to the at least one object, the tag emitting a signal; receiving the signal from the tag at least one of the plurality of network appliances and generating a time of flight measurement from the tag; transmitting the generated time of flight measurement to the position location engine, and generating at the position location engine positional location information for the at least one object based on the generated time of flight measurement. - View Dependent Claims (4, 5, 6, 7)
-
-
8. A system for an indoor facility, the system comprising:
-
a wireless mesh network including a plurality of stationary devices distributed about the indoor facility, each stationary device comprising; an enclosure; a processor positioned within the enclosure; at least one wireless local area network interface positioned within the enclosure and in communication with the processor, the wireless local area network interface comprising at least one transceiver for receiving and transmitting data according to an ultra wideband communication format; a plurality of access points, each of the plurality of access point in communication with at least one the plurality of stationary devices; and a position location engine in communication with each of the plurality of access points; and a plurality of mobile objects within the indoor facility, each of the plurality of mobile objects comprising a tag for emitting on a continuous periodic basis a wireless position location tracking signal for receipt by the plurality of stationary devices; wherein the wireless position location tracking signals from each of the tags of each of the plurality of mobile objects are utilized to generate position location information for each of the plurality of mobile objects by the position location engine. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10)
-
Specification