JP2008172459A - Security system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a security system capable of adding a new terminal station without being restricted by the position relationship to existing base stations or terminal stations with a mesh network utilizing close-range radio communication as a base, and capable of securing the communication between the terminal station at a more upstream side and the base station even if disconnecting communication in a place where no alternative routes exist. <P>SOLUTION: Each terminal station 1 has a close-range radio communication function and an intermediate-range one. When security information S1a cannot be transmitted from the terminal station 1A to that 1B by the close-range radio communication and there are no alternative routes that do not pass through the terminal station 1B, the security information S1a is directly transmitted to the base station 2A from the terminal station 1A by the intermediate-range radio communication. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a security system, and more particularly, to a wireless communication technique between a terminal station and a base station in the security system.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a security system using a mesh network. A plurality of terminal stations 101 (101A to 101I) are arranged around the base station 102. The base station 102 is arranged in a management center that manages the security system. Each terminal station 101 is arranged in each home that has subscribed to the security system. The terminal station 101 can communicate with other terminal stations 101 or the base station 102 by short-range wireless communication with a communicable distance of about several hundreds of meters, thereby constructing a mesh network using short-range wireless communication. Has been.

  Each home that has joined the security system is provided with an arbitrary home security function using a security sensor, a security camera, or the like, and the security information of each home is transmitted from the terminal station 101 to the base station 102 via the mesh network. Sent to. Thereby, the security state of each house is monitored by the management center.

  Patent Document 1 below discloses a wireless communication system that combines two types of communication, short distance and long distance.

JP 2005-513949 A

  Consider a case where a new terminal station 101J joins the security system shown in FIG. In the example shown in FIG. 10, since the base station 102 or the other terminal stations 101A to 101I does not exist in the area where the terminal station 101J can communicate by short-range wireless communication, the terminal station 101J cannot construct a mesh network. Therefore, the terminal station 101J cannot join the security system. That is, there is a problem in that terminal stations that can be newly joined are limited by the geographical positional relationship with surrounding base stations 102 or terminal stations 101.

  Further, in the example shown in FIG. 10, when communication between the terminal station 101C and the terminal station 101D becomes impossible due to equipment failure, jamming radio waves, etc., between the terminal station 101C and the base station 102, for example. Therefore, the security information of the terminal stations 101A to 101C cannot be transmitted to the base station 102. That is, when communication in a place where no alternative route exists is interrupted, all the terminal stations 101 upstream (in the direction away from the base station 102) cannot communicate with the base station 102, and the system There is a problem that the damage received.

  The present invention has been made to solve these problems, and is based on a mesh network using short-range wireless communication, but without being limited by the positional relationship with an existing base station or terminal station. New terminal stations can be added, and even when communication is interrupted where there is no alternative route, security is ensured to ensure communication between the terminal station upstream and the base station The purpose is to obtain a system.

  A security system according to a first invention includes a base station and a plurality of terminal stations each having a security function, and each of the plurality of terminal stations can wirelessly transmit security information at a first communication distance. The first transmission means, the security information is transmitted from the second transmission means capable of wireless transmission over a second communication distance longer than the first communication distance, and the first transmission means of another terminal station. Receiving means capable of receiving the security information, and selecting means for selecting and operating one of the first transmitting means and the second transmitting means.

  The security system according to a second aspect of the invention is the security system according to the first aspect of the invention. In particular, the selection means selects the first transmission means as standard, and transmission by the first transmission means is impossible. In this case, the second transmission means is selected.

  The security system according to a third aspect of the present invention is the security system according to the second aspect of the invention. In particular, in the situation where the selection unit selects the second transmission unit, transmission by the first transmission unit is possible. In this case, the first transmission means is selected.

  The security system according to a fourth aspect of the invention is the security system according to the first aspect of the invention. In particular, the selection means normally selects the first transmission means, and the security information is transmitted to the first other terminal station. When the transmission to the first other terminal station becomes impossible, the selection unit maintains the selection of the first transmission unit, and the security information is stored in the first other terminal station. It is transmitted to a second other terminal station different from the above.

  The security system according to a fifth aspect of the invention is the security system according to the fourth aspect of the invention, particularly when the transmission to the second other terminal station is impossible, the selection means is the second transmission means. And security information is transmitted to the base station.

  In the security system according to the sixth invention, in the security system according to the fifth invention, information indicating that transmission to the first other terminal station is impossible is received from the second transmission means. It is transmitted to the base station.

  A security system according to a seventh aspect of the invention is the security system according to the fifth aspect of the invention, particularly in the situation where the selection means selects the second transmission means, the first transmission means by the first transmission means. Alternatively, when transmission to the second other terminal station becomes possible, the first transmission means is selected.

  The security system according to an eighth invention is the security system according to the second or fifth invention, particularly when the second transmission means is selected by the selection means, the second transmission means is the base The transmission output is increased stepwise until transmission to a station becomes possible.

  The security system according to a ninth invention is the security system according to the second or fifth invention, particularly comprising a relay station capable of communicating with the base station, wherein the second transmission means is selected by the selection means. In this case, the second transmission means increases the transmission output stepwise until transmission to the base station or the relay station becomes possible.

  The security system according to the tenth invention is the security system according to the second or fifth invention, particularly when the terminal station is a relay terminal that receives and relays security information from other terminal stations. Even in a situation where the second transmission unit is selected by the selection unit, the operation of the reception unit is maintained.

  According to the security system of the first invention, the terminal station has a first transmission means capable of wirelessly transmitting security information over the first communication distance, and a second communication distance longer than the first communication distance. Second transmission means capable of wirelessly transmitting security information. Therefore, the first transmission means is selected as a standard, and the second transmission means is selected when short-range wireless communication is impossible while the mesh network using short-range wireless communication is used as a base. As a result, the security information can be directly transmitted from the terminal station to the base station.

  According to the security system of the second invention, the cost of the entire system can be reduced by reducing power consumption by selecting the first transmission means and using short-range wireless communication as a standard. be able to. In addition, by using short-range wireless communication as a base, the communication bandwidth that should be secured in the base station is compared with the case where all terminal stations communicate directly with the base station through medium-range wireless communication. In addition to saving, the load concentrated on the base station can be reduced.

  According to the security system of the third invention, when transmission by the first transmission unit becomes possible in a situation where the second transmission unit is selected, the first transmission unit is selected again. . Therefore, when the communication device is switched to the second transmission means due to a temporary communication failure or the like, and then the communication failure or the like is resolved, the first transmission device is selected again, thereby reducing the cost. It is possible to automatically switch to near field communication that is more advantageous than distance wireless communication.

  According to the security system of the fourth invention, even if transmission to the first other terminal station becomes impossible, the second terminal station different from the first other terminal station is provided. If there is an alternative route that has passed, the security information is transmitted to the second other terminal station. Thereby, it is possible to continue using short-range wireless communication, which is more advantageous than medium-range wireless communication in terms of cost and the like.

  According to the security system of the fifth invention, when transmission to the first other terminal station becomes impossible and there is no alternative route, the second transmission means is selected, so that the intermediate distance Security information is directly transmitted from the terminal station to the base station by wireless communication. Thereby, even if short-distance wireless communication at a location where no alternative route exists is interrupted, communication between the terminal station and the base station can be ensured.

  According to the security system of the sixth invention, information indicating that transmission to the first other terminal station is impossible is directly transmitted from the terminal station to the base station. Therefore, the base station can recognize early that a communication failure or the like has occurred in the first other terminal station, and can take immediate measures.

  According to the security system of the seventh invention, when transmission by the first transmission unit becomes possible in a situation where the second transmission unit is selected, the first transmission unit is selected again. . Therefore, when the communication device is switched to the second transmission means due to a temporary communication failure or the like, and then the communication failure or the like is resolved, the first transmission device is selected again, thereby reducing the cost. It is possible to automatically switch to near field communication that is more advantageous than distance wireless communication.

  According to the security system of the eighth invention, the second transmission means increases the transmission output stepwise until transmission to the base station becomes possible. Therefore, by gradually increasing the transmission output from the initial state weaker than the standard output and stopping the increase of the transmission output when communication with the base station becomes possible, the communication with the nearest base station is stopped. This enables mid-range wireless communication. Thereby, since security information is not transmitted far away, radio wave interference can be suppressed.

  According to the security system of the ninth invention, the second transmission means increases the transmission output stepwise until transmission to the base station or relay station becomes possible. Therefore, by gradually increasing the transmission output from the initial state weaker than the standard output and stopping the increase of the transmission output when communication with the base station or relay station becomes possible, the nearest base station Alternatively, mid-range wireless communication is possible with the relay station. Thereby, since security information is not transmitted far away, radio wave interference can be suppressed.

  In the security system according to the tenth invention, when the terminal station is a relay terminal, the operation of the receiving means is maintained even in the situation where the second transmitting means is selected. As a result, it is possible to receive the security information of the other upstream terminal station by the short-range wireless communication and transmit the security information to the base station by the medium-range wireless communication.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In addition, the element which attached | subjected the same code | symbol in different drawing shall show the same or corresponding element.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a security system using a mesh network. A plurality of terminal stations 1 (1A to 1J) are arranged around the base station 2A. The base station 2A is disposed in a management center that manages the security system, and includes a short-range wireless communication reception facility and a medium-range wireless communication reception facility that can operate simultaneously in parallel. . Here, in this specification, “medium distance” means “more than medium distance”.

  Each terminal station 1 is arranged in each home that subscribes to the security system. Each home that has joined the security system is provided with an optional home security function using a security sensor, a security camera, or the like. By transmitting the security information of each home from each terminal station 1 to the base station 2, the security status of each home is monitored by the management center.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram in which the terminal stations 1A to 1C and the base station 2A are extracted from FIG. The terminal station 1A can communicate with the terminal station 1B by short-range wireless communication with a communicable distance of about several hundred meters. The terminal station 1B can communicate with the terminal station 1C by short-range wireless communication, and the terminal station 1C can communicate with the base station 2A by short-range wireless communication. Thereby, the security information S1a of the terminal station 1A is transmitted to the base station 2A through the terminal station 1B and the terminal station 1C in this order. That is, a mesh network using near field communication is constructed.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the terminal station 1. The terminal station 1 has an arbitrary security function 10 using a security sensor, a security camera, or the like. The terminal station 1 includes a receiving unit 11 capable of receiving security information by short-range wireless communication, a short-range transmitting unit 12 capable of transmitting security information by short-range wireless communication, and a communicable distance of about several tens of kilometers. And a medium distance transmission unit 13 capable of transmitting security information by distance wireless communication. Further, the terminal station 1 includes a control unit 14 including a function as a selection unit that selects and operates either the short-range transmission unit 12 or the medium-distance transmission unit 13, and a storage unit that stores various control information and the like. 15.

  The control unit 14 typically selects the short-range transmission unit 12. When a device failure, communication failure, jamming radio wave, or the like occurs, or when no other terminal station 1 exists within a communicable distance by short-range communication like the terminal station 1J shown in FIG. When the transmission by the short distance transmission unit 12 is impossible, the middle distance transmission unit 13 is selected. By selecting the short-range transmission unit 12 as a standard and using short-range wireless communication as a base, it is possible to reduce the cost of the entire system by reducing power consumption. In addition, by using short-range wireless communication as a base, communication that should be ensured in the base station 2A as compared with a case where all the terminal stations 1 communicate directly with the base station 2A through medium-range wireless communication. The bandwidth can be reduced and the load concentrated on the base station 2A can be reduced.

  In addition, the control unit 14 periodically checks whether transmission by the short-distance transmission unit 12 is possible even in a situation where the medium-distance transmission unit 13 is selected, and transmission by the short-distance transmission unit 12 is performed. When it becomes possible, the short distance transmission unit 12 is selected. Therefore, when the communication failure or the like is resolved after switching to the intermediate distance transmission unit 13 due to a temporary communication failure or the like, the short range transmission unit 12 is selected again, so that the It is possible to automatically switch to near field communication that is more advantageous than distance wireless communication.

  4 to 7 are diagrams showing security information transmission methods to the base station 2A, respectively, corresponding to FIG.

  Referring to FIG. 4, when the security information S1a cannot be transmitted from the terminal station 1A to the terminal station 1B due to a failure of the terminal station 1B or a communication failure, the control unit 14 of the terminal station 1A firstly Rerouting is performed to search for an alternative route that does not pass through the terminal station 1B. As shown in FIG. 4, when there is a terminal station 1X that replaces the terminal station 1B, the control unit 14 of the terminal station 1A transmits the security information S1a to the terminal by short-range wireless communication while maintaining the selection of the short-range transmission unit 12 Transmit to station 1X. Thereby, it is possible to continue using short-range wireless communication, which is more advantageous than medium-range wireless communication in terms of cost and the like. Thereafter, the security information S1a is transmitted from the terminal station 1X to the base station 2A via the terminal station 1C by short-range wireless communication.

  Information S2 indicating that transmission from the terminal station 1A to the terminal station 1B is impossible is transmitted from the terminal station 1A to the base station 2A via the terminal stations 1X and 1C by short-range wireless communication. . As a result, the base station 2A can recognize that a communication failure or the like has occurred in the terminal station 1B, and can take measures.

  Referring to FIG. 5, when terminal station 1 </ b> X does not exist and there is no alternative route that does not pass through terminal station 1 </ b> B, control unit 14 of terminal station 1 </ b> A replaces short-distance transmission unit 12 with medium-range transmission. Section 13 is selected. Thereby, the security information S1a is directly transmitted from the terminal station 1A to the base station 2A by medium-range wireless communication. Thereby, even if short-distance wireless communication at a location where there is no alternative route is blocked, communication between the terminal station 1A and the base station 2A can be ensured by medium-range wireless communication.

  In addition, information S2 indicating that transmission from the terminal station 1A to the terminal station 1B is impossible is directly transmitted from the terminal station 1A to the base station 2A by medium-range wireless communication. As a result, the base station 2A can quickly recognize that a communication failure or the like has occurred in the terminal station 1B, and can take measures immediately.

  Similarly to the above, the control unit 14 of the terminal station 1A can transmit to the terminal station 1B (or the terminal station 1X) by the short-range transmission unit 12 even in a situation where the middle-range transmission unit 13 is selected. It is regularly checked whether or not. When the transmission by the short distance transmission unit 12 becomes possible, the short distance transmission unit 12 is selected again. Accordingly, when the communication distance or the like is resolved after switching to the intermediate distance transmission section 13 due to a temporary communication failure or the like, the short distance transmission section 12 can be selected again. As a result, it is possible to automatically switch to short-range wireless communication that is advantageous over medium-range wireless communication in terms of cost and the like.

  With reference to FIG. 6, as another example, when a communication failure occurs between the terminal station 1B and the terminal station 1C, the security information S1a of the terminal station 1A is transmitted from the terminal station 1A by short-range wireless communication. The data is transmitted to the terminal station 1B, and then transmitted from the terminal station 1B to the base station 2A by medium-range wireless communication. In this case, the information S2 indicating that transmission from the terminal station 1B to the terminal station 1C is impossible and the security information S1b of the terminal station 1B are transmitted from the terminal station 1B to the base station 2A by medium-range wireless communication. Sent to. Also, the security information S1c of the terminal station 1C is transmitted from the terminal station 1C to the base station 2A by short-range wireless communication.

  Here, the storage unit 15 of the terminal station 1B is a relay terminal that receives and relays security information from another terminal station (in this example, the terminal station 1A) as part of the route information. Information to that effect is stored. In such a terminal station 1 </ b> B, the operation of the short-distance wireless communication receiving unit 11 is maintained without being stopped even in a situation where the middle-distance transmission unit 13 is selected by the control unit 14. Thereby, it is possible to receive the security information S1a of the terminal station 1A on the upstream side (in the direction away from the base station 2A) by the receiving unit 11 and transmit the security information S1a to the base station 2A by medium-range wireless communication. Become.

  As shown in FIG. 5, when the terminal station 1A performs middle-range wireless communication, as shown in (A) → (B) → (C) of FIG. The transmission output (transmission power) of the distance wireless communication is increased stepwise from the initial state weaker than the standard output until transmission to the base station 2A becomes possible. A base station located closest to the terminal station 1A by gradually increasing the transmission output from the initial state weaker than the standard output and stopping the increase in the transmission output when communication with the base station 2A is possible. Medium distance wireless communication with 2A becomes possible. Thereby, since security information S1a is not transmitted far away, it is possible to suppress radio wave interference.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a situation where a communication failure has occurred between the terminal station 1A and the base station 2A in FIG. In this case, the intermediate distance transmission unit 13 of the terminal station 1A further increases the transmission output as compared with the case of FIG. 7C, and performs communication with the base station 2B of another nearby business office. As shown in FIG. 8, from the terminal station 1A to the base station 2B, security information S1a, information S2 indicating that transmission from the terminal station 1A to the terminal station 1B is impossible, and from the terminal station 1A to the base station Information S3 indicating that transmission to 2A is impossible is transmitted. Thereby, the base station 2B can recognize that some trouble has occurred in the base station 2A.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a method of transmitting security information to the base station 2A, corresponding to FIG. In the above description, an example of direct transmission from the terminal station 1 </ b> A to the base station 2 </ b> A by medium-range wireless communication has been described, but it is also possible to pass through the relay station 3. The relay station 3 is connected to the base station 2A by wire or wireless, and can communicate with the base station 2A.

  As shown in FIG. 9A, when no communication failure has occurred, the security information S1a of the terminal station 1A is transmitted from the terminal station 1A via the terminal stations 1B and 1C by short-range wireless communication. It is transmitted to the base station 2A.

  As shown in FIG. 9B, when the security information S1a cannot be transmitted from the terminal station 1A to the terminal station 1B, the control unit 14 of the terminal station 1A performs rerouting, and there is no alternative route. Switches to mid-range wireless communication. At this time, as shown in (B) → (C) of FIG. 9, the intermediate range transmission unit 13 of the terminal station 1A changes the transmission output of the intermediate range wireless communication from the initial state weaker than the standard output to the base station 2A. Alternatively, it is increased stepwise until transmission to the relay station 3 becomes possible. In the example shown in FIG. 9, since the relay station 3 is closer to the terminal station 1A than the base station 2A, the increase in transmission output is stopped when transmission from the terminal station 1A to the relay station 3 becomes possible. The The security information S1a and information S2 are transmitted from the terminal station 1A via the relay station 3 to the base station 2A.

It is a figure which shows the structural example of the security system using a mesh network. It is the figure which extracts and shows a part of terminal station and base station from FIG. It is a figure which shows the function structure of a terminal station. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a method for transmitting security information to a base station in correspondence with FIG. 2. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a method for transmitting security information to a base station in correspondence with FIG. 2. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a method for transmitting security information to a base station in correspondence with FIG. 2. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a method for transmitting security information to a base station in correspondence with FIG. 2. In FIG. 7, it is a figure which shows the condition where the communication failure generate | occur | produced between the terminal station and the base station. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a technique for transmitting security information to a base station in correspondence with FIG. 7. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the security system using a mesh network.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 (1A-1J) Terminal station 2A, 2B Base station 3 Relay station 10 Security function 11 Receiving part 12 Short distance transmission part 13 Medium distance transmission part 14 Control part (selection means)

Claims (10)

A base station,
A plurality of terminal stations each having a security function,
Each of the plurality of terminal stations is
First transmission means capable of wirelessly transmitting security information at a first communication distance;
Second transmission means capable of wirelessly transmitting security information at a second communication distance longer than the first communication distance;
Receiving means capable of receiving security information transmitted from the first transmitting means of another terminal station;
A security system comprising: a selection unit that selects and operates either the first transmission unit or the second transmission unit. The selection means includes
Standardly selecting the first transmission means;
The security system according to claim 1, wherein when the transmission by the first transmission unit is impossible, the second transmission unit is selected.   The selection unit according to claim 2, wherein the selection unit selects the first transmission unit when transmission by the first transmission unit becomes possible in a situation where the second transmission unit is selected. Security system. The selection means selects the first transmission means as standard, and the security information is transmitted to the first other terminal station,
When transmission to the first other terminal station becomes impossible, the selection means maintains the selection of the first transmission means, and the security information is different from the first other terminal station. The security system according to claim 1, wherein the security system is transmitted to a different second other terminal station.   5. The method according to claim 4, wherein, when transmission to the second other terminal station is impossible, the selection unit selects the second transmission unit, and security information is transmitted to the base station. Security system.   The security system according to claim 5, wherein information indicating that transmission to the first other terminal station is impossible is transmitted from the second transmission unit to the base station.   In the situation where the selection means selects the second transmission means, the first transmission means can transmit the first or second other terminal station when the first transmission means is enabled. The security system according to claim 5, wherein the transmission means is selected.   The said 2nd transmission means raises a transmission output in steps until transmission to the said base station is attained when the said 2nd transmission means is selected by the said selection means. The security system described. A relay station capable of communicating with the base station;
The second transmission unit increases the transmission output stepwise until transmission to the base station or the relay station becomes possible when the second transmission unit is selected by the selection unit. The security system according to 2 or 5.   When the terminal station is a relay terminal that receives and relays security information from other terminal stations, the operation of the receiving unit is performed even in the situation where the second transmitting unit is selected by the selecting unit. The security system according to claim 2 or 5, maintained.

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