JP2005341444A - Network management system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a network management system which efficiently manages numerous management objects in which a plurality of kinds of radio tags are used by a manager. <P>SOLUTION: A network management system is provided with a radio tag 48 fixed to a management object, a reader writer 46 converting a control command received from an upper side into a format corresponding to the radio tag 48 and transmitting the format to the radio tag 48, an agent 42 connected to the upper side of the reader writer 46, converting a logical command predetermined according to an operation controlling the radio tag 48, not depending on the kind of the radio tag 48, into a control command according to the kind of a lower radio tag 48, and transmitting the converted control command to the reader writer 46, and a manager 40 connected to the upper side of the agent 42 and transmitting the logical command to the agent 42. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a network management system capable of managing a plurality of types of wireless tags without previously mounting a control command corresponding to the plurality of types of wireless tags on a reader / writer.

  There are many types of wireless tags, and the command system differs depending on the type. For example, the function, type, and number of commands differ depending on the manufacturer, and the type and number of parameters used by various commands also differ. And when a variety of products are arranged on the product display shelves of convenience stores, supermarkets, etc., and different types of wireless tags are affixed, the wireless tag reader / writer supports all possible types of wireless tags. It was required to implement commands to be executed in advance.

  The conventional technology for managing articles using a wireless tag is applied to, for example, an example in which a wireless tag is applied to production management (see, for example, Patent Document 1) and article management (see, for example, Patent Document 2 and Patent Document 3). ), An example applied to inventory management (for example, see Patent Document 4), an example applied to a change in product price due to a distribution deadline (for example, see Patent Document 5), and the like.

JP 2002-536726 A JP 2003-72919 A JP 2000-113077 A JP 2004-30152 A Japanese translation of PCT publication No. 2004-511048

  However, since the reader / writer has a limited communication range with the wireless tag, it is necessary to arrange a large number of reader / writers in the store. Therefore, pre-installing commands corresponding to all types of wireless tags in each reader / writer is a factor that requires an increase in memory capacity and an improvement in CPU performance, and increases the cost of the reader / writer. was there.

  In order to solve such a problem, the network management system according to the first embodiment of the present invention relates to a management object according to the control command when the network management system is fixed to the management object and a specific control command is received wirelessly. Reads and writes information, and outputs operating information to a wireless tag that outputs the read information and a plurality of wireless tags that exist within a predetermined communication range, and corresponds to a wireless tag with a control command received from the host side When a reader / writer that converts to a format and transmits it to the wireless tag and a logical command that is connected to the upper side of the reader / writer and that is predetermined according to the operation of controlling the wireless tag regardless of the type of the wireless tag, The logical command is converted into a control command corresponding to the type of RFID tag that exists within the communication range of the reader / writer connected to the lower level. In addition, an agent that transmits the converted control command to the reader / writer and a logical command that is connected to the higher level side of the agent and that is predetermined according to the operation of controlling the wireless tag is transmitted to the agent regardless of the type of the wireless tag. And a manager. As a result, a manager can manage a large number of management objects using a plurality of types of wireless tags without mounting control commands corresponding to the plurality of types of wireless tags in advance on the reader / writer.

  In the network management system, the agent stores an MIB database in which each of a plurality of types of control commands MIB including a control command for operating the wireless tag is recorded in association with the type of the wireless tag, and from the MIB database, A plurality of types of control commands for reading the type of wireless tag are read and transmitted to the reader / writer, and then the control command MIB corresponding to the type of wireless tag received from the reader / writer is extracted from the MIB database, and the extracted control command MIB is logically A conversion table is created in association with the logical command MIB including the command, and the logical command received from the manager is converted into a control command corresponding to the type of the wireless tag based on the conversion table and transmitted to the reader / writer. Good. Regardless of the type of the wireless tag, the manager can transmit a logical command uniquely determined in advance according to the operation of controlling the wireless tag to the agent. On the other hand, since the reader / writer receives an appropriate control command from the agent according to the type of the wireless tag, the wireless tag can be appropriately operated by transmitting the received control command to the wireless tag in a predetermined format. it can.

  In the above network management system, the agent may acquire and store the MIB database from the manager. Thereby, the MIB database can be easily kept up-to-date.

  When there are a plurality of types of wireless tags received from the reader / writer, the agent extracts a plurality of types of control commands MIB corresponding to the plurality of types of wireless tags from the MIB database, and associates them with the logical commands MIB. To create a conversion table. As a result, even if a plurality of types of wireless tags exist simultaneously under management, the agent can simultaneously convert a logical command received from the manager into a plurality of control commands corresponding to each of the plurality of types of wireless tags.

  In the above network management system, the agent stores the conversion table, and when receiving a logical command from the manager, the agent converts the received logical command into a control command based on the conversion table, and transmits the converted control command to the lower level. A plurality of upper agents connected to one upper agent, each having a plurality of reader / writers connected thereto, and a lower agent that receives a control command converted by the upper agent and transmits it to the plurality of reader / writers. May be. As a result, a large number of wireless tags can be easily controlled with a small number of higher agents.

  In the network management system, the agent stores an attribute MIB database that stores individual attribute MIBs that manage attribute data of individual managed objects in association with the types of managed objects, and statistical data of a plurality of managed objects. A management MIB database that stores management MIBs to be managed in association with the types of management objects, and controls the reader / writer to acquire information specifying the types of management objects from the managed wireless tags; Even if the individual attribute MIB corresponding to the type is read from the attribute MIB database, the management MIB corresponding to the type is read from the management MIB database, and the management target object is managed using the read attribute MIB database and management MIB database. Good.

  In the above network management system, the manager stores the position information of the agent and reader / writer connected to the lower side in advance, and when acquiring data specific to each wireless tag, the manager is specific to the wireless tag. Information for specifying a reader / writer and an agent that transfer the data may be further acquired, and the position of the wireless tag may be specified based on the information for specifying the reader / writer and the agent.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, when the network management system is fixed to the management target and receives a specific control command wirelessly, the network management system reads and writes information on the management target according to the control command and reads the information. The wireless tag that outputs the received information and a plurality of wireless tags that exist within a predetermined communication area, and also converts the control command received from the host side into a format corresponding to the wireless tag, and the wireless tag Reader / writer that transmits data to the device, and when a logical command that is predetermined according to the operation of controlling the wireless tag regardless of the type of the wireless tag is acquired from an upper application, the logical command is connected to the lower-level reader / writer. Is converted to a control command according to the type of RFID tag that exists in the communication range of Comprising a manager for transmitting, connected between the reader writer and manager receives a control command from the manager, and agent to be sent to the reader writer to convert the control command into a format corresponding to the reader-writer. Thereby, there exists an effect similar to a 1st form.

  In the network management system, the manager has an MIB database in which each of a plurality of types of control commands MIB including a control command for operating the wireless tag is recorded in association with the type of the wireless tag. , Read out a plurality of types of control commands to read out the type of wireless tag, send it to the agent, and then extract a control command MIB corresponding to the type of wireless tag received from the agent from the MIB database, and use the extracted control command MIB as a logical command A control table is created in association with the logical command MIB including the control command MIB, the extracted control command MIB is stored in the agent, and the logical command received from the upper application is stored in the agent based on the conversion table. May be sent to the agent is converted into a control command corresponding to the command MIB.

  As a result, it is not necessary for the agent to store in advance a plurality of types of control commands MIB corresponding to the type of the wireless tag, so that the agent storage area can be reduced. In addition, by managing the MIB database with a manager, the MIB database can be easily kept up-to-date.

  In the above network management system, the manager stores the position information of the agent and reader / writer connected to the lower side in advance, and when acquiring data specific to each wireless tag, the manager is specific to the wireless tag. Information for specifying a reader / writer and an agent that transfer the data may be further acquired, and the position of the wireless tag may be specified based on the information for specifying the reader / writer and the agent.

  In the network management system, when there are a plurality of types of wireless tags received from the agent, the manager extracts a plurality of types of control commands MIB corresponding to each of the plurality of types of wireless tags from the MIB database, A conversion table may be created in association with the command MIB. As a result, the manager can simultaneously convert a logical command received from a higher-level application into a plurality of control commands corresponding to each of the plurality of types of wireless tags even if a plurality of types of wireless tags exist simultaneously under management. it can.

  In the network management system, the agent further includes an attribute MIB database that stores an individual attribute MIB that manages attribute data of each managed object in association with the type of the managed object, and the manager includes a plurality of managed objects. The management MIB database further stores the management MIB for managing the statistical data of the object in association with the type of the management target, and the agent controls the reader / writer to control the type of the management target from the managed radio tag. Is acquired, the individual attribute MIB corresponding to the type is read from the attribute MIB database, the manager acquires the type of the management target from the agent, and the management MIB corresponding to the type is read from the management MIB database. The agent and the manager respectively read the attribute MIB database read out. The scan and management MIB database may manage management object using.

  In the network management system according to the first and second embodiments, the product tag, the quality retention period, and the price of the management target are recorded in the wireless tag, and the remaining number of days until the quality retention period for each product code A quality expiration date table in which price discount rates are recorded in association with each other is stored in either the manager or the agent, and the manager or the agent reads the product code read from the wireless tag by the reader / writer, the quality retention date, and Obtain the price, calculate the remaining days until the quality retention period, read the discount rate from the quality limit table based on the remaining days and the product code, and calculate the current price of the managed object using the discount rate and price Then, a control command for writing the calculated current price to the wireless tag of the management target may be issued. Thereby, the price change work of goods can be performed correctly and efficiently.

  The above network management system further includes an environmental sensor that measures the storage temperature of the management object and transmits the measurement result to the reader / writer or agent, and supports the storage temperature and price discount rate of the management object for each product code. The recorded environment table is stored in either the manager or the agent, and the manager or agent acquires the storage temperature of the management object from the environment sensor, and the environment table based on the environment and the product code. The discount rate is read out from the environment table, and the discount rate read out from the environment table is further used to calculate the current price of the management target, and a control command is issued to write the calculated current price to the management target radio tag. Good. As a result, the storage temperature of the product can be accurately and efficiently reflected on the price of the product.

  In the network management system according to the first and second embodiments, the wireless tag has information for identifying the product code of the managed object and a processing code for identifying the next assembly operation in the assembly process of the managed object. For each product code, a work table in which the part code of the part used in the assembly work of the management object is recorded in association with the processing code is stored in either the manager or the agent. Based on the product code and processing code read by the reader / writer from the wireless tag, the manager or agent reads the part code of the part to be used in the next assembly work from the work table, and the reader / writer assembles the management target object. Read the serial number of the part from the The manager or agent can identify the part code specified by the serial number of the part assembled for the managed object, and the part code read from the work table is sufficient. If they match, it is determined that the work has been completed, a processing code for specifying the next work content in the assembly process of the managed object is issued, and a control command for writing the processed code to the wireless tag of the managed object is issued. May be issued.

  In the network management system according to the first and second embodiments, the wireless tag is attached to the ticket and the commuter pass, and the agent individually controls the temperature of the plurality of regions in the railway vehicle, Connected to environmental sensors that measure the temperature of multiple areas individually, the reader / writer detects tickets or commuter passes that exist in each of the multiple areas, and the manager notifies the target temperature in the railway vehicle to the agent. Then, the agent calculates the temperature difference between the current temperature for each area acquired from the environmental sensor and the target temperature notified from the manager, and determines the output of the air conditioning control device more strongly in the area where the temperature difference is larger. As the number of tickets or commuter tickets in the area increases, the output of the air conditioning control device in the area is corrected more strongly. Not as the output may be a weak correction of the air-conditioning control unit of the area.

  In the network management system according to the first and second embodiments, the wireless tag is attached to a medicine container, records the temperature conditions for storing the medicine, and the agent controls the temperature in the medicine storage. The reader / writer is connected to the air conditioning control device to control and the environmental sensor to measure the temperature in the storage, and the reader / writer reads the temperature condition of the medicine from the wireless tag attached to the container of the medicine in the storage The agent notifies the agent, and the agent calculates the temperature difference between the temperature condition notified from the reader / writer and the current temperature in the storage acquired from the environmental sensor. The larger the temperature difference, the stronger the output of the air conditioning control device. In addition, if the temperature in the storage exceeds the temperature condition while the medicine is present in the storage, the manager is notified of this, The history of the temperature may be written to the wireless tag.

  The above summary of the invention does not enumerate all the necessary features of the present invention, and sub-combinations of these feature groups can also be the invention.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described through embodiments of the invention. However, the following embodiments do not limit the claimed invention, and all the combinations of features described in the embodiments are not included in the invention. It is not always essential for development means.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of the network management system 30. An object of the present embodiment is to provide a network management system capable of managing a plurality of types of wireless tags with a small number of managers without previously mounting control commands corresponding to the plurality of types of wireless tags on a reader / writer. The network management system 30 includes a plurality of sites 100, 101,... Having an RFID tag 48, a reader / writer 46, upper and lower agents 43 and 44, and a lower manager 40a, an IP network 90, a router 60, And an upper manager 40b. The network management system 30 is a network managed according to SNMP.

  The wireless tag 48 is fixed to the management object and records attribute information related to the management object. The attribute information recorded by the wireless tag 48 is, for example, the product code, manufacturer name, date of manufacture, etc. of the management object. When the wireless tag 48 wirelessly receives a specific control command, the wireless tag 48 reads / writes the attribute information of the management target according to the control command and outputs the read attribute information. The reader / writer 46 supplies operating power to a plurality of wireless tags 48 existing within a predetermined communication area. Then, the control command received from the upper side, that is, the upper and lower agents 43 and 44 is converted into a format corresponding to the wireless tag 48 and transmitted to the wireless tag 48. The lower level agent 44 and the reader / writer 46 communicate with each other in a method conforming to ISO IEC15961. On the other hand, the reader / writer 46 and the wireless tag 48 communicate with each other in accordance with ISO IEC 18000.

  When the scale of the network management system 30 is large, a plurality of agents are configured in a hierarchy including an upper agent 43 and a lower agent 44. The lower agent 44 is connected to the upper side of the plurality of reader / writers 46 and directly controls the reader / writer 46. The upper agent 43 is connected to a plurality of lower agents 44 and manages and controls the plurality of lower agents 44.

  The manager 40 is connected to the upper side of the upper agent 43. The manager 40 forms a hierarchical structure with the lower manager 40a and the upper manager 40b. The upper manager 40a executes various applications for managing the management target object and issues a logical command determined according to the operation for controlling the wireless tag 48. The logical command is determined in advance according to the operation in which the network management system 30 controls the wireless tag 48 regardless of the type of the wireless tag 48. When the upper agent 43 receives a logical command from the manager 40, the upper agent 43 converts the logical command into a control command corresponding to the type of the wireless tag 48 existing in the communication area of the reader / writer 46 connected to the lower layer. The converted control command is transmitted to the reader / writer 46 via the lower agent 44. The upper agent 43 controls the reader / writer 46 to communicate with the wireless tag 48 and transmits data acquired from the wireless tag 48 to the manager 40 via the LAN.

  The manager 40 processes the data of the wireless tag 48 collected from the host and the agents 43 and 44 according to the program. The lower manager 40 exists in each of the plurality of sites 100, 101..., And transmits data collected from each site to the upper manager 40 b via the IP network 90 and the router 60. The upper manager 40b communicates with the plurality of lower managers 40a and manages the entire network management system 30. When the network management system 30 executes Read / Write for the wireless tag 48, the manager 40 transmits a Set / Get packet to the upper agent 43 on the way. The upper agent 43 broadcasts or multicasts the received Set / Get packet to the plurality of lower agents 44. The lower agent 44 interprets the received Set / Get packet and broadcasts or multicasts a Read / Write command packet to the reader / writer 46 connected to the lower agent. As a result, each reader / writer 46 executes Read / Write on the wireless tag 48. In this case, the manager 40 and the upper / lower agents 43 and 44 are connected via a LAN and perform SNMP packet communication. On the other hand, the lower agent 44 and the reader / writer 46 communicate with each other using application commands conforming to ISO / IEC 15961.

  The manager 40 stores in advance the positional information of the upper / lower agents 43 and 44 and the reader / writer 46 connected to the lower side, and when acquiring data specific to each wireless tag 48, the wireless tag Information for specifying the reader / writer 46 and the upper / lower agents 43 and 44 for transferring data specific to 48 is further acquired, and the position of the wireless tag 48 is specified based on the information.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of the network management system 32. The network management system 32 is a second embodiment of the network management system. In the network management system 32, agents do not have a hierarchical structure. In the present embodiment, the same members as those in the embodiment described with reference to FIG.

  The agent / reader / writer 50 is configured by integrating the lower agent 44 and the reader / writer 46 in the embodiment of FIG. The agent reader / writer 50 may be connected to the manager 36 by wire, for example, like the agent reader / writer 50e, or via a wireless LAN access point 62a, like the agent reader / writers 50a to 50d. It may be connected to the manager 36. An agent 38 of a type separated from the reader / writer 46 is connected to the manager 36 via a wireless LAN access point 62d. The agent 38 may be connected to the manager 36 by wire.

  The manager 36 is connected to the upper side of the agent / reader / writer 50 and the agent 38. The manager 36 forms a hierarchical structure with the lower manager 36a and the upper manager 36b. The upper manager 36a executes various applications for managing the management target object and issues a logical command determined according to the operation for controlling the wireless tag 48. The logical command is determined in advance according to the operation of the network management system 32 controlling the wireless tag 48 regardless of the type of the wireless tag 48. When the lower manager 36a receives a logical command from the upper manager 36b, the lower manager 36a converts the logical command into a control command corresponding to the type of the wireless tag 48 existing in the communication area of the agent / reader / writer 50 or the reader / writer 46. The converted control command is transmitted to the agent / reader / writer 50 or the agent 38. The agent 38 converts the received control command into a format corresponding to the reader / writer 46 and transmits it. The agent / reader / writer 50 and the reader / writer 46 communicate with the wireless tag 48 and transmit data acquired from the wireless tag 48 to the manager 36 via the LAN.

  The manager 36 processes the data of the wireless tag 48 collected from the agent reader / writer 50 and the agent 38 according to the program. The lower manager 36a exists in each of the plurality of sites 102, 103,..., And transmits data collected from each site to the upper manager 36b via the IP network 90 and the router 60. The upper manager 36b communicates with the plurality of lower managers 36a and manages the entire network management system 32.

  The manager 36 stores in advance the position information of the agent / reader / writer 50, the agent 38, and the reader / writer 46 connected to the lower side, and when acquiring data specific to each wireless tag 48, Information for specifying the agent / reader / writer 50, the agent 38, and the reader / writer 46 that transfer data unique to the wireless tag 48 is further acquired, and the position of the wireless tag 48 is specified based on the information.

  In the network management systems 30 and 32 configured as described above, logical commands determined in accordance with the operation for controlling the wireless tag 48 are defined in the SNMP MIB structure. Hereinafter, a MIB that defines a logical command is referred to as a logical command MIB. On the other hand, control commands determined according to the type of the wireless tag 48 are also defined in the SNMP MIB structure. Hereinafter, an MIB that defines a control command is referred to as a control command MIB. In the network management systems 30 and 32, the control command MIB differs depending on the type of the wireless tag 48, but the logical command MIB is common regardless of the type of the wireless tag 48.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of the agent / reader / writer 50. The agent / reader / writer 50 has a configuration in which the lower agent 44 and the reader / writer 46 or the agent 38 and the reader / writer 46 are integrated. Thereby, size reduction and space saving can be achieved compared with the separated type. Moreover, it can be used as a handy reader / writer that is convenient to carry by using in combination with a wireless LAN. The agent / reader / writer 50 includes a reader / writer control unit 44 or the agent 38, a control unit 461, a transmission / reception unit 462, and an antenna 463. The transmission / reception unit 462 transmits operating power, a control command, write data, and the like to the wireless tag 48 via the antenna 463. The antenna 463 is determined according to the distance from the wireless tag 48 determined by the use of the network management system 30 and the number of wireless tags 48 that transmit and receive at a time.

  The wireless tag 48 includes a memory 483, an RF unit 481, a control unit 482, and an antenna 484. The control unit 482 reads and writes data from and to the memory 483 according to control commands received by the RF unit 481 and the antenna 484. Then, the data requested by the agent / reader / writer 50 is transmitted to the agent / reader / writer 50 via the RF unit 481 and the antenna 484. In the memory 483, attribute information of the management target is recorded.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration in which the reader / writer 46 is separated from the agent / reader / writer 50. The reader / writer 46 is connected to the lower agent 44 or the agent 38 and the reader / writer 46 via a serial line 64.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of an ASIC (application specific semiconductor) that realizes the functions of the upper and lower agents 43 and 44. The upper and lower agents 43 and 44 include a CPU 421, a RAM / ROM 422, a TCP / IP engine 420, a UART 427, an SPI / DIO_I / F 426, a MAC 424, and a PHY 425. The TCP / IP engine 420 includes a RAM 423.

  The CPU 421 controls the reader / writer 46 by serial communication via the UART 427. A signal from the environment sensor 66 is transmitted to the CPU 421 via the SPI / DIO_I / F 426. The CPU 421 processes a signal from the environment sensor 66 and transmits it to the manager. The TCP / IP engine 420 executes TCP / IP communication processing that is communication with the managers 36 and 40 at high speed, and transmits necessary information to the CPU 421. Also, the data read from the wireless tag 48 is converted to TCP / IP and transmitted to the managers 36, 40, etc. at high speed.

  The CPU 421 controls the reader / writer 46 autonomously or in accordance with the instructions of the managers 36 and 44, reads the data of the wireless tag 48, and transmits the read data to the managers 36 and 40. Alternatively, the data read from the wireless tag 48 is processed according to a predetermined process, and the processed data is written in the wireless tag 48. The RAM / ROM 422 mainly has a buffer function, temporarily stores data from the LAN and data from the reader / writer 46, and absorbs a time lag until the CPU 421 or the like can process the data.

  When the agent has a hierarchical structure with the upper agent 43 and the lower agent 44, the environment sensor 66 is connected to the SPI / DIO_I / F 426 of the lower agent 44 and is not connected to the SPI / DIO_I / F 426 of the upper agent 43. The reader / writer 46 is connected to the lower agent 44 and is not connected to the upper agent 43.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the upper and lower agents 43 and 44. The upper and lower agents 43 and 44 include an autonomous processing / passive processing unit 430, a communication processing unit 431, a TCP / IP engine unit 432, a MAC / PHY 433, a sensor processing unit 435, a sensor I / F 436, an SNMP processing unit 438, and program processing. A unit 440, a program storage unit 441, a buffer processing unit 442, a reader / writer control unit 444, and a reader / writer I / F 445. The SNMP processing unit 438 includes an MIB database 410 and a conversion table 412. The buffer processing unit 442 includes a RAM 443.

  The autonomous processing / passive processing unit 430 executes an autonomous processing mode that is an operation mode of the upper and lower agents 43 and 44 and a passive processing mode. The autonomous processing / passive processing unit 430 simultaneously manages six processing units, that is, a communication processing unit 431, a sensor processing unit 435, an SNMP processing unit 438, a program processing unit 440, a buffer processing unit 442, and a reader / writer control unit 444. ,Control. The communication processing unit 431 mainly communicates with the managers 36 and 40. The communication processing unit 431 directly controls the TCP / IP engine unit 432. A series of TCP / IP processes such as IP header processing, IP packet assembly / disassembly, TCP flow control, and session management are performed by the TCP / IP engine unit 432.

  When there is an input from the environment sensor 66, the sensor processing unit 435 interrupts the autonomous processing / passive processing unit 430 with the input. The environment sensor 66 measures, for example, the temperature, humidity, vibration, brightness, ultraviolet intensity, and the like, which are parameters indicating the environment of the management target object, and notifies the upper and lower agents 43 and 44 of them. The SNMP processing unit 438 defines a control command for operating the reader / writer 46, control parameters, statistical data of processing of the reader / writer 46, parameters for the environment sensor 66, and parameters for program processing in the MIB. The managers 36 and 40 control the respective modes by setting the MIB values of the agents 43 and 44 so as to correspond to various control parameters in the autonomous processing mode or the passive processing mode.

  The program processing unit 440 is used in both the autonomous processing mode and the passive processing mode, and stores, selects, and executes a processing program that the reader / writer 46 performs on the wireless tag 48. When the network management systems 30 and 32 are activated, the managers 36 and 40 transmit a plurality of processing programs performed by the reader / writer 46 to the wireless tag 48 to each agent. Each agent stores the received program in the program storage unit 441. When the reader / writer 46 reads the processing code recorded on the wireless tag 48, the program processing unit 440 receives the processing code from the autonomous processing / passive processing unit 430. The program processing unit 440 retrieves a program corresponding to the received processing code from the program storage unit 441 and executes it with the program processing unit 440. The program processing unit 440 outputs the execution result to the autonomous processing / passive processing unit 430.

  The buffer processing unit 442 temporarily stores in the RAM 443 packet data from the LAN and data read from the wireless tag 48 by the reader / writer 46. The RAM 443 holds the data until the program processing unit 440 or the communication processing unit 431 starts processing the data. As a result, the processing timings of the six processing units can be adjusted, and simultaneous parallel processing is possible. The reader / writer control unit 444 creates a control command for controlling the reader / writer 46, converts the reader / writer I / F into a format corresponding to the reader / writer 46, and transmits it. Further, the wireless tag 48 data acquired from the reader / writer 46 is transmitted to the autonomous processing / passive processing unit 430. When the agent has a hierarchical structure with the upper agent 43 and the lower agent 44, the upper agent 43 may not have the functions of the reader / writer control unit 444 and the reader / writer I / F. The lower agent 44 may not have the conversion table 412 and the MIB database 410.

  The upper agent 43 of the network management system 30 or the manager 36 of the network management system 32 stores the MIB database 410. The MIB database 410 records a plurality of types of control commands MIB for operating a plurality of types of wireless tags 48 in association with the types of the wireless tags 48. The upper agent 43 acquires the MIB database 410 from the manager 40 and stores it. The upper agent 43 or the manager 36 extracts a plurality of types of control commands for reading the types of the wireless tags 48 from the MIB database 410 and transmits them to the reader / writer 46. Thereafter, a control command MIB corresponding to the type of the reader / writer 46 received via the reader / writer 46 is extracted from the MIB database 410, and the conversion table 412 is created by associating the extracted control command MIB with the logical command MIB.

  When there are a plurality of types of wireless tags 48 received from the reader / writer 46, the upper agent 43 or the manager 36 extracts a plurality of types of control commands MIB corresponding to each of the plurality of types of wireless tags 48 from the MIB database 410. . Then, the conversion table 412 is created by associating each control command MIB with the logical command MIB.

  When the upper agent 43 or the manager 36 receives a logical command from the upper side, that is, the manager 40 for the upper agent 43 and the upper manager 36b for the lower manager 36a based on the conversion table 412, the logical command is received in the conversion table 412. The control command corresponding to the type of the wireless tag 48 is converted, and the converted control command is transmitted to the reader / writer 46.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the manager 36. When the agent does not have a hierarchical structure and has a relatively small network scale as in the network management system 32, the manager 36 has a functional configuration partially including the upper agent 43 described in FIG. That is, the functional configuration shown in FIG. 6 is configured by excluding the reader / writer control unit 444, the reader / writer I / F, the sensor processing unit 435, the reader / writer 436, the TCP / IP engine unit 432, and the like. Yes.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of the logical command MIB. The logical command MIB is stored in the upper agent 43 of the network management system 30 and the manager 36 of the network management system 32. The logical command MIB includes a logical command determined in advance according to an operation for controlling the wireless tag 48 regardless of the type of the wireless tag 48 and parameters for the logical command configured in a tree shape. The logical command MIB defines an MIB that controls the reader / writer 46 as, for example, ip-square (501) in the private MIB area in the SNMP MIB structure. An agent Processor 1 (502) is defined below the ip-square (501), and an MIB for sensor input / output control is further defined. In this MIB structure, tagMode (503) for setting the autonomous processing mode or passive processing mode, accessControl (505) for defining the Read / write area of RFID, and freq1 for defining the carrier frequency of the target wireless tag 48 are defined. 3 (507) and time1 (508) that defines the transmission time are defined.

  A command for controlling communication with the wireless tag 48 is defined by tagCommand (509). tagCommand (509) specifies select (510) for specifying the serial number of the wireless tag 48, Read (514) for specifying the block in the memory of the wireless tag 48, and specifying the block in the memory of the wireless tag 48 Then, it has an MIB structure corresponding to a command such as Write (518) for writing specific information and Halt (521) for stopping the operation of the specific wireless tag 48. These commands define execution (exec (511, 515, 519)) and parameters (param 1, 2,... (512, 513, 516, 517, 520)).

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of the control command MIB. The control command MIB includes a control command corresponding to the type of the wireless tag and parameters for the control command configured in a tree shape. The upper agent 43 or the manager 36 checks the type of the wireless tag 48 under management when the system is activated. Then, a control command MIB corresponding to the type of the wireless tag 48 is extracted from the MIB database 410, and each control command included in the extracted control command MIB is associated with each logical command in the logical command MIB held in advance. Thus, the conversion table 412 is created. Further, the upper agent 43 transmits an instruction packet that causes the lower agent 44 and the agent reader / writer 50 to create the control command MIB extracted from the MIB database 410.

  For example, the upper agent 43 or the manager 36 sequentially sends a plurality of types of commands to the reader / writer 46 in the management range to check the number and UID (manufacturer code + serial number) of the wireless tags 48 existing in the communication range by multicast. Send. The plurality of types of commands include, for example, an Inventry command corresponding to the ST Micro (registered trademark) wireless tag 48, a Select command corresponding to the Philips (registered trademark) wireless tag 48, and a Texas Instruments (registered trademark) wireless tag 48. SID_Poll command corresponding to. When the wireless tag 48 receives a command corresponding to its type from among the above commands, it returns a UID (64 bits) including the manufacturer code. The upper agent 43 checks through which reader / writer 46 the received UID is received, and sends a control command MIB corresponding to the type of the corresponding wireless tag 48 to the lower agent 44 that controls the reader / writer 46 that has passed through. Send. The lower agent 44 dynamically creates a control command MIB received from the upper agent 43. In the example of FIG. 9, control commands MIB corresponding to the wireless tags of company A and company B are created.

  The upper agent 43 creates the conversion table 412 by associating each control command corresponding to the type of the wireless tag 48 with each logical command held in advance. The conversion table 412 includes, for example, select (510) of the logical command shown in FIG. 8, select (540) which is a control command for the company A wireless tag shown in FIG. 9 and GetBlock (553) which is a control command for the company B wireless tag. ). Then, Read (514) of the logical command is associated with selectRead (544) which is a control command for the A company wireless tag and GetVersion (557) which is a control command for the B company wireless tag. Then, Write (518) of the logical command is associated with Write (548) which is a control command for the A company wireless tag and PutBlock (560) which is a control command for the B company wireless tag.

  As an example of the operation in which the network management system 30 manages the management target object, a system operation in a case where the inventory search software installed in the manager searches the number of items in stock will be described. The stock search software instructs the manager 40 to read the product code of the product to be searched. In response to this, the manager 40 designates the block number in which the product code is recorded in param1 (516) of Read (514), which is the logical command MIB for controlling the upper agent 43, and executes exec (515 equivalent to command issuance). ) Is set to 1. As a result, a SetRequest packet is transmitted from the manager 40 to the upper agent 43. Upon receiving the SetRequest packet, the upper agent 43 refers to Read (514), which is a logical command included in the packet, and SelectRead (544), which is a control command for the A company wireless tag with reference to the conversion table 412, and B company. It is converted into GetBlock (553), which is a wireless tag control command. Furthermore, the block number in the memory where the product code is recorded is set in param1 (546) corresponding to selectRead (544) and param1 (555) corresponding to GetBlock (553), and exec (equivalent to command issuance) is set. The values of 545 and 558) are set to 1. As a result, the reader / writer 46 or the agent / reader / writer 50 notifies the higher-order agent of the product code of the management target from each of the wireless tags 48 of the A company and the B company, and the agent records the response in which the product code is recorded. The packet is transmitted to the managers 36 and 40. The managers 36 and 40 take out product codes from packets returned from a plurality of agents, and deliver them to inventory search software. The inventory search software stores the received data in the database entry, and obtains the number of products by measuring the number of entries that match the product code of the product to be searched.

  10 and 11 show an example of MIB for managing product data. FIG. 10 shows an example of a management MIB for managing product statistical data, and FIG. 11 shows an example of an individual attribute MIB for managing product attribute data. The agent further includes an attribute MIB database and a management MIB database. The attribute MIB database stores individual attribute MIBs for managing attribute data of individual products in association with product types. The management MIB database stores management MIBs that manage statistical data of a plurality of products in association with product types. For example, in the network management system 30 in which agents have a hierarchical structure, management MIBs are associated with product types. The individual attribute MIB is stored in the lower agent 44 in association with the product type. On the other hand, in the network management system 32 in which agents do not have a hierarchical structure, the attribute MIB database is provided in the agent 38 or the agent reader / writer 50, and the management MIB database is provided in the manager 36.

  The management MIB and the individual attribute MIB are dynamically generated according to the product type of the product and the management purpose. For example, the lower agent 44 controls the reader / writer 46 to acquire information for specifying the product type from the managed wireless tag 48, and reads the individual attribute MIB corresponding to the product type from the attribute MIB database. Then, the upper agent 43 acquires the product type from the lower agent 44, and reads the management MIB corresponding to the product type from the management MIB database. Then, the upper agent 43 and the lower agent 44 manage products using the read attribute MIB database and management MIB database, respectively. In the network management system 32, the agent 38 or the agent reader / writer 50 acquires information for specifying the product type from the managed wireless tag 48, reads the individual attribute MIB corresponding to the type from the attribute MIB database, The manager 36 acquires the product type from the agent 38 or the agent reader / writer 50, and reads the management MIB corresponding to the product type from the management MIB database. The agent 38, the agent reader / writer 50, and the manager 36 manage products using the read attribute MIB database and management MIB database, respectively.

  Hereinafter, an example in which a management MIB and an attribute MIB are dynamically created when a food product is managed by the network management system 30 will be described with reference to FIGS. When power is turned on to the upper agent 43, the lower agent 44, and the reader / writer 46, the lower agent 44 controls the reader / writer 46 to read the data of the wireless tag 48 existing in the communication area. When the quality assurance period (for example, the expiration date) is included as the product attribute of the read data, the lower agent 44 creates an individual attribute MIB that manages the price according to the quality assurance period for each product. For example, tagdata (570) shown in FIG. 11 is an example of the individual attribute MIB. tagdata (579), for prod1 (580) identifying the wireless tag 48, UID (581) indicating the manufacturer, code (582) indicating the product code, expire (583) indicating the quality assurance period, Record price (584) or the like indicating the product price.

  The lower agent 44 notifies the upper agent 43 that the individual attribute MIB has been created. Upon receiving the notification, the upper agent 43 dynamically creates a management MIB suitable for managing attribute data managed by the lower agent 44. For example, when managing the number of products for each product code and quality guarantee deadline, the management MIB shown in tagdata (570) in FIG. The number of products num (574) is set as a parameter. In this case, prod1 (571) is a code for identifying a product group that matches the combination of the product code and the quality assurance period.

  12, 13, and 14 are diagrams illustrating examples of basic operations of the network management systems 30 and 32. In the following example, the lower agent 44 and the upper agent 43 in the network management system 30 of FIG. The agent 42 corresponds to the agent 38 in the example of the network management system 32 of FIG. First, when the system is activated, the manager 40 distributes a processing program for processing data read from the wireless tag 48 to the agent 42 (S101). A plurality of processing programs are distributed corresponding to the operation of controlling the wireless tag 48, and each processing program is specified by a processing code. The processing code is recorded in the wireless tag 48, and the reader / writer 46 first reads this processing code and notifies the agent 42 when reading the data of the wireless tag 48. The agent 42 reads out the processing program with the notified processing code, and controls the reader / writer 46 according to the processing program. The agent 42 stores the processing program distributed from the manager 40 (S102), and shifts to the default autonomous processing mode (S103).

  Here, for example, when a request for confirming the stock quantity of a specific product is issued from a higher-level application such as inventory management software (S104), the manager 40 sends a request for reading the product code of the wireless tag 48 to the target product. Are sent to the agent 42 together with the product code (S105). When the agent 42 receives a request from the manager 40 (S106), it shifts to the passive processing mode and proceeds to the flowchart of FIG. On the other hand, when there is no request from the manager 40, the agent 42 continues the autonomous mode, and sets the carrier frequency used for communication with the RFID to Type 1 (for example, 13.56 MHz) (S107). The agent 42 transmits operating power and a command for transmitting a Read command to the reader / writer 46 at the frequency of Type 1 (S108). In response to this, the reader / writer 46 transmits operating power and a Read command at the frequency of Type 1 to the wireless tag 48 (S109). The agent 42 counts the command transmission time based on the frequency of Type 1 (S110), and if there is no response from the wireless tag 48 within a certain time, the type of wireless tag 48 that uses the frequency of Type 1 does not exist within the communication range. Judgment is made (S111).

  When the agent 42 exceeds a predetermined timeout time (S112), the agent 42 changes the frequency (S113). If the frequency up to that point is Type 1, the frequency is changed to Type 2 (eg, 135 MHz) (S114), and the process returns to Step 108 to output a Read command. On the other hand, if the frequency so far is Type 2, the frequency is changed to Type 3 (eg, 2.45 GHz) (S115), and the process returns to Step 108 to output the Read command. If the frequency up to that point is Type 3, the process returns to Step 107.

In step 111, when the reader / writer 46 receives the response radio wave from the wireless tag 48, the process proceeds to step 208 in FIG. Hereinafter, a description will be given with reference to FIG. When the reader / writer 46 issues a read command and receives a response from the wireless tag 48, the number of memory blocks (32 bits per block) of the wireless tag 48 is returned in units of time width determined for each manufacturer. The wireless tag 48 returns one block of data in one time width unit. That is,
When a read command for 8 blocks is received, reply data is sent using 8 time widths. The agent 42 waits for a response from the wireless tag 48 until it receives data for the requested block (S208).

  Upon receiving the requested memory data from the wireless tag 48, the agent 42 converts the received data into an IP packet and transmits it to the manager 40 (S209). On the other hand, when the requested data for the memory is not received from the reader / writer 46 (S208: N), the process proceeds to step 201, and the process of reading the information of the wireless tag 48 again is executed (S202, S204, S205, S206). If there is a response from the wireless tag 48 (S207: Y), the process proceeds to step 208. At this stage, information read from the wireless tag 48 is, for example, an identification code of the wireless tag 48, a processing code for specifying the next process, a price of a product, a product code, a manufacturer code, and the like.

  On the other hand, in step 210, the manager 40 receives the data from the agent 42 and passes it to the upper application. The execution location of the program is determined according to the complexity of processing. If the program is easy to process, the agent 42 executes the program (S213). On the other hand, if the process is a complicated program, the program is executed using the data received by the manager 40 (S212). The agent 42 transmits the processing result of the program to the manager 40 (S214). The manager 40 receives the processing result (S215) and passes the processing result to the upper application (S216). The agent 42 acquires the processing result processed by the agent 42 or the manager 40 (S214, S218), and performs communication end processing for writing the processing result in the wireless tag 48 (S219).

  In the communication end process, the agent 42 sets the write content in the parameter of the Write command, controls the reader / writer 46, and sends a command to the wireless tag 48 (S220). When receiving the radio wave from the reader / writer 46, the wireless tag 48 writes to the address specified by the command parameter (S221). Here, the write data to the wireless tag 48 includes an identification code of the reader / writer 46, a processing count, a processing date and time, a calculation processing result, and the like. Further, the wireless tag 48 notifies the reader / writer 46 of the result of the writing process (S222). The reader / writer 46 notifies the agent 42 whether or not the writing process has been performed correctly (S223). The agent 42 confirms the notification from the reader / writer 46, and when the writing process to the wireless tag 48 is correctly performed (S224: Y), transmits an update process report to the manager 40 (S225). If it is determined in step 224 that the writing process has not been performed correctly (S224: N), the agent 42 returns to step 219 and executes the writing process again. Thereafter, the agent 42 monitors whether or not the wireless tag 48 has moved. If it is determined that the wireless tag 48 has moved, the process proceeds to step 407 in FIG. On the other hand, if the wireless tag 48 does not move, the process proceeds to step 501 in FIG.

  Next, the operation in the passive processing mode will be described with reference to FIG. In the passive processing mode, the agent 42 operates according to a logical command received from the manager 40. In step 106 of FIG. 12, when the agent 42 receives a request from the manager 40, the agent 42 changes the operation mode to the passive processing mode (S301). Hereinafter, the agent 42 processes the request of the manager 40. The agent 42 checks the memory address of the wireless tag 48 in which the product code to be searched is stored, and sets the address in the command parameter. Next, the reader / writer 46 is controlled to transmit the Read command in which the parameters are set and the operating power (S303).

  When receiving the command and power of the reader / writer 46 (S305), the wireless tag 48 transmits data recorded at a predetermined address (S306). When the reader / writer 46 receives a reply from the wireless tag 48 (S307), it transmits data to the agent 42 (303). In this embodiment, data read from the wireless tag 48 is, for example, an identification code of the wireless tag 48, a processing code indicating the next process, a product price, a product code, and a manufacturer code. The agent 42 receives the requested data at the designated address from the reader / writer 46 (S308: Y), and receives the requested data for the memory (S309), and sends the received data to the manager 40 as an IP packet ( S310). The manager 40 receives the data from the agent 42 and passes it to the upper application (S311). Here, for example, when checking the inventory quantity, the corresponding product code is searched from the data received on the application side, and the quantity is counted.

  If the program processing is simple, the agent 42 executes the program processing (S313, 314). On the other hand, when the processing of the program is complicated and the addition of the agent 42 is large, the manager 40 executes the program processing using the data acquired from the agent 42 (S312). The agent 42 transmits the processing result of the program to the manager 40 (S315). The manager 40 receives the processing result (S316), and passes the processing result to the upper application (S317). The agent 42 acquires the processing result processed by the agent 42 or the manager 40 (S315, S319), and performs communication end processing for writing the processing result in the wireless tag 48 (S320).

  In the communication end process, the agent 42 sets the write content in the parameter of the Write command, controls the reader / writer 46, and transmits a command to the wireless tag 48 (S321). When receiving the radio wave from the reader / writer 46, the wireless tag 48 writes to the address specified by the command parameter (S322). Here, the write data to the wireless tag 48 includes an identification code of the reader / writer 46, a processing count, a processing date and time, a calculation processing result, and the like. Further, the wireless tag 48 notifies the reader / writer 46 of the result of the writing process (S323). The reader / writer 46 notifies the agent 42 whether or not the writing process has been performed correctly (S324). The agent 42 confirms the notification from the reader / writer 46, and when the writing process to the wireless tag 48 is correctly performed (S325: Y), the agent 42 transmits an update process report to the manager 40 (S326). If it is determined in step 325 that the writing process has not been performed correctly (S325: N), the agent 42 returns to step 320 and executes the writing process again.

  Hereinafter, an example will be described in which the network management systems 30 and 32 change the price of a product in accordance with the quality guarantee period of the product in a retail store such as a supermarket. In this embodiment, the product tag, quality retention period, and price of the product are recorded in the wireless tag 48. On the other hand, the manager 40 has a quality time limit table 414. The quality expiration date table 414 records the number of remaining days until the quality retention expiration date and the price discount rate in association with each product code. FIG. 20 shows an example of the data format of the quality expiration date table 414.

  The manager 40 acquires the product code, quality retention period, and price read by the reader / writer 46 from the wireless tag 48, and calculates the remaining days until the quality retention period. Then, the discount rate is read from the quality expiration date table 414 based on the number of remaining days and the product code, and the current price of the product is calculated using the discount rate and the price. And the control command which writes the calculated present price in the wireless tag 48 of an applicable product is issued. In a large-scale network, the quality expiration date table 414 may be stored in the upper agent 43. In this case, the upper agent 43 calculates the current price of the merchandise according to the quality assurance deadline in the same procedure as the example of the manager 40 described above. And the control command which writes the calculated present price in the wireless tag 48 of an applicable product is issued.

  The network management systems 30 and 32 may change the price of the product according to the product storage environment. That is, the network management systems 30 and 32 further include an environment sensor 66 that measures the environment of the product and transmits the measurement result to the reader / writer 46 or the agent 42. The manager 40 further includes an environment table 416 that records the product environment and the price discount rate in association with each product code. FIG. 21 shows an example of the data format of the environment table 416.

  The manager 40 acquires the environment of the product from the environment sensor 66, reads the discount rate from the environment table 416 based on the environment and the product code, and further uses the discount rate read from the environment table 416 to obtain the current price of the product. Calculate The manager 40 issues a control command that causes the calculated current price to be written in the wireless tag 48 of the product. In a large-scale network, the environment table 416 may be stored in the upper agent 43. In this case, the upper agent 43 calculates the current price of the product according to the storage environment in the same procedure as the example of the manager 40 described above. And the control command which writes the calculated present price in the wireless tag 48 of an applicable product is issued.

  15, FIG. 16, and FIG. 17 show examples of specific system operations in the application. First, FIG. 15 shows a trap process when a product is taken out from a supermarket display shelf and when a product is placed, and an accompanying operation flow. FIG. 16 shows an operation flow for changing the product price in accordance with the remaining period until the quality guarantee expiration date of the product placed on the display shelf and the product storage environment. FIG. 17 is an operation flow when it is determined in the operation flow of FIG. 16 that the price of the product needs to be determined.

  First, in FIG. 15, the reader / writer 46 constantly transmits radio waves and commands in response to command control of the lower agent 44 (S401). When the wireless tag 48 enters the communication area of the reader / writer 46 (corresponding to an operation for placing a product), the wireless tag 48 receives the operating power and command transmitted by the reader / writer 46 (S405). Here, when the wireless tag 48 enters and leaves the communication area of the reader / writer 46, the magnetic field of the reader / writer 46 changes. Accordingly, the reader / writer 46 senses the movement of the wireless tag 48 by detecting a change in the magnetic field (S406).

  When the reader / writer 46 senses the movement of the wireless tag 48, the reader / writer 46 notifies the lower agent 44 (S406). The lower agent 44 notifies the upper agent 43 to that effect (S407), and sets a processing code for rereading in order to reread the information of the wireless tag 48 existing within the communication area of the managed reader / writer 46. (S410). Thereby, the lower agent 44 reads the data of the wireless tag 48 (S411, 412, 413, 414, 415, 416, 417). These reading operations are the same as steps 201 to 208 described in FIG. That is, the 48 data is stored in the manager 40, and the manager 40 transmits the data to the upper application, checks the difference with the upper application, specifies the increased / decreased wireless tag 48, and updates the inventory of the specified product. Note that the upper application orders a product when the product inventory falls below a certain threshold. In addition to this, the threshold value is changed to a large value when the reduction rate of the commodity inventory is larger than a predetermined value. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the product from being out of stock.

  Next, by operating according to the procedure of FIG. 16, the network management system 30 changes the product price in accordance with the remaining period until the quality assurance date of the product placed on the display shelf and the product storage environment. First, in step 227 of FIG. 13, when the agent 42 determines that the wireless tag 48 does not move (S227: N), the lower agent 44 includes the quality attribute of the product in the data read from the wireless tag 48. It is determined whether or not it is (S501). The quality attribute is, for example, a quality guarantee period for food. If the quality attribute is included, it is determined whether the individual attribute MIB for setting the parameter of the quality attribute is stored in the lower agent 44 (S502). If the quality attribute is not included in step 501, the process proceeds to step 209 in FIG. If it is determined in step 502 that the individual attribute MIB has already been stored, the process proceeds to step 511. In step 502, if the individual attribute MIB is not stored, the lower agent 44 dynamically creates the individual attribute MIB (S503). The individual attribute MIB sets, for example, a product code, a serial number of the wireless tag 48, a product quality guarantee period, and a product price.

  The lower agent 44 notifies the upper agent 43 that the individual attribute MIB has been created (S504). In response to the notification, the upper agent 43 requests the manager 40 to send a quality expiration date table 414 in which a discount rate or a discount price is associated with the product code and the number of days remaining until the quality assurance expiration date applied to the product. (S505). As described above, the quality expiration date table 414 records the number of days remaining until the quality retention date and the discount rate of the price in association with each product code. In response to the request from the upper agent 43, the manager 40 extracts a part corresponding to the product code from the quality expiration date table 414 recorded in the manager 40 and transmits it to the upper agent 43. When the upper agent 43 receives the quality due date table 414 (S508), the upper agent 43 uses the quality due date table 414 to obtain the current discount rate from the remaining days until the quality guarantee due date, and applies the discount rate to the price of the product. By doing so, a discount price is calculated (S509). The upper agent 43 sets the price parameter in the individual attribute MIB (see FIG. 11) of the lower agent 44 to the price calculated by the Set packet (S510). At the same time, the upper agent 43 dynamically creates a management MIB, and sets information regarding the number of products having the same product code and quality guarantee deadline in the management MIB shown in FIG. 10 (S512).

  Next, the lower agent 44 controls the environment sensor 66 to measure the storage environment of the product, for example, temperature and humidity (S511). If the measurement result exceeds the value that may affect the quality of the product, the subordinate agent 44 determines that price determination is necessary (S513: Y), and proceeds to step 523 in FIG. In step 514, the subordinate agent 44 identifies the wireless tag 48 whose product price has been changed using the serial number of the wireless tag 48, and the wireless tag 48 has the environment measurement result such as the processing date and time, temperature and humidity, and the like. Command control is performed to write the discount price (S514). In this process, the history of the storage environment of the product is accumulated in the individual attribute MIB of the wireless tag 48. Thereafter, the operations from step 514 to step 522 are the same as the operations from step 320 to step 327 described in FIG.

  Next, the operation flow of FIG. 17 will be described. FIG. 17 is an operation flow when it is determined in step 513 in FIG. 16 that price determination is necessary. First, the lower agent 44 notifies the upper agent 43 of the temperature and humidity data acquired in step 511 (S523). The upper agent 43 transmits the received temperature / humidity data to the manager 40 and requests price determination. When the manager 40 receives the price determination request, the manager 40 calculates the discount rate of the product by combining the history of the storage environment of the product and the number of remaining days until the quality assurance deadline. For example, if the discount rate resulting from the history of the product storage environment is 30% and the discount rate resulting from the number of days remaining until the quality assurance deadline is 20%, the final product discount rate is the discount rate of both parties. They may be added or multiplied, that is, calculated as 30% + 20% = 50%, or (100-30)% × (100-20)% = 56%.

  The manager 40 notifies the calculated discount result to the higher-level agent 43 (S527), and notifies the higher-level application of the discount price (S530). The upper agent 43 transmits a Set command for setting a discount price in the individual attribute MIB of the lower agent 44 (S528). The lower agent 44 sets a discount price in the individual attribute MIB according to the command from the upper agent 43 (S529). Then, the process returns to step 514 in FIG. This flow is completed. Note that the shopper can read the data of the wireless tag 48 updated by the above flow with the reader / writer 46 at any time. It is desirable that a display device for displaying data of the wireless tag 48 is connected to the reader / writer 46.

  According to the above operation flow, it is possible to accurately and efficiently change the price of a product whose product value is lowered depending on the number of days remaining until the quality expiration date and the storage environment, in particular, the price of food. Also for the shopper, by holding the product over the reader / writer 46, the attributes of the product, that is, the current price, the history of the storage environment, the quality guarantee period, and the like can be immediately confirmed.

  Next, another application example of the network management systems 30 and 32 will be described. The network management systems 30 and 32 of the present embodiment are intended to realize traceability of an assembled product assembled on a production line in a factory. The wireless tag 48 stores information such as a serial number that identifies the product code of the assembly product, and a processing code that identifies the next assembly operation in the assembly process of the assembly product. Stored in the manager 40 is a work table 418 that records, for each product code, a part code of a part used in the assembly work of the assembled product in association with the processing code. FIG. 22 shows an example of the data format of the work table 418.

  Based on the product code and processing code read by the reader / writer 46 from the wireless tag 48, the manager 40 reads the part code of the part used in the next assembly work from the work table 418. The reader / writer 46 reads the serial number of the part from the parts assembled to the assembled product, and writes the serial number in the wireless tag 48 of the assembled product. The manager 40 determines whether or not the part code specified by the serial number of the part assembled for the assembled product matches the part code read from the work table 418 without a shortage. Then, if they match without excess or deficiency, it is determined that the work has been completed, a processing code for specifying the next work content in the assembly process of the assembly product is issued, and the processing code is issued to the wireless tag 48 of the assembly product. Issue a control command to write.

  When the network management systems 30 and 32 are large-scale networks, the work table 418 may be stored in the upper agent 43. In this case, similar to the manager 40 described above, the upper agent 43 determines the work content of the next process based on the information read from the wireless tag 48 of the assembled product, and assembles information on the assembly parts according to the work content. Record in the product's wireless tag 48. When the component information corresponding to the work content is read without excess or deficiency, a processing code indicating the next work content is written in the wireless tag 48.

  18 and 19 show an example of specific system operation in the application. Assembly products such as precision machine parts, home appliances, and automobiles are composed of many parts. In this embodiment, when assembling a product, the serial number of the used part is written in the wireless tag of the product, and an environment in which the completed product is assembled can be checked at any time. It aims to realize traceability of assembled products.

  The lower agent 44 controls the reader / writer 46 to read the processing code for specifying the next work content from the product-side wireless tag 48 (S540 to S547). At this time, the lower agent 44 acquires the identification code and product code of the wireless tag 48 together with the processing code. In the process, the lower agent 44 reads the contents of the next assembly work from the work table 418 using the processing code as a search key. The work content read from the work table 418 includes a part code of a part to be assembled with a product, the number of parts, and a work procedure. The lower agent 44 displays the read work content on the display device provided in advance for the process (S548). Thereby, the assembly operator can easily confirm the next work content. The lower agent 44 transmits the data read from the wireless tag 48 to 40 (S549). The manager 40 passes the data received from the lower agent 44 to the upper application (S550).

  Next, the lower agent 44 reads the data of the wireless tag 48 of the parts assembled for the product (S551 to S558). From the wireless tag of the part, the identification code of the wireless tag, the processing code, the target product code indicating the target product, the serial number of the part, and the like. The lower agent 44 displays the read component information on the display device (S559), and transmits the component information to the manager 40 (S560). The manager 40 passes the component information received from the lower agent 44 to the upper application (S561). The host application records the serial number of the product in association with the serial number of the product. The part serial number specifies the date of manufacture of the part, material, manufacturer code, and drawing number. Next, the lower agent 44 writes the read component information in the wireless tag 48 of the product (S567 to S568). The component information written here includes a processing date and time indicating the date and time when the component was assembled, a serial number of the component, and the like.

  Next, a description will be given with reference to FIG. The lower agent 44 determines whether or not the reader / writer 46 has read all the part codes of the parts to be assembled in the process (S569). If it is determined that all the parts have been read, the lower agent 44 determines whether or not to process a processing program for processing the read part information (S570). When the lower agent 44 executes the processing program (S572), the lower agent 44 transmits the processing result to the manager 40 (S573, S574). When the processing of the processing program is complicated for the lower agent 44, the manager 40 receives the part data from the lower agent 44 and executes the processing program (S571). The manager 40 passes the processing result to the upper application. Further, the manager 40 transmits the processing result and the processing code indicating the work content in the next assembly process to the lower agent 44 (S576).

  When receiving the processing result of the component data and the processing code indicating the next work content (S577), the lower agent 44 writes the processing result and the processing code in the wireless tag 48 (S578 to 580). The information written in the wireless tag 48 includes a processing date and time indicating the date and time when the assembly is performed, a part code of all parts assembled in the process, and a processing code. The reader / writer 46 acquires the result of writing to the wireless tag 48 from the wireless tag 48 and transmits it to the lower agent 44. When the lower agent 44 determines that the writing process has been completed normally (S583), it transmits the processing result to the upper agent 43 (S584). The upper agent 43 transmits the received processing result to the manager 40 (S585). The manager 40 receives and records the processing result (S586). This flow is completed.

  According to the above operation flow, the following effects are brought about. For example, it is easy to guarantee product quality by not using harmful substances in parts. In addition, support for product failure and procurement of replacement parts are made more efficient. Moreover, the efficiency of the separation process at the time of product recycling and the improvement of the recycling rate are brought about.

  By the way, the data included in the management MIB and the individual MIB are dynamically determined by the upper agent 43 and the lower agent 44 according to the application applied to the manager 40 and the management object to which the wireless tag 48 is attached.

  FIG. 23 shows an example of a table in which management MIB data and individual MIB data are associated with applications. This table is stored in the MIB database 410. The MIB dynamically created in the lower agent 44 and the upper agent 43 includes data items related to attributes necessary for managing, monitoring, and controlling the management target. Such a data item is an item that needs to be notified by SNMP Trap, for example. The management MIB is management data unique to each product code, medicine code, product code, or part code, and is common to the same code. Individual MIB data is attribute data unique to each product. The upper agent 43 defines basic MIB data for each product code, medicine code, product code, or part code. The upper agent 43 defines individual MIB data in units of individual IDs of the wireless tag 48, for example, serial numbers.

  The wireless tag 48 records management MIB data and individual MIB data in advance as attribute data of the management object. The lower agent 44 obtains individual MIB data from the data of the wireless tag 48 and creates an individual MIB. The upper agent 43 acquires management MIB data from the data of the wireless tag 48 and creates management MIB data. In the upper agent 43, the manager 40 notifies the upper agent 43 of the type of application. The upper agent 43 determines the data item of the management MIB according to the notified application type. The lower agent 44 acquires the application type from the upper agent 43 and determines the data item of the individual MIB according to the application type. Hereinafter, examples of the management MIB and the individual MIB according to the application will be described.

  24 and 25 are examples of a management MIB and an individual MIB when the application is a retail merchandise management system. In this embodiment, the upper agent 43 records, for example, pcode (product code), mcode (manufacturer code), date (manufacturing date), num (number), and price (price) as data items of the management MIB. On the other hand, the lower agent 44 records, for example, serial No (serial number), pcode (product code), price (sale price), and expire (sale period) as individual MIB data items.

  FIGS. 26 and 27 are examples of a management MIB and an individual MIB when the application is a medicine management system for hospitals and doctors. In this embodiment, the upper agent 43 records, for example, code (drug code), date (delivery date), num (number), and price (price) as data items of the management MIB. On the other hand, the lower agent 44 records, for example, serialNo (serial number), code (medicine code), expire (expiration date), flagid (management target code), and temp (management temperature) as individual MIB data items.

  FIGS. 28 and 29 are examples of a management MIB and an individual MIB when the application is a product management system for fresh food. In this embodiment, the upper agent 43 records, for example, pcode (product code), mcode (manufacturer code), date (delivery date and time), price (list price), and num (number) as data items of the management MIB. On the other hand, the subordinate agent 44 has, for example, serialNo (serial number), pcode (product code), expire (expiration date), temp (management temperature), moist (management humidity), and price (discount price) as individual MIB data items. Record.

  30 and 31 are examples of a management MIB and an individual MIB when the application is a railway management information system. In this embodiment, the upper agent 43 records, for example, temp (set temperature), moist (set humidity), num (number of passengers), and date (date and time) as data items of the management MIB. On the other hand, the lower agent 44 records, for example, temp (management temperature), moist (management humidity), num (passenger number), and etra (special fee flag) as individual MIB data items.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment in which the network management system 30 is used as a railway management information system will be described. Traditionally, when conducting vehicle operation plans, capital investment plans, personnel plans, operating costs, etc. that are directly related to the profits of railway companies, automatic ticket gates are used for traffic surveys or statistical information on ticket vending machines and commuter pass sales. It is based on demand forecast that combines statistical information. The air conditioning control is manually adjusted by the conductor based on the degree of congestion in the vehicle and the temperature inside the vehicle. The collection of express and green car charges is largely based on the long experience of the conductor and the ticket check. Urban railways are less comfortable during rush hours.

  In view of this, the present embodiment aims to realize an efficient management by making it possible to formulate an operation plan, a facility / vehicle plan, a personnel plan, etc. based on the demand reflecting the actual number of passengers. The purpose is to detect and eliminate illegal boarding. In addition, it aims to prevent omissions such as limited express charges, green car charges, etc., and to improve the efficiency of ticket checking. It also aims to reduce power consumption through in-house air conditioning control according to the in-house boarding rate. Furthermore, it aims at the improvement of customer satisfaction by the effective use of the seat.

  FIGS. 32, 33, and 34 are examples of system configurations when the network management system 30 is used as a railway management information system, that is, when the network management system 30 grasps the trends of railway passengers. FIG. 32 shows a system configuration inside the vehicle, and FIG. 33 shows an X cross section of FIG. FIG. 34 shows an example in which the antenna 463 of the reader / writer 46 is installed on the platform 600. This embodiment provides a passenger information system that applies an RFID system based on an agent manager model to the iron industry, which is a public transportation system. The passenger information system applies a wireless tag 48 to a commuter pass and a ticket such as a ticket, and sets a reader / writer 46 and an antenna 463 to a ticket gate of a station, a platform, and a railway vehicle. And sitting on the passenger's railway use information, i.e. boarding station, boarding time, getting off station, getting off time, use vehicle code, transfer station, etc., and position information, e.g. current position, boarding position during vehicle organization, and seat 702 Collect information such as whether you are standing or standing. Based on the collected information, the manager 40 plans a vehicle operation plan, a capital investment plan, a vehicle air-conditioning control, collection of a special fee such as an express fee, notification of illegal boarding, an announcement for promoting efficient use of the seat, etc. To implement. This will improve the efficiency of railway management and increase customer satisfaction.

  A wireless tag 48 is embedded in the commuter pass and ticket. The agent 42 and the reader / writer 46 are installed in the vehicle seat 702, the net shelf 700, near the door, and the like, and are connected to the environmental sensor 66 arranged in the vehicle. For example, one subordinate agent 44 is arranged in each zone divided into 4 to 5 in the width direction of each vehicle, and is connected to a plurality of environmental sensors 66 installed in each zone. Further, the subordinate agent 44 controls the air conditioner in the vehicle via a serial line. One upper agent 43 is installed in each vehicle and bundles the lower agents 44. The agent 42 reads and counts the data of the wireless tag 48 embedded in the ticket or the IC card of the commuter pass while the train is running, that is, from when the station is departed to the next station. And the flow of a passenger is judged from the change of the total number of passengers. The collected data is recorded in the database of the lower manager 40a installed in the vehicle. Upon arrival at the station, the automatic door opens and passengers get on and off. At that time, the reader / writer 46 installed around the door reads the data of the wireless tag 48 and the IC card and transmits the data to the lower manager 40a. Count and record the number of people. These operations are repeated until the terminal station, and passenger information is recorded in the database. When the train arrives at the end point, data is sent to the management center all at once by high-speed wireless communication such as wireless LAN or FWA. The aggregated data is recorded in the center's DWH and can be analyzed at various points of view, and is used for management information systems such as train operation plans, vehicle deployment plans, etc., and personnel plans.

  The reader / writer 46 and the antenna 463 are installed inside the backrest of the seat of each vehicle. Then, the information on the ticket and commuter pass of the passenger sitting on the seat 702 is read / written. The antenna 463 is also installed in the frame of the net shelf 700, and reads / writes information on commuter passes of standing passengers. In this case, the reader / writer 46 may be installed in the side wall of the vehicle body. The antenna 463, the reader / writer 46, and the agent 42 are also installed around the automatic door of the vehicle and measure the number of passengers. Each agent 42 is connected to environmental sensors 66 installed at various locations in the vehicle. The environment sensor 66 notifies the agent 42 of temperature and humidity.

  The lower manager 40a is installed at a place where a train conductor is present, for example, at the end. The upper manager 40b is installed in a general management center that supervises and manages train operations. The connection between the lower manager 40a and the upper manager 40b usually uses a wireless LAN or FWA, and uses a cellular phone network or the like as necessary. The upper manager 40b receives operation data from the lower manager 40a of all the vehicles in operation, and records the data in the management server. Moreover, you may collect data, such as the passenger information of an individual vehicle, the temperature of a vehicle, humidity data, the operation state of an apparatus, from the high-order manager 40b as needed. Further, an antenna 463, a reader / writer 46, and an agent 42 are installed at the boarding positions of the ticket gates and platforms of the station, and communicate with the lower manager 40a installed at the station office by wire. Note that a display board for displaying information of the wireless tag 48 embedded in an IC card or a ticket may be provided in the net shelf 700 or the like in the railway car.

  The agent 42 is connected to a plurality of air conditioning control devices that individually control the temperatures of a plurality of areas in the vehicle and an environmental sensor 66 that individually measures the temperatures of the plurality of areas. The reader / writer 46 detects a ticket or a commuter pass existing in each of the plurality of areas. The lower manager 40a notifies the agent 42 of the target temperature in the vehicle. Then, the agent 42 calculates the temperature difference between the current temperature for each area acquired from the environment sensor 66 and the target temperature notified from the lower manager 40a, and the output of the air conditioning control device becomes stronger as the temperature difference is larger. decide. Further, the output of the air conditioning control device in the area is corrected more strongly as the number of tickets or commuter tickets in the area is larger, and the output of the air conditioning control device in the area is weakened as the number of tickets or commuter tickets in the area is smaller.

  Hereinafter, an operation example when the network management system 30 performs air conditioning control of the vehicle will be described. First, the lower agent 44 controls the reader / writer 46 to read the tag information of the passenger's commuter pass or ticket. Next, when the conductor inputs the temperature setting in the vehicle, the in-vehicle temperature / humidity target value is transmitted as an SNMP Set packet from the lower manager 40a to the upper agent 43, and the upper agent 43 performs management including the temperature setting value and the humidity setting value. Create a MIB. Further, an instruction to create an individual MIB is issued to the lower agent 44. When the lower agent 44 receives the SNMP Set packet from the upper agent 43, the lower agent 44 creates an individual MIB including the in-vehicle temperature / humidity target value.

  The lower agent 44 takes in the temperature and humidity values from the environmental sensor 66 connected to the lower agent 44 and controls the air conditioner in the vehicle so that the target values set in the individual MIBs are obtained. As a result, the air conditioning control can be performed finely in zone units divided into five according to the length direction of the vehicle. For example, the air conditioning in the vehicle can be made uniform by the difference in congestion between zones or by making the air conditioning near the door stronger than the middle.

  That is, according to the network management system 30 of the present embodiment, the number of passengers and attribute information are grasped for each train for each train in time series, and the number of passengers between stations is calculated from the train position information. Can measure the flow of passengers. As a result, it is possible to accurately estimate vehicle operation plans, facility / vehicle plans, personnel plans, operating expenses, etc. that determine revenues in railway management. Furthermore, the environment sensor 66 attached to a large number of agents 42 installed in the vehicle enables real-time in-vehicle temperature / humidity measurement, and autonomous air-conditioning control for each vehicle is possible. Instead of the conventional temperature setting for all vehicles at the same time by the conductor, optimal air conditioning control can be realized depending on the number of passengers and the degree of distribution of each vehicle, and power consumption can be reduced. In addition, the wireless tag 48 embedded in the express ticket or the green ticket allows the reader / writer 46 installed in the seat 702 in the vehicle to read information immediately, and the express charge for customers who do not have the express ticket or for the correct boarding section The location of customers who do not own the vehicle can be specified, and the conductor can collect charges efficiently. In this case, by installing the reader / writer 46 in the aisle, deck, or toilet, the location of an unauthorized customer can be immediately identified. In addition, by automatically writing a flag that has already been ticket-checked into the wireless tag 48 of a regular fee ticket from the remote, it is possible to check the ticket for passengers possessing the ticket. In addition, the reader / writer 46 installed in the seat 702 reads information on the destination of the passenger sitting on the seat 702 and the destination recorded on the ticket, and displays the information on the liquid crystal display panel of the net shelf 700, so that the standing passenger can It is possible to inform the user that the seat 702 is vacant. This greatly contributes to improving customer service.

  Next, an embodiment in which the network management system 30 is used in the medical field will be described. Conventionally, there is no system for detecting a mistake when a prescription entry error or a drug dispensing error occurs. In addition, patient misunderstandings and mistakes in the types and dosages of drugs to be administered may occur, which causes medical accidents. In addition, drugs, psychotropic drugs, powerful drugs, etc. are strictly controlled by the “Narcotics and Psychotropic Drugs Control Law” and “Pharmaceutical Law” and are stored in a safe and the delivery is entered in the payment slip. Are managed. However, there are limits to such management that relies on human resources.

  Therefore, the network management system 30 of the present embodiment aims to realize prevention of medical accidents. In addition, the chemicals are strictly controlled, and proper inventory management, that is, prevention of chemical shortages and excess inventory is realized.

  In order to solve the above problem, in the network management system 30, the wireless tag 48 is affixed to all medicines, medicines and infusions used in hospitals, and is also affixed to sachets dispensed by a pharmacist. Furthermore, it is also worn on a wristband that records medical records and personal information of patients. The reader / writer 46 and the antenna 463 are all installed where chemicals are used. For example, it is installed on medicine storage shelves in pharmacies in hospitals, medication storage shelves in nurse centers, desks in examination rooms, pharmacist dispensing desks, and the like. A handy reader / writer 46 is also used when a nurse dispenses a patient. The agent 42 is installed in a doctor's examination room, nurse center, pharmacy, office room, hospital room, and the like. The manager 40 is installed on a doctor's desktop PC, a pharmacy management PC, a nurse center PC, an office management PC, a hospital administrator PC, etc., and is also installed in the information management center. Biometric information (fingerprint, voiceprint, iris, etc.) that identifies the patient is recorded on the patient identification wireless tag 48, and the identity is confirmed by the reader / writer 46 at the time of medication.

  When the doctor creates a prescription, the prescription in which the name of the disease and symptoms and the medicine to be administered is recorded is transmitted to the management server. The management server checks the knowledge database for the correct combination of disease name, symptom, and medication, and displays it on the PC of the person in charge of censorship if the combination exceeds the allowable range, or if it is a trainee or a doctor with a previous history of mistakes. And do a double check. Here, doctor attribute data is recorded in the doctor's ID card and management database, and when the doctor to be checked inputs his / her name at the time of chart creation, individual MIBs that are special items in the chart and prescription are dynamically updated. When the data is recorded on the wireless tag 48 of the prescription, data is transmitted to the doctor to be reviewed by Trap. Thereby, the contents of the prescription are checked.

  When a pharmacist dispenses based on a prescription, a wireless tag 48 is affixed to a medicine to be dispensed (tablet, capsule, injection, etc.). The reader / writer 46 reads the name and quantity of the dispensed medicine and transmits it to the manager 40. The manager 40 checks the validity of the dispensing based on the knowledge database. When the dispensing exceeds the allowable range of the knowledge database, the content of the dispensing is transmitted to the terminal of the reviewer designated in advance by Trap. In the case of a medicine that is dispensed by measuring powder, liquid, or the like, the value of the measuring instrument is recorded in the wireless tag 48 of the medicine bag, and when read by the reader / writer 46, dispensing information is sent to the manager 40.

  When a nurse uses medicines that need to be managed (such as narcotics or powerful drugs) stored in a safe such as a nurse center, the reader / writer 46 uses the wireless tag 48 attached to the doctor's prescription and the nurse's ID card. And authenticate the person by biometric authentication using fingerprints. If the person can be authenticated, the safe opens and the medicine stored inside can be taken out. A reader / writer 46 and an antenna 463 are installed on a shelf inside the storage safe. Accordingly, the type and amount of the extracted medicine are notified to the manager 40 by Trap, and the user and usage amount data are recorded. For this reason, it is possible to prevent wrong usage, illegal use, and theft. When a nurse administers a medicine to a patient, the contents of the medical record or prescription wireless tag 48 and the contents of the medicine bag and the patient wireless tag 48 are read by the handy reader / writer 46, and the combination of the medicine bag and the patient Make sure it matches the prescription. In addition, the patient of the medical record is authenticated. For example, the fingerprint data is read by the fingerprint reader of the reader / writer 46 and checked with the bracelet data in which the fingerprint data is recorded to confirm that it matches the person.

  In the network management system 30, the wireless tag 48 is attached to a medicine container, and records the temperature conditions in which the medicine should be stored. The agent 42 is connected to an air-conditioning control device that controls the temperature in the chemical storage and an environmental sensor 66 that measures the temperature in the storage. The reader / writer 46 reads the temperature condition of the medicine from the wireless tag 48 attached to the medicine container existing in the storage and notifies the agent 42 of the temperature condition. The agent 42 calculates the temperature difference between the temperature condition notified from the reader / writer 46 and the current temperature in the storage acquired from the environment sensor 66, and the output of the air conditioning control device is controlled more strongly as the temperature difference is larger. . Further, when the temperature in the storage exceeds the temperature condition while the medicine is present in the storage, the manager 40 is notified of the fact and the history of the temperature may be written in the wireless tag 48. .

  The network management system 30 according to the present embodiment has the following effects. First, it is possible to prevent an artificial prescription preparation error and a drug formulation error by a doctor and a pharmacist. It is also possible to prevent medication errors by nurses. In addition, drugs, psychotropic drugs, powerful drugs, etc., which are strictly controlled under the Pharmaceutical Affairs Law, etc., can be strictly stored and efficiently managed. In addition, since the amount of medicine used and the user are instantly notified to the parties concerned, unauthorized use or theft can be prevented. In addition, the inventory of chemicals and drugs can be managed in real time, and appropriate inventory is realized. Therefore, it is possible to provide high-quality medical care.

  FIG. 35 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of the network management system 34. The network management system 34 is a third embodiment of the network management system. The topology configuration of the network management systems 30 and 32 shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 is a tree configuration with a top manager 40b as a vertex. In contrast, the network management system 34 is characterized by an ad hoc network configuration. The lower level agents 44 communicate with each other via a wireless LAN or a cellular phone network, and packets are transmitted in a bucket relay manner. In the example of this figure, the lower agent 44 is looped, but it is not necessary to loop. The network management system 34 having an ad hoc network configuration is particularly advantageous in an environment where the wireless tag 48 and the reader / writer 46 are installed everywhere.

  Hereinafter, an application example of the network management system 34 having an ad hoc network configuration will be described. The purpose of the network management system 34 of this embodiment is to manage position information and individual information of grazing livestock such as cattle, sheep, and horses. First, the agent / reader / writer 50 with wireless LAN mounted on the fence of the ranch is installed at fixed intervals, and several pillars are built inside the ranch, that is, inside the fence, at predetermined intervals. The agent reader / writer 50 is installed on this pillar.

  Next, wireless tags 48 with body temperature sensors are attached to all domestic animals to be managed, and agents 42 are further attached to some domestic animals. As a result, the fixed agent 42 installed on the fence or pillar and the mobile agent 42 attached to the livestock dynamically form an ad hoc network. The ad hoc network transmits the position and health status of the livestock to the manager 40. Moreover, the manager 40 can search the position of a specific livestock.

  According to such a network management system 34, the initial investment of facilities can be suppressed lower than the case where a PHS base station or a wireless LAN access point covers the entire range of the ranch in advance to form a tree structure network. Maintenance costs are also kept low. In addition, by forming a network with the agent 42 fixed to the fence or pillar and the agent 42 attached to the moving livestock, communication failure due to equipment failure of the agent 42 fixed to the fence or pillar can be avoided, and the fault Performance can be increased.

  As is clear from the above description, according to the network management systems 30 and 32 of the present embodiment, a plurality of types of wireless tags 48 can be provided without mounting control commands corresponding to the plurality of types of wireless tags 48 in the reader / writer 46 in advance. A large number of objects to be managed can be managed by the managers 36 and 40.

  As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated using embodiment, the technical scope of this invention is not limited to the range as described in the said embodiment. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications or improvements can be added to the above-described embodiment. It is apparent from the scope of the claims that the embodiments added with such changes or improvements are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a network management system 30. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a network management system 32. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an agent / reader / writer 50. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a reader / writer 46. FIG. It is a block diagram which shows an example of the hardware constitutions of ASIC (specific application semiconductor) which implement | achieves the function of the high-order and the low-order agents 43 and 44. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of an upper agent 43. FIG. of 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of a manager 36. FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the logical command MIB. It is a figure which shows an example of the control command MIB. It is a figure which shows an example of MIB which the high rank agent 43 has. It is a figure which shows an example of MIB which the low-order agent 44 has. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of basic operations of network management systems 30 and 32. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of basic operations of network management systems 30 and 32. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of basic operations of network management systems 30 and 32. FIG. 4 is an example of system operation when retailer product management is performed by the network management system 30. 6 is an example of system operation when retailer product management is performed by the network management system 30. 6 is an example of system operation when retailer product management is performed by the network management system 30. 6 is an example of a system operation when managing the assembly of products by the network management system 30. 6 is an example of a system operation when managing the assembly of products by the network management system 30. It is an example of the data format of the quality term table 414. An example of the data format of the environment table 416 is shown. An example of the data format of the work table 418 is shown. An example of the table which matched management MIB data and individual MIB data with an application is shown. It is an example of management MIB in case an application is a merchandise management system in retail. It is an example of individual MIB when an application is a merchandise management system in retail. It is an example of management MIB in case an application is a medicine management system for hospitals and doctors. It is an example of individual MIB when an application is a medicine management system for hospitals and doctors. It is an example of management MIB in case an application is a merchandise management system of fresh food. It is an example of individual MIB when an application is a merchandise management system of fresh food. It is an example of management MIB in case an application is a railway management information system. It is an example of individual MIB when an application is a railway management information system. It is an example of the system configuration inside the vehicle when the network management system 30 grasps the trends of railway passengers. FIG. 33 shows an X cross section of the vehicle of FIG. 32. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example in which an antenna 463 of a reader / writer 46 is installed on a platform 600. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a network management system 34. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

30 network management system 32 network management system 34 network management system 36 manager 38 agent 40 manager 43 upper agent 44 lower agent 46 reader / writer 48 wireless tag 50 reader / writer / agent 60 router 64 serial line 66 environmental sensor 90 IP network 410 MIB database 412 Conversion table 414 Quality expiration date table 416 Environment table 418 Work table

Claims (17)

When a specific control command is received wirelessly, the wireless tag that reads and writes information on the management target according to the control command and outputs the read information, when fixed to the management target
A reader / writer that supplies operating power to the plurality of wireless tags existing in a predetermined communication area, converts a control command received from a higher-order side into a format corresponding to the wireless tag, and transmits the converted wireless command to the wireless tag; ,
The logical command is connected to the upper side of the reader / writer, and when the logical command predetermined according to the operation of controlling the wireless tag is received regardless of the type of the wireless tag, the logical command is connected to the lower side. An agent that converts the control command according to the type of the wireless tag existing in the communication area of the reader / writer, and transmits the converted control command to the reader / writer,
A network management system, comprising: a manager connected to a higher level side of the agent, and a manager that transmits the logical command determined in advance according to the operation of controlling the wireless tag to the agent regardless of the type of the wireless tag The agent
Storing a MIB database in which each of a plurality of types of control commands MIB including a control command for operating the wireless tag is recorded in association with the type of the wireless tag;
A plurality of types of control commands for reading the type of the wireless tag are read from the MIB database, transmitted to the reader / writer, and then a control command MIB corresponding to the type of the wireless tag received from the reader / writer is read from the MIB database. The control table MIB is extracted, a conversion table is created by associating the extracted control command MIB with the logical command MIB including the logical command, and the logical command received from the manager is determined according to the type of the wireless tag based on the conversion table. The network management system according to claim 1, wherein the network management system converts the control command to a reader / writer and converts the control command.   The network management system according to claim 2, wherein the agent acquires the MIB database from the manager and stores the MIB database.   When there are a plurality of types of the wireless tags received from the reader / writer, the agent extracts a plurality of types of control commands MIB corresponding to the plurality of types of the wireless tags from the MIB database, respectively. The network management system according to claim 2, wherein the conversion table is created in association with a logical command MIB. The agent
An upper agent that stores the conversion table and converts the received logical command into the control command based on the conversion table when the logical command is received from the manager, and transmits the converted control command to a lower level. ,
A plurality of connected to one upper agent, a plurality of the reader / writers connected to each, a lower agent that receives the control command converted by the upper agent and transmits it to the plurality of reader / writers; The network management system according to claim 2. The agent
An attribute MIB database for storing individual attribute MIBs for managing the attribute data of the individual management objects in association with the types of the management objects;
A management MIB database that stores a management MIB that manages statistical data of the plurality of management objects in association with the type of the management object, and controls the reader / writer to control the RFID tag under management Information for identifying the type of the management object is read from, and the individual attribute MIB corresponding to the type is read from the attribute MIB database, and the management MIB corresponding to the type is read from the management MIB database, The network management system according to claim 1, wherein the management object is managed using the read attribute MIB database and the management MIB database. The manager stores in advance the position information of the agent and the reader / writer connected to the lower side,
When acquiring data unique to each of the wireless tags, further acquiring information identifying a reader / writer and an agent that transfers data unique to the wireless tag, and based on the information identifying the reader / writer and the agent The network management system according to claim 1, wherein a position of the wireless tag is specified. When a specific control command is received wirelessly, the wireless tag that reads and writes information on the management target according to the control command and outputs the read information, when fixed to the management target
A reader / writer that supplies operating power to the plurality of wireless tags existing in a predetermined communication area, converts a control command received from a higher-order side into a format corresponding to the wireless tag, and transmits the converted wireless command to the wireless tag; ,
When a logical command determined in advance according to the operation of controlling the wireless tag regardless of the type of the wireless tag is acquired from an upper application, the logical command is within the communication range of the reader / writer connected to the lower level. A manager that converts the control command according to the type of the existing wireless tag and transmits the converted control command to the lower side;
A network management system comprising: an agent connected between the reader / writer and the manager, receiving the control command from the manager, converting the control command into a format corresponding to the reader / writer, and transmitting it to the reader / writer . The manager
A MIB database in which each of a plurality of types of control commands MIB including a control command for operating the wireless tag is recorded in association with the type of the wireless tag;
A plurality of types of control commands for reading the type of the wireless tag are read from the MIB database, transmitted to the agent, and then the control command MIB corresponding to the type of the wireless tag received from the agent is extracted from the MIB database. The control command MIB is created by associating the extracted control command MIB with the logical command MIB including the logical command, and the extracted control command MIB is stored in the agent, and the logical command received from the upper application is 9. The network management system according to claim 8, wherein the network management system converts the control command corresponding to the control command MIB stored in the agent based on a conversion table and transmits the control command to the agent. The manager stores in advance the position information of the agent and the reader / writer connected to the lower side,
When acquiring data unique to each of the wireless tags, further acquiring information identifying a reader / writer and an agent that transfers data unique to the wireless tag, and based on the information identifying the reader / writer and the agent The network management system according to claim 8, wherein a position of the wireless tag is specified.   When there are a plurality of types of the wireless tag received from the agent, the manager extracts a plurality of types of control commands MIB corresponding to the plurality of types of the wireless tags from the MIB database, respectively, The network management system according to claim 9, wherein the conversion table is created in association with a command MIB. The agent
An attribute MIB database for storing individual attribute MIBs for managing the attribute data of the individual managed objects in association with the types of the managed objects;
The manager
A management MIB database for storing a management MIB for managing statistical data of a plurality of management objects in association with the types of the management objects;
The agent controls the reader / writer to acquire information specifying the type of the management target from the managed radio tag, and reads the individual attribute MIB corresponding to the type from the attribute MIB database. ,
The manager acquires the type of the management object from the agent, reads the management MIB corresponding to the type from the management MIB database,
The network management system according to claim 8, wherein the agent and the manager manage the management target object using the read attribute MIB database and the management MIB database, respectively. In the wireless tag, a product code, a quality retention period, and a price of the management object are recorded,
A quality time limit table that records the number of remaining days until the quality retention time limit and the discount rate of the price in association with each product code is stored in either the manager or the agent,
The manager or the agent acquires the product code read from the wireless tag by the reader / writer, the quality retention period, and the price, calculates the remaining days until the quality retention period, and calculates the remaining days and the The discount rate is read from the quality expiration date table based on the product code, the current price of the managed object is calculated using the discount rate and the price, and the calculated current price is used as the wireless tag of the managed object. 9. The network management system according to claim 1 or 8, wherein a control command to be written in is issued. An environmental sensor that measures the storage temperature of the management object and transmits a measurement result to the reader / writer or the agent;
An environmental table that records the storage temperature and price discount rate of the management object in association with each product code is stored in either the manager or the agent,
The manager or the agent acquires a storage temperature of the management object from the environmental sensor, reads the discount rate from the environment table based on the storage temperature and the product code, and reads the discount read from the environment table The network management system according to claim 13, further using a rate to calculate a current price of the management object, and to issue a control command for writing the calculated current price to the wireless tag of the management object. In the wireless tag, information for identifying a product code of the managed object and a processing code for identifying the next assembly operation in the assembly process of the managed object are recorded,
For each of the product codes, a work table that records a part code of a part used in the assembly work of the management target object in association with the processing code is stored in either the manager or the agent,
The manager or the agent reads the part code of a part used in the next assembly work from the work table based on the product code and the processing code read from the wireless tag by the reader / writer,
The reader / writer reads the serial number of the component from the component assembled with the management target, writes the read serial number of the component to the wireless tag of the management target,
The manager or the agent, when the part code specified by the serial number of the part assembled with respect to the management object matches the part code read from the work table without a shortage, The processing code for determining the next work content in the assembly process of the management object is issued, and a control command for writing the processing code to the wireless tag of the management object is issued. The network management system according to claim 1 or 8. The wireless tag is attached to a ticket and commuter pass,
The agent is connected to a plurality of air conditioning control devices that individually control the temperature of a plurality of regions in the railway vehicle, and an environmental sensor that individually measures the temperature of the plurality of regions,
The reader / writer detects the ticket or the commuter pass existing in each of the plurality of areas,
The manager notifies the agent of a target temperature in the railcar;
The agent calculates a temperature difference between the current temperature for each area acquired from the environmental sensor and the target temperature notified from the manager, and the area having the larger temperature difference strongly determines the output of the air conditioning control device. In addition, as the quantity of the ticket or the commuter pass in the area increases, the output of the air-conditioning control device in the area is strongly corrected, and as the quantity of the ticket or the commuter ticket in the area decreases, the area in the area increases. The network management system according to claim 1 or 8, wherein the output of the air conditioning control device is corrected to be weak. The wireless tag is attached to a chemical container, and records the temperature conditions for storing the chemical.
The agent is connected to an air conditioning control device that controls the temperature in the medicine storage and an environmental sensor that measures the temperature in the storage;
The reader / writer reads the temperature condition of the medicine from the wireless tag attached to the medicine container existing in the storage and notifies the agent,
The agent calculates a temperature difference between the temperature condition notified from the reader / writer and the current temperature in the storage acquired from the environmental sensor, and the greater the temperature difference, the more the output of the air conditioning control device. If the temperature in the storage exceeds the temperature condition while the medicine is present in the storage, the manager is notified of this and the history of the temperature is displayed. The network management system according to claim 1 or 8, wherein the network management system writes to the wireless tag.

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