JP5155765B2 - Communications system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication system in which a plurality of load terminals are connected to a pair of transmission lines by a feed wiring.

  Conventionally, there is known a communication system in which a plurality of load terminals are connected by transmission lines, and control and monitoring of these load terminals are performed by one control terminal. An example of such a communication system is a control terminal. There is a lighting control system with a centralized monitoring panel. In the conventional lighting control system, each lighting device as a load terminal has address information, and the central monitoring panel individually controls or group-controls each lighting device based on the address information.

  In this case, it is necessary to set address information for each lighting device in advance by some means. For example, an operation of inputting an original number such as a manufacturing number into a DIP switch or a non-volatile memory is required in the manufacturing process of the lighting device. When address information is set as described above, it is difficult to control which original number is stored in which lighting fixture when constructing each lighting fixture. It is necessary to take measures such as writing on lighting equipment. As described above, in the method in which the address information is stored in advance, there is a problem in association and management between the installation position of each lighting fixture after construction and the address information.

As a technique for solving the above-described problem, for example, there is a technique disclosed in Patent Document 1. In this method, address information (group number) is not set in advance in each lighting fixture in the manufacturing process, but address information is set in each lighting fixture by a remote controller after construction.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-35875

  However, in the latter conventional example, although the problem of the former conventional example can be solved, it is necessary to individually set address information for each lighting fixture with a remote controller. For this reason, for example, if it is a large-scale system having hundreds of lighting fixtures, it is necessary to sequentially set hundreds of times, which is a heavy burden on the operator.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and communication capable of associating and managing a load terminal installation position and address information without performing an operation of setting address information for each load terminal. The purpose is to provide a system.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 connects a plurality of load terminals and a control terminal that controls each load terminal with a transmission line and connects each load terminal with a feed wiring from the control terminal as a starting point. In the communication system, the control terminal transmits to all the load terminals and confirms whether or not each load terminal is in a communicable state, and is transmitted to any load terminal and the subsequent load terminal and Each of the load terminals includes a first communication unit that transmits a block command that instructs to block the communication, and at least a first storage unit that stores unique address information assigned to each load terminal. A second communication that transmits / receives a signal to / from another load terminal or control terminal via the transmission line and returns its address information to the terminal that has transmitted the confirmation command when the confirmation command is received. Unit, at least a second storage unit that stores its own address information, and a communication path between the control terminal or the load terminal in the previous stage or a communication with the load terminal in the subsequent stage when the cutoff command is received A blocking unit that blocks at least one of the roads, and the control terminal sequentially transmits a blocking command to each load terminal and transmits a confirmation command to all load terminals before transmitting the next blocking command. Connection order information of each load terminal based on address information of each load terminal capable of communication in a state where an arbitrary load terminal obtained by the operation is interrupted by causing the first communication unit to repeat the operation a plurality of times. comprising a first control unit for executing connection order determination process of storing in the first storage unit, a load terminal, passing between when receiving the cutoff command to a predetermined time period preceding the control terminal or load terminal A second control unit that causes the blocking unit to block the path and transmits a confirmation command to all subsequent load terminals, and causes the second communication unit to transmit the address information of the load terminal that has returned to the control terminal. characterized by comprising.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the second control unit sequentially transmits a block command to each subsequent load terminal after transmitting the confirmation command and before transmitting the next block command. The operation of transmitting the confirmation command to all subsequent load terminals is repeated multiple times by the second communication unit, and the address of each load terminal capable of communication in a state where any load terminal obtained by the operation is blocked The connection order information of each load terminal based on the information is transmitted to the control terminal by the second communication unit.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the control terminal includes an amplitude measurement unit that measures the amplitude of a signal transmitted from each load terminal, and the first control unit is obtained by the amplitude measurement unit. The amplitude of the signal from each load terminal is compared, and the cut command is transmitted to the first communication unit to the load terminal having an intermediate value.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to third aspects of the invention, when the load terminal is newly connected to an existing load terminal, a notification command is sent to notify the control terminal that the connection has been established. The first control unit performs the connection order determination process again when receiving the notification command.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the fourth aspect of the invention, when the first control unit receives the notification command, the first control unit transmits a blocking command to the load terminal that has transmitted the notification command to execute a connection order determination process. It is characterized by.

The invention according to claim 6 is the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the load terminal is connected between the two transmission lines connected to the load terminal and the control terminal or load terminal in the preceding stage. A state monitoring unit for determining whether the transmission line is connected.

The invention according to claim 7 is the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 6 , wherein the control terminal is input with a drawing information input receiving unit that receives an input of drawing information in which an arrangement of each load terminal is drawn. And a display unit that displays drawing information as an image. The display unit is provided with a touch panel that is associated with each load terminal on the drawing and receives an operation input from the outside.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, since unique address information is stored in advance in each load terminal, there is no need to perform an operation for setting address information for each load terminal. Moreover, since the connection order of each load terminal can be known by executing the connection order determination process, the installation position of the load terminal and the address information can be associated and managed . In addition, since the load terminal to which the blocking command is transmitted as well as the control terminal performs the process of transmitting the confirmation command, the connection order determination process can be completed before the blocking command is transmitted to all the load terminals. Time can be shortened .

According to the invention of claim 2 , since the control terminal and the load terminal to which the cutoff command is transmitted execute the connection order determination process in parallel, the burden of the connection order determination process in the control terminal is reduced and the determination time is reduced. It can be shortened.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the connection order determination process can be executed in parallel between the load terminal estimated to be located in the middle of all the load terminals and the control terminal. The determination time can be shortened compared with the case where the process is executed.

According to the invention of claim 4 , even when a load terminal is newly added to an existing system, the connection order determination process can be easily executed.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, by transmitting a cutoff command to a newly added load terminal, it is possible to shorten the determination time without executing useless connection order determination processing.

According to the invention of claim 6 , it is not necessary to know which communication path the transmission line is connected to at the time of system construction, so that the workability can be improved.

According to invention of Claim 7 , even if it does not know the address information of the load terminal to operate, a load terminal can be operated by touching the load terminal arrange | positioned on drawing via a touch panel.

(Embodiment 1)
Hereinafter, a first embodiment of a communication system according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1A, a plurality (three in the figure) of load terminals 2 and a control terminal 1 that controls each load terminal 2 are connected by a transmission line L1 and the control terminal 1 As a starting point, each load terminal 2 is connected by feed wiring, and the connection order of each load terminal 2 is determined by executing a connection order determination process for determining the connection order of each load terminal 2 in the control terminal 1. There is a feature.

  As shown in FIG. 1B, the control terminal 1 individually controls the first communication unit 10 that transmits and receives signals to and from each load terminal 2 and each load terminal 2, or all loads. A first control unit 11 that gives a command for group control of the terminal 2 or a plurality of load terminals 2 to each load terminal 2 via the first communication unit 10 and a unique address assigned to each load terminal 2 A first storage unit 12 for storing information, a first power supply unit 13 connected to a pair of power supply lines L2 from an external power supply (not shown) to supply operating power to the control terminal 1, and a liquid crystal display The first display unit 14 configured to display the state of each load terminal 2 and the like, and the first input reception that receives an operation input from the outside and gives an instruction according to the input to the first control unit 11 Part 15.

  As shown in FIG. 1 (c), the load terminal 2 responds to a command from the control terminal 1 and the second communication unit 20 that transmits and receives signals between the control terminal 1 and the other load terminals 2. A load terminal connected to a second control unit 21 that controls its own state, a second storage unit 22 that stores unique address information assigned to itself, and a pair of power lines L2 from an external power source 2, a second power supply unit 23 that supplies operating power to the power source 2, a second display unit 24 that is configured by a liquid crystal display or the like and displays its own state, etc. And a second input receiving unit 25 for supplying the second control unit 21 with In addition, the second communication unit 20 is connected to a pair of transmission lines L1 including a transmission line L1 connected to the control terminal 1 or the load terminal 2 in the previous stage and a transmission line L1 connected to the load terminal 2 in the subsequent stage. The transmission line L1 connected to the control terminal 1 or the preceding load terminal 2 is provided with a first blocking unit 26 that blocks a communication path for a predetermined period when a blocking command described later is received. The address information of each load terminal 2 is input at the time of manufacturing the load terminal 2, for example.

  Here, transmission and reception of signals between the control terminal 1 and each load terminal 2 will be briefly described. The first control unit 11 transmits a command including destination address information, source address information, and command data to all load terminals 2 via the first communication unit 10. Each load terminal 2 receives the command transmitted from the control terminal 1 once, receives the command data when the address information of the destination matches the address information of its own, and ignores it when it does not match. The load terminal 2 that has received the command data executes control according to the command data and returns a notification to the control terminal 1 that it has been received. As a command to be transmitted, a control command for controlling each load terminal 2 individually or group control, and confirming whether or not it is communicable by being transmitted to all the load terminals 2 by multicast. Confirmation command, a blocking command for instructing an arbitrary load terminal 2 to block the communication path, and the like.

  In addition to individual control and group control of each load terminal 2, the first control unit 11 sequentially transmits a block command to each load terminal 2 and sends a confirmation command to all load terminals 2 before transmitting the next block command. Based on the address information of each load terminal 2 capable of communication in a state where an arbitrary load terminal 2 obtained by the operation is repeated by causing the first communication unit 10 to repeat the operation to be transmitted to the terminal 2 a plurality of times. Connection order determination processing for storing connection order information of each load terminal 2 in the first storage unit 12 can be executed.

  Hereinafter, the connection order determination process which is the gist of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. First, when the connection order determination process starts as shown in FIG. 3A, the control terminal 1 transmits a confirmation command to all the load terminals 2 (S1). The load terminal 2 that has received the confirmation command returns its own address information to the control terminal 1, thereby returning a notification indicating that communication is possible (connection notification) to the control terminal 1 (S2). The control terminal 1 that has received the reply from each load terminal 2 stores the address information of each load terminal 2 in the first storage unit 12 (S3). At this point, the control terminal 1 only knows the address information of each connected load terminal 2 and does not know in what order the load terminals 2 are connected.

  Next, the control terminal 1 transmits a cutoff command to an arbitrary load terminal 2 (S4). The load terminal 2 that has received the blocking command blocks the communication path with the subsequent load terminal 2 by the second blocking unit 27 for a predetermined period of time, and sends back to the control terminal 1 that the blocking command has been received. Receiving the reply, the control terminal 1 transmits confirmation commands to all the load terminals 2 again (S5). Here, since the confirmation command is not transmitted to the load terminal 2 disposed downstream of the load terminal 2 blocking the communication path, the load terminal 2 blocking the communication path and the load terminal Only the load terminal 2 arranged in the stage before 2 receives the confirmation command and returns a connection notification to the control terminal 1 (S6). The control terminal 1 that has received a reply from each load terminal 2 associates the address information of the load terminal 2 that has received the block command with the address information of the load terminal 2 that has been confirmed to be connected during the block period. Is stored in the storage unit 12 (S7). After that, when the blocking operation by the second blocking unit 27 is completed, the control terminal 1 transmits a blocking command to any other load terminal 2, and the above described until the blocking command is transmitted to all load terminals 2. The process is repeated (S8). By executing the above process, the control terminal 1 can grasp in what order the load terminals 2 are connected.

  Hereinafter, specific examples of the above processing will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the control terminal 1 is A (address information: 0010), and each load terminal 2 is in order from the side closer to the control terminal 1 B1 (address information: 0004), B2 (address information: 0001), B3 ( Address information: 0009). First, as shown in FIG. 2, a confirmation command is transmitted from A to all load terminals 2, and it is confirmed from the return result that B1 to B3 are connected. Next, A transmits a blocking command to B2, and transmits a confirmation command during the blocking period. At this time, since B3 is arranged in the subsequent stage of B2, there is a reply only from B1 and B2. Therefore, A associates the address information 0001 of B2 that has received the blocking command with the address information 0001 and 0004 of B1 and B2 that are confirmed to be connected during the blocking period, and stores them in the storage table of the first storage unit 12. To do. Hereinafter, the storage table shown in FIG. 3B is obtained by transmitting the cutoff command in the order of B1 and B3 and repeating the above processing. From this storage table, A determines that the connection order of the load terminals 2 is B1, B2, B3.

  As described above, since the unique address information is stored in advance during the manufacturing process of each load terminal 2, it is not necessary to set the address information for each load terminal 2. Moreover, since the connection order of each load terminal 2 can be known by executing the connection order determination process in the first control unit 11 of the control terminal 1, the correspondence between the installation position of the load terminal 2 and the address information, Management can be performed. For this reason, for example, it is not necessary to store which address information is assigned to which load terminal 2 when the address information is set for each load terminal 2 during the manufacturing process.

  By the way, in this embodiment, the blocking command and the confirmation command are alternately transmitted in the connection order determination process. However, any address information that identifies the load terminal 2 to be blocked by the confirmation command transmitted by multicast is different. The information may be included, that is, the confirmation command and the cutoff command may be transmitted to the first communication unit 10 at the same time. In this case, among the load terminals 2 that have received the command, the load terminal 2 having address information that matches the arbitrary address information shuts down the communication path with the subsequent load terminal 2 and returns a connection notification to the control terminal 1. To do. The other load terminal 2 returns the connection notification to the control terminal 1 without performing the blocking operation because the address information of the load terminal 2 does not match the arbitrary address information.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 4, when a blocking command for requesting to block B2 is transmitted simultaneously with the confirmation command, B2 that has received the command blocks the communication path with B3 in the subsequent stage for a predetermined period. Here, B1 to B3 each try to send a connection notification back to the control terminal 1, but since the communication path between B2 and B3 is blocked, only the reply from B1 and B2 is received by the control terminal 1. Is done.

  As described above, by sending the confirmation command and the blocking command at the same time, it is possible to simplify the program of the connection order determination process as compared to the case where the confirmation command and the blocking command are transmitted separately, and the communication Traffic can be suppressed.

  Further, the second communication unit 20 of each load terminal 2 is configured so as to return to the control terminal 1 with a period (random time) corresponding to a random number based on its own address information when receiving the confirmation command. It doesn't matter. In this case, for example, as shown in FIG. 5, B1 and B2 that have received the command send back a connection notification to the control terminal 1 with random times different from each other. Thus, the reply timing from each load terminal 2 to the confirmation command can be shifted from each other, so that the number of occurrences of communication congestion can be reduced.

  Further, the second communication unit 20 of each load terminal 2 may be configured to transmit its own address information to the control terminal 2 at a predetermined cycle without depending on the confirmation command. In this case, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, each of B1 to B3 transmits its own address information to the control terminal 1 at regular intervals, that is, the connection notification is transmitted from the control terminal 1 to the control terminal 1. It is not necessary to send a confirmation command to the load terminal 2, and the connection order determination processing program can be simplified.

  In addition, since the 1st interruption | blocking part 26 of each load terminal 2 interrupts | blocks a communication path with the load terminal 2 of a back | latter stage rather than itself, it can always receive the signal from the control terminal 1 arrange | positioned in the front | former stage side. It has become. Therefore, the first communication unit 10 of the control terminal 1 can transmit a return command instructing to return the communication path transmitted to an arbitrary load terminal 2 and blocked by the load terminal 2. The blocking unit 26 may be configured to return the blocked communication path when receiving the return command. In this case, it is possible to reliably return the blocked communication path by transmitting a return command from the control terminal 1.

(Embodiment 2)
Hereinafter, a communication system according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, since the basic configuration of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, common portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7A, instead of providing the first blocking unit 26 in the load terminal 2, a second blocking unit 27 that blocks the communication path for a predetermined period when a blocking command is received. It is provided on the transmission line L1 connected to the control terminal 1 or the load terminal 2 in the previous stage. When the second control unit 21 receives the cutoff command, the second cutoff unit 27 blocks the communication path with the control terminal 1 or the load terminal 2 in the preceding stage for a predetermined period, and all the loads in the subsequent stage A feature is that a confirmation command is transmitted to the terminal 2 and a process of causing the second communication unit 20 to transmit the address information of the load terminal 2 that has returned is executed to the control terminal 1.

  Hereinafter, specific examples of the above processing will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the control terminal 1 is A (address information: 0010), and each load terminal 2 is in order from the side closer to the control terminal 1 B1 (address information: 0004), B2 (address information: 0001), B3 ( Address information: 0009), B4 (address information: 0012), and B5 (address information: 0003).

  First, as shown in FIG. 7B, a confirmation command is transmitted from A to all the load terminals 2, and it is confirmed from the return result that B1 to B5 are connected. Next, A transmits a blocking command to B2, and B2 that receives the blocking command blocks the communication path with B1 for a predetermined period. During this blocking period, A and B2 each send a confirmation command to the subsequent load terminal 2. At this time, since the communication path between B1 and B2 is cut off, A sends a reply only from B1, and A confirms the connection during the cutoff period with the address information 0001 of B2 that received the cut command The address information 0004 of B1 is stored in the storage table of the first storage unit 12 in association with each other. On the other hand, since the subsequent stage of B2 is not blocked, B2 has replies from all of B3 to B5 connected to the subsequent stage, and B2 has its address information 0001 and B3 to B5 whose connection has been confirmed during the cutoff period. Connection information in which the address information 0009, 0012, and 0003 are associated with each other is stored in the second storage unit 22. When returning from the block, B2 notifies A that the block has returned from the block, and A that receives the notification requests connection information from B2. Upon receiving the request, B2 reads the connection information stored in the second storage unit 22 and returns it to A.

  Thereafter, by transmitting the cutoff command in the order of the remaining B1, B3, B4 and B5 and repeating the above processing, A determines that the connection order of the load terminals 2 is B1, B2, B3, B4 and B5. . However, since it is possible to determine that B1 and B2 are connected in order after A by the above processing when the blocking command is transmitted to B2, it is not necessary to transmit the blocking command to at least B1. As described above, not only the control terminal 1 but also the load terminal 2 to which the blocking command is transmitted performs the process of transmitting the confirmation command, so the connection order determination process is completed before the blocking command is transmitted to all the load terminals 2 And the determination time can be shortened.

  The load terminal 2 that has received the block command not only transmits the confirmation command to the subsequent load terminal 2 but also transmits the confirmation command and the block command alternately to the subsequent load terminal 2 to thereby control the control terminal 1. Instead of this, the connection order determination process may be executed. In other words, the second control unit 21 of the load terminal 2 that has received the block command transmits the block command to each subsequent load terminal 2 after transmitting the confirmation command, and confirms before transmitting the next block command. The second communication unit 20 repeats the operation of transmitting a command to all the load terminals 2 in the subsequent stage, and each load terminal 2 that can communicate in a state where any load terminal 2 obtained by the operation is blocked A process of causing the second communication unit 20 to transmit the connection order information of each load terminal 2 based on the address information to the control terminal 1 is executed.

  Hereinafter, a specific example of the connection order detection process will be described with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIG. 8, after transmitting a blocking command to B2, A determines that B1 is connected next to A by transmitting a confirmation command, and stores the connection information in the first storage unit 12. Stored in the storage table. On the other hand, B2 that has received the blocking command transmits a confirmation command to B3 to B5 in the subsequent stage and receives a reply of connection notification, and then sequentially transmits the blocking command to B3 to B5 and sends the next blocking command. By repeating the operation of transmitting confirmation commands to B3 to B5 before transmission, the connection order of B2 to B5 is determined instead of the control terminal 1, and the connection information is stored in the storage table of the second storage unit 22. (In the figure, only the operation when the cutoff command is transmitted to B4 is shown). When returning from the block, B2 notifies A that the block has returned from the block, and A that receives the notification requests connection information from B2. Upon receiving the request, B2 reads the connection information stored in the second storage unit 22 and returns it to A. Thus, A determines that the connection order of the load terminals 2 is B1, B2, B3, B4, and B5 by combining the connection information that it has with the connection information obtained from B2.

  As described above, since the control terminal 1 and the load terminal 2 to which the cutoff command is transmitted execute the connection order determination process in parallel, the burden on the connection order determination process in the control terminal 1 is reduced and the determination time is shortened. can do.

(Embodiment 3)
Hereinafter, a communication system according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, since the basic configuration of the present embodiment is the same as that of the second embodiment, common portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9A, the control terminal 1 is provided with an amplitude measuring unit 16 that measures the amplitude of a signal transmitted from each load terminal 2. Then, the first control unit 11 of the control terminal 1 compares the amplitude value of the signal from each load terminal 2 obtained by the amplitude measurement unit 16 and issues a blocking command to the load terminal 2 having an intermediate value. One communication unit 10 transmits the data.

  In general, the signal transmitted through the transmission line L1 is attenuated due to the influence of the electrical resistance of the transmission line L1 and the like as the distance from the transmission source increases. That is, it is possible to estimate how far each load terminal 2 is from the control terminal 1 by measuring and comparing the amplitude of the signal from each load terminal 2 with the amplitude measuring unit 16, and as a result, each load terminal 2 A rough connection order of 2 can be determined. Thus, since it can be estimated that the load terminal 2 having an intermediate amplitude value is located in the middle of all the load terminals 2, if a disconnection command is transmitted to the load terminal 2 to execute the connection order determination process, It is considered that the effect of shortening the determination time can be obtained as compared with the case where the other load terminals 2 execute the connection order determination process.

  Hereinafter, when a cutoff command is transmitted to B2 (amplitude value: 50) whose amplitude value is larger than the intermediate value (see FIG. 10), a cutoff command is transmitted to B3 (amplitude value: 20) where the amplitude value is an intermediate value. A specific example of the connection order determination process in comparison with the case (see FIG. 11) will be described. 10 and 11, the process of first transmitting confirmation commands to all the load terminals 2 and the process of requesting connection information to the load terminals 2 are omitted in both cases. Further, FIG. 9B shows a storage table in which the address information of each load terminal 2 is associated with the amplitude value.

  First, as shown in FIG. 10, when a blocking command is transmitted to B2, in A, a confirmation command is transmitted to confirm the connected load terminal 2, and a blocking command is transmitted to B1 to be connected. A process for confirming the load terminal 2 is executed. On the other hand, in B2, a process of transmitting a confirmation command to confirm the connected load terminal 2 and a process of sequentially transmitting a blocking command to B3 to B5 to confirm each of the connected load terminals 2 are executed. Is done. Here, if a period from when the confirmation command is transmitted until the connection notification is returned or a period until the connection notification is returned after the blocking command and the confirmation command are sequentially transmitted is defined as one sequence, A is 2 While the process is completed in the sequence, in B2, 4 sequences are required to complete the process. That is, four sequences are required to complete the connection order determination process.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 11, when a blocking command is transmitted to B3, in A, a confirmation command is transmitted to confirm the connected load terminal 2, and a blocking command is sequentially transmitted to B1 and B2. The process of confirming each of the connected load terminals 2 is executed. On the other hand, in B3, a process of transmitting a confirmation command to confirm the connected load terminal 2 and a process of sequentially transmitting a blocking command to B4 and B5 to confirm each of the connected load terminals 2 are executed. Is done. In this case, since it takes 3 sequences to complete the process in both A and B3, 3 sequences are required to complete the connection order determination process. Therefore, the determination time can be shortened in the latter case than in the former case.

  As described above, the load measuring terminal 16 can estimate the load terminal 2 located in the middle among all the load terminals 2, and the load terminal 2 and the control terminal 1 execute the connection order determination process in parallel. As a result, the determination time can be shortened as compared with the case where the processing is executed by the other load terminal 2 and the control terminal 1.

(Embodiment 4)
Hereinafter, a communication system according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, since the basic configuration of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, common portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted. In the present embodiment, when a new load terminal 2 is connected to an existing load terminal 2, a notification command for notifying the control terminal 1 that the newly connected load terminal 2 is connected is sent by the second communication unit 20. Send. The first control unit 11 of the control terminal 1 is characterized in that the connection order determination process is executed again when the notification command is received.

  Hereinafter, a specific example of the connection order determination process of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the control terminal 1 is A (address information: 0010), and each existing load terminal 2 is B1 (address information: 0004), B2 (address information: 0001), Assume that B3 (address information: 0009) and the newly added load terminal 2 are defined as B10 (address information: 0055). First, when B10 is newly added to the existing system as shown in FIG. 12, B10 transmits a notification command to the control terminal 1 by the second communication unit 20. Upon receiving the notification command, A sequentially transmits the cutoff command to B1, B2, B3, and B10, and executes the connection order determination process again. In the figure, a block command is first transmitted to B2 to start processing, and subsequent processing is not shown. Thus, even when the load terminal 2 is newly added to the existing system, the connection order determination process can be easily executed.

  By the way, in the above embodiment, when the notification command is received, the control terminal 1 transmits a blocking command to all the load terminals 2 and executes the connection order determination process again, but the load terminal 2 that has transmitted the notification command, that is, A configuration may be adopted in which a blocking command is transmitted only to the newly added load terminal 2 and the connection order determination process is executed again. Hereinafter, a specific example of the connection order determination process will be described with reference to the drawings. First, a storage table indicating that the load terminal 2 is connected in the order of B1, B2, and B3 is stored in the first storage unit 12 of A before B10 is newly added. In this state, when the cutoff command and the confirmation command are sequentially transmitted to the newly added B10, the address information 0004, 0001, 0055 of B1, B2, B10 is returned to A. That is, since the address information 0009 of B3 is not returned, it can be seen that the newly added B10 is arranged in the preceding stage of B3. For this reason, it is possible to determine that the load terminal 2 is connected in the order of B1, B2, B10, and B3 by adding new data obtained by the above process to the existing storage table. Thus, the determination time can be shortened compared to the case where the connection order determination process is executed again from the beginning.

(Embodiment 5)
Hereinafter, a communication system according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, since the basic configuration of the present embodiment is the same as that of the second embodiment, common portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted. As shown in FIG. 14, the present embodiment is characterized in that a state monitoring unit 28 is provided between the pair of transmission lines L1 connected to the load terminal 2 and the second control unit 21. .

  Each state monitoring unit 28 measures the amplitude of the voltage of the signal generated on each transmission line L1 when a signal such as a confirmation command is transmitted from the control terminal 1, and gives the measurement result to the second control unit 21. In the second control unit 21, these measurement results are compared, and the side with the larger amplitude is the transmission line L <b> 1 connected to the side close to the control terminal 1, that is, the control terminal 1 or the load terminal 2 in the previous stage. Is determined. Thus, the transmission line L1 is made to correspond to any one of the communication path connected to the control terminal 1 or the load terminal 2 in the previous stage and the communication path connected to the load terminal 2 in the subsequent stage when the system is constructed. Since it is not necessary to know whether it is connected, workability can be improved. Note that the measurement method is not necessarily limited to the above-described method. For example, the time from when a signal is transmitted from the control terminal 1 to when the signal voltage is generated is measured in each transmission line L1, and the signal voltage is first measured. It may be a method of determining that the generated side is the transmission line L1 connected between the control terminal 1 or the load terminal 2 in the previous stage.

(Embodiment 6)
Hereinafter, a communication system according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, since the basic configuration of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, common portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 15A and 15B, the drawing information input receiving unit 17 that receives input of drawing information in which the arrangement of each load terminal 2 is drawn, and the input drawing information are images. The first control unit 11 includes a first display unit 14 for displaying, and the first display unit 14 is provided with a touch panel that receives an operation input from the outside in association with each load terminal 2 on the drawing. It is characteristic that it was done.

  In the drawing information input receiving unit 17, for example, as shown in FIG. 15A, a plurality of load terminals 2 are connected to the control terminal 1 by a feed wiring, and five load terminals 2 are arranged in parallel in seven rows. When the set drawing information is input, the drawing information is displayed on the first display unit 14. The first display unit includes a display device such as a liquid crystal display and a touch panel facing the display device. The touch panel is made of a resistive film system in which, for example, two transparent resistive films are bonded together. When touched with a finger or a pen of the hand, the touch panel detects the coordinates of the touched point and gives the detection result to the first control unit 11.

  Hereinafter, the gist of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. First, as shown in FIG. 16A, drawing information is input to the drawing information input receiving unit 17 (S10). Next, the connection order of the load terminals 2 connected to the control terminal 1 is determined by executing any connection order determination process in each of the above-described embodiments (S11). Then, by collating the input drawing information with the connection order information obtained by the above processing, the coordinates of each load terminal 2 on the drawing are associated with the address information of the actual load terminal 2 (S12). Thus, when an arbitrary load terminal 2 is touched on the screen of the display device via the touch panel, coordinates corresponding to the load terminal 2 are detected, and the control terminal 1 has the load terminal 2 having address information corresponding to the coordinates. A control command is transmitted to control the load terminal 2 (S13).

  As described above, the load terminal 2 can be operated by touching the load terminal 2 arranged on the drawing via the touch panel without knowing the address information of the load terminal 2 to be operated. Thus, for example, as shown in FIG. 16 (b), when a plurality of load terminals 2 are arranged in a large room, the drawing information describing the arrangement is input to the drawing information input receiving unit 17. If it displays on the 1st display part 14, each load terminal 2 can be controlled on a screen.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a figure which shows Embodiment 1 of the communication system which concerns on this invention, (a) is a whole schematic diagram, (b) is a block diagram of a control terminal, (c) is a block diagram of a load terminal. It is a timing chart which shows the specific example of a connection order determination process same as the above. (A) is a flowchart of a connection order determination process same as the above, and (b) is a specific example of a storage table stored in the first storage unit same as the above. It is a timing chart which shows the specific example of a connection order determination process in the case of transmitting a confirmation command same as the above and a cutoff command simultaneously. It is a timing chart which shows the specific example of a connection order determination process at the time of changing the reply time of a confirmation command same as the above. It is a timing chart which shows the specific example of a connection order determination process in case a load terminal same as the above transmits address information spontaneously. It is a figure which shows Embodiment 2 of the communication system which concerns on this invention, (a) is a block diagram of a load terminal, (b) is a timing chart which shows the specific example of a connection order determination process. It is a timing chart which shows the specific example of the other connection order determination processing same as the above. It is a figure which shows Embodiment 3 of the communication system which concerns on this invention, (a) is a block diagram of a control terminal, (b) is a specific example of the storage table memorize | stored in a 1st memory | storage part. It is a timing chart which shows the specific example of a connection order determination process at the time of transmitting a cutting | disconnection command to a load terminal with the same large amplitude as the above. It is a timing chart which shows the specific example of a connection order determination process at the time of transmitting a cutoff command to a load terminal with the same amplitude as the above. It is a timing chart which shows the specific example of the connection order determination process of Embodiment 4 of the communication system which concerns on this invention. It is a timing chart which shows the specific example of the other connection order determination processing same as the above. It is a block diagram of the load terminal which shows Embodiment 5 of the communication system which concerns on this invention. It is a figure which shows Embodiment 6 of the communication system which concerns on this invention, (a) is the figure by which the specific example of arrangement | positioning of a load terminal was drawn, (b) is a block diagram of a control terminal. (A) is a flowchart same as the above, (b) is a figure which shows the specific example of a touch panel same as the above.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Control terminal 10 1st communication part 11 1st control part 12 1st memory | storage part 2 Load terminal 20 2nd communication part 22 2nd memory | storage part 26 1st interruption | blocking part L1 Transmission line

Claims (7)

In a communication system in which a plurality of load terminals and a control terminal that controls each load terminal are connected by a transmission line and each load terminal is connected by a transmission line starting from the control terminal, the control terminal transmits to all the load terminals A confirmation command for confirming whether or not each load terminal is in a communicable state, and a blocking command that is transmitted to an arbitrary load terminal and instructed to block communication with the subsequent load terminal. 1 communication unit and at least a first storage unit that stores unique address information assigned to each load terminal, and each load terminal communicates with other load terminals or control terminals via a transmission line. When receiving a confirmation command and receiving a confirmation command, the second communication unit returns its own address information to the terminal that transmitted the confirmation command, and stores at least its own address information A blocking unit that blocks at least one of the communication path between the second storage unit and the communication terminal with the control terminal or the load terminal in the preceding stage or the communication terminal with the load terminal in the subsequent stage when a blocking command is received. The control terminal sequentially transmits a blocking command to each load terminal and repeats an operation of transmitting a confirmation command to all the load terminals before transmitting the next blocking command to the first communication unit a plurality of times. Connection order determination for storing connection order information of each load terminal based on address information of each load terminal capable of communication in a state where an arbitrary load terminal obtained by the operation is blocked in the first storage unit A first control unit for executing processing ;
When the load terminal receives the block command, the load terminal blocks the communication path with the control terminal or load terminal in the preceding stage for a predetermined period, transmits a confirmation command to all the load terminals in the subsequent stage, and returns a reply. A communication system, comprising: a second control unit that causes the second communication unit to transmit the address information of the loaded terminal to the control terminal . The second control unit transmits the confirmation command to each subsequent load terminal after transmitting the confirmation command, and transmits the confirmation command to all the subsequent load terminals before transmitting the next interruption command. The connection order information of each load terminal based on the address information of each load terminal capable of communication in a state in which the arbitrary load terminal obtained by the operation is blocked is repeated. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the communication terminal causes the control terminal to transmit . The control terminal includes an amplitude measurement unit that measures the amplitude of a signal transmitted from each load terminal, and the first control unit compares the amplitude of the signal from each load terminal obtained by the amplitude measurement unit. communication system according to claim 1, characterized in that transmitted the cut-off command to the load terminal having an intermediate value to the first communication unit. When the load terminal is newly connected to an existing load terminal, the load terminal transmits a notification command for notifying the control terminal that the connection has been established, and the first control unit receives the notification command. The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the connection order determination process is executed again . 5. The communication system according to claim 4, wherein when the notification command is received, the first control unit transmits a blocking command to the load terminal that has transmitted the notification command and executes a connection order determination process . The load terminal includes a state monitoring unit that determines which of two transmission lines connected to the load terminal is a transmission line connected to a control terminal or a load terminal in the previous stage. The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 5 . The control terminal includes a drawing information input receiving unit that receives an input of drawing information in which an arrangement of each load terminal is drawn, and a display unit that displays an image of the input drawing information. communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 6 touch panel for accepting an operation input from the outside in association with each load terminal, characterized in that provided.

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