Communication system and method for nodes associated with a vehicle

• US 9,971,889 B2
• Filed: 06/29/2015
• Issued: 05/15/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/13/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Gogo Business Aviation LLC (GOGO Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Gogo LLC (GOGO Incorporated)
• Inventors: Wahler, Ronald A., Mahoney, Kevin, Worosylo, Jon
• Primary Examiner(s): Maung, Zarni
• Application Number:
  US14/754,046
• Publication Number:
  US 20150319248A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,051 Days
• Field of Search: 709203, 709223-229, 709250
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/554 involving event detection and direct action
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2111 Location-sensitive, e.g. geographical location, GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2113 Multi-level security, e.g. mandatory access control
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2141 Access rights, e.g. capability lists, access control lists, access tables, access matrices
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0806 for initial configuration or provisioning, e.g. plug-and-play
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0263 Rule management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• 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

Abstract

Devices and nodes associated with a vehicle may communicate using a higher-level, common messaging protocol over an ad-hoc network to publish and subscribe to services, even though different nodes may utilize different types of links and channels. The network includes a rules node that is fixedly connected to the vehicle and that stores a set of rules. Given a possible publisher, subscriber, and/or a service, a node action is allowed or denied based on the set of rules. The rules may be generated or updated based on priorities, security levels, and/or characteristics of publishers, subscribers, their respective users, and/or services; a current dynamic condition; and/or user input. The rules node and at least one other node may be transported by the vehicle, and both transported nodes and nodes external to the vehicle may use the common messaging protocol to join the ad-hoc network, discover other nodes, authenticate, and publish/consume services.

Claims

1. A subscriber node, comprising:

an interface to a network; and

a subscribing engine configured to;

receive, via the interface to the network, an indication of a published service provided by a publisher node that is authenticated;

request, via the interface to the network, the published service from the publisher node;

receive an indication that the subscriber node is one of allowed to or not allowed to consume the published service, the indication determined, based on one or more rules provided by a rules node fixedly connected to a vehicle, the one or more rules governing an interrelationship between the subscriber node and the publisher node based on at least one of a dynamic condition, a flight state, or a travel state of the vehicle, wherein the subscriber node is allowed to consume the published service provided by the publisher node when the vehicle is in at least one of a first dynamic condition, a first flight state, or a first travel state, and wherein the subscriber node is not allowed to consume the published service provided by the publisher node when the vehicle is in at least one of a second dynamic condition, a second flight state, or a second travel state; and

when the received indication indicates that the subscriber node is allowed to consume the published service provided by the publisher node;

subscribe to the published service via the interface to the network;

receive an indication of a backup service for the published service upon a determination of the published service being a failed service, the backup service for the published service determined based on the one or more rules provided by the rules node; and

subscribe to the backup service via the connection to the network.

2. The subscriber node of claim 1, wherein one of the rules node comprises the publisher node, or the rules node comprises the subscriber node.

3. The subscriber node of claim 1, wherein the one or more rules further correspond to at least one of:

a characteristic of a data bearer channel communicatively coupling the publisher node to the subscriber node;

a priority of the published service;

a characteristic of the at least one of the publisher node or the subscriber node;

or

an identity of a user of the at least one of the publisher node or the subscriber node.

4. The subscriber node of claim 1, wherein the rules node is an only node being transported by the vehicle that is an active provider node of the set of rules.

5. The subscriber node of claim 4, wherein one of the publisher node or the subscriber node is transported by the vehicle, and the other one of the publisher node or the subscriber node is not transported by the vehicle.

6. The subscriber node of claim 1, wherein the available service comprises at least one of:

i) a public branch exchange voice service;

ii) a time service;

iii) a global positioning system service;

iv) a configuration service;

v) a domain name service;

vi) a wireless access point service;

vii) a storage service;

viii) a dynamic fault management and reporting service;

ix) a bearer data service;

x) a software key service;

xi) a digital rights management service;

xii) a health monitoring and reporting service;

or

xiii) a flight information service.

7. A system including the subscriber node of claim 1 and the rules node.

8. A system including the subscriber node of claim 1, the rules node, and the publisher node.

9. A system including the subscriber node of claim 1 and the publisher node.