System and method for synchronizing operations of a plurality of devices via messages over a communication network
First Claim
1. A system comprising:
- at least two devices that are communicatively coupled via a communication network, wherein the at least two devices include means for synchronizing their clocks;
the at least two devices comprise a means for communicating to the other of the at least two devices, via the communication network, a message that includes a timestamp and identifies an event, the message being sent over the communication network to coordinate the operations of the at least two devices, wherein the identified event occurs internally to one of the at least two devices, and said means for communicating said message to the other of the at least two devices comprises means for broadcasting said message via said communication network; and
the at least two devices comprise a means for receiving the message and determining a responsive action to take in response to the identified event, wherein a determined action is taken based on the timestamp included in the message.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method synchronize operations of a plurality of devices via messages over a communication network. A plurality of devices are communicatively coupled via a communication network, and the devices have their local clocks synchronized to a high degree of precision a technique, such as IEEE 1588, for synchronizing their local clocks. Event messages can be sent that include an identification of an event, as well as a timestamp that is based on the local clock of the sender. The recipient of an event message determines if it is configured to act on the identified event, and if so it takes its action based on the timestamp included in the event message. In certain embodiments, the events that are to trigger an action and/or the specific responsive actions to be taken for a given event are dynamically programmable for each device.
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Citations
41 Claims
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1. A system comprising:
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at least two devices that are communicatively coupled via a communication network, wherein the at least two devices include means for synchronizing their clocks; the at least two devices comprise a means for communicating to the other of the at least two devices, via the communication network, a message that includes a timestamp and identifies an event, the message being sent over the communication network to coordinate the operations of the at least two devices, wherein the identified event occurs internally to one of the at least two devices, and said means for communicating said message to the other of the at least two devices comprises means for broadcasting said message via said communication network; and the at least two devices comprise a means for receiving the message and determining a responsive action to take in response to the identified event, wherein a determined action is taken based on the timestamp included in the message. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A system comprising:
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at least two devices that are communicatively coupled via a communication network, wherein the at least two devices have synchronized clocks; the at least two devices each comprise an event manager that is operable to receive messages from the other of the at least two devices, the messages being sent over the communication network to coordinate the operations of the at least two devices wherein the messages include information identifying an event and a timestamp, and the event occurs internally to one of the at least two devices; and the event manager is operable to determine whether to trigger an action by its corresponding device responsive to an identified event in a received message, wherein if an action is determined to be triggered, such action is triggered based on the timestamp included in the received message. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A system comprising:
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a plurality of devices that are communicatively coupled via a communication network, wherein the at least two devices have synchronized clocks; at least one of the plurality of devices comprising an interface for receiving input that programs the at least one device to take a defined action responsive to a specified event;
the at least one of the plurality of devices further comprising an event manager operable to receive messages from the others of the plurality of devices, wherein the messages include information identifying an event and a timestamp the messages being sent over the communication network to coordinate the operations of the at least two devices, and the event occurs internally to one of the plurality of devices; andwherein the event manager is operable to determine whether an event identified by a received message is an event for which the at least one of the plurality of devices is programmed to take a corresponding defined action, and if the event identified by a received message is an event for which the at least one of the plurality of devices is programmed to take a corresponding defined action, the event manager triggers the at least one of the plurality of devices to take the corresponding defined action based on the timestamp of the received message. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26)
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27. A method comprising:
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receiving, by at least one of a plurality of devices that are communicatively coupled to a communication network, a message that includes identification of an event and a timestamp, wherein the message is used to coordinate the operations of the plurality of devices; determining, by the at least one receiving device, if the received message identifies an event on which the at least one receiving device is to act, wherein the event occurs internally to one of the plurality of devices; if determined that the received message identifies said event on which the at least one receiving device is to act, then said at least one receiving device acting on the identified event based on the timestamp included in the received message. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29, 30)
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31. A method comprising:
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sending, via a communication network, a message from a first device to at least one other device, wherein the message identifies an event and includes a timestamp, the message being sent over the communication network to coordinate the operations of the first and at least one other device, wherein the event occurs internally to the first device;
receiving the message, by the at least one other device;determining, by the at least one other device, if the event identified in the received message is actionable; and if determined by the at least one other device that the identified event is actionable, said at least one other device taking action responsive to the identified event based on the timestamp included in the message. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34, 35, 36)
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37. A method comprising:
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programming a device to define an action for the device to take responsive to a specified event;
receiving, by the device, messages via a communication network from at least one other device with which the device is temporally synchronized, the messages being sent over the communication network to coordinate the operations of the device and the at least one other device, wherein the messages each identify an event and include a timestamp, and each event occurs internally to the device;determining, by the device, whether an event identified by a received message is the specified event; and if the event identified by a received message is the specified event, then the device taking the defined action based on the timestamp of the received message. - View Dependent Claims (38, 39, 40, 41)
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Specification