M2M Hub Devices Prioritizing Data for Network Efficiency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional communication network architectures, designed for human-to-human communication, are inefficient for machine-to-machine (M2M) communications due to mismatched latency, data volume, and processing requirements, leading to high costs and deployment challenges for satellite-based systems.
Innovation Solution
The introduction of hub devices equipped with processors, local connectivity systems, data processing and caching capabilities, and radio frequency communications elements, which enable specialized M2M communication modes by prioritizing and routing data through a RESTful API, allowing for real-time, fixed interval, or user-pull data transmission mechanisms.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional H2H communication network architecture is used for M2M communications, then network infrastructure is already in place, but network efficiency and resource utilization are poor due to mismatched latency, data volume, and processing requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the network architecture by introducing dedicated hub devices that specialize in M2M communication handling, separating M2M traffic from traditional H2H traffic flows. This segmentation allows optimized processing paths for different communication types, improving overall network efficiency while maintaining infrastructure reuse.
Solution Approach 2:
The hub device acts as an intermediary between M2M devices and the core network, performing data aggregation, filtering, and preprocessing functions. This intermediary role reduces the burden on core network infrastructure while improving M2M communication efficiency through localized intelligence.
2Reliability
If satellite-based M2M communication systems are deployed with VSAT terminals, then long-distance connectivity is achieved, but deployment costs are high due to large directional antennas and powerful emitters required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple M2M device connections through a single hub device, which then communicates with the satellite network. This merging approach consolidates multiple antenna requirements into one, significantly reducing the total cost of deployment while maintaining satellite connectivity for all connected devices.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of requiring each M2M device to have its own expensive satellite terminal with large antenna, the patent creates a shared copy of the satellite communication capability at the hub level. Multiple devices access satellite connectivity through this single copied interface, dramatically reducing per-device deployment costs.
3Productivity
If hub devices with data processing and caching capabilities are introduced, then network capacity for M2M data increases by an order of magnitude, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The hub device is designed with multi-functionality, combining data aggregation, caching, filtering, preprocessing, and protocol translation capabilities in a single device. This universal design consolidates multiple functions that would otherwise require separate components, managing complexity while maximizing network capacity improvement.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein are hub devices for a machine-to-machine (M2M) communications network that enables multiple communication modes for data source nodes, the hub comprising a processor, a local connectivity system configured to communicate data with the data source nodes via an interface, a data processing and caching system comprising a local memory and configured to receive and store user-defined data routing and processing functions, prioritize the data based on the user-defined functions; and route the prioritized data to the local memory for storage or to the data transmission system for immediate transmission based on the priority, and a data transmission system configured to dynamically assign an M2M upload mechanism to the routed data selected from: a real-time transmission mechanism, a fixed interval mechanism, a data backhaul mechanism, and a user pull mechanism; and transmit the data to a network backhaul link for delivery to a host point.