JP2023036837A - wireless mesh network - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a wireless mesh network that does not require a hub-and-spoke structure including a hub device that is not functioning as a slave but functioning as a master for a configuration of a wireless mesh structure.

SOLUTION: A system includes a wireless mesh network that does not require a hub-and-spoke structure including a hub device that is not functioning as a slave but functioning as a master, for a configuration of a wireless mesh structure. The system includes wireless nodes that include a wireless communication unit including master/slave wireless data communication means, and form nodes that are neither master nodes that are not functioning as slaves but functioning as masters nor slave nodes that are not functioning as masters but functioning as slaves, and that include formation means for forming the wireless mesh structure formed only by the nodes.

SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

COPYRIGHT: (C)2023,JPO&INPIT

Description

The present invention relates to wireless mesh networks.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a communication system that configures a communication network that is formed ad-hoc and has good communication efficiency as a cluster communication system is known. For example, the technology described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-263349 includes a plurality of terminal devices in each cluster, each cluster includes one head node or gateway node as a terminal device of a higher node, and other are all lower nodes, the upper node of the cluster manages the ratio of the communication time length to the sense cycle in the cluster, and the lower node determines other appropriate By sensing the upper nodes of the cluster, comparing whether communication efficiency is improved, whether it is advantageous for power saving, etc. based on the ratio of the communication time length to the sense period set by the upper nodes, and other upper nodes are desirable In some cases, a technique for switching the upper node is disclosed.

JP 2010-263349 A

By the way, a conventional wireless mesh network divides wireless mesh structures (1a-1d) into master nodes that are not functioning as slaves but functioning as masters or slave nodes that are not functioning as masters but functioning as slaves. There was a problem that it can not be formed only with nodes that are not.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to define the wireless network structure (1a-1d) as a master node not functioning as a slave but functioning as a master or a slave node not functioning as a master but functioning as a slave. The object is to provide a system and method that can be formed only by nodes.

In order to solve the above problems, the system of the present invention comprises a wireless mesh network that does not require a hub-and-spoke structure comprising a hub device that does not function as a slave but functions as a master for configuring a wireless mesh structure. A system has a wireless communication unit including a master/slave wireless data communication means, but a master node that does not function as a slave but functions as a master, or a master node that does not function as a master but functions as a slave and a radio node having forming means for forming a radio network structure formed only by said nodes which are not slave nodes.

In accordance with the present invention, systems and methods are provided for wireless network structures (1a-1d) that are not acting as slaves but acting as master nodes or not acting as masters but acting as slaves. It can be formed only by nodes that are not slave nodes.

1 is a configuration diagram of a communication network system according to an embodiment; FIG.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below.

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a communication network system according to an embodiment. The communication network system includes a wireless USB host communication unit H that constructs a cluster (inside the dotted line in FIG. 1), at least one or more wireless USB device communication units D that participate in the cluster, and transmits and receives IP packets and wireless USB packets. A node comprising an information processing unit (not shown) and a switch unit S in which each port connects to the host communication unit H, device communication unit D, and information processing unit, receives IP packets and wireless USB packets, and transfers them to other ports. A device 1, a device communication unit D, a peripheral device 2 for transmitting and receiving wireless USB packets via the device communication unit D, and a device communication unit D, and an IP packet and a wireless USB and an IP terminal 3 for transmitting and receiving packets, a plurality of node devices 1 exist, at least one or more device communication units D can participate in one cluster, and the device communication units D of the node device 1 can participate in other clusters. By participating in the cluster constructed by the host communication unit H of the node device 1 and performing intra-cluster communication, a communication network in which the clusters are connected in a mesh structure is constructed, and device communication between the peripheral device 2 and the IP terminal 3 Part D participates in any one cluster and performs intra-cluster communication, and a plurality of node devices 1, peripheral devices 2 and IP terminals 3 coexist within the cluster.

Devices such as the node device 1, the peripheral device 2, and the IP terminal 3 are provided with a computer unit having a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, etc., and a common connection key. The host communication unit H and the device communication unit D of the node device 1 share a wireless transmission/reception unit. Since the switch unit S can transfer IP packets and wireless USB packets, the node device 1 and the IP terminal 3 can establish an IP connection. Also, any peripheral device 2 can be connected and used via a communication network. The switch unit S constitutes an L3 switch and includes two FDBs (Forwarding DataBases) for IP communication and wireless USB communication, etc., and compares IP packets and wireless USB packets received from each port with the respective FDBs. It will be forwarded to another port.

The node device 1 uses its own identification information or the like as cluster identification information, and transmits a beacon containing the cluster identification information and the cluster identification information of the cluster in which its own device communication unit D has participated from its own host communication unit H to other node devices. 1, and based on the beacon received from the other node device 1, the cluster to which the device communication part D of the self is to participate is selected and joined there, and the three node devices 1 including the self are linked. to control. Specifically, in the case of the node device 1a, based on the received beacon, one device communication unit D selects a cluster constructed by the node device 1b that satisfies the condition that three node devices 1 including itself form a chain. Conditions for selecting and joining and making three node devices 1a, 1b, and 1c including itself form a ring , and based on the received beacon, the other device communication unit D causes the three node devices 1 including itself to form a chain. selects and participates in the cluster constructed by the node device 1d corresponding to (1), and links the three node devices 1a, 1b, and 1d including itself. Here, if the node device 1 does not find an appropriate cluster in which three node devices 1 including itself form a chain, it finds an arbitrary cluster constructed by another node device 1 to which it is not connected. will participate there.

In the above embodiment, the communication network system constructs a cluster and is composed of each node device 1 that participates in other clusters, and each node device 1 participates in at least one or more other clusters to perform intra-cluster communication. is performed to construct a communication network including a portion in which clusters in which at least one or more node devices 1 participate are connected in a mesh pattern. In addition to building a cluster, constructing a communication network composed of each node device 1 participating in another cluster, the node device 1 participating in at least one or more of the other clusters and performing intra-cluster communication, The communication network may include a portion in which three node devices 1 are linked by two or three clusters. Also, in the node device 1, means for notifying the other node device 1 of the identification information of the cluster constructed by itself and other clusters in which the self has participated; It may be characterized by having means for itself to participate in another cluster so as to link the three node devices 1 . The node device 1, the peripheral device 2, and the IP terminal 3 each include a communication integrated circuit including a host communication unit H, a switch unit S, a device communication unit D, and the like. A configuration may be adopted in which the node device 1, the peripheral device 2, and the IP terminal 3 are realized by controlling the unit S, the device communication unit D, and the like. Also, the node device 1 may constitute a terminal of a communication network. Devices using wireless USB are used as the node device 1, the peripheral device 2, and the IP terminal 3. The configuration may be similar to that of the terminal device disclosed in JP-A-2010-263349.

According to the above embodiments, the communication network system can connect clusters in a mesh pattern.

In the above description, various control programs including the communication control program are stored in advance in the ROM, but the control programs may be recorded in a computer-readable storage medium. With such a configuration, when the computer reads the program from the storage medium and executes processing according to the read program, the same effects and effects as those of the devices of the above-described embodiments can be obtained.

Here, the storage medium includes semiconductor storage media such as RAM and ROM, magnetic storage media such as FD and HDD, optical reading storage media such as CD, DVD, and BD, and magnetic/optical storage media such as MO Any storage medium can be used as long as it is a magnetically readable storage medium and can be read by a computer unit regardless of the reading method, such as electronic, magnetic, or optical.

It is also possible to download the control program via a network system such as the Internet or LAN, install it, and execute it.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Node apparatus, 2... Peripheral apparatus, 3... IP terminal, H... Host communication part, D... Device communication part, S... Switch part

By the way, conventional wireless mesh networks divide wireless mesh structures (1a-1d) into master nodes acting as masters but not slaves or slave nodes acting as slaves but not masters. There was a problem that it can not be formed only with nodes that are not.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to define a wireless network structure (1a-1d) that is not a master node acting as a master but not a slave or a slave node acting as a slave but not a master. The object is to provide a system and method that can be formed only by nodes.

In order to solve the above problems, the system of the present invention does not use a hub-and-spoke structure communication route that uses a hub device that functions as a master but does not function as a slave for a wireless mesh network structure communication route. In a system that constitutes a wireless mesh network, master/slave wireless data that is not a master node that functions as a master but does not function as a slave or a slave node that functions as a slave but does not function as a master It is characterized by comprising a wireless node having a forming means for forming a wireless network structure formed only by the nodes, which is a node having a wireless communication section including communication means.

According to the present invention, systems and methods are provided for wireless networks (1a-1d) that are either master nodes acting as masters but not slaves or nodes acting as slaves but not masters. It can be formed only by nodes that are not slave nodes.

Claims (6)

A system characterized by: A wireless device constituting a wireless node used in the system according to claim 1. An integrated circuit comprising forming means for use in the system of claim 1. the processor,
A control program for functioning as forming means used in the system according to claim 1. A wireless device for transmitting beacons to or receiving beacons from a node for use in the system of claim 1. A method characterized by:

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