Systems and methods for dynamic sensor discovery and selection

• US 7,324,804 B2
• Filed: 02/06/2004
• Issued: 01/29/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/21/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Extreme Networks, Inc.
• Original Assignee: AirDefense Incorporated (Motorola Solutions, Inc.)
• Inventors: Haddad, Issam Nadim, Hrastar, Scott E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Feild; Joseph
• Assistant Examiner(s): Peaches; Randy
• Application Number:
  US10/773,915
• Publication Number:
  US 20040218602A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,453 Days
• Field of Search: 455/410, 455/411, 455/426.2, 455/425, 455/404.2, 455/404.1, 455/41.2, 455/456.1, 455/424, 455/423, 709/228, 370/447, 370/461, 370/462, 370/216, 370/477, 726/22.25, 726/27
• US Class Current: 455/410
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/1416 Event detection, e.g. attack signature detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/1425 Traffic logging, e.g. anomaly detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/025 for remote control or remote monitoring of applications
• 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 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/122 Counter-measures against attacks; Protection against rogue devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/126 Anti-theft arrangements, e.g. protection against subscriber identity module [SIM] cloning
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

This application is directed to systems and methods for managing wireless network sensors. A plurality of wireless network sensors in the network region are identified. For each of the network sensors in the plurality of wireless network sensors, a designation of primary or secondary with respect to the network region is selected. A collection agent for the selected network region is determined. An indicator of the determined collection agent is communicated to the plurality of wireless network sensors in the network region. Scan data for the network region is received from the collection agent.

Claims

1. A method of managing wireless network sensors, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) dynamically identifying a plurality of wireless network sensors in a selected network region;

(b) selecting for each of the wireless network sensors in the plurality a designation of primary or secondary with respect to the selected network region, the designation of primary or secondary being operable to allocate responsibility for monitoring a first portion of the selected network region, wherein a wireless sensor designated as secondary for a first portion of the selected network region is designated as primary for a second portion of the selected network region;

(c) determining a collection agent for the selected network region, the collection agent being operable to collect scan data from the plurality of wireless sensors;

(d) communicating an indicator of the determined collection agent to the plurality of wireless network sensors in the network region; and

(e) receiving scan data for the selected network region from the collection agent, wherein the received scan data is derived at least in part from data monitored by a wireless network sensor with a primary designation for that network region.

2. The method of claim 1, and further comprising the step of (f) communicating the selected designation to the wireless network sensor for which the designation was selected.

3. The method of claim 1, and further comprising the step of (f) receiving network configuration information and wherein the step of (a) dynamically identifying the plurality of wireless network sensors uses the received network configuration information.

4. The method of claim 1, and further comprising the step of (f) repeating steps (a) through (e) for a plurality of selected network regions.

5. The method of claim 4, and further comprising the step of (g) repeating steps (a) through (e) for a selected network region.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein step (g) occurs at periodic intervals or upon occurrence of an event.

7. The method of claim 6, and further comprising the step of (h) detecting a status change in one or more of the wireless network sensors in the plurality identified for the selected network region and wherein step (g) occurs in response to the detected status change.

8. The method of claim 6, and further comprising the step of (h) receiving a configuration request with respect to the selected region and wherein step (g) occurs in response to the received configuration request.

9. The method of claim 4, wherein step (f) occurs at periodic intervals or upon occurrence of an event.

10. The method of claim 9, and further comprising the step of (g) detecting a network status change and wherein (f) occurs in response to the detected network status change.

11. The method of claim 9, and further comprising the step of (g) receiving a configuration request and wherein step (f) occurs in response to the received configuration request.

12. The method of claim 1, and further comprising the step of (f) repeating steps (a) through (e) for the network region.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein step (f) occurs at periodic intervals or upon occurrence of an event.

14. The method of claim 13, and further comprising the step of (g) detecting a network status change and wherein (f) occurs in response to the detected network status change.

15. The method of claim 13, and further comprising the step of (g) receiving a configuration request and wherein step (f) occurs in response to the received configuration request.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the identification step (a) comprises the steps of:

(i) broadcasting a message to one or more wireless sensors;

(ii) receiving acknowledgments from the one or more wireless sensors; and

(iii) determining whether the wireless sensor is within the network region.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the broadcasting step (i) comprises addressing the broadcast message to a predetermined logical port.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the broadcasting step (i) comprises broadcasting the message over a wired network.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein the selecting step (b) selects the designation for each wireless sensor based upon sensor coverage area, functional capability, numerical priority of device address or combinations thereof.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein the collection agent determining step (c) determines one of the wireless sensors as to be the collection agent.

21. The method of claim 1, wherein the received scan data is further derived at least in part from data monitored by a wireless network sensor with a secondary designation for the network region.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein the determined collection agent for the selected network region is a selected wireless network sensor from the plurality of wireless network sensors in the selected network region.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the selected wireless network sensor is one of the plurality of wireless network sensors for the selected region that has a primary designation.

24. One or more computer readable media storing instructions that upon execution by a computer cause the computer to perform the steps comprising:

dynamically identifying a plurality of wireless network sensors in a selected network region;

selecting for each of the wireless network sensors in the plurality a designation of primary or secondary with respect to the selected network region;

determining a collection agent for the selected network region;

communicating an indicator of the determined collection agent to the plurality of wireless network sensors in the network region; and

receiving scan data for the selected network region at the collection agent from the plurality of wireless network sensors in the network region, wherein the received scan data is derived at least in part from data monitored by a wireless network sensor with a primary designation for that network region.

25. A system for managing wireless network sensors, the system comprising:

means for storing identifiers for a plurality of wireless network sensors for a selected network region, wherein associated with each identifier is a primary or a secondary designation;

means for broadcasting a message to one or more wireless sensors, for receiving acknowledgments from the one or more wireless sensors, for determining whether each of the one or more wireless sensors is within the selected network region, and for each wireless network sensor determined within the selected network region, storing an identifier of that wireless network sensor in the storing means;

means for determining a collection agent for the selected network region;

means for communicating an indicator of the collection agent determined by the determining means to each of the plurality of wireless network sensors for which identifiers are stored in the storing means; and

means for receiving scan data for the selected network region from the collection agent, wherein the received scan data is derived at least in part from data monitored by a wireless network sensor with a primary designation for that network region.

26. A system for managing wireless network sensors, the system comprising:

a system data store capable of storing identifiers for a plurality of wireless network sensors for a selected network region and an identifier for a collection agent for the selected network region;

a communication interface allowing communication with a plurality of wireless network sensors;

a system processor in communication with the system data store and communication interface, wherein the system processor comprises one or more processing elements programmed or adapted to;

(a) broadcast a message to the plurality of wireless network sensors via the communication interface;

(b) receive acknowledgments from the plurality wireless network sensors;

(c) determine whether each wireless network sensor in the plurality is within the selected network region;

(d) designate each wireless network sensor determined to be within the selected network region as primary or secondary with respect to the selected network region, wherein each designation is based upon sensor coverage area, functional capability, numerical priority of device address or combinations thereof;

(e) determine a collection agent for the selected network region, the collection agent being operable to receive scan data from the plurality of wireless sensors and to sort the scan data based upon the designation associated with the wireless network sensors for a particular portion of the selected network region;

(f) communicate an indicator of the collection agent to each wireless network sensor determined to be within the selected network region; and

(g) receive scan data for the selected network region from the collection agent, wherein the received scan data is derived at least in part from data monitored by a wireless network sensor with a primary designation for that network region.

27. The system of claim 26, and further comprising at least one wireless network sensor.

28. The system of claim 26, wherein the collection agent is a wireless network sensor from the plurality of wireless network sensors determined to be in the selected network region.

29. The system of claim 26, wherein the collection agent is the system for managing wireless network sensors.