Digital Signage Network Decentralized Data Distribution
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing digital signage networks face issues with bandwidth inefficiency and lack of flexibility in content rendering and provisioning, particularly as they scale, due to centralized control mechanisms that prioritize advertising content over other data types and require extensive administrative effort for location-specific data management.
Innovation Solution
A digital signage network architecture featuring a plurality of content sources, a distribution node, and display nodes that use a common data model for content formatting, subscription engines for managing data requests, and receive/transmit queues for efficient data transmission, allowing for decentralized data distribution and reduced bandwidth consumption.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If centralized provisioning transmits all location specific data to each display, then ease of administration is improved, but bandwidth consumption increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts location-specific data filtering logic from the centralized server and places it in the display nodes themselves. Each display node maintains a local copy of location data and autonomously determines which data is relevant to its current location, extracting only that specific portion from the full data set rather than receiving all data through centralized provisioning.
Solution Approach 2:
Display nodes perform self-provisioning by autonomously determining their own location and filtering location-specific data locally. The system eliminates dependency on centralized administration for data selection, allowing each display to self-manage its data requirements and reduce bandwidth consumption without sacrificing administrative ease.
2Reliability
If displays poll centralized content server for new data, then data freshness is improved, but network traffic increases as network size grows
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-loading location-specific data into display nodes during initial provisioning or updates. Displays maintain local caches of relevant data and only request updates when necessary, rather than continuously polling the server. This preliminary preparation ensures data freshness while dramatically reducing ongoing network traffic.
Solution Approach 2:
Display nodes implement feedback mechanisms that notify the centralized server when data updates are needed. Instead of continuous polling, the system uses event-driven architecture where displays signal their data needs, and the server pushes updates only when changes occur. This feedback-based approach maintains data freshness while eliminating unnecessary network traffic from constant polling.
3Stability of the object's composition
If centralized server transmits data to all displays, then content consistency is improved, but scalability decreases due to increased administrative burden
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the content distribution function by separating global content management from local data filtering. The centralized server maintains content consistency for universal content, while individual display nodes handle location-specific data filtering and selection. This segmentation allows the system to scale by distributing intelligence to edge nodes rather than increasing centralized complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
Display nodes are designed with multi-functionality, serving both as content display devices and as autonomous data filtering/provisioning agents. Each node universally handles its own data requirements while also being capable of receiving and displaying content from the centralized server. This universal design simplifies scalability by making each node self-sufficient while maintaining system-wide consistency.
Data Source
AI summary
A digital signage network employs a common data model and a subscription system to disseminate data gathered from a plurality of data sources to a number of displays. The network nodes interact with each other as content sources, content consumers, or both, with some systems acting as consumers to upstream sources and acting as sources to downstream consumers. The presentation of the data on a digital signage display allows for real-time binding of live data to provide a rich display effect.