# US 12,693,642 B2 · Building automation network > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,693,642 B2 - Document ID: US12693642B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 18/251,794 - Filed: 2021-01-25 - Published: 2024-01-18 - Granted: 2026-07-28 - Earliest claimed: 2020-11-13 - Assignees: Siemens Schweiz AG - Applicants: Siemens Schweiz AG - Inventors: Thomas Gollackner; Michele Remonato; Mohit Soral - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12693642B2 ## CPC - G05B 15/02: electric - G06F 9/451: Execution arrangements for user interfaces - H04L 67/10: in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network (software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46) - H04L 67/562: Brokering proxy services - G05B 2219/25011: Domotique, I-O bus, home automation, building automation - G05B 2219/2642: Domotique, domestic, home control, automation, smart house - G05B: CONTROL OR REGULATING SYSTEMS IN GENERAL; FUNCTIONAL ELEMENTS OF SUCH SYSTEMS; MONITORING OR TESTING ARRANGEMENTS FOR SUCH SYSTEMS OR ELEMENTS (systems for controlling or regulating non-electric variables G05D; systems for regulating electric or magnetic variables G05F; control devices or systems insofar as characterised by mechanical features only G05G) - G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N) - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) ## Abstract Various embodiments of the teachings herein include a building automation network. The network may include an embedded edge device having a data interface and an edge digital service agent adapted to automatically fetch container images of configured containers via the data interface from a cloud-based container repository for deployment as a container application in a persistent memory and a container engine adapted to run the deployed container application for performing tasks in the building automation network. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A building automation network comprising: an embedded edge device having a data interface and an edge digital service agent adapted to automatically fetch container images of configured containers via the data interface from a cloud-based container repository for deployment as a container application in a persistent memory; and a container engine adapted to run the deployed container application for performing tasks in the building automation network; wherein the deployed container application stored in the persistent memory is configured and updated by a centralized web user interface provided in the cloud; and the centralized web user interface is connected to a cloud-based container engine comprising a rule engine module adapted to validate automatically a configuration of the deployed container application configured or updated by means of the centralized web user interface. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The building automation network according to claim 1, wherein the deployed container application comprises a multi-container application composed of a group of multiple containers. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The building automation network according to claim 1, wherein the container engine of the embedded edge device is adapted to run the container application deployed in the persistent memory to perform tasks in the building automation network in real time. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The building automation network according to claim 1, wherein the data interface of the embedded edge device comprises a wired or wireless data interface connected to a message queuing telemetry transport (MQTT) client of the embedded edge device adapted to receive messages from a MQTT broker provided in the cloud. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The building automation network according to claim 1, wherein each deployed container application comprises: a unique container application identifier; an application version identifier; and one or more container application attributes. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The building automation network according to claim 5, wherein each deployed container application attributes comprise a state and/or an update availability of the respective deployed container application. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The building automation network according to claim 1, wherein configuration parameters of each container of the deployed container application are configurable individually using the centralized web user interface provided in the cloud. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The building automation network according to claim 7, wherein the configurable configuration parameters of a container comprise: a container image URL, at least one image tag, a service identifiable name of the respective container, a network mode, resource consumption limits, volume mounting, firewall settings, port mappings, environmental variables, and/or container communication parameters. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The building automation network according to claim 1, further comprising an edge application manager deployed in the cloud to manage distribution of a plurality of container applications deployed in different edge devices at multiple customer sites. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The building automation network according to claim 1, wherein the embedded edge device comprises a cloud gateway adapted to provide a cloud connectivity for building devices including sensors, actuators, and/or controllers installed in a building and adapted to communicate with each other via the building automation network. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The building automation network according to claim 1, wherein access to the centralized web user interface provided to configure and/or to update a deployed container application is only available to an authenticated user authorized to perform configurations and/or reconfigurations of the respective container application. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The building automation network according to claim 1, wherein at least one container of the deployed container application is adapted to process data provided by building devices of the building automation network and to push messages and/or process data via the data interface of the embedded edge device to the cloud. ### Claim 13 A computer-implemented method for operating a building automation network of a building connected to a cloud via a data interface of an embedded edge device, the method comprising: configuring a container application using a central web user interface of the cloud; deploying the container application in a persistent memory of the embedded edge device; and running the deployed container application using a container engine of the embedded edge device; wherein the deployed container application stored in the persistent memory is configured and updated by a centralized web user interface provided in the cloud; and the centralized web user interface is connected to a cloud-based container engine comprising a rule engine module adapted to validate automatically a configuration of the deployed container application configured or updated by means of the centralized web user interface. ### Claim 14 A building automation system comprising: a plurality of building devices; wherein at least one of the building devices includes an embedded edge device having a data interface and an edge digital service agent adapted to automatically fetch container images of configured containers via the data interface from a cloud-based container repository for deployment as a container application in a persistent memory; and a container engine adapted to run the deployed container application for performing tasks in the building automation system; wherein the deployed container application stored in the persistent memory is configured and updated by a centralized web user interface provided in the cloud; and the centralized web user interface is connected to a cloud-based container engine comprising a rule engine module adapted to validate automatically a configuration of the deployed container application configured or updated by means of the centralized web user interface.