IoT Interface Manifests for Unified Device Configuration
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The diversity in IoT devices and protocols makes it challenging for users to design and implement a desired configuration of networked IoT devices, requiring deep understanding of capabilities, functions, and attributes, and navigating through different communication protocols.
Innovation Solution
A unified control platform that uses interface components and manifests to translate device-specific events and commands into common events and commands, enabling interoperability and user interface generation for configuring IoT elements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If diverse IoT devices and protocols are supported, then adaptability and versatility are improved, but device complexity and difficulty of operation increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a cloud-based platform as an intermediary between users and diverse IoT devices. This platform automatically handles protocol translation, device discovery, and configuration management. Users interact with a unified interface while the platform manages the underlying complexity of different protocols and device specifications, thereby reducing user-facing complexity while maintaining support for diverse devices.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a universal control interface and standardized communication protocol at the cloud platform level that can accommodate multiple IoT device types and original protocols. The platform provides multi-functional services including device registration, data aggregation, command routing, and unified user interface generation, allowing users to control diverse devices through a single standardized interaction model.
2Ease of operation
If deep understanding of device capabilities and functions is required, then control precision is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service mechanisms where the cloud platform automatically discovers IoT devices, retrieves their capability descriptions, and generates appropriate user interfaces without requiring manual configuration. The platform autonomously manages device registration, protocol translation, and communication setup, freeing users from the burden of understanding underlying device complexities while maintaining full access to device capabilities through the generated interfaces.
3Adaptability or versatility
If protocol translation is implemented, then interoperability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent positions the cloud platform as an intermediary layer that handles all protocol translation and communication protocol differences. Individual IoT devices maintain their native protocols and communicate with the cloud platform using their original protocols. The platform then translates these diverse protocols into a unified internal representation and generates appropriate user interfaces, thereby achieving multi-protocol interoperability without increasing device-level complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates to configuring and operating Internet of things (IoT) elements connected by a network. A computing device receives an interface component corresponding to an IoT element. The computing device retrieves a description of the interface component at least describing a set of restrictions of an operation of the IoT element. The computing device deploys the interface component in the computing device to at least translate events and commands specific to the IoT element to common events and commands for processing in the computing device. The computing device sends at least a subset of the description of the interface component to a user device to cause the user device to generate a user interface for configuring the operation of the IoT element.