Dynamic self-configuration for AD HOC peer networking
View Patent ↗A device control model provides an integrated set of addressing, naming, discovery and description processes that enables automatic, dynamic and ad-hoc self-setup by devices to interoperate with other devices on a network. This permits a computing device when introduced into a network to automatically configure so as to connect and interact with other computing devices available on the network, without a user installation experience and without downloading driver software or persisting a configuration setup for connecting and interacting with such other computing devices. Upon completing interaction with such other devices, the computing device automatically releases the setup for such other devices so as to avoid persistent device configurations that might create a configuration maintenance and management burden.
1. A computer-readable medium having encoded thereon a software program executable on a computing device for dynamically self-configuring a computing device upon introduction on a network to interoperate with other devices on the network, said software program comprising:
an addressing module operating to configure an address upon introduction of the computing device on the network;
an announcing module operating to send a message announcing the address assigned to the computing device;
a discovery module operating to listen for a discovery message on the network, the discovery message having an identifier to identify an other computing device;
a discovery response receiving module operating upon receipt of the discovery message to send a response message to the discovery message; and
a description module operating upon receipt of a description request received by the computing device on the network for sending a description message defining a protocol for interaction via data messaging of the computing device with the other computing device, the other computing device configured to remotely operate the computing device.
2. The computer-readable medium of claim 1 wherein the response message is formatted according to a mark-up language.
3. The computer-readable medium of claim 1 wherein the protocol for interaction via data messages is extensible.
4. The computer-readable medium of claim 1 wherein the protocol for interaction via data messages is SOAP.
5. The computer-readable medium of claim 1 wherein the discovery module searches for a predetermined computing device name on the network.
6. The computer-readable medium of claim 5 wherein the predetermined computing device name is a URL.
7. In a computing device, a method for dynamically self-configuring the computing device, upon introduction of the computing device on a network, to interoperate with other devices on the network, the method comprising:
obtaining a dynamically assigned address upon introduction of the computing device on the network;
utilizing a naming protocol to resolve device names of an other computing device present on the network;
sending a discovery message to the other computing device on the network, the discovery message identifying the other computing device;
receiving a response to the discovery message identifying the other computing device;
utilizing a device description protocol to obtain data descriptive of a protocol for invoking operational functions of the computing device, whereby the computing device automatically self-configures to establish a communications connection with the other computing device present on the network and interacts with the other computing device using the described protocol for invoking a set of operational functions.
8. The method of claim 7 wherein the set of operational functions comprises an extensible set of operational functions.
9. The method of claim 8 wherein the set of operational functions comprises reading and writing data to the computing device.
10. The method of claim 7 wherein the device description protocol is SOAP.
11. The method of claim 7 wherein the data descriptive of a protocol for invoking operation functions of the computing device is formatted in a mark-up language.