Communicating with machine to machine devices

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016234686-A1
Application number	US-201415021910-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Sep 12, 2014
Priority date	Sep 13, 2013
Publication date	Aug 11, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

Method and system for communicating between a managed device and a device manager comprising sending the managed device a message over a first communications channel. Initiating communication between the managed device and the device manager over a second communications channel in response to the message, wherein the first communications channel and the second communications channel are of different types.

First claim

1 . A method for communicating between a managed device and a device manager, the method comprising the steps of:
sending the managed device a message over a first communications channel; and initiating communication between the managed device and the device manager over a second communications channel in response to the message, wherein the first communications channel and the second communications channel are of different types.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first communications channel is a cellular channel and the second communications channel is non-cellular channel.

3 . The method of claim 1 or claim 2 , wherein the first communications channel is secure or the message is secured.

4 . The method according to any previous claim, wherein the second communications channel is secure and has a different security architecture to the first communications channel.

5 . The method according to any previous claim, wherein the first communications channel is within a first communications system and the second communications channel is within a second communications system different to the first communications system.

6 . The method according to any previous claim, wherein the message is SMS or mobile terminated SMS, SMS-MT, WAP-push, or OMA-push.

7 . The method according to any previous claim, wherein the second communications channel is any one of: transmission control protocol, TCP; user datagram protocol, UDP; cellular; wireless; WiFi; WiMax; wired; fixed line; and telephone line.

8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein communications between the managed device and the device manager over the second communications channel are suspended until the message is received.

9 . The method according to any previous claim, wherein the managed device is in a dormant state until the message is received.

10 . The method according to any of claims 1 to 7 , wherein receipt of the message at the managed device additionally causes communications between the managed device and the device manager over a third communications channel to cease and switch to the second communications channel, wherein the third communications channel is different to the second communications channel.

11 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the communications are switched to the third communications channel from the second communications automatically.

12 . The method according to claim 10 or claim 11 , wherein the message is sent to the managed device in response to: an increase in data volume; a request to send the managed device a file over a predetermined threshold; a request for a firmware or software update; an increase in electrical power used by the managed device over a predetermined threshold; and a decrease in data transfer rate below a predetermined threshold.

13 . The method according to any previous claim, wherein the message is a secured SMS message.

14 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the SMS is secured using information established by generic bootstrapping architecture, GBA.

15 . The method according to any of claims 1 to 13 , wherein the message is an unsecured message.

16 . The method of claim 15 , wherein the message is an unsecured SMS messaged containing generic bootstrapping architecture, GBA, push information.

17 . The method of claim 16 further comprising the step of confirming authenticity of the message using the push GBA information and wherein communication between the managed device and the device manager over the second communications channels is initiated following successful authentication.

18 . The method according to any previous claim, wherein the message is an SMS message, the method further comprising the step of determining if the SMS message is sent over a secured SMS channel.

19 . The method according to any previous claim, wherein the first communication channel is used to establish cryptographic material to secure the second communication channel.

20 . The method according to any previous claim, wherein the managed device is a machine to machine, M2M, device.

21 . The method according to any previous claim, wherein the communications between the managed device and the device manager originate at the managed device.

22 . A system for communicating with one or more managed device comprising:
a device manager; a first communications interface; a second communications interface, different to the first communications interface; and logic configured to:
send to a managed device a message using the first communications interface; and
initiate communications between the managed device and the device manager using the second communications interface in response to the message.

23 . The system of claim 22 , wherein the first communications interface is a cellular interface and the second communications interface is non-cellular interface.

24 . The system of claim 22 or claim 23 , wherein the first communications interface is secure or the message is secured.

25 . The system according to any of claims 22 to 24 , wherein the second communications interface is secure and has a different security architecture to the first communications interface.

26 . The system according to any of claims 22 to 25 , wherein the first communications interface is configured to communicate with a first communications system and the second communications interface is configured to communicate with a second communications system different to the first communications system.

27 . The system according to any of claims 22 to 26 , wherein the first communications interface is SMS, SMS-MT, WAP-push, or OMA-push.

28 . The system according to any of claims 22 to 27 , wherein the second communications interface is any one of: transmission control protocol, TCP; user datagram protocol, UDP; cellular; wireless; WiFi; WiMax; wired; fixed line; and telephone line.

29 . The system according to any of claims 22 to 28 further comprising a third communications interface different to the second communications interface, and wherein receipt of the message at the managed device causes communications between the managed device and the device manager using the third communications channel to cease and switch to the second communications interface.

Assignees

• Vodafone Ip Licensing Ltd

Inventors

• Bone Nick
• Ferrara Simone

Classifications

• H04L63/10

  for controlling access to devices or network resources · CPC title

• H04W4/12

  Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements · CPC title

• H04L63/0838

  using one-time-passwords · CPC title

• H04L67/125

  involving control of end-device applications over a network · CPC title

• H04W4/70

  Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC] · CPC title