System and method for low power data routing

• US 10,524,083 B2
• Filed: 10/04/2018
• Issued: 12/31/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/02/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Estimote Polska Sp. z o.o.
• Original Assignee: Estimote Polska Sp. z o.o.
• Inventors: Krzych, Jakub, Kostka, Lukasz
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Mahendra R
• Application Number:
  US16/152,254
• Publication Number:
  US 20190037341A1
• Time in Patent Office: 453 Days
• Field of Search: 4554561, 455 412, 455445, 340 102, 370352
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 11/06 using intensity measurements
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/02 using radio waves using satellite radio beacon systems for determining position G01S19/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0226 Transmitters
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0294 Trajectory determination or predictive filtering, e.g. target tracking or Kalman filtering
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0295 Proximity-based methods, e.g. position inferred from reception of particular signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/27 for locating or positioning the transmitter
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/318 Received signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• 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 4/027 using movement velocity, acceleration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• 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 4/50 Service provisioning or reconfiguring
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/322 Power control of broadcast channels
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A system for data routing includes a set of beacons, an object, and a data routing system. A method for data routing can include: generating a routing table, determining a data routing path based on the routing table, and routing data to an endpoint based on the data routing path.

Claims

1. A method for routing data within a local node network including a plurality of individually-addressed Bluetooth nodes, the method comprising:

at a remote computing system physically remote from the node network;

determining a battery level of each node within the node network;

generating a routing table for the node network based on the node battery levels;

wirelessly connecting to a first node of the node network, wherein the first node comprises a cellular hardware module;

after wirelessly connecting to the first node, determining;

data addressed to a target node of the node network; and

an optimal routing path from the first node to the target node, the optimal routing path determined based on the routing table;

transmitting the data and the optimal routing path to the first node; and

at the first node, receiving the data and the optimal routing path from the remote computing system; and

routing the data from the first node to the target node according to the optimal routing path, using Bluetooth radios of nodes identified within the optimal routing path.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein each node of the plurality of nodes is operable between an advertising mode and a scanning mode, wherein:

operating in the advertising mode comprises broadcasting a respective data packet at a predetermined frequency; and

operating in the scanning mode comprises operating a Bluetooth radio of the node in a transmission mode.

3. The method claim 1, wherein the optimal routing path comprises:

a set of intermediate nodes, wherein each intermediate node of the set is associated with a respective next node and a respective preceding node, the respective next node different from the respective preceding node;

the first node, wherein the first node is a preceding node of an initial intermediate node of the set of intermediate nodes; and

the target node, wherein the target node is a next node of a final intermediate node of the set of intermediate nodes, and wherein the target node is affixed to an endpoint.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein routing the data from the first node to the target node comprises, sequentially, at each intermediate node:

switching to a scanning mode from an advertising mode;

while in the scanning mode, receiving the data and the optimal routing path from the respective preceding node of the intermediate node;

upon receipt of the data and the optimal routing path, forwarding the data and the optimal routing path to the respective next node of the intermediate node; and

after forwarding the data and the optimal routing path, switching to the advertising mode.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the advertising mode comprises broadcasting a respective data packet at a predetermined frequency.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the scanning mode comprises operating the Bluetooth radios in a transmission mode, wherein the Bluetooth radios are UWB radios.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein the optimal routing path comprises all hops between the first node and the target node.

8. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

at an intermediate node of the set, broadcasting a plurality of data packets, each data packet of the plurality comprising a respective node identifier associated with the intermediate node;

at the first node,

receiving a data packet of the plurality from the intermediate node; and

in response to receiving the data packet, transmitting the data packet to the remote computing system;

at the remote computing system;

receiving the data packet from the first node;

in response to receiving the data packet, determining the data and the optimal routing path; and

in response to determining the data and the optimal routing path, transmitting the data and the optimal routing path to the first node.

9. The method of claim 3, wherein the data comprises operation parameter settings for the plurality of nodes, the method further comprising, at the first node:

receiving the operation parameter settings and the optimal routing path from the remote computing system; and

operating according to the operation parameter settings.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

at a first node, forwarding the operation parameter settings and the optimal routing path from the first node to the initial intermediate node; and

at the initial intermediate node;

receiving the operation parameter settings; and

in response to receiving the operation parameter settings, operating according to the operation parameter settings.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein operating according to the operation parameter settings comprises broadcasting at a predetermined frequency.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the first node comprises a GPS module, the method further comprising, at the first node:

determining location information using the GPS module; and

transmitting the location information to the remote computing system.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein transmitting location information comprises:

in response to determining the location information, storing the location information in memory;

periodically, at a predetermined frequency, sending all location information stored in memory to the remote computing system; and

in response to sending the location information, erasing the location information.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising, at the remote computing system:

receiving, from the first node;

a first data packet associated with the first node; and

a second data packet associated with a second node, wherein the second node is different from the first node and the target node; and

based on the first data packet, determining a first location of the first node;

based on the second data packet, determining a second location of the second node; and

based on the first location and the second location, determining a target location of the target node.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

at the remote computing system, transmitting;

a request for operation data associated with the target node; and

the optimal routing path; and

at the target node;

receiving the request and the optimal routing path; and

after receiving the request and the optimal routing path, transmitting the operation data and the optimal routing path to the remote computing system, the operation data comprising at least one of;

operation parameters and beacon data.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the operation data further comprises the battery level of the target node.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising, at the remote computing system:

after determining the battery level of each node, determining an updated battery level of each node; and

after determining the updated battery level of each node, generating an updated routing table for the node network based on the updated battery level of each node.