R&I Research Report R 18/2007 Title Abstract Service API for Connected Objects

Generic service elements are designed in the form of an abstract API. This API may be used as service element building blocks by Connected Objects (CO). This facilitates efficient implementation of specific applications like surveillance, control, automatic meter reading, etc. A standardised version of this API will support inter operator ubiquitous services, and will establish a global market for suppliers. Low power small scale COs can also use the API. Efficiency is ensured by only applying a subset of service elements. Communication with such units may take place even at the sub-IP level. More advanced COs may take advantage of the full range of functionality allowing advanced services to be built with reduced development efforts. The abstract API does not constrain the network architecture or the location of functionality, it primarily describes capabilities between entities, which may be allocated to end systems (Connected objects) or to CO servers. The actual functional allocations will be at the discretion of the implementers using the API. The concrete API specification and its implementation should be based on the API definition given in this document combined with WSDL definitions available for Parlay-X. The implementation may start immediately, since the API is intentionally kept independent from the underlying protocol stack(s). Basing the CO API on the Next Generation Network (NGN) and on the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) is analysed. It is concluded that NGN and IMS do not support the class of non session oriented data applications needed for Connected Objects. Only high volume streaming is handled reasonably efficiently. It is therefore recommended as a first step to implementing the non session related part of the API. The session oriented streaming class of service may be added at a later stage. This may facilitate migration to a harmonised and cost efficient infrastructure, where legacy networks are gradually phased out.