WO2002011346A2

WO2002011346A2 - Method and apparatus for transferring data

Info

Publication number: WO2002011346A2
Application number: PCT/US2001/023904
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jack A. Smith; Steven J. Goldberg; John D. Reed
Original assignee: Motorola Inc.
Priority date: 2000-07-31
Filing date: 2001-07-30
Publication date: 2002-02-07
Also published as: WO2002011346A3; AU2001280897A1

Abstract

An apparatus, method and system using a mobile courier (602) to transfer data. The mobile courier has a principle function. The system includes a source device (606) configured to transfer the data to the mobile courier when the mobile courier is accessible to the source device. The data does not invoke the principle function of the mobile courier. The system also include a destination device (604) having no connection to the source device. The destination device is configured to transfer the data from the mobile courier when the mobile courier is accessible to the destination device.

Description

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR TRANSFERRING DATA

Technical Field

The invention is directed to a method and apparatus for transferring data between a source device and a destination device. More particularly, the invention is directed to transferring data from a source device to a destination device by way of a courier whose primary function is not transporting such data.

Background Art

There are many machines being used in commerce today that require one form or another of service. For example, a vending machine containing, for example, drinks and snacks, may be located in an area where consumers are likely to be found. The vending machine contains a small inventory of products to sell to consumers. As the consumers purchase the products, the inventory is depleted. When the inventory is depleted, it is necessary for the vending machine to be serviced and the inventory replenished.

One of the arts of owning and servicing vending machines is determining the proper timing for a service call to replenish the inventory in the vending machine. Present methods include making periodic visits to the vending machine to determine whether the inventory needs to be replenished. In some cases, efforts are made to anticipate peaks of demand and to appear for replenishment during or after those peaks of demand.

Another method currently in use is to equip the vending machine with a telephone connection, wireless or land line, to a service dispatcher. When the vending machine's inventory is depleted and it requires servicing, it telephones the service dispatcher and requests a service call. Brief Description of Drawings

Fig. 1 is a block diagram of a system according to the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a representation of a vending machine display screen. Fig. 3 is a representation of a vending machine keyboard.

Fig. 4 is a block diagram of a system according to the present invention.

Fig. 5 is a block diagram of a courier device according to the present invention.

Figs. 6, and 8-14 are block diagrams of a system according to the present invention.

Fig. 7 is a block diagram of a courier device according to the present invention.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention transfers data between a source device and a destination device using a courier. The courier can be a person, a courier device, or a series of two or more courier devices, among which the data is passed until it reaches its destination. The courier devices have a principal function, such as acting as a cellular telephone or a personal digital assistant (PDA), that does not include the function of transporting data between the source device and the destinations device. For example, in Fig. 1 , the source device is a vending machine 102 and the destination device is a server 104. The vending machine 102 is not equipped with a wireless or land line connection to the server 104. Consequently, it must use a different method to pass data to the server 104.

In Fig. 1 , the courier is a person 106. The person 106 desires to purchase a product, such as a cola, from the vending machine 102. The person 106 makes a selection using the keyboard 108, as is conventional with vending machines. Alternatively, the person 106 could initiate the transaction using an e-commerce method, such as the transmission of an electronic business card and other identifying information from a PDA. When the person 106 makes the selection, a message will appear on display 110. The message may be transferred to the person using an e-commerce method. For example, the message may be transferred to and displayed on the person's PDA. The message may be as shown in Fig. 2, which states "You have selected a cola. To purchase, please call (800) 555-1212, enter code 774981 and enter code provided." Through this message, the vending machine 102 instructs person 106 to call the server 104 using the telephone number provided and to pass data in the form of code "774981" to the server.

At a minimum, the code includes a product identifier that will enable the server to determine which product is being selected and purchased. In addition, the code may include one or more service requests from the vending machine 102 to the server 104. For example, the code may include an indication that the vending machine is malfunctioning or that its inventory is depleted, or that a theft has been or is being attempted or any other information that may be useful to the server 104 in servicing the vending machine 102.

The code may be segmented into a product designation portion and a service request portion or the two portions may be interwoven or encoded with each other. Alternatively, two codes may be provided to the person 106, which would then be passed on to the server 104.

In the next step, the person 106 uses a technique, such as a telephone call (wireless or land line) to pass the information to the server 104. In Fig. 1 , for example, the person 106 uses a telephone 112 to pass the code over the telephone network 114 to the server 104.

The server 104 processes the code provided by the person 106, determines which product is being requested by the person 106, and issues a unique authorization code to the person 106 via the telephone network 114 and telephone 112. At the same time, the server 104 debits the person's 106 account, which is maintained either on server 104 or in another computer system (not shown), for the purchase amount.

The person 106 then returns to the vending machine 102 and enters the code transmitted by the server 104. An example of a keyboard 108 that could be used to enter such information is illustrated in Fig. 3. The vending machine 102, upon receiving the code entered by the person 106, dispenses the product, deactivates the code so that it cannot be used again, and completes the transaction.

The server continues to process the code originally entered by person 106 to determine if it contains any service information. If it does, the server 104 contacts a service dispatcher 116 via, for example, the telephone network 114, and passes on the service request. The service request may be, for example, a request to replenish the inventory of the vending machine 102. The service dispatcher 116 then passes the service request on to the service personnel manning a truck 118, which then goes to and services the vending machine 102. In this scenario, the service dispatcher need not schedule periodic service calls to the vending machine 102 and need not attempt to anticipate peaks in demand. Instead, the service dispatcher can wait for a service request from the vending machine 102 through the server 104, and then dispatch service personnel to the vending machine 102.

The courier can also be a device 402 as shown in Fig. 4. Courier device 402 may be a cellular telephone, a pager, a PDA, or any other electronic device capable of providing the functions described below. The courier device 402 transfers data from a server 404 to a data user 406. The data user 406 may not be equipped to receive data directly from the server 404 and the courier device 402 has a principal function other than transferring data from the server 404 to the data user 406, but has the ability to communicate with the server 404 and the data user 406, perhaps using different interfaces.

For example, the data user 406 may be a car radio and the server 404 may be a source of downloadable media files, such as audio files, that it distributes over the Internet or other network. The car radio 406 may not have an interface through which it can receive the audio files distributed from the server 404. The cellular telephone 402 has the capability of receiving the digital audio files via the Internet from the server 404. Further, the cellular telephone has the ability to transfer the data to the car radio using infrared, short range personal area networking, optical fiber, or some other means. In this example, the application to play the music received from server 404 may reside in either the data user 406 or in the cellular telephone 402. In the latter case, the cellular telephone 402 uses the car radio 406 as an audio output device.

The courier device 402 can also be the means by which control information is transferred between the server 404 and the data user 406. For example, the data user may be the computer in an automobile engine. When the automobile is traveling at a high elevation, the computer or the driver of the automobile may decide that a different engine control profile will help the automobile engine run better. A GPS signal, which can be used to determine the location of the automobile, may be used to trigger such an event.

The computer 406 can connect via the courier device 402 to a website maintained by the automobile manufacturer, transfer the current performance data fetched from the engine controller and then download an updated engine profile, custom tuned for the drivetrain of the automobile and the existing conditions. The courier device 402, such as the cellular telephone shown in Fig. 4, has the block diagram shown in Fig. 5. The courier device includes a wireless interface 502 which is coupled to its principal function 504. For example, in a cellular telephone, the principal function would be initiating, receiving and conducting cellular telephone calls. The wireless interface 502 would be the conventional cellular telephone interface capable of providing an interface to the Internet. The wireless interface may use other protocols, such as infrared, short range personal area networking (e.g., Bluetooth), or optical fiber. The courier device 402 may also include a buffer 506 which buffers the data received via the wireless interface 502. The data can either be provided to the buffer by the wireless interface 502 or by the principal function 504. The buffer then transmits data from the interface to the data user 508. Again, the interface to the data user 508 can be infrared, short range personal area networking (such as Bluetooth), optical fiber, or another means. Further, data can be returned from the data user to the server by reversing the flow of data through the buffer as shown in Fig. 5. The interface to the data user 508 may be incorporated in the wireless interface 502.

The courier device 402 can be used in the application shown in Fig. 1 to pass service request information directly from the vending machine 102 to the server 104. The vending machine 102 may transmit a beacon signal indicating that it is looking for a courier service. The courier device 402 may detect the beacon signal and begin an electronic negotiation with the vending machine, all without the knowledge of the person carrying the courier device 402. After the negotiation, the courier device either agrees or disagrees to provide the requested service. Assuming agreement is reached, product request and authorization information are passed back and forth between the vending machine 102 and the server 104 via the courier device 402. In this scenario, the courier device is capable of communicating simultaneously with both the vending machine 102 and the server 104, perhaps through the telephone network 114 or the Internet. The owner of the courier device may be compensated for providing or carrying the data from the vending machine to the server. The compensation may be in the form of money or of "bonus point" or some other consideration. There are also times when the courier device 602 may be capable of communicating with either the server 604 or the data source/user 606, but not both simultaneously, as illustrated in Fig. 6. In Fig. 6, the courier device 602 is capable of communicating with the data source/user 606, but cannot communicate with the server 604 through cellular base station 608. The reason that the cellular telephone 602 may not be able to communicate with the server 604 may be that the cellular telephone is in a location where signals from the cellular base station 608 do not reach.

In that case, the courier device 602 will (after negotiations) receive and store the information provided by the data source/user 606 until it is able to pass the information to the server 604 via cellular base station 608. To accomplish this, the courier device has the block diagram shown in Fig. 7. The courier device 602 includes a wireless interface 702 through which it can communicate with the cellular base station 608 or the data source/user 606. Alternatively, the courier device 602 may include one type of interface for the cellular base station 608 and another type of interface for the data source/user 606. In either case, the interface to the cellular base station 608 is coupled to the principal function 704 of the courier device 602, e.g., the cellular telephone function, if the courier device 602 is a cellular telephone. The courier device 602 also includes a memory 706 to store the data it receives from the data source/user 606. The memory 706 may be coupled directly to the wireless interface 702, so that the data provided by the data source/user 606 is deposited directly into the memory 706 by the wireless interface 702. Alternatively, the data may be extracted by the principal function 704 and then deposited into the memory 706. The memory may have a principle function, such as storing a phone list in a cellular phone.

When the courier device 602 comes into contact with the cellular base station 608, as shown in Fig. 8, it transfers the data stored in its memory 706 through the cellular base station 608 to the server 604.

The courier may include more than one courier device as shown in Figs. 9, 10 and 11. The data source/user 606 transfers data to one of the courier devices 902, as shown in Fig. 9. Later, when the first courier device 902 comes into contact with a second courier device 904, the first courier device 902 transfers the data to the second courier device 904, as shown in Fig. 10. Still later, as shown in Fig. 11 , when the second courier device 904 comes into contact with the cellular base station 608, the second courier device 904 transfers the data to the server 604 through the cellular base station 608.

Thus, the data source/user 606 transfers data to the server 604 through a "courier" comprising two courier devices 902 and 904, without being in direct connection with the server 604.

As can be seen from Figs. 9, 10 and 11 , the courier can be comprised of one, two or any number of courier devices. Further, the data to be transferred can be transferred via any number of these courier devices. The data will be time stamped or otherwise identified so that the receipt of multiple copies of the same message can be recognized. Each courier device may carry all or some part of the data to be transferred. Thus, the server 604 may receive multiple versions of the same data from the data source/user 606. The server 604 may ignore multiple copies of the same message or it may use the multiple copies to verify the data content. Further, if the server receives the data in many segments, the server may reassemble the segments into its original form. The server may only compensate the owners of courier devices that carry data that is actually used by the server.

One application of the system shown in Figs. 9, 10 and 11 is to transmit service request messages from a vending machine (the data source/user 606) to its server 604, which would dispatch the needed technician to perform the required service. Preferably, the vending machine will continue sending the service request until service is rendered. It may not attempt to send the service request data with every potential courier. Rather, it may select the number of couriers to carry the data based on the urgency of the data, the number of courier devices available to send the data, and the time since the last courier device was "seeded" with the data.

In some applications, an "answer" or "acknowledge" signal will be sent in response to data sent by the data source/user. When the data source/user receives the "answer" or "acknowledge" signal it will stop transmitting request signals. The answer may be sent via courier devices, such as those shown in Figs. 9, 10 and 11. In addition to or instead of acknowledging or answering the message from the data source/user, the data from the server may include instructions for the data source/user. For example, in the case of the vending machine, the instructions may include a change in prices, an order to shut down, or enter a diagnostic mode. '

Alternatively, the data source/user 606 may develop a history of courier devices that routinely pass by, which have participated in transferring a data message to the server in the past, and therefore would be potential couriers for passing data again. For example, in Fig. 12, the data source/user 606 recognizes courier devices 1202 and 1204 as courier devices that have previously participated in passing data to the server. The data source/user builds this table of information from data passed back to the data source/user 606 from the server 604 in answer or acknowledgement signals regarding which courier devices participated in transferring data to the server 604. Using this table, the data source/user 606 knows to transfer the data to courier devices 1202 and 1204 and may not transfer data to the courier devices 1206, 1208 and 1210, which are not on its table of recognized courier devices.

If a courier device 1302 has not transferred its data and comes into contact with another device 1304 which shows a more robust profile for delivery (i.e., has existing contact with the Internet backbone, is often in range of the Internet backbone, or is often in range of the server 604), or shows greater diversity and delivery potential, it may transfer the data to the device 1304, as shown in Figs. 13 and 14. In this situation, the data source/user 606 transfers data to the courier device 1302, as shown in Fig. 13. Later, the courier device 1302 comes into contact with a work station 1304. The work station communicates to the courier device 1302 the fact that it has a connection to the Internet 1402. The courier device 1302 recognizes that the work station 1304 has a better connection to the server 604 through the Internet 1402. Consequently, the courier device 1302 transfers its data to the work station 1304 which transmits the data to the server 604 through the Internet 1402.

The foregoing describes preferred embodiments of the invention and is given by way of example only. The invention is not limited to any of the specific features described herein, but includes all variations thereof within the scope of the appended claims. What is claimed is:

Claims

1. A system for transferring data via a mobile courier, the mobile courier having a principle function, the system characterized by:

a source device configured to transfer the data to the mobile courier when the mobile courier is accessible to the source device, the data not invoking the principle function of the mobile courier; and

a destination device having no connection to the source device, the destination device being configured to transfer the data from the mobile courier when the mobile courier is accessible to the destination device.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein:

the source device comprises an apparatus which can be serviced;

the data comprises a service request; and

the destination device comprises a service dispatcher.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein:

the source device comprises a content provider;

the data comprises content; and

the destination device comprises a content player.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein:

the content comprises one of audio files, video files, or game files.

5. They system of claim 1 wherein:

the source device comprises a repository for a plurality of sets of control data for the destination device; and

the data comprises one of the plurality of sets of control data.

6. A courier for transporting data between a source device and a destination device, the courier having a principle function, the courier characterized by:

an interface configured to transport data between the courier and the source device;

the interface configured to transport data between the courier and the destination device;

a memory for temporarily storing the data;

the data not invoking the principle function of the courier.

7. The courier of claim 6 wherein:

the interface comprises a first interface device and a second interface device;

the first interface device being configured to transport data between the courier and the source device; and

the second interface device being configured to transport data between the courier and the destination device.

8. The courier of claim 6 wherein:

the interface provides a wireless connection between the courier and one of the source device or the destination device.

9. The courier of claim 8 wherein:

the wireless connection comprises a Bluetooth transceiver.

10. The courier of claim 6 wherein

the memory has a principle function that is not invoked by the data.

11. The courier of claim 6 wherein:

the courier is a person.

12. The courier of claim 11 wherein: the person is invoiced for transporting data from the source device or to the destination device.

13. The courier of claim 6 wherein:

the interface and the memory are incorporated in a courier device, the courier device having a principle function, the data not invoking the principle function of the courier device.

14. The courier of claim 13 wherein:

the courier device has an owner; and

the owner receives compensation for use of the courier device to carry the data.

15. The courier of claim 6 wherein:

the interface and memory are incorporated in two or more courier devices, each of the courier devices having a principle function, the data not invoking the principle function of at least one of the two or more courier devices;

the first courier device being configured to transfer data from the source device;

the first courier device being configured to transfer the data to a second courier device; and

the second courier device being configured to transfer the data to the destination device.

16. A method for transferring data between a source device and a destination device by way of a courier, the courier having a principle function, the source device being unconnected to the destination device, the method characterized by:

transferring the data from the source device to the courier, the data not invoking the principle function of the courier; and

transferring the data from the courier to the destination device.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein:

transfer of data from the source device to the courier and transfer of data from the courier to the destination device occur substantially simultaneously.

18. The method of claim 16 further characterized by:

moving the courier from proximity with the source device, when the transfer of data from the source device to the courier occurs, into proximity with the destination device, when the transfer of data from the courier to the destination device occurs.

19. The method of claim 16 wherein:

the courier comprises a plurality of courier devices, each of the plurality of courier devices having a respective principle function.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein:

transferring the data from the source device to the courier and transferring the data from the courier to the destination device comprises transferring the data from a first courier device to a second courier device, the data not invoking the principle function of at least one of the first courier device or the second courier device.

21. The method of claim 19 further characterized by:

transferring acknowledgement data from the destination device to an acknowledgement courier and from the acknowledgement courier to the source device, the acknowledgement data including an identification of the courier devices that transported the data from the source device to the destination device.

22. The method of claim 21 further characterized by:

adding to a list the identification of the courier device that transported data from the source device to the destination device as reported by an acknowledgement courier.

23. The method of claim 22 wherein: transferring the data from the source device to the courier comprises detecting a courier device that is included on the list and transferring the data to that courier device.