Flexible Rules Engine for Connected Consumer Devices
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional embedded systems lack networking capabilities, role-based access control, remote interface capabilities, and the ability to respond to events based on predefined rules, making it resource-intensive for device manufacturers to design and implement these functionalities.
Innovation Solution
A network-connected device platform with a flexible rules engine that allows users to define rules for network-connected devices to react to events, enabling remote control and monitoring through a cloud-based IoT platform, utilizing communication protocols like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and others.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If networking capabilities, role-based access control, and remote interface capabilities are designed into traditional embedded systems, then device functionality and connectivity are improved, but resource consumption and development complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a rules engine as an intermediary layer between the embedded system and the networked devices. This rules engine handles the complex logic of event monitoring, rule evaluation, and action execution, allowing the embedded system itself to remain relatively simple while still providing sophisticated networked functionality. The rules engine mediates between simple device events and complex control requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The rules engine is designed as a universal platform that can be applied across multiple different embedded systems and device types. Rather than designing custom networking and control logic for each device, the same rules engine framework handles diverse devices uniformly, reducing overall development complexity while maintaining versatility.
2Extent of automation
If traditional embedded systems implement custom rules engines and event response capabilities, then automated event-driven control is improved, but manufacturing resources and development time are consumed
Solution Approach 1:
The rules engine is designed as a reusable, universal component that can be deployed across multiple devices and systems. This eliminates the need for each manufacturer to develop their own custom rules engine from scratch, significantly reducing development time and manufacturing resources while providing sophisticated automated event-driven control capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
The rules engine enables devices to automatically respond to events based on predefined rules without requiring continuous human intervention or complex centralized control. The system self-manages event monitoring, rule evaluation, and action execution, reducing the need for external control infrastructure and associated resources.
3Ease of operation
If embedded systems lack remote interface capabilities and event response mechanisms, then device simplicity is maintained, but user interaction and device coordination are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The rules engine acts as an intermediary that enables rich user interaction and device coordination without requiring complex embedded system architecture. Users can define rules through simple interfaces, and the rules engine handles the complexity of event monitoring and action execution, making the system easy to operate while maintaining architectural simplicity at the device level.
Data Source
AI summary
A processing device executing a rules engine receives a notification of a first event on a first network-connected device. The processing device identifies a first rule associated with a first user account, wherein the first user account is further associated with the first network-connected device, and wherein the first event on the first network-connected device is an input for the first rule. The processing device determines that the first event satisfies a first criterion of the first rule and generates a first command for a second network-connected device also associated with the first user account. The processing device then transmits the first command to the second network-connected device on behalf of the first user account, wherein the first command causes the second network-connected device to perform an action.