JP2005348083A - Data communication system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To allow easy formation of alliance where a wireless master unit and a newly-set wireless slave unit register mutual identity information, with no direct operation to the wireless master unit. <P>SOLUTION: A newly-set wireless slave unit transmits the identity information of its own to an existing wireless slave unit. The existing wireless slave unit transmits the identity information of a wireless master unit to the newly-set wireless slave unit. The newly-set wireless slave unit registers the information about wireless master unit that has been received, and transmits the identity information of its own to the wireless master unit according to that information. The wireless master unit registers the identity information of the newly-set wireless slave unit that has been received. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention performs data transmission between a wireless master device connected to a terminal network control device and a wireless slave device to which a terminal device such as a meter or a sensor is connected, and the center side device through a communication line from the terminal network control device The present invention relates to a data communication system that performs data communication.

  Conventionally, in a data communication system that transmits meter reading values of meters such as gas and water to a terminal network control device by wireless communication, a wireless master unit (hereinafter referred to as main) is connected to the terminal network control device, and a meter is connected. Wireless communication is performed with a plurality of wireless slaves (hereinafter referred to as sub).

  Here, in order for the main and each sub to perform wireless communication with each other, it is necessary for the main and each sub to register information such as an identification code of each other before installation. As a method of this framing, there is known a method of registering each other's information by exchanging data by wireless communication between the main and the sub by pressing dedicated switches (edge switches) provided in the main and sub almost simultaneously. ing.

  This technique requires that the worker be near both the main and sub. However, normally, once the main is installed, such as on a telephone pole, it is installed in a place where it cannot be easily touched thereafter. Therefore, in the conventional edge assembly method, once the main is installed, it is difficult to perform the edge assembly work when a new sub is added.

As a method of easily performing the assembling work, in Patent Document 1, the main acquires sub information from a host computer and performs wireless communication with the sub. When the sub information is included in the received information, the sub registers main information from the received information.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-307954

  In the framing work of the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, when a sub is newly established, information on the newly established sub must be input to perform wireless communication. That is, it is necessary to work directly on the main, and if the main is installed in a place where it is difficult to approach, it is still difficult to perform the assembling work.

  In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide a data communication system that can be easily assembled without performing a direct work on the main when the newly assembled sub is assembled.

  The present invention is a data communication system in which a main is connected to a terminal network control device that performs data communication with a center side device using a communication line, and a plurality of subs to which terminal devices are connected are provided. The new sub makes a registration request to the existing sub, the existing sub sends main information to the new sub, and the new sub registers the main information and based on the received information. Wireless communication is performed with the main, and its own information is transmitted. The main registers the received information of the newly installed sub.

  According to the above configuration, the newly installed sub can acquire main information from the existing sub, and can communicate with the main wirelessly based on this information. By receiving information from the newly established sub, the main can be associated with the newly established sub.

  The new sub transmits its own information to the existing sub, the existing sub wirelessly transmits the received information to the main, and the main registers the information of the new sub received from the existing sub. Based on this information, the main information is wirelessly transmitted to the newly installed sub, and the newly installed sub registers the received main information.

  According to the above configuration, the main can acquire the information of the newly installed sub through the already installed sub capable of wireless communication, and can wirelessly communicate with the newly installed sub based on this information. The newly established sub can receive information from the main to establish an association with the main.

  When there are multiple new subs, each new sub transmits its own information to the existing sub, the existing sub wirelessly transmits the information of the plurality of new subs, and the main Registers information on a plurality of newly established subs received from the sub, and wirelessly transmits main information to each of the plurality of newly established subs based on these information, and the plurality of newly established subs receive the received main information. To register.

  According to the above configuration, the main can acquire information on a plurality of new subs through the existing subs. Then, the main sends its own information to each new sub, so that a plurality of new subs can be combined with one at a time.

  When there are a plurality of new subs, each sub transmits its own information to the existing sub, the existing sub wirelessly transmits information of the plurality of new subs, and the main starts from the existing sub. The received new sub information is registered, and the main information is wirelessly transmitted all at once. The plurality of new sub registers the received main information.

  Even with the above configuration, the main can be assembled with a plurality of new subs at a time. In addition, since the main sends information to each newly installed sub at once, the communication time can be shortened compared to the case where the main is sent individually, and the efficiency of the assembling work can be improved.

  The existing sub is prohibited from registering the received main information. That is, the main information is also sent to the existing sub, but this is already registered. Therefore, since the received information may be ignored, registration should be prohibited.

  The newly installed sub and the existing sub are connected by wire to transmit / receive necessary information. Alternatively, the newly installed sub and the existing sub may be capable of wireless communication by turning on the registration switch. Since they can communicate with each other, it is possible to perform assembly after installing a new sub. When there are a plurality of newly installed subs, work can be facilitated by using wireless communication.

  According to the present invention, when the main is installed with the main that has already been installed, the new sub can be used with the existing sub that has already been assembled with the main. Work becomes easy.

  A data communication system of this embodiment is shown in FIG. This system is a wireless telemeter system that transmits meter reading data on the terminal side to the center side through a communication line. The center side comprising the host computer 1 and the center network control device 2 communicates with the terminal side via a telephone line 3. Connected as possible. The terminal side includes a terminal network control unit (T-NCU) 4 connected to the center side, a wireless master unit (main) 5 connected to the terminal network control unit 4, and a plurality of radios capable of wireless communication with the main 5 It is comprised from the subunit | mobile_unit (sub) 6,7, and terminal devices, such as the meter 8, are connected to sub-6,7.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the main 5 includes an antenna 10, a wireless unit 11 for performing wireless communication, a control unit configured by a CPU 12, a ROM 13, and a RAM 14 that controls the entire device, and a terminal network control device 4. A T-NCU interface 15 for performing communication, a nonvolatile memory 16 for storing information necessary for communication such as identification information, a display unit 17, and a battery 18 as a power source are provided. Sub 6 and 7, as with main 5, include antenna 10, radio unit 11, CPU 12, ROM 13, RAM 14, control unit, nonvolatile memory 16, display unit 17, battery 18, and connected meter 8, etc. A meter interface 19 for communicating with the terminal device is provided.

  There are two types of subs 6 and 7, that is, a sub 6 that has been edged with the main 5 and a sub 7 that is not edged with the main 5. The former is called the existing sub 6 and the latter is called the new sub 7. Further, the newly installed sub 7 is a sub to be assembled with the main 5 and includes not only the sub 7 installed in a new place but also the sub 7 in which the existing sub 6 is changed to a new model.

  The main 5 and sub 6 and 7 are provided with an edge group switch 20 and an edge group changeover switch 21 in order to perform edge grouping. By operating the edge switch 20, wireless communication is performed between the main 5 and the subs 6 and 7, or between the subs 6 and 7, and the identification information can be registered. This is a registration switch for performing the assembling operation. In the edge selector switch 21, the existing sub 6 is switched to mode 1, and the new sub 7 to be edged with the main 5 is switched to mode 2. With the edge selector switch 21, it is possible to switch whether or not it is desired to edge the main 5 in the sub 6 and 7.

  In order to perform communication between wireless devices, it is necessary to know a unique code (identification code) or the like provided to identify each other's communication partner. For this reason, the main 5 and the subs 6 and 7 acquire identification information such as identification codes of each other, and perform matching to register the identification information of the other party. Each control unit performs control so as to execute the edge assembly operation according to a predetermined procedure. The identification information is a code assigned individually in the network within one terminal network control device 4 or a device-specific code such as a serial number of the wireless device.

  In the situation where there is an existing sub 6, the assembling operation when the sub 7 is newly installed will be described with reference to FIG. Here, it is assumed that the identification code of the main 5 is “000000000001”, the identification code of the existing sub 6 is “000000000002”, and the identification code of the newly installed sub 7 is “000000000003”.

  First, the existing sub 6 edge switch 21 is set to mode 1, and the new sub 7 edge switch 21 is set to mode 2. Then, the existing edge switch 20 of the sub 6 and the edge switch 20 of the newly installed sub 7 are pressed almost simultaneously. Then, the existing sub 6 can be received, and the new sub 7 is activated and can transmit and receive.

  The new sub 7 transmits a registration request message including its own identification code to the existing sub 6. When the existing sub 6 receives this message, it is necessary for the new sub 7 based on the received identification code to be included in the new sub 7 including the main 5 identification code “000000000001” stored in the nonvolatile memory 16 as a reply message. Information is sent.

  The newly installed sub 7 can know information necessary for associating with the main 5 and registers this information in the nonvolatile memory 16. As a result, the newly installed sub 7 can start communication with the target main 5. Therefore, a message including information necessary for the matching such as the self identification code “000000000003” is transmitted to the main 5. When the main 5 is in the intermittent reception state and receives a message from the newly installed sub 7, the main 5 recognizes that the message is addressed to itself and registers the transmitted information of the sub 7 in the nonvolatile memory 16. Thereafter, the main 5 transmits a response message to the newly installed sub 7. Receiving this, the sub 7 displays on the display unit 17 that the correct identification information of the main 5 has been registered. By transmitting from the sub 7 in this manner, information necessary for wireless communication with each other can be acquired, and the main-sub association is completed.

  The other assembling operation will be described with reference to FIG. Since the existing sub 6 can communicate with the main 5, an edge is assembled through the existing sub 6. Similarly to the above, after setting the mode by the edge selector switch 21, the edge switch 20 of the existing sub 6 and the new sub 7 is pressed, and the new sub 7 sets its own identification code “000000000003”. Send to sub-6. The existing sub 6 starts communication with the main 5 after obtaining the identification code of the newly installed sub 7. That is, a message including the newly installed sub 7 identification code “000000000003” is transmitted to the main 5.

  The main 5 reads and registers the identification code of the newly installed sub 7 from the data of the received message. If the main 5 knows the information of the sub 7 and can communicate with the sub 7, the main 5 transmits a response message to the newly installed sub 7. The newly installed sub 7 reads out information necessary for the frame including the identification code “000000000001” of the main 5 from the received message from the main 5 and registers it in the nonvolatile memory 16. Thereafter, the sub 7 displays on the display unit 17 that the identification information of the main 5 has been registered. In this way, by sending the identification code of the newly installed sub 7 to the main 5 through the existing sub 6, mutual information can be exchanged between the main and the sub, and an assembly can be performed.

  When there are a plurality of new subs 7, all these subs 7 must be assembled. The assembling operation in this case will be described with reference to FIG. Similarly to the above, after the mode is set by the edge selector switch 21, the edge switch 20 of the existing sub 6 and one newly installed sub 7 is pressed. The new sub 7 transmits its own identification code “000000000003” to the existing sub 6.

  When the existing sub 6 receives a message from the newly installed sub 7, it transmits a response message and starts a timer. The existing sub 6 monitors whether there is any other transmission from the new sub 7 for a certain period of time. When there is another newly installed sub 7, the edge switch 20 is pressed within a certain time. Then, the newly installed sub 7 transmits information necessary for the frame including the identification code “000000000004” to the existing sub 6. The existing sub 6 receives information necessary for the frame including the identification code “000000000004” from the new sub 7 and transmits a response message. The existing sub 6 repeats communication until all the new subs 7 transmit the identification code.

  When the timer count ends and a certain time elapses, the existing sub 6 transmits information necessary for the matching including the acquired identification codes of the plurality of new subs 7 to the main 5. The main 5 reads out information necessary for the assembly of all the newly installed sub 7s from the data in the message received from the existing sub 6 and registers them in the nonvolatile memory 16.

  The main 5 communicates with a plurality of newly installed subs 7 in the same manner as described above. At this time, the main 5 sequentially communicates with a plurality of newly installed subs 7, and when the assembly with one newly installed sub 7 is completed, the main 5 communicates with the next newly installed sub 7. Repeat this for all new subs. Each newly installed sub 7 reads the information of the main 5 from the received telegram and registers it in the nonvolatile memory 16. As a result, it is possible to assemble a plurality of new subs 7 at a time.

  By the way, in the above method, since the main 5 receives information necessary for the edge of all the newly installed subs 7 from the existing sub 6 and then communicates with the newly installed sub 7 in order from the main 5, it is assembled at a time. When there are many subs 7, it takes a lot of time. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6, after the main 5 acquires information on a plurality of newly installed subs 7 from the existing subs 6, the main 5 performs broadcast communication to all the subs 6 and 7 that can communicate. All the newly installed subs 7 receive the telegrams from the main 5 almost simultaneously, read the main 5 information, and register them in the nonvolatile memory 16. At this time, the newly installed sub 7 does not transmit a response message to the main 5.

  In the broadcast communication, the existing sub 6 other than the newly installed sub 7 is also activated, and a message from the main 5 is received. Therefore, the received data is processed according to the mode set by the edge selector switch 21. That is, only the new sub 7 set to mode 2 registers the information of the main 5 in the nonvolatile memory 16, and the existing sub 7 set to mode 1 receives the message from the main 5. Even if it is received, the registration operation is prohibited. As a result, even if there are a plurality of newly installed subs 7, information can be transmitted all at once, so that the assembling work can be performed quickly.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, Of course, many corrections and changes can be added to the said embodiment within the scope of the present invention. The main and sub wireless communication systems are, for example, specific low power wireless, wireless LAN, Bluetooth, and the like, and an IP address, a MAC address, or the like is used as identification information according to each wireless system.

  The edge operation starts with the operation of the edge switch, but broadcasts from the newly established sub, communicates with the existing sub that responds, and acquires the main identification information, or identifies itself Information may be transmitted. In this way, it is not necessary to operate the edge switch at the same time, and the edge work becomes easier. In addition, communication between the newly installed sub and the existing sub is not limited to wireless communication, and may be directly connected by wire to transmit and receive information between the two.

Overall configuration diagram of the wireless telemeter system of the present invention Block diagram showing schematic configuration of wireless master unit and wireless slave unit Sequence diagram of framing operation by communication from a new wireless slave unit Sequence diagram of framing operation by communication from existing wireless slave unit Sequence diagram of edge operation when individually registering to multiple new wireless slave units Sequence diagram of the assembling operation when broadcasting to multiple new wireless slave units

Explanation of symbols

4 Terminal network control device 5 Wireless master device 6 Existing wireless slave device 7 New wireless slave device 20 Edge switch 21 Edge selector switch

Claims (6)

A data communication system in which a wireless master unit is connected to a terminal network control device that performs data communication with a center side device using a communication line, and a plurality of wireless slave units to which terminal devices are connected are provided. The newly established wireless slave device makes a registration request to the existing wireless slave device, the existing wireless slave device transmits the information of the wireless master device to the newly established wireless slave device, and the newly established wireless slave device Register the information of the wireless master unit, perform wireless communication to the wireless master unit based on the received information, and transmit the information of itself, the wireless master unit receives the information of the newly installed wireless slave unit A data communication system characterized by registering. A data communication system in which a wireless master unit is connected to a terminal network control device that performs data communication with a center side device using a communication line, and a plurality of wireless slave units to which terminal devices are connected are provided. The new wireless slave device transmits its own information to the existing wireless slave device, the existing wireless slave device wirelessly transmits the received information to the wireless master device, and the wireless master device is installed in the existing wireless slave device. Register the information of the new wireless slave device received from the wireless slave device, and wirelessly transmit the information of the wireless master device to the new wireless slave device based on this information, and the new wireless slave device receives the received wireless master device. A data communication system characterized by registering information on a machine. A data communication system in which a wireless master unit is connected to a terminal network control device that performs data communication with a center side device using a communication line, and a plurality of wireless slave units to which terminal devices are connected are provided. When there are a plurality of new wireless slave devices, each wireless slave device transmits its own information to the existing wireless slave device, and the existing wireless slave device transmits the information of the plurality of new wireless slave devices to the wireless Wirelessly transmit to the base unit, the wireless base unit registers the information of a plurality of new wireless slave units received from the existing wireless slave unit, and to each of the plurality of new wireless slave units based on these information A data communication system, wherein information of a wireless master device is wirelessly transmitted, and a plurality of newly installed wireless slave devices register the received information of the wireless master device. A data communication system in which a wireless master unit is connected to a terminal network control device that performs data communication with a center side device using a communication line, and a plurality of wireless slave units to which terminal devices are connected are provided. When there are a plurality of new wireless slave devices, each wireless slave device transmits its own information to the existing wireless slave device, and the existing wireless slave device transmits the information of the plurality of new wireless slave devices to the wireless The wireless master unit wirelessly transmits information to a plurality of newly installed wireless slave units received from the existing wireless slave unit, and transmits the information of the wireless master unit all at once. The wireless slave device registers the received information of the wireless master device. 5. The data communication system according to claim 4, wherein the existing wireless slave device is prohibited from registering the received information of the wireless slave device. The data communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the new wireless slave device and the existing wireless slave device can be wirelessly communicated by turning on a registration switch.

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