JPH11212887A - Communication system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily and securely recognize a communication route such as whether communication is executed to a reader from more than two communication controllers. SOLUTION: An address setting part 33 previously and selectively sets the address of a communication controller 6, and it is confirmed that not all recognition processings are terminated. An identification command to which the address of one communication controller 6 is given is selectively transmitted from a repeater 3. When the given address is matched with a self-address, the communication controller 6 transmits the identification command to the respective readers 2. When the reader 2 receives the identification command, the address of the communication controller 6 is added as an identification response and it is transmitted. Such processing is repeated on all the communication controllers 6 and it is checked that communication is appropriately executed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a communication system for confirming the operation of a communication system for transmitting information of a prepaid card in a prepaid card system for processing a prepaid card in accordance with the consumption of money.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A prepaid card system has been realized in which a prepaid card storing amount information corresponding to a monetary value is used for monetary settlement. In a prepaid card system, a service is usually provided in a plurality of stores. For example, each store is provided with a plurality of reading devices and a relay device or the like which is a higher-level processing device of the reading devices. A reading device is a terminal device for using a prepaid card. In this reading device, based on the amount information stored in the prepaid card, the prepaid card is used as a fee for lending game media and selling goods. Consumed. The relay device couples a plurality of reading devices and the like in the store to, for example, a settlement center installed at the issuer of the prepaid card, and communicates with the settlement center to manage the reading devices and settle the consumption amount. Perform processing.

[0003] That is, the prepaid card is consumed, for example, by providing a game medium by using a reading device installed in a store. When the prepaid card is consumed, the reading device counts the amount of consumption and provides the payment processing, and updates the amount information stored in the prepaid card according to the amount of consumption. Payment information of the reading device due to consumption of the prepaid card is collected by, for example, a relay device via a communication system, and the relay device compiles payment information of each of the reading devices under control and transmits the total to the payment center. In this way, the prepaid card consumption settlement is performed.

On the other hand, in the reading apparatus, when reading or updating the amount information, etc., an error is checked, and at the same time, an unauthorized prepaid card, that is, an illegal prepaid card due to falsification, forgery, illegal use, etc., is detected. I am trying to do it. Such fraudulent prepaid cards are discriminated by presuming that they are fraudulent if the stored information and punch hole information of the prepaid card, and their histories and the like contain inconsistent contents. Further, information such as identification information of an unauthorized prepaid card detected in the reading device is stored, and based on this information, an unauthorized prepaid card detected in the past is discriminated,
Prevent use by discharging with an error display.

[0005] Further, a prepaid card corresponding to information of an unauthorized prepaid card detected by another reading device notified from a relay device connected to the reading device is discriminated and excluded. That is, when an unauthorized prepaid card is detected by one of a plurality of reading devices coupled to the same relay device in the same store, detection data including identification information of the prepaid card and the like is transmitted from the reading device to the relay device. Sent to. The relay device transmits notification data indicating the information of the unauthorized prepaid card to another reading device, so that the other reading device discriminates the unauthorized prepaid card and prevents use.

As described above, when one reading device detects an unauthorized prepaid card such as a falsified prepaid card, the information of the unauthorized prepaid card is notified to another reading device via the relay device, and the unauthorized prepaid card is notified. Prevents the use of cards. In this way, the use of a fraudulent prepaid card such as a falsified prepaid card detected by one reading device can be prevented by all other reading devices coupled to the same relay device.

[0007] As a communication system for performing communication between a relay device and a reading device installed in a store, it is not easy to lay wiring in a large store. In a store, the rearrangement of each device is frequently performed. For this reason, in the communication system in the store, optical space communication that does not need to run a wire or a cable is widely used.

[0008] That is, data from the relay device is transmitted to the central communication control device, transmitted from the central communication control device to the communication control device by optical space communication that radiates an optical signal into space, and also transmitted from the communication control device. It is further transmitted to each reading device by optical space communication.

[0009]

As described above, when optical space communication is used, it is necessary to determine whether or not the signal light has been transmitted correctly at the time of installation of each device. It was not easy. In addition, such optical space communication is interrupted by obstacles such as the human body, noise is generated, or the need for a backup line requires communication from the two communication control devices to the reading device. It is necessary to make a dual system.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and makes it possible to easily and surely confirm a communication path, such as whether or not two communication control devices are communicating with a reading device. It is an object of the present invention to provide a communication system that enables more reliable construction and system construction.

[0011]

In order to achieve the above object, a communication system according to a first aspect of the present invention comprises a plurality of terminal devices and a high-level processing for exchanging information between the plurality of terminal devices. A central communication control device coupled to the host processing device for performing communication processing between the host processing device and the plurality of terminal devices; and a communication process between the central communication control device and the terminal device. A plurality of communication control devices for performing
A communication system comprising:
Via the central communication control device, the plurality of communication control devices are selectively and sequentially designated, and an identification command with identification information for specifying the communication control device is passed through the communication control device to the plurality of communication control devices. A command transmission unit for transmitting to the terminal device, and a determination unit for collecting an identification response returned from each of the terminal devices based on the identification command, and determining a communication state using the identification response, The terminal device includes a response transmission unit that, when receiving the identification command, returns information attached to the identification command to the identification response.

According to such a configuration, an identification command to the plurality of terminal devices is transmitted from the higher-level processing device via the plurality of communication control devices selectively and sequentially designated, and the identification command is transmitted to the plurality of terminal devices. The communication status of each terminal device is determined based on the identification information given to the identification response of the communication control device returned from the terminal device based on the information. Therefore, it is possible to check whether or not communication with each terminal device is normally performed based on the identification response obtained by using the plurality of communication control devices one by one.

The central communication control device, the plurality of communication control devices, and the plurality of terminal devices are provided between the central communication control device and the plurality of communication control devices, and between the plurality of communication control devices and the plurality of terminals. The apparatus may include means for performing optical space communication using light rays projected to the space with the device.

The central communication control device, the plurality of communication control devices, and the plurality of terminal devices communicate between the central communication control device and each of the terminal devices via two or more of the communication control devices. And the higher-level processing device may include a unit that lists the terminal devices that have not passed through the two or more communication control devices based on the identification response.

[0015] The command transmitting means of the higher-level processing device may further include a means for adding check data to the identification command, and the response transmitting means of each terminal device is provided with a response data to the received identification command. Means for giving the check data to the identification response and sending back the identification data, wherein the determination means of the higher-level processing device includes the check added to the identification response received from each of the terminal devices. A means for determining whether the content of the data is appropriate may be further provided.

Further, the communication system of the present invention includes a plurality of reading means for processing a prepaid card storing predetermined card information including money amount information corresponding to a monetary value in accordance with a consumption amount; Higher-level processing means for collecting consumption information including a consumption amount; central communication control means coupled to the higher-level processing means for performing communication processing between the higher-level processing means and the plurality of reading means; and And a plurality of communication control means for performing communication processing between the means and the reading means, wherein the higher-order processing means selects the plurality of communication control means via the central communication control means. A command for sequentially specifying the communication control means and transmitting an identification command with identification information for specifying the communication control means to the plurality of reading means via the communication control means. Communication means, and identification means for collecting an identification response returned from each of the reading means based on the identification command, and determining the communication state using the identification response. When a command is received, it may be realized as a prepaid card system including an identification response transmitting means for returning information attached to the received identification command with the identification response.

According to such a configuration, the higher-level processing means causes the identification commands to be transmitted to the plurality of reading means via the plurality of communication control means selectively and sequentially designated, and the identification command is transmitted to the plurality of reading means. Based on the identification information given to the identification response returned from the reading means, the communication status of each reading means is determined. Therefore, it is possible to check whether or not communication with each reading means is normally performed based on the identification response obtained by using the plurality of communication control means one by one.

[0018] In the prepaid card system, the central communication control means, the plurality of communication control means, and the plurality of reading means may be arranged between the central communication control means and the plurality of communication control means and the plurality of communication control means. Means may be provided for performing optical spatial communication between the means and the plurality of reading means using light rays projected into space.

In the prepaid card system, the central communication control means, the plurality of communication control means, and the plurality of reading means may include a communication control means for communicating between the central communication control means and each of the reading means. The high-level processing means may be configured to communicate via a means, and may include means for listing the reading means not passing through two or more of the communication control means based on the identification response.

[0020] The command transmitting means of the higher-level processing means may further comprise means for adding check data to the identification command, and the identification response transmitting means of each of the reading means may be configured to add the check data to the received identification command. The apparatus may further include a unit that adds the check data to the identification response and returns the identification response.The determination unit of the higher-level processing unit may include the determination unit that is attached to the identification response received from each of the reading units. A means for determining whether or not the content of the check data is appropriate may be further provided.

[0021]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A prepaid card system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
The prepaid card system according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a reading device 2, a relay device 3, a central communication control device 5, and a communication control device 6, as shown in FIG. A plurality of reading devices 2 and a plurality of communication control devices 6 are provided, each having a unique address that can be set as desired by a dip switch or the like.

The relay device 3 aggregates the money amount information processed as the consumption amount in each of the reading devices 2 in the store, transmits it to the settlement center, and executes the communication route confirmation process according to the present invention. The relay device 3 includes a transmission / reception unit 31, an operation control unit 32, an address setting unit 33, and a command transmission unit 3.
4 and a reception data processing unit 35.

The transmission / reception unit 31 transmits and receives an optical signal for optical space communication with the central communication control device 5. The operation control unit 32 is activated by a communication confirmation button (not shown) or the like, and controls transmission of a start command and an identification command. When transmitting the identification command, the address setting unit 33 sequentially and selectively sets the address of the communication control device 6 to which the identification command is to be relayed and transferred. Command transmission unit 34
Transmits a command from the relay device 3 via the transmission / reception unit 31. During the communication confirmation processing, the command transmitting unit 34 transmits the start command and then transmits the start command to the address setting unit 3.
The identification command is transmitted with the address of the communication control device 6 sequentially and selectively set by 3. The reception data processing unit 35 performs required processing on the reception data received via the transmission / reception unit 31. If the received data is the identification response, the reception data processing unit 35 controls the two or more communication control devices 6 based on the information of the source reading device 2 and the address data of the communication control device 6 included in the identification response. A list of reading devices that have not received the identification command passed through is listed and output as appropriate.

The central communication control device 5 radiates and transmits a signal transmitted from the transmission / reception unit 31 of the relay device 3 as an optical signal for optical space communication. A plurality of communication control devices 6 are provided, receive the optical signal radiated and transmitted from the relay device 3,
It is transmitted to the reading device 2. When confirming the communication, the communication control device 6 receives only the optical signal whose address of the communication control device 6 is specified from the optical signals radiated and transmitted from the relay device 3 and transmits the optical signal to the reading device 2. .

The reading device 2 is connected to, for example, a vending machine (not shown) for renting out game media, and stores the prepaid card with the value of the game media and the like provided by the vending machine to the user. This is an apparatus for embodying the consumption of a prepaid card by subtracting from the information on the amount of money stored.
Although a plurality of reading devices 2 are provided, only one is shown in FIG. The reading device 2 includes a transmitting / receiving unit 21,
It has a command identification unit 22, a response generation unit 23, and a reading processing unit 24.

The transmission / reception unit 21 transmits and receives an optical signal for optical space communication with the communication control device 6. When receiving the identification command via the transmission / reception unit 21, the command identification unit 22 checks the address of the identification command, and converts the address data of the communication control device 6 of the reception source into the response generation unit 23.
Give to. The response generation unit 23 generates an identification response including the address data of the communication control device of the reception source,
The data is returned to the relay device 3 via the transmission / reception unit 21. The identification response can include the address of the reading device 2 of the transmission source so as to specify the reading device 2 of the transmission source. The reading processing unit 24 performs reading processing related to the consumption of the prepaid card, such as reading and writing the amount information stored in the prepaid card, subtracting the price of the game medium or the like provided to the user, and updating the amount information. .

The communication processing system as shown in FIG. 1 is incorporated in a prepaid card system as shown in FIG. The prepaid card system includes a recording device 1, a reading device 2, a relay device 3, a settlement center 4, a central communication control device 5, and a communication control device 6, as shown in FIG. The recording device 1 and the settlement center 4 are installed at a card issuer D such as a card issuing company or a card manufacturing factory. Each store S has a plurality of reading devices 2 and these reading devices 2
A relay device 3 is connected to the settlement center 4. The number of the relay devices 3 is not limited to one in each store S. For example, one relay device 3 may be provided in a predetermined area in the store S, for example, in each hall or floor. That is, the relay device 3 is provided between the plurality of reading devices 2 for each store S, the plurality of reading devices 2 for each hall in the store S, or the plurality of reading devices 2 for each floor in the store S and the settlement center 4. It is provided between them. The central communication control device 5 and the plurality of communication control devices 6 form an optical space communication network between the relay device 3 and the plurality of reading devices 2. The relay device 3 is connected to the central communication control device 5, and the central communication control device 5 forms a transmission path for space optical communication with the plurality of communication control devices 6. The communication control device 6 forms a transmission path for optical space communication between the central communication control device 5 and the reading device 2.

In this prepaid card system, a prepaid card manufactured and issued by the card issuer D is sold to the store S, and further sold to the user at the store S.
At the store S, the user can pay for the provision of a service such as lending of a game medium by using a prepaid card. This service provision and payment is performed using the reading device 2 installed in the store S, and the amount stored as the amount information on the prepaid card is consumed. The store S counts the information on the amount of money consumed in the relay device 3 and transmits the information to the settlement center 4 of the card issuer D. The card issuer D pays each store S an amount corresponding to the amount information received from each store S at the settlement center 4 as sales.

A prepaid card used in the prepaid card system will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the prepaid card C has a magnetic information storage unit A using a magnetic layer, for example.
It has an amount information area A1 and another information area A2. In the price information area A1, price information such as a balance is recorded, and in the other information area A2, card identification information (card ID) of the prepaid card C, a manufacturer code indicating a manufacturer, manufacturing date (encoding date) information, And an error code when an error occurs. As described above, in order to confirm whether or not data is transmitted from two or more communication control devices 6 to the reading device 2, an address is individually assigned to each reading device 2 and each communication control device 6 in advance. Has been granted. At the time of communication confirmation, by operating only the communication control device 6 having the designated address as shown in FIG. 4, it is possible to know which communication control device 6 is communicating with the reading device 2.

Next, the operation of the prepaid card system thus configured will be specifically described with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. In the relay device 3, when the communication confirmation button is pressed, the communication confirmation processing shown in FIG. 5 is started. After the address of the communication control device 6 is selectively set in advance by the address setting unit 33 (step S11), it is confirmed that the confirmation processing for the addresses of all the communication control devices 6 has not been completed (step S12). . Next, a start command is transmitted to all the communication control devices 6 in the store S via the central communication control device 5 (step S13). At this time, in the relay device 3, a start command is transmitted from the command transmission unit 34 to the central communication control device 5 via the transmission / reception unit 31.

Next, the command transmitting section 34 transmits the identification command to which the address of the selected communication control device 6 has been added (step S14). The reception data processing unit 35 receives an identification response from the reading device 2 to the identification command via the transmission / reception unit 31 (step S1).
5) After a predetermined time has elapsed, the process returns to step S11 (step S16). Such processing is performed by the address setting unit 33.
After the addresses of the communication control devices 6 have been set selectively and repeated according to the above, after confirming that the confirmation processing for all the addresses of the communication control devices 6 has been completed in step S12, the reception data processing unit 35 Based on the identified response, the reading devices 2 having no identification response for two or more communication control devices 6 are listed and output (step S17).

At the time of confirming communication, each communication control device 6 performs a process as shown in FIG. It is checked whether a start command transmitted from the relay device 3 via the central communication control device 5 has been received (step S21). When the start command is received, the power supply on the transmitting side is turned off (step S22). ). If the start command is not received in step S21, the process proceeds directly to step S2.
Skip to step 2 and proceed to the next process.

Next, from the relay device 3 to the central communication control device 5
It is checked whether or not the identification command transmitted via the communication command is received (step S23). When the identification command is received, it is checked whether or not the address of the identification command matches the communication control device 6. Is performed (step S24). If the address of the identification command matches the communication control device 6, the power of the transmitting side is turned on (step S25), and the received identification command is transmitted as it is (step S26). If the identification command is not received in step S23, the process proceeds to step S23.
The process skips steps S24 to S26 and proceeds to the next process. If the addresses of the identification commands do not match in step S24, steps S25 and S26
Skip to the next process.

Next, it is checked whether or not the identification response transmitted from the reading device 2 has been received (step S).
27) If the identification response has been received, the received identification response is transmitted to the central communication control device 5 as it is (step S28), and the process returns to step S21. In step S27, if the identification response has not been received, step S28 is skipped and the process returns to step S21.

At the time of communication confirmation, each reading device 2 performs a process as shown in FIG. The command identification unit 22 checks whether or not the identification command transmitted from the relay device 3 via the central communication control device 5 and the communication control device 6 has been received via the transmission / reception unit 21 (step S31). When the identification command is received, the address information of the communication control device 6 attached to the identification command, that is, the address information of the passed communication control device 6 is given to the response generation unit 23 as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 9, it is added to the identification response (step S32). Next, the identification response to which the address information is added is transmitted to the communication control device 6 (step S33), and the process returns to step S31. If the identification command has not been received in step S31, the reception of the identification command is waited for.
Note that common data is inserted in the predetermined data portion in FIGS. 8 and 9.

A specific operation of the entire prepaid card system will be described. At the time of construction, the work of attaching the reading device 2 is completed, and a communication confirmation button provided on the operation control unit 32 of the relay device 3 in order to confirm whether or not communication is accurately performed from two or more communication control devices 6. (Not shown) is pressed. When the communication confirmation button is pressed, the communication confirmation processing shown in FIG. 5 is started. After the addresses of the communication control devices 6 are selectively set in advance by the address setting unit 33, it is confirmed that the confirmation processing for all the addresses of the communication control devices 6 has not been completed. Next, the start command is transmitted from the relay device 3 to the central communication control device 5.
Is transmitted to all the communication control devices 6 in the store S via.
With this start command, the transmission power supply of each communication control device 6 is turned off. Note that the receiving power supply is turned on because there is an instruction from the central communication control device 5 thereafter.

Next, an identification command to which the address of one communication control device 6 is selectively added is transmitted from the relay device 3. When the assigned address matches its own address, the communication control device 6 transmits the identification command to each reading device 2. When the reading device 2 receives the identification command, it sends the identification command with the address of the communication control device 6 added thereto as an identification response.

The relay device 3 can determine which communication control device 6 is being used with respect to the address transmitted from the reading device 2. Then, when a certain time has elapsed, the relay device 3 transmits a start command. As a result, the transmission power of the communication control device 6 whose transmission power has been turned on is turned off. Next, an identification command to which an address of another communication control device 6 is assigned is transmitted from the relay device 3 to the communication control device 6 via the central communication control device 5, and the communication control device 6 having the address transmits the identification command. Is transmitted to the reading device 2. By repeating such processing, transmission of identification commands and reception and collection of identification responses for all communication control devices 6 are performed.

When the above processing is completed, the relay device 3 creates a list of the reading devices 2 with which the communication has been performed by the less than two communication control devices 6 in the reading device 2 and outputs the list. . From this list, which reading device 2 is 2
It is possible to know whether communication is being performed only by the communication control devices 6 of less than the number. In such a reading device 2, a communication path is secured by correcting the arrangement. In addition to the problem of the communication path to the reading device 2, there is also a mechanical failure of the communication control device 6. When a mechanical failure occurs,
Although it is conceivable that the communication control device 6 does not operate at all, there is a possibility that abnormal data may be transmitted to the relay device 3 separately. Therefore, it is necessary to repair the communication control device 6 more quickly with respect to the failure. However, as described above, in the optical space communication, the establishment status of the transmission path cannot be visually recognized, and in this case, it is not easy to find out because the transmission path is duplicated.

As shown in FIG. 10, in the store S, there are cases where three communication control devices 6 are installed in one block of a plurality of reading devices 2, and which communication control device 6 It is not easy to determine whether or not communication is being performed with the second. For this reason, the failed communication control device 6
Is difficult to determine. The prepaid card system and the communication system according to the present invention can be used in such a case. When the communication control device 6 transmits abnormal data due to a failure, an abnormality appears in the predetermined data portion of the above-described identification response.
It can be determined that the communication control device 6 that has transmitted the abnormal data has failed.

For example, when an identification command as shown in FIG. 11 is received, the communication control device 6 originally transfers the identification command to the reading device 2 as it is. Should be returned.
However, if there is a failure in the communication control device 6, as shown in FIG. 12, an identification response having a predetermined data portion different from that in FIG. 11 is returned. Based on this difference, the failed communication control device 6 can be determined. Although the same phenomenon also appears due to the failure of the reading device 2, the failed device can be comprehensively determined from the abnormality of the identification response and its route.

In this way, it is possible to easily and surely confirm the communication path, such as whether or not communication is being performed from the two or more communication control devices 6 to the reading device 2, and more accurate construction and system Construction can be achieved. The communication system used for the above-mentioned prepaid card system is not limited to the prepaid card system, but can be used for other communication systems using optical space communication or other communication systems.

[0043]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Since the communication path can be checked automatically and easily, it is possible to easily and surely check the communication path, such as whether the reading device is communicating from at least two communication control devices. Thus, it is possible to provide a communication system that enables more reliable construction and system construction.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing a configuration of a main part of a prepaid card system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of a prepaid card system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically illustrating a functional configuration of a prepaid card used in the prepaid card system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing the operation of the prepaid card system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining communication confirmation processing in the relay device in the prepaid card system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the communication control device in the prepaid card system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the reading device in the prepaid card system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram for explaining a format of an identification command used in the prepaid card system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram for explaining a format of an identification response used in the prepaid card system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram for explaining the operation of the prepaid card system of FIG. 1;

11 is a schematic diagram of an identification command for explaining a change at the time of a device failure in the prepaid card system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram of an identification response for explaining a change at the time of a device failure in the prepaid card system of FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Recording device 2 Reading device 3 Relay device 4 Payment center 5 Central communication control device 6 Communication control device 21 Transmission / reception part 22 Command identification part 23 Response generation part 24 Reading processing part 31 Transmission / reception part 32 Operation control part 33 Address setting part 34 Command transmission Unit 35 Received data processing unit

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code FI H04B 10/22

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of terminal devices, a higher-level processing device for exchanging information between the plurality of terminal devices, and a higher-level processing device coupled to the higher-level processing device, the upper-level processing device being connected to the plurality of terminal devices. A communication system comprising: a central communication control device that performs communication processing; and a plurality of communication control devices that perform communication processing between the central communication control device and the terminal device. Via the central communication controller,
Command transmission means for selectively designating the plurality of communication control devices sequentially and transmitting an identification command with identification information specifying the communication control device to the plurality of terminal devices via the communication control device; Determining means for collecting an identification response returned from each of the terminal devices based on the identification command, and determining the communication status using the identification response, wherein each of the terminal devices receives the identification command. Then, there is provided a response transmission means for attaching information attached to the identification command to the identification response and returning the response. 2. The central communication control device, the plurality of communication control devices, and the plurality of terminal devices are provided between the central communication control device and the plurality of communication control devices, and between the plurality of communication control devices and the plurality of terminal devices. 2. The communication system according to claim 1, further comprising means for performing optical space communication using a light beam projected into space with the terminal device. 3. The central communication control device, the plurality of communication control devices, and the plurality of terminal devices communicate between the central communication control device and each of the terminal devices via two or more of the communication control devices. 2. The communication device according to claim 1, wherein the higher-level processing device includes means for listing the terminal devices that have not passed through at least two of the communication control devices based on the identification response. 3. 3. The communication system according to 2. 4. The command transmission means of the host processing device further comprises means for adding check data to the identification command, and the response transmission means of each of the terminal devices is provided with a response data attached to the received identification command. Further comprising means for giving the check data to the identification response and returning the identification response, wherein the determination means of the higher-level processing device determines whether the content of the check data added to the identification response received from each of the terminal devices is The communication system according to claim 1, further comprising a unit that determines whether the communication system is appropriate.