JP6254840B2 - Aggregation apparatus, distribution method, distribution program, and network system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication system in which a plurality of communication devices are connected by a wireless network.

  In recent years, a wireless communication terminal has been installed at each power consumer, and these are connected so as to be able to communicate with a collection server owned by the power company, and automatic meter reading is performed to periodically collect power meter reading data at each power consumer The system is being realized. In constructing such an automatic meter reading system, application of a so-called multi-hop wireless network system in which data is sequentially transferred through a wireless communication terminal (node) is being studied.

  For example, a wireless data collection system has been proposed in which a tree-type network is configured with wireless communication terminals as nodes, meter-reading data is collected and integrated into a higher-level wireless communication device, and further transferred to the higher-level side ( Patent Document 1).

  In such a wireless data collection system, if the wireless communication terminal firmware needs to be rewritten due to changes in the communication method or business requirements, etc., workers should go to the site and install the wireless communication terminal firmware one by one. Alternatively, it can be handled by exchanging the substrate or the device itself. Such work is difficult because the wireless communication terminal (electric meter) is installed in a high place or installed in a gap with a neighbor. It takes a lot of work to finish the work. In addition, there are multiple suppliers (manufacturers) of electric meters, and the model numbers (functions) differ depending on the delivery time, and the management of data on which firmware should be installed in which home meter is complicated. .

  Therefore, even when a large number of wireless communication terminals are installed, the firmware can be transferred to each wireless communication terminal one by one without restricting the installation location, and the traffic can be suppressed and reliable regardless of the communication status. Has been proposed (see Patent Document 2). As shown in FIG. 12, the communication system divides the firmware program 10 in the server device 1 into blocks (rectangles in the firmware program 10) having an appropriate data amount based on the line occupation time and the line rate. Serial numbers “1” to “24” are assigned. And the server apparatus 1 describes each radio | wireless communication terminal ("terminal station") via the gateway (It represents with the ellipse in which "GW-1" and "GW-2" were described.) Connected with the network 2. In the predetermined time zone, the data is sequentially transmitted one block at a time. The wireless communication terminal that has received the block stores the received block in a memory and transmits the block to another wireless communication terminal, whereby the block is transmitted to all the wireless communication terminals in the wireless service area. The wireless communication terminal combines the received blocks to generate the firmware program 11 and updates the firmware of the own device. At this time, if there is a missing block number (represented by a broken-line rectangle) among the received blocks, the wireless communication terminal makes a re-transmission request to the server device 1 to receive all blocks. It is possible to update the firmware. Further, the server apparatus 1 sequentially transmits firmware of different manufacturers, and the wireless communication terminal stores only the firmware for its own apparatus in the memory among the received blocks, so that the wireless communication terminals of a plurality of manufacturers can Even if they are mixed, the firmware for each device can be updated.

JP 2000-187793 A JP 2009-188930 A

  However, the size of the firmware program itself is not small, and it takes a certain amount of time to complete the update of firmware of a plurality of manufacturers. Also, the time required to complete the firmware update for all wireless communication terminals due to the increase in the number of types of firmware to be transmitted due to the adoption of new manufacturer models, etc., and the increase in the size of the firmware itself due to the addition of functions, etc. Tend to be longer.

  Since the firmware update includes a case where a malfunction of the firmware is corrected, it is desirable that the time for updating the firmware is as short as possible so that the malfunction does not become longer.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to quickly distribute a program to a wireless communication terminal in a wireless network.

An aggregation device according to an aspect of the present invention includes a plurality of aggregation devices and a plurality of communication devices, and each aggregation device has a function of transmitting a program to each communication device, and is connected by wireless communication. A block transmission unit that is the aggregation device of a network system and that sequentially transmits a program divided into a plurality of blocks used by the plurality of communication devices, one block at a time, to the communication devices within a radio wave reachable range at a predetermined period If, when the program said with the aggregation device other aggregation device transmits the same der is, and, a radio range of the radio wave arrival range of the aggregation device other aggregation devices you partially overlap, the block block transmission means transmits to the communication device in said portion is different from the block the other aggregation device transmits to the communication device in said portion blocks And a controlling means for controlling such that.

The distribution method according to another aspect of the present invention includes a plurality of aggregation devices and a plurality of communication devices, and each aggregation device has a function of transmitting a program to each communication device, and is connected by wireless communication. A distribution method used in the aggregation device of a wireless network system to be used, wherein a program divided into a plurality of blocks used by the plurality of communication devices is sequentially directed to the communication devices within a radio wave reach one block at a time. and block transmission step of transmitting, program the with the aggregation device other aggregation device transmits the Ri same der, and, overlapping the coverage area of the radio wave arrival range of the aggregation device other aggregation device part If you that, blocks the block transmission step transmits to the communication device in said portion is to send the another aggregation device to the communication device in said portion And a controlling step of controlling so as to block different from the block.

The distribution program according to another aspect of the present invention includes a plurality of aggregation devices and a plurality of communication devices, and each aggregation device has a function of transmitting a program to each communication device, and is connected by wireless communication. A distribution program used in the aggregation device of the wireless network system to be divided into a plurality of blocks used by the plurality of communication devices, one block at a time, toward the communication device within the radio wave reach and a block transmitting unit that transmits, program the with the aggregation device other aggregation device transmits the Ri same der, and, overlapping the coverage area of the radio wave arrival range of the aggregation device other aggregation device part If you that, blocks the block transmitting means for transmitting to the communication device in said portion is the other aggregation device is sent to the communication device in said portion As control means for controlling so that different block blocks, and characterized by causing a computer to function in the aggregation device.

  According to the aggregation device, the distribution method, and the distribution program having such a configuration, each of the plurality of aggregation devices transmits a different block in a predetermined cycle for the program block used by the communication device. A plurality of blocks can be received in the same predetermined cycle. That is, the communication device is more likely to receive all the blocks of the program in a shorter time than when all the aggregation devices sequentially transmit the same order of blocks.

  In the aggregation device described above, it is preferable that the control unit controls the timing at which the block transmission unit transmits a block to be different from the timing at which the other aggregation device transmits a block.

  According to this configuration, the transmission timing of the block transmitted by the aggregation device is shifted from the timing transmitted by the other aggregation device, so that there is a high possibility that collision of transmission data (frames) can be avoided. That is, the communication device can receive the block more reliably.

  Further, in the aggregation device described above, the communication device receives the block, and stores a block of a program according to the type of the device in the received block, and stores the received block in a radio wave reachable range. It is preferable to transmit to the communication device.

  According to this configuration, since the communication device further transmits the block received from the aggregation device to another communication device, a communication device that is not within the radio wave reachable range of the aggregation device can also receive the block. It becomes possible. That is, it is possible to transmit the block to communication devices that are in a wider range beyond the radio wave reachable range of the aggregation device.

  In the aggregation device described above, it is preferable that the program is firmware of the communication device.

  According to this configuration, since the communication device can receive the firmware in a shorter time, the communication device can quickly update the firmware.

A network system according to another aspect of the present invention is a network system including a server device, a plurality of aggregation devices, and a plurality of communication devices, and the server device is provided in each of the plurality of aggregation devices, A program transmission unit that transmits a program according to the type of the communication device that can communicate with each aggregation device, the aggregation device includes a program reception unit that receives a program from the server device, and the block divided into a plurality of blocks the program sequentially block by block, and the block transmitting means for transmitting at predetermined intervals toward the communication device within radio range, Ri program identical der wherein with the aggregation device other aggregation device transmits, and, If the radio range of the other aggregation device and the coverage area of the aggregation device you partially overlap, the block transmission means Block to be transmitted to the communication device in the part, and a control means for the other aggregation device is controlled to be the different from the block to be transmitted to the communication device block in said portion, said communication apparatus, It is characterized by comprising block transfer means for receiving the block and transmitting it to other communication devices within the radio wave reachable range.

  According to the network system having such a configuration, each aggregation device uses a communication device that is within the radio wave reach of its own device, and a program used by the communication device that receives a block transmitted by the communication device as a server device. And send a block of that program. Therefore, the communication apparatus is less likely to receive blocks of programs that are not used by the communication apparatus, and thus can quickly receive all blocks of the program for the communication apparatus.

  The aggregation device of the wireless network system according to the present invention can quickly distribute a program to a wireless communication terminal (communication device).

It is a figure which shows the usage example of the wireless network system for collecting meter-reading data from the terminal station of an electric power consumer. It is an example of the front view of the terminal station T. 1 is a diagram showing an outline of a wireless network system. It is a figure for demonstrating delivery of the firmware in a maker limited network. It is a figure for demonstrating delivery of the firmware in the network to which the gateway GW adjoins. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the functional block of a terminal station. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the functional block of gateway GW. It is a figure which shows the example of a structure and the content of an own apparatus information table. It is a flowchart of the firmware delivery process which a gateway performs. It is a flowchart of the firmware update process which a terminal station performs. It is a figure for demonstrating the data transmitted / received in a wireless network. It is a figure for demonstrating delivery of the firmware of a prior art example.

<Embodiment>
The wireless network system of the embodiment is a multi-hop wireless network, and is a system for collecting meter reading data from each power consumer.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a usage example of the wireless network system according to the embodiment. This wireless network system includes power consumers H1, H2,..., H12 (collectively referred to as power consumer H), and a terminal station T1 that is a power meter installed in each power consumer H. , T2,..., T12 (when collectively referred to as a terminal station T), gateways GWa, GWb, and GWc (when collectively referred to as gateway GW), a network 2, and a server device 1. In addition, the number of the electric power consumer H, the terminal station T, the gateway GW, and the server apparatus 1 is not restricted to these numbers.

  The network 2 is a network managed by a network operating company such as an electric power company, and may be wired or wireless. The gateway GW is connected to the server device 1 that is provided in, for example, a main utility pole and managed by an electric power company or the like via the network 2.

  The terminal station T constitutes a node of a network using multihop and belongs to any gateway GW. The terminal station T has a function as an integrated watt-hour meter, and each meter reading data is sequentially transferred to the adjacent terminal station T and collected at the gateway GW to which the own apparatus belongs. The meter reading data collected in each gateway GW is transmitted to the server device 1 via the network 2. The terminal station T performs communication according to a wireless LAN (Local Area Network) standard, and performs one-to-one communication in an ad hoc mode as indicated by signals A1 to 4 and the like. Each gateway GW collects meter reading data of about several hundred terminal stations T.

  FIG. 2 is an example of a front view of the terminal station T. This terminal station T is configured by arranging a terminal block 6, a load switch 3000, a watt hour meter 2000, and a communication device 1000 to which each distribution line in the home of a power consumer is connected. The watt-hour meter 2000 reads the accumulated power amount every predetermined period, for example, every 5 minutes. The meter reading data is transmitted every 30 minutes by the communication apparatus 1000 toward the gateway GW to which the own apparatus belongs. The load switch 3000 performs an opening / closing operation in accordance with control data transmitted from the server device 1.

  Here, FIG. 3 shows an outline of the network using the multi-hop of the embodiment. A double circle indicates the gateway GW, and an identifier “GWa” or the like of the gateway GW is described inside the circle. A single circle indicates the terminal station T, and an identifier “T1” or the like of the terminal station T is described inside the circle. A broken line connecting the circles indicates that the gateways GW or the terminal stations T indicated by circles at both ends thereof detect (learn) each other's existence.

  The server device 1 and the gateway GW are connected by a network (communication line) 2, and the gateway GW and each terminal station are connected by multi-hop. In the network of the embodiment, the number of hops is at most several tens, preferably 10 hops or less.

  The network of the embodiment is generated by, for example, OLSR (Optimized Link State Routing) which is one of so-called proactive routing protocols in a multi-hop wireless network. As for the route between the gateway GW and each terminal station T, each device (gateway GW, terminal station T) periodically transmits and receives a message for exchanging route information while transmitting the presence of the device itself. Thus, each device constructs autonomously. Each gateway GW and each terminal station T is a routing table (route table) which is topology information of the entire network, for example, a terminal station T in the learned network and an adjacent network for transmitting data to the terminal station T. The terminal station T that is the transmission destination is stored in association with it.

  Since each device autonomously constructs an optimum route according to changes in surrounding radio wave conditions, etc., the upstream route from the terminal station T to the gateway GW and the downstream route from the gateway GW to the terminal station T The route may be different.

  The meter reading data is transmitted on the upstream route toward the gateway GW to which the terminal station T belongs. For example, in FIG. 3, the hatched terminal T with the identifier “T8” (hereinafter referred to as “terminal T8”) is transferred to the gateway GW with the identifier “GWa” (hereinafter referred to as “gateway GWa”). The upstream route is indicated by a solid arrow facing the gateway GW. Specifically, the meter reading data transmitted from the terminal station T8 reaches the gateway GWa via the terminal station T6. FIG. 11A shows an example of a packet transmitted from the terminal station T8 to the terminal station T6, which is a higher adjacent transmission destination, in order to transmit the meter reading data to the gateway GWa. This packet includes the destination “T6-Addr” of the terminal station T6 as the adjacent destination, the destination “GWa-Addr” of the gateway GWa as the final destination, “meter reading data” as the data type, and the meter reading data of the own apparatus. The terminal station T6 that has received the meter reading data packet from the terminal station T8 transfers the received packet to the destination on the path to the final destination “GWa-Addr”. In the case of FIG. 3, the terminal station T <b> 6 transfers the received packet to “GWa-Addr”, but transfers the packet to the terminal station T when passing through another terminal station T.

  In the embodiment, the destination of the terminal station T is a MAC (Media Access Control) address, and the gateway GW is an IP (Internet Protocol) address. In the example of the packet shown in FIG. 11, only item data necessary for explanation is described.

  Further, when transmitting control data to the terminal station T8, the server device 1 passes control data (command) to the gateway GWa to which the terminal station T belongs, and requests transmission to the terminal station T8. The control data is transmitted on the down route indicated by the solid arrow route toward the terminal station T8 in FIG. Specifically, the control data transmitted by the gateway GWa reaches the terminal station T8 via the terminal station T1, the terminal station T3, and the terminal station T5.

  In order to transmit to the terminal station T8, the gateway GWa transmits a control data packet to the terminal station T1, which is an adjacent transmission destination. FIG. 11B shows an example of a packet that the gateway GWa transmits to the terminal station T1. This packet includes the destination “T1-Addr” of the terminal station T1 as the adjacent destination, the “control data” as the data type, the destination “T8-Addr” of the terminal station T8 as the final destination, and the control data. The terminal station T1 that has received the control data packet from the gateway GWa transfers the packet to the terminal station T3 that is an adjacent transmission destination to the final destination “T8-Addr”.

  As shown in FIG. 1, since the terminal stations T are installed in each power consumer H, the total number of wireless communication networks is enormous, and the power consumers H exist in a wide range and may be scattered. If there is, it may be concentrated like an apartment house. In such a wireless communication network, a plurality of types of terminal stations T are often installed at the same time, such as those manufactured by a plurality of manufacturers, and those manufactured by the same manufacturer having different model numbers.

  Such a wireless communication network that collects meter-reading data from the terminal stations T installed in each power consumer H has, for example, the following two characteristics.

  The first feature is that a terminal station T manufactured by manufacturer A is installed in a certain area, and a terminal station T manufactured by manufacturer B is installed in another area. Different manufacturers basically have different firmware.

  The second feature is an area where the gateway GW is installed close. In other words, there are many terminal stations T in a small area in areas where there are many densely populated houses and apartment buildings, so the gateway is used to reduce meter reading data traffic or because there are many obstacles. There are cases where GWs are installed close to each other and their radio wave coverage ranges partially overlap.

  In the wireless network system of the embodiment, firmware is distributed in a short time using such characteristics.

<Distributed network delivery method>
FIG. 4 shows an example of a firmware distribution method using the first feature. “Manufacturer A limited network” indicates a network in the area where the terminal station T of the manufacturer A in the wireless network is installed, and “Manufacturer B limited network” indicates a network in the area where the terminal station T of the manufacturer B is installed. Show. Of the terminal stations T indicated by rectangles, the rectangle described as “terminal station A” indicates the terminal station T of the manufacturer A, and the rectangle described as “terminal station B” indicates the terminal station T of the manufacturer B. . A gateway GW-A indicated by an ellipse is a gateway GW in the “maker A limited network”, and a gateway GW-B indicated by an ellipse is a gateway GW in the “maker B limited network”. In FIG. 4, one gateway GW is described for each of “maker A limited network” and “maker B limited network”, but a plurality of gateways GW may be included. Note that a portion where the “maker A limited network” and the “maker B limited network” overlap may occur, but the terminal station T does not transfer data when the number of hops from the gateway GW exceeds a predetermined number. Therefore, the outer edge of the limited network can be determined.

  The server apparatus 1 transmits the firmware 21 for the manufacturer A to the gateway GW-A, and transmits the firmware 22 for the manufacturer B to the gateway GW-B. In each gateway GW, the firmware is divided into a plurality of blocks. The block is divided by an appropriate amount of data based on the line occupation time and the line rate. In FIG. 4, the firmware 21 and the firmware 22 are each divided into 12 blocks. However, the firmware 21 and the firmware 22 are divided into an appropriate number according to the size and configuration of each firmware. The firmware may be divided by the server device 1 and transmitted to the gateway GW collectively.

  The gateway GW-A transmits (broadcasts) the blocks A1 to A12 of the firmware 21 for the manufacturer A one by one to the terminal station T (arrow 23). When the received block is a firmware block for its own device, the terminal station T that has received the block stores it in the memory, and transmits the received block to the other terminal station T. In this way, blocks are transferred to all terminal stations T in the “maker A limited network”. When the terminal station T stores the blocks A1 to A12, the terminal station T combines the blocks to generate the firmware 21, and updates the firmware of the own device. If the block is missing, the terminal station T requests the gateway GW-A for the missing block.

  The gateway GW-B transmits (broadcasts) the blocks B1 to B12 of the firmware 22 for the manufacturer B to the terminal station T one block at a time (arrow 24). The operation of the terminal station T is the same as the terminal station T of the “maker A limited network”.

  In this way, for each gateway GW, by distributing the firmware according to the type of the peripheral terminal T around which the gateway GW is installed, the terminal station T waits until receiving the firmware for its own device. It is possible to shorten the time required for updating the entire wireless communication network. For example, as in the conventional example shown in FIG. 12, when each gateway GW transmits the same firmware block, the firmware 22 for manufacturer B is transmitted after the firmware 21 for manufacturer A is transmitted. . In this case, the terminal station T of the “maker B limited network” waits while the firmware 21 for the manufacturer A is being transmitted.

  In FIG. 4, the gateway GW distributes one type of firmware (for example, the firmware 21 for the manufacturer A), but a plurality of firmware may be distributed. For example, when the terminal station T of the manufacturer C is mixed in the “maker A limited network”, the firmware for the manufacturer C is also distributed. Even in this case, the entire update time can be shortened as compared with the case of sequentially transmitting the firmware for manufacturer A, the firmware for manufacturer B, and the firmware for manufacturer C.

<Distribution method using multiple GWs>
FIG. 5 shows an example of a firmware distribution method using the second feature. FIG. 5 shows a case where firmware is distributed to the “maker B limited network” in FIG. 4, and the gateway GW-1 and the gateway GW-2 are gateways GW in the “maker B limited network”. Here, the gateway GW-1 and the gateway GW-2 are installed close enough to partially overlap each radio wave reachable range. A one-dot chain line circle indicates a radio wave reachable range of the gateway GW-1, and a broken circle indicates a radio wave reachable range of the gateway GW-2.

  The server apparatus 1 transmits the firmware 22 for manufacturer B to the gateway GW-1 and the gateway GW-2. Each gateway GW divides the firmware into a plurality of blocks (see firmware 22 in FIG. 4).

  Then, the gateway GW-1 transmits toward the terminal station T in order from the block B1 (arrow 31), and the gateway GW-2 transmits toward the terminal station T in order from the block B4 (arrow 32). ). That is, each gateway GW transmits different blocks. In other words, the block numbers of the blocks transmitted by the gateway GW are distributed. However, to be exact, some gateways GW may transmit the same number of blocks depending on the number of gateways GW and the number of blocks.

  By distributing the block numbers of the blocks transmitted by the plurality of gateways GW, it is possible to shorten the time until the firmware distribution to all the terminal stations T is completed.

  For example, consider the case of distributing 5 MB (megabyte) firmware. When 1400 bytes are divided as one block, the number of blocks is 3572. One block is transmitted every 30 seconds, and the distribution possible period is 40 minutes per hour, specifically, 20 minutes to 60 minutes at each time. In addition, 20 minutes other than the distributable period in one hour is a time for performing processing such as transmission of meter-reading data.

When all the gateways GW transmit the same number of blocks, the transmission of all the blocks is completed at the following time.
Transmission time (hours) = 3572 (blocks) × 30 (seconds) ÷ 40 (minutes) = 44.65

When two gateways GW send blocks with different numbers, that is, one gateway GW sends blocks with block numbers 1 to 1786 and another gateway GW sends blocks with block numbers 1787 to 3572 The transmission of all blocks is completed in the following time.
Transmission time (hours) = 3572 (blocks) ÷ 2 (units) × 30 (seconds) ÷ 40 (minutes) = 22.325

  That is, all blocks are transmitted from the gateway GW in a shorter time. Since the block delivered from the gateway GW propagates to all the terminal stations T while hopping the terminal station T, in order to deliver the block to all the terminal stations T as soon as possible, it is necessary to flow the block on the network as soon as possible. It is effective.

<Block number distribution method>
Here, a method for distributing the block numbers transmitted by the gateway GW will be described.

In the embodiment, a block number for starting transmission is obtained using the following equation (1), and transmission is performed in ascending order. When the block having the last number is transmitted, the block having the block number “1” is transmitted, and all the blocks are transmitted.
Start block number = (device ID) Mod (start variance value) × (total number of blocks ÷ start variance value) +1 (1)
Here, the device ID is an identification number unique to the gateway GW. Mod is a function for calculating the remainder of division, and (x) Mod (y) outputs the remainder of dividing x by y. The starting variance value is “4”. The start variance value is set to an appropriate value in consideration of the number of gateways GW, the number of blocks, and the like.

  For example, it is assumed that “device ID” is “120,000” and the number of blocks is 12. When the start block number is obtained using the expression (1), (120,000) Mod (4) × (12 ÷ 4) + 1 = 0 × 3 + 1 = 1. When the “device ID” is “120001”, (120001) Mod (4) × (12 ÷ 4) + 1 = 1 × 3 + 1 = 4.

  Here, Table 1 that summarizes the order of blocks to be transmitted is shown below.

表１は、「配信回」フィールド、「余り＝０」フィールド、「余り＝１」フィールド、「余り＝２」フィールド、及び、「余り＝３」フィールドを備える。「配信回」フィールドは、何回目のブロック送信かを示す値が設定されている。ここでは、１２ブロックから成るファームウェアを送信することから、「１」〜「１２」が設定されている。「余り＝０」フィールドには、（装置ＩＤ）Ｍｏｄ（開始分散値）の値が「０」であるゲートウェイＧＷが送信するブロック番号が設定されている。例えば、「配信回」フィールドに「１」が設定されている行の「余り＝０」フィールドには、「１」が設定されていることから、「（装置ＩＤ）Ｍｏｄ（開始分散値）」の値が「０」であるゲートウェイＧＷが最初に送信するのは、ブロック番号「１」のブロックであることになる。また、「余り＝１」フィールドには、「（装置ＩＤ）Ｍｏｄ（開始分散値）」の値が「１」であるゲートウェイＧＷが送信するブロック番号が設定されており、例えば、「配信回」フィールドに「４」が設定されている行の「余り＝１」フィールドには、「７」が設定されていることから、「（装置ＩＤ）Ｍｏｄ（開始分散値）」の値が「１」であるゲートウェイＧＷが、４回目に送信するのは、ブロック番号「７」のブロックであることになる。尚、「余り＝２」フィールドには、「（装置ＩＤ）Ｍｏｄ（開始分散値）」の値が「２」であるゲートウェイＧＷが送信するブロック番号が設定されており、「余り＝３」フィールドには、（装置ＩＤ）Ｍｏｄ（開始分散値）の値が「３」であるゲートウェイＧＷが送信するブロック番号が設定されている。

Table 1 includes a “delivery times” field, a “residue = 0” field, a “residue = 1” field, a “residue = 2” field, and a “residue = 3” field. In the “delivery times” field, a value indicating the number of block transmissions is set. In this case, since firmware consisting of 12 blocks is transmitted, “1” to “12” are set. In the “remainder = 0” field, a block number transmitted by the gateway GW whose (device ID) Mod (start variance value) is “0” is set. For example, since “1” is set in the “remainder = 0” field of the line in which “1” is set in the “delivery times” field, “(device ID) Mod (start variance value)” is set. The gateway GW whose value is “0” first transmits the block with the block number “1”. In the “Remainder = 1” field, a block number transmitted by the gateway GW having a value of “(device ID) Mod (start variance value)” of “1” is set. Since “7” is set in the “remainder = 1” field of the row in which “4” is set in the field, the value of “(device ID) Mod (start variance value)” is “1”. That is, the gateway GW transmits the block of the block number “7” for the fourth time. In the “Remainder = 2” field, a block number transmitted by the gateway GW whose “(device ID) Mod (start variance value)” is “2” is set, and the “Remainder = 3” field is set. Is set with a block number transmitted by the gateway GW whose (device ID) Mod (start variance value) is “3”.

  In Table 1, since the starting dispersion value is “4”, four cases with a remainder of 0 to 3 are shown.

  For example, when four gateways GW are used and the remainder calculated by each gateway GW is “0”, “1”, “2”, “3”, as shown in Table 1, “Distribution times” If the transmission is performed three times indicated by “1”, “2”, and “3” in the “” field, it is understood that the blocks having the block numbers “1” to “12” are transmitted. Depending on the device ID, a plurality of gateways GW may have the same remainder, but even in this case, all blocks are transmitted without performing 12 distributions.

  Thus, when distributing firmware using a plurality of gateways GW, it is possible to distribute the blocks on the network in a short time by distributing the block numbers of the blocks transmitted by each gateway GW.

  Blocks flowed on the network are transferred by each terminal station T. The terminal station T always performs carrier sense, confirms that the carrier is free, and determines that the transmission right of the frame has been acquired if the idle state continues for a predetermined period. Then, the terminal station T that has acquired the transmission right broadcasts the block toward the other terminal stations T.

  Therefore, no frame collision occurs between a block (frame) transmitted by the terminal station T and a block (frame) transmitted by the terminal station T within a range where the terminal station T can perform carrier sense. However, a frame collision may occur with a block (frame) transmitted by the terminal station T that is not within the range where carrier sense can be performed. When a frame collision occurs, a missing number occurs in the block number of the block received by the terminal station T. In this case, after the gateway GW transmits all the blocks, the terminal station T issues a retransmission request to the gateway GW and receives the missing block, and the time until the firmware update of all the terminal stations T is completed is prolonged. there's a possibility that.

  Therefore, in the embodiment, the block transmission timing is shifted between the gateways GW, that is, the transmission timing is dispersed to avoid frame collision as much as possible.

<Transmission timing distribution method>
Hereinafter, a method for distributing the timing at which the gateway GW transmits the blocks will be described.

  In the embodiment, the timing to start transmission is obtained using the following equation (2). Specifically, a time (hereinafter referred to as “dispersion time”) that is delayed from the start time of the distributable period is calculated.

When the start time of the distributable period is reached, the gateway GW delays the calculated dispersion time and transmits the block at a predetermined period (30 seconds).
Dispersion time = (device ID) Mod (start dispersion value) (2)
Here, the starting variance value is “10”. This starting variance value is set to an appropriate value in consideration of the number of gateways GW, the number of blocks, and the like.

  For example, if the calculated dispersion time is 9 seconds, the first block is transmitted 9 seconds after the start time of the distributable period, and the second block is 30 seconds later, that is, 39 seconds after the transmission start time. Send.

  As described above, by distributing the block transmission timing among the gateways GW, frame collision is avoided as much as possible, and the reception success rate by the terminal stations T of the blocks transmitted from the plurality of gateways GW is improved.

<Configuration>
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of functional blocks of the terminal station T. The terminal station T includes a communication device 1000, a watt-hour meter 2000, and a load switch 3000. Dashed arrows indicate that some terminal stations T communicate with the gateway GW (aggregation device).

  The communication apparatus 1000 includes a wireless communication control unit 1100, a wireless communication unit 1200, a timer 1300, an in-flight communication control unit 1400, an interface 1410, an interface 1420, an external interface 1500, an input unit 1510, a link information storage unit 1800, a block storage unit 1810, And the electric energy information storage part 1900 is provided.

  The wireless communication control unit 1100 includes a firmware update unit 1110, a block storage unit 1120, and a block transfer unit 1130. The wireless communication control unit 1100 has a function of controlling each functional unit to control wireless communication. For example, the power amount stored in the power amount information storage unit 1900 is read every predetermined period, for example, every 30 minutes, and a packet addressed to the gateway GW to which the terminal station T belongs is transmitted to the wireless communication unit 1200. It is. The detection that the predetermined period has elapsed is detected by an interrupt from the timer 1300.

  The firmware update unit 1110 mainly has four functions. The first function is a function of instructing the block storage unit 1120 to store the firmware block received via the wireless communication control unit 1100 in the block storage unit 1810 upon receiving a firmware distribution start notification from the gateway GW. It is. At this time, the firmware update unit 1110 determines whether or not the received block is a firmware block for the own device, and stores the block in the block storage unit 1120 if the received block is a firmware block for the own device. Note that the firmware distribution start notification is transmitted from the gateway GW to the terminal station T that performs the firmware update process as the control data in FIG.

  Here, FIG. 11C shows an example of block data received by the terminal station T, that is, transmitted by the gateway GW. The block data includes all destinations (broadcast addresses) as the destination, “firmware” as the data type, “maker A” as the firmware type, the number of firmware block divisions as the total number of blocks, the block number as the block number, and the block as the block Included programs. The type of firmware is not limited to the manufacturer name, but may be any type that can identify the firmware. The firmware update unit 1110 refers to the information set for the firmware type in the block data and determines whether the firmware is for the device itself.

  The second function is to receive the notification that all the blocks have been stored from the block storage unit 1120, combine the blocks stored in the block storage unit 1810, and use the combined firmware program to update the firmware of the device itself. It is a function to update. When the firmware of the own device is updated, the firmware update unit 1110 transmits data notifying the completion of the firmware update to the gateway GW to which the own device belongs.

  The third function is a function of acquiring a block with a block number (missing number) that could not be received from the gateway GW. Specifically, if all the blocks have not been received even after a predetermined distribution processing time has elapsed since receiving the firmware distribution start notification, that is, all the blocks from the block storage unit 1120 have been stored. If the notification is not received, the firmware updating unit 1110 inquires of the block storage unit 1120 about the missing block number and transmits a retransmission request to the gateway GW to which the own device belongs. This distribution processing time is a time estimated that all blocks of the firmware program are distributed to all terminal stations T, and is determined in advance in consideration of the number of terminal stations T, the number of blocks, and the like. The firmware update unit 1110 detects that the distribution processing time has elapsed by an interrupt from the timer 1300.

  The fourth function is a function for transferring the received block data to the block transfer unit 1130 from the time when the firmware distribution start notification is received from the gateway GW to the time when the distribution processing time elapses.

  The block storage unit 1120 has a function of storing and managing the block transferred from the firmware update unit 1110 in the block storage unit 1810. The block storage unit 1120 manages the block number and does not store the already stored block in the block storage unit 1810. When all the blocks are stored, the block storage unit 1120 notifies the firmware update unit 1110 to that effect. Further, in response to an inquiry from the firmware updating unit 1110, the block storage unit 1120 notifies the missing number when a missing number is generated in the block number.

  The block transfer unit 1130 performs necessary processing such as updating the number of hops on the block data passed from the firmware update unit 1110 (see FIG. 11C), and performs the wireless communication control unit 1100 and the wireless communication unit It has a function of transmitting via 1200.

  The wireless communication unit 1200 has a function of communicating with another terminal station T (“terminal station T ′” in FIG. 6) or the gateway GW in an ad hoc mode according to the wireless LAN standard.

  The timer 1300 has a function of notifying the wireless communication control unit 1100 and the in-flight communication control unit 1400 of the time and also interrupting at a predetermined cycle. For example, the wireless communication control unit 1100 is interrupted every 30 minutes. For example, an in-flight communication control unit 1400 is interrupted every 5 minutes. The wireless communication control unit 1100 reads out and transmits the meter reading data for 30 minutes from the power amount information storage unit 1900 at the timing of interruption, and the in-flight communication control unit 1400 receives power for 5 minutes from the power meter 2000 at the timing of interruption. The power is acquired and stored in the power information storage unit 1900.

  The interface 1410 is an interface that receives meter reading data from the watt-hour meter 2000, and the interface 1420 is an interface that transmits control data to the load switch 3000.

  The in-flight communication control unit 1400 has a function of controlling communication with the watt-hour meter 2000 and the load switch 3000 via the interface 1410 and the interface 1420. The in-flight communication control unit 1400 has a function of periodically acquiring the received power amount from the watt-hour meter 2000 and storing it in the power amount information storage unit 1900.

  The external interface 1500 is an interface connected to an external setting tool or the like, and is used for setting initial values and the like when the terminal station T is initially set.

  The input unit 1510 has a function of accepting a user operation and storing data in the link information storage unit 1800 and the electric energy information storage unit 1900 or rewriting the stored data in accordance with the user operation. .

  The link information storage unit 1800 has a function of storing information necessary for data transmission / reception such as topology information of the entire network as shown in FIG.

  The block storage unit 1810 has a function of storing firmware blocks.

  The electric energy information storage unit 1900 has a function of storing the electric energy acquired from the electric energy meter 2000 by the in-flight communication control unit 1400.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of functional blocks of the gateway GW. The gateway GW includes a wireless communication control unit 4100, a wireless communication unit 1200, a timer 1300, an external interface 1500, an input unit 1510, an external communication control unit 4000, a link information storage unit 1800, a meter reading data storage unit 1850, and a firmware storage unit 4200. Is provided.

  The wireless communication control unit 4100 includes a firmware distribution unit 4110 (block transmission unit), a firmware management unit 4120 (control unit), and a firmware division unit 4130. The wireless communication control unit 4100 controls each functional unit to control wireless communication. It has a function. Further, the wireless communication control unit 4100 stores the meter reading data received from the terminal station T in the meter reading data storage unit 1850. The wireless communication control unit 4100 reads meter-reading data stored in the meter-reading data storage unit 1850 at a predetermined timing, transmits the data to the server device 1 via the external communication control unit 4000, and the external communication control unit 4000. The packet from the server device 1 received via the wireless communication unit 1200 is transmitted to the terminal station T via the wireless communication unit 1200.

  The firmware distribution unit 4110 mainly has three functions. The first function is a function of receiving a firmware program from the server device 1 via the external communication control unit 4000 and passing it to the firmware management unit 4120 for storage in the firmware storage unit 4200.

  The second function is a function of acquiring one block from the firmware management unit 4120 and transmitting it to the terminal station T. Specifically, the firmware distribution unit 4110 transmits a firmware distribution start notification to the terminal station T belonging to the own GW, and then acquires one block from the firmware management unit 4120 to obtain block data (FIG. 11C). ) And transmitted to all directions via the wireless communication unit 1200. The firmware distribution unit 4110 transmits one block at a predetermined cycle during a predetermined distribution available period. At this time, transmission of the block is started after the distribution time has elapsed from the start time of the distributable period. The distribution time is notified from the firmware management unit 4120. In the embodiment, as described above, the distributable period is 20 to 60 minutes of each time, and the predetermined period is 30 seconds. Note that the start time and end time of the distribution available period are detected by interruption from the timer 1300.

  The third function is to receive a block retransmission request from the terminal station T belonging to the own GW after completing the transmission of all blocks, and obtain the block with the block number from the firmware management unit 4120 and It is a function to send to.

  The firmware management unit 4120 mainly has four functions. The first function is a function for passing the firmware program delivered from the firmware distribution unit 4110 to the firmware dividing unit 4130 to divide the block into blocks and storing each block in the firmware storage unit 4200. Information necessary for division such as the number of divisions is included in the firmware program.

  The second function is a function that determines which block of the divided firmware blocks is to be distributed, reads the blocks one by one from the firmware storage unit 4200, and passes them to the firmware distribution unit 4110. The block number to be transmitted first is calculated using the above equation (1).

  The third function is a function that calculates the distribution time using the above-described equation (2) and notifies the firmware distribution unit 4110 of it.

  The fourth function is a function of reading a corresponding block from the firmware storage unit 4200 and passing it to the firmware distribution unit 4110 when a block number is specified by the firmware distribution unit 4110 and a block is requested.

  The wireless communication unit 1200, the timer 1300, the external interface 1500, the input unit 1510, and the link information storage unit 1800 are the wireless communication control unit 1100, the wireless communication unit 1200, the timer 1300, the external interface 1500, the input unit 1510, and the link of the communication device 1000. The information storage unit 1800 has the same function.

  The external communication control unit 4000 has a function of communicating with the server device 1.

  The meter-reading data storage unit 1850 has a function of storing meter-reading data transmitted from the terminal station T belonging to the gateway GW that is its own device.

  Each of the communication apparatus 1000 and the gateway GW of the embodiment can be configured using, for example, a computer, and software that programs a gateway GW determination method and the like stored in a storage unit (not shown) such as a hard disk, When executed by the CPU, the wireless communication control unit 1100 and the like described above are functionally configured in the computer.

<Data>
Hereinafter, main data used in the communication apparatus 1000 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration and contents of the own device information table 1810. The own device information table 1810 is stored in the link information storage unit 1800.

  The own device information table 1810 includes an item 1811 and contents 1812.

  An item 1811 indicates an item of information regarding the own device. “Own device address” indicates a destination address of the own device. “Firmware type” indicates an identifier for identifying the firmware used by the own device.

  A content 1812 indicates the content of the item indicated by the item 1811. For example, since the item 1811 is set to “T8-Addr” as the content 1812 of the “own device address”, the destination of the terminal station T storing the own device information table 1810 is “T8-Addr”. It will be. Therefore, the packet in which “T8-Addr” is set as the destination is determined to be a packet addressed to the own apparatus. Further, since “Manufacturer B” is set as the content 1812 of “Firmware type” in the item 1811, the identifier of the firmware used by the terminal station T storing the device information table 1810 is “Manufacturer B”. It will be.

<Operation>
Hereinafter, operations of the gateway GW and the communication apparatus 1000 of the terminal station T will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart of firmware distribution processing performed by the gateway GW. FIG. 10 is a flowchart of firmware update processing performed by the communication apparatus 1000 of the terminal station T.

  First, the firmware distribution process performed by the gateway GW will be described with reference to FIG.

  When receiving the firmware program from the server device 1 via the external communication control unit 4000, the wireless communication control unit 4100 of the gateway GW passes the firmware program to the firmware distribution unit 4110 to request firmware distribution processing (step S30).

  Upon receiving the request, the firmware distribution unit 4110 transmits a firmware distribution start notification to the terminal station T belonging to the own GW (step S31). The firmware distribution unit 4110 confirms the response from each terminal station T as necessary.

  The firmware distribution unit 4110 transfers the firmware program transferred from the wireless communication control unit 4100 to the firmware management unit 4120 and requests storage.

  Upon receiving the request, the firmware management unit 4120 passes the delivered firmware program to the firmware dividing unit 4130 to request division. The firmware division unit 4130 requested to divide the firmware program into blocks based on the information necessary for the division included in the firmware program, and stores the block in the firmware storage unit 4200 (step S32).

  Next, the firmware management unit 4120 calculates the distribution start block number using the equation (1) and stores it in the work area (step S33). Also, the firmware management unit 4120 calculates the distribution time using the formula (2) and notifies the firmware management unit 4120 (step S34).

  Then, when the firmware distribution unit 4110 detects the start time of the distribution available period by an interrupt from the timer 1300 (step S35: Yes), the firmware distribution unit 4110 waits for the distribution time to elapse (step S36) and transmits it first from the firmware management unit 4120. The block having the block number to be acquired is acquired, block data is created, and transmitted to all directions via the wireless communication unit 1200 (step S37).

  Next, the firmware distribution unit 4110 requests the block to be transmitted next from the firmware management unit 4120 and acquires the block to be transmitted next (step S38: No), and then waits for the elapse of a predetermined period (30 seconds) (step S38). S39). If there is no interruption of the end time of the distributable period while waiting for the elapse of the predetermined period (step S40: No), block data (FIG. 11C) is created and omnidirectional via the wireless communication unit 1200 (Step S37).

  If there is an interruption at the end time of the distributable period while waiting for the elapse of the predetermined period (30 seconds) (step S40: No), the firmware distribution unit 4110 returns to step S35 and starts the distributable period start time. Waits for an interrupt from the timer 1300.

  Also, in step S38, the firmware management unit 4120 is requested for the block to be transmitted next, and when the notification that all blocks have been distributed is received (step S38: Yes), the firmware distribution unit 4110 receives the terminal belonging to the own GW. Wait for a block retransmission request from T. When the request is received, the block having the requested block number is acquired from the firmware management unit 4120 and transmitted to the terminal station T requesting retransmission (step S41). When a predetermined distribution period has elapsed after transmitting the firmware distribution start notification in step S31, the firmware retransmission process is terminated.

  Next, firmware update processing performed by the communication apparatus 1000 of the terminal station T will be described with reference to FIG.

  When the wireless communication control unit 1100 of the terminal station T receives the firmware distribution start notification from the gateway GW to which the own device belongs via the wireless communication control unit 1100, the wireless communication control unit 1100 requests the firmware update unit 1110 to update the firmware (step S10). ).

  Upon receiving the request, the firmware update unit 1110 receives the block data before the interruption indicating that the distribution processing time has passed (step S11: No) (step S12: Yes). 1130 to request transfer. Upon receiving the request, the block transfer unit 1130 performs necessary processing on the received block data, and transmits it in all directions via the wireless communication unit 1200 (step S13).

  Next, the firmware update unit 1110 determines whether or not the firmware block included in the received block data is a firmware block for the own device (step S14), and is not a block for the own device. If it is determined (step S14: No), the processing from step S11 is performed. On the other hand, if it is determined that the block is for the device itself (step S14: Yes), the block storage unit 1120 is requested to store the block.

  The block storage unit 1120 that has received the request performs the processing from step S11 if the block with the block number of the received block has already been stored in the block storage unit 1810 (step S15: Yes). On the other hand, if the block with the block number of the received block has not been saved in the block storage means 1810 (step S15: No), the block in the received block data is stored in the block storage means 1810 (step S16). . Then, when all the blocks are stored (step S17: Yes), the block storage unit 1120 notifies the firmware update unit 1110 to that effect, and when all the blocks are not stored yet (step S17: No), the process from step S11 is performed.

  In step S17, the firmware update unit 1110 that has received notification from the block storage unit 1120 that all the blocks have been stored combines all the blocks stored in the block storage unit 1810 (step S19), and the firmware of the device itself. Is updated (step S20), and a firmware update completion notification is transmitted to the gateway GW to which the device belongs (step S21).

  In step S11, when receiving an interrupt indicating that the distribution processing time (fixed time) has elapsed (step S11: Yes), the firmware update unit 1110 acquires the missing block number from the block storage unit 1120, and obtains the missing number. A retransmission request for the block with the block number is transmitted to the gateway GW to which the own apparatus belongs. When the block having the missing block number is received (step S18), the firmware update unit 1110 performs the processing from step 19.

  In the embodiment, firmware is distributed. However, the present invention is not limited to firmware, and other programs and data may be used.

  In the embodiment, the communication apparatus 1000 wirelessly communicates with the gateway GW and other communication apparatuses 1000 in a multihop format, but is not limited to the multihop format.

  Further, in the embodiment, the block number at which transmission is started is obtained using Expression (1), but the block number may be distributed by other methods. For example, the order of block numbers to be transmitted is determined in advance for each value obtained by “(device ID) Mod (start variance value)” and stored.

  Further, in the embodiment, each terminal station T determines a missing block when a predetermined distribution processing time has elapsed after receiving a firmware distribution start notification, and identifies the missing block as a gateway GW. However, if a block is not received for a certain period of time, it may be determined that a block is missing. Further, for example, after the gateway GW transmits all the blocks, the terminal station T belonging to the own device may be requested to make a request when there is a missing block. In this case, when receiving a request from the gateway GW, the terminal station T determines the missing block and requests the missing block from the gateway GW.

  In order to express the present invention, the present invention has been properly and fully described through the embodiments with reference to the drawings. However, those skilled in the art can easily change and / or improve the above-described embodiments. It should be recognized that this is possible. Therefore, unless the modifications or improvements implemented by those skilled in the art are at a level that departs from the scope of the claims recited in the claims, the modifications or improvements are not covered by the claims. To be construed as inclusive.

GW gateway (aggregation device)
T terminal station H power customer 1 server device 2 network 1000 communication device 1100 4100 wireless communication control unit 1110 firmware update unit 1120 block storage unit 1130 block transfer unit 1200 wireless communication unit 1300 timer 1400 onboard communication control unit 1500 external interface 1800 link information Storage unit 1810 Block storage unit 1900 Electric energy information storage unit 2000 Electric energy meter 3000 Load switch 4000 External communication control unit 4110 Firmware distribution unit 4120 Firmware management unit 4130 Firmware division unit 4200 Firmware storage unit

Claims (7)

The aggregation device of the wireless network system having a plurality of aggregation devices and a plurality of communication devices, each aggregation device having a function of transmitting a program to each communication device, and connected by wireless communication,
Block transmission means for transmitting a program divided into a plurality of blocks used by the plurality of communication devices, one block at a time, toward the communication device within a radio wave reach in a predetermined cycle;
Ri program identical der wherein with the aggregation device other aggregation device transmits, and, if the radio range of the other aggregation device and the coverage area of the aggregation device you partially overlap, said block characterized in that the transmission means block to be transmitted to the communication device in said portion comprises a control means for the other aggregation device is controlled to be the different from the block to be transmitted to the communication device block in said portion An aggregation device. The aggregation device according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit controls the timing at which the block transmission unit transmits a block to be different from the timing at which the other aggregation device transmits a block. The communication device receives the block, and stores, in the memory, a program block corresponding to the type of the device in the received block, and directs the received block to the communication device within a radio wave reachable range. aggregation device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that to transmit. The program aggregation device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the firmware of the communications device. A network system having a server device, a plurality of aggregation devices, and a plurality of communication devices,
The server device
Each of the plurality of aggregation devices includes a program transmission unit that transmits a program according to the type of the communication device capable of communicating with each aggregation device,
The aggregation device is
Program receiving means for receiving a program from the server device;
Block transmission means for sequentially transmitting the program divided into a plurality of blocks, one block at a time, toward the communication device within a radio wave reach;
Ri program identical der wherein with the aggregation device other aggregation device transmits, and, if the radio range of the other aggregation device and the coverage area of the aggregation device you partially overlap, said block block transmitting means transmits to the communication device in said portion is provided with a control means for the other aggregation device is controlled to be the different from the block to be transmitted to the communication device block in said portion,
The communication device
A network system comprising block transfer means for receiving the block and transmitting it to another communication device within a radio wave reachable range. A distribution method used in the aggregation device of a wireless network system having a plurality of aggregation devices and a plurality of communication devices, each aggregation device having a function of transmitting a program to each communication device, and connected by wireless communication. There,
A block transmission step of transmitting a program divided into a plurality of blocks used by the plurality of communication devices, one block at a time, toward the communication device within a radio wave reach;
Ri program identical der wherein with the aggregation device other aggregation device transmits, and, if the radio range of the other aggregation device and the coverage area of the aggregation device you partially overlap, said block wherein the transmitting step block to be transmitted to the communication device in said portion comprises a control step of the other aggregation device is controlled to be the different from the block to be transmitted to the communication device block in said portion And delivery method. A distribution program having a plurality of aggregation devices and a plurality of communication devices, each aggregation device having a function of transmitting a program to each communication device, and used in the aggregation device of a wireless network system connected by wireless communication There,
Block transmission means for transmitting a program divided into a plurality of blocks used by the plurality of communication devices, one block at a time, toward the communication device within a radio wave reach;
Ri program identical der wherein with the aggregation device other aggregation device transmits, and, if the radio range of the other aggregation device and the coverage area of the aggregation device you partially overlap, said block block transmitting means transmits to the communication device in said portion is a control means for the other aggregation device is controlled to be the different from the block to be transmitted to the communication device block in said portion of said aggregation device A distribution program characterized by causing a computer to function.

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