Distributed Service Layer Transaction Coordinator for IoT

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative Solutions
Generate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Current IoT and M2M networks face challenges in managing distributed transactions across multiple service layer entities, leading to complexity and overhead for applications, as they need to handle atomicity, consistency, isolation, and durability requirements, especially in scenarios like smart factories where synchronized operations are critical.

Innovation Solution

A Distributed Service Layer Transaction (DSLT) service is introduced to offload the complexity of managing distributed transactions, providing capabilities for atomic processing, scheduling, execution criteria definition, retransmission policies, completion criteria, and priority settings, along with a simple RESTful API for applications, enabling atomic and isolated transaction management across multiple service layer entities.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If applications directly manage distributed transactions across multiple service layer entities, then transaction control and coordination can be achieved, but application complexity and overhead increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvetransaction atomicityVSAvoidapplication complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces a service layer transaction coordinator as an intermediary component that manages distributed transactions between applications and multiple service layer entities. The coordinator handles transaction initiation, coordination, commit, and rollback operations, freeing applications from direct transaction management complexity while ensuring ACID properties through centralized control mechanisms.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent extracts transaction management functionality from applications and relocates it to the service layer. By separating transaction coordination responsibilities from application logic, the system reduces application complexity while maintaining reliable transaction processing through dedicated service layer components that specialize in transaction management.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

2Adaptability or versatility

If distributed transactions are processed across multiple service layer entities, then system functionality and resource access improve, but transaction coordination overhead increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveresource access capabilityVSAvoidtransaction coordination time
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements preliminary locking mechanisms where service layer entities acquire locks on resources before transaction execution. This preliminary action prevents conflicts and reduces coordination overhead during transaction processing, as the coordinator doesn't need to manage complex conflict resolution during execution. The locking phase prepares the system state in advance, enabling faster committed transactions.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent maintains continuous transaction processing through efficient coordination protocols that minimize idle time. The service layer coordinator continuously manages transaction states, coordinating commits and rollbacks without interruption. This continuous action ensures that once a transaction is initiated, it progresses smoothly through execution and completion phases, reducing overall coordination time while maintaining access to distributed resources.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #20Continuity of useful action

3Reliability

If atomic processing is enforced across distributed resources, then data consistency is maintained, but system performance and throughput may decrease

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedata consistencyVSAvoidtransaction throughput
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments distributed transactions into discrete units of work that can be independently managed and coordinated. By dividing complex distributed operations into smaller atomic segments at the service layer, the system maintains data consistency through controlled transaction boundaries while improving throughput through parallel processing of independent transaction segments. This segmentation allows the coordinator to manage multiple smaller transactions concurrently rather than handling one large complex transaction at a time.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentEP3596909B1Distributed transaction management in a network service layer
Publication Date: 2022.10.05 CONVIDA WIRELESS LLC
  • EP3596909B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3596909B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3596909B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Distributed Service Layer Transactions (DSLTs) may be supported by a DSLT service at a service layer of a communications network to offload applications from the burden of managing the processing of DSLTs.