Patent Description:
Numerous electronic devices are now capable of connecting to wireless networks. For example, smart meter technology employs a wireless network to communicate electrical energy consumption data associated with residential properties back to a utility for monitoring, billing, and the like. As such, a number of wireless networking standards are currently available to enable electronic devices to communicate with each other. Some smart meter implementations, for instance, employ Internet Protocol version <NUM> (IPv6) over Low power Wireless Personal Area Networks (6LoWPAN) to enable electronic devices to communicate with a smart meter. However, the currently available wireless networking standards such as 6LoWPAN may not be generally well equipped to support electronic devices dispersed throughout a residence or home for one or more practical scenarios. That is, the currently available wireless networking standards may not efficiently connect all electronic devices of a network in a secure yet simple, consumer-friendly manner in view of one or more known practical constraints. Moreover, for one or more practical scenarios, the currently available wireless networking standards may not provide an efficient way to add new electronic devices to an existing wireless network in an ad hoc manner.

Additionally, when providing a wireless network standard for electronic devices for use in and around a home, it would be beneficial to use a wireless network standard that provides an open protocol for different devices to learn how to gain access to the network. Also, given the number of electronic devices that may be associated with a home, it would be beneficial that the wireless network standard be capable of supporting Internet Protocol version <NUM> (IPv6) communication such that each device may have a unique IP address and may be capable of being accessed via the Internet, via a local network in a home environment, and the like. Further, it would be beneficial for the wireless network standard to allow the electronic devices to communicate within the wireless network using a minimum amount of power. With these features in mind, it is believed that one or more shortcomings is presented by each known currently available wireless networking standard in the context of providing a low power, IPv6-based, wireless mesh network standard that has an open protocol and can be used for electronic devices in and around a home. For example, wireless network standards such as Bluetooth®, Dust Networks®, Z-wave®, WiFi, and ZigBee® fail to provide one or more of the desired features discussed above.

Bluetooth®, for instance, generally provides a wireless network standard for communicating over short distances via short-wavelength radio transmissions. As such, Bluetooth's® wireless network standard may not support a communication network of a number of electronic devices disposed throughout a home. Moreover, Bluetooth's® wireless network standard may not support wireless mesh communication or IPv6 addresses.

As mentioned above, the wireless network standard provide by Dust Networks® may also bring about one or more shortcomings with respect to one or more features that would enable electronic devices disposed in a home to efficiently communicate with each other. In particular, Dust Networks'® wireless network standard may not provide an open protocol that may be used by others to interface with the devices operating on Dust Networks' network. Instead, Dust Networks® may be designed to facilitate communication between devices located in industrial environments such as assembly lines, chemical plants, and the like. As such, Dust Networks'® wireless network standard may be directed to providing a reliable communication network that has pre-defined time windows in which each device may communicate to other devices and listen for instructions from other devices. In this manner, Dust Networks'® wireless network standard may require sophisticated and relatively expensive radio transmitters that may not be economical to implement with consumer electronic devices for use in the home.

Like Dust Networks'® wireless network standard, the wireless network standard associated with Z-wave® may not be an open protocol. Instead, Z-wave's® wireless network standard may be available only to authorized clients that embed a specific transceiver chip into their device. Moreover, Z-wave's® wireless network standard may not support IPv6-based communication. That is, Z-wave's® wireless network standard may require a bridge device to translate data generated on a Z-wave® device into IP-based data that may be transmitted via the Internet.

Referring now to ZigBee's® wireless network standards, ZigBee® has two standards commonly known as ZigBee® Pro and ZigBee® IP. Moreover, ZigBee® Pro may have one or more shortcomings in the context of support for wireless mesh networking. Instead, ZigBee® Pro may depend at least in part on a central device that facilitates communication between each device in the ZigBee® Pro network. In addition to the increased power requirements for that central device, devices that remain on to process or reject certain wireless traffic can generate additional heat within their housings that may alter some sensor readings, such as temperature readings, acquired by the device. Since such sensor readings may be useful in determining how each device within the home may operate, it may be beneficial to avoid unnecessary generation of heat within the device that may alter sensor readings. Additionally, ZigBee® Pro may not support IPv6 communication.

Referring now to ZigBee® IP, ZigBee® IP may bring about one or more shortcomings in the context of direct device-to-device communication. ZigBee® IP is directed toward the facilitation of communication by relay of device data to a central router or device. As such, the central router or device may require constant powering and therefore may not represent a low power means for communications among devices. Moreover, ZigBee® IP may have a practical limit in the number of nodes (i.e., ~<NUM> nodes per network) that may be employed in a single network. Further, ZigBee® IP uses a "Ripple" routing protocol (RPL) that may exhibit high bandwidth, processing, and memory requirements, which may implicate additional power for each ZigBee® IP connected device.

Like the ZigBee® wireless network standards discussed above, WiFi's wireless network may exhibit one or more shortcomings in terms of enabling communications among devices having low-power requirements. For example, WiFi's wireless network standard may also require each networked device to always be powered up, and furthermore may require the presence of a central node or hub. As known in the art, WiFi is a relatively common wireless network standard that may be ideal for relatively high bandwidth data transmissions (e.g., streaming video, syncing devices). As such, WiFi devices are typically coupled to a continuous power supply or rechargeable batteries to support the constant stream of data transmissions between devices. Further, WiFi's wireless network may not support wireless mesh networking.

The subject-matter of the claims is presented.

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to an electronic device such as a thermostat that may be disposed in a building (e.g., home or office) such that the electronic device may wirelessly communicate with another electronic device disposed in the same building. In one embodiment, the electronic device includes a network interface configured to wirelessly communicate with a second electronic device of a wireless mesh network; a processor; a memory comprising instructions to join the electronic device to the wireless mesh network, the instructions, which when executed by the processor, configure the electronic device to:.

As a result, the electronic device may establish a secure communication network between itself and the other electronic device disposed in the same building with relatively little user input.

The brief summary presented above is intended only to familiarize the reader with certain aspects and contexts of embodiments of the present disclosure without limitation to the claimed subject matter.

These described embodiments are only examples of the presently disclosed techniques. Additionally, in an effort to provide a concise description of these embodiments, all features of an actual implementation may not be described in the specification. Moreover, it should be appreciated that such a development effort might be complex and time consuming, but may nevertheless be a routine undertaking of design, fabrication, and manufacture for those of ordinary skill having the benefit of this disclosure.

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to an efficient network layer that may be used by devices communicating with each other in a home environment. Generally, consumers living in homes may find it useful to coordinate the operations of various devices within their home such that all of their devices are operated efficiently. For example, a thermostat device may be used to detect a temperature of a home and coordinate the activity of other devices (e.g., lights) based on the detected temperature. In this example, the thermostat device may detect a temperature that may indicate that the temperature outside the home corresponds to daylight hours. The thermostat device may then convey to the light device that there may be daylight available to the home and that thus the light should turn off.

In addition to operating their devices efficiently, consumers generally prefer to use user-friendly devices that involve a minimum amount of set up or initialization. That is, consumers would generally prefer to purchase devices that are fully operational after performing a few number initialization steps that may be performed by almost any individual regardless of age or technical expertise.

Keeping this in mind, to enable devices to effectively communicate data between each other within the home environment with minimal user involvement, the devices may use an efficient network layer to manage their communication. That is, the efficient network layer may establish a communication network in which numerous devices within a home may communicate with each other via a wireless mesh network. The communication network may support Internet Protocol version <NUM> (IPv6) communication such that each connected device may have a unique Internet Protocol (IP) address. Moreover, to enable each device to integrate with a home, it may be useful for each device to communicate within the network using low amounts of power. That is, by enabling devices to communicate using low power, the devices may be placed anywhere in a home without being coupled to a continuous power source.

The efficient network layer may thus establish a procedure in which data may be transferred between two or more devices such that the establishment of the communication network involves little user input, the communication between devices involves little energy, and the communication network, itself, is secure. In one embodiment, the efficient network layer may be an IPv6-based communication network that employs Routing Information Protocol - Next Generation (RIPng) as its routing mechanism and may use a Datagram Transport Layer Security (DTLS) protocol as its security mechanism. As such, the efficient network layer may provide a simple means for adding or removing devices to a home while protecting the information communicated between the connected devices.

By way of introduction, <FIG> illustrates an example of a general device <NUM> that may that may communicate with other like devices within a home environment. In one embodiment, the device <NUM> may include one or more sensors <NUM>, a user-interface component <NUM>, a power supply <NUM> (e.g., including a power connection and/or battery), a network interface <NUM>, a processor <NUM>, and the like. Particular sensors <NUM>, user-interface components <NUM>, and power-supply configurations may be the same or similar with each devices <NUM>. However, it should be noted that in some embodiments, each device <NUM> may include particular sensors <NUM>, user-interface components <NUM>, power-supply configurations, and the like based on a device type or model.

The sensors <NUM>, in certain embodiments, may detect various properties such as acceleration, temperature, humidity, water, supplied power, proximity, external motion, device motion, sound signals, ultrasound signals, light signals, fire, smoke, carbon monoxide, global-positioning-satellite (GPS) signals, radio-frequency (RF), other electromagnetic signals or fields, or the like. As such, the sensors <NUM> may include temperature sensor(s), humidity sensor(s), hazard-related sensor(s) or other environmental sensor(s), accelerometer(s), microphone(s), optical sensors up to and including camera(s) (e.g., charged coupled-device or video cameras), active or passive radiation sensors, GPS receiver(s) or radiofrequency identification detector(s). While <FIG> illustrates an embodiment with a single sensor, many embodiments may include multiple sensors. In some instances, the device <NUM> may includes one or more primary sensors and one or more secondary sensors. Here, the primary sensor(s) may sense data central to the core operation of the device (e.g., sensing a temperature in a thermostat or sensing smoke in a smoke detector), while the secondary sensor(s) may sense other types of data (e.g., motion, light or sound), which can be used for energy-efficiency objectives or smart-operation objectives.

One or more user-interface components <NUM> in the device <NUM> may receive input from the user and/or present information to the user. The received input may be used to determine a setting. In certain embodiments, the user-interface components may include a mechanical or virtual component that responds to the user's motion. For example, the user can mechanically move a sliding component (e.g., along a vertical or horizontal track) or rotate a rotatable ring (e.g., along a circular track), or the user's motion along a touchpad may be detected. Such motions may correspond to a setting adjustment, which can be determined based on an absolute position of a user-interface component <NUM> or based on a displacement of a user-interface components <NUM> (e.g., adjusting a set point temperature by <NUM> degree F for every <NUM>° rotation of a rotatable-ring component). Physically and virtually movable user-interface components can allow a user to set a setting along a portion of an apparent continuum. Thus, the user may not be confined to choose between two discrete options (e.g., as would be the case if up and down buttons were used) but can quickly and intuitively define a setting along a range of possible setting values. For example, a magnitude of a movement of a user-interface component may be associated with a magnitude of a setting adjustment, such that a user may dramatically alter a setting with a large movement or finely tune a setting with s small movement.

The user-interface components <NUM> may also include one or more buttons (e.g., up and down buttons), a keypad, a number pad, a switch, a microphone, and/or a camera (e.g., to detect gestures). In one embodiment, the user-interface component <NUM> may include a click-and-rotate annular ring component that may enable the user to interact with the component by rotating the ring (e.g., to adjust a setting) and/or by clicking the ring inwards (e.g., to select an adjusted setting or to select an option). In another embodiment, the user-interface component <NUM> may include a camera that may detect gestures (e.g., to indicate that a power or alarm state of a device is to be changed). In some instances, the device <NUM> may have one primary input component, which may be used to set a plurality of types of settings. The user-interface components <NUM> may also be configured to present information to a user via, e.g., a visual display (e.g., a thin-film-transistor display or organic light-emitting-diode display) and/or an audio speaker.

The power-supply component <NUM> may include a power connection and/or a local battery. For example, the power connection may connect the device <NUM> to a power source such as a line voltage source. In some instances, an AC power source can be used to repeatedly charge a (e.g., rechargeable) local battery, such that the battery may be used later to supply power to the device <NUM> when the AC power source is not available.

The network interface <NUM> may include a component that enables the device <NUM> to communicate between devices. In one embodiment, the network interface <NUM> may communicate using an efficient network layer as part of its Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model. In one embodiment, the efficient network layer, which will be described in more detail below with reference to <FIG>, may enable the device <NUM> to wirelessly communicate IPv6-type data or traffic using a RIPng routing mechanism and a DTLS security scheme. As such, the network interface <NUM> may include a wireless card or some other transceiver connection.

The processor <NUM> may support one or more of a variety of different device functionalities. As such, the processor <NUM> may include one or more processors configured and programmed to carry out and/or cause to be carried out one or more of the functionalities described herein. In one embodiment, the processor <NUM> may include general-purpose processors carrying out computer code stored in local memory (e.g., flash memory, hard drive, random access memory), special-purpose processors or application-specific integrated circuits, combinations thereof, and/or using other types of hardware/firmware/software processing platforms. Further, the processor <NUM> may be implemented as localized versions or counterparts of algorithms carried out or governed remotely by central servers or cloud-based systems, such as by virtue of running a Java virtual machine (JVM) that executes instructions provided from a cloud server using Asynchronous JavaScript and XML (AJAX) or similar protocols. By way of example, the processor <NUM> may detect when a location (e.g., a house or room) is occupied, up to and including whether it is occupied by a specific person or is occupied by a specific number of people (e.g., relative to one or more thresholds). In one embodiment, this detection can occur, e.g., by analyzing microphone signals, detecting user movements (e.g., in front of a device), detecting openings and closings of doors or garage doors, detecting wireless signals, detecting an IP address of a received signal, detecting operation of one or more devices within a time window, or the like. Moreover, the processor <NUM> may include image recognition technology to identify particular occupants or objects.

In certain embodiments, the processor <NUM> may also include a high-power processor and a low-power processor. The high-power processor may execute computational intensive operations such as operating the user-interface component <NUM> and the like. The low-power processor, on the other hand, may manage less complex processes such as detecting a hazard or temperature from the sensor <NUM>. In one embodiment, the low-power processor may wake or initialize the high-power processor for computationally intensive processes.

In some instances, the processor <NUM> may predict desirable settings and/or implement those settings. For example, based on the presence detection, the processor <NUM> may adjust device settings to, e.g., conserve power when nobody is home or in a particular room or to accord with user preferences (e.g., general at-home preferences or user-specific preferences). As another example, based on the detection of a particular person, animal or object (e.g., a child, pet or lost object), the processor <NUM> may initiate an audio or visual indicator of where the person, animal or object is or may initiate an alarm or security feature if an unrecognized person is detected under certain conditions (e.g., at night or when lights are off).

In some instances, devices may interact with each other such that events detected by a first device influences actions of a second device. For example, a first device can detect that a user has pulled into a garage (e.g., by detecting motion in the garage, detecting a change in light in the garage or detecting opening of the garage door). The first device can transmit this information to a second device via the efficient network layer, such that the second device can, e.g., adjust a home temperature setting, a light setting, a music setting, and/or a security-alarm setting. As another example, a first device can detect a user approaching a front door (e.g., by detecting motion or sudden light pattern changes). The first device may, e.g., cause a general audio or visual signal to be presented (e.g., such as sounding of a doorbell) or cause a location-specific audio or visual signal to be presented (e.g., to announce the visitor's presence within a room that a user is occupying).

By way of example, the device <NUM> may include a thermostat such as a Nest® Learning Thermostat. Here, the thermostat may include sensors <NUM> such as temperature sensors, humidity sensors, and the like such that the thermostat may determine present climate conditions within a building where the thermostat is disposed. The power-supply component <NUM> for the thermostat may be a local battery such that the thermostat may be placed anywhere in the building without regard to being placed in close proximity to a continuous power source. Since the thermostat may be powered using a local battery, the thermostat may minimize its energy use such that the battery is rarely replaced.

In one embodiment, the thermostat may include a circular track that may have a rotatable ring disposed thereon as the user-interface component <NUM>. As such, a user may interact with or program the thermostat using the rotatable ring such that the thermostat controls the temperature of the building by controlling a heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) unit or the like. In some instances, the thermostat may determine when the building may be vacant based on its programming. For instance, if the thermostat is programmed to keep the HVAC unit powered off for an extended period of time, the thermostat may determine that the building will be vacant during this period of time. Here, the thermostat may be programmed to turn off light switches or other electronic devices when it determines that the building is vacant. As such, the thermostat may use the network interface <NUM> to communicate with a light switch device such that it may send a signal to the light switch device when the building is determined to be vacant. In this manner, the thermostat may efficiently manage the energy use of the building.

Keeping the foregoing in mind, <FIG> illustrates a block diagram of a home environment <NUM> in which the device <NUM> of <FIG> may communicate with other devices via the efficient network layer. The depicted home environment <NUM> may include a structure <NUM> such as a house, office building, garage, or mobile home. It will be appreciated that devices can also be integrated into a home environment that does not include an entire structure <NUM>, such as an apartment, condominium, office space, or the like. Further, the home environment <NUM> may control and/or be coupled to devices outside of the actual structure <NUM>. Indeed, several devices in the home environment <NUM> need not physically be within the structure <NUM> at all. For example, a device controlling a pool heater <NUM> or irrigation system <NUM> may be located outside of the structure <NUM>.

The depicted structure <NUM> includes a number of rooms <NUM>, separated at least partly from each other via walls <NUM>. The walls <NUM> can include interior walls or exterior walls. Each room <NUM> can further include a floor <NUM> and a ceiling <NUM>. Devices can be mounted on, integrated with and/or supported by the wall <NUM>, the floor <NUM>, or the ceiling <NUM>.

The home environment <NUM> may include a plurality of devices, including intelligent, multi-sensing, network-connected devices that may integrate seamlessly with each other and/or with cloud-based server systems to provide any of a variety of useful home objectives. One, more or each of the devices illustrated in the home environment <NUM> may include one or more sensors <NUM>, a user interface <NUM>, a power supply <NUM>, a network interface <NUM>, a processor <NUM> and the like.

Example devices <NUM> may include a network-connected thermostat <NUM> such as Nest® Learning Thermostat - 1st Generation T100577 or Nest® Learning Thermostat - 2nd Generation T200577. The thermostat <NUM> may detect ambient climate characteristics (e.g., temperature and/or humidity) and control a heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) system <NUM>. Another example device <NUM> may include a hazard detection unit <NUM> such as a hazard detection unit by Nest®. The hazard detection unit <NUM> may detect the presence of a hazardous substance and/or a hazardous condition in the home environment <NUM> (e.g., smoke, fire, or carbon monoxide). Additionally, an entryway interface devices <NUM>, which can be termed a "smart doorbell", can detect a person's approach to or departure from a location, control audible functionality, announce a person's approach or departure via audio or visual means, or control settings on a security system (e.g., to activate or deactivate the security system).

In certain embodiments, the device <NUM> may include a light switch <NUM> that may detect ambient lighting conditions, detect room-occupancy states, and control a power and/or dim state of one or more lights. In some instances, the light switches <NUM> may control a power state or speed of a fan, such as a ceiling fan.

Additionally, wall plug interfaces <NUM> may detect occupancy of a room or enclosure and control supply of power to one or more wall plugs (e.g., such that power is not supplied to the plug if nobody is at home). The device <NUM> within the home environment <NUM> may further include an appliance <NUM>, such as refrigerators, stoves and/or ovens, televisions, washers, dryers, lights (inside and/or outside the structure <NUM>), stereos, intercom systems, garage-door openers, floor fans, ceiling fans, whole-house fans, wall air conditioners, pool heaters <NUM>, irrigation systems <NUM>, security systems, and so forth. While descriptions of <FIG> may identify specific sensors and functionalities associated with specific devices, it will be appreciated that any of a variety of sensors and functionalities (such as those described throughout the specification) may be integrated into the device <NUM>.

In addition to containing processing and sensing capabilities, each of the example devices described above may be capable of data communications and information sharing with any other device, as well as to any cloud server or any other device that is network-connected anywhere in the world. In one embodiment, the devices <NUM> may send and receive communications via the efficient network layer that will be discussed below with reference to <FIG>. In one embodiment, the efficient network layer may enable the devices <NUM> to communicate with each other via a wireless mesh network. As such, certain devices may serve as wireless repeaters and/or may function as bridges between devices in the home environment that may not be directly connected (i.e., one hop) to each other.

In one embodiment, a wireless router <NUM> may further communicate with the devices <NUM> in the home environment <NUM> via the wireless mesh network. The wireless router <NUM> may then communicate with the Internet <NUM> such that each device <NUM> may communicate with a central server or a cloud-computing system <NUM> through the Internet <NUM>. The central server or cloud-computing system <NUM> may be associated with a manufacturer, support entity or service provider associated with a particular device <NUM>. As such, in one embodiment, a user may contact customer support using a device itself rather than using some other communication means such as a telephone or Internet-connected computer. Further, software updates can be automatically sent from the central server or cloud-computing system <NUM> to the devices (e.g., when available, when purchased, or at routine intervals).

By virtue of network connectivity, one or more of the devices <NUM> may further allow a user to interact with the device even if the user is not proximate to the device. For example, a user may communicate with a device using a computer (e.g., a desktop computer, laptop computer, or tablet) or other portable electronic device (e.g., a smartphone) <NUM>. A webpage or application may receive communications from the user and control the device <NUM> based on the received communications. Moreover, the webpage or application may present information about the device's operation to the user. For example, the user can view a current set point temperature for a device and adjust it using a computer that may be connected to the Internet <NUM>. In this example, the thermostat <NUM> may receive the current set point temperature view request via the wireless mesh network created using the efficient network layer.

In certain embodiments, the home environment <NUM> may also include a variety of non-communicating legacy appliances <NUM>, such as old conventional washer/dryers, refrigerators, and the like which can be controlled, albeit coarsely (ON/OFF), by virtue of the wall plug interfaces <NUM>. The home environment <NUM> may further include a variety of partially communicating legacy appliances <NUM>, such as infra-red (IR) controlled wall air conditioners or other IR-controlled devices, which can be controlled by IR signals provided by the hazard detection units <NUM> or the light switches <NUM>.

As mentioned above, each of the example devices <NUM> described above may establish a wireless mesh network such that data may be communicated to each device <NUM>. Keeping the example devices of <FIG> in mind, <FIG> illustrates an example wireless mesh network <NUM> that may be employed to facilitate communication between some of the example devices described above. As shown in <FIG>, the thermostat <NUM> may have a direct wireless connection to the plug interface <NUM>, which may be wirelessly connected to the hazard detection unit <NUM> and to the light switch <NUM>. In the same manner, the light switch <NUM> may be wirelessly coupled to the appliance <NUM> and the portable electronic device <NUM>. The appliance <NUM> may just be coupled to the pool heater <NUM> and the portable electronic device <NUM> may just be coupled to the irrigation system <NUM>. The irrigation system <NUM> may have a wireless connection to the entryway interface device <NUM>. Each device in the wireless mesh network <NUM> of <FIG> may correspond to a node within the wireless mesh network <NUM>. In one embodiment, the efficient network layer may specify that each node transmit data using a RIPng protocol and a DTLS protocol such that data may be securely transferred to a destination node via a minimum number of hops between nodes.

Generally, the efficient network layer may be part of an Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model <NUM> as depicted in <FIG>. The OSI model <NUM> illustrates functions of a communication system with respect to abstraction layers. That is, the OSI model may specify a networking framework or how communications between devices may be implemented. In one embodiment, the OSI model may include six layers: a physical layer <NUM>, a data link layer <NUM>, a network layer <NUM>, a transport layer <NUM>, a platform layer <NUM>, and an application layer <NUM>. Generally, each layer in the OSI model <NUM> may serve the layer above it and may be served by the layer below it.

Keeping this in mind, the physical layer <NUM> may provide hardware specifications for devices that may communicate with each other. As such, the physical layer <NUM> may establish how devices may connect to each other, assist in managing how communication resources may be shared between devices, and the like.

The data link layer <NUM> may specify how data may be transferred between devices. Generally, the data link layer <NUM> may provide a way in which data packets being transmitted may be encoded and decoded into bits as part of a transmission protocol.

The network layer <NUM> may specify how the data being transferred to a destination node is routed. The network layer <NUM> may also interface with a security protocol in the application layer <NUM> to ensure that the integrity of the data being transferred is maintained.

The transport layer <NUM> may specify a transparent transfer of the data from a source node to a destination node. The transport layer <NUM> may also control how the transparent transfer of the data remains reliable. As such, the transport layer <NUM> may be used to verify that data packets intended to transfer to the destination node indeed reached the destination node. Example protocols that may be employed in the transport layer <NUM> may include Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and User Datagram Protocol (UDP).

The platform layer <NUM> may establish connections between devices according to the protocol specified within the transport layer <NUM>. The platform layer <NUM> may also translate the data packets into a form that the application layer <NUM> may use. The application layer <NUM> may support a software application that may directly interface with the user. As such, the application layer <NUM> may implement protocols defined by the software application. For example, the software application may provide serves such as file transfers, electronic mail, and the like.

Referring now to <FIG>, in one embodiment, the network layer <NUM> and the transport layer <NUM> may be configured in a certain manner to form an efficient low power wireless personal network (ELoWPAN) <NUM>. In one embodiment, the ELoWPAN <NUM> may be based on an IEEE <NUM>. <NUM> network, which may correspond to low-rate wireless personal area networks (LR-WPANs). The ELoWPAN <NUM> may specify that the network layer <NUM> may route data between the devices <NUM> in the home environment <NUM> using a communication protocol based on Internet Protocol version <NUM> (IPv6). As such, each device <NUM> may include a <NUM>-bit IPv6 address that may provide each device <NUM> with a unique address to use to identify itself over the Internet, a local network around the home environment <NUM>, or the like.

In one embodiment, the network layer <NUM> may specify that data may be routed between devices using Routing Information Protocol - Next Generation (RIPng). RIPng is a routing protocol that routes data via a wireless mesh network based on a number of hops between the source node and the destination node. That is, RIPng may determine a route to the destination node from the source node that employs the least number of hops when determining how the data will be routed. In addition to supporting data transfers via a wireless mesh network, RIPng is capable of supporting IPv6 networking traffic. As such, each device <NUM> may use a unique IPv6 address to identify itself and a unique IPv6 address to identify a destination node when routing data. Additional details with regard to how the RIPng may send data between nodes will be described below with reference to <FIG>.

As mentioned above, the network layer <NUM> may also interface with a security protocol via the application layer <NUM> to manage the integrity of the data being transferred. As shown in <FIG>, the efficient network layer may secure data transferred between devices using a Datagram Transport Layer Security (DTLS) protocol in the application layer <NUM>. Generally, the efficient network layer may determine whether a communication pathway between devices <NUM> is secure using the DTLS protocol of the application layer <NUM>. After the communication pathway is determined to be secure, the efficient network layer may facilitate secure data transfers between the devices <NUM>. In this manner, the efficient network layer may enable data transfers using Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), User Datagram Protocol (UDP), and the like. Additional details with regard to the DTLS protocol will be described below with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>.

The network layer <NUM> depicted in <FIG> is characterized herein as the efficient network layer mentioned above. That is the efficient network layer routes IPv6 data using RIPng. Moreover, the efficient network layer may interface with the application layer <NUM> to employ the DTLS protocol to secure data transfer between devices. As a result, the transport layer <NUM> may support various types of (e.g., TCP and UDP) transfer schemes for the data.

Referring now to <FIG> depicts a flowchart of a method <NUM> that may be used for determining a routing table for each device <NUM> in the wireless mesh network <NUM> of <FIG> using RIPng. The method <NUM> may be performed by each device <NUM> in the home environment <NUM> such that each device <NUM> may generate a routing table that indicates how each node in the wireless mesh network <NUM> may be connected to each other. As such, each device <NUM> may independently determine how to route data to a destination node. In one embodiment, the processor <NUM> of the device <NUM> may perform the method <NUM> using the network interface <NUM>. As such, the device <NUM> may send data associated with the sensor <NUM> or determined by the processor <NUM> to other devices <NUM> in the home environment <NUM> via network interface <NUM>.

The following discussion of the method <NUM> will be described with reference to <FIG> to clearly illustrate various blocks of the method <NUM>. Keeping this in mind and referring to both <FIG>, at block <NUM>, the device <NUM> may send a request <NUM> to any other device <NUM> that may be directly (i.e., zero hops) to the requesting device <NUM>. The request <NUM> may include a request for all of the routing information from the respective device <NUM>. For example, referring to <FIG>, the device <NUM> at node <NUM> may send the request <NUM> to the device <NUM> at node <NUM> to send all of the routes (i.e., N2's routes) included in node <NUM>'s memory.

At block <NUM>, the requesting device <NUM> may receive a message from the respective device <NUM> that may include all of the routes included in the respective memory of the respective device <NUM>. The routes may be organized in a routing table that may specify how each node in the wireless mesh network <NUM> may be connected to each other. That is, the routing table may specify which intermediate nodes data may be transferred to such that data from a source node to a destination node. Referring back to the example above and to <FIG>, in response to node <NUM>'s request for N2's routes, at block <NUM>, node <NUM> may send node <NUM> all of the routes (N2's routes <NUM>) included in the memory or storage of node <NUM>. In one embodiment, each node of the wireless mesh network <NUM> may send the request <NUM> to its adjacent node as shown in <FIG>. In response, each node may then send its routes to its adjacent node as shown in <FIG>. For instance, <FIG> illustrates how each node sends its route data to each adjacent node as depicted with N1's routes <NUM>, N2's routes <NUM>, N3's routes <NUM>, N4's routes <NUM>, N5's routes <NUM>, N6's routes <NUM>, N7's routes <NUM>, N8's routes <NUM>, and N9's routes <NUM>.

Initially, each node may know the nodes in which it may have a direct connection (i.e., zero hops). For example, initially, node <NUM> may just know that it is directly connected to node <NUM>, node <NUM>, and node <NUM>. However, after receiving N1's routes <NUM>, N3's routes <NUM>, and N4's routes <NUM>, the processor <NUM> of node <NUM> may build a routing table that includes all of the information included with N1's routes <NUM>, N3's routes <NUM>, and N4's routes <NUM>. As such, the next time node <NUM> receives a request for its routes or routing table (i.e., N2's routes <NUM>), node <NUM> may send a routing table that includes N1's routes <NUM>, N2's routes, N3's routes <NUM>, and N4's routes <NUM>.

Keeping this in mind and referring back to <FIG>, at block <NUM>, the requesting device <NUM> may update its local routing table to include the routing information received from the adjacent device <NUM>. In certain embodiments, each device <NUM> may perform the method <NUM> periodically such that each device <NUM> includes an updated routing table that characterizes how each node in the wireless mesh network <NUM> may be connected to each other. As mentioned above, each time the method <NUM> is performed, each device <NUM> may receive additional information from its adjacent device <NUM> if the adjacent device <NUM> updated its routing table with the information received from its adjacent devices. As a result, each device <NUM> may understand how each node in the wireless mesh network <NUM> may be connected to each other.

<FIG>, for example, illustrates a routing table <NUM> that may have been determined by the device <NUM> at node <NUM> using the method <NUM>. In this example, the routing table <NUM> may specify each node in the wireless mesh network <NUM> as a destination node, the intermediate nodes between node <NUM> and each destination node, and a number of hops between node <NUM> and the destination node. The number of hops corresponds to a number of times that the data being sent to the destination node may be forwarded to an intermediate node before reaching the destination node. When sending data to a particular destination node, the RIPng routing scheme may select a route that involves the least number of hops. For instance, if node <NUM> intended to send data to node <NUM>, the RIPng routing scheme would route the data via nodes <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM>, which includes four hops, as opposed to routing the data via nodes <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM>, include includes five hops.

By using the RIPng routing scheme, each device <NUM> may independently determine how data should be routed to a destination node. Conventional routing schemes such as "Ripple" Routing Protocol (RPL) used in 6LoWPAN devices, on the other hand, may route data through a central node, which may be the only node that knows the structure of the wireless mesh network. More specifically, the RPL protocol may create a wireless mesh network according to a directed acyclic graph (DAG), which may be structured as a hierarchy. Located at the top of this hierarchy may include a border router, which may periodically multicast requests to lower level nodes to determine a rank for each of the node's connections. In essence, when data is transferred from a source node to a destination node, the data may be transferred up the hierarchy of nodes and then back down to the destination node. In this manner, the nodes located higher up the hierarchy may route data more often than the nodes located lower in the hierarchy. Moreover, the border router of the RPL system may also be operating more frequently since it controls how data will be routed via the hierarchy. In the conventional RPL system, in contrast to the RIPng system taught here, some nodes may route data on a more frequent basis simply due to its location within the hierarchy and not due to its location with respect to the source node and the destination node. These nodes that route data more often under the RPL system may consume more energy and thus may not be a suitable to implement with the devices <NUM> in the home environment <NUM> that operate using low power. Moreover, as mentioned above, if the border router or any other higher-level node of the RPL system corresponds to the thermostat <NUM>, the increased data routing activity may increase the heat produced within the thermostat <NUM>. As a result, the temperature reading of the thermostat <NUM> may incorrectly represent the temperature of the home environment <NUM>. Since other devices <NUM> may perform specific operations based on the temperature reading of the thermostat <NUM>, and since the thermostat <NUM> may send commands to various devices <NUM> based on its temperature reading, it may be beneficial to ensure that the temperature reading of the thermostat <NUM> is accurate.

In addition to ensuring that none of the devices <NUM> routes data a disproportionate amount of times, by using the RIPng routing scheme, new devices <NUM> may be added to the wireless mesh network with minimum effort by the user. For example, <FIG> illustrates a new node <NUM> being added to the wireless mesh network <NUM>. In certain embodiments, once the node <NUM> establishes a connection to the wireless mesh network <NUM> (e.g., via node <NUM>), the device <NUM> that corresponds to node <NUM> may perform the method <NUM> described above to determine how data may be routed to each node in the wireless mesh network <NUM>. If each node in the wireless mesh network <NUM> has already performed the method <NUM> multiple times, the device <NUM> at node <NUM> may receive the entire routing structure of the wireless mesh network <NUM> from the device <NUM> at node <NUM>. In the same manner, devices <NUM> may be removed from the wireless mesh network <NUM> and each node may update its routing table with relative ease by performing the method <NUM> again.

After establishing a routing scheme using the RIPng routing scheme, ELoWPAN <NUM> may employ a DTLS protocol via the application layer <NUM> to secure data communications between each device <NUM> in the home environment <NUM>. As mentioned above, after ensuring that a secure communication pathway exists between two communicating devices, ELoWPAN <NUM> may enable the transport layer <NUM> to send any type of data (e.g., TCP and UDP) via the secure communication pathway. Generally, new devices <NUM> added to the wireless mesh network <NUM> may use UDP data transfers to effectively communicate to other devices <NUM> in the wireless mesh network more quickly. Moreover, UDP data transfers generally use less energy by the device <NUM> that is sending or forwarding the data since there is no guarantee of delivery. As such, the devices <NUM> may send non-critical data (e.g., presence of a person in a room) using the UDP data transfer, thereby saving energy within the device <NUM>. However, critical data (e.g., smoke alarm) may be sent via TCP data transfer to ensure that the appropriate party receives the data.

Keeping the foregoing in mind, ELoWPAN <NUM> may employ the DTLS protocol to secure the data communicated between the devices <NUM>. In one embodiment, the DTLS protocol may secure data transfers using a handshake protocol. Generally, the handshake protocol may authenticate each communicating device using a security certificate that may be provided by each device <NUM>. <FIG> illustrates an example of a manufacturing process <NUM> that depicts how the security certificate may be embedded within the device <NUM>.

Referring to <FIG>, a trusted manufacturer <NUM> of the device <NUM> may be provided with a number of security certificates that it may use for each manufactured device. As such, while producing a device <NUM> that may be used in the home environment <NUM> and coupled to the wireless mesh network <NUM>, the trusted manufacturer <NUM> may embed a certificate <NUM> into the device <NUM> during the manufacturing process <NUM>. That is, the certificate <NUM> may be embedded into the hardware of the device <NUM> during manufacturing of the device <NUM>. The certificate <NUM> may include a public key, a private key, or other cryptographic data that may be used to authenticate different communicating devices within the wireless mesh network <NUM>. As a result, once a user receives the device <NUM>, the user may integrate the device <NUM> into the wireless mesh network <NUM> without initializing or registering the device <NUM> with a central security node or the like.

In conventional data communication security protocols such as Protocol for Carrying Authentication for Network Access (PANA) used in 6LoWPAN devices, each device <NUM> may authenticate itself with a specific node (i.e., authentication agent). As such, before data is transferred between any two devices <NUM>, each device <NUM> may authenticate itself with the authentication agent node. The authentication agent node may then convey the result of the authentication to an enforcement point node, which may be co-located with the authentication agent node. The enforcement point node may then establish a data communication link between the two devices <NUM> if the authentications are valid. Moreover, in PANA, each device <NUM> may communicate with each other via an enforcement point node, which may verify that the authentication for each device <NUM> is valid.

As such, by using the DTLS protocol rather than PANA to secure data transfers between nodes, the efficient network layer may avoid using an authorization agent node, an enforcement point node, or both excessively. That is, no one node using the efficient network layer may be processing authentication data for each data transfer between nodes in the wireless mesh network. As a result, the nodes using the efficient network layer may conserve more energy as compared to the authorization agent node or the enforcement point node in the PANA protocol system.

Keeping this in mind, <FIG> illustrates an example handshake protocol <NUM> that may be used between devices <NUM> when transferring data between each other. As shown in <FIG>, the device <NUM> at node <NUM> may send a message <NUM> to the device <NUM> at node <NUM>. The message <NUM> may be a hello message that may include cipher suites, hash and compression algorithms, and a random number. The device <NUM> at node <NUM> may then respond with a message <NUM>, which may verify that the device <NUM> at node <NUM> received the message <NUM> from the device <NUM> at node <NUM>.

After establishing the connection between node <NUM> and node <NUM>, the device at node <NUM> may again send the message <NUM> to the device <NUM> at node <NUM>. The device <NUM> at node <NUM> may then respond with a message <NUM>, which may include a hello message from node <NUM>, a certificate <NUM> from node <NUM>, a key exchange from node <NUM>, and a certificate request for node <NUM>. The hello message in the message <NUM> may include cipher suites, hash and compression algorithms, and a random number. The certificate <NUM> may be the security certificate embedded within the device <NUM> by the trusted manufacturer <NUM> as discussed above with reference to <FIG>. The key exchange may include a public key, a private key, or other cryptographic information that may be used to determine a secret key for establishing a communication channel between the two nodes. In one embodiment, the key exchange may be stored in the certificate <NUM> of the corresponding device <NUM> located at the respective node.

In response to the message <NUM>, the device <NUM> at node <NUM> may send message <NUM> that may include a certificate <NUM> from node <NUM>, a key exchange from node <NUM>, a certificate verification of node <NUM>, and a change cipher spec from node <NUM>. In one embodiment, the device <NUM> at node <NUM> may use the certificate <NUM> of node <NUM> and the key exchange from node <NUM> to verify the certificate <NUM> of node <NUM>. That is, the device <NUM> at node <NUM> may verify that the certificate <NUM> received from node <NUM> is valid based on the certificate <NUM> of node <NUM> and the key exchange from node <NUM>. If the certificate <NUM> from node <NUM> is valid, the device <NUM> at node <NUM> may send the change cipher spec message to the device <NUM> at node <NUM> to announce that the communication channel between the two nodes is secure.

Similarly, upon receiving the message <NUM>, the device <NUM> at node <NUM> may use the certificate <NUM> of node <NUM> and the key exchange from node <NUM> to verify the certificate <NUM> of node <NUM>. That is, the device <NUM> at node <NUM> may verify that the certificate <NUM> received from node <NUM> is valid based on the certificate <NUM> of node <NUM> and the key exchange from node <NUM>. If the certificate <NUM> from node <NUM> is valid, the device <NUM> at node <NUM> may also send the change cipher spec message to the device <NUM> at node <NUM> to announce that the communication channel between the two nodes is secure.

After establishing that the communication channel is secure, the device <NUM> at node <NUM> may send a group-wise network key <NUM> to the device <NUM> at node <NUM>. The group-wise network key <NUM> may be associated with the ELoWPAN <NUM>. In this manner, as new devices join the ELoWPAN <NUM>, devices previously authorized to communicate within the ELoWPAN <NUM> may provide the new devices access to the ELoWPAN <NUM>. That is, the devices previously authorized to communicate within the ELoWPAN <NUM> may provide the group-wise network key <NUM> to the new devices, which may enable the new devices to communicate with other devices in the ELoWPAN <NUM>. For example, the group-wise network key <NUM> may be used to communicate with other devices that have been properly authenticated and that have previously provided with the group-wise network key <NUM>. In one embodiment, once the change cipher spec message has been exchanged between the device <NUM> at node <NUM> and the device <NUM> at node <NUM>, identification information such as model number, device capabilities, and the like may be communicated between the devices. However, after the device <NUM> at node <NUM> receives the group-wise network key <NUM>, additional information such as data from sensors disposed on the device <NUM>, data analysis performed by the device <NUM>, and the like may be communicated between devices.

Claim 1:
An electronic device (<NUM>) comprising:
a network interface (<NUM>) configured to wirelessly communicate with a second electronic device of a wireless mesh network;
a processor (<NUM>);
a memory comprising instructions to join the electronic device (<NUM>) to the wireless mesh network, the instructions, which when executed by the processor (<NUM>), configure the electronic device (<NUM>) to:
establish, via wireless communication with the second electronic device, a Datagram Transport Layer Security, DTLS, session to allow the electronic device (<NUM>) to join the wireless mesh network, the DTLS session based on a cipher suite and a key, wherein the key is stored in the electronic device (<NUM>) prior to establishing the DTLS session;
generate a second key based on the cipher suite and the key, and utilize the second key in subsequent communications between the electronic device (<NUM>) and the second electronic device;
in response to the establishment of the DTLS session, receive a network key via the network interface (<NUM>), the network key being associated with the mesh network; and
communicate with devices in the mesh network utilizing the network key, wherein the network key is configured to enable the electronic device (<NUM>) to communicate with the devices authorized to communicate with each other in the wireless mesh network.