RFID server internals design

• US 8,098,158 B2
• Filed: 02/18/2005
• Issued: 01/17/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/01/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Kumar, Anush, Ahmed, Mohamed Fakrudeen Ali, Goteti, Janaki Ram, Reddy, Vamshidhar G. R., Sriram, Balasubramanian, Agarwal, Abhishek, Venkatesh, Ramachandran
• Primary Examiner(s): HOLLOWAY III, EDWIN C
• Application Number:
  US11/061,356
• Publication Number:
  US 20060047464A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,524 Days
• Field of Search: 340/10.1, 340/572.1, 340/572.4, 340/5.9, 340/5.92, 705/22, 705/23, 235/375, 235/376, 235/377, 235/381, 235/385
• US Class Current: 340/572.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/542 Event management; Broadcasting; Multicasting; Notifications
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions

Abstract

The subject invention provides a system and/or a method that facilitates implementing an RFID process by providing creation and/or execution of the RFID process as it relates to a provider(s) and the associated devices related to such provider(s). A receiver component can receive information relating to at least one or more providers. An RFID server component can employ the information in connection with providing an RFID process that can be applied generically to a plurality of devices associated with a subset of providers. An RFID engine can process an RFID event including an event processing tree that abstracts a logical entity, wherein the logical entity consists of a logical source can define the RFID process.

Claims

1. A system that facilitates implementing an RFID process by providing creation and/or execution of the RFID process as it relates to a provider and associated devices related to the provider, the system comprising one or more computer processors, system memory, and recorded computer-executable instructions, the system further comprising:

a component that receives information relating to at least one or more providers; and

an RFID server component that employs the information in connection with providing an RFID process that can be applied generically to a plurality of devices associated with a subset of the providers, the RFID server component enabling;

(1) a separation of a logical representation of the device and a physical representation of the device;

(2) a write-once independent software vendor model that can utilize an event processing tree to deploy in different environments with different device topologies;

(3) a user to define and author a business process to detect, consume and act upon the RFID event;

(4) a separation of design time, a deployment time, and execution time utilizing a binding model; and

(5) an RFID engine to execute the RFID process as a web-service, wherein process deployment/provisioning is transparent.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a device service provider interface (DSPI) component that facilitates uniform communication between at least one of the devices and the RFID server component, wherein the DSPI component is managed and provides at least one of:

a registration to the RFID server component;

unregistration to the RFID server component;

a driver load; and

a driver unload.

3. The system of claim 1, further comprising the RFID engine that processes an RFID event including the event processing tree that abstracts a logical entity, wherein the logical entity consists of a logical source that can be can be at least one of the following to define the RFID process:

a tag data source;

a filter;

a rule;

an alert;

an event handler;

a tracking option; and

a sink.

4. The system of claim 1, further comprising an RFID process manager component that contains an RFID process engine that executes at least one of the following RFID processes:

(1) providing authorization with a security manager component;

(2) loading the RFID process from a data store;

(3) opening device connection;

(4) applying a configuration setting on the device;

(5) subscribing an event with an event routing engine (ERE) component;

(6) interpreting a logical source and associated flow; and

(7) executing the logical source.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising a general purpose rules engine that receives an event from a worker thread in order to asynchronously execute multiple incoming events, for filtering and an alerting.

6. The system of claim 1, further comprising a device manager component that manages the device through at least one of the following:

(1) opening a connection to the device;

(2) maintaining a connection to the device, re-establishing a connection, (3) implementing an event;

connecting to a discovered device;

polling the device;

(4) storing a device object that represents the device; and

(5) handling a synchronous call to the device.

7. The system of claim 1, further comprising an ERE component that subscribes and delivers an event to a subscriber, wherein the event is one of the following:

(1) a tag read event;

(2) a tag read error;

(3) a tag write error;

(4) a device up event;

(5) a device down event; and

(6) a management event.

8. The system of claim 1, further comprising a server manager component that controls a lifecycle of the RFID server component in relation to an operating system service.

9. The system of claim 1, further comprising a security manager component that provides authorization for the RFID server component, wherein the authorization is one of the following:

(1) a permission authorization to execute the RFID process;

(2) a permission authorization to add an object to a data store;

(3) a permission authorization to modify an object to a data store;

(4) a permission authorization to delete an object to a data store; and

(5) a permission to configure an object to a data store.

10. The system of claim 1, further comprising a design handler component that implements device discovery and property discovery, which includes one of the following:

(1) receiving a device discovery event;

(2) aggregating a device discovery event;

(3) removing a device based upon invalidity of the device; and

(4) returning a set of non-configured devices.

11. A tangible computer readable storage medium having stored thereon computer-executable instructions for implementing the components of the system of claim 1.

12. The system of claim 1, the RFID server component utilizes a programming language that is one of the following:

C#, extensible markup language, and hypertext markup language.

13. A computer-implemented method that facilitates executing an RFID process, the method performed at least by executing computer-executable instructions upon one or more computer processors, the method comprising:

receiving information relating to at least one or more providers; and

employing the information in connection with providing an RFID process that can be applied generically to a plurality of devices associated with a subset of the providers, wherein employing the information includes;

separating a logical representation of the device and a physical representation of the device;

writing an independent software model once to be utilized with an event processing tree to deploy in different environments with different device topologies

defining and authoring a business process to detect, consume and act upon the RFID event;

separating a design time, a deployment time, and an execution time utilizing a binding model; and

executing the RFID process as a web-service, wherein process deployment/provisioning is transparent to an end user.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising utilizing an RFID engine that processes an RFID event including the event processing tree that abstracts a logical entity, wherein the logical entity can be at least one of the following to define the RFID process:

a tag data source;

a filter;

a rule;

an alert;

an event handler;

a tracking option; and

a sink.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

determining a read event;

utilizing a logical source containing a device;

employing a filter sequence to data of the device;

sending the event to an alert to evaluate against data of the device;

utilizing an event handler sequence;

sending the event to a sink to implement the event; and

sending the event to another process via a web-service interface.

16. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

utilizing an event that is addressed to a logical source from a queue;

passing the event through a filter sequence;

sending the event to an event handler engine;

processing the event and sending it to a queue;

determining if the logical source is a root logical source; and

sending the event to a sink to implement the event.

17. A computer-implemented system that facilitates implementing an RFID process, the system comprising one or more computer processors, system memory, and recorded computer-executable instructions, the system further comprising:

means for receiving information relating to a provider; and

means for employing the information in connection with providing an RFID process that can be applied generically to a plurality of devices associated with a subset of the providers, wherein employing the information includes enabling;

(1) a separation of a logical representation of the device and a physical representation of the device;

(2) a write-once independent software vendor model that can utilize an event processing tree to deploy in different environments with different device topologies;

(3) a user to define and author a business process to detect, consume and act upon the RFID event;

(4) a separation of design time, a deployment time, and execution time utilizing a binding model; and

(5) an RFID engine can execute the RFID process as a web-service, wherein process deployment/provisioning is transparent.