Mote servicing

• US 7,770,071 B2
• Filed: 10/19/2005
• Issued: 08/03/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alarm.com Inc. (Alarm.com Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: The Invention Science Fund I, L.L.C. (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Lord, Robert W., Levien, Royce A., Jung, Edward K. Y., Malamud, Mark A., Rinaldo, John D. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): GUYTON, PHILIP A
• Application Number:
  US11/254,231
• Publication Number:
  US 20070083789A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,749 Days
• Field of Search: 714/44, 714/47
• US Class Current: 714/47.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/18 Network protocols supporting networked applications, e.g. including control of end-device applications over a network

Abstract

One aspect can include determining that at least one mote device is operating outside normal operational parameters and should be serviced, and determining at least partially using the at least one mote device that is operationally located within a mote network is not meeting a goal of the at least one mote device with respect to the mote network and should be serviced. Another aspect can include determining that at least one mote device should undergo routine servicing and configuring the at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

determining that at least one mote device should undergo routine servicing; and

configuring the at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing, including configuring of the at least one mote device to automatically change its position to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing, including configuring the at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing even though the at least one mote device is operating properly.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining that at least one mote device should undergo routine servicing comprises:

determining at least partially using the at least one mote device that is at least partially located within a mote network that the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing to meet a goal of the at least one mote device with respect to the mote network.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuring the at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing comprises:

configuring the at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device is undergoing routine servicing performed at least partially by the at least one mote device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuring the at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing comprises:

configuring the at least one mote device to indicate, by automatically changing its orientation, that the at least one mote device should undergo routine servicing performed at least partially by at least one servicing device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuring the at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing comprises:

configuring the at least one mote device that can be operable to indicate the at least one mote device is to be collected to undergo the routine servicing.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuring the at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing comprises:

configuring the at least one mote device that can be operable to indicate the at least one mote device is to be repaired in situ to undergo the routine servicing.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuring the at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing comprises:

configuring the at least one mote device that can be operable to indicate the at least one mote device is to be transferred from a first mote network to a second mote network to undergo the routine servicing.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuring the at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing comprises:

configuring at least one status indicator of the at least one mote device that can be operable to indicate the at least one mote device to undergo the routine servicing.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuring the at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing, including configuring at least one position of the at least one mote device that can be operable to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing comprises:

configuring the at least one mote device to at least one of jackknife, flip, or change in a steady-state shape to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuring the at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing comprises:

configuring a change in color of the at least one mote device that can be operable to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuring the at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing comprises:

configuring at least one chemical tag or at least one fluorescent tag of the at least one mote device to be operable to change at least one tag property to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining that the at least one mote device does not have access to a sufficient power.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining that the at least one mote device does not have adequate data storage capabilities to operate properly.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sensing at least one parameter using the at least one mote device.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

actuating at least a portion of at least one other device using the at least one mote device.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying at least a portion of an image at least partially using the at least one mote device.

17. A method, comprising:

indicating at least one mote device should be serviced by automatically changing at least one physical characteristic of the at least one mote device and that is visible to a human operator even though the at least one mote device has determined that it is operating properly; and

in response to said indicating, servicing at least one mote device to control at least one operation that the at least one mote device is configured to perform.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the, servicing at least one mote device to control at least one operation that the at least one mote device is configured to perform further comprises:

servicing the at least one mote device to control at least one goal of the at least one mote device with respect to a mote network.

19. An apparatus, comprising:

at least one mote device operable to determine that it is operating outside normal operational parameters and should be serviced; and

the at least one mote device operable to indicate it should be serviced by the at least one mote device automatically displacing itself in response to the at least one mote device operable to determine that it is operating outside normal operational parameters and should be serviced, the at least one mote device configured to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo routine servicing even though the at least one mote device is operating within normal operational parameters.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the at least one mote device operable to indicate it should be serviced by automatically displacing itself in response to the at least one mote device operable to determine that it is operating outside normal operational parameters and should be serviced further comprises:

the at least one mote device operable to indicate it should be serviced by changing its own orientation, steady-state shape or color.

21. An apparatus, comprising:

at least one mote device operable to determine that it should undergo routine servicing; and

the at least one mote device operable to indicate the at least one mote device should be serviced at least partially in response to the at least one mote device operable to determine that is should undergo routine servicing, including being operable to indicate the at least one mote device should be serviced by the at least one mote device, the at least one mote device operable to indicate by automatically displacing itself that the at least one mote device should be serviced by the at least one mote device, the at least one mote device operable to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo the routine servicing even though the at least one mote device is operating properly.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the at least one mote device operable to indicate the at least one mote device should be serviced at least partially in response to the at least one mote device operable to determine that it should undergo routine servicing further comprises:

the at least one mote device operable to indicate by automatically changing its own orientation that the at least one mote device should be serviced by a servicing device.

23. An apparatus, comprising:

a displacing mechanism configurable to displace at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device is to undergo servicing, wherein the displacing mechanism includes a flipping mechanism configurable to flip the at least one mote device.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the displacing mechanism configurable to displace at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device is to undergo servicing comprises:

a flipping mechanism configurable to flip the at least one mote device to expose a different surface of the at least one mote device.

25. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the displacing mechanism configurable to displace at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device is to undergo servicing comprises:

a displacing mechanism located at least partially in the at least one mote device that is configurable to displace the at least one mote device.

26. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the displacing mechanism configurable to displace at least one mote device to indicate the at least one mote device is to undergo servicing comprises:

the displacing mechanism at least partially located in a servicing device that is configurable to displace the at least one mote device.

27. An apparatus, comprising:

a mote means for determining that it is operating properly; and

the mote means having a physical characteristic that is operable to be changed for indicating it is to undergo routine servicing even though it has determined that it is operating properly.

28. A system, comprising:

circuitry for determining that at least one mote device Is operating outside normal operational parameters and should be serviced; and

circuitry for visually indicating that the at least one mote device is to be serviced by automatically displacing the at least one mote device at least partially in response to the determining that the at least one mote device is operating outside normal operational parameters and should be serviced, the at least one mote device configured to indicate the at least one mote device should undergo routine servicing even though the at least one mote device is operating within normal operational parameters.