Patent ID: 8462793

Claim:
A system for strategic management and communication of data in machine environments comprising: at least one communication module for communicating data with an off-board system, the communication module being disposed in a machine environment and adapted for use with one or more communication methods; a data interpreter communicatively coupled to the at least one communication module and configured to: communicate operation data associated with a machine, the operation data including a plurality of operational aspects associated with at least a portion of the machine; prioritize each of the plurality of operational aspects in a communication queue associated with the data interpreter; select a communication method for each of the plurality of operational aspects based on a priority associated with a respective operational aspect; and transmit each of the operational aspects to the off-board system via the selected communication method, where prioritizing each of the plurality of operational aspects includes: analyzing each operational aspect based on predetermined operational criteria, including; comparing a value of at least one operational aspect to a predetermined threshold; designating one or more operational aspects whose value does not conform with the predetermined threshold as high-priority; and designating one or more operational aspects whose value does conform with the predetermined threshold as low-priority; and establishing data communication time limits for one or more operational aspects based on the priority associated with the one or more operational aspects, wherein a data communication time limit established for the one or more high-priority operational aspects is shorter than a data communication time limit established for the one or more low-priority operational aspects and wherein selecting the communication method includes: receiving a list of available communication methods from the off-board system, the list including cost data associated with each available communication method; selecting the least costly communication method available; monitoring a time that an operational aspect remains in the queue; and selecting a second communication method from the list of available communication methods if the monitored time exceeds the data communication time limit, wherein the data communication time limit is indicative of a time period that the operational aspect is permitted to remain in the queue.