Methods of processing data corresponding to a device that corresponds to a gas, water, or electric grid, and related devices and computer program products

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9729678-B2
Application number	US-201414264826-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 29, 2014
Priority date	Oct 3, 2013
Publication date	Aug 8, 2017
Grant date	Aug 8, 2017

Abstract

Methods of operating a communication node are provided. A method of operating a communication node may include receiving data from an electric grid device via a network interface. The method may include processing the data from the electric grid device at the communication node. Moreover, the method may include transmitting a filtered portion of the data to an electric utility head end system, after processing the data at the communication node. In some embodiments, a method of operating a communication node may include using a message broker controlled by a virtual machine in the communication node to provide a protocol to interface with a field message bus that includes a standards-based or open-source Application Programming Interface (API). Related communication nodes and computer program products are also described.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of operating a communication node, the method comprising:
using a message broker and/or message client controlled by a virtual machine in the communication node to provide a protocol to interface with a field message bus comprising a standards-based or open-source field message bus; and
transmitting or receiving data corresponding to an electric grid device, via the field message bus,
wherein the communication node is located in a field of a power grid of an electric utility,
wherein the method further comprises using, at the communication node in the field, the protocol of the message broker and/or message client to interface with a translator unit that is between a device protocol and the field message bus, and
wherein the translator unit is in the field.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein:
the communication node comprises a first communication node;
the field message bus interfaces with a second communication node; and
the first and second communication nodes comprise respective peer communication nodes comprising the field message bus therebetween.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the first and second communication nodes correspond to different first and second vendors, respectively.

4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the first and second communication nodes correspond to different first and second hierarchical tiers, respectively, in a hierarchical arrangement of communication nodes.

5. The method of claim 1 ,
wherein the field message bus comprises a standards-based or open-source Application Programming Interface (API), and
wherein the method further comprises using the protocol of the message broker and/or message client to interface with a standards-based or open-source-API-based application in the communication node.

6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising using the protocol of the message broker and/or message client to interface with a plurality of field message buses.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the virtual machine operates using an application processor or a partition of a central processing unit of the communication node.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising isolating an application processing unit of the communication node from a central processing unit of the communication node, using the virtual machine.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the standards-based or open-source field message bus is broker-agnostic.

10. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable storage medium including computer readable program code therein configured to perform the method of claim 1 .

11. A communication node, comprising:
a network interface configured to provide communications with a first electric grid device; and
a processor configured to control a virtual machine in the communication node, the virtual machine configured to provide a message broker and/or message client that is configured to interface with a field message bus and/or another communication node corresponding to a second electric grid device, wherein:
the field message bus comprises a common publish/subscription interface for an electric grid;
the field message bus comprises a standards-based or open-source field message bus;
the message broker and/or message client is configured to provide a protocol to interface with the field message bus; and
the virtual machine is configured to transmit or receive data corresponding to the second electric grid device, via the field message bus.

12. The communication node of claim 11 , wherein:
the communication node comprises a first communication node;
the other communication node comprises a second communication node configured to interface with the field message bus; and
the first and second communication nodes comprise respective peer communication nodes comprising the field message bus therebetween.

13. The communication node of claim 12 , wherein the first and second communication nodes correspond to different first and second vendors, respectively.

14. The communication node of claim 12 , wherein the first and second communication nodes correspond to different first and second hierarchical tiers, respectively, in a hierarchical arrangement of communication nodes.

15. The communication node of claim 11 , wherein the standards-based or open-source field message bus is broker-agnostic.

16. A communication node, comprising:
a network interface configured to provide communications with a first electric grid device; and
a processor configured to control a virtual machine in the communication node, the virtual machine configured to provide a message broker and/or message client that is configured to interface with a field message bus and/or another communication node corresponding to a second electric grid device, wherein:
the field message bus comprises a standards-based or open-source field message bus;
the message broker and/or message client is configured to provide a protocol to interface with the field message bus; and
the virtual machine is configured to transmit or receive data corresponding to the second electric grid device, via the field message bus,
wherein the protocol of the message broker and/or message client is configured to interface with a translator unit in the communication node that is between a device protocol and the field message bus.

17. The communication node of claim 11 ,
wherein the field message bus comprises a standards-based or open-source Application Programming Interface (API), and
wherein the protocol of the message broker and/or message client is configured to interface with a standards-based or open-source-API-based application in the communication node.

18. The communication node of claim 11 , wherein the protocol of the message broker and/or message client is configured to interface with a plurality of field message buses.

19. The communication node of claim 11 , wherein the virtual machine is configured to operate using an application processor or a partition of a central processing unit of the communication node.

20. The communication node of claim 11 , wherein the virtual machine is configured to isolate an application processing unit of the communication node from a central processing unit of the communication node.

21. The communication node of claim 16 , wherein the standards-based or open-source field message bus is broker-agnostic.

22. The communication node of claim 16 , wherein the standards-based or open-source field message bus comprises a standards-based or open-source Application Programming Interface (API).

Assignees

• Duke Energy Corp

Inventors

• Laval Stuart
• Smith Raiford

Classifications

• Y02B90/242

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• Y02B70/3266

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• G01D4/004

  Remote reading of utility meters to a fixed location · CPC title

• H04L69/03 Primary

  Protocol definition or specification  (protocol conformance testing H04L1/244) · CPC title

• H04L67/12 Primary

  specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks · CPC title