Bluetooth internet of things sensor network

• US 9,763,029 B2
• Filed: 08/26/2015
• Issued: 09/12/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/26/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Mirza, Momin, Yagnyamurthy, Sai Sarath Chandra, Strumwasser, David J., Vaidya, Samir S.
• Primary Examiner(s): TAYLOR, NATHAN SCOTT
• Application Number:
  US14/835,812
• Publication Number:
  US 20170064491A1
• Time in Patent Office: 748 Days
• Field of Search: 4554142
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/106 using time related information in packets, e.g. by adding timestamps
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/06 Selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS]; Services to user groups; One-way selective calling services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

A mobile device executes an application installed on the mobile device to detect transmissions of broadcasted advertising packet data units (PDUs) via a short range wireless protocol. The mobile device receives a first broadcasted advertising PDU via the short range wireless protocol from a first Internet of Things (IoT) device, and the application determines a first geo-location associated with the first IoT device and generates a first timestamp based on receipt of the first broadcasted advertising PDU. The application at the mobile device forwards, via a wireless protocol that is different than the short range wireless protocol, the first broadcasted advertising PDU, the first geo-location, and the first timestamp to a remote data server.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

installing an application on a mobile device;

executing the application to detect a number N sequentially-linked broadcasted advertising packet data units (PDUs) via a short range wireless protocol, wherein each of the N sequentially-linked broadcasted advertising PDUs carries a sensor data payload that is a portion of a quantity Q of sensor data corresponding to at least one sensor measurement;

receiving, at the mobile device, a first broadcasted advertising PDU of the N sequentially-linked broadcasted advertising PDUs, via the short range wireless protocol from a first Internet of Things (IoT) device;

determining, by the application, a first geo-location associated with the first IoT device;

generating, by the application, a first timestamp based on receipt of the first broadcasted advertising PDU;

extracting, from the first broadcasted advertising PDU, a sequence number inserted into the first broadcasted advertising PDU by the first IoT device;

determining whether the sequence number is equal to N;

storing, based on a determination that the sequence number is not equal to N, the first broadcasted advertising PDU in sequence until each of the N sequentially-linked broadcasted advertising PDUs is accumulated; and

forwarding, by the application from the mobile device via a wireless protocol that is different than the short range wireless protocol, the first broadcasted advertising PDU, the first geo-location, and the first timestamp to a remote network device in a block of data including the accumulated N sequentially-linked broadcasted advertising PDUs.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the sensor data is related to a parameter or a condition detected by a sensor at the first IoT device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the at least one sensor measurement comprises multiple measurements of the parameter or the condition at different points in time.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless protocol that is different than the short range wireless protocol comprises a Wi-Fi protocol.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless protocol that is different than the short range wireless protocol comprises a cellular network protocol.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein for each of the N sequentially-linked broadcasted advertising PDUs having a sequence number that is less than N, a size of the sensor data payload is the same.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the sensor data comprises image data, temperature data, wind speed data, barometric pressure data, power usage data, or humidity data.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first broadcasted advertising PDU comprises a BLUETOOTH advertising PDU.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the short range wireless protocol comprises a wireless protocol associated with Bluetooth, Insteon, Infrared Data Association (IrDA), wireless Universal Serial Bus (USB), Z-Wave, ZigBee, or Body Area Network (BAN).

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the mobile device comprises one of a cellular telephone;

a smart phone;

a personal digital assistant (PDA);

a laptop, palmtop or tablet computer;

a gaming device;

a media player device;

or a digital camera.

11. A non-transitory storage medium storing instructions executable by a computational device, wherein the instructions comprise instructions to:

receive, at a mobile device, a first broadcasted advertising packet data unit (PDU), of a number N sequentially-linked broadcasted advertising PDUs transmitted via a short range wireless protocol from a first Internet of Things (IoT) device, wherein each of the N sequentially-linked broadcasted advertising PDUs carries a sensor data payload that is a portion of a quantity Q of sensor data corresponding to at least one sensor measurement;

determine a first geo-location associated with the first IoT device;

generate a first timestamp based on receipt of the first broadcasted advertising PDU;

extract, from the first broadcasted advertising PDU, a first sequence number inserted into the first broadcasted advertising PDU by the first IoT device;

determine whether the first sequence number is equal to N;

store, based on a determination that the first sequence number is not equal to N, the first broadcasted advertising PDU in sequence;

receive, at the mobile device, a second broadcasted advertising PDU transmitted via the short range wireless protocol from the first IoT device;

extract, from the second broadcasted advertising PDU, a second sequence number inserted into the second broadcasted advertising PDU by the first IoT device;

determine whether the second sequence number is equal to N; and

forward, based on a determination that the second sequence number is equal to N and via a wireless protocol that is different than the short range wireless protocol, the first broadcasted advertising PDU and the second broadcasted advertising PDU to a remote network device in a single block of data.

12. The non-transitory storage medium of claim 11, wherein the wireless protocol that is different than the short range wireless protocol comprises a Wi-Fi protocol.

13. The non-transitory storage medium of claim 11, wherein each of the first and second advertising PDUs comprise a BLUETOOTH advertising PDU.

14. The non-transitory storage medium of claim 11, wherein the short range wireless protocol comprises a Bluetooth, Insteon, Infrared Data Association (IrDA), wireless Universal Serial Bus (USB), Z-Wave, ZigBee, or Body Area Network (BAN) wireless protocol.

15. A mobile device, comprising:

a first wireless transceiver configured to communicate via a low power, short range wireless protocol and to receive a first broadcasted advertising packet data unit (PDU), of a number N sequentially-linked broadcasted advertising PDUs, via the short range wireless protocol from a first Internet of Things (IoT) device;

a second wireless transceiver configured to communicate via a wireless protocol that is different than the short range wireless protocol; and

a processing unit configured to execute an application to detect the N sequentially-linked broadcasted advertising PDUs via the short range wireless protocol, wherein each of the N sequentially-linked broadcasted advertising PDUs carries a sensor data payload that is a portion of a quantity Q of sensor data obtained corresponding to at least one sensor measurement, and wherein the processing unit is further configured to;

determine a first geo-location associated with the first IoT device,

generate a first timestamp based on receipt of the first broadcasted advertising PDU,

extract, from the first broadcasted advertising PDU, a sequence number inserted into the first broadcasted advertising PDU by the first IoT device,

determine whether the sequence number is equal to N,

store, based on a determination that the sequence number is not equal to N, the first broadcasted advertising PDU in sequence until each of the N sequentially-linked broadcasted advertising PDUs is accumulated; and

forward, via the second wireless transceiver and the wireless protocol that is different than the short range wireless protocol, the first broadcasted advertising PDU, the first geo-location, and the first timestamp to a remote network device in a single block of data including the accumulated N sequentially-linked broadcasted advertising PDUs.

16. The device of claim 15, wherein the sensor data is related to a parameter or condition detected by a sensor at the first IoT device.

17. The device of claim 16, wherein the at least one sensor measurement comprises multiple measurements of the parameter or the condition at different points in time.

18. The device of claim 15, wherein the short range wireless protocol comprises a wireless protocol associated with Bluetooth, Insteon, Infrared Data Association (IrDA), wireless Universal Serial Bus (USB), Z-Wave, ZigBee, or Body Area Network (BAN), and wherein the wireless protocol that is different than the short range wireless protocol comprises a Wi-Fi protocol or a cellular network protocol.

19. The device of claim 15, wherein for each of the N sequentially-linked broadcasted advertising PDUs having a sequence number that is less than N, a size of the sensor data payload is the same.

20. The device of claim 15, wherein the sensor data comprises image data, temperature data, wind speed data, barometric pressure data, power usage data, or humidity data, and wherein the first broadcasted advertising PDU comprises a BLUETOOTH advertising PDU.