JP2006332787A - Monitoring system, monitoring terminal, terminal to be monitored, life-and-death monitoring program, and life-and-death monitoring response program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To highly accurately specify a portion of a failure on a network. <P>SOLUTION: In a monitoring system for causing a monitoring terminal to perform the life-and-death monitoring of a plurality of terminals to be monitored connected to the communication network, the monitoring terminal allows a packet to cycle for one part or all the plurality of terminals monitored via the communication network on the basis of a previously set order, confirms the presence or absence of a failure of the communication line and the terminals monitored from information acquired from the packet having cycled, generates a packet for cycling in an order opposite to the order when determining that a failure occurs, allows the generated packet to cycle, and compares the packet having cycled with the previously packet to specify a portion having a failure. The terminal to be monitored receives the packet, writes predetermined information into the received packet, and transmits the packet to a predetermined terminal to be monitored on the basis of the order. Thus, the problem is solved. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a monitoring system, a monitoring terminal, a monitored terminal, a life / death monitoring program, and a life / death monitoring response program, and in particular, a monitoring system, a monitoring terminal, a monitored terminal for accurately identifying a fault location on a network, The present invention relates to a life and death monitoring program and a life and death monitoring response program.

  Conventionally, in a monitoring system consisting of a monitoring terminal connected to a communication network represented by the Internet and a plurality of monitored terminals, the monitoring terminal is connected to the network as a method for detecting the occurrence of a failure on the network. In addition, there is a method for individually checking the operation of all monitored terminals. However, this method has a problem that the load on the monitoring terminal increases.

  Therefore, there is a technique for circulating a packet having a check flag and an order of circulating a plurality of monitored terminals from the monitoring terminal, and detecting whether or not a failure occurs in the plurality of monitored terminals connected on the network (for example, (See Patent Document 1).

  In the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, when each monitored terminal receives a packet, the check flag is checked, and the packet is transmitted to the monitored terminal to be transmitted next. In addition, the monitoring terminal receives a packet that circulates all the monitored terminals that are targets, and determines that the monitored terminal that is not checked by the check flag is a terminal in which a failure has occurred.

Furthermore, in Patent Document 1, when the monitored terminal knows in advance that a failure has occurred in the monitored terminal to be transmitted next, the next transmission is performed without transmitting a packet to the monitored terminal. A method of transmitting to a monitored terminal to be shown is shown.
JP 2002-215476 A

  However, in the case of the prior art as described above, the monitoring terminal determines from the packet contents that "the failure has occurred in the monitored terminals" or "a failure has occurred in the communication line connecting the monitored terminals to each other". It cannot be specified with high accuracy until Furthermore, in the prior art, since the monitored terminal only checks the check flag, it is impossible to determine when the monitored terminal was operating normally. Therefore, it takes time to investigate the cause of the communication failure.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and provides a monitoring system, a monitoring terminal, a monitored terminal, a life / death monitoring program, and a life / death monitoring response program capable of specifying a fault location on a network with high accuracy. The purpose is to do.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention employs means for solving the problems having the following characteristics.

  The invention described in claim 1 is a monitoring system that performs alive monitoring of a plurality of monitored terminals connected on a communication network by a monitoring terminal, wherein the monitoring terminal is a part or all of the plurality of monitored terminals. For the packet, the packet is circulated through the communication network based on a preset order, the communication line and the monitored terminal are confirmed to have a failure from the information obtained from the circulated packet, and the failure occurs. If it is determined that the packet is circulated in the reverse order of the order, the generated packet is circulated, and the circulated packet is compared with the previously obtained packet to determine the location of the failure. The monitored terminal receives the packet, writes predetermined information in the received packet, and then transmits the packet based on the order. And transmits to the constant of the monitored device.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, the monitoring terminal performs a direct response confirmation to the monitored terminal that determines that a failure has occurred based on the information obtained from the packet, thereby identifying the failure location. It is characterized by specifying.

  In the invention described in claim 3, when the monitored terminal cannot transmit the packet to a predetermined monitored terminal, the monitored terminal passes through another monitored terminal set in a subsequent order. The packet is transmitted to a monitoring terminal, the packet is transmitted to the monitoring terminal via a monitored terminal that has already circulated, or the packet is directly transmitted to the monitoring terminal.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, when the monitored terminal receives the packet, the monitored terminal confirms whether its own operation is normal and writes date / time information and / or operation result information in the packet. It is characterized by that.

  The invention described in claim 5 is a monitoring terminal for identifying a monitored terminal in which a failure has occurred by causing a plurality of monitored terminals connected on a communication network to circulate packets in a predetermined order. And transmitting / receiving the packet, and a part or all of the plurality of monitored terminals is circulated through the communication network based on a preset order, and obtained from the circulated packet And a control unit for confirming whether or not a failure has occurred in the communication line and the monitored terminal from the information.

  Further, in the invention described in claim 6, when the control unit determines that a failure has occurred from the information obtained from the packet, the control unit generates a packet for circulating in the reverse order to the order. The generated packet is circulated, and the failure point is specified by comparing the circulated packet and the previously obtained packet.

  Further, in the invention described in claim 7, the control unit directly identifies a failure location by performing a response confirmation to a monitored terminal that is determined to have a failure based on information obtained from the packet. It is characterized by specifying.

  According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for causing a monitoring device to identify the presence or absence of a fault by circulating packets generated by a monitoring device connected on a communication network in a preset order. In the monitored terminal, after transmitting and receiving the packet, receiving the packet, writing predetermined information in the received packet, and then transmitting the packet from the transmitting and receiving unit to the predetermined monitored terminal based on the order And when the packet cannot be transmitted to the predetermined monitored terminal, the control unit transmits the packet via another monitored terminal set in the subsequent order by the transmitting / receiving unit. The monitoring terminal transmits the packet, or the monitoring terminal transmits the packet via a monitored terminal that has already circulated, or the monitoring terminal transmits the packet. Characterized in that to transmit the packet directly.

  According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, when the monitored terminal receives the packet, the monitored terminal confirms whether its own operation is normal and writes date / time information and / or operation result information in the packet. It is characterized by that.

  According to the tenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided life and death monitoring for identifying a monitored terminal in which a failure has occurred by causing a plurality of monitored terminals connected on a communication network to circulate packets in a predetermined order. In a life and death monitoring program for a monitoring terminal for causing a computer to execute processing, a packet generation process for generating a packet having an address list for circulating a part or all of the plurality of monitored terminals in a predetermined order; and Based on a transmission process for transmitting a packet to a predetermined monitored terminal, a reception process for receiving the packet circulated on the communication network, information written from each non-monitoring terminal to the packet, and whether or not there is a write A computer is made to execute a failure confirmation process for confirming whether or not a failure has occurred in the communication line and the monitored terminal.

  In the invention described in claim 11, when it is determined by the failure confirmation processing that a failure has occurred from information obtained from the packet, a packet for circulating in a reverse order to the order is generated. Then, the generated packet is circulated, and the circulated packet is compared with the previously obtained packet to have a failure location specifying process for specifying the failure location.

  In the invention described in claim 12, the failure location identification processing is performed by directly confirming a response to a monitored terminal that has been determined that a failure has occurred based on information obtained from the packet. It is characterized by specifying a location.

  According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, a packet generated by a monitoring device connected on a communication network is circulated in a preset order so that the monitoring device can identify the presence or absence of a failure. In the life and death monitoring response program in the monitored terminal for causing the computer to execute the life and death monitoring response process, after receiving the packet and writing the predetermined information to the received packet and the predetermined information, the packet is Judgment whether or not transmission to a predetermined monitored terminal is possible. If transmission is not possible, whether to cause the monitoring terminal to transmit the packet via another monitored terminal set in a subsequent order The monitoring terminal transmits the packet via the monitored terminal that has already circulated, or the monitoring terminal transmits the packet directly. A control process to execute the transmission process of transmitting the packet to the computer.

  Further, in the invention described in claim 14, when the packet is received, the control process confirms whether its own operation is normal, and writes date / time information and / or operation result information in the packet. It is characterized by.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, in the monitoring system, it is possible to specify a fault location on the communication network with high accuracy. Moreover, since it is possible to check whether or not a failure has occurred in some or all of the plurality of monitored terminals by simply circulating one packet on the communication network, the load on the monitoring device can be reduced.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, it is possible to specify with high accuracy whether the fault is in the monitored terminal or the fault on the communication line.

  In addition, according to the third aspect of the present invention, it is possible to reliably transmit a packet to the monitoring terminal even when some kind of failure has occurred.

  According to the invention described in claim 4, it is possible to easily grasp at least how long the monitored terminal has been operating normally based on the date / time information. In addition, it is possible to grasp in detail the details of the failure in the monitored terminal from the operation result information. Further, by writing warning information before the occurrence of the failure, the occurrence of the failure can be prevented in advance.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the monitoring device can identify the fault location on the communication network with high accuracy. Moreover, since it is possible to check whether or not a failure has occurred in some or all of the plurality of monitored terminals by simply circulating one packet on the communication network, the load on the monitoring device can be reduced.

  Further, according to the invention described in claim 6, it is possible to specify the fault location efficiently and with high accuracy.

  According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, it is possible to specify with high accuracy whether the monitored terminal is a failure or a communication line failure.

  In addition, according to the eighth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to reliably transmit a packet circulating around the monitored terminal to the monitoring terminal. Thereby, it is possible to cause the monitoring terminal to specify the fault location on the communication network with high accuracy.

  According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, the monitoring terminal can easily grasp at least how long the monitored terminal has been operating normally based on the date and time information. In addition, the operation result information allows the monitoring terminal side to grasp the details of the failure in the monitored terminal in detail. Further, by writing warning information before the occurrence of the failure, the occurrence of the failure can be prevented in advance.

  Further, according to the invention described in claim 10, in the life and death monitoring program, it is possible to specify the fault location on the communication network with high accuracy. Moreover, since it is possible to check whether or not a failure has occurred in some or all of the plurality of monitored terminals by simply circulating one packet on the communication network, the load on the monitoring device can be reduced. In addition, the life and death monitoring process according to the present invention can be easily realized by installing the execution program in the computer.

  In addition, according to the invention as set forth in claim 11, it is possible to specify a fault location efficiently and with high accuracy.

  According to the invention described in claim 12, it is possible to specify with high accuracy whether the monitored terminal is a failure or a communication line failure.

  According to the thirteenth aspect of the present invention, in the life / death monitoring response program, a packet that circulates the monitored terminal can be reliably transmitted to the monitoring terminal. Thereby, it is possible to cause the monitoring terminal to specify the fault location on the communication network with high accuracy. In addition, by installing the execution program in the computer, it is possible to easily realize the life / death monitoring response process in the present invention.

  According to the invention described in claim 14, the monitoring terminal can easily grasp at least how long the monitored terminal has been operating normally based on the date / time information. In addition, the operation result information allows the monitoring terminal side to grasp the details of the failure in the monitored terminal in detail. Further, by writing warning information before the occurrence of the failure, the occurrence of the failure can be prevented in advance.

  Hereinafter, embodiments in which a monitoring system, a monitoring terminal, a monitored terminal, an alive monitoring program, and an alive monitoring response program according to the present invention are preferably implemented will be described with reference to the drawings.

<System configuration>
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a life and death monitoring system according to the present invention. The life and death monitoring system 10 shown in FIG. 1 is configured to have a monitoring terminal 11 and monitored terminals 12-1 to 12-n monitored by the monitoring terminal. The monitoring terminal 11 and the monitored terminal 12 are: Data is transmitted and received via a communication network 13 typified by the Internet network.

  The monitoring terminal 11 generates a packet in which the order of circulation to some or all of the plurality of monitored terminals 12-1 to 12-n is written, and circulates the generated packet through a predetermined route. In addition, the monitoring terminal 11 confirms whether or not a failure has occurred in the communication line and the monitored terminal 12 based on predetermined information obtained from a packet that circulates and returns to each monitored terminal 12. If the monitoring terminal 11 determines that a failure has occurred as a result of the confirmation, the monitoring terminal 11 generates a packet that circulates in a different order from the previous time, and circulates the packet again. An example of a cyclic route having an order different from the previous one is, for example, a method in which the order is reversed from the previous order. However, the present invention is not limited to this.

  Further, the monitoring terminal 11 identifies the fault location by comparing the information of the packet that has been circulated and returned in the reverse order with the information of the packet that has been circulated and returned earlier. Further, the monitoring terminal 11 can further identify the failure location by individually checking the response to the monitored terminal 12 that may have a failure based on the received packet information. .

  On the other hand, when the monitored terminal 12 receives the packet, the monitored terminal 12 checks whether it is operating normally and writes predetermined information in a predetermined area of the packet. Also, the monitored terminal 12 refers to the packet in which the order of circulation is written and transmits it to the monitored terminal 12 to be transmitted next. When the monitored terminal 12 cannot transmit to the next monitored terminal, the monitored terminal 12 transmits a packet to the monitoring terminal 11 via another monitored terminal 12 set in the subsequent order, or has already been transmitted. The packet is transmitted to the monitoring terminal 11 via the monitored terminal 12 that has been circulated, or the packet is directly transmitted to the monitoring terminal 11. Thereby, even when some kind of failure occurs in the system, the packet can be reliably transmitted to the monitoring terminal 11.

  Next, a schematic configuration example of the monitoring terminal 11 and the monitored terminal 12 in the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

<Monitoring terminal 11>
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of the monitoring terminal. The monitoring terminal 11 illustrated in FIG. 2 is configured to include a transmission / reception unit 21, a control unit 22, a date and time acquisition unit 23, a time measurement unit 24, a storage unit 25, and a display output unit 26.

  When receiving a connection request signal or a disconnection instruction signal from the communication network 13, the transmission / reception unit 21 performs a connection / release operation of the communication line. Further, when receiving a signal (connection request signal, disconnection instruction signal) from the control unit 22, the transmission / reception unit 21 performs a connection / release operation of the communication line.

  In addition, when the transmission / reception unit 21 receives a connection completion signal from the communication network 13 or a packet reception confirmation signal transmitted from the monitored terminal 12 via the communication network 13, the transmission / reception unit 21 outputs the received signal to the control unit 22.

  In addition, when the transmission / reception unit 21 receives a packet from the monitored terminal 12 via the communication network 13, the transmission / reception unit 21 outputs the packet to the control unit 22. When a packet reception confirmation signal is input from the control unit 22, the signal is transmitted to the monitored terminal 12 set in advance via the communication network 13. Furthermore, when the packet from the control unit 22 is input, the transmission / reception unit 21 transmits the packet to the monitored terminal 12 via the network.

  In addition, the control unit 22 performs various operations and processes such as data input / output with each component in the monitoring terminal 11 to control the entire monitoring terminal 11. Specifically, the control unit 22 acquires time information from the date and time acquisition unit 23, and lastly circulates the packet in each of the monitored terminals 12-1 to 12-n stored in the storage unit 25. Based on the date and time information, a monitored terminal that circulates the packet is extracted. Specifically, for example, a terminal that has passed a predetermined time or more from the time of the date and time information is a terminal to be visited. Further, in order to check the operation of the extracted monitored terminals, the control unit 22 generates a packet including an address list in which the addresses of the monitored terminals 12 are recorded and outputs the packet to the storage unit 25. In order to connect to the communication network 13 with the head monitored terminal 12, a connection request signal is output to the transmission / reception unit 21. In addition, when the connection request signal is output from the transmission / reception unit 21 after the connection request signal is output, the control unit 22 reads the packet stored in the storage unit 25 and outputs the packet to the transmission / reception unit 21.

  Further, when the packet reception confirmation signal is input from the transmission / reception unit 21 after outputting the packet, the control unit 22 outputs a disconnection instruction signal to the transmission / reception unit 21 in order to open the communication line with the transmission destination. Further, when receiving a packet from the transmission / reception unit 21, the control unit 22 outputs a packet reception confirmation signal to the transmission / reception unit 21.

  Further, after outputting the reception confirmation signal, the control unit 22 checks whether the transmission order (address list) of the input packet matches the transmission order (address list) of the packet stored in the storage unit, and checks the input packet. It is confirmed whether predetermined information (for example, date information and / or operation result information) is written in all the lists. In addition, the control unit 22 inputs the input packet when the cyclic order (address list) of the packet stored in the storage unit 25 matches and the predetermined information is written in all the check lists. Predetermined information written in the packet check list is stored as the last (latest) information of each monitored terminal 12 stored in the storage unit 25.

  Note that the control unit 22 can transmit a packet to the next monitored terminal 12 when the input packet and the transmission order (address list) of the packet stored in the storage unit 25 do not match, that is, during the packet transmission. If the packet is returned directly via the route that was sent, or if the time is not written in a part of the checklist, for example, a new packet that makes the packet transmission order (address list) circulate in reverse order. When a connection request signal is output to the transmission / reception unit 21 and a connection completion signal is input from the transmission / reception unit 21, a newly generated packet is output to the transmission / reception unit 21.

  After outputting the newly created packet in this way, the control unit 22 newly circulates the previously circulated packet when the packet is input from the transmission / reception unit 21 (receives the circulated packet). Based on the contents of the packet (information written in the address list or check list), the monitored terminal 12 that may have failed is identified.

  In addition, the control unit 22 activates the time measuring unit 24 when the connection request signal is output or when the packet is output, and if the connection completion signal or the packet reception confirmation signal is not input within a predetermined time, communication with the transmission destination cannot be performed. The disconnection instruction signal is output to the transmission / reception unit 21. Then, the control unit 22 refers to the address list written in the packet stored in the storage unit 25, and newly transmits the monitored terminal 12 to be transmitted next to the transmission destination that could not be transmitted. First.

  Further, when predetermined information such as date and time information is not written in a part of the check list, the control unit 22 identifies the monitored terminal 12 corresponding to the list as a possibility that a failure has occurred. .

  Here, the control unit 22 writes only the address of the monitored device 12 in the address list in order to individually check the operation of the monitored terminal 12 that has been identified as possibly having a failure. When a packet is generated, a connection request signal is output to the transmission / reception unit 21 and a connection completion signal is input from the transmission / reception unit 21, a newly generated packet is output to the transmission / reception unit 21. Further, after outputting the newly generated packet, the control unit 22 inputs this packet from the transmission / reception unit 21 (receives the packet), and predetermined information such as date information is written in the check list. In this case, it is determined that the monitored terminal 12 is normal, and predetermined information such as date / time information written in the check list of the input packet is stored in the storage unit 25.

  Note that when the control unit 22 determines that a failure has occurred in the monitored terminal 12, the control unit 22 displays and outputs the fact that an abnormality has occurred on the display output unit 26, and notifies the monitor.

  Further, when there is a date / time acquisition request signal from the control unit 22, the date / time acquisition unit 23 acquires date / time information using, for example, an internal clock and outputs the date / time information to the control unit 22. The date and time information in this embodiment is information that arbitrarily combines date (year / month / day) and time (hour / minute / second), for example, “2005/5/23 20:30:55”. It may be only time.

  The time measuring unit 24 measures the time from when the monitoring terminal 11 transmits a packet until the packet circulates through the monitored terminal 12 and returns. In addition, the time measuring unit 24 measures a certain time during which a connection completion signal or a packet reception confirmation signal is to be input from when the control unit 22 outputs a connection request signal or transmits a packet.

  The storage unit 25 also stores the address of the monitored terminal 12 connected to the communication network 13 and predetermined information (date information or operation result information) obtained at the end (latest) of each monitored terminal 12. Keep it. The storage unit 25 also stores the transmission order (address list) of transmitted packets.

  In addition, the display output unit 26 transmits a packet to the monitored terminal 12 on the communication network 13, and displays / outputs text, a figure, a voice, and the like by a display, a speaker, or the like when the packet is not returned after a certain period of time. . The display output unit 26 does not receive a connection completion signal or a packet reception confirmation signal even after a predetermined time has elapsed since the control unit 22 outputs a connection request signal or transmits a packet, or a failure has occurred. Even when the monitored terminal 12 is specified, characters, diagrams, voices, and the like are displayed and output as described above.

<Monitored terminal 12>
Next, a schematic configuration of the monitored terminal 12 will be described. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a monitored terminal. The monitoring terminal 12 illustrated in FIG. 3 is configured to include a transmission / reception unit 31, a control unit 32, a date and time acquisition unit 33, a time measurement unit 34, and a storage unit 35.

  When the transmission / reception unit 31 receives a connection request signal or a disconnection instruction signal from the communication network 13, the transmission / reception unit 31 performs a connection / release operation of the communication line. In addition, when the signal from the control unit 32 (connection request signal, disconnection instruction signal) is input, the transmission / reception unit 31 performs a connection / release operation of the communication line. Further, the transmission / reception unit 31 receives a connection completion signal from the communication network 13 and a packet reception confirmation signal transmitted from the monitoring terminal 11 and other monitored terminals 12 via the communication network 13 and outputs them to the control unit 22. . The transmission / reception unit 31 receives a packet from the monitoring terminal 11 or another monitored terminal 12 via the communication network 13 and outputs the packet to the control unit 32.

  Further, when receiving the packet reception confirmation signal from the control unit 32, the transmission / reception unit 31 transmits a signal to the monitoring terminal 11 and other monitored terminals 12 via the communication network 13. Further, when a packet is input from the control unit 32, the packet is transmitted to the monitoring terminal 11 and other monitored terminals 12 via the communication network 13.

  In addition, the control unit 32 performs processing such as various calculations and data input / output with each component in the monitored terminal 12 to control the monitored terminal 12 as a whole. Specifically, when receiving a packet from the transmission / reception unit 31, the control unit 32 outputs the packet to the storage unit 35 and outputs a packet reception confirmation signal to the transmission / reception unit 31. In addition, after the packet is input from the transmission / reception unit 31, the control unit 32 confirms whether or not it operates normally. If the control unit 32 is operating normally, the date and time information is acquired by the date and time acquisition unit 33 and the packet stored in the storage unit 35 is stored in the check list corresponding to the self address part of the address list. Write. The date and time information in this embodiment is information that arbitrarily combines date (year / month / day) and time (hour / minute / second), for example, “2005/5/23 20:30:55”. It may be only time. Further, the date / time information is not limited to when normal operation is confirmed, but may be date / time information at the time of reception or transmission.

  The information to be written in the check list is not limited to date and time information. For example, the operation status of a security sensor managed by the monitored terminal 12, the detection information by the sensor, the consumption status of the battery (battery) The terminal operation content performed by each monitored terminal 12 may be used, or information obtained by combining the operation result information and the date / time information may be used. Thus, it is possible to easily grasp at least how long the monitored terminal has been operating normally based on the date / time information. In addition, it is possible to grasp in detail the details of the failure in the monitored terminal from the operation result information. Further, by writing warning information before the occurrence of the failure, the occurrence of the failure can be prevented in advance.

  In addition, the control unit 32 writes the time such as date and time information, confirms the next packet transmission destination (other monitored terminal or monitoring terminal) from the address list, and connects the communication line with this transmission destination. The connection request signal is output to the transmission / reception unit 31. In addition, when the connection completion signal is output from the transmission / reception unit 31 after the connection request signal is output, the control unit 32 reads the packet stored in the storage unit 35 and outputs the packet to the transmission / reception unit 31. When the packet reception confirmation signal is input from the transmission / reception unit 31 after outputting the packet, the control unit 32 outputs a disconnection instruction signal to the transmission / reception unit 31 in order to open the communication line with the transmission destination.

  The control unit 32 measures the time by the time measuring unit 34 when the connection request signal is output or when the packet is output. If the connection completion signal or the packet reception confirmation signal is not input within a predetermined time, the control unit 32 communicates with the transmission destination. Therefore, the disconnection instruction signal is output to the transmission / reception unit 31. Further, the control unit 32 refers to the address list written in the packet stored in the storage unit 35, and sets “the monitoring terminal 11 that is the final transmission destination of the packet as a new transmission destination” or “the packet is transmitted. In order to return the packet to the monitoring terminal 11 via the route that has been sent, the address list of the packet stored in the storage unit 35 is rewritten to determine a new transmission destination ”or“ stored in the storage unit 35 Referring to the address list of the existing packet, the packet transmission is performed using either “monitored terminal 12 or monitoring terminal 11 to be transmitted next to the transmission destination that could not be transmitted” as a new transmission destination ”. The destination is determined and the packet transmission operation is performed.

  In addition, the time measuring unit 34 measures the time during which the connection completion signal and the packet reception confirmation signal are to be input from when the control unit 32 outputs the connection request signal or transmits the packet. The storage unit 35 also stores the transmission order (address list) of transmitted packets.

<Monitoring process>
Next, a specific example of the monitoring process in the present invention based on the above-described apparatus configuration will be described. First, FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a packet circulation route of each terminal in the monitoring process. In FIG. 4, for the convenience of explaining the state of packet circulation in the present invention, the monitored terminals 12-1 to 12-4 are circulated. However, the number and routes of the monitored terminals 12 are not limited thereto. It is not something.

  The monitoring device 11 creates a traveling packet as described above. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a traveling packet in the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 5, the traveling packet 40 has an address list 41 in which the addresses of the terminals are stored in the order of circulation in order to cause the monitored terminals 12-1 to 12-4 to circulate the packet. The address indicates a normal IP (Internet Protocol) address or a MAC (Media Access Control) address. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a packet is transmitted to a specific monitored terminal 12 via the communication network 13. Any address information may be used.

  The traveling packet 40 includes predetermined information (for example, date / time information, operation result) indicating that each monitored terminal 12-1 to 12-4 corresponding to each address list 41 has confirmed its normal operation. A check list 42 for storing information and the like. Note that the traveling packet 40 shown in FIG. 5 corresponds to the traveling route shown in FIG. In other words, “monitored terminal 12-1 → monitored terminal 12-2 → monitored terminal 12-3 → monitored terminal 12-4 → monitoring terminal 11” is sequentially transferred from the top of the address list 41 shown in FIG. . Therefore, the final destination of the packet 40 is the monitoring terminal 11.

<Outline of life and death monitoring process in monitoring terminal>
Next, a schematic operation of the life and death monitoring process in the monitoring terminal will be described using a flowchart. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a schematic life / death monitoring processing procedure in the monitoring terminal. In FIG. 6, first, the monitoring terminal 11 determines the order of monitored terminals for circulating packets (S01), and generates a packet including an address list and a check list corresponding to the order (S02). Further, the monitoring terminal 11 confirms the response by connecting a line to a predetermined monitored terminal to be transmitted in accordance with the packet address list obtained in S02 (S03).

  Next, it is determined whether or not a packet can be transmitted by the process of S03 (S04). Here, when the packet transmission is impossible due to the reason that the process of S03 is not performed normally (NO in S04), the monitoring terminal 11 refers to the address list and should be monitored next. It is determined whether there is a terminal 12 (S05). Here, when there is a monitored terminal 12 to be transmitted (YES in S05), the process returns to S03 to confirm the response to the monitored terminal 12 to be transmitted next. If there is no monitored terminal 12 to be transmitted next in S05 (NO in S05), the process is terminated. If the packet can be transmitted in S04 (YES in S04), the packet is transmitted to the monitored terminal 12 (S06).

  Next, it is determined whether the transmitted packet has been received (S07). If no packet has been received (NO in S07), it is determined whether a predetermined time has elapsed since the packet was transmitted in S03 (S08). If a predetermined time has not elapsed (in S08, NO), the process returns to S07, and the reception of the packet is confirmed again. If a predetermined time has elapsed in S08 (YES in S08), a message indicating that the packet could not be received is displayed / output as characters, diagrams, voices, etc. to the monitoring terminal 11 (S10), and monitored. The person in charge.

  In S07, when a packet is received within a predetermined time (YES in S07), the packet is checked according to whether predetermined information such as time is accumulated in the checklists 42-1 to 42-4 of the received packet. It is determined whether or not a failure has occurred in the monitored terminals 12-1 to 12-4 or the communication line between the terminals in the route (S09).

  Here, when it is determined that a failure has occurred (failure exists) (YES in S09), there is a monitored terminal 12 that is determined to have a failure in the packet with respect to the monitoring terminal 11. Is displayed / outputted by characters, drawings, voices, etc. (S10), and the supervisor is notified. If it is determined that no failure has occurred (NO in S09), that is, if predetermined information is accumulated in the check list, the operation is terminated as it is.

<Outline of life and death monitoring response processing in monitored terminal>
Next, the general operation of the alive monitoring response process in each monitored terminal will be described using a flowchart. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of a schematic alive monitoring response processing procedure for each monitored terminal. First, when each monitored terminal 12 receives a packet (S11), it determines (confirms) whether its own operation is normal (S12). If the operation is normal (YES in S12), predetermined information such as time and operating state is written in a predetermined area (check list 42) corresponding to each monitored terminal 12 (S13). ). If the operation is not normal (NO in S12), the check list is not written.

  Next, the monitored terminal 12 determines whether or not there is a monitored terminal 12 to be transmitted included in the packet (S14). In S14, the packet address list 41 is referred to and it is determined whether there is a monitored terminal 12 in an order later than its own address.

  If there is a monitored terminal 12 to be transmitted (YES in S14), a line is connected to the next monitoring terminal and a response is confirmed (S15). As a result of the response confirmation, it is determined whether or not transmission is possible (S16). If transmission is possible (YES in S16), the packet is transmitted to the next monitored terminal 12 (S17). If transmission is not possible (NO in S16), the process returns to S14 to perform subsequent processing such as determining whether there is a monitored terminal 12 to be transmitted next.

  Further, when there is no monitored terminal 12 to be transmitted in S14 (NO in S14), the response is confirmed by connecting the monitoring terminal 11 and the communication line (S18). Here, as a result of the response, it is determined whether or not transmission is possible (S19). If transmission is possible (YES in S19), a packet is transmitted to the monitoring terminal 11.

  If transmission is impossible (NO in S19), the address order of the current packet is rewritten to a predetermined order (S21). In S21, the order of the current address list is rewritten in the reverse order. As a result, since the route that has already passed once is returned, it is highly possible that the communication line and the monitored terminal 12 are normal, and the packet can be transmitted to the monitoring terminal 11 with high accuracy.

  Next, based on the address list of the reverse order route, a communication line is connected to the next monitored terminal 12 to confirm the response (S22). Here, as a result of the response confirmation, it is determined whether or not transmission is possible (S23). If transmission is possible (YES in S23), the packet is transmitted to the next monitored terminal 12 (S24). . If transmission is impossible (NO in S23), after waiting for a predetermined time (S25), the process returns to S14 and the above-described processing is performed. This is because, by waiting for a predetermined time, there is a possibility that a terminal that could not be connected due to some influence can be connected.

  Thus, by performing the monitoring process as described above in the monitored terminal 12, the packet can be circulated to the monitoring terminal 11 with high accuracy. In the above-described processing of S12 and S13, an example is shown in which nothing is written in the check list when the operation is not normal. For example, in addition to the above example, when the operation is not normal, the check list is displayed. “ERROR” or “WARNING” may be written. This makes it easy to identify that a failure has occurred in the terminal. Further, more detailed information on the monitored terminal 12 can be acquired by specifically describing the operation result information such as the content of the error. Furthermore, the occurrence of a failure can be prevented in advance by writing it in the check list as warning information before the failure occurs when the operation is unstable.

  In addition, in the process of transmitting a packet to the next terminal in the flowchart shown in FIG. 7 described above, if the packet cannot be transmitted to the next monitored terminal 12, monitoring is performed via another monitored terminal 12 set in the subsequent order. Whether the terminal 11 transmits a packet, whether the monitoring terminal 11 transmits a packet via the monitored terminal 12 that has already circulated, or whether the monitoring terminal 11 directly transmits the packet is described in the processing procedure shown in FIG. It is not limited. For example, the processes in S18 to S20 in FIG. 7 and the processes in S21 to S24 may be interchanged.

  Next, a specific operation example for specifying a fault location based on the above-mentioned life and death monitoring processing procedure will be described.

<First operation example>
First, in the operation of the monitoring terminal 11 and the monitored terminal 12 for specifying the failure location of the communication network 13, packets are transmitted to each monitored terminal 12 in the order shown in FIG. Assume that the packet shown in FIG. In the first operation example, an example is shown in which it is specified that there is a failure in the communication line (network) between each monitored terminal 12-2 and each monitored terminal 12-3.

  The monitoring terminal 11 first determines the order of monitored terminals that circulate the packet, and creates the packet 40 shown in FIG. Then, according to the address list 41, the line is connected to the monitored terminal 12-1 that is the transmission destination of the first packet, and the packet 40 is transmitted to the monitored terminal 12-1. At this time, predetermined information such as the date and time information and the operation result information described above may be written in the check list 42-5 of the monitoring terminal 11.

  The monitored terminal 12-1 that has received the packet 40 transmitted from the monitoring terminal 11 confirms whether its own operation is normal. If it is normal, the monitored terminal 12-1 sets the self-address 41-1 in the address list 40. Predetermined information such as confirmed date / time information and operation result information is written in the corresponding check list 42-1.

  Then, the monitored terminal 12-1 refers to the address list 41, confirms the monitored terminal to which the packet 40 is to be transmitted next, connects the communication line to the monitored terminal 12-2, and transmits the packet 40 to the monitored terminal. Send to 12-2.

  The monitored terminal 12-2 that has received the packet 40 transmitted from the monitored terminal 12-1 confirms whether its own operation is normal. If it is normal, the self-address 41 of the address list 41 is displayed. In the check list 42-2 corresponding to -2, predetermined information such as date and time information of operation confirmation and operation result contents is written. Then, the monitored terminal 12-2 confirms the monitored terminal to which the packet 40 should be transmitted next from the address list 41 and transmits the packet 40 to the monitored terminal 12-3. The connection operation of the communication line is performed.

  Now, since a failure has occurred between the monitored terminal 12-2 and the monitored terminal 12-3, the monitored terminal 12-2 cannot obtain a response from the monitored terminal 12-3. In this case, the monitored terminal 12-2 determines whether there is a monitored terminal that can be transmitted next from the transmission destination of the packet 40. Here, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, since the address 41-4 of the monitored terminal 12-4 follows, the monitored terminal 12-2 transmits the packet 40 to the monitored terminal 12-4. Therefore, the line connection operation with the monitored terminal 12-4 is performed.

  Here, it is assumed that the monitored terminal 12-2 cannot obtain a response from the monitored terminal 12-4. In this case, the monitored terminal 12-2 determines whether there is a monitored terminal that can be transmitted next from the transmission destination of the packet 40. Here, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, since there is no subsequent monitored terminal, a communication line with the monitoring terminal 11 is connected, and the packet 40 is directly transmitted to the monitoring terminal 11.

  If the monitored terminal 12-2 cannot transmit the packet 40 to the monitored terminals 12-3 and 12-4 and cannot transmit the packet 40 to the monitored terminal 11, the route to which the packet 40 is transmitted and the reverse route are transmitted. In order to return the packet to the monitoring terminal 11, the address list 41 of the packet 40 is rewritten so as to be in the reverse order of FIG. At this time, the order of the check list 42 may be rewritten in correspondence with the address list 41.

  Here, FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a packet for transmission through the reverse order of the cyclic route. As shown in FIG. 8, by rewriting the address list 41 so that the cyclic route of the monitored terminal 12 is in the reverse order, the packet can be transmitted to the monitoring terminal 11 with high accuracy using the cyclic route once passed. it can.

  Note that when the above-described processing is performed using this reverse-order address list, if connection to another terminal cannot be established, the above-described processing may be performed after waiting for a predetermined time. Also, the generation of the reverse order address list does not need to be performed in reverse order for all addresses, and only the minimum necessary address may be rewritten.

  Here, when a packet is received at each terminal by a reverse route, predetermined information when the packet is already received is written in each check list 42 of the monitored terminal 12 that has passed once. In this case, each monitored terminal 12 may update or add the contents of the check list 42. Further, if already written, it may not be written.

  When the monitored terminal 12-2 as described above cannot transmit the packet 40 to the next monitored terminal 12-3, the monitored terminal 12-2 sets the packet 40 in the subsequent order. Whether to transmit to the monitoring terminal 11 through 12-4, directly to the monitoring terminal 11, or to transmit to the monitoring terminal 11 through the already monitored terminal 12-1 is limited to the procedure described above. I can't.

  Next, the monitoring terminal 11 that has received the packet 40 circulated by the above-described method stores the information of the packet 40 and confirms whether or not a failure has occurred based on the information written in the check list 42 of the packet 40. To do. Now, since a failure has occurred between the monitored terminal 12-2 and the monitored terminals 12-3 and 12-4, the checklists 42-3 and 42-4 include predetermined information such as date and time information. Information is not written.

  Here, the monitoring terminal 11 generates a packet in which an address list of the circular route and the reverse route of the packet shown in FIG. 4 generated first as shown in FIG. 8 is set. In the following description, for the sake of convenience, the packet shown in FIG. 8 that has been rewritten to the reverse-order address list generated by the monitoring terminal 11 is referred to as a packet 40 ′ (address list 41 ′, check list 42 ′).

  Next, the monitoring terminal 11 transmits the packet 40 ′ storing the new address list 41 ′ to the monitored terminal 12-4 that is the first transmission destination according to the address list 41. At this time, predetermined information such as date and time information and operation result information may be written in the check list 42'-5 of the monitoring terminal 11.

  The monitored terminal 12-4 that has received the packet 40 ′ transmitted from the monitoring terminal 11 confirms whether its own operation is normal. If it is normal, it corresponds to the self address in the address list 41 ′. For example, predetermined information such as date and time information on which the operation has been confirmed is written in the check list 42'-4. Then, the monitored terminal 12-4 confirms the monitored terminal to which the packet 40 ′ is to be transmitted next from the address list 41 ′, connects the communication line to the monitored terminal 12-3, and monitors the packet 40 ′. It transmits to the terminal 12-3.

  The monitored terminal 12-3 that has received the packet 40 ′ from the monitored terminal 12-4 confirms whether its own operation is normal. If it is normal, it corresponds to the self address in the address list 41 ′. For example, predetermined information such as date and time information on which the operation has been confirmed is written in the check list 42'-3. Then, the monitored terminal 12-3 confirms the monitored terminal to which the packet 40 ′ should be transmitted next from the address list 41 ′ and transmits the packet 40 ′ to the monitored terminal 12-2. -2 is connected to the communication line.

  Now, since a failure has occurred between the monitored terminal 12-3 and the monitored terminal 12-2, the monitored terminal 12-3 cannot obtain a response from the monitored terminal 12-2. In this case, as described above, processing such as transmission to another monitored terminal, direct transmission to the monitoring terminal 11, or transmission of the packet 40 ′ through the reverse route is performed, and the packet 40 ′ is transmitted to the monitoring terminal 11. Send.

  The monitoring terminal 11 that has received the packet 40 ′ stores the information of the packet 40 ′ and compares the information of the packet 40 ′ with the information of the packet 40 that has been stored previously. As a result, the monitoring terminal 11 cannot transmit the packet 40 from the monitored terminal 12-2 to the monitored terminal 12-3, and can transmit the packet 40 ′ from the monitored terminal 12-3 to the monitored terminal 12-2. You can see that there wasn't. That is, it can be specified that a failure has occurred in the communication line connecting the monitored terminal 12-2 and the monitored terminal 12-3.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to specify with high accuracy whether the monitored terminal 12 is a failure or a communication line failure. Further, since it is possible to check whether or not a failure has occurred in some or all of the plurality of monitored terminals 12 by simply circulating one packet on the communication network 13, the load on the monitoring device 11 can be reduced. it can.

<Second operation example>
Next, a second operation example will be described. In the second operation example, when the operations of the monitoring terminal 11 and the monitored terminal 12 for specifying the failure location on the communication network are configured as shown in FIG. 4, the monitored terminal 12-2 and the monitored terminal 12- 3 and an example in which a failure has occurred in the line between the monitored terminal 12-4 and the monitored terminal 12-4 and the monitored terminal 12-3.

  First, as shown in the operation example 1 described above, monitoring processing from the monitoring terminal 11 to the monitored terminal 12-2 is performed. Since the process here is the same as the operation example shown in the operation example 1 described above, a description thereof is omitted here. Next, the monitored terminal 12-2 performs a line connection operation with the monitored terminal 12-3. Since a failure has occurred between the monitored terminal 12-2 and the monitored terminal 12-3, the monitored terminal 12-2 cannot obtain a response from the monitored terminal 12-3. If the monitored terminal 12-2 cannot transmit the packet 40 to the monitored terminal 12-3, the monitored terminal 12-2 refers to the address list 41 and is to be transmitted next to the monitored terminal 12-3. 12-4 is set as a new transmission destination, the monitored terminal 12-3 is skipped, and the packet 40 is transmitted to the monitored terminal 12-4. Further, the monitored terminal 12-2 may set the transmission destination of the packet 40 as the monitoring terminal 11, connect the line with the monitoring terminal 11, and directly transmit the packet 40 to the monitoring terminal.

  If the monitored terminal 12-2 cannot transmit the packet 40 to the monitored terminal 12-3, the monitored terminal 12-2 returns the packet 40 to the monitoring terminal 11 via the route through which the packet 40 has been transmitted. For example, the list 41 may be rewritten so that “the monitored terminal 12-2 → the monitored terminal 12-1 → the monitoring terminal 11”, and the packet 40 may be transmitted to the monitoring terminal 11 via the monitored terminal 12-1. .

  Here, the monitoring terminal 11 that has received the packet 40 by any of the methods described above stores the information of the packet 40 and determines whether or not a failure has occurred based on the information written in the check list 42 of the packet 40. Check. Since a failure has occurred in the line between the monitored terminal 12-2 and the monitored terminal 12-3, the date and time information etc. are included in at least the check list of the monitored terminal 12-3 in the check list 42. Predetermined information has not been written.

  From this, the monitoring terminal 11 determines that a failure has occurred, rewrites the cyclic route of the packet in the reverse order, and changes the packet to “monitored terminal 12-4 → monitored terminal 12-3 → monitored terminal 12”. -2 → monitored terminal 12-1 → monitoring terminal 11 ”, a packet 40 ′ storing a new address list 41 ′ that is circulated in the order of“ 1 ”is generated, and the first transmission destination is generated according to the generated address list 41 ′. The packet 40 ′ is transmitted to the monitored terminal 12-4. The monitored terminal 12-4 that has received the packet 40 ′ transmitted from the monitoring terminal 11 confirms whether its own operation is normal. If it is normal, it corresponds to the self address in the address list 41 ′. The date / time information and the operation result information are written in the check list 42 '.

  Then, the monitored terminal 12-4 confirms the monitored terminal 12 to which the packet 40 ′ should be transmitted next, and transmits the packet 40 ′ to the monitored terminal 12-3. Performs communication line connection operations. Now, since a failure has occurred in the communication line between the monitored terminal 12-4 and the monitored terminal 12-3 that should transmit the packet 40 'next from the address list 41', the monitored terminal 12-4 Cannot receive a response from the monitored terminal 12-3.

  In this way, when the packet 40 ′ cannot be transmitted to the monitored terminal 12-3, as described above, the monitored list is to be transmitted next to the monitored terminal 12-3 with reference to the address list 42 ′. The terminal 12-2 may be a new transmission destination, the monitored terminal 12-3 may be skipped, and the packet 40 ′ may be transmitted to the monitored terminal 12-2. Alternatively, the monitored terminal 12-4 may send the packet 40 'directly to the monitoring terminal 11 by connecting the line to the monitoring terminal 11 with the transmission destination of the packet 40' as the monitoring terminal 11. Even if the monitored terminal 12-4 generates a packet in the reverse order path, the packet 40 'is directly transmitted to the monitoring terminal 11.

  The monitoring terminal 11 that has received the packet 40 ′ by any of the methods described above stores the information of the packet 40 ′ and compares the information of the packet 40 ′ with the information of the packet 40 that has been stored previously. . As a result, it is determined that there is a possibility that a failure has occurred in the monitored terminal 12-3 for which the confirmation time is not written in the check list 42 and the check list 42 '.

Therefore, the monitoring terminal 11 transmits a packet to perform individual operation confirmation again to the monitored terminal 12-3 in which a failure may occur, and performs individual operation confirmation. When the monitored terminal 12-3 performing normal operation receives a packet from the monitoring terminal 11, it responds to the monitoring terminal 11.
The monitoring terminal 11 that has confirmed the response of the monitored terminal 12-3 compares the information on the result of the response confirmation with the stored information of the packet 40 and the packet 40 ′. Then, the monitoring terminal 11 cannot transmit the packet 40 from the monitored terminal 12-2 to the monitored terminal 12-3, and the packet 40 ′ is transmitted from the monitored terminal 12-4 to the monitored terminal 12-3. Since the monitored terminal 12-3 is normal by confirming the individual response, the communication line connecting the monitored terminal 12-2 and the monitored terminal 12-3 and the monitored terminal 12-4 It is possible to specify that a failure has occurred in the communication line connecting the monitoring terminals 12-3.

  By executing the operation example described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to specify a failure with high accuracy.

  Here, an execution program (a life monitoring program, a life monitoring response program) that can cause the computer to execute the life monitoring process in the monitoring terminal 11 and the life monitoring response process in the monitored terminal 12 is generated. The life and death monitoring process and the life and death monitoring response process described above can be easily executed by downloading and installing as a program from an external device to a personal computer, workstation, server, or the like.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to specify a fault location on the network with high accuracy. Specifically, in the monitoring system in which the monitoring terminal checks whether the monitored terminal connected to the communication network is alive or not, the monitoring terminal has a circulation packet in which the order of circulating in advance for a plurality of monitored terminals is written. , And whether or not a failure has occurred is confirmed based on the information of the returned packet. In addition, when the monitoring terminal confirms an abnormality in the network, the monitoring terminal generates a packet for circulation in which the order of circulation is reversed, circulates the generated packet, information on the returned packet, information on the previous packet, Can be identified with high accuracy.

  Moreover, in the present invention, it is possible to check whether or not a failure has occurred in some or all of a plurality of monitored terminals by simply circulating one packet on the communication network, thereby reducing the load on the monitoring device. Can do.

  In addition, when a packet cannot be transmitted to a predetermined monitored terminal, the packet is transmitted to the monitoring terminal via another monitored terminal set in the subsequent order, or via the monitored terminal that has already circulated. By transmitting the packet to the monitoring terminal or directly transmitting the packet to the monitoring terminal, the packet can be reliably transmitted to the monitoring terminal even if some kind of failure has occurred.

  Furthermore, in the present invention, when the monitored terminal or the monitoring terminal receives the packet, it confirms whether its own operation is normal, and writes the date / time information and / or the operation result information in the packet. It is possible to easily grasp at least how long the monitored terminal has been operating normally. In addition, it is possible to grasp in detail the details of the failure in the monitored terminal from the operation result information. Further, by writing warning information before the occurrence of the failure, the occurrence of the failure can be prevented in advance.

  Note that the above-described monitoring system can be applied to, for example, security equipment. For example, when the operation status of a security device (monitored terminal) provided in each home is monitored to detect whether there is a failure, the monitoring device does not transmit a confirmation signal to each monitored terminal, By circulating the packets in the present invention, it is possible to grasp the failure status of the communication line between the monitored devices and the occurrence of the failure of the monitored terminal.

  Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiment, and various modifications, within the scope of the gist of the present invention described in the claims, It can be changed.

It is a figure which shows an example of schematic structure of the life-and-death monitoring system in this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of schematic structure of a monitoring terminal. It is a figure which shows an example of schematic structure of a to-be-monitored terminal. It is a figure which shows an example of the packet cyclic path | route of each terminal in a monitoring process. It is a figure which shows an example of the packet for circulation in a present Example. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the rough life-and-death monitoring process procedure in the monitoring terminal. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the general alive monitoring response processing procedure of each monitored terminal. It is a figure which shows an example of the packet for transmitting with the cyclic route of a reverse order.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Life and death monitoring system 11 Monitoring terminal 12 Monitored terminal 13 Communication network 21, 31 Transmission / reception part 22, 32 Control part 23, 33 Date and time acquisition part 24, 34 Time measuring part 25, 35 Storage part 26 Display output part 26 Switching part 40 For circulation Packet 41 Address list 42 Check list

Claims (14)

In a monitoring system that performs alive monitoring of a plurality of monitored terminals connected to a communication network by a monitoring terminal,
The monitoring terminal circulates a packet through the communication network based on a preset order for a part or all of the plurality of monitored terminals, and a communication line and information from information obtained from the circulated packet If it is determined whether a failure has occurred in the monitored terminal and it is determined that a failure has occurred, a packet is generated to be circulated in the reverse order to the order, the generated packet is circulated, and the circulated packet And the failure point by comparing the packet obtained earlier,
The monitored system receives the packet, writes predetermined information in the received packet, and then transmits the packet to the predetermined monitored terminal based on the order. The monitoring terminal is
The monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein a failure location is identified by directly confirming a response to a monitored terminal that has been determined that a failure has occurred based on information obtained from the packet. The monitored terminal is
When the packet cannot be transmitted to a predetermined monitored terminal, the packet is transmitted to the monitoring terminal via another monitored terminal set in the subsequent order, or the monitored terminal that has already circulated The monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein the packet is transmitted to the monitoring terminal or the packet is directly transmitted to the monitoring terminal. The monitored terminal is
4. The method according to claim 1, wherein when the packet is received, whether or not its own operation is normal is confirmed, and date and time information and / or operation result information is written in the packet. 5. Monitoring system. In a monitoring terminal that identifies a monitored terminal in which a failure has occurred by circulating a packet in a predetermined order to a plurality of monitored terminals connected on the communication network,
A transceiver for transmitting and receiving the packet;
For some or all of the plurality of monitored terminals, a packet is circulated through the communication network based on a preset order, and a communication line and a failure of the monitored terminal are determined from information obtained from the circulated packet. A monitoring terminal comprising: a control unit for confirming whether or not the occurrence has occurred. The controller is
If it is determined from the information obtained from the packet that a failure has occurred, a packet is generated to be circulated in the reverse order of the order, the generated packet is circulated, and the circulated packet is obtained first. 6. The monitoring apparatus according to claim 5, wherein a fault location is identified by comparing the received packet. The controller is
The monitoring apparatus according to claim 5 or 6, wherein a fault location is specified by directly confirming a response to a monitored terminal that has been determined that a fault has occurred based on information obtained from the packet. . In the monitored terminal for causing the monitoring device to specify the presence or absence of a failure by circulating the packets generated by the monitoring device connected on the communication network in a preset order,
A transceiver for transmitting and receiving the packet;
A control unit that receives the packet, writes predetermined information in the received packet, and then transmits the packet from the transmission / reception unit to a predetermined monitored terminal based on the order;
The controller is
When the packet cannot be transmitted to the predetermined monitored terminal, the transmitting / receiving unit causes the monitoring terminal to transmit the packet via another monitored terminal set in the subsequent order, or has already been visited A monitored terminal characterized by causing the monitoring terminal to transmit the packet via the monitored terminal or causing the monitoring terminal to directly transmit the packet. The monitored terminal is
9. The monitored terminal according to claim 8, wherein when the packet is received, it is confirmed whether or not its own operation is normal, and date / time information and / or operation result information is written in the packet. Life and death in a monitoring terminal for causing a computer to execute life and death monitoring processing for identifying a monitored terminal in which a failure has occurred by circulating a packet in a predetermined order to a plurality of monitored terminals connected on a communication network In the monitoring program,
A packet generation process for generating a packet having an address list for circulating a part or all of the plurality of monitored terminals in a predetermined order;
A transmission process for transmitting the packet to a predetermined monitored terminal;
A receiving process for receiving the packet that has circulated on the communication network;
A failure confirmation process for confirming whether or not a failure has occurred in a communication line and the monitored terminal based on information written from each non-monitoring terminal in the packet and the presence / absence of writing, and a life / death monitoring program to be executed by a computer   When it is determined by the failure confirmation process that a failure has occurred from information obtained from the packet, a packet for circulating in the reverse order to the order is generated, the generated packet is circulated, The life and death monitoring program according to claim 10, further comprising a failure location identification process for identifying a failure location by comparing a packet with a previously obtained packet. The fault location specifying process is:
12. The life and death monitoring program according to claim 11, wherein a failure location is identified by directly confirming a response to a monitored terminal that has been determined that a failure has occurred based on information obtained from the packet. By causing a packet generated by a monitoring device connected on the communication network to circulate in a preset order, an object for causing the computer to execute a life and death monitoring response process for causing the monitoring device to identify whether there is a failure or not. In the life and death monitoring response program in the monitoring terminal,
A receiving process for receiving the packet;
After writing predetermined information to the received packet, it is determined whether the packet can be transmitted to the predetermined monitored terminal. If the packet cannot be transmitted, the subsequent order is set. The packet is transmitted to the monitoring terminal via another monitored terminal that has been sent, the packet is transmitted to the monitoring terminal via the monitored terminal that has already circulated, or the packet is directly transmitted to the monitoring terminal Control processing to be
A life / death monitoring response program for causing a computer to execute transmission processing for transmitting the packet. The control process is
14. The life and death monitoring response program according to claim 13, wherein when the packet is received, whether or not its own operation is normal is confirmed, and date / time information and / or operation result information is written in the packet.

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