Aggregating Sensor Data

• US 20120197852A1
• Filed: 01/28/2011
• Published: 08/02/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Dutta, Debojyoti, Sen, Mainak, Banka, Tarun, PANDEY, Manoj Kumar, Balakrishnan, Raja Suresh Krishna
• Granted Patent: US 9,225,793 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/692
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/561 Adding application-functional data or data for application control, e.g. adding metadata
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561

Abstract

In particular embodiments, a method includes accessing sensor data from sensor nodes in a sensor network and aggregating the sensor data for communication to an indexer in the sensor network. The aggregation of the sensor data includes deduplicating the sensor data; validating the sensor data; formatting the sensor; generating metadata for the sensor data; and time-stamping the sensor data. The metadata identifies one or more pre-determined attributes of the sensor data. The method also includes communicating the aggregated sensor data to the indexer in the sensor network. The indexer is configured to index the aggregated sensor data according to a multi-dimensional array for querying of the aggregated sensor data along with other aggregated sensor data. One or more first ones of the dimensions of the multi-dimensional array include time and one or more second ones of the dimensions of the multi-dimensional include one or more of the pre-determined sensor-data attributes.

Claims

1. A method comprising, by one or more computer systems:

from an aggregator in a sensor network, accessing a plurality of sensor data from a plurality of sensors in the sensor network;

at the aggregator, aggregating the sensor data for communication to an indexer in the sensor network, the aggregation of the sensor data comprising;

substantially deduplicating the sensor data;

substantially validating the sensor data to block malicious data from reaching the indexer;

formatting the sensor data for processing of the sensor data at the indexer;

generating metadata for the sensor data configured for indexing of the sensor data by the indexer, the metadata identifying one or more pre-determined attributes of the sensor data; and

time-stamping the sensor data with one or more time stamps; and

from the aggregator, communicating the aggregated sensor data to the indexer in the sensor network, the indexer being configured to index the aggregated sensor data according to a multi-dimensional array for querying of the aggregated sensor data along with a plurality of other aggregated sensor data, one or more first ones of the dimensions of the multi-dimensional array comprising time and one or more second ones of the dimensions of the multi-dimensional array comprising one or more of the pre-determined sensor-data attributes.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the aggregator comprises a single node in the sensor network.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the aggregator comprises multiple nodes in the sensor network.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein:

the sensor network comprises a hierarchy of logical levels;

one or more first ones of the multiple nodes logically reside in a first aggregation logical layer of the hierarchy; and

one or more second ones of the multiple nodes logically reside in a second aggregation logical layer of the hierarchy that resides logically above the first aggregation logical layer of the hierarchy.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the metadata comprises one or more searchable keywords related to the sensor data.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the metadata comprises one or more searchable tags related to the sensor data.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the metadata comprises text generated from at least some of the sensor data.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of sensor data was pushed up to the aggregator.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of sensor data was pulled up to the aggregator.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the aggregator communicates the aggregated sensor data to the indexer automatically after accessing and aggregating it.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the aggregator communicates the aggregated sensor data to the indexer in response to a query from the indexer.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein:

the query requests particular sensor for the indexer; and

the aggregated sensor data that the aggregator communicates to the indexer is responsive to the request.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein substantially deduplicating the sensor data comprises:

detecting substantially similar sensor data from two or more sensors;

communicating a control message to each of one or more of the two or more sensors instructing it to enable a data-suppression mechanism to cause it to;

scan sensor data being communicated from other ones of the two or more sensors;

determine whether another one of the two or more sensors is communicating sensor data that is substantially similar to its own; and

if another one of the two or more sensors is communicating sensor data that is substantially similar to its own, then cancel its own communication.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein substantially deduplicating the sensor data comprises:

detecting substantially similar sensor data from two or more sensors;

communicating a control message in the sensor network instructing one or more of the two or more sensors to pause communication of their sensor data.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein substantially deduplicating the sensor data comprises application-specific data summarization to remove redundant data from the sensor data.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein substantially validating the sensor data comprises:

determining whether particular sensor data is from a pre-detected malicious or malfunctioning sensor; and

if the particular sensor data is from a pre-detected malicious or malfunctioning sensor, then excluding the particular sensor data from the aggregated sensor data.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein one or more third ones of the dimensions of the multi-dimensional array comprise geographic location.

18. The method of claim 1, further comprising encrypting the aggregated sensor data before communicating them to the indexer.

19. The method of claim 1, further comprising establishing a secure connection with the indexer before communicating the aggregated sensor data to it.

20. The method of claim 1, further comprising anonymizing the sensor data.

21. One or more computer-readable non-transitory storage media embodying software that is operable when executed to:

access a plurality of sensor data from a plurality of sensors in a sensor network;

aggregate the sensor data for communication to an indexer in the sensor network, the aggregation of the sensor data comprising;

substantially deduplicating the sensor data;

substantially validating the sensor data to block malicious data from reaching the indexer;

formatting the sensor data for processing of the sensor data at the indexer;

generating metadata for the sensor data configured for indexing of the sensor data by the indexer, the metadata identifying one or more pre-determined attributes of the sensor data; and

time-stamping the sensor data with one or more time stamps; and

communicate the aggregated sensor data to the indexer in the sensor network, the indexer being configured to index the aggregated sensor data according to a multi-dimensional array for querying of the aggregated sensor data along with a plurality of other aggregated sensor data, one or more first ones of the dimensions of the multi-dimensional array comprising time and one or more second ones of the dimensions of the multi-dimensional array comprising one or more of the pre-determined sensor-data attributes.

22. The media of claim 21, wherein the media resides at an aggregator that comprises a single node in the sensor network.

23. The media of claim 21, wherein the media resides at an aggregator that comprises multiple nodes in the sensor network.

24. The media of claim 23, wherein:

the sensor network comprises a hierarchy of logical levels;

one or more first ones of the multiple nodes logically reside in a first aggregation logical layer of the hierarchy; and

one or more second ones of the multiple nodes logically reside in a second aggregation logical layer of the hierarchy that resides logically above the first aggregation logical layer of the hierarchy.

25. The media of claim 21, wherein the metadata comprises one or more searchable keywords related to the sensor data.

26. The media of claim 21, wherein the metadata comprises one or more searchable tags related to the sensor data.

27. The media of claim 21, wherein the metadata comprises text generated from at least some of the sensor data.

28. The media of claim 21, wherein:

the media resides at an aggregator; and

the plurality of sensor data was pushed up to the aggregator.

29. The media of claim 21, wherein:

the media resides at an aggregator; and

the plurality of sensor data was pulled up to the aggregator.

30. The media of claim 21, wherein the aggregated sensor data is communicated to the indexer automatically after it is accessed and aggregated.

31. The media of claim 21, wherein the aggregated sensor data is communicated to the indexer in response to a query from the indexer.

32. The media of claim 31, wherein:

the query requests particular sensor for the indexer; and

the aggregated sensor data that is communicated to the indexer is responsive to the request.

33. The media of claim 21, wherein substantially deduplicating the sensor data comprises:

detecting substantially similar sensor data from two or more sensors;

communicating a control message to each of one or more of the two or more sensors instructing it to enable a data-suppression mechanism to cause it to;

scan sensor data being communicated from other ones of the two or more sensors;

determine whether another one of the two or more sensors is communicating sensor data that is substantially similar to its own; and

if another one of the two or more sensors is communicating sensor data that is substantially similar to its own, then cancel its own communication.

34. The media of claim 21, wherein substantially deduplicating the sensor data comprises:

detecting substantially similar sensor data from two or more sensors;

communicating a control message in the sensor network instructing one or more of the two or more sensors to pause communication of their sensor data.

35. The media of claim 21, wherein substantially deduplicating the sensor data comprises application-specific data summarization to remove redundant data from the sensor data.

36. The media of claim 21, wherein substantially validating the sensor data comprises:

determining whether particular sensor data is from a pre-detected malicious or malfunctioning sensor; and

if the particular sensor data is from a pre-detected malicious or malfunctioning sensor, then excluding the particular sensor data from the aggregated sensor data.

37. The media of claim 21, wherein one or more third ones of the dimensions of the multi-dimensional array comprise geographic location.

38. The media of claim 21, wherein the software is further operable when executed to encrypt the aggregated sensor data before they are communicated to the indexer.

39. The media of claim 21, wherein the software is further operable when executed to establish a secure connection with the indexer before the aggregated sensor data is communicated to it.

40. The media of claim 21, wherein the software is further operable when executed to anonymize the sensor data.

41. An apparatus comprising:

one or more communication interfaces;

one or more memory devices containing one or more instructions for execution by one or more processing devices; and

the processing devices, operable when executing the instructions to;

access a plurality of sensor data from a plurality of sensors in the sensor network;

aggregate the sensor data for communication to an indexer in the sensor network, the aggregation of the sensor data comprising;

substantially deduplicating the sensor data;

substantially validating the sensor data to block malicious data from reaching the indexer;

formatting the sensor data for processing of the sensor data at the indexer;

generating metadata for the sensor data configured for indexing of the sensor data by the indexer, the metadata identifying one or more pre-determined attributes of the sensor data; and

time-stamping the sensor data with one or more time stamps; and

communicate the aggregated sensor data to the indexer in the sensor network, the indexer being configured to index the aggregated sensor data according to a multi-dimensional array for querying of the aggregated sensor data along with a plurality of other aggregated sensor data, one or more first ones of the dimensions of the multi-dimensional array comprising time and one or more second ones of the dimensions of the multi-dimensional array comprising one or more of the pre-determined sensor-data attributes.

42. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein the apparatus comprises a single node in the sensor network.

43. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein the apparatus comprises multiple nodes in the sensor network.

44. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein:

the sensor network comprises a hierarchy of logical levels;

one or more first ones of the multiple nodes logically reside in a first aggregation logical layer of the hierarchy; and

one or more second ones of the multiple nodes logically reside in a second aggregation logical layer of the hierarchy that resides logically above the first aggregation logical layer of the hierarchy.

45. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein the metadata comprises one or more searchable keywords related to the sensor data.

46. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein the metadata comprises one or more searchable tags related to the sensor data.

47. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein the metadata comprises text generated from at least some of the sensor data.

48. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein the plurality of sensor data was pushed up to the aggregator.

49. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein the plurality of sensor data was pulled up to the aggregator.

50. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein the aggregator communicates the aggregated sensor data to the indexer through the network interface automatically after accessing and aggregating it.

51. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein the aggregator communicates the aggregated sensor data to the indexer through the network interface in response to a query from the indexer received through the network interface.

52. The apparatus of claim 51 wherein:

the query requests particular sensor for the indexer; and

the aggregated sensor data that the aggregator communicates to the indexer is responsive to the request.

53. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein substantially deduplicating the sensor data comprises:

detecting substantially similar sensor data from two or more sensors;

communicating a control message, through the network interface, to each of one or more of the two or more sensors instructing it to enable a data-suppression mechanism to cause it to;

scan sensor data being communicated from other ones of the two or more sensors;

determine whether another one of the two or more sensors is communicating sensor data that is substantially similar to its own; and

if another one of the two or more sensors is communicating sensor data that is substantially similar to its own, then cancel its own communication.

54. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein substantially deduplicating the sensor data comprises:

detecting substantially similar sensor data from two or more sensors;

communicating, through the network interface, a control message in the sensor network instructing one or more of the two or more sensors to pause communication of their sensor data.

55. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein substantially deduplicating the sensor data comprises application-specific data summarization to remove redundant data from the sensor data.

56. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein substantially validating the sensor data comprises:

determining whether particular sensor data is from a pre-detected malicious or malfunctioning sensor; and

if the particular sensor data is from a pre-detected malicious or malfunctioning sensor, then excluding the particular sensor data from the aggregated sensor data.

57. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein one or more third ones of the dimensions of the multi-dimensional array comprise geographic location.

58. The apparatus of claim 41, further comprising encrypting the aggregated sensor data before communicating them to the indexer.

59. The apparatus of claim 41, further comprising establishing a secure connection with the indexer, through the network interface, before communicating the aggregated sensor data to it.

60. The apparatus of claim 41, further comprising anonymizing the sensor data.

61. A system comprising:

means for accessing a plurality of sensor data from a plurality of sensors in the sensor network;

means for aggregating the sensor data for communication to an indexer in the sensor network, the aggregation of the sensor data comprising;

substantially deduplicating the sensor data;

substantially validating the sensor data to block malicious data from reaching the indexer;

formatting the sensor data for processing of the sensor data at the indexer;

generating metadata for the sensor data configured for indexing of the sensor data by the indexer, the metadata identifying one or more pre-determined attributes of the sensor data; and

time-stamping the sensor data with one or more time stamps; and

means for communicating the aggregated sensor data to the indexer in the sensor network, the indexer being configured to index the aggregated sensor data according to a multi-dimensional array for querying of the aggregated sensor data along with a plurality of other aggregated sensor data, one or more first ones of the dimensions of the multi-dimensional array comprising time and one or more second ones of the dimensions of the multi-dimensional array comprising one or more of the pre-determined sensor-data attributes.