Hierarchical communication system providing intelligent data, program and processing migration
A hierarchical communication system, arranged in a spanning tree configuration, is described in which wired and wireless communication networks exhibiting substantially different characteristics are employed in an overall scheme to link portable or mobile computing devices. Copies of data, program code and processing resources are migrated from their source toward requesting destinations based on request frequency, communication link costs and available local storage and/or processing resources. Each appropriately configured network device acts as an active participant in network migration. In addition, portable two-dimensional (2-D) code reading terminals are configured to wirelessly communicate compressed 2-D images toward stationary access servers that identify the code image through decoding and through comparison with a database of images that have previously been decoded and stored.
1. A communication network, comprising:
a plurality of access devices, the plurality of access devices comprising a first access device and a second access device, the first access device supporting wireless communication, the second access device accessed via the first access device,
wherein at least one of a code and data is retained in the second access device,
wherein the at least one of the code and the data is requested a plurality of times by the first access device, and
wherein a copy of the at least one of the code and the data migrates to the first access device.
2. The communication network according to claim 1 , wherein the copy migrating to the first access device is stored in the first access device.
3. The communication network according to claim 1 ,
wherein a roaming terminal device initially accesses the at least one of the code and the data via the second access device, and
wherein the first access device forwards the at least one of the code and the data from the second access device to the roaming terminal device.
4. The communication network according to claim 3 , wherein the roaming terminal device subsequently accesses the at least one of the code and the data via the first access device in which a copy of the at least one of the code and the data has been stored.
5. The communication network according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of access devices supports communication between or among a plurality of mobile terminal devices.
6. The communication network according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of access devices supports communication between or among a mobile terminal device and one or more computing devices.
7. The communication network according to claim 1 , wherein the first access device is a base station.
8. A method for communication, comprising:
supporting wireless communication via a plurality of access devices, the plurality of access devices comprising a first access device and a second access device;
accessing the second access device via the first access device;
retaining at least one of a code and data in the second access device; and
migrating a copy of the at least one of the code and the data from the second access device to the first access device.
9. The method according to claim 8 , wherein migrating the copy comprises storing the copy in the first access device.
10. The method according to claim 8 , comprising:
initially accessing the at least one of the code and the data from the second access device via the first access device which forwards the at least one of the code and the data to a roaming terminal device.
11. The method according to claim 8 , comprising:
accessing the migrated copy of the at least one of the code and the data stored in the first access device instead of accessing the at least one of the code and the data stored in the second access device.
12. The method according to claim 8 , comprising:
migrating a copy of the at least one of the code and the data to a roaming terminal device.
13. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the plurality of access devices supports communication between or among a plurality of mobile terminal devices.
14. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the plurality of access devices supports communication between or among a mobile terminal device and one or more computing devices.
15. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the first access device is a base station.
16. One or more circuits for use in a wireless communication device, the one or more circuits comprising:
at least one processor that enables wireless communication to a first access device, wherein the first access device communicates with a second access device, the at least one processor operating to, at least:
transmit one or more requests to the first access device for a program code or data retained in the second access device; and
access the program code or data retained in the second access device via the first access device after the one or more requests.
17. The one or more circuits according to claim 16 , wherein the first access device is a base station.
18. The one or more circuits according to claim 16 , wherein the program code or data is migrated to the first access device.
19. The one or more circuits according to claim 16 ,
wherein the at least one processor operates to initially access the program code or data via the second access device, and
wherein the first access device forwards the program code or data from the second access device to the wireless communication device.
20. The one or more circuits according to claim 16 , wherein the at least one processor operates to subsequently access the program code or data via the first access device in which a copy of the program code or data has been stored.