Persistent Connection for Marketplace Event Notification

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Solution Overview

Problem

Network-based marketplaces face challenges in communicating marketplace events, such as bids or auction endings, to users due to client/server architecture limitations and firewall restrictions, which prevent timely notifications.

Innovation Solution

A method and system that establish a persistent connection between the server and client machines to proactively alert users of network-based marketplace events, including auction information, by determining if an event is associated with user-requested alerts and communicating these alerts over a persistent connection.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the network-based marketplace uses traditional client/server architecture with firewalls, then system security and architecture stability are maintained, but timely notification of marketplace events to users cannot be achieved

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvenotification timelinessVSAvoidcommunication architecture complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

Instead of having the client continuously poll the server for updates (traditional approach), the server pushes notifications to the client through a persistent connection. This inversion of the communication initiative allows timely event notification while maintaining firewall compatibility, as the connection is established on client terms but controlled by the server.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

Solution Approach 2:

A persistent connection acts as an intermediary communication channel between the server and client, allowing event notifications to pass through firewall restrictions. This mediator maintains a continuous pathway for information flow without requiring traditional request-response cycles that are blocked by firewalls.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Loss of information

If the client machine continuously polls the server for marketplace events, then event information can be retrieved, but network bandwidth is wasted and notification speed is delayed

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveevent information completenessVSAvoidnetwork bandwidth consumption

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of informationVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The server automatically pushes event notifications to clients without requiring them to request updates. The persistent connection enables the server to autonomously transmit information when events occur, eliminating the need for continuous client polling and associated bandwidth waste.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

Instead of continuous periodic polling by the client, the server uses event-triggered periodic action, sending notifications only when marketplace events occur. This transforms continuous bandwidth consumption into discrete, event-driven communication.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #19Periodic action

3Object-affected harmful factors

If firewalls block incoming connections to the client machine, then client security is maintained, but the server cannot initiate communication to notify users of events

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvefirewall blocking effectVSAvoidcommunication initiation capability

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The persistent connection is established in advance by the client before events occur, creating a pre-approved communication pathway through the firewall. This preliminary action allows the server to later push notifications through the existing connection without requiring new incoming connections that would be blocked by firewall rules.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS8688528B2Methods and systems to alert a user of a network-based marketplace event

Publication Date: 2014.04.01 EBAY INC

AI summary

A system to alert a user of a network-based marketplace event. The system receives the network-based marketplace event and determines if the network-based marketplace event is associated with a network-based marketplace alert that has been requested by the user. If so, the system communicates the network-based marketplace alert to the client machine over a persistent connection, the network-based marketplace alert to alert the user of the network-based marketplace event.