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| Summary / Description | Abstract: A method of forming an ad hoc hierarchical communication network involves associating a plurality of wireless transceivers with articles, ... A network organization routine of the wireless transceivers operates to establish the hierarchical network based on the transceivers' class designations, resulting in a logical network organization that provides efficiencies for asset tracking. ...The wireless transceivers may include a query handling routine in communication with a memory of the transceiver for serving as a dynamic distributed hierarchical database system. |
| Type of Prior Art | Issued Patents - US |
| Country | United States of America |
| Patent/Application # | 6745027 |
| Kind Code | United States (US) - United STATES Patent - A |
| Patentee Name | Twitchell, Jr., Robert W.; Seekernet Incorporated |
| Relevant Pages, Columns, or Lines | Abstract, Technical Field, Col |
| URL | http://www.freepatentsonline.co... |
| Filing Date | March 13, 2001 |
| Additional Information | |
| Notes | Prior art identified by Dirk Husemann, IBM, and submitted by Diane Willis. |
Excerpt TECHNICAL FIELD: The present invention relates to methods of forming ad hoc data communication networks and distributed databases and, in particular, to methods of dynamic self-organization of wireless transceivers based on classes of articles associated with the wireless transceivers to form hierarchical ad hoc wireless data communication networks and distributed databases. Col. 2 Line 19-39: In accordance with the present invention, a method of forming an ad hoc hierarchical wireless data communication network involves associating a plurality of wireless transceivers with articles to be tracked, and assigning to each of the transceivers a "class designation" representative of a characteristic or behavior of the article with which the transceiver is associated. Each of the wireless transceivers includes a network organization routine that operates in coordination with the network organization routines of other transceivers to establish the hierarchical network based on the transceivers' class designations. The hierarchical network provides an efficient topology for selective communication among wireless transceivers of the same class. The ad hoc network organization routines are preferably implemented in software operable on a digital processor of the wireless transceivers. Alternatively, the ad hoc network organization routines may be implemented in other ways, such as hardwired logic circuitry. Each wireless transceiver's class designation assignment is included in a profile that is stored in a memory readable by the digital processor of the wireless transceiver. |
A rail car tracking system (10) comprising: rail car location equipment (12) mounted to a rail car (22), the equipment (12) including a transmitter (26) for transmitting rail car location data to a remote receiver (21) and further including an electronically readable tag (33) attached to the rail car (22) for identifying the rail car (22) to a wayside tag reader (36); and locomotive communication equipment (42) mounted in a locomotive (38) and adapted for communication with the rail car location equipment (12) when the rail car (22) and locomotive (38) are coupled into a common train, the locomotive communication equipment (42) being operative to identify the coupled rail car (22) and including a transmitter (48) for transmitting data to the remote receiver (21), the data including rail car data so that the required data transmission from the rail car transmission equipment (26) is reduced.
| Relevance | See the Excerpt. Disclosed are wireless transceivers, equivalent to the transmitter and the receiver in the patent application, used to form a communication network of similar objects (in the patent application equivalent to rail cars) for location tracking. |
The rail car tracking system of claim 1 and including a LAN (40) for data transmission between the rail car (22) and the locomotive (38).
| Relevance | See Claim 1 and the Excerpt including Col. 3 Line 65 - Col. 4 Line 2: In another aspect of the invention, a network interface module ("NIM") serves as a communication gateway between the ad hoc hierarchical network and an external network such as a local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), or the Internet. |
A method for tracking a rail car (22) having an on-board communication system (12) including a location determining system (24,33) and a transceiver (26) for receiving and transmitting rail car data, the system including a processor (28) responsive to an executable program for enabling operation of the transceiver (26) to transmit rail car data during a reporting event, the method comprising providing a remotely addressable software database accessible by the executable program for establishing a reporting event in response to at least one of a selected time, a change in geographical location, an extended time in a geographical location, an approach to a specified geographical location, a coupling/decoupling of the rail car with a particular locomotive and a command to report.
| Relevance | See Column 4 Lines 31-47: In yet another aspect of the invention, the class-based ad hoc network serves as a dynamic distributed hierarchical database system. In this aspect of the invention, transceivers and RFTs include a query handling routine in communication with a memory of the transceiver or RFT. The query handling routine interprets and responds to class-directed database queries and update transaction requests, for example, from an HIM or a server-based asset tracking application operating on the external network. Database queries may include status queries that gather up-to-date status information about the articles. Profile update transaction requests may include requests to change profile data on specified transceivers of the distributed database system. Increased class granularity also facilitates improved data retrieval efficiency in the distributed database system by reducing the number of transceivers that must be involved in a profile query or update transaction. |
United States