Remote data acquisition, transmission and analysis system including handheld wireless equipment
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A remote data acquisition, transmission and analysis system, comprising:
- a plurality of application controllers, each application controller configured to interface with a respective vending machine from which operation data is acquired by the application controller, each vending machine located at one of one or more geographical sites, each application controller including a serial interface configured to communicate with the respective vending machine using a Data EXchange/Uniform Communication Standard (DEX/UCS) protocol, and a RFID transceiver configured to scan inventory associated with the respective vending machine using the DEX/UCS protocol; and
at least one application host configured to communicate with the application controllers via a local area network and communicate with a network operations center remote from the one or more geographic sites using a wide area network, wherein a first of the application controllers is configured to function as a relay for communication between the at least one application host and a second of the application controllers when the second application controller is not capable of direct communication with the at least one application host,wherein the network operations center is configured to maintain a database storing the operation data and to communicate an alert message regarding at least one of the vending machines, the alert message comprising a real-time notification of at least one of an out-of-stock condition, a power outage and an incident of vandalism at the at least one vending machine.
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Abstract
A remote data acquisition, transmission and analysis system including handheld wireless equipment to obtain operational data and the status of remote machines is disclosed. A plurality of application controllers are interfaced with the remote machines from which operation data is acquired by the application controllers. The application controllers communicate with an application host via a local area network. The application host may communicate with a network operations center using a wide area network. The handheld wireless equipment may be used to obtain operational information for each remote machine from the network operations center.
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Citations
33 Claims
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1. A remote data acquisition, transmission and analysis system, comprising:
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a plurality of application controllers, each application controller configured to interface with a respective vending machine from which operation data is acquired by the application controller, each vending machine located at one of one or more geographical sites, each application controller including a serial interface configured to communicate with the respective vending machine using a Data EXchange/Uniform Communication Standard (DEX/UCS) protocol, and a RFID transceiver configured to scan inventory associated with the respective vending machine using the DEX/UCS protocol; and at least one application host configured to communicate with the application controllers via a local area network and communicate with a network operations center remote from the one or more geographic sites using a wide area network, wherein a first of the application controllers is configured to function as a relay for communication between the at least one application host and a second of the application controllers when the second application controller is not capable of direct communication with the at least one application host, wherein the network operations center is configured to maintain a database storing the operation data and to communicate an alert message regarding at least one of the vending machines, the alert message comprising a real-time notification of at least one of an out-of-stock condition, a power outage and an incident of vandalism at the at least one vending machine. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A method for remote data acquisition, transmission and analysis, comprising:
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interfacing a plurality of application controllers with vending machines from which operation data is acquired by the application controllers, the vending machines located at one or more geographical sites, each application controller communicating between a serial interface and the respective vending machine using a Data EXchange/Uniform Communication Standard (DEX/UCS) protocol and scanning, by a RFID transceiver of each application controller, inventory associated with the respective vending machine using the DEX/UCS protocol; communicating between an application host and each of the application controllers, wherein a first of the application controllers functions as a relay for communication between the application host and a second of the application controllers when the second application controller is not capable of direct communication with the application host; communicating the operation data between the application host and a network operations center remote to the one or more geographical sites using a respective wide area network; storing the operation data in a database associated with the network operations center; and communicating, by the network operations center, an alert message regarding at least one of the vending machines, the alert message comprising a real-time notification of at least one of an out-of-stock condition, a power outage and an incident of vandalism at the at least one vending machine. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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30. A remote data acquisition, transmission and analysis system comprising:
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a plurality of application controllers, each application controller interfacing with a respective vending machine from which operation data is acquired by the respective application controller, the vending machines located at a geographical site, each application controller including a serial interface configured to communicate with the respective vending machine using a Data EXchange/Uniform Communication Standard (DEX/UCS) protocol, and a RFID transceiver configured to scan inventory associated with the respective vending machine using the DEX/UCS protocol; and at least one application host configured to communicate with the application controllers via a local area network defined in part by electrical power lines and communicate with a network operations center remote to the site using a wide area network interface, wherein a first of the application controllers is configured to function as a relay for communication between the at least one application host and a second of the application controllers when the second application controller is not capable of direct communication with the at least one application host, wherein the network operations center is configured to maintain a database storing the operation data and to communicate an alert message regarding at least one of the vending machines, the alert message comprising a real-time notification of at least one of an out-of-stock condition, a power outage and an incident of vandalism at the at least one vending machine. - View Dependent Claims (31, 32)
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33. A remote data acquisition, transmission and analysis system comprising:
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a plurality of application controllers, each application controller interfacing with a respective vending machine from which operations data is required by the respective application controller, the vending machines located at a geographical site, each application controller including a serial interface configured to communicate with the respective vending machine using a Data EXchange/Uniform Communication Standard (DEX/UCS) protocol, and a RFID transceiver configured to scan inventory associated with respective vending machine using the DEX/UCS protocol; at least one application host configured to communicate with a plurality of application controllers via a local area network defined in part by electrical power lines, wherein a first of the application controllers is configured to function as a relay for communication between the at least one application host and a second of the application controllers when the second application controller is not capable of direct communication with the at least one application host; and the application host communicating with a network operations center remote to the site using a wide area network interface, wherein the remote network operations center is configured to maintain a database storing the operation data, to provide access to the database, and to communicate an alert message regarding at least one of the vending machines, the alert message comprising a real-time notification of at least one of an out-of-stock condition, a power outage and an incident of vandalism at the at least one vending machine.
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Specification