Wireless communication between two temporarily connected devices

• US 8,749,353 B2
• Filed: 08/30/2012
• Issued: 06/10/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ABB BV (ABB Limited)
• Original Assignee: ABB Research Ltd. (ABB Limited)
• Inventors: Balgard, Lennart, Ericsson, Niclas, Hansen, Ewa, Gidlund, Mikael
• Primary Examiner(s): Zimmerman, Brian
• Assistant Examiner(s): MCCORMACK, THOMAS S
• Application Number:
  US13/599,883
• Publication Number:
  US 20130057389A1
• Time in Patent Office: 649 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 340/10.1
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/063 using wireless information transmission between the vehicle and a fixed station identification of vehicles G08G
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 Direct-mode setup

Abstract

A system for setting up a wireless connection between two temporarily connected devices includes a device interconnector having a first end provided with a first wireless communication identifier and a second end provided with a second wireless communication identifier, a first device having a first interconnector mating unit, a first wireless communication unit and a first reading unit and a second device having a second interconnector mating unit, a second wireless communication unit and a second reading unit. The wireless communication units of each device is configured to receive an identifier being read by the corresponding reading unit as the device interconnector is attached to the corresponding mating unit and the wireless communication unit is configured to employ this identifier in setting up, together with the other wireless communication unit, a wireless connection between the two devices.

Claims

1. A method of setting up a wireless connection between two temporarily connected devices, the method comprising:

detecting a physical attachment of a first end of a device interconnector to an interconnector mating unit of a first device, said first end being provided with a first wireless communication identifier,

detecting a physical attachment of a second end of the device interconnector to an interconnector mating unit of a second device, said second end being provided with a second wireless communication identifier,

reading the wireless communication identifier of each end of the device interconnector the attachment of which has been detected,

setting up a dedicated two-way wireless connection between the two devices, and

exchanging data between the two devices over the wireless connection.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the device interconnector is a cable for transporting a quantity of a physical entity between the two devices, and the data being exchanged over the wireless connection is used for controlling the transportation.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the quantity is electrical power.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second wireless communication identifiers are the same.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein each wireless communication identifier includes a cryptographic key and the method further comprises encrypting data on the wireless connection by applying the cryptographic key of the corresponding wireless communication identifier.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein one of the devices is a vehicle and the other device is an energy delivery post.

8. The arrangement of claim 5, said first device further comprising a control unit configured to control the wireless communication unit.

9. The arrangement of claim 5, wherein said first device is a transportation vessel.

7. An arrangement for setting up a wireless connection between two temporarily connected devices, said arrangement comprising:

a device interconnector having a first end and a second end, where said first end is provided with a first wireless communication identifier and said second end is provided with a second wireless communication identifier related to the first wireless communication identifier,

a first device including

an interconnector mating unit for receiving the first end of the device interconnector,

the first device further including a reading unit configured to detect said first wireless communication identifier and to read a first identifying data comprised in it, and

the first device further including a wireless communication unit configured to receive the first identifying data and to and set up a dedicated two-way wireless connection between the first device and a second device.

10. The arrangement of claim 7, wherein said second device is an energy delivery post.

11. The arrangement of claim 7, wherein said second device is an electrical distribution box.

12. A device interconnector for allowing a wireless connection to be set up between two temporarily connected devices, said device interconnector having a first end adapted to be attached to a first device and a second end adapted to be attached to a second device, said first end comprising a first wireless communication identifier and said second end comprising a second wireless communication identifier in order to allow the first and second devices to detect identifying data comprised in the first and second wireless communication identifiers upon the physical attachment of the device interconnector to these devices for use in the setting up of one two-way wireless connection between them based on the identifying data.

13. A system for setting up a wireless connection between two temporarily connected devices, said system comprising

a device interconnector having a first end and a second end, where said first end is provided with a first wireless communication identifier and said second end is provided with a second wireless communication identifier related to the first wireless communication identifier,

a first device having a first interconnector mating unit, a first wireless communication unit and a first reading unit,

a second device having a second interconnector mating unit, a second wireless communication unit and a second reading unit,

wherein the wireless communication units of said devices are both configured to receive identifying data comprised in a wireless communication identifier being read by the corresponding reading unit as the device interconnector is attached to the corresponding mating unit and the wireless communication unit is configured to employ this identifying data in setting up, in conjunction with the other wireless communication unit, a dedicated two-way wireless connection between the two devices.