Method and apparatus for monitoring and processing sensor data in an interfacing-device network

• US 8,880,204 B2
• Filed: 01/08/2013
• Issued: 11/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ubiquiti Inc.
• Original Assignee: Ubiquiti Networks, Inc. (Ubiquiti Inc.)
• Inventors: Frei, Randall W., Cheng, Linker, Pera, Robert J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Spittle, Matthew D
• Application Number:
  US13/736,883
• Publication Number:
  US 20140006660A1
• Time in Patent Office: 665 Days
• Field of Search: 700/17, 700/18, 700/19, 700/20, 700/22, 700/49, 700/87, 700/90, 340/3.1, 710/305
• US Class Current: 700/90
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/26 Power supply means, e.g. regulation thereof for memories G11C
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/10 Program control for peripheral devices G06F13/14 - G06F13/42 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/01 characterised by the transmission medium
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2809 indicating that an appliance service is present in a home automation network monitoring functionality H04L43/0817; discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services, H04L67/51
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/281 indicating a format for calling an appliance service function in a home automation network for remote control or remote monitoring of applications H04L67/025
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2818 from a device located outside both the home and the home network access arrangements H04L12/2856; for remote control or remote monitoring of applications H04L67/025; arrangements for transmitting signals characterised by the use of a wireless eletrical link G08C17/00; telephonic communication systems adapted for combination with remote control systems H04M11/007
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2825 Reporting to a device located outside the home and the home network access arrangements H04L12/2856; for remote control or remote monitoring of applications H04L67/025; telephonic communication systems adapted for combination with telemetering systems H04M11/002
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/024 using relational databases for representation of network management data, e.g. managing via structured query language [SQL]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/065 related to network devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/10 Active monitoring, e.g. heartbeat, ping or trace-route
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/046 Interoperability with other network applications or services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/256 NAT traversal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/2575 using address mapping retrieval, e.g. simple traversal of user datagram protocol through session traversal utilities for NAT [STUN]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5061 Pools of addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• 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: H04L 67/141 : Setup of application sessions admission control or resource allocation in data switching networks H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/289 : Intermediate processing functionally located close to the data consumer application, e.g. in same machine, in same home or in same sub-network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 : Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 : Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/10 : Technologies improving the efficiency by using switched-mode power supplies [SMPS], i.e. efficient power electronics conversion e.g. power factor correction or reduction of losses in power supplies or efficient standby modes
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 : Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

An interfacing device is configured to process one or more rules, based on sensor data, to perform a predetermined action. During operation, the device can receive a device configuration that includes a rule for the interfacing device. The rule can include an action description for performing an action, and can include a condition that takes sensor data as input and indicates criteria for performing the action. The device can store the rule in a rule repository, and determines a remote interfacing device that generates data associated with the rule'"'"'s condition. The device can also subscribe to the data from the remote interfacing device.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a local interfacing device, a device configuration that includes a rule for the local interfacing device, wherein the rule includes an action description for performing an action, and includes a condition that indicates criteria for performing the action;

storing the rule in a rule repository;

determining a remote interfacing device that generates data associated with the rule'"'"'s condition; and

subscribing to the data from the remote interfacing device, wherein subscribing to the data involves;

generating a data-subscription request that indicates sensor data being subscribed to from the remote interfacing device, and further indicates a condition for transmitting data from the remote interfacing device to the local interfacing device; and

sending the data-subscription request to the remote interfacing device to subscribe to the data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein subscribing to the data from the remote interfacing device involves:

establishing a network connection with a network device, which includes the remote interfacing device or a controller device that manages the remote interfacing device; and

subscribing to the data from the remote interfacing device via the established connection.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the network connection is established using one or more of:

a WebSocket protocol;

a communication channel via the Session-Traversal Utilities for Network-address-translation (STUN) protocol; and

a Comet protocol.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the request for establishing the network connection using the WebSocket protocol includes at least one of:

a WebSocket handshake request to upgrade a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) session to a WebSocket session; and

a Sec-WebSocket-Key token from the network device.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein establishing the network connection using the WebSocket protocol further involves:

storing the Sec-WebSocket-Key in association with the network device;

generating a Sec-WebSocket-Accept token for the network device based on the Sec-WebSocket-Key; and

sending to the network device a response which acknowledges a persistent WebSocket communication channel, wherein the response includes at least the Sec-WebSocket-Accept token.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein establishing the network connection using the STUN protocol involves:

receiving a binding request that indicates network-addressing information for the network device, wherein the network-addressing information includes at least one or more of a network address and a port number; and

storing the network-addressing information in association with the network device.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein establishing the network connection using the Comet protocol involves:

receiving a long-polling request from the network device;

determining network-addressing information for the network device based on the long-polling request, wherein the network-addressing information includes at least one or more of a network address and a port number; and

storing the network-addressing information in association with the network device.

8. The method of claim 2, wherein establishing the network connection involves establishing a peer-to-peer network connection with the remote interfacing device.

9. The method of claim 2, wherein establishing the network connection involves:

determining that the remote interfacing device is not reachable via a peer-to-peer communication channel; and

establishing the network connection via a data-forwarding service.

10. The method of claim 2, wherein generating a data-subscription request involves generating the data-subscription request for a sensor data element associated with the rule, wherein the data-subscription request identifies the remote interfacing device;

and

wherein subscribing to the data from the remote interfacing device involves sending the data-subscription request to the network device via the established network connection.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

obtaining sensor data;

selecting a rule to process based on the sensor data;

determining that the rule'"'"'s condition is satisfied; and

processing the rule'"'"'s action description to perform the action.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein obtaining the sensor data involves obtaining sensor data from at least one of:

a local physical device that measures one or more physical attributes;

a remote interfacing device; and

a network controller which monitors and/or configures one or more interfacing devices.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein selecting the rule to process involves:

selecting a set of rules whose condition takes the obtained data as input;

determining a user-specified ordering for the set of rules, wherein the user-specified ordering indicates an order in which the rules are to be processed; and

selecting a rule, from the set of rules, based on the user-specified ordering.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein obtaining the sensor data involves periodically monitoring a data value from a physical device coupled to the local interfacing device;

and

wherein the method further comprises;

determining that the obtained data satisfies a data-subscription request from a remote interfacing device; and

communicating the obtained data to the remote interfacing device.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein communicating the data to the remote interfacing device involves communicating the data via an established network connection for communicating with the remote interfacing device.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the action includes one or more of:

sending an email message to a predetermined recipient;

creating a system alert;

generating an event for an event log;

computing a data value based in part on the received sensor data;

sending a predetermined signal pattern over a serial port; and

processing a predetermined script to configure a peripheral device via a serial port.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the rule includes a compound rule that is associated with multiple data sources, and wherein the compound rule includes a condition formed using one or more logical operators to process output data from one or more of:

a local physical device;

a condition from a previously processed rule;

an action description from a previously processed rule;

a remote interfacing device; and

a command from a network controller which monitors and/or configures one or more interfacing devices.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that when executed by a computer cause the computer to perform a method, the method comprising:

receiving a device configuration that includes a rule for a local interfacing device, wherein the rule includes an action description for performing an action, and includes a condition that indicates criteria for performing the action;

determining a remote interfacing device that generates data associated with the rule'"'"'s condition; and

subscribing to the data from the remote interfacing device, wherein subscribing to the data involves;

generating a data-subscription request that indicates sensor data being subscribed to from the remote interfacing device, and further indicates a condition for transmitting data from the remote interfacing device to the local interfacing device; and

sending the data-subscription request to the remote interfacing device to subscribe to the data.

19. An apparatus, comprising:

a communication module to receive a device configuration that includes a rule for a local interfacing device, wherein the rule includes an action description for performing an action, and includes a condition that indicates criteria for performing the action;

a source-determining module to determine a remote interfacing device that generates data associated with the rule'"'"'s condition; and

a communication module to subscribe to the data from the remote interfacing device, wherein subscribing to the data involves;

generating a data-subscription request that indicates sensor data being subscribed to from the remote interfacing device, and further indicates a condition for transmitting data from the remote interfacing device to the local interfacing device; and

sending the data-subscription request to the remote interfacing device to subscribe to the data.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein while subscribing to the data from the remote interfacing device, the communication module is further configured to:

establish a network connection with a network device, which includes the remote interfacing device or a controller device that manages the remote interfacing device; and

subscribe to the data from the remote interfacing device via the established connection.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the communication module establishes the network connection using one or more of:

a WebSocket protocol;

a communication channel via the Session-Traversal Utilities for Network-address-translation (STUN) protocol; and

a Comet protocol.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the request for establishing the network connection using the WebSocket protocol includes at least one of:

a WebSocket handshake request to upgrade a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) session to a WebSocket session; and

a Sec-WebSocket-Key token from the network device.

23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein while establishing the network connection using the WebSocket protocol, the communication module is further configured to:

store the Sec-WebSocket-Key in association with the network device;

generate a Sec-WebSocket-Accept token for the interfacing network device based on the Sec-WebSocket-Key; and

send to the network device a response which acknowledges the persistent WebSocket communication channel, wherein the response includes at least the Sec-WebSocket-Accept token.

24. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein while establishing the network connection using the STUN protocol, the communication module is further configured to:

receive a binding request that indicates network-addressing information for the network device, wherein the network-addressing information includes at least one or more of a network address and a port number; and

store the network-addressing information in association with the network device.

25. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein while establishing the network connection using the Comet protocol, the communication module is further configured to:

receive a long-polling request from the network device;

determine network-addressing information for the network device based on the long-polling request, wherein the network-addressing information includes at least one or more of a network address and a port number; and

store the network-addressing information in association with the network device.

26. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein while establishing the network connection, the communication module is further configured to establish a peer-to-peer network connection with the remote interfacing device.

27. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein while establishing the network connection, the communication module is further configured to:

determine that the remote interfacing device is not reachable via a peer-to-peer communication channel; and

establish the network connection via a data-forwarding service.

28. The apparatus of claim 19, further comprising a rule-processing module to:

obtain sensor data;

select a rule to process based on the sensor data;

determine that the rule'"'"'s condition is satisfied; and

process the rule'"'"'s action description to perform the action.

29. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein while selecting the rule to process, the rule-processing module is further configured to:

select a set of rules whose condition takes the obtained data as input;

determine a user-specified ordering for the set of rules, wherein the user-specified ordering indicates an order in which the rules are to be processed; and

select a rule, from the set of rules, based on the user-specified ordering.

30. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein while obtaining the sensor data, the rule-processing module is further configured to:

periodically monitor a data value from a physical device coupled to the local interfacing device;

determine that the obtained data satisfies a data-subscription request from a remote interfacing device; and

configure the communication module to communicate the obtained data to the remote interfacing device via an established network connection associated with the remote interfacing device.