METHODS FOR MONITORING AND CONTROL OF ELECTRONIC DEVICES

• US 20110016514A1
• Filed: 07/17/2009
• Published: 01/20/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/17/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Spireon Incorporated (Solera Holdings Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Spireon Incorporated (Solera Holdings Incorporated)
• Inventors: Ferguson, Scott L., Reeder, Paul, De Carlo, Phil
• Granted Patent: US 9,516,394 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/5
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/30 using a wired architecture
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/40 using a wireless architecture
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]

Abstract

The present invention relates to telemetry methods and systems and more particularly, to telemetry network connectivity systems, devices and methods. In accordance with various embodiments, a suite of software components configured to provide machine-to-machine network connectivity includes a configurable device translation server module, a complex message constructor and at least one database. In some embodiments the suite of software components, specifically the complex message constructor, may be configured to authenticate commands between an interface and the device translation server. Additionally, the suite of software components, specifically the complex message constructor, may be configured to manage messages between the interface and the device translation server. Managing messages may include initiating alerts and notifications based on a comparison of programming and substantially synchronous and stored information.

Claims

1. A method of machine-to-machine communication comprising:

authenticating an issued command;

performing device discovery;

reviewing command content and compare with preset programming;

querying, storing and retrieving information from a database;

translating a common telemetry interface to a device specific protocol;

executing a device method instance substantially real-time;

executing a method in simulated synchronously if substantially real-time is unavailable;

translating from the device specific protocol to the common telemetry interface; and

storing and replying to issued command originator.

2. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 1, wherein the issued command is issued by a user on a web application interface.

3. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 1, wherein unique device method instances are configured on device specific device translation server module stored on a database.

4. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 3, wherein the database is a virtual database.

5. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 1, wherein device method instances comprise device specific protocol information, device specific location information, device identifiers and device specific network information.

6. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 1, wherein the issued command is issued by a preset condition.

7. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 1, wherein the issued command is issued by a device.

8. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 1, wherein authenticating an issued command comprises one or more of credential verification, certificate matching, authentication, discovery, verifying encapsulated data, verifying private data wrapped in classes in object-oriented programming languages, verifying protocol layering and verifying message encryption.

9. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 1, wherein executing a method substantially real-time if desired is based on network optimization factors.

10. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 9, wherein the network optimization factors comprise at least one of the following a determination of network availability, a determination of backup network availability, a determination of expected network data transfer duration and a determination of expected backup network data transfer duration.

11. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 1, wherein the device configured to send remote reporting information in the device specific protocol on the device specific network to the device translation server module is passive.

12. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 1, wherein reviewing command content and comparing with preset programming generates notifications based on a comparison of programming and both stored device reporting information and substantially synchronous device reporting information programming comprise at least one of reported data trends, device status, device communication failure, device operating in an unauthorized manner, reported level deviating from an expected range, and reported data exceeding a safety condition.

13. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 1, wherein a user can set an escalating notification preference.

14. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 1, wherein the device specific networks comprises one or more of Skytel, USAM, Wyless, Sprint, Private LAN, T-Mobile, AT&

T, Private VPN, ReFLEX or Mobitex, WCTP, and Private WAN.

15. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 1, wherein the device specific protocol information comprises one or more of XML, SOAP over HTTP, WSDL, UDDI, SMTP, binary encoding over TCP, ReFlex, GPRS, EDGE, Mobitex, CDMA, EVDO, VSAT, wired LAN, wired WAN, message queues via Microsoft Windows MSMQ.

16. A method of machine-to-machine communication comprising:

authenticating an issued command;

performing device discovery;

reviewing command content and compare with preset programming;

querying, storing and retrieving information from a database, the database virtually linked between multiple instances of a suite of software components;

translating a common telemetry interface to a device specific protocol;

executing a device method instance substantially real-time;

executing a method in simulated synchronously if substantially real-time is unavailable;

translating from the device specific protocol to the common telemetry interface; and

storing and replying to issued command originator.

17. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 16, wherein the issued command is issued by a user on a web application interface.

18. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 16, wherein unique device method instances are configured on device specific device translation server module stored on a database.

19. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 18, wherein the database is a virtual database.

20. The method of machine-to-machine communication of claim 16, wherein:

device method instances comprise device specific protocol information, device specific location information, device identifiers and device specific network information; and

the issued command is issued by one of a preset condition and a device.