公开(公告)号：US11071049B2

公开(公告)日：2021-07-20

申请号：US16555747

申请日：2019-08-29

Applicant: Itron, Inc.

Inventor： Fabrice Monier ,  Thomas Uhling ,  Imad Jamil ,  Keith Barnes

IPC: H04W48/16 ,  H04W52/02

Abstract: Disclosed are techniques to minimize the electricity consumption of battery powered devices during network discovery and other phases of network operation. Example techniques include efficiently listening for other mains powered and battery powered devices within communication range of the battery powered device by, for example, shortening its listening window depending on how close the time reference maintained by the battery powered device is estimated to be to the time reference used by the other mains powered and battery powered devices within communication range. Other techniques include slowing the rate of listening by the battery powered device when the battery powered device is unlikely to be able to receive discovery messages or is already connected to the network. Other techniques include using knowledge of the network to listen for discovery messages on a channel or channels on which other devices are likely to be transmitting.

公开(公告)号：US20210136692A1

公开(公告)日：2021-05-06

申请号：US16670137

申请日：2019-10-31

Applicant: Itron, Inc.

Inventor： Thomas Uhling ,  Keith Barnes

IPC: H04W52/02 ,  H04Q9/02

Abstract: Techniques for allocating event offsets within a period of transmission are described. A mains-powered device (MPD) may act as a “parent” to one or more battery-powered devices (BPDs). The MPD may assign “event offsets” to each BPD. The event offset is a time by which the BPD's timeslot is “offset” from the start of a periodic cycle of transmissions by the MPD. Thus, each event offset indicates a time that the BPD must be “awake,” i.e., operating its radio receiver and/or performing other functionality. A BPD may spend a substantial fraction of its time in a “sleep” mode, wherein less power is used and fewer functions are performed than during a period of that BPD's event offset. Another BPD may have a different event offset. Communications by the MPD with each child BPD may be substantially uniformly distributed over the period. To increase efficiency, groups of BPDs may receive multicasts.

公开(公告)号：US20210068039A1

公开(公告)日：2021-03-04

申请号：US16555747

申请日：2019-08-29

Applicant: Itron, Inc.

Inventor： Fabrice Monier ,  Thomas Uhling ,  Imad Jamil ,  Keith Barnes

IPC: H04W48/16 ,  H04W52/02

Abstract: Disclosed are techniques to minimize the electricity consumption of battery powered devices during network discovery and other phases of network operation. Example techniques include efficiently listening for other mains powered and battery powered devices within communication range of the battery powered device by, for example, shortening its listening window depending on how close the time reference maintained by the battery powered device is estimated to be to the time reference used by the other mains powered and battery powered devices within communication range. Other techniques include slowing the rate of listening by the battery powered device when the battery powered device is unlikely to be able to receive discovery messages or is already connected to the network. Other techniques include using knowledge of the network to listen for discovery messages on a channel or channels on which other devices are likely to be transmitting.

公开(公告)号：US10757648B2

公开(公告)日：2020-08-25

申请号：US16024574

申请日：2018-06-29

Applicant: ITRON, INC.

Inventor： Thomas Uhling ,  Imad Jamil ,  Fabrice Monier ,  Keith Wayne Barnes

IPC: H04W52/02 ,  H04W72/12 ,  H04W56/00 ,  H04W84/18

Abstract: A wireless mesh network includes a child node coupled to a parent node. The parent node transmits time sync beacons that indicate a time slot number and a start time for a current time slot. The child node receives the time sync beacons and determines a delta between the current time slot number of the child node and the current time slot number of the parent node. The child node also computes an offset between a start time of the current slot of the child node and the start time of the current slot of the parent node. The child node reports the delta and the offset to the parent node. Based on the delta and the offset, the parent node determines when, and on what channel, the child node is predicted to be receiving transmissions, and then schedules transmissions to the child node accordingly.

公开(公告)号：US10244532B2

公开(公告)日：2019-03-26

申请号：US15395743

申请日：2016-12-30

Applicant: Itron, Inc.

Inventor： James Laurence Taylor ,  Jerome Bartier ,  Keith Barnes ,  Thomas Uhling

IPC: H04W72/04 ,  H04L29/08 ,  H04L12/26 ,  H04Q9/04 ,  H04W52/02 ,  H04W56/00 ,  H04W4/06 ,  H04W8/00 ,  H04W8/22 ,  H04L12/18 ,  H04W48/20 ,  H04W72/12 ,  H04B1/713 ,  H04B1/7143 ,  H04B1/7156 ,  H04W36/14 ,  H04W36/20 ,  H04W36/22 ,  H04W48/18 ,  H04W84/20 ,  H04W88/04

Abstract: Techniques for communicating channel data regarding a channel plan are described herein. For example, a device may communicate a channel information element that includes a tag indicating a first operating context to which to apply channel data regarding a channel plan. The channel information element may also include a reference tag to indicate whether the channel data is contained in the channel information element or has been previously received and/or to identify a second operating context associated with previously received channel data. If the reference tag indicates that the channel data is contained in the channel information element, the channel data may be extracted from the channel information element and applied to the first operating context. If the reference tag indicates that the channel data has been previously received, the previously received channel data may be accessed and applied to the first operating context.

公开(公告)号：US10063943B2

公开(公告)日：2018-08-28

申请号：US15395847

申请日：2016-12-30

Applicant: Itron, Inc.

Inventor： James Laurence Taylor ,  Jerome Bartier ,  Keith Barnes ,  Thomas Uhling

IPC: H04B7/00 ,  H04Q9/04 ,  H04W52/02 ,  H04L12/26 ,  H04W56/00

CPC classification number: H04Q9/04 ,  H04B1/713 ,  H04B1/7143 ,  H04B1/7156 ,  H04L12/1881 ,  H04L43/16 ,  H04L67/12 ,  H04Q2209/60 ,  H04W4/06 ,  H04W8/005 ,  H04W8/22 ,  H04W36/14 ,  H04W36/20 ,  H04W36/22 ,  H04W48/18 ,  H04W48/20 ,  H04W52/0216 ,  H04W52/0219 ,  H04W52/0274 ,  H04W56/001 ,  H04W56/0015 ,  H04W56/002 ,  H04W72/042 ,  H04W72/0446 ,  H04W72/0453 ,  H04W72/121 ,  H04W72/1278 ,  H04W84/20 ,  H04W88/04 ,  Y02D70/00 ,  Y02D70/10 ,  Y02D70/12 ,  Y02D70/122 ,  Y02D70/144 ,  Y02D70/20 ,  Y02D70/22 ,  Y02D70/26 ,  Y02D70/40

Abstract: Techniques for communicating schedule data regarding a schedule are described herein. For example, a device may communicate a schedule information element that includes a tag indicating a first operating context to which to apply schedule data regarding a schedule. The schedule information element may also include a reference tag to indicate whether the schedule data is contained in the schedule information element or has been previously received and/or to identify a second operating context associated with previously received schedule data. If the reference tag indicates that the schedule data is contained in the schedule information element, the schedule data may be extracted from the schedule information element and applied to the first operating context. If the reference tag indicates that the schedule data has been previously received, the previously received schedule data may be accessed and applied to the first operating context.

公开(公告)号：US20180124785A1

公开(公告)日：2018-05-03

申请号：US15395743

申请日：2016-12-30

Applicant: Itron, Inc.

Inventor： James Laurence Taylor ,  Jerome Bartier ,  Keith Barnes ,  Thomas Uhling

IPC: H04W72/04 ,  H04L29/08

CPC classification number: H04Q9/04 ,  H04B1/713 ,  H04B1/7143 ,  H04B1/7156 ,  H04L12/1881 ,  H04L43/16 ,  H04L67/12 ,  H04Q2209/60 ,  H04W4/06 ,  H04W8/005 ,  H04W8/22 ,  H04W36/14 ,  H04W36/20 ,  H04W36/22 ,  H04W48/18 ,  H04W48/20 ,  H04W52/0216 ,  H04W52/0219 ,  H04W52/0274 ,  H04W56/001 ,  H04W56/0015 ,  H04W56/002 ,  H04W72/042 ,  H04W72/0446 ,  H04W72/0453 ,  H04W72/121 ,  H04W72/1278 ,  H04W84/20 ,  H04W88/04 ,  Y02D70/00 ,  Y02D70/10 ,  Y02D70/12 ,  Y02D70/122 ,  Y02D70/144 ,  Y02D70/20 ,  Y02D70/22 ,  Y02D70/26 ,  Y02D70/40

Abstract: Techniques for communicating channel data regarding a channel plan are described herein. For example, a device may communicate a channel information element that includes a tag indicating a first operating context to which to apply channel data regarding a channel plan. The channel information element may also include a reference tag to indicate whether the channel data is contained in the channel information element or has been previously received and/or to identify a second operating context associated with previously received channel data. If the reference tag indicates that the channel data is contained in the channel information element, the channel data may be extracted from the channel information element and applied to the first operating context. If the reference tag indicates that the channel data has been previously received, the previously received channel data may be accessed and applied to the first operating context.