Patent ID: 8660022

Claim:
A method comprising steps of: using a centralized information fusing device as part of a distributed computing system, performing: receiving from an application layer a target range for a level of reporting quality for processed data; setting data collection parameters to meet the target range; setting an acceptable threshold value within which the level of reporting quality may deviate from the target range; collecting data from a plurality of remote data collecting devices deployed in the distributed computing system according to the data collection parameters, a portion of said data being compromised during the collecting process; processing the collected data to produce the processed data; evaluating the processed data based on observable metrics of current collected data and reported data losses; forecasting an expected reporting quality that the data will possess if the fusion device continues collecting data under present data collection parameters, while continuing to collect data; comparing the expected reporting quality with the target range; and reporting the processed data when the expected reporting quality falls within the target range for the level of reporting quality.