Scenario “renting a combine harvester”

Use case “harvester communicates with truck”

Combine harvesters are expensive machines. So renting a harvester or using a harvester service (harvester plus driver) is a preferred choice for many farmers around the world.

A campaign (e.g. harvesting a field) needs different kind of machines. Harvesters doing the work and Trucks transport the crop. Modern combine harvesters are able to communicate to the trucks. When they are nearly full the truck can pass by and take over the current crop and the harvester machine can go on without the need to stop and unload the crop.

The use-case in detail

The harvester wants to communicate with the truck and vice versa as well as with other machines. In order to keep the example simple, let’s assume that harvester and truck have 3G/LTE connection and internet access. Telco’s use usually IP-address pools. That’s why harvester and truck get most likely a new IP-address with every login. As a consequence IP-address is no stabile identifier for harvester and truck.
But nevertheless both harvester and truck have a communication interface (discovery) and IP-level routing is available due to the 3G/LTE connection to the internet.

Usually every the harvester manufacturer has solution to communicate between these machines. But when the truck was built by another manufacturer it is not clear what protocol, what kind of ID and what method is used to find the machine.

The challenge

Bob is the driver of the harvester. Nearly every morning he is on another field hand has to connect to other machines.

Bob needs an easy and standardized way to say to the truck drivers: “you can find my machine here!”, “You can see it in your radar app (showing all machines nearby), “just google it” or something else.

Then this identifier has to be mapped to the current protocol and IP-address of the machine. Subsequently a message could be send to this machine.

- Is there a standardized identifier?

- Is there a name service for things (e.g. trucks and harvesters)?

- How to facilitate authentication?

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