Method and apparatus for a customizable low power RF telemetry system with high performance reduced data rate

US5963650A · kind A · utility

Inventors

• Dan Simionescu · Pendleton, US
• Marius Todor · Lighthouse Point, US
• M. Keith Vinson · Boca Raton, US

Key dates

• Filing date: May 1, 1997
• Grant date: Oct 5, 1999
• Expiry date: May 1, 2017

Classification

• Technology area (CPC Y): Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
• CPC primary: Y04S20/30
• WIPO field: Measurement
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

A customizable data acquisition device (DA) and a data collection system (DCS). The DA is remotely located for attachment to a variety of I/O devices, and uses an RF transceiver with a primary cache. A centrally located or mobile DCS with a secondary cache communicates with one or more DA's and stores DA data in the secondary cache. The DA has a programmable controller and an I/O interface capable of attaching to a variety of I/O devices. The DA primary cache holds data for bulk transfers to the DCS to minimize DA/DCS data transmission traffic. The DCS secondary cache accumulates data from the DA and allows data queries by multiple independent application programs (which may be located on the DCS, other DCSs, or remote host systems) without requiring retransmission of data from the DA for each query. Applications can query cached data in the secondary cache, and optionally query the primary cache or query the I/O device via the DA. Each DA is capable of peer to peer communication to allow DAs physically located outside of the transmission range of the DA/DCS to communicate with the DCS by routing data through other DAs in a network of DAs until the data can be transmitted to the DC…