Communication System and method for Nodes Associated with a Vehicle

• US 20140136589A1
• Filed: 11/13/2012
• Published: 05/15/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/13/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Gogo Business Aviation LLC (GOGO Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Gogo LLC (GOGO Incorporated)
• Inventors: Wahler, Ronald A., Mahoney, Kevin, Worosylo, Jon
• Granted Patent: US 9,087,193 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/201
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/554 involving event detection and direct action
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2111 Location-sensitive, e.g. geographical location, GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2113 Multi-level security, e.g. mandatory access control
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2141 Access rights, e.g. capability lists, access control lists, access tables, access matrices
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0806 for initial configuration or provisioning, e.g. plug-and-play
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0263 Rule management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• 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

Abstract

Devices and nodes associated with a vehicle may communicate using a higher-level, common messaging protocol over an ad-hoc network to publish and subscribe to services, even though different nodes may utilize different types of links and channels. The network includes a rules node that is fixedly connected to the vehicle and that stores a set of rules. Given a possible publisher, subscriber, and/or a service, a node action is allowed or denied based on the set of rules. The rules may be generated or updated based on priorities, security levels, and/or characteristics of publishers, subscribers, their respective users, and/or services; a current dynamic condition; and/or user input. The rules node and at least one other node may be transported by the vehicle, and both transported nodes and nodes external to the vehicle may use the common messaging protocol to join the ad-hoc network, discover other nodes, authenticate, and publish/consume services.

Claims

1. A system for publishing services and subscribing to services, comprising:

a rules node fixedly connected to a vehicle, the rules node including an interface to a network and a rules node memory storing a set of rules defining relationships between one or more publisher nodes and one or more subscriber nodes; and

computer-executable instructions stored on a tangible, non-transitory computer-readable storage medium and executable by a processor to;

receive at least one of an identification of a publisher node or an identification of a subscriber node; and

determine, based on at least one rule included in the set of rules and the at least one of the identification of the publisher node or the identification of the subscriber node, whether an action to be taken by at least one of the publisher node or the subscriber node is allowed,

wherein;

at least one of the publisher node or the subscriber node is being transported by the vehicle,

the rules node is a sole, active rules provider node of a set of nodes associated with the vehicle,

the rules node, the publisher node and the subscriber node are communicatively coupled via the network, and

the computer-readable storage medium on which the computer-executable instructions are stored is included in one of the publisher node, the subscriber node, or the rules node.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the computer-readable storage medium on which the computer-executable instructions are stored is the rules node memory, and wherein the computer-executable instructions are executable by a processor of the rules node further to cause an indication of an allowance or a denial of the action to be taken to be transmitted to at least one of the publisher node or the subscriber node.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the action to be taken by the at least one of the publisher node or the subscriber node includes at least one of:

an authentication of the publisher node or the subscriber node,

a publication of a provided service by the publisher node,

a subscription to a published service by the subscriber node.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the provided service or the published service is one of:

i) a public branch exchange voice service;

ii) a time service;

iii) a global positioning system service;

iv) a configuration service;

v) a domain name service;

vi) a wireless access point service;

vii) a storage service;

viii) a dynamic fault management and reporting service;

ix) a bearer data service;

x) a software key service;

xi) a digital rights management service;

xii) a health monitoring and reporting service;

or

xiii) a flight information service.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein the computer-executable instructions are executable by the processor further to:

receive an indication that the provided service or the published service is a failed service;

determine, based on the at least one rule or at least one other rule included in the set of rules, a backup service for the failed service;

cause an indication of the backup service to be transmitted.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one rule included in the set of rules is based on at least one of:

a security level;

a type of data bearer channel;

a priority;

a dynamic condition;

a characteristic of the at least one of the publisher node or the subscriber node;

or

an identity of a user of the at least one of the publisher node or the subscriber node.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the publisher node is configured to communicate using a first type of data bearer channel;

the publisher node is configured to communicate using a second type of data bearer channel; and

the publisher node and the subscriber node are both configured to communicate with each other at a level higher than the first data bearer channel and the second bearer channel using a common messaging protocol.

8. The system of claim 1, further comprising a rules definition engine included in a computing device that is not being transported by the vehicle, and wherein at least one rule included in the set of rules of the rules node is updated based on the rules definition engine.

9. A publisher node, comprising:

an interface to a network; and

a publishing engine configured to;

publish an indication of an available service using the interface to the network;

determine, based on a set of rules provided by a rules node fixedly connected to a vehicle and communicatively connected to the network, one or more rules corresponding to an interrelationship between the publisher node and a subscriber node that is authenticated; and

provide the published service to the subscriber node based on the one or more rules.

10. The publisher node of claim 9, wherein one of the rules node comprises the publisher node, or the rules node comprises the subscriber node.

11. The publisher node of claim 9, wherein the one or more rules correspond to at least one of:

a characteristic of at least one data bearer channel communicatively coupling the publisher node to the subscriber node;

a priority of the published service;

a characteristic of the at least one of the publisher node or the subscriber node;

an identity of a user of the at least one of the publisher node or the subscriber node;

or

a dynamic condition.

12. The publisher node of claim 9, wherein the at least one of the publisher node or the subscriber node is transported by the vehicle.

13. The publisher node of claim 9, wherein the rules node is an only node being transported by the vehicle that is an active provider node of the set of rules.

14. The publisher node of claim 9, wherein the available service includes at least one of:

i) a public branch exchange voice service;

ii) a time service;

iii) a global positioning system service;

iv) a configuration service;

v) a domain name service;

vi) a wireless access point service;

vii) a storage service;

viii) a fault management and reporting service;

ix) a bearer data service;

x) a software key service;

xi) a digital rights management service;

xii) a health monitoring and reporting service;

or

xiii) a flight information service.

15. A subscriber node, comprising:

an interface to a network; and

a subscribing engine configured to;

receive, via the interface to the network, an indication of a published service provided by a publisher node that is authenticated;

request, via the interface to the network, the published service from the publisher node; and

subscribe to, based on one or more rules provided by a rules node fixedly connected to a vehicle, the published service via the connection to the network, the one or more rules corresponding to an interrelationship between the subscriber node and the publisher node.

16. The subscriber node of claim 15, wherein one of the rules node comprises the publisher node, or the rules node comprises the subscriber node.

17. The subscriber node of claim 15, wherein the one or more rules correspond to at least one of:

a characteristic of a data bearer channel communicatively coupling the publisher node to the subscriber node;

a priority of the published service;

a dynamic condition;

a characteristic of the at least one of the publisher node or the subscriber node;

or

an identity of a user of the at least one of the publisher node or the subscriber node.

18. The subscriber node of claim 15, wherein the rules node is an only node being transported by the vehicle that is an active provider node of the set of rules.

19. The subscriber node of claim 16, wherein one of the publisher node or the subscriber node is transported by the vehicle, and the other one of the publisher node or the subscriber node is not transported by the vehicle.

20. The subscriber node of claim 15, wherein the available service comprises at least one of:

i) a public branch exchange voice service;

ii) a time service;

iii) a global positioning system service;

iv) a configuration service;

v) a domain name service;

vi) a wireless access point service;

vii) a storage service;

viii) a dynamic fault management and reporting service;

ix) a bearer data service;

x) a software key service;

xi) a digital rights management service;

xii) a health monitoring and reporting service;

or

xiii) a flight information service.