Swarm management

• US 9,043,021 B1
• Filed: 07/30/2011
• Issued: 05/26/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/03/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hereford Zone Holdings LLC
• Original Assignee: Brendan E. Clark
• Inventors: Clark, Brendan Edward, Krosky, Ronald Charles, Ammar, Phillip George
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Khoi
• Assistant Examiner(s): PECHE, JORGE O
• Application Number:
  US13/194,944
• Time in Patent Office: 1,396 Days
• Field of Search: 700/101, 700/248, 700/245, 700/264, 901/1
• US Class Current: 700/248
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4011 Regulation of the cleaning machine by electric means; Control systems and remote control systems therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4061 Steering means; Means for avoiding obstacles; Details related to the place where the driver is accommodated
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/04 Automatic control of the travelling movement; Automatic obstacle detection
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/28 Installation of the electric equipment, e.g. adaptation or attachment to the suction cleaner; Controlling suction cleaners by electric means
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0022 characterised by the communication link data switching networks in general H04L12/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0027 involving a plurality of vehicles, e.g. fleet or convoy travelling fleet control of land vehicles from a control room G05D1/0297; traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/00; for marine craft G08G3/00; for aircraft G08G5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0291 Fleet control monitoring fleets in traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/127, G08G1/127
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2365 Ensuring data consistency and integrity
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4881 Scheduling strategies for dispatcher, e.g. round robin, multi-level priority queues
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06311 Scheduling, planning or task assignment for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/01 Mobile robot

Abstract

Systems, methods, and other embodiments associated with swarm management are described. One example system comprises a communication component configured to establish a communication link with at least one element, where the at least one element is part of a swarm. The example system also comprises a management component configured to manage performance of a task list by the swarm through the communication link.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a processor; and

a non-transitory computer-readable medium that is operatively coupled to the processor and stores processor-executable instructions that facilitate operation of components comprising;

a communication component that establishes a communication link with an element set of a swarm that comprises a first element and a second element, the communication component is disposed, at least in part, on the first element; and

a management component that manages performance of a task list by the swarm through use of the communication link and that manages performance of the task list by the swarm in a decentralized manner, the management component is disposed, at least in part, on the first element,

where the task list comprises at least one task capable of being performed, at least in part, by the swarm,

where the communication link is between at least the first element and the second element,

where the management component manages performance of the task list, at least in part, by making a decision if a task set of the task list can be accomplished by the swarm,

where the task set is one or more tasks,

where the management component, when the decision is that the task set of the task list cannot be accomplished by the swarm, performs a search producing search results for an element for addition to the swarm that enables accomplishment of the task set by the swarm,

where the management component causes the element for addition to the swarm to become part of the swarm when the search results in successful location of the element for addition to the swarm, and

where the element for addition is employed in accomplishment of the task set.

2. The system of claim 1, where the management component, at least in part, is disposed on the first element and the second element and where the communication component, at least in part, is disposed on the first element and second element.

3. The system of claim 1, where the management component populates the task list with a first task and a second task, where the management component assigns the first element to complete the first task, and where the management component assigns the second element to complete the second task.

4. The system of claim 3,

where the management component identifies a situation that stands to benefit from application of the swarm,

where the management component makes an evaluation of the situation after identification of the situation, and

where based, at least in part, on a result of the evaluation the management component selects the first task and the second task that are populated upon the task list.

5. The system of claim 1, where management of performance of the task list in a decentralized manner includes at least performance on an element-level where management of performance occurs independent of a central entity that exercises control over the first element and the second element with regard to performance of the task list.

6. The system of claim 1, where the communication component establishes the communication link with the element set as part of creation of the swarm.

7. A system, comprising:

a non-transitory computer-readable medium that is operatively coupled to a processor and stores processor-executable instructions that facilitate operation of components comprising;

a management component that makes a decision if a task list, which has one or more tasks, can be accomplished by a swarm and that performs, when the decision is that the task list cannot be accomplished by the swarm, a search for an element to the swarm that enables accomplishment of the task list by the swarm, and

a communication component that establishes a communication link with the element such that the element becomes part of the swarm when the search has an outcome with successful location of the element; and

where the swarm is a group of two or more elements that function with swarm intelligence,

where the element is part of the group,

where the swarm intelligence is a coordination of elements of the group,

where the elements of the group are decentralized,

where the elements of the group are self-organized, and

where the element is employed in accomplishment of the task list.

8. The system of claim 7, where the swarm is a first swarm and where the element is concurrently part of the first swarm and a second swarm.

9. The system of claim 8,

where the first swarm is not a sub-swarm of a larger swarm and

where the second swarm is not a sub-swarm of a larger swarm.

10. The system of claim 7, where the swarm is a first swarm, where a dispute arises on use of the element between the first swarm and a second swarm and where the management component rectifies the dispute.

11. The system of claim 10,

where the element is part of the first swarm, where the second swarm requests use of the element,

where the management component performs an evaluation with regard to the request to produce an evaluation result,

where the management component makes a decision on if element is to become part of the second swarm, based, at least in part, on the evaluation result, and

where the management component causes the element to become part of the second swarm if the decision is that the element is to become part of the second swarm.

12. The system of claim 7, where the swarm is a subsequent swarm, where the management component removes the element from a previous swarm, and where the management component causes the element to become part of the subsequent swarm after removal from the previous swarm.

13. The system of claim 7, where the element is a first element, where the communication component and the management component are part of a second element that is different form the first element, and where the management component causes the first element and second element to join together in a swarm.

14. The system of claim 7, where the element is caused to become part of the swarm after the element is lost from the swarm.

15. The system of claim 7,

where the management component decides that the element is to be removed from the swarm and

where the management component causes the element to be removed from the swarm after the element becomes part of the swarm and after the management component decides that the element is be removed from the swarm.

16. A system, comprising:

a processor that is coupled to a computer-readable medium and that executes an instruction set of one or more instructions retained by the computer-readable medium, where execution of the instructions set facilitates operation of components comprising;

a communication component to institute a communication link between a first element and a second element, where the first element and the second element are part of a swarm to execute a task list collaboratively and autonomously; and

a management component to cause a removal of the second element from the swarm, where the removal of the second element is forwarded through use of the communication link,

where performance of the task list is managed, at least in part, by way of a decision if a task list can be accomplished by the swarm,

where the task list is one or more tasks,

where when the decision is that the task list cannot be accomplished by the swarm, a search is performed to produce search results for an element for addition to the swarm that enables accomplishment of the task list by the swarm,

where the element is added to the swarm when the search results in successful location of the element that is added to the swarm, and

where the element is employed in accomplishment of the task list.

17. The system of claim 16, where, prior to causation of the removal of the second element from the swarm, the management component removes an information set from the second element and where the information set pertains to operation of the second element as part of the swarm.

18. The system of claim 16,

where the management component is to make a determination on if the swarm is to be disbanded,

where the management component is to cause a disband of swarm when the determination is that the swarm is to be disbanded, and

where removal of the second element is part of the disband.

19. The system of claim 16, the components comprising:

an evaluation component to evaluate the task list and swarm before removal of the second element to produce an evaluation result; and

a determination component to determine that the second element is expendable with regard to completion of the task list, where the management component causes removal of the second element after the second element is determined as expendable.

20. The system of claim 16, the components comprising:

an evaluation component to evaluate the task list and swarm after removal of the second element to produce an evaluation result,

where the management component is to distribute the task list among an element set of the swarm prior to removal of the second element,

where the management component is to distribute the task list among the element set of the swarm after removal of the second element, and

where distribution of the task list among the element set of the swarm after removal of the second element is based, at least in part, on the evaluation result.