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Virtual gateway for a connected device

  • US 9,544,120 B2
  • Filed: 06/12/2015
  • Issued: 01/10/2017
  • Est. Priority Date: 06/13/2014
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A method for communicating to connected devices in a local environment,the method comprising:

  • receiving, at a head end controller service comprising a software application executed on a remote server on the Internet, a command intent, the command intent indicating that a control signal for controlling an operation of a local connected device should be sent to the local connected device;

    wherein a local connected device is local to a particular building environment and communicates via short-range protocols while it remains in the building environment;

    detecting a plurality of pathways through which the control signal could potentially be sent and relayed, the pathways comprising a plurality of virtual-gateway-enabled personal communication devices,determining a best path through which to send and relay the control signal, wherein determining the best path comprises;

    checking a speed and a type of connection of two or more of the plurality of virtual-gateway enabled devices and;

    selecting one of the pathways through which to send and relay the control signal;

    sending, via an Internet or cellular data connection, the control signal from the head-end controller service to one of the virtual-gateway-enabled personal communication devices;

    receiving the control signal at the one of the virtual-gateway-enabled personal communication devices; and

    relaying the control signal from the one of the virtual-gateway-enabled personal communication devices to the local connected device via the one or more local radio frequency communication protocols,wherein the one of the virtual-gateway-enabled personal communication devices is local to the building when it receives and relays the control signal and comprises;

    a commercially available consumer computing device having a graphical user interface, a finite set of hardware components, and primary purposes other than the receiving and the relaying, anda downloadable software application on the computing device that executes the receiving and the relaying using only the finite set of hardware components of the computing device and no other additional hardware external to the computing device, the downloadable software application being;

    displayable on the graphical user interface,capable of receiving user inputs via the graphical user interface, andcapable of executing the receiving and the relaying both when it is displayed and not displayed.

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