System, method, and apparatus to support mixed network communications on a vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2025030599-A1
Application number	US-202418908320-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Oct 7, 2024
Priority date	Sep 20, 2019
Publication date	Jan 23, 2025
Grant date	—

Abstract

A system and method for interpreting a policy comprising a network usage permission description; configuring a first network interface circuit in response to the network usage permission description; and regulating communications, using the first network interface circuit, between end points of a first network zone of a vehicle and end points of a second network zone of the vehicle.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method, comprising:
interpreting a policy comprising a network usage permission description; configuring a first network interface circuit in response to the network usage permission description; and regulating communications, using the first network interface circuit, between end points of a first network zone of a vehicle and end points of a second network zone of the vehicle.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the network usage permission description further comprises an external data access description; and
the method further comprises:
configuring a gatekeeper interface circuit in response to the external data access description; and
regulating communications, using the gatekeeper interface circuit, with an external device in response to the external data access description.

3 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the external data access description comprises permissions associated with the external device.

4 . The method of claim 2 , wherein:
the external data access description comprises permissions associated with a flow of the vehicle; and regulating communications comprises regulating communications based on a flow association of a communicating one of the end points of the first network zone or second network zone.

5 . The method of claim 2 , wherein:
the external data access description comprises permissions associated with an application, wherein regulating communications comprises:
regulating communications based on an application association of a communicating device, the communicating device comprising one of:
the external device,
an end point of the first network zone, or
an end point of the second network zone.

6 . The method of claim 2 , wherein:
the external data access description comprises permissions associated with a network zone of the vehicle, and regulating communications comprises:
regulating communications based on at least one of a source zone or a destination zone of a regulated communication, and the external data access description.

7 . The method of claim 6 , wherein the first network zone and the second network zone each comprise separate virtual local area networks of the vehicle.

8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the network usage permission description further comprises:
a network utilization description corresponding to at least one of the first network zone or the second network zone; and a communicating device description comprising at least one of an end point of one of the first network zone or the second network zone, a flow, a vehicle function, or an application; and wherein regulating communications comprises regulating communications based on the network utilization description, and an associated communicating device associated with a regulated communication.

9 . An apparatus, comprising:
a policy manager circuit structured to interpret a policy comprising a network usage permission description; a configuration circuit structured to configure a first network interface circuit in response to the network usage permission description; and the first network interface circuit, wherein the first network interface circuit is structured to regulate communications between end points of a first network zone of a vehicle and end points of a second network zone of the vehicle.

10 . The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein:
the network usage permission description further comprises an external data access description; the configuration circuit is further structured to configure a gatekeeper interface circuit in response to the external data access description; and the gatekeeper interface circuit is structured to regulate communications with an external device in response to the external data access description.

11 . The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the external data access description comprises permissions associated with the external device.

12 . The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein:
the external data access description comprises permissions associated with a flow of the vehicle, the gatekeeper interface circuit is further structured to regulate communications based on a flow association of a communicating one of the end points of the first network zone or second network zone.

13 . The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein:
the external data access description comprises permissions associated with an application, and the gatekeeper interface circuit is further structured to regulate communications based on an application association of a communicating device, the communicating device comprising one of:
the external device,
an end point of the first network zone, or
an end point of the second network zone.

14 . The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein:
the external data access description comprises permissions associated with a network zone of the vehicle, and the gatekeeper interface circuit is further structured to regulate communications based on at least one of a source zone or a destination zone of a regulated communication, and the external data access description.

15 . The apparatus of claim 14 , wherein the first network zone and the second network zone each comprise separate virtual local area networks of the vehicle.

16 . The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the network usage permission description further comprises:
a network utilization description corresponding to at least one of the first network zone or the second network zone; and a communicating device description comprising at least one of an end point of one of the first network zone or the second network zone, a flow, a vehicle function, or an application; and wherein:
the configuration circuit is further structured to configure a gatekeeper interface circuit in response to the network utilization description and the communicating device description; and
the gatekeeper interface circuit is further structured to regulate communications based on the network utilization description, and an associated communicating device associated with a regulated communication.

Assignees

• Sonatus Inc

Inventors

• Fang Yu
• Chen Yixiang
• Zong Xuanran

Classifications

• H04W4/40

  for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] · CPC title

• H04W12/67

  Risk-dependent, e.g. selecting a security level depending on risk profiles · CPC title

• H04W12/086

  using security domains · CPC title

• H04L61/4511

  using domain name system [DNS] · CPC title

• H04L43/0876

  Network utilisation, e.g. volume of load or congestion level · CPC title