TW201813435A - Synchronized delivery from multiple devices - Google Patents

Abstract

Synchronizing data delivery from a multitude of devices includes receiving, at a first one of the devices, a transmission containing data and delaying initiation of delivery of the received data from the first device to a module by am amount of time. After passage of the amount of time, delivery of the received data from the first device to the module is initiated. This can allow the first device to initiate delivery of the data to the module in synchronized fashion with other ones of the devices initiating delivery of the data to respective modules.

Description

Simultaneous delivery from multiple devices

The present invention relates to simultaneous delivery from multiple devices.

The use of multiple simultaneous wireless receivers is a useful tool for one of a variety of applications. For example, to produce the proper lighting effects at a concert, multiple lights need to be deployed from a single point throughout the precise coordination of a concert venue. Similarly, synchronous communication can be required for imaging and visual effects imaging, where multiple cameras are used to simultaneously record the same event from multiple different vantage points. The following difficulties can occur when transferring data to multiple receivers. In some applications, data may need to be transmitted multiple times to one or more receivers before successfully receiving the data. Therefore, the data may arrive at another receiver before it reaches one of the receivers. This situation can be problematic for applications where it is desirable for all receivers to simultaneously output data.

The present invention describes simultaneous delivery from multiple devices. For example, one of the contained data can be transmitted at the first of the devices. The initiation of delivery of the received data from the first device to a module is delayed by an amount of time, and after the amount of time has elapsed, delivery of the received data from the first device to the module is initiated. This may allow the first device to initiate delivery of the data to the module in a manner that synchronizes the delivery of the data to the respective modules by other devices of the devices. In one aspect, for example, a method of synchronizing data delivery from a plurality of devices includes receiving, at a first one of the devices, transmitting one of the contained data and delaying initiating the received data from the first device Delivery to a module. The initial delay of delivery of the data is based, at least in part, on one of the following first amount of time: (i) represents a predetermined value of a second amount of time during which a maximum number of trial data is required to occur Transmitting to achieve at least one specified probability that all of the devices receive the data, and (ii) a time interval indicating the time taken by the first device to receive the data from an initial transmission attempt. The method further includes initiating delivery of the received data from the first device to the module after the first amount of time has elapsed. Some embodiments include one or more of the following features. For example, the method can facilitate allowing the first device to initiate delivery of the data to the module in a manner that synchronizes the delivery of the data to the respective modules by other devices of the devices. In some cases, the specified probability that all of the devices receive the data is at least 99%. In some embodiments, the first device receives the transmission containing the data at a time other than one of the other devices receiving one of the transmissions of the data. Moreover, in some embodiments, the first device is powered down during the first amount of time of the initial delay of the delivery of the material for operation in a low power mode. The start of the delivery of the material from the first device may be delayed, for example, by a first amount of time that is equal to a difference between the predetermined value and the time interval. In some embodiments, the transmission containing the data also includes a transmission attempt number indicating the number of times the data has been attempted to be transmitted to the first device during a particular time period. The particular time period can begin, for example, with the initial transmission attempt and can end, for example, when the second amount of time passes. Moreover, in some cases, the time interval indicating the time taken by the first device to receive the data from the initial transmission attempt may be based at least in part on the transmission attempt number included in the transmission received by the first device . In another aspect, the invention features an apparatus comprising a first transceiver operative to receive and transmit communications. A timer tracking is based, at least in part, on a first amount of time of each of: (i) indicating a predetermined value of a second amount of time within which a maximum number of attempts to transmit data is required to achieve a plurality of Each of the transceivers receives at least one specified probability of the data, and (ii) a time interval indicating the time it takes for the first transceiver to receive the data from an initial transmission attempt. The device includes a processor and a memory for storing instructions, wherein the instructions are executed by the processor causing the processor to transmit the received data by the first transceiver in response to receiving one of the received data The initiation of delivery of the other device is delayed by the first amount of time; and delivery of the received data by the first transceiver to another device is initiated after the first amount of time has elapsed. The present invention also describes a system comprising: a sensor; a plurality of devices operative to receive and transmit communications; a transmitter coupled to the sensor and operative to transmit the sensor The data is communicated to the device; and a plurality of output modules, each of which is operable to receive communications from a respective one of the devices. Each of the devices is operable to receive from the transmitter a respective communication containing one of the sensor data and to deliver the received sensor data from the particular device to a respective one of the output modules The start delay is a first amount of time. The first amount of time is based at least in part on (i) indicating a predetermined value of a second amount of time during which a maximum number of attempts to transmit data is required to achieve receipt of the sensor data by all of the devices. At least one specified probability, and (ii) a time interval indicating a time taken by the particular device to receive the sensor data from an initial transmission attempt by the transmitter. Each of the devices may also operate to initiate delivery of the sensor data from the particular device to the respective one of the output modules after the first amount of time has elapsed. The amount of delay can be customized for each of the plurality of devices. Some embodiments may achieve reliable synchronous delivery from multiple receivers with high precision, which may be required for, for example, time sensitive communication such as critical data/signal delivery. Other aspects, features, and advantages will be readily apparent from the following description, the accompanying drawings and claims.

The present invention describes methods and systems for reliable synchronized data delivery with high accuracy. As shown in FIG. 1, data may be collected by input hardware 10 and transmitted to a plurality of receivers 12, 14 by a transmitter 16. Examples of input hardware 10 include sensors that are operable to sense various physical features. The input hardware 10 is coupled to a transmitter 16, which may include, for example, both a hardware component and a software component. In some embodiments, the transmitter 16 can be implemented by a small programmable wireless module, including, for example, a processor 20 and flash and RAM memory 21, and one of the Bluetooth intelligent communications for communication. Radio device 22. The processor may be (e.g.) memory implemented to incorporate, one radio interface and a single wafer system equipment (SoC) one ARM ^® Cortex ^® processor. The instructions may be stored in memory 21 such that processor 20 is operative to perform the operations described below in connection with transmitter 16. In some cases, transmitter 16 can be designed to communicate with receivers 12, 14 via another type of media (eg, fiber optic cable; copper wire). In the case of wireless communication, each of the receivers 12, 14 can also be implemented by a small programmable wireless module including, for example, the processor 30 and the flash and RAM memory 31 and for communicating communications One of the Bluetooth Smart Radios 32. The instructions may be stored in memory 31 such that processor 30 is operative to perform the operations described below in connection with receivers 12, 14. In other cases, the receivers 12, 14 can be designed to communicate with the transmitter 16 via another type of media (eg, a wire). Each of the receivers 12, 14 can include a respective hardware component and a respective software component. In addition, each of the receivers 12, 14 is coupled to a respective output module 24, 26 that is or includes, for example, a processor, a display monitor, a light emitting component (eg, an LED), or other device. Depending on the implementation, the output modules 24, 26 can be configured to, for example, process the received data and/or generate a visual indication of one of the received data. The techniques described in this disclosure may facilitate synchronization of data transmissions from the outputs of the plurality of receiver devices 12, 14 such that the receivers output data substantially simultaneously ( _TSTN ). Although Figure 1 shows only two receivers 12, 14, in some applications there may be hundreds or even thousands of receivers. Therefore, for ease of explanation, the description in the following paragraphs assumes that there are two receivers 12, 14. However, the techniques described herein are also applicable to systems having a greater number of receivers. In short, all receivers 12, 14 can be substantially simultaneously by customizing one of the receivers' data transmission delays for one of the different ones of the receivers for each time interval (I _DLY ) Synchronization is achieved by initiating the delivery of their data. Determining the amount of delay based on a best attempted delivery interval (I _BST ) indicates that a maximum number of attempts to transmit data is required to achieve at least one specified probability that all of the receivers 12, 14 receive the data transmission (eg, > 99%) amount of time. Thus, the best attempted delivery interval (I _BST ) indicates the maximum amount of time required to achieve at least one successful data transfer to all of the receivers 12, 14 (including the receiver with the greatest probability of failure). For some wireless data transmission applications, the optimal attempted delivery interval (I _BST ) is approximately 3 ms. This value can be different for other applications. The value of the optimal attempted delivery interval (I _BST ) for a particular application can be determined, for example, as follows. It is assumed that each transmission occurs within at least one of the specific media intervals (I _MED ) through which the transmission takes place. For wireless data transmission, the media interval can be approximately 1 ms. In the illustrated example, it is assumed that the first receiver 12 will need no more than two transmission attempts to successfully receive the data transmitted by the transmitter 16. Therefore, it is assumed that the first receiver 12 receives the data within one of the interval 2 * I _MED from the initial transmission attempt of the time T _ITR . Conversely, in this example, it is assumed that the second receiver 14 may require up to three transmission attempts to successfully receive the data transmitted by the transmitter 16. Therefore, it is assumed that the second receiver 14 receives the data within one of the intervals 3 * I _MED from the initial transmission attempt of the time T _ITR . Since there are only two receivers 12, 14 in the illustrated example, the maximum number of attempts to transmit data for all receivers to successfully receive data will be three. The optimal attempt delivery interval (I _BST ) can be set equal to the amount of time required for this maximum number of attempts to transmit data. Therefore, in this example, I _BST is set equal to 3 * I _MED . During the optimal attempted delivery interval (I _BST ), the transmitter 16 repeatedly transmits the same data for a specified number of times. In addition, transmitter 16 is configured to encode each attempted data transmission using a sequential transmission number (N _TR ) during a given optimal attempt delivery interval (I _BST ). Thus, for example, the first attempt data transmission may use the N _TR = 1 flag, the second attempt data transmission may use the N _TR = 2 flag, and the third attempt data transmission may use the N _TR = 3 flag or the like. To track the transmission number, the transmitter 16 can include a counter 18 that accumulates 1 for each data transmission during a given optimal attempt delivery interval. The counter can be reset after the maximum number of transmission attempts have been reached. Since the media interval (I _MED ) is fixed for a given implementation, the maximum number of delivery attempts (N _MAX ) that can occur during the optimal attempted delivery interval (I _BST ) is also fixed. In the illustrated example, the maximum number of delivery attempts (N _MAX ) is three. By examining the transmission number contained in the received data, the receivers 12, 14 can determine the number of data transmissions that have been currently transmitted by the transmitter 16 during a particular optimal attempted delivery interval. In the illustrated example, the first receiver 12 receives a data transmission from the transmitter 16 one time after the initial transmission attempt of the time T _ITR is equal to (2 * I _MED ). On the other hand, the second receiver 14 may not successfully receive the data transmission until after the third transmission attempt (i.e., after the entire duration of the best attempted delivery interval (I _BST )). To allow the first receiver 12 and the second receiver 14 to simultaneously deliver the received data to their respective output modules 24, 26, the first receiver 12 is configured to delay the data transmission by a personalized and customized The time interval (I _DLY(1) ), which in this example is equal to (1 * I _MED ). In general, each receiver (e.g., 12) is configured to identify the number (N _TR ) of the transmission attempt encoded in the received data transmission, and if the encoded transmission attempt number (N _TR ) in the received transmission is less than The maximum number of transmission attempts allowed is that the initial delay of delivery of the data to the output module (e.g., 24) is equal to one of (N _MAX - N _TR ) * I _MED . Therefore, the delay will be a multiple of I _MED . If for a particular receiver (eg, 14), the encoded transmission attempt number (N _TR ) in the received transmission is equal to the maximum number of allowed transmission attempts (eg, N _MAX ), then the receiver delay will be zero. By using such personalized and customized delays for each receiver, data can be delivered from each of the receivers 12, 14 at the same synchronization time (T _SYN ). 2 and 3 respectively show a flow chart of an example of data transmission and reception from the perspective of the transmitter 16 and from the perspective of one of the receivers 12, 14. As indicated by Figure 2, when data is transmitted from transmitter 16 to one or more receivers 12, 14, transmitter 16 sets counter 18 to a value of one (at 100). Transmitter 16 then transmits (at 110) the containing data and one of the current values stored by counter 18. Counter 18 is incremented by 1 (at 120). At 130, the program determines if another transmission attempt is needed and if so, transmits the same data in incremented counts. The program continues to repeat 110, 120, and 130 as long as the counter 18 does not exceed the maximum number of transmission attempts. If the value in counter 18 exceeds the maximum number of transmission attempts, the program is completed (at 140). If more information needs to be transmitted by the transmitter 16, the procedure of Figure 2 can be repeated. As indicated by Figure 3, when one of the receivers (e.g., 12) receives a communication (at 200) from the transmitter 16, the receiver checks the integrity of the data for the error (at 210). If one or more errors are detected, the program executed by the receiver 12 waits for another data transmission from the transmitter 16 (at 200). Since the transmission from transmitter 16 contains the transmission number (N _TR ) and the data, the program can determine (at 220) whether the received transmission was the last transmission from transmitter 16 during the particular best attempted delivery interval (I _BST ). If the transmission number (N _TR ) indicates that the transmission is not the last expected transmission (ie, if N _TR < N _MAX ), the program calculates (at 230) the number of remaining transmission attempts it expects the transmitter 16 to make (ie, N _MAX – N _TR ). Receiver 12 then waits (at 240) for the same amount of time (i.e., (N _MAX - N _TR ) * I _MED ) that is expected to be performed during the particular best attempted delivery interval (I _BST ). The data is then delivered (at 250) from the receiver 12. Other receivers (e.g., 14) also perform the same procedure of Figure 3. Thus, data delivery by the receivers 12, 14 is synchronized (i.e., at time T _SYN ) and the output modules 23, 26 can process or display the data. Based on the optimal attempted delivery interval (I _BST ), the maximum number of attempts to deliver data to the receivers 12, 14 may depend on the particular application, but may remain constant for a given application. In the illustrated example, it is assumed that the second receiver 14 successfully receives the data by the third data transmission attempt. This assumption can be considered valid because the best attempted delivery interval (I _BST ) is selected to correspond to a success rate of close to 100% (eg, > 99%). However, if the second receiver 14 does not receive data, for example, within the optimal attempted delivery interval (I _BST ), the program may take one of the following actions depending on the implementation. In some embodiments, the program continues as if no particular transmission has occurred. In some embodiments, if the receiver output is expected, the program again uses the last known transmission state. In some embodiments, if the receiver output is expected and the last known state is invalid, the program uses a specified preset or error state. The latter technique can be used, for example, in situations where the receiver device changes state is critical (eg, if a request to maintain a surgical laser on is not received within a specified period of time, the laser should be turned off; or In the case where the repeated transmission causes a lock to remain open, if a transmission is not received, the preset state may cause the door lock to be closed for safety. In some embodiments, the receiver may be powered down for use in a delay period (I _DLY ) while a particular receiver (eg, 12) is waiting for the remainder of the optimal attempted delivery interval (I _BST ) to elapse. Operate in low power mode to reduce energy consumption. The receiver's timer 28 can be used to generate a signal that causes the receiver to power up at the end of the optimal attempted delivery interval (I _BST ) so that the receiver can deliver its data at the synchronization time (T _SYN ). In some instances, data delivery success may depend on the delivery of the data to the media across the receiver (eg, a wired electronic medium, fiber optic media, wireless media, or a combination thereof). For example, the media may be "no error" (which basically guarantees data delivery) or "easily error-prone" (where data delivery is not guaranteed). Although FIG. 1 illustrates an example of an error prone system in which the transmitter 16 repeatedly retransmits data to ensure that one or more of the receivers 12, 14 receive the data, the techniques described herein can also be used in essence. There is no error on the system (where only a single data transmission is required to achieve nearly 100% probability that all receivers 12, 14 receive data transmission (eg, > 99%)). For example, as depicted in FIG. 4, the first receiver 12 and the second receiver 14 can be positioned at a distance that is significantly different from the transmitter 16. Thus, the time required for a single data transmission to the first receiver 12 (I _MED(1) ) can be less than the time required for a single data transmission to the second receiver 14 (I _MED(2) ). Each of the receiver(s) (eg, 12) that is closer to the transmitter than the farthest receiver 14 can be configured to delay the delivery of data to the output module (eg, 24) for a personalized amount of time, All receivers 12, 14 are caused to deliver data to their respective output modules 24, 26 in a synchronized manner at time T _SYN . The type of information contemplated in the foregoing embodiments includes, but is not limited to, information relating to physical parameters sensed by the following types of sensors as input hardware 10: 声 sound, sound, vibration (eg, listening) Floor, underwater sound detector, microphone); Ÿ car, transportation (eg, airflow meter, air fuel ratio meter, blind spot monitor, crank position sensor, defect detector, engine coolant temperature sensor, Huo Sensor, knock sensor, manifold absolute pressure sensor, mass flu detector, oxygen sensor, parking sensor, radar gun, speedometer, speed sensor, throttle position sense Detector, tire pressure monitoring sensor, torque sensor, transmission fluid temperature sensor, turbine speed sensor, variable reluctance sensor, vehicle speed sensor, water sensor, wheel speed sensing Ÿ chemistry (eg, carbon dioxide sensor, carbon monoxide sensor, catalytic bead sensor, chemical field effect transistor, sensitizing resistor, electrochemical gas sensor, electrolyte insulator semiconductor sensor, firefly) Chloride sensor, hologram Detector, hydrocarbon dew point analyzer, hydrogen sensor, hydrogen sulfide sensor, infrared point sensor, ion selective electrode, non-dispersive infrared sensor, microwave chemical sensor, NOx sensing , olfactometer, oxygen sensor, ozone monitor, pellistor, pH glass electrode, potential sensor, redox electrode, smoke detector, zinc oxide nanobar sensor);电流 Current, potential, magnetic (eg, current sensor, Dali detector, electroscope, electron multiplier, Faraday cup, ammeter, Hall effect sensor, Hall probe, geomagnetic anomaly detector, Magnetometer, MEMS magnetic field sensor, metal detector, planar Hall sensor, radio direction finder, voltage detector); Ÿ flow, flow rate (eg, airflow meter, anemometer, flow sensor, Gas meter, qualitative influenza detector, water meter); Ÿ ionizing radiation, subatomic particles (eg, Geiger counter, neutron detector); Ÿ navigation instruments (eg, airspeed meter, altimeter, attitude meter, depth gauge, Saturated compass, gyroscope, inertial navigation system , inertial reference unit, magnetic compass, MHD sensor, ring laser gyroscope, turn coordinator, transformer, vibration structure gyroscope, yaw rate sensor); 位置 position, angle, displacement Distance, velocity, acceleration (eg, growth meter, capacitive displacement sensor, capacitive sensing, free fall sensor, gravimeter, gyroscope sensor, collision sensor, inclinometer, integrated circuit) Inductance detector, laser range finder, laser speedometer, linear encoder, linear variable differential transformer, liquid capacitive inclinometer, odometer, optical sensor, pressure sensitive sensor, piezoelectric Accelerometer, position sensor, rate sensor, rotary encoder, rotary variable differential transformer, vibration detector, tensile sensor, tilt sensor, tachometer, ultrasonic thickness gauge, variable magnetic Resistive sensor, speed receiver); 光学 optics, light, imaging, photons (eg, charge-coupled devices, CMOS sensors, colorimeter, contact image sensor, photo-inductor, flame detector) , infrared sensor, kinetic energy detector, light Fiber sensor, optical position sensor, thermopile laser sensor, photodetector, photodiode, photomultiplier tube, photoelectric crystal, photoinductor, photoionization detector, photomultiplier , photoresists, light-controlled switches, single-photon abrupt diodes, superconducting nanowires, single-photon detectors, transition edge sensors, visible photon counters, wavefront sensors); Ÿ pressure (eg , barometer, ionization gauge, pressure gauge, pressure sensor, pressure gauge, tactile sensor, time pressure gauge); force, density, level (eg, hydrometer, dynamometer, level sensing) , force gauge, piezo-capacitor pressure sensor, pressure sensor, stress meter, torque sensor); Ÿ heat, heat, temperature (for example, calorimeter, flame detector, heat flux) Detector, infrared thermometer, resistance temperature detector, resistance thermometer, 矽gap temperature sensor, thermometer, thermal resistor, thermocouple, thermometer); Ÿ proximity, presence (eg, alarm sensor, Dopp) Le radar sensor, motion detector, occupancy sensor, proximity sensor Triangulation measurement sensors). Thus, a wide range of sensors, for example, can be used as the input hardware 10, depending on the application. Thus, the techniques of the present invention are applicable to data collected from all types of sensors. In some examples, data is collected from one or more sources by a single receiver. In other examples, data from one source can be delivered to multiple receivers. The receiver can be positioned at different locations and in a variety of configurations. For example, the receiver can be placed on the head, chest, arms and legs of a runner. The best attempted delivery time interval (I _BST ) can be selected, for example, based on the needs of the use case, media, and/or distance. For example, for short transmission times, a smaller number of data delivery attempts may be used resulting in a shorter optimal attempt delivery interval. If, for example, the transmitter and receiver are closer to each other, the optimal attempted delivery time interval (I _BST ) can be shorter, making it less likely that the interference relative to the transmitter signal will affect the receiver. In addition, a particularly error-prone medium can guarantee more data delivery attempts. For example, long wireless transmission distances in industry settings can include interference noise from factory equipment, which can cause problems. In general, the optimal attempted delivery interval (I _BST ) is set to the product of at least the time required for a single data transmission (I _MED ) and the maximum number of expected delivery attempts (N _MAX ). Synchronized delivery of time (T _SYN) ensues in the preferred delivery attempt interval (I _BST) at the end or shortly after delivery of the optimal attempt interval (I _BST). The receivers 12, 14 may use, for example, a standard algorithm to determine the integrity of the received data (e.g., cyclic redundancy check). If it is determined that the received data contains an error, the receiver may wait for one of the data to be retransmitted by the transmitter 16. In some examples, the error check and the loop waiting for retransmission may continue until the synchronized delivery time (T _SYN ) is reached or until the maximum number of transmission attempts (N _MAX ) is reached. It is understood from the examples described above that synchronized delivery can be maintained between the receivers 12, 14 even if the time at which the receivers 12, 14 receive the data is different. For example, if the data is delivered to a first receiver 12 on the first transmission (no errors are detected), the receiver 12 can ignore any subsequent recurrences that occurred during the same best attempted delivery interval (I _BST ). transmission. Similarly, if the second receiver 14 successfully receives data on the first or subsequent retransmissions, the second receiver 14 may ignore further retransmissions until after the synchronized delivery time (T _SYN ). Both receivers 12, 14 will then deliver the data to their respective output modules 24, 26 at the synchronized delivery time (T _SYN ). In some embodiments, each receiver 12, 14 includes a timer 28 for scheduling data delivery. For example, if a transmission is successfully received on the second transmission on the first receiver 12 and the best attempted delivery method allows a maximum of five transmissions, the receiver will use its timer 28 to determine that the elapsed equals the remaining three data. The time required for retransmission is ensured to ensure accurate data delivery to the output module 24 at the synchronized delivery time (T _SYN ). Similarly, if the second receiver 14 successfully receives the data on the first transmission, the receiver will use its timer 28 to determine the elapsed time equal to the remaining four transmissions to ensure that it is identical to that used by the first receiver 12. The synchronized delivery time (T _SYN ) is accurately scheduled to the data delivery of the output module 26. In some embodiments, the non-transitory storage medium stores instructions for determining (1) one to one or more receivers of media transmission time (I _MED ); (2) to (several) receivers One of the best attempted delivery intervals (I _BST ); and (3) one of the receivers (synchronized delivery time (I _SYN )). In general, the optimal attempted delivery interval (I _BST ) will be greater than the media transmission time (I _MED ). The instructions stored on the non-transitory storage medium may also cause the transmitter 16 and/or the receivers 12, 14 to perform the various operations described above. In some instances, the techniques of the present invention are used to achieve high accuracy of simultaneous data delivery. In some cases, the reception accuracy may be approximately 1 nanosecond per foot or 1 microsecond per 100 feet. Each of transmitter 16 and receivers 12, 14 can be implemented to be operable to transmit and receive one of the transceivers. In some embodiments, the receivers 12, 14 deliver the material via a callback function. In these examples, the synchronized delivery time (T _SYN ) occurs during the call back call function. The following paragraphs describe various other features that exist in some applications. For delay calculations, the following examples can be applied. Given "ttx" as airborne transmission and "tba" as the best attempted delivery (where "tba" is equal to "ttx" for error-free media, and "tba" is greater than or equal to "ttx" for error-prone media, "tba" covers the original transmission plus a specific number of error retransmissions), and the synchronized delivery time "tsd" can be any time greater than or equal to "tba". As an example, using an error-free medium, it can be assumed that each transmission takes slightly less than 3 ms, "tba" is also slightly less than 3 ms, and "tsd" can be set to 3 ms. For an error-prone medium, if each transmission takes 1 ms, error detection takes 1 ms, a retransmission takes 1 ms and the application needs the same every 3 ms, so that the implementation can only tolerate a single retransmission attempt, then "Tba" is 3 ms, and a timer can be used to set "tsd" to 3 ms. For accuracy calculations, the following examples can be applied. For the additional time required to implement the synchronized delivery (c), given a timer accuracy (a) and transmission distance (d), the accuracy of tsd is affected by c, a, and d. Since c is relatively constant and a is based on a constant ppm of crystals, the change in tsd is only affected by the variable d. For electronic media (eg, wired, wireless, and optical devices), the variability of d is affected by the time it takes for the speed of light to traverse the maximum transmission distance. For this calculation, the speed of light can be viewed as approximately 299.792, 458 m/μs, which is approximately 1,000 feet per microsecond. Thus, for electronic media, if tsd is greater than or equal to tba, the optimal accuracy of tsd can be close to 1 microsecond for every 1,000 feet of transmission. For example, for a wireless 2.4 GHz transceiver with one of 1,000 feet maximum transmission distance, one microsecond of one code variation, one of the maximum distance variation of one microsecond, the accuracy is about 10 microseconds. Various embodiments are available for multiple synchronized receivers to coordinate data collection from multiple points. For example, a single collector can initiate data collection by sending a request for one of the data to multiple sensors. Since the request is received synchronously by the sensor, each sensor can be accurately scheduled for a time interval to respond in a manner that ensures that it is not transmitted simultaneously with another sensor. This technique is more efficient than polling (requesting data to a first sensor, then requesting data from a second sensor, etc.) to provide a higher degree of relevant information in a smaller time interval, and Can be more efficient for power. For example, data may be collected from multiple accelerometers to measure the deflection of a car or aircraft frame at different points during motion. Similarly, deflections in bridges supporting traffic or buildings can be measured to assess performance. This information can help civil and structural engineering design, infrastructure age studies, and more. In the medical and sports fields, data can be collected to accurately obtain relative biological information from multiple points on the human body. Similarly, the techniques described herein can be used in the field of competitive games, for example, by collecting material from multiple players to study player activity. Various aspects of the subject matter and functional operations described in this specification can be in a digital electronic circuit or in a computer software, firmware or hardware (including structures disclosed herein and equivalent structural equivalents thereof) A combination of one or more is implemented. The embodiments described in this specification can be implemented as one or more computer program products, i.e., one of computer program instructions encoded on a computer readable medium for performing or controlling the operation of the data processing device by the data processing device. Or multiple modules. The computer readable medium can be, for example, a non-transitory machine readable storage device, a machine readable storage substrate, a memory device, a composition of matter affecting a machine readable propagation signal, or one or more thereof One of the combinations. The terms "data processing device" and "computer" encompass all devices, devices and machines for processing data, including (by way of example) a programmable processor, a computer or multiple processors or computers. In addition to the hardware, the device may also include code for generating an execution environment of the computer program, such as one or more of a processor firmware, a protocol stack, a database management system, an operating system, or the like. One of the combinations of code. A computer program (also known as a program, software, software application, command file or code) can be written in any form of programming language (including compiled or interpreted languages) and can be in any form (including as a stand-alone program) Or deployed as a module, component, subroutine, or other unit in a computing environment. A computer program does not have to correspond to one file in a file system. A program may be stored in a portion of a file that stores another program or data (eg, one or more command files stored in a markup language file), stored in a single file dedicated to the program, or stored In multiple coordination files (such as files that store one or more modules, subprograms, or parts of code). A computer program can be deployed to be executed on a computer or on multiple computers located at one location or distributed across multiple locations and interconnected by a communication network. The procedures and logic flows described in this specification can be performed by executing one or more computer programs or a plurality of programmable processors to perform functions by operating input data and generating output. The program and logic flow may also be performed by dedicated logic circuitry (eg, an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) or an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit)), and the device may also be implemented as dedicated logic circuitry. A processor suitable for executing a computer program includes, for example, both general and special purpose microprocessors, and any one or more processors of any kind of digital computer. In general, a processor will receive instructions and data from a read-only memory or a random access memory or both. A basic component of a computer is a processor for executing instructions and one or more memory devices for storing instructions and data. In general, a computer may also include one or more mass storage devices (eg, magnetic disks, magneto-optical disks, or optical disks) for storing data, or may be operatively coupled to receive data from or transmit data to the mass storage device. The mass storage device or both. However, a computer does not need to have such a device. Moreover, a computer can be embedded in another device, for example, embedded in a mobile phone, a digital assistant (PDA), a mobile audio player, a global positioning system (GPS) receiver, and the like. Computer readable media suitable for storing computer program instructions and data include all forms of non-volatile memory, media, and memory devices including, for example, semiconductor memory devices such as EPROM, EEPROM, and flash memory devices; Discs, for example, internal hard drives or removable disks; magneto-optical discs; and CD ROMs and DVD ROM discs. The processor and memory may be supplemented by or incorporated in dedicated logic circuitry. In order to provide interaction with a user, there may be a display device (for example, a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) or LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) monitor) for displaying information to the user, and a keyboard and an indicator device ( For example, a mouse or a trackball on which a user can provide input to a computer can perform operations. Other types of devices can also be used to provide interaction with a user; for example, providing to use The feedback can be any form of sensing feedback (eg, visual feedback, audible feedback, or tactile feedback); and can receive input from the user in any form, including audible, audible, or tactile input. Although this specification contains many details, However, the descriptions of the present invention are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention. The features may also be combined in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features described in the context of a single embodiment can be used individually or in any suitable form. The combination is implemented in a number of embodiments. Furthermore, although features may be described above as acting in a particular combination and even if initially claimed, in some cases one or more features from the claimed combination may be self-combined. And the claimed combination may be a change in a sub-combination or a sub-combination. Similarly, although the operations are depicted in a particular order in the drawings, this should not be construed as requiring that the execution be performed in the particular order or sequence. Etc., or perform all illustrated operations to achieve the desired result. In certain circumstances, multiple task processing and parallel processing may be advantageous. Furthermore, the separation of the various system components in the embodiments described above should not be It is understood that this separation is required in all embodiments, and it should be understood that the described program components and systems can generally be integrated together in a single software product or packaged into multiple software products. Within the scope and spirit of the present invention Various modifications are made to the foregoing examples, and thus, other embodiments are within the scope of the scope of the invention.

10‧‧‧ Hardware

12‧‧‧ Receiver

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16‧‧‧Transporter

18‧‧‧ counter

20‧‧‧ processor

21‧‧‧ memory

22‧‧‧Bluetooth Smart Radio

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26‧‧‧Output module

28‧‧‧Timer

30‧‧‧ Processor

31‧‧‧ memory

32‧‧‧Bluetooth Smart Radio

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Figure 1 illustrates an example of one of the systems for synchronous data delivery. 2 is a flow chart showing one example of data delivery from the perspective of a transmitter. 3 is a flow chart showing one example of data delivery from a receiver perspective. FIG. 4 illustrates another example of a system for synchronous data delivery.

Claims (21)

A method of synchronizing data delivery from a plurality of devices, the method comprising: receiving, at a first one of the devices, transmitting one of the contained data; delaying delivery of the received data from the first device to a module The beginning, wherein the initial delay of delivery of the data is based at least in part on a first time amount of one of: (i) representing a predetermined value of a second amount of time during which the second amount of time needs to occur The maximum number of attempts to transmit data to achieve at least one specified probability that all of the devices receive the data, and (ii) a time interval indicating the time it takes for the first device to receive the data from an initial transmission attempt; And after the first amount of time has elapsed, initiating delivery of the received data from the first device to the module. The method of claim 1, wherein the first device initiates delivery of the data to the module in synchronization with the delivery of the data to the respective modules by other devices of the devices. The method of claim 1, wherein the first device receives the transmission containing the data at a time other than one of the other devices receiving one of the transmissions of the data. The method of claim 1, further comprising powering down the first device for operation in a low power mode during the first amount of time of the initial delay of the delivery of the material. The method of claim 1, wherein the initiation of the delivery of the material from the first device is delayed by a first amount of time equal to a difference between the predetermined value and the time interval. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmission containing the data also includes a transmission attempt number indicating the number of times the data has been attempted to be transmitted to the first device during a particular time period. The method of claim 6, wherein the particular time period begins with the initial transmission attempt and ends when the second amount of time passes. The method of claim 6, wherein the time interval indicating a time taken by the first device to receive the data from the initial transmission attempt is based at least in part on the transmission attempt number included in the transmission received by the first device . The method of claim 1, wherein the first device wirelessly receives the transmission containing the data. The method of claim 1, wherein the specified probability that all of the devices receive the data is at least 99%. An apparatus comprising: a first transceiver operative to receive and transmit communications; and a timer tracking the first amount of time based at least in part on one of: (i) representing a second amount of time a predetermined value within which a maximum number of attempts to transmit data is required to achieve at least one specified probability of receiving data for each of the plurality of transceivers, and (ii) a time interval indicating The time at which the initial transmission attempts to receive the data from the first transceiver; and a memory of the processor and the storage instructions, the instructions being caused by the processor to cause the processor to: receive the data in response to receiving a transmission delaying the start of the delivery of the received data by the first transceiver to another device by the first amount of time; and after the lapse of the first amount of time, initiating the first transmission and reception The device delivers the received data to another device. The device of claim 11, wherein the processor is operative to power down the device for operation in a low power mode during the first amount of time of the initial delay of the delivery of the material. The device of claim 11, wherein the processor is operative to cause a start delay of delivery of the material by the first transceiver to be equal to one of a difference between the predetermined value and the time interval, a first amount of time . The device of claim 11, wherein the time interval indicating a time taken by the device to receive the data from the initial transmission attempt is based at least in part on a transmission attempt number included in the transmission received by the device, wherein the transmission The attempt number indicates the number of times the data has been attempted to be transmitted to the device during a particular time period. The device of claim 11, wherein the particular time period begins with the initial transmission attempt and ends when the second amount of time passes. The device of claim 11, wherein the first transceiver is operative to wirelessly receive the transmission containing the data. The device of claim 11, wherein the specified probability that all of the transceivers receive the data is at least 99%. A system comprising: a sensor; a plurality of devices operative to receive and transmit communications; a transmitter coupled to the sensor and operative to transmit communications containing sensor data to a plurality of devices; and a plurality of output modules, each of which is operable to receive communications from a respective one of the devices, wherein each of the plurality of devices is operable to: receive from the transmitter One of the sensor data is each in communication; the initial delay in delivery of the received sensor data from the particular device to the respective one of the output modules is based, at least in part, on one of the following first amount of time: (i) representing a predetermined value of a second amount of time during which a maximum number of attempts to transmit data is required to achieve at least one specified probability that all of the devices receive the sensor data, and ( Ii) a time interval indicating the time taken by the particular device to receive the sensor data from an initial transmission attempt by the transmitter; and after the first amount of time has elapsed, initiating the Data from the specific detector means to such output module of the delivery of their respective owners. The system of claim 18, wherein the plurality of devices are operative to initiate delivery of the sensor data to the respective output modules in a synchronized manner. The system of claim 18, wherein at least one of the devices receives the sensing at a time different than one of the devices or one of the other devices receiving the respective communication of the sensor data The respective data of the device data. The system of claim 18, wherein the amount of delay is customized for a respective one of the plurality of devices.