U.S. patent application number 17/066129 was filed with the patent office on 2021-02-04 for method and apparatus for a fair exchange.
The applicant listed for this patent is TRADING TECHNOLOGIES INTERNATIONAL INC.. Invention is credited to Jens-Uwe Schluetter.
Application Number | 20210035216 17/066129 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000005162264 |
Filed Date | 2021-02-04 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20210035216 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Schluetter; Jens-Uwe |
February 4, 2021 |
Method and Apparatus For A Fair Exchange
Abstract
A fair exchange is disclosed to reduce potential inequities in
an electronic trading environment. Market data is sent from a host
system to client devices through one or more synchronized local
communication servers such that the data can be displayed
simultaneously or nearly simultaneously at each client device.
Market data sent to client devices might include price information.
Likewise, a host system may transaction data sent from client
devices via the local communication servers. The ordering of
transaction data is based, at least in part, on when the local
communication servers received the transaction data from the client
devices. Transaction data sent to a host system might include order
information.
Inventors: |
Schluetter; Jens-Uwe;
(Ridgefield, CT) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
TRADING TECHNOLOGIES INTERNATIONAL INC. |
Chicago |
IL |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
1000005162264 |
Appl. No.: |
17/066129 |
Filed: |
October 8, 2020 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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15782625 |
Oct 12, 2017 |
10839456 |
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17066129 |
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13924763 |
Jun 24, 2013 |
9818155 |
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15782625 |
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13718328 |
Dec 18, 2012 |
8494954 |
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13924763 |
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13333089 |
Dec 21, 2011 |
8370251 |
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13718328 |
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12782485 |
May 18, 2010 |
8108297 |
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13333089 |
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10263102 |
Oct 2, 2002 |
7752115 |
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12782485 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 40/04 20130101;
G06Q 30/0601 20130101; G06Q 20/10 20130101; G06Q 40/00
20130101 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 40/04 20060101
G06Q040/04; G06Q 20/10 20060101 G06Q020/10; G06Q 30/06 20060101
G06Q030/06; G06Q 40/00 20060101 G06Q040/00 |
Claims
1. (canceled)
2. A method including: establishing by an exchange host system a
plurality of travel times, wherein each travel time of the
plurality of travel times is from the exchange host system to one
of a plurality of network devices, wherein each network device of
the plurality of network devices is in communication with a
respective client device; arranging by the exchange host system, in
a look-up table, the travel times in an order of longest to
shortest travel times; generating by the exchange host system a
first market data message for a tradable object; setting by the
exchange host system a pointer to one of the plurality of network
devices with a longest travel time; sending by the exchange host
system the first market data message to the one of the plurality of
network devices with the longest travel time; entering by the
exchange host system a loop including: incrementing the pointer to
the next network device in the look-up table; determining a
difference in travel times between the network device indicated by
the pointer and the previous network device in the look-up table;
waiting for a period of time equal to the difference in travel
times; sending the first market data message from the exchange host
system to the network device indicated by the pointer; and
executing the loop until the pointer is pointing to the last
network device in the look-up table.
3. The method of claim 2, further including: storing by the
exchange host system the look-up table in a memory of the exchange
host system.
4. The method of claim 2, wherein each of the plurality of network
devices is geographically positioned at approximately the same
location as the respective client device.
5. The method of claim 2, wherein the exchange host system has
access to a synchronized clock.
6. The method of claim 2, wherein each travel time includes at
least a portion of a travel time from the exchange host system to
the respective client device associated with the network device
that the travel time is in respect of.
7. The method of claim 2, wherein each of the plurality of network
devices, upon receiving the first market data message, releases the
first market data message to the respective client device.
8. The method of claim 2, wherein each of the plurality of network
devices is under control of the exchange host system.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 15/782,625, filed Oct. 12, 2017, which is a
continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/924,763, filed
Jun. 24, 2013, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,818,155, which is a continuation
of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/718,328, filed Dec. 18,
2012, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,494,954, which is a continuation of U.S.
patent application Ser. No. 13/333,089, filed Dec. 21, 2011, now
U.S. Pat. No. 8,370,251, which is a continuation of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 12/782,485 filed May 18, 2010, now U.S. Pat.
No. 8,108,297, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application
Ser. No. 10/263,102 filed Oct. 2, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No.
7,752,115. The entire disclosure and contents of each of these
applications are herewith incorporated by reference into the
present application for all purposes.
BACKGROUND
[0002] The present invention relates to electronic exchanges and,
more particularly, to reducing potential inequities when trading
using an electronic exchange.
[0003] Many exchanges throughout the world implement electronic
trading in varying degrees to trade one or more tradable objects,
where a tradable object refers simply to anything that can be
traded. Tradable objects may include, but are not limited to, all
types of traded financial products, such as, for example, stocks,
options, bonds, futures, currency, and warrants, as well as funds,
derivatives and collections of the foregoing, and all types of
commodities, such as grains, energy and metals. A tradable object
may be "real," such as products that are listed by an exchange for
trading, or "synthetic," such as a combination of real products
that is created by the trader. Electronic trading has made it
easier for a larger number of people with many different trading
strategies to participate in the market at any given time. The
increase in the number of potential traders has led to, among other
things, a more competitive market, greater liquidity, and rapidly
changing prices. Speed and assimilation of information is of great
importance, otherwise the risk of loss can be substantially
increased.
[0004] Exchanges that implement electronic trading are generally
based on centralized computers (host), one or more networks, and
the exchange participants' computers (client). In general, the host
forms the electronic heart of the fully computerized electronic
trading system. The host's operations typically cover
order-matching, maintaining order books and positions, price
information, and managing and updating the database for the online
trading day as well as nightly batch runs. The host typically is
also equipped with external interfaces that maintain uninterrupted
online contact to quote vendors and other price information
systems.
[0005] Typically, traders can link to the host through one or more
networks, where a network can include a direct data line between
the host and the client, or where a network can also include other
common network components such as high-speed servers, routers,
gateways, and so on. For example, a high-speed data line can be
used to establish direct connections between the client and the
host. In another example, the Internet can be used to establish a
connection between the client and the host. There are many
different types of networks, and combinations of network types,
known in the art that can link traders to the host.
[0006] Regardless of the way in which a connection is established,
the exchange participants' computers allow traders to participate
in the market. They use software that creates specialized
interactive trading screens on the traders' desktops. The trading
screens enable traders to enter and execute orders, obtain market
quotes, and monitor positions. The range and quality of features
available to traders on their screens varies according to the
specific software application being run.
[0007] Each market typically supplies the same information to and
requires the same information from every trader. The bid and ask
quantities and prices make up the primary market data and everyone
logged on to trade can receive this information if the exchange
provides it. Similarly, every exchange typically requires that
certain information be included in each order. For example, traders
typically supply information like the name of the commodity,
quantity, restrictions, price and multiple other variables. Without
all of this information, the exchange may not accept the order. In
general, this input and output of information is the same for every
trader.
[0008] In general, many market participants follow the same rules
for decision-making. Given the same inputs (e.g., prices, market
conditions, external indicators), a significant population will
often come to the same decision regarding whether to buy or sell a
certain tradable object at a certain price. Inside market prices
and the exchange order book information are often factors
considered in a decision to send an order to the market.
[0009] Electronic exchanges typically award order priority based
upon a first-in-first-out (FIFO) basis. At these exchanges, orders
that are received earlier get a higher priority regardless of when
the orders were actually sent. This means that there is a race, and
at least a perceived advantage, to be the first in line. The same
is true for deleting resting orders, as well such as unmatched
limit orders in the exchange order book. Thus, poor network
performance can cause a double disadvantage for any market
participant. First, a trader or an automated trading system (ATS)
will receive market information from the exchange later and,
second, orders sent from the trader or ATS to the exchange will
have a longer delay.
[0010] Having a faster connection to the exchange is therefore of
foremost urgency for a large population of traders. However, if one
group of traders has faster access to market data and the ability
to send transactions faster than another group, this will tend to
create an unfair environment, where one or a few participants will
turn huge profits while others' ability to compete will be
hampered. Similarly, an unfair environment would be created if
certain groups of traders were given preferred access to an
exchange. For exchanges, this could lead to a situation where many
liquidity providers that cannot get preferred access will not
compete.
[0011] One solution to this problem is to create a unified access
policy and system architecture. For example, everyone may receive
the same connection to the exchange (e.g., access speed and number
of routers/hops/access servers). This concept may work for
localized access where all participants are in the same geographic
area using private networks (data lines) with stable and
predictable transmission speed and latency. However, as soon as an
exchange wishes to bring its market to participants outside of a
controlled environment, access will no longer be the same for every
participant. Communication times between continents may differ
appreciably and using other (cheaper) distribution channels like
the Internet and highly shared communication channels (such as
Frame Relay with Burst) will cause unpredictable (typically higher)
latency and lower access speed for a number of market participants.
Traders that have a disadvantage will likely not take as much risk
and also not participate actively in the market. To make a market
really successful, every participant should have equivalent access
speed and latency. This furthers competition and will lead to a
fair and well-balanced market.
[0012] Another solution is to place synchronized clocks at each of
the client devices, as disclosed in published U.S. Patent
Application No. US 2002/0026321 A1, published on Feb. 28, 2002. For
data sent from the host device to the client devices, the data is
sent with a predetermined time (chosen by the operator) to display
the data. The synchronized clocks at each of the client devices
allow the simultaneous display of data at the predetermined time.
Similarly, data sent from the client devices to the host device is
time-stamped by the synchronized clocks at the client devices prior
to being sent. Using the solution proposed in published U.S. Patent
Application No. US 2002/0026321 A1 reduces some of the inequities
when receiving or transmitting data; however, there are several
problems with this solution. First, installing synchronized clocks
at each of the client devices is costly to implement. Second, since
the synchronized clocks are at the client devices, this creates
security issues. The clocks may be tampered with since the client
devices are uncontrolled. This is especially an issue in the
context of trading. Trading typically occurs in a worldwide
environment where there are a number of people trading in all sorts
of uncontrolled locations. Third, this solution, while possibly
suited to the periodic nature of games or contests, is not feasible
for the near constant requirements of trading where thousands of
transactions are consummated every day.
[0013] The advantages and features of the invention will become
apparent to one of skilled in the art from the following detailed
description, drawings, and appended claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
[0014] FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of an example
electronic exchange network system of a preferred embodiment.
[0015] FIG. 2 is one example of a packet with timing data.
[0016] FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating an example process for
formulating data with timing information and sending the data from
a host device to a network device.
[0017] FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating an example process for
receiving data with timing information and managing the data based
on timing information.
[0018] FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating an example process for
determining when to forward stored data to a client device based on
timing information.
[0019] FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating an example process for
managing data using timing information sent from a client device
for ultimate submission to a matching engine.
[0020] FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating an example process for
determining when to forward stored data to a matching engine based
on timing information.
[0021] FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating an alternative example
process for determining when to forward data to a plurality of
client devices based on timing information.
[0022] FIG. 9 is a flow chart illustrating an alternative example
process for ordering data at a host device using timing
information.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0023] Trading in an electronic exchange necessitates fairness for
all who participate. Any inequity (or even a perceived inequity)
will reduce one's incentive to participate. Leveling the playing
field for all should result in greater participation in the
competition. The trading context has several inequities that are,
in effect, a barrier to entry for some who might otherwise
participate. As discussed in the background section,
decision-making in trading is largely based on current market
conditions. An exchange system would normally aggregate a central
order book and send out a broadcast to all end nodes with the
current aggregated best prices as well as, in some instances, order
book information (market depth). The exchange also sends out trade
information and updated order book information when matches occur.
Since all this data is particularly important when making trade
decisions, any speed advantage/disadvantage would give a
significant advantage/disadvantage to a single participant or group
of participants. Reducing or eliminating these inequities will
thereby promote participation and competition.
[0024] The preferred embodiments, referred to herein as the "fair
exchange," are provided to reduce potential inequities in
electronic trading in a practical manner. The following description
is presented to enable a person of ordinary skill in the art to
make and use the invention, and is provided in the context of a
particular application and its requirements. Various modifications
to the preferred embodiment will be readily apparent to those
skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may
be applied to other embodiments and applications without departing
from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, the present
invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiment shown,
but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the
principles and features disclosed herein. The fair exchange can be
used with any electronic exchange or matching system for the
trading of any type of tradable object. While the examples set
forth herein relate to an electronic exchange, the present
invention may be applied to other time-sensitive transmissions in a
network. Examples of those time-sensitive applications include, but
are not limited to: (1) news or other financial information being
disseminated to traders; (2) auctions of property (such as airline
tickets, concert tickets, or any other type of property) involving
competitive price bidding among numerous bidders; and (3) game
competitions among multiple competitors.
[0025] Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown a block diagram of one
example network configuration of a preferred embodiment of the fair
exchange. The exchange host system 10 includes a matching engine
11, a central order book 12, central communication servers 18, 26
and a clock 24. The central order book 12 may be implemented using
known techniques on a processor 14 and a memory device 16. The
processor 14 may comprise a microprocessor, a microcontroller, or
any device that performs arithmetic, logic or control operations.
The memory device 16 may include non-volatile memory devices such
as a ROM and/or volatile memory devices such as a RAM. The matching
engine 11 may also be implemented using known techniques on a
separate server or processor and memory device (not shown).
Alternatively, the matching engine 11 may be integrated with the
central order book 12. In an alternate embodiment, rather than
having a central matching engine 11, the matching engine may be
distributed among different local and/or remote devices.
[0026] The central order book 12 is connected to one or more
central communication servers. In the example of FIG. 1, two
central communication servers, 18 and 26 are illustrated. The
central communication servers 18, 26 may include a processor 20, 28
and a memory device 22, 30. The processors 20, 28 may be a
microprocessor, a microcontroller, or any device which performs
arithmetic, logic or control operations and the memory devices 22,
30 may be a volatile or non-volatile memory. As shown in FIG. 1,
the central communication servers 18, 26 are communication servers
located in the exchange host system 10, for example using a LAN
connection, which would handle connections from, for example,
multiple locally deployed communication servers, such as by local
communication servers 38, 46.
[0027] In FIG. 1, the host system 10 includes a clock 24. The clock
24 may send its clock signal to the central communication servers
18, 26. In the alternative embodiment, the signal from the clock 24
may be supplied to the exchange host central order book 12 as
well.
[0028] The central communication servers 18, 26 may be connected to
networks 32, 34. A network is a group of two or more computers
linked together. There are many types of networks such as local
area networks and wide area networks. Networks can also be
characterized by topology, protocol, and architecture. Networks are
often comprised of a variety of direct connections and network
components such as high-speed servers, routers, gateways, and so
on. An example of a network is the Internet. However, any type of
network configuration can be used with the preferred embodiment
described herein.
[0029] As shown in FIG. 1, the local communication servers 38, 46
may be connected to the host system 10 by the networks 32, 34.
While the preferred embodiment is described herein with reference
to local communication servers 38, 46 in communication with central
communication servers 18, 26 via networks 32, 34, these connections
may be established in any manner, including by a direct connection
such as a T1 or ISDN line. It is not necessary that the networks 32
and 34 be distinct. Rather, they may be the same network or overlap
to any degree.
[0030] Local communication servers 38, 46 are preferably local
points of reference whose location is chosen to be geographically
close to a concentration of client devices, such as in the same
city or country. For a European exchange for example, a local
communication server 38 may be located in and serve traders in a
major metropolitan area, such as New York or Chicago, and a local
communication server 46 may be located in and serve traders in
London. The local communication servers 38, 46 are preferably
controlled by the exchange or some other reliable entity. The
preferred embodiments, however, are not limited by what entity
controls the local communication servers 38, 46. The local
communication servers 38, 46 may include a processor 40, 48 and
memory device 42, 50. The processors 40, 48 may be a
microprocessor, a microcontroller, or any device which performs
arithmetic, logic or control operations and the memory devices 42,
50 may be a volatile or non-volatile memory. As shown in FIG. 1,
the local communication servers 38, 46 are coupled to clocks 36,
44. The clocks 24, 36 and 44 are utilized by the servers in one
embodiment, to control the timing of the sending of information.
Aside from controlling the timing of the sending of information,
the servers 18, 26, 38, 46 are used for data distribution to and
from the end nodes.
[0031] Client devices 52, 54, which are used by participants in the
electronic exchange, are connected to the local communication
servers 38, 46. These connections can be achieved in many different
ways that are well known by those of ordinary skill in the art. For
example, the connections can be direct or over a network as
described above. In one embodiment, the client devices 52, 54
include a processor 56, 60 and at least one memory device 58, 62.
The processors 56, 60 may be a microprocessor, a microcontroller,
or any device which performs arithmetic, logic or control
operations and the memory devices 58, 62 may be a volatile or
non-volatile memory. The client devices 52, 54 are not limited to
any particular hardware and/or software, but rather maybe any
device that is capable of communicating with host system 10. For
example, the client devices 52, 54 may be personal computers,
workstations, personal digital assistants ("PDAs") smart phones, or
any other wired or wireless communication devices.
[0032] The clocks 24, 36, 44 can be any synchronized clock. Various
methods of implementing a reliable synchronized clock are known to
those of ordinary skill in the art. In one preferred embodiment,
the clocks are high precision reference clocks that synchronize
with an atomic clock (such as one maintained by the National
Institute of Standards and Technology in Colorado) via radio waves.
In another preferred embodiment, the clocks are synchronized to a
reference clock via the Network Time Protocol (NTP). As known to
those of ordinary skill in art, the NTP is a widely used protocol
in the Internet and in other networks to synchronize computer
clocks to a national (or international) reference time. In another
embodiment, the clock may incorporate a global positioning system
(GPS) receiver to provide synchronization with a reference clock.
The invention is not limited to any particular way of synchronizing
the clocks or to the frequency at which the clocks are
synchronized. The clocks may be accessible by any device within the
system, such as the host system, devices within the network or the
client devices. In one aspect, a clock is incorporated within a
device within the system. Alternatively, a clock may be a
standalone unit which may be accessible by a device within the
system. Although the embodiments discussed herein reference
separate clocks located at each local communication server and at
the host, it is possible for some or all of these devices to
remotely reference a time source and not use a local clock.
[0033] FIG. 1 illustrates merely one example architecture for the
fair exchange. FIG. 1 does not necessarily disclose all of the
components that could be used in this type of system. For example,
this type of electronic trading system may include gateways that
convert exchange specific protocols to client device specific
protocols. In a preferred embodiment, clients 52,54 connect to the
local communication servers 38, 46 via gateways. Alternatively, the
local communication servers 38, 46 could include gateways. For
example, FIG. 1 illustrates two central communication servers 18,
26. Fewer or more communication servers may be used. In addition,
FIG. 1 illustrates two networks 32, 34. A single network, such as a
wide area network, may be used. Alternatively, multiple networks,
including different types of networks (e.g., LAN, WAN, etc.), may
be used. Moreover, FIG. 1 illustrates two local communication
servers 38, 46; however, fewer or more communication servers may be
used.
[0034] An electronic exchange typically supplies to, and requires
the same information from, every trader. For example, exchange host
central order book 12 may send market data information to the
client devices 52, 54 regarding the bid and ask quantities and/or
prices in the market. Trading applications running on the client
devices 52, 54 may receive, process and display the market data
information. Similarly, traders may send, via the client devices
52, 54, orders to the exchange host system 10. Every exchange
typically requires that certain information be included in each
order. For example, traders must generally send to the exchange
information like their identification, the name of the tradable
object, quantity, restrictions, price and other information. Once
the market receives the transaction, the matching engine 11
attempts to match buy orders with sell orders.
[0035] Order status and market information data, which may be in
the form of packets, may be sent from host system 10 to client
devices 52, 54 via central communication servers 18, 26, networks
32, 34 and local communication servers 38, 46. Likewise, data may
be sent from the client devices 52, 54 to the host system 10 via
the local communication servers 38, 46, the networks 32, 34 and the
central communication servers 18, 26.
[0036] Examples of information that may be sent to the client
devices 52, 54 from the host system 10 include inside market
information and market depth information. Inside market information
as used herein means the highest bid price and the lowest ask
price. Market depth information as used herein means information
associated with all or any part of the current bid and ask
quantities as represented in the order book 12. Other market
information that maybe sent to the client devices 52, 54 from the
host system 10 may include the last traded quantity (LTQ), the last
traded price (LTP), the total traded quantity (TTQ), and so on. The
host system 10 typically determines which market information,
including what portion of the market depth, is sent to the client
devices 52, 54.
[0037] The fair exchange preferably reduces the inequities
discussed in the background section above. For example, one
embodiment of the fair exchange may cause data sent from the host
system to the client devices to be displayed nearly simultaneously
at the client devices. Another embodiment of the fair exchange may
cause data sent from the client devices to be prioritized at the
host based on when the data was sent from a local communication
server to which a group of client devices have roughly equivalent
access (as opposed to being based only on when the data is received
at the host). More detail on these embodiments and other
embodiments are described below.
Data Sent from the Host System to the Client Devices
[0038] In a preferred embodiment, market data may be sent to the
client devices 52, 54 from the local communication servers 38, 46
simultaneously or nearly simultaneously so that the display on the
client devices 52, 54 is nearly simultaneous. The time at which the
market information is to be sent to the client devices may be
determined by the host system 10, with the actual release being
controlled by the local communication servers 38, 46.
[0039] In one embodiment, the time that data is to be released from
the local communication servers 38, 46 may be included in the
packet sent from the host system. Referring to FIG. 2, there is
shown one example of a packet 64 with timing data 68. The packet 64
may include client device information 66 that indicates the address
or an identification for a client device or group of client devices
so that the packet may be routed to the client device(s).
Alternatively, the packets being sent from the exchange host may
not include any destination information and routing or multicasting
techniques known to those of ordinary skill in the art can be
employed to ensure that data is forwarded to the appropriate
location. The packet 64 further includes data 70 (such as market
information) that may be formatted for display at the client
device. The timing data 68 preferably relates to the control of the
timing of the transmission of the packet 64 through the network.
For example, the timing data may comprise a "send time." As
discussed below, the "send time" may be a predetermined time later
than when the packet 64 is sent from the host device. This "send
time" may instruct the local communication servers 38, 46 to send
the packet when the actual time equals the "send time." The local
communication servers 38, 46 may compare the "send time" to a local
time, as provided by the clocks 36, 44, to determine when to
release the packet 64.
[0040] Referring to FIG. 3, a flow chart illustrates example steps
that a host system of one embodiment would take to send a packet
containing timing information to the local communication servers
38, 46. As shown at block 72, the travel times of the data from the
host system 10 to each of the local communication servers 38, 46 is
determined. There are many ways to determine travel times for the
data. Several example techniques are discussed below.
[0041] As shown at block 74, the travel times may be examined to
determine the longest travel time, referred to as "delta." The time
when the packet is sent from the host system 10 is determined
(time_send_host), as shown at block 76. Then, the timing data 68
(shown in FIG. 2) is determined. In one embodiment, the timing data
68 instructs the local communication servers 38, 46 to send the
market data on to the client devices 52, 54 at a predetermined
time, time_to_release. As shown at block 78, the time,
time_to_release, may be calculated as a time that is greater than
or equal to the time_send_host+delta (as determined at block 74). A
packet is formulated with the data from the host and the timing
data 68, time_to_release, as shown at block 80. The packet is then
sent to the local communication server 38, 46, as shown at block
82. Alternatively, the data can be time stamped at the host and the
packet can include the time_send_host. In this alternative
embodiment, the time_to_release would be calculated at the local
communication servers 38, 46.
[0042] Referring to FIG. 4, a flow chart illustrates example steps
of a device or program within the local communication server 38, 46
of one embodiment controlling the release of a packet to the client
devices 52, 54. A packet with timing data is received by the local
communication server, as shown at block 84. The server preferably
parses the packet for the timing data (time_to_release). In one
embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the processors 40, 48 parse the
packet to determine the timing data. Further, software may be
accessed by the processor 40, 48 from the memory device 42, 50. Any
other technique known to those skilled in the art for reading the
packet's timing data may alternatively be used. The local
communication server 38, 46 may then access the clock 36, 44 to
compare the clock time to time_to_release, as shown at block 86.
The packet is sent to the client device from the local server when
the clock time is greater than or equal to time_to_release, as
shown at block 88. If the clock time is not greater than or equal
to time_to_release, the packet is placed in a queue as shown at
block 90. The packets are preferably ordered in the queue starting
with the packet with the earliest time_to_release. As known to
those of ordinary skill in the art, different operators (e.g.,
greater than, less than, less than or equal to, etc.) depending on
how time is being measured.
[0043] Referring to FIG. 5, a flow chart illustrates example steps
of a device or program within the local communication server of one
embodiment controlling the sending of packets, which have been
placed in the queue. The software looks to the first packet in the
queue as shown at block 92. Then, the local communication server
may access its clock to determine if the current time is greater
than or equal to time_to_release as shown at block 94. If it is,
then the packet is forwarded to the client device as shown at block
96. If it is not, the algorithm repeats itself, e.g. returns to
step 92. The software is preferably programmed to repeatedly check
the earliest packet in the queue every time a time interval has
elapsed.
[0044] The flow charts shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 provide only an
example of one embodiment and it should be understood that more or
fewer steps may be utilized or the steps may occur in one or more
orders which are different from the order of steps shown in FIGS.
3, 4 and 5 without departing from the spirit of the fair exchange
invention. For example, rather than comparing the clock to
time_to_release before placing a packet in the queue (as shown at
block 86 of FIG. 4), the software could alternatively place all
received packets immediately into a queue and then follow the flow
chart shown in FIG. 5. There are many other alternatives that will
be apparent to those skilled in the art upon review of this
detailed description.
[0045] Using a specific example, if the travel time of data from
the host system 10 to local communication server 38 is 0.05 seconds
and if the time of travel of data from the host system 10 to local
communication server 46 is 0.15 seconds, the host system 10 may
determine that, in order to present the data at the client devices
52, 54 simultaneously (or nearly simultaneously), the local
communication servers 38, 46 will send the data to the client
devices 0.15 seconds after the host 10 sends the data.
Specifically, if the data is sent from the host at t=0 seconds,
then the time_to_release=0.15 seconds. In this manner, inequities
due to differences in data travel time will be reduced because the
data packets are held at the local communication servers 38, 46 to
account for one of the network paths being slower. To ensure that
the data is sent from the client servers nearly simultaneously at
the time_to_release, the local communication servers 38, 46 may
access clocks (and preferably clocks which are synchronized with
one another as discussed above) to compare the clock time with
time_to_release and to send the data at time_to_release.
[0046] Alternatively, instead of a time_to_release, the local
communication servers 38, 46 may be instructed to wait for a
predetermined "wait time" before sending the data to the client
devices. In the example used above, the host system 10 may instruct
the local communication server 38 for client devices 52 to wait for
a "wait time" of 0.10 seconds and may instruct the local
communication server 46 for client device 54 to wait for a "wait
time" of 0 seconds. In this manner, the wait times may reduce the
disparity caused by differences in data travel times.
Alternatively, the wait times or the time_to_release can be set to
accommodate a period of time longer than the longest send time to
provide more room for error or computer processing time. For
instance, in the example above the local communication servers
38,46 can be programmed to send data to the client devices 0.20
seconds after the host sends the data.
Data Sent from the Client Devices to the Host System
[0047] As discussed in the background section, one important issue
in electronic exchange networks is the ordering of trading
events/data sent from traders. The traders send data, for example a
buy or sell order or other transaction, from the client devices,
e.g. 52, 54, to the host system 10. For fairness, the data sent
should be ranked based, at least in part, on when the data was sent
from the client device (or sent from a node close to the client
device). Inequities may result if the electronic exchange queues
the transaction based only on when the transactions are actually
received at the exchange (or host system).
[0048] In a preferred embodiment, the fair exchange uses a system
of synchronized clocks close to, but not at, the client devices and
at the exchange host. In a preferred embodiment, the clocks 36, 44
are placed at local communication servers 38, 46 and the clock 24
is placed at the exchange host system 10. Transactions would then
be time stamped close to the originator (client device) at the
local communication servers 38, 46. If the location of the local
communication servers 38, 46 is picked wisely, using this timestamp
as the basis of prioritization at the host system 10 will result in
a fairer ordering of transactions at the exchange host system in a
practical manner. At the host system 10 or matching engine 11,
transactions are queued in the order of their timestamp, instead of
the current sequence of arrival that prefers the participant with
the lowest latency to the host system or matching system. To allow
the slowest participant to have relatively equal chances, in a
preferred embodiment all transactions are held in the arrival queue
until a transaction from the slowest participant could have
arrived. This leads to the problem of determining what the wait
time needs to be, since slowing down the transaction processing too
much may cause overall performance degradation. Thus, it is
important to have the arrival queue delay as low as possible. In
particular, the delays in processing transactions sent to the host
system 10 should be kept to a minimum.
[0049] In a preferred embodiment, the clocks 36, 44 are placed at a
network device geographically near the client devices, 52, 54 such
as the local communication servers 38, 46. In this manner, when the
client devices send data to the host system 10 and the data is
routed through the local communication servers 38, 46, the local
communication servers 38, 46 time-stamp the data using synchronized
clocks 36, 44. The host system 10 may then compare the time-stamps
of the data to approximate when the data was sent from the client
devices 52, 54.
[0050] Referring to FIG. 6, there is shown a flow chart for how
data is sent from the client devices 52, 54 to the host system 10
and how that data is prioritized at the host system 10 in a
preferred embodiment of the fair exchange. The data is sent from
the client devices 52, 54 to the host system 10, as shown at block
118. The data is received at a point in the network (such as, for
example, local communication servers 38, 46 in FIG. 1) and the data
is time-stamped, as shown at block 120. In the example of FIG. 1,
processor 40, 48 may access the clocks 36, 44 to time-stamp the
data. The data is then received at the host system 10, as shown at
block 122. The data is analyzed to determine if the current time is
greater than or equal to the time stamp plus the previously
determined longest travel time (referred to as "delta") as shown at
block 124. This time can be referred to as time_to_release.
Alternatively, the local communication servers 38, 46 can calculate
the time_to_release and store that value in the data packet being
sent.
[0051] The host system 10 preferably accesses the clock 24 to
obtain the current time. If the answer is yes, the data (which in
this example represents an order or transaction) is forwarded to
the central matching engine 11 as shown at block 126. If the answer
is no, the data is placed in a queue as shown at block 128. The
data is preferably ordered in a queue based on the time-stamps,
from earliest to latest time-stamps.
[0052] Referring to FIG. 7, there is shown a flow chart for how the
host system 10 may manage the incoming transaction queue,
referenced at step 128 in FIG. 6, in a preferred embodiment. The
method looks to the first packet in the queue as shown at block
130. Then, the host system 10 may access its clock to determine if
the current time is greater than or equal to the time_to_release,
as shown at block 132. If it is, the transaction is forwarded to
the matching engine as shown at block 134. If it is not, the method
returns to step 130. The method is preferably programmed to
repeatedly check the earliest packet in the queue every time a
preset time interval has elapsed.
[0053] The flow charts shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 provide only an
example of one embodiment and it should be understood that more or
fewer steps may be utilized or the steps may occur in one or more
orders which are different from the order of steps shown in FIGS. 6
and 7, without departing from the spirit of the present invention.
For example, rather than comparing the clock to the time_to_release
before placing a packet in the queue (as shown at block 124 of FIG.
6), the method may alternatively place all data received
immediately into a queue and then follow the flow chart shown in
FIG. 7. There are many other alternatives that will be apparent to
those skilled in the art upon review of this detailed
description.
Determining Travel Times
[0054] There are various techniques known to those of ordinary
skill in the art to determine the travel time between two devices
in a network. The present invention is not limited to any
particular technique. In one embodiment, travel time is monitored
by using packets that contain time stamps from the originating node
which are then compared with the clock time on the arrival node to
determine the slowest end node. In this embodiment, a packet is
sent from the central communication servers 18, 26 to the local
communication servers 38, 46 that includes a time stamp provided by
the clock 24. The local communication servers 38, 46 can then
determine the travel time of that packet by calculating the
difference between the time stamp and the time the packet is
received at the local communication server 38, 46 by accessing the
clocks 36, 44. The local communication servers 38, 46 may
communicate the calculated travel time to the host 10. After
receiving travel times to the various local communication servers,
the host may then determine the slowest travel time by comparing
the different travel times. This slowest travel time can then be
used as the longest send time (delta) as described above.
[0055] In an alternative embodiment, travel times can be measured
using a "pinging" approach. This technique involves the central
communication servers 18, 26 pinging the local communication
servers 38, 46. The central communication servers 18, 26 track the
time that a pinging message is sent. When a reply message is
received, the central communication server can calculate the round
trip time by subtracting the time the message was sent from the
time the reply message was received. After pinging the local
communication servers, the host can determine the slowest round
trip travel time. The longest travel time (delta) may be calculated
as the slowest round trip travel time divided by two.
[0056] Regardless of which technique is utilized, the system may
periodically determine and adjust the longest travel time. These
measurement techniques may be performed automatically or triggered
manually. In the case of network problems, travel time could be
excessively high for one node causing significant slow down for all
market participants. To overcome this issue, an administrative
delta may be imposed based, for example, on knowledge of the
network, such as on average delays for all participants, or based
on a select number of pings.
[0057] Other measures may alternatively be used. For example, the
longest travel time may be set at any value that levels the playing
field to a certain extent, while still encouraging participation in
the market.
[0058] The components that are used to measure delays or assign
timestamps are preferably under control of the host system or some
reliable third party. This minimizes the risk of someone skewing
the measurements by, for example, modifying packets that are
designed to measure travel times. Therefore, the local
communication servers 38, 46, which are preferably under the
control of the host system, are better suited to measure travel
times or assign timestamps than the client devices 52, 54. When it
is necessary to measure delays or assign timestamps on a device
that is not under control of the exchange or a reliable entity, one
should carefully monitor the system when using the any method to
determine the local line delay.
[0059] Because the largest differences in data travel times occur
between the central communication servers 18, 26 and the local
communication servers 38, 46 (due, e.g., to transcontinental lines,
frame relay, etc.) the largest benefit in reducing time differences
comes from synchronizing the local communication servers 38, 46
with the central communication servers 18, 26. Therefore, from a
practical standpoint, using the local communication servers 38, 46
to measure delays and assign timestamps reduces the largest
inequities in the system.
Additional Alternative Embodiments
[0060] In an alternative embodiment, synchronized clocks may be
placed in or connected to devices in the network path further away
(for example, geographically or based on network path) from the
client devices. For example, rather than positioning the clocks at
local communication servers 38, 46, devices such as access servers,
routers, gateways or the like within the networks 32, 34 may be
modified to include or work with synchronized clocks. Similar to
the local communication servers 38, 46, that device may delay
transmission of the data to the client devices until a
predetermined time or may delay the release for a predetermined
time. Likewise, these network devices may time-stamp the data sent
from the client devices 52, 54 to the host system 10.
[0061] In another alternative embodiment, to achieve simultaneous
or nearly simultaneous display of data at the client devices, the
operation of the host system 10 may be modified to send data to the
client devices 52, 54 via local communication servers 38, 46 at
different times. In determining how to modify the operation of the
host system 10, at least a portion of the travel times of data from
the host system 10 to each of the client devices 52, 54 may be
determined. For example, the round trip travel time (from host
system 10 to local communication servers 38, 46 back to host system
10) may be determined. Alternatively, the travel time from the host
system 10 to the local communication servers 38, 46 may be
determined. As discussed above, there are a multitude of methods of
determining time of travel of data.
[0062] Based on the travel times, the host system 10 may send data
to each of the client devices 52, 54 via the local communication
servers 38, 46 at different times. In this manner, the sending of
data from the host system 10 to the client devices 52, 54 is
staggered based on the travel times of data in the parts of the
network in which a disparity of travel time is most likely and
based on measurements that are more reliable because the components
being measured can be more reliably controlled. Based on this
staggered sending, the data should be received by the client
devices 52, 54 at, or nearly at, the same time. Referring to FIG.
1, at least one component in the host system host 10 may be
modified. For example, either the exchange host central order book
12 or the central communications servers 18, 26 may be modified to
stagger the sending of the data. Specifically, the processor 14 in
the central order book 12 may access memory 16 to access software
to stagger the sending of data. Alternatively, the processor 20, 28
in central communication servers 18, 26 may access memory 22, 30 to
access software to stagger the sending of data.
[0063] Referring to FIG. 8, there is shown a flow chart of a host
system sending data to client devices at different times. The flow
chart may be implemented by processor 14 using software in memory
16 (as shown in FIG. 1). At block 98, the travel times of data from
the host system to each of the local communication servers is
determined. The local communication servers may then be arranged in
a look-up table in the order of longest to shortest travel times,
as shown at block 100. The look-up table may be contained in memory
device 16 (FIG. 1). A pointer is set to the local communication
server with the longest travel time, as shown at block 102. The
time is set to zero, as shown at block 104. Data is then sent to
the local communication server with the longest travel time, as
shown at block 106. The flow chart then enters a loop, with the
pointer being incremented to the next local communication server in
the look-up table, as shown at block 108. The difference (d.sub.t)
in travel times is then determined between the local communication
server at the pointer and the previous local communication server,
as shown at block 110. The system then waits the different
(d.sub.t), as shown at block 112. Next, the data is then sent to
the local communication server at the pointer, as shown at block
114. The loop is executed until the pointer is pointing to the last
local communication server in the look-up table, as shown at block
116.
[0064] In the specific example used above (with the difference in
travel time equal to 0.1 seconds), the host system 10 may stagger
the sending of data (sending data first to client devices 54 via
local communication server 46, wait a predetermined time then send
the data to client devices 52 via local communication sever 38). In
the current example, the host system 10 may first send data to
local communication server 46 (and, thereby, client devices 54),
wait 0.1 seconds (based on the difference in travel times), and
then send the data to local communication server 38 (and, thereby,
client devices 52). In this manner, client devices 52 and client
devices 54 should receive the data at approximately the same time.
The exchange host system preferably includes or has access to a
clock 24 so that the host system 10 may wait the predetermined
necessary time.
[0065] In another alternative embodiment, the operation of the host
system 10 may be modified to prioritize transactions based on the
time the data is received by the host 10 and based on the various
travel times from the local communication servers 38, 46. In one
aspect, the travel times of data from each of local communication
servers 38, 46 to the host system 10 may be determined. In this
manner, when data is received at the host system 10, it may be
time-stamped. The host system 10 may then determine when the data
was sent from the local communication servers 38, 46 based on the
time-stamp and the travel times.
[0066] Specifically, this alternative is based on an arrival queue
with time-based ordering. The major difference is that this system
may impose delays in a penalty scheme based on measured average
travel times. If a connection were very fast, the imposed delay
would be higher than for a slower connection.
[0067] Referring to FIG. 9, there is shown a flow chart of the
operation of the host system 10 in this alternative embodiment in
which data is ordered based on the time the local communication
servers 38, 46 send the data. The time of travel of data from each
of the local communication servers 38, 46 to the host system 10 is
determined, as shown at block 136. The time of travel may be
determined by processor 14, as shown in FIG. 1, and stored in a
look-up table in memory device 16. The host system 10 then receives
the data from the client devices via the local communication
servers 38, 46, as shown at block 138. The data is time-stamped
upon receipt by the host system 10, as shown at block 140. The
packets may be time-stamped by assessing the clock 24, as shown in
FIG. 1. The host system 10 may then calculate the approximate time
when the packets were sent from the local communication servers 38,
46 by subtracting the time of travel (determined at block 136) from
the time-stamp of the data t, as shown at block 142. The data is
then ordered based on the calculated time, from the earliest to the
latest, as shown at block 144. For example, processor 14, in FIG.
1, may determine the calculated time by accessing the time of
travel in the look-up table in memory device 16 and order the data
based on the calculated time. In this manner, the data is not
ordered immediately upon receipt at the host system 10. Rather, the
data may be held temporarily for a predetermined time period
(delay).
[0068] The delay may be determined in a variety of ways. The delay
may be the longest travel time of data from a local communication
server to the host system. Alternatively, the delay may depend on
which local communication server the data is sent from. For
example, the delay for data from a specific local communication
server may be based on the difference between the longest travel
time of data from any local communication server to the host system
and the travel time of the data from the specific local
communication server to the host system as follows:
[0069] tmax: maximum network delay (round trip travel time)
[0070] tn: network delay for participant n (round trip)
delay=tmax/2-tn/2
[0071] This delay calculation could alternatively be based on a
measured one way travel times as discussed above. In any event, the
travel times are preferably averaged over a number of samples. In
still another alternate embodiment, the delay may be
preselected.
[0072] Using a specific example, if the time of travel from local
communication server 38 and local communication server 46 to the
host device is 0.05 and 0.15, respectively, and the time stamped
data from local communication server 38 and local communication
server 46 is 0.3 and 0.35, respectively, the host system 10 may
determine which data was sent first. In this example, calculating
the time when the data was sent from each local communication
server is as follows:
time-stamp-time of travel=time data sent from local communication
server
[0073] In the present example, for first local communication server
38, the time the data was sent is 0.25 (0.3-0.05). For local
communication server 46, the time the data was sent is 0.2
(0.35-0.15). Therefore, the host device may determine that the data
was actually sent first from second local communication server 46
rather than first local communication server 38, even though the
data from first local communication server 38 was received at the
host first. Thus, the data from the first local communication
server 38 is not processed at the time it was received at the host
system 10 device (in the example, 0.3); rather, the data may be
held for a predetermined period until it processed. For example,
the data may be held for 0.15 seconds, based on the longest travel
time of data from any local communication server to the host
device. Alternatively, the data may be held for 0.1 seconds, based
on the difference of the longest travel time (0.15 seconds) and the
travel time for the data (0.05 seconds).
[0074] In using the apparatuses and methods described above,
trading in an electronic exchange may be fairer for those who
participate. Data sent from a host system to client devices may be
displayed simultaneously or nearly simultaneously. Likewise, the
electronic exchange may order data sent from client devices based,
at least in part, on when the client device sent the data or an
approximation thereof. Thus, electronic exchange trading may be
more equitable.
[0075] Preferred embodiments of the present invention have been
described herein. It is to be understood, of course, that changes
and modifications may be made in the embodiments without departing
from the true scope of the present invention, as defined by the
appended claims. The present embodiment preferably includes logic
to implement the described methods in software modules as a set of
computer executable software instructions. A processor implements
the logic that controls the operation of the at least one of the
devices in the system, including the host system 10, one, some or
all of the devices in the network, and/or the client devices. The
processor executes software that can be programmed by those of
skill in the art to provide the described functionality.
[0076] The software can be represented as a sequence of binary bits
maintained on a computer readable medium described above, for
example, as memory devices 16, 22, 30, 42, 50 in FIG. 1. The
computer readable medium may include magnetic disks, optical disks,
and any other volatile or (e.g., Random Access memory ("RAM"))
non-volatile firmware (e.g., Read Only Memory ("ROM")) storage
system readable by the processor. The memory locations where data
bits are maintained also include physical locations that have
particular electrical, magnetic, optical, or organic properties
corresponding to the stored data bits. The software instructions
are executed as data bits by the processor with a memory system
causing a transformation of the electrical signal representation,
and the maintenance of data bits at memory locations in the memory
system to thereby reconfigure or otherwise alter the unit's
operation. The executable software code may implement, for example,
the methods as described above.
[0077] It should be understood that the programs, processes,
methods and apparatus described herein are not related or limited
to any particular type of computer or network apparatus (hardware
or software), unless indicated otherwise. Various types of general
purpose or specialized computer apparatus or computing device may
be used with or perform operations in accordance with the teachings
described herein.
[0078] It should further be understood that a hardware embodiment
might take a variety of different forms. The hardware may be
implemented as an integrated circuit with custom gate arrays or an
application specific integrated circuit ("ASIC"). The embodiment
may also be implemented with discrete hardware components and
circuitry. In particular, it is understood that the logic
structures and method steps described in the flow diagrams may be
implemented in dedicated hardware such as an ASIC, or as program
instructions carried out by a microprocessor or other computing
device.
[0079] The claims should not be read as limited to the described
order of elements unless stated to that effect. In addition, use of
the term "means" in any claim is intended to invoke 35 U.S.C.
.sctn. 112, paragraph 6, and any claim without the word "means" is
not so intended. Therefore, all embodiments that come within the
scope and spirit of the following claims and equivalents thereto
are claimed as the invention.
* * * * *