In-tank fuel level data networks for retailer data
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method allowing a distributed population of retail fuel stations to provide at least one remote party with a “
- snapshot”
of the in-tank fuel levels of the bulk fuel tanks of all the retail fuel stations in said population as well as data obtained from some other on-premise device or sensor, comprising the steps of;
configuring a distributed population of retail fuel stations as data-origin parties of in-tank fuel level data from the on-premise bulk fuel tanks as obtained from controllers of automated tank gauges (ATG'"'"'s) as well as being an origin of data obtained from some other on-premise device or sensor;
providing each data-origin party with an on-premise data communicator that has a processor and memory and is associated with and cyclically polls at least one on-premise ATG controller and at least one on-premise some other device or sensor for data thereof, and pre-programmed with a cyclic schedule and stores locally in the memory at least several cycles worth of such polled data;
providing a communications network having intermediate storage and a given message-switching message-propagating technology;
providing a data-destination party with a message-switching address;
each data communicator in the population programmed with a schedule containing appointed times such that at any given appointed time, each independently but essentially simultaneously executes an instruction set for the propagation of a data message over the communications network by means of the given message-switching message-propagating technology and as addressed to the data-destination party, which data message contains a historical record of the polled data of at least the current cycle and as polled from the associated at least one on-premise ATG controller and at least one on-premise some other device or sensor;
whereby after some time lapse that affords the data messages of the population opportunity to propagate their own independent way through the network and reach, not all at the same instant, the address of the data-destination party, then the data-destination party affords research into the data on a “
snapshot”
basis for that given time and successively for successive given times.
0 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A method and system for communications of fuel data, including fuel depletion data, in regards of fuel storage tanks includes an electronic communicator linked to a sensor associated with the storage tank for communicating over a communications network the fuel data to innumerable other parties connected on the communications network.
21 Citations
20 Claims
-
1. A method allowing a distributed population of retail fuel stations to provide at least one remote party with a “
- snapshot”
of the in-tank fuel levels of the bulk fuel tanks of all the retail fuel stations in said population as well as data obtained from some other on-premise device or sensor, comprising the steps of;configuring a distributed population of retail fuel stations as data-origin parties of in-tank fuel level data from the on-premise bulk fuel tanks as obtained from controllers of automated tank gauges (ATG'"'"'s) as well as being an origin of data obtained from some other on-premise device or sensor;
providing each data-origin party with an on-premise data communicator that has a processor and memory and is associated with and cyclically polls at least one on-premise ATG controller and at least one on-premise some other device or sensor for data thereof, and pre-programmed with a cyclic schedule and stores locally in the memory at least several cycles worth of such polled data;
providing a communications network having intermediate storage and a given message-switching message-propagating technology;
providing a data-destination party with a message-switching address;
each data communicator in the population programmed with a schedule containing appointed times such that at any given appointed time, each independently but essentially simultaneously executes an instruction set for the propagation of a data message over the communications network by means of the given message-switching message-propagating technology and as addressed to the data-destination party, which data message contains a historical record of the polled data of at least the current cycle and as polled from the associated at least one on-premise ATG controller and at least one on-premise some other device or sensor;
whereby after some time lapse that affords the data messages of the population opportunity to propagate their own independent way through the network and reach, not all at the same instant, the address of the data-destination party, then the data-destination party affords research into the data on a “
snapshot”
basis for that given time and successively for successive given times. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
- snapshot”
-
11. A method allowing a distributed population of retail fuel stations to propagate messages over the Internet global computer network by message-switching message-propagating technology in order to inform at least one remote party of the in-tank fuel levels of the bulk fuel tanks of all the retail fuel stations, comprising the steps of:
-
configuring a distributed population of retail fuel stations as data origin parties of in-tank fuel level data from the on-premise bulk fuel tanks as obtained from controllers of automated tank gauges (ATG'"'"'s) as well as being an origin of data obtained from some other on-premise device or sensor;
providing each data-origin party with an on-premise data communicator that has a processor and memory and is associated with and polls at least one on-premise ATG controller and at least one on-premise some other device or sensor for data thereof, and pre-programmed with a cyclic schedule and stores locally at least one cycle'"'"'s worth of such polled data;
providing each on-premise communicator with a connection to the Internet global computer network including the intermediate storage capacity inherent thereto and at least one given message-switching message-propagating technology associated therewith;
providing a data-destination party with a message-switching address;
each data communicator cyclically propagating a data message over die network by means of the given message-switching message-propagating technology and as addressed to the data-destination party, which data message contains a historical record of the polled data of at least the current cycle and as polled from the associated at least one on premise ATG controller and at least one on-premise some other device or sensor. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15)
-
-
16. A method of pushing the data of the in-tank fuel levels of the bulk fuel tanks of a distributed population of retail fuel stations across a network to at least one data-destination parry for such data, comprising the steps of:
-
configuring a distributed population of retail fuel stations as data-origin parties of in-tank fuel level data from the on-premise bulk fuel tanks as obtained from controllers of automated tank gauges (ATG'"'"'s);
providing each data-origin party with an on-premise data communicator that has a processor and memory and is associated with and cyclically polls at least one on-premise ATG controller, and pre-programmed with a cyclic schedule and stores locally a historical record of at least several of the last cycles'"'"' worth of such polled data;
providing a communications network having intermediate storage and a given message-switching message-propagating technology;
providing a data-destination party with a message-switching address;
each data communicator periodically propagating a data message over the communications network by means of the given message-switching message-propagating technology and as addressed to the data destination party, which data message contains the data of the at least last-in-time cycle as polled from the associated at least one on-premise ATG controller. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
-
Specification