Machine generated sweepstakes entry model and associated distributed processing system

• US 7,020,678 B1
• Filed: 06/23/2000
• Issued: 03/28/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Byteweavr, LLC (Ascend Innovation Management, LLC)
• Original Assignee: United Devices, Inc. (Altair Engineering Incorporated)
• Inventors: Hubbard, Edward A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Coulter, Kenneth R.
• Application Number:
  US09/602,789
• Time in Patent Office: 2,104 Days
• Field of Search: 709/201, 709217-219, 709/102, 709/104, 718/104, 718/102, 712/28
• US Class Current: 709/201
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3237 about the players, e.g. profiling, responsible gaming, strategy/behavior of players, location of players

Abstract

A method for providing machine generated sweepstakes entries is disclosed for a distributed parallel processing system. The distributed processing system identifies and utilizes capabilities of distributed devices connected together through a wide variety of communication systems and networks and utilizes those capabilities to organize, manage and distribute project workloads to the distributed devices.

Claims

1. A method of operating a distributed parallel processing system having machine generated sweepstakes entries, comprising:

providing a server system;

coupling the server system to a network, the network being connectable to distributed devices;

providing entries to a sweepstakes as an incentive to couple the distributed devices to the server system through the network so that the distributed devices are capable of performing workloads for the distributed parallel processing system;

sending an entry workload to the distributed devices; and

receiving machine generated entries from the distributed devices, wherein the entry workload is sent at regular time intervals by the server system, wherein a completed entry workload must be received back from a distributed device within a selected period of time for an entry to be given to the distributed device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving step comprises receiving completed results of the entry workload from the distributed devices, the completed results representing a sweepstakes entry.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a client agent that operates on the distributed devices to perform workloads and to send to the server system the machine generated entries.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the client agent sends machine generated entries at regular time intervals depending upon a status for the distributed device.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the status comprises whether the distributed device is processing workloads for the distributed processing system.

6. The method of claim 3, further comprising sending an entry workload to the distributed device, the client agent utilizing the entry workload to generate sweepstakes entries.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the entries to a sweepstakes are provided to owners of the processing time for the distributed devices.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein an owner of the processing time returns the entries to a sweepstakes in return for connecting to the server system and receiving a software agent for enabling the one or more distributed devices to process workloads for distributed processing system.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the machine generated entries are generated in the distributed devices by the software agent in response to a request by the server system to process a workload for the distributed processing system.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the number of machine generated entries is a function of how much of the distributed devices processing time is allocated to process the workload.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the software agent determines how much of the distributed devices processing time to allocate to process the workload in response to a value of a corresponding number of machine generated entries set by the server system requesting the processing of the workload.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the software agent allocates processing time for processing a workload for the distributed processing system to assure the machine generated entries to the sweepstakes are accepted by the server system.

13. A method of operating a distributed processing system comprising:

coupling a server system to a network, the network being connectable to distributed devices;

providing a notice to the distributed devices of a desire to configure the distributed processing system by coupling selected ones of the distributed devices through the network to the server system, wherein the selected ones of the distributed devices are enabled by the server system to perform workloads for the distributed processing system;

providing entries to a sweepstakes as an incentive to couple the distributed devices to the server system through the network so that the distributed devices are capable of performing workloads for the distributed processing system;

receiving, in the server system, a machine generated entry to the sweepstakes from a distributed device;

sending an entry workload from the server system to the distributed devices, wherein the entry workload is sent by the server system to the distributed devices at regular time intervals and wherein a machine generated entry must be received back from the distributed device within a selected time period for the machine generated entry to be accepted by the server system.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising sending an entry workload from the server system to the distributed devices.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising providing a software agent that operates within the distributed devices to perform workloads and to send to the server system the machine generated entries.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the software agent sends machine generated entries at regular time intervals in response to a status of the distributed device.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the status includes an indication that the distributed device is processing workloads for the distributed processing system.

18. The method of claim 15, further comprises utilizing the entry workload by the software agent to generate the machine generated entries.

19. A distributed processing system having machine generated sweepstakes entries, comprising:

a server system coupled to a network, the network being connectable to distributed devices; and

a sweepstakes database coupled to the server system, the sweepstakes database storing machine generated entries associated with a plurality of the distributed devices, the plurality of distributed devices being capable of performing a workload for the distributed parallel processing system, wherein the machine generated entry comprises results from an entry workload sent to the distributed devices, the entry workload is sent at regular time intervals by the server system, wherein a completed entry workload must be received back from a distributed device within a selected period of time for an entry to be given to the distributed device.

20. The distributed processing system of claim 19, further comprising a client agent that operates on the distributed devices to perform workloads and to send to the server system the machine generated entries.

21. The distributed processing system of claim 20, wherein the client agent sends machine generated entries at regular time intervals depending upon a status for the distributed device.

22. The distributed processing system of claim 21, wherein the status comprises whether the distributed device is processing workloads for the distributed processing system.

23. The distributed processing system of claim 20, wherein the machine generated entry comprises results from an entry workload sent to the distributed devices and processed by the client agent.

24. A distributed processing system comprising:

a server system coupled to a network, the network being connectable to distributed devices capable of performing a workload for the distributed processing system; and

a sweepstakes database coupled to the server system that stores machine generated entries associated with corresponding ones of the distributed devices, wherein the machine generated entries are generated in response to results from an entry workload sent to the distributed devices at regular time intervals by the server system, and wherein a machine generated entry must be received back from the distributed device within a selected time period for the machine generated entry to be accepted by the server system.

25. The distributed processing system of claim 24, further comprising providing a software agent that operates within the distributed devices to perform workloads and to send to the server system the machine generated entries.

26. The distributed processing system of claim 25, wherein the software agent sends machine generated entries at regular time intervals in response to a status of the distributed device.

27. The distributed processing system of claim 26, wherein the status includes an indication that the distributed device is processing workloads for the distributed processing system.

28. The distributed processing system of claim 25, wherein the software agent utilizes the entry workload to generate the machine generated entry.

29. A software agent program operating within a distributed device capable of processing workloads for a distributed processing system (DPS), the software agent program comprising a program of instructions for performing the program steps of:

receiving a request from a server operating the DPS to process a selected workload for the DPS in exchange for an incentive, wherein the incentive includes a number of entries to the sweepstakes determined by performance data quantifying the distributed device'"'"'s performance in processing the selected workload;

determining a value of the incentive relative to resources of the distributed device required for processing the selected workload for the DPS;

authorizing processing of the selected workload by the distributed device in response to the value of the incentive;

determining the performance data from processing the selected workload;

determining a number of machine generated entries corresponding to the performance data; and

sending the performance data and the number of machine generated entries to the server, wherein a machine generated entry must be received back from the distributed device within a selected time period for the machine generated entry to be accepted by the server system.

30. The software agent program of claim 29, wherein the value of the incentive is determined relative to using resources of the distributed device for processing other than for the DPS.

31. The software agent program of claim 29, wherein the authorizing step is performed by an algorithm within the code of the software agent program without a user intervention.

32. A software agent program operating within a server managing a plurality of distributed devices coupled through a network for processing workloads for a distributed processing system (DPS), the software agent program comprising a program of instructions for performing the program steps of:

sending requests at specific first time period to one of the plurality of distributed devices to process a selected workload for the DPS in exchange for an incentive, wherein the incentive includes a number of machine generated entries to a sweepstakes determined by performance data from the distributed device processing the selected workload;

receiving machine generated entries and the performance data from the distributed device during a second time period following the first time period; and

accepting the machine generated entries in exchange for selected workload results from processing the selected workload in response to the performance data if the first time period falls within a predetermined required time period.

33. The software agent program of claim 32, wherein the performance data includes the selected workload results.

34. The software agent program of claim 32, wherein the performance data includes a processing time expended by the distributed device in completing the selected workload and generating the selected workload results.

35. The software agent program of claim 32, wherein the performance data includes a clock time at the server when the machine generated entries and the performance data from the distributed device is received by the server.

36. The software agent program of claim 32, wherein the software agent program negotiates with a distributed device agent program within the distributed device processing the selected workload using an algorithm to determine an acceptance number of machine generated entries to accept in response to the performance data.