The Design And Implementation Of A Middleware For Managing Destributed Readers

The research and application on EPC network is becoming broader than ever before, including the hardware research on tag and reader, the search on EPC newwork software, the E-commerce-related research, and so on. The management on distributed reader is one of the important questions in the search of EPC network software. The management software of distributed readers locates in the lowest layer of EPC network software and communicates with the reader hardware directly. To ensure the accuracy and efficiency of tranmitted data from readers on the software level, the design and implementing method and the way of ultimate use has a direct impact on upper software modules. Therefore, the correctness of software design and implementation for managing distributed readers is the footstone for constructing the entire EPC network software.Based on in-depth understanding of EPC network epecification and a careful analysis of EPC network enterprise application requirements, the kernel problems of managing distributed readers such as data collection, data filtering and data transmitting are concluded, and the concurrence problem in data collection is focused in the study.For data collection, both ring-like data collection solution and event-listener solution are applied according to different application requirements; for data filtering, a kind of effective filter for tag data filtering is implemented; for data transmitting, both in-time solution and cache solution are implemented according to different application requirements. For the concurrence problem in data collection and the problem for the count of controllable readers, a solution is given by multi-thread and socket technology, followed by the theoretical analysis.The feasibility of given solutions for data collection, data filtering and data transmitting is tested by lots of experiments. A simulated test suite is designed and the test result is given for the requirements of enterprise applications in which high frequent readers are adapted. Therefore, the whole management solution for distributed readers has the features of completeness, security, correctness and high efficiency.Due to the widespread existence about managing distributed readers in EPC network, it's of significance to distill common logic of management of distributed readers for accelerating application development. A fundamental suite which is applicable for most management applications of distributed readers is designed and implemened in the form of middleware by applying object-oriented technology and given solutions above, so the application's development for managing distributed readers can be accelerated and simplified.The middleware for managing distributed readers is constructed in the form of Java Library, and a Java API Document is built for understanding middleware and developping reader relevant applications.For testing the functions of the middleware, a demo application system is developed based on the middleware, indicating the middleware's advantage and usefulness.