The invention relates to authorizing stations into a centrally managed network.
A network of communication stations can share a communication medium (e.g., wires connecting multiple stations or spectrum for transmitting radio signals among stations) using any of a variety of access techniques. Security for a shared communication medium network can be difficult since there is no protection from others connecting unauthorized devices to the network. For example, when a new station is deployed, the new station should be able to easily join the network, while unauthorized stations should be inhibited from joining the network. While an encryption key can provide some security, the distribution of the encryption key can be difficult because communication of the keys can provide opportunity to compromise the encryption key.
The following are various aspects described herein. In one aspect computer implemented authentication methods are disclosed. Such method can include: generating a network membership key request; communicating the network membership key request to an authorization server, the network membership key request including a unique identifier associated with the requesting station, the unique identifier being unencrypted; receiving the network membership key based on the network membership key request; wherein the network membership key is received in encrypted format based upon a device access key; and, wherein the network membership key is received based upon a stored device access key associated with the unique identifier matching the device access key used to encrypt the network membership key request.
Methods for authorization can include: receiving an encrypted network membership key request from a station; receiving an unencrypted unique identifier associated with the encrypted network membership key request; determining whether the encrypted network membership key request is authentic based upon the unique identifier; encrypting a network membership key using a device access key associated with the station; and, communicating the encrypted network membership key to the station.
Authentication systems can include a number of stations and an authorization server. The stations can generate an encrypted network membership key request, the encrypted network membership key requests including unencrypted identifiers respectively associated with the station generating the encrypted network membership key request. The authorization server can receive the encrypted network membership key requests and identify stored device access keys based upon the unique identifiers respectively associated with each of the network membership key requests. The authorization server can authenticate the station based upon successful decryption of the network membership key requests based on the stored device access keys respectively associated with each of the unique identifiers and can encrypt a network membership key using the device access key and communicate the encrypted network membership key to the stations based upon authenticating the station.
Other aspects will be found in the detailed description, drawings and claims.
There are a many possible implementations of the invention, some example implementations are described below. However, such examples are descriptions of various implementations, and not descriptions of the invention, which is not limited to the detailed implementations described in this section but is described in broader terms in the claims.
A BPLN can include one or more cells. A cell is a group of broadband power line (BPL) devices in a BPLN that have similar characteristics such as association management, security, QoS and channel access settings, for example. Cells in a BPLN are logically isolated from each other, and communication to and from the backhaul occurs within the cell. Each cell in a BPLN includes a core-cell and may also include one or more sub-cells. There can be more than one cell on a given physical power line medium.
A core-cell includes a group of devices in a BPLN that includes a head end (HE), repeaters (R), and network termination units (NTU), but can exclude customer premise equipment (CPE). The head end (HE) is a device that bridges a cell to the backhaul network. At a given time, a cell will have one active head end and the head end manages the cell including the core-cell and any associated sub-cells. A repeater (RP) is a device that selectively retransmits media access control (MAC) service data units (MSDUs) to extend the effective range and bandwidth of the BPLN cell. Repeaters can also perform routing and quality of service (QoS) functions. The NTU is a device that connects a BPLN cell to the end users' network or devices. The NTU may in some cases bridge to other network technologies such as WiFi. A single NTU can serve more than one customer. Each Sub-Cell is associated with an active NTU. In some implementations, an HE, an NTU and/or an RP can be co-located at a single station. Thus, a single device may be designed to perform multiple functions. For example, a single device can simultaneously be programmed to perform the tasks associated with an RP and an NTU.
In some aspects, a sub-cell can be an AV sub-cell. An sub-cell is an extension of the BPLN cell that is based on the AV protocol and provides for the connection of multiple CPE-AVs to a BPLN cell via an NTU. The links from the NTU to the set of CPE-AV(s) at a customer location can use different network membership keys and/or network encryption keys. The NTU of an AV Sub-Cell can operate as its Central Coordinator (CCo). A BPL sub-cell is an extension of a BPLN cell that is based on the BPL protocol and provides for the connection of multiple CPE-BPL(s) to the BPLN Cell via an NTU. The links from the NTU to the set of CPE-BPL(s) at a customer location can use different network membership keys and/or network encryption keys.
Various types of CPE devices (e.g., a computer) can be used as endpoint nodes in the network and such devices can communicate with other nodes in the network through the NTU.
Various types of CPE devices (e.g., a computer) can be used as endpoint nodes in the network and such devices can communicate with other nodes in the network through the NTU, any number of repeaters (e.g., including no repeaters), and the head end.
Each node in the network communicates as a communication “station” (STA) using a PHY layer protocol that is used by the nodes to send transmissions to any other stations that are close enough to successfully receive the transmissions. STAs that cannot directly communicate with each other use one or more repeater STAs to communicate with each other. Any of a variety of communication system architectures can be used to implement the portion of the network interface module that converts data to and from a signal waveform that is transmitted over the communication medium. An application running on a station can provide data to and receives data from the network interface module. A MSDU is a segment of information received by the MAC layer. The MAC layer can process the received MSDUs and prepares them to generate “MAC protocol data units” (MPDUs). A MPDU is a segment of information including header and payload fields that the MAC layer has asked the PHY layer to transport. An MPDU can have any of a variety of formats based on the type of data being transmitted. A “PHY protocol data unit (PPDU)” refers to the modulated signal waveform representing an MPDU that is transmitted over the power line by the physical layer.
Apart from generating MPDUs from MSDUs, the MAC layer can provide several functions including channel access control, providing the required QoS for the MSDUs, retransmission of corrupt information, routing and repeating. Channel access control enables stations to share the powerline medium. Several types of channel access control mechanisms like carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA/CA), centralized Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), distributed TDMA, token based channel access, etc., can be used by the MAC. Similarly, a variety of retransmission mechanism can also be used. The Physical layer (PHY) can also use a variety of techniques to enable reliable and efficient transmission over the transmission medium (power line, coax, twisted pair etc). Various modulation techniques like Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM), Wavelet modulations can be used. Forward error correction (FEC) code line Viterbi codes, Reed-Solomon codes, concatenated code, turbo codes, low density parity check code, etc., can be employed by the PHY to overcome errors. A preferred implementation of the MAC and PHY layers used by powerline medium is that based on HomePlug AV specification.
One implementation of the PHY layers is to use OFDM modulation. In OFDM modulation, data are transmitted in the form of OFDM “symbols.” Each symbol has a predetermined time duration or symbol time Ts. Each symbol is generated from a superposition of N sinusoidal carrier waveforms that are orthogonal to each other and form the OFDM carriers. Each carrier has a peak frequency fi and a phase φi measured from the beginning of the symbol. For each of these mutually orthogonal carriers, a whole number of periods of the sinusoidal waveform is contained within the symbol time Ts. Equivalently, each carrier frequency is an integral multiple of a frequency interval Δf =1/Ts. The phases Φi and amplitudes Ai of the carrier waveforms can be independently selected (according to an appropriate modulation scheme) without affecting the orthogonality of the resulting modulated waveforms. The carriers occupy a frequency range between frequencies f1 and fN referred to as the OFDM bandwidth.
The CPE devices 205a-d can communicate with the headend 215 through a network of network termination units 220a-d and repeaters 225a-d. In some implementations, the network termination units can operate to translate the data signals from the CPE devices in any of a variety of communications protocols onto a powerline network. For example, a CPE 205a-d might communicate with an NTU 220a-d using a IEEE 802.11 wireless protocol, and the NTU 220a-d can convert the wireless signal to a signal suitable for transmission on a powerline medium. Systems for transmitting and receiving powerline network signals are further described in
In various implementations, repeaters 225a-d can be located throughout the powerline network to provide the ability for a data signal to travel on the powerline carrier medium over long distances. As discussed above, the headend 215 can provide a gateway for the data signal to be transferred to a backhaul network 210. For example, the headend 215 can extract the data signal from the powerline network and convert the signal for transmission on a packet switched network such as the Internet. In various implementations, one or more of the repeaters 225a-d can be equipped to transfer the signal from the powerline network to the backhaul network 210.
In some implementations, the headend 215 can also include an authorization server. In one implementation, the authorization server is included on the backhaul network 210. The authorization server can be operable to authorize CPE devices 205a-d for transmission of data over the powerline network. When a CPE device 205a-d is not authorized, in various implementations, the CPE device 205a-d can be provided access to a registration server 230. The registration server 230, in various implementations, can enable the user of a CPE device 205a-d to register the CPE device 205a-d with the network to obtain access to the powerline network.
In various implementations, the registration server 230 can provide a limited registration to a CPE device 205a-d to try the powerline network. For example, the registration can be limited by a period of time, bandwidth, destination address, or any other limitation that might allow the user to have limited access to the network. In additional implementations, the registration server 230 can require payment prior to using the network. For example, the registration server can provide web pages operable to collect payment information from the user. In various implementations, the registration server can allow the user to pay for any of a variety of different access plans. For example, an access plan might allow a user to purchase access for a specified period of time, at a specified bandwidth, or combinations thereof. In some implementations, the registration server and authorization server can be co-located as shown in
Referring to
At the transmitter 302, modules implementing the PHY layer receive an MPDU from the MAC layer. The MPDU is sent to an encoder module 320 to perform processing such as scrambling, error correction coding and interleaving.
The encoded data is fed into a mapping module 322 that takes groups of data bits (e.g., 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, or 10 bits), depending on the constellation used for the current symbol (e.g., a BPSK, QPSK, 8-QAM, 16-QAM constellation), and maps the data value represented by those bits onto the corresponding amplitudes of in-phase (I) and quadrature-phase (Q) components of a carrier waveform of the current symbol. This results in each data value being associated with a corresponding complex number Ci=Ai exp(jΦi) whose real part corresponds to the I component and whose imaginary part corresponds to the Q component of a carrier with peak frequency fi. Alternatively, any appropriate modulation scheme that associates data values to modulated carrier waveforms can be used.
The mapping module 322 also determines which of the carrier frequencies f1, . . . , fN within the OFDM bandwidth are used by the system 300 to transmit information. For example, some carriers that are experiencing fades can be avoided, and no information is transmitted on those carriers. Instead, the mapping module 322 uses coherent BPSK modulated with a binary value from the Pseudo Noise (PN) sequence for that carrier. For some carriers (e.g., a carrier i=10) that correspond to restricted bands (e.g., an amateur radio band) on a medium 304 that may radiate power no energy is transmitted on those carriers (e.g., AI0=0). The mapping module 322 also determines the type of modulation to be used on each of the carriers (or “tones”) according to a “tone map.” The tone map can be a default tone map, or a customized tone map determined by the receiving station, as described in more detail below.
An inverse discrete Fourier transform (IDFT) module 324 performs the modulation of the resulting set of N complex numbers (some of which may be zero for unused carriers) determined by the mapping module 322 onto N orthogonal carrier waveforms having peak frequencies f1, . . . , fN. The modulated carriers are combined by IDFT module 324 to form a discrete time symbol waveform S(n) (for a sampling rate fR), which can be written as
where the time index n goes from 1 to N, Ai is the amplitude and φi is the phase of the carrier with peak frequency fi=(i/N)fR, and j=√−1. In some implementations, the discrete Fourier transform corresponds to a fast Fourier transform (FFT) in which N is a power of 2.
A post-processing module 326 combines a sequence of consecutive (potentially overlapping) symbols into a “symbol set” that can be transmitted as a continuous block over the communication medium 304. The post-processing module 326 prepends a preamble to the symbol set that can be used for automatic gain control (AGC) and symbol timing synchronization. To mitigate intersymbol and intercarrier interference (e.g., due to imperfections in the system 300 and/or the communication medium 304) the post-processing module 326 can extend each symbol with a cyclic prefix that is a copy of the last part of the symbol. The post-processing module 326 can also perform other functions such as applying a pulse shaping window to subsets of symbols within the symbol set (e.g., using a raised cosine window or other type of pulse shaping window) and overlapping the symbol subsets.
An Analog Front End (AFE) module 328 couples an analog signal containing a continuous-time (e.g., low-pass filtered) version of the symbol set to the communication medium 304. The effect of the transmission of the continuous-time version of the waveform S(t) over the communication medium 304 can be represented by convolution with a function g(τ;t) representing an impulse response of transmission over the communication medium. The communication medium 304 may add noise n(t), which may be random noise and/or narrowband noise emitted by a jammer.
At the receiver 306, modules implementing the PHY layer receive a signal from the communication medium 304 and generate an MPDU for the MAC layer. An AFE module 330 operates in conjunction with an Automatic Gain Control (AGC) module 332 and a time synchronization module 334 to provide sampled signal data and timing information to a discrete Fourier transform (DFT) module 336.
After removing the cyclic prefix, the receiver 306 feeds the sampled discrete-time symbols into DFT module 336 to extract the sequence of N complex numbers representing the encoded data values (by performing an N-point DFT). Demodulator/Decoder module 338 maps the complex numbers onto the corresponding bit sequences and performs the appropriate decoding of the bits (including de-interleaving and descrambling).
Any of the modules of the communication system 300 including modules in the transmitter 302 or receiver 306 can be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software.
In various implementations, new devices can be added to the powerline network. For example, in
In various implementations, the DAK associated with the device can be substantially unique. For example, in such implementations, the DAK associated with a device can be randomly generated. Random generation of the DAK causes multiple use of the same DAK improbable. In some implementations, a randomly generated DAK can be tested against previously generated DAKs to ensure that the generated DAK is unique.
In various implementations, the headend 430 can extract an identifier (e.g., a media access control (MAC) address) associated with the request and identify a device access key (DAK) associated with the device by querying 460 authorization server 470. In various implementations, the authorization server 470 can include the MAC/DAK of devices authorized to access the network and can provide the DAK when requested by the headend 430. For example, when a new device 400 is deployed, the MAC address associated with the device 400, along with the DAK associated with the device 400 can be stored at the authorization server 470. Such data can substitute for a usemame/password combination for the new device 400. The connection request can be decrypted using the DAK associated with the extracted MAC address. In such implementations, when the DAK associated with the MAC address of the device is operable to decrypt the connection request, the new NTU device 400 can be authorized to connect to the network. The headend 430 can notify one or more repeaters 410a-c that the NTU device 400 is authorized to join the network. The NTU device 400 can then be associated with one or more repeater devices 410a-c. The headend 430 can respond to the connection request by encrypting a network membership key (NMK) using the DAK associated with the new NTU 400. The new NTU 400 can thereby decrypt the NMK using it's own DAK. In some implementations, the NMK can be a unique or substantially unique NMK. For example, the NMK can be randomly generated. However, a randomly generated key may not be completely unique (e.g., the same key could be generated again. In some implementations, the NMK can be provided by the authorization server 470 to the headend 430.
In various implementations, the headend 430 forward the connection request 450 to the authorization server 470. The authorization server 470 can extract an identifier (e.g., a media access control (MAC) address) associated with the request 460 and identify a device access key (DAK) associated with the device. In various implementations, the authorization server 470 contains the MAC/DAK of devices authorized to access the network. For example, when a new device 400 is deployed, the MAC address associated with the device 400, along with the DAK associated with the device 400 can be stored at the authorization server 470. Such data can substitute for a username/password combination for the new device 400. The connection request can be decrypted using the DAK associated with the extracted MAC address. In such implementations, when the DAK associated with the MAC address of the device is operable to decrypt the connection request, the new NTU device 400 can be authorized to connect to the network. The authorization server 470 can notify the headend 430 that the new NTU can be authorized. The authorization server 470 can respond to the connection request by encrypting a network membership key (NMK) using the DAK associated with the new NTU 400. The new NTU 400 can thereby decrypt the NMK using it's own DAK. The authorization server 470 can also provide the NMK to the headend 430. The headend 430 can notify one or more repeaters 410a-c that the NTU device 400 is authorized to join the network. The NTU device 400 can then be associated with one or more repeater devices 410a-c. In some implementations, the NMK can be a unique or substantially unique NMK. For example, the NMK can be randomly generated. However, a randomly generated key may not be completely unique (e.g., the same key could be generated again.
In some aspects, the NMK can indicate membership in a sub-network. For example a NMK can indicate membership in the AV sub-cell illustrated in
When a new repeater 500 attempts to join the network, it can send a connection request to any of the network devices (e.g., repeaters 510a-b, headend 530, etc.). In some examples, the new repeater 500 can send a connection request 540 to an existing repeater 510a. In various implementations, the existing repeater 510a can send a forwarded connection request 550 to the headend 530. In various implementations, the headend 530 can forward the connection request to the authorization server 570.
In various implementations, the authorization server 570 can authorize the forwarded connection request 550 based upon an encryption applied to the forwarded connection request 550 by the new repeater 500. For example, the authorization server 570 can extract an identifier (e.g., a unique or substantially unique identifier) associated with the new repeater 500. In various implementations, the identifier can include a MAC address associated with the new repeater 500. Other unique identifiers are possible. The MAC address can be used to determine the DAK associated with the new repeater 500. The authorization server 570 can then attempt to decrypt the forwarded connection request 560 using the DAK associated with the extracted MAC address. If the authorization server 570 can successfully decrypt the forwarded request 560, the new repeater 500 is authorized. The authorization server 570 can respond to the connection request by encrypting a network membership key (NMK) using the DAK associated with the new repeater 500. The new repeater 500 can thereby decrypt the NMK using it's own DAK. In some implementations, the NMK can be a unique or substantially unique NMK. For example, the NMK can be randomly generated. However, a randomly generated key may not be completely unique (e.g., the same key could be generated again.
In other implementations, the connection request 540 can be sent unencrypted. In such implementations, the authorization server 570 can extract an identifier (e.g., MAC address) from the connection request. The authorization server 570 can use the identifier to determine the DAK associated with the new repeater. The authorization server 570 can then communicate (e.g., securely) an NMK to the new repeater 500 by encrypting the NMK using the DAK associated with the new repeater 500. The new repeater 500 can then communicate with existing repeaters 510a-b using the NMK received from the headend device. The NMK communicated to the new repeater 500 can also be communicated to one or more of the existing repeaters 510a-b to enable the existing repeaters 510a-b to communicate with the new repeater 500.
In various implementations, the new repeater 500 can use its unique NMK to request of a network encryption key (NEK). In some of these implementations, the NEK is known to each of the repeaters 510a-b, NTUs 520a-e, headend(s) 530, and authorization server 570. The NEK can be supplied securely to the network devices using a substantially unique key (e.g., a substantially unique NMK) associated with the device.
In various implementations, the connection request can be encrypted by the new station 600 using a device access key (DAK) associated with the new station 600. The connection request can be received by a headend/authorization server 610. The headend 610 can forward the connection request to the authorization server 620 as shown in (2). The authorization server 620 includes the identifiers associated with authorized devices and their corresponding DAKs.
The authorization server 620 can parse the connection request to extract an identifier associated with the new station 600. After extracting the identifier associated with the new station 600, the authorization server 620 can determine whether the identifier corresponds to an authorized device. If the identifier is recognized by the authorization server 620, authorization server 620 can used the corresponding DAK to decrypt the connection request received from the new station 600.
In various implementations, the authorization server 620 can authorize the new station 600 based upon being able to decrypt the connection request using the DAK associated with the new station 600. Upon authenticating the new station 600, the authorization server 620 can provide a network management key (NMK) to the new station 600 by send it to the headend 610, as shown by signal (3), which the passes it to the new station, as shown by signal (4). In some implementations, the NMK is unique or substantially unique to the device. The NMK can be randomly generated by authorization server 620.
In some implementations, upon receiving the NMK, the new station 600 can send a request to the headend 610 for a network encryption key (NEK) as shown by signal (5). In various implementations, the NEK can be used to encrypt communications among powerline network devices (e.g., NTUs, repeaters, headend(s), MAC/DAK data store, etc.). The NEK request can be encrypted using the NMK associated with the new station 600.
Upon receiving a request for the NEK, a headend 610 can authenticate the request by retrieving the NMK associated with the requesting station 600 from the authorization server 620, as shown by signals 2, 3. In some implementations, the authorization server can provide the NMK of all authorized stations to the headend. In such cases the headend can retrieve the NMK associated with the requesting station 600 from its local store instead of retrieving the NMK from the authorization server 620. The headend 610 attempting to decrypt the NEK request using the NMK associated with the requesting station 600. If the NMK associated with the requesting station 600 is operable to decrypt the NEK request, the headend 620 can encrypt the NEK using the NMK associated with the requesting station 600 and communicate the encrypted NEK to the requesting station 600 as shown by signal (6). The new station 600 can receive the encrypted NEK, and use the previously received NMK to decrypt the NEK. Upon decrypting the NEK, the new station 600 can encrypt communications to other network devices using the NEK.
When a new station 701 joins the network, the station 701 requests to receive a unique network membership key from the HE 702, as shown by signal 705. The request can be encrypted using a device access key (DAK) associated with the station 701.
Upon receipt of the request, the HE can examine the request and locate a unique identifier, e.g., a media access control (MAC) address, associated with the request. The HE can query the authorization server 703 based upon the parsed MAC address as shown by signal 710. The authorization server 703 is configured to store MAC/DAK pairs. Approved stations can be entered into the MAC/DAK data store 703 prior to deployment of the station.
If the MAC address is valid, the authorization server 703 can return a DAK associated with the MAC address as shown by signal 715. The DAK can be used in an attempt to decrypt the request. If the decryption is successful, the request is authorized. Otherwise the request is not authorized and is ignored or rejected.
When the request is authorized, the HE 702 can use the DAK to encrypt a unique NMK associated with the station. In some implementations, the HE 702 can generate the unique NMK. In other implementations, the HE 702 can retrieve the unique NMK from the authorization server 703. The encrypted unique NMK can then be communicated to the station as shown by signal 720.
In optional implementations, the station can use the unique NMK to encrypt a request a network encryption key (NEK) as shown by signal 725. In such implementations, the NEK can be used to encrypt all communications among stations 701 in a core cell (e.g., core cell of
In some instances, the authorization server or headend might determine that a station has been compromised by an intruder or hacker. In such instances, the authorization server or headend can reset the NEK. When the NEK is reset, the headend can transmit the new NEK to any stations that have not been compromised. The new NEK can be encrypted using the unique NMKs associated with those stations that have not been compromised. Thus, those stations that have been compromised will not be able to decrypt the new NEK and the compromised station is thereby isolated from the remainder of the network.
The NEK can also be rotated to protect the network encryption key from cracking using brute force algorithms. In order to protect stations from illegitimate key rotations requests, headend or authorization server can provide a counter to the stations. In some implementations, the same counter can be provided to all stations. In other implementations, the counter can be a pseudo-random number that may differ between stations. In some implementations, the counter can be provided in an encrypted format, for example, using a network membership key associated with the station, or using a device access key associated with the station. In other implementations, the counter can be provided to the station with the first NEK, both the counter and the NEK being encrypted using the NMK associated with that device.
The counter can serve to test that a new NEK is authentic. In some implementations, a rotation message can be sent to the stations. The rotation message can include the new NEK and an incremented counter. In various implementations, the increment associated with the counter might not be linear, or might not be incremental, but rather the counter may be incremented according to some algorithm known to both the authorization server and the stations. The rotation message can be encrypted using the NMK associated with each respective station.
Upon receiving a rotation message, the stations can decrypt the message using the stations' respective NMKs. The station can compare the counter value included in the rotation message to its own counter value. If the counter values match, the new NEK is authenticated, and replaces the previous NEK.
At stage 810, an encrypted network membership key can be received. In various embodiments, the encrypted NMK can be received, for example, by a station (e.g., NTU, RP, HE of
At stage 820, the encrypted NMK can be decrypted. The encrypted NMK can be decrypted, for example, by a requesting station (e.g., NTU, RP, HE of
At stage 910, a MAC address associated with the requesting station is received. In various embodiments, the MAC address can be received, for example, by an authorization server (e.g., AS 470 of
At stage 920, the NMK request can be authorized. The NMK request can be authorized, for example, by a authorization server (e.g., AS 470 of
At stage 930, the NMK is encrypted based on authorization of the request. The NMK can be encrypted, for example, by an authorization server (e.g., AS 470 of
At stage 940, the encrypted NMK is communicated to the requesting station. The encrypted NMK can be communicated, for example, by an authorization server (e.g., AS 470 of
The systems and methods disclosed herein may use data signals conveyed using networks (e.g., local area network, wide area network, internet, etc.), fiber optic medium, carrier waves, wireless networks (e.g., wireless local area networks, wireless metropolitan area networks, cellular networks, etc.), etc. for communication with one or more data processing devices (e.g., mobile devices). The data signals can carry any or all of the data disclosed herein that is provided to or from a device.
The methods and systems described herein may be implemented on many different types of processing devices by program code comprising program instructions that are executable by one or more processors. The software program instructions may include source code, object code, machine code, or any other stored data that is operable to cause a processing system to perform methods described herein.
The systems and methods may be provided on many different types of computer-readable media including computer storage mechanisms (e.g., CD-ROM, diskette, RAM, flash memory, computer's hard drive, etc.) that contain instructions for use in execution by a processor to perform the methods' operations and implement the systems described herein.
The computer components, software modules, functions and data structures described herein may be connected directly or indirectly to each other in order to allow the flow of data needed for their operations. It is also noted that software instructions or a module can be implemented for example as a subroutine unit of code, or as a software function unit of code, or as an object (as in an object-oriented paradigm), or as an applet, or in a computer script language, or as another type of computer code or firmware. The software components and/or functionality may be located on a single device or distributed across multiple devices depending upon the situation at hand.
This written description sets forth the best mode of the invention and provides examples to describe the invention and to enable a person of ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention. This written description does not limit the invention to the precise terms set forth. Thus, while the invention has been described in detail with reference to the examples set forth above, those of ordinary skill in the art may effect alterations, modifications and variations to the examples without departing from the scope of the invention.
As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “a,” “an,” and “the” includes plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Finally, as used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meanings of “and” and “or” include both the conjunctive and disjunctive and may be used interchangeably unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
Ranges may be expressed herein as from “about” one particular value, and/or to “about” another particular value. When such a range is expressed, another embodiment includes from the one particular value and/or to the other particular value. Similarly, when values are expressed as approximations, by use of the antecedent “about,” it will be understood that the particular value forms another embodiment. It will be further understood that the endpoints of each of the ranges are significant both in relation to the other endpoint, and independently of the other endpoint.
These and other implementations are within the scope of the following claims.
This application is a utility of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/941,949, entitled “MANAGING COMMUNICATIONS OVER A SHARED MEDIUM,” filed on Jun. 4, 2007, which is hereby incorporated by reference.
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