JP2010220085A - Terminal station device and monitoring system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the reliability, without causing decrease in the speed of wireless communication in a monitoring system. <P>SOLUTION: Each of a plurality of terminal station devices includes a communication unit for wirelessly transmitting/receiving information; a storage unit for storing instruction identification information and direction identification information; an information processing unit for generating terminal station information, according to instruction information; and a communication control unit. Only when the communication unit receives instructional information of the contents which differ from the contents indicated by the instruction identification information, or only in the case where the communication unit receives instruction information from a direction indicated by the direction identification information, the communication control unit transmits terminal station information of the relevant terminal station device from the communication unit, in a direction indicated by the direction identification information; if the instruction information is information to the relevant terminal station device, while causing the storage unit to store the instruction identification information and the direction identification information, transmits the instruction information from the communication unit, if the instruction information is information to any other terminal station device, and transmits terminal station information of the other terminal station information, from the communication unit in the direction indicated by the direction identification information if the communication unit receives the terminal station information of the other terminal station device. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a terminal device and a monitoring system.

  In order to ensure the reliability of the power system, it is important to properly monitor facilities such as power plants, substations, transmission lines, and distribution lines. In particular, steel towers installed outdoors and transmission lines supported by such steel towers use various sensors such as weather sensors that detect weather conditions such as wind and snow and lightning strikes, and proximity sensors that detect the invasion of people and animals. Monitored.

  However, since the installation locations of the steel towers are dispersed and traffic is often inconvenient, for example, as shown in FIG. 10, the monitoring device 1 installed in the substation 2 and each steel tower Sn (1 ≦ n ≦ N), a monitoring system is used in which wireless communication is performed with a terminal device T-n (1 ≦ n ≦ N) installed in N) and information on each terminal is concentrated on the monitoring device 1. Further, for example, wireless communication is performed between adjacent devices using a wireless LAN of the IEEE 802.11 standard, for example, and multi-hop communication in which information is relayed and transmitted by a bucket relay method is performed. It is possible to communicate with the terminal device TN that is connected with low power.

  For example, in Patent Document 1, even if a communication failure occurs in any of the terminal devices that perform multi-hop communication as described above (wireless terminal station in Patent Document 1), the terminal of another terminal device An overhead power transmission line tower-based monitoring system that can concentrate station information (detection information in Patent Document 1) on monitoring devices (information collection stations in Patent Document 1) installed at both ends of a tower row is disclosed. Yes.

  In this way, by relaying and transmitting information between the monitoring device and each terminal device, it is possible to monitor equipment installed at a remote location with low power.

JP 2005-229715 A

  Here, an example of the configuration of a general monitoring device and a terminal device used in the monitoring system as shown in FIG. 10 is shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, respectively.

  In the general monitoring device 1a shown in FIG. 8, the information processing unit 10 causes the communication unit 11 to transmit command information CMD for the terminal device, and the communication unit 11 transmits the terminal information transmitted from each terminal device. Each time the station information INF is received, it is output to the information processing unit 10.

  In the general terminal station device shown in FIG. 9, the communication unit CM receives the command information CMD and outputs it to the communication control unit CN, and the information processing unit PR receives the sensor S1 according to the command information CMD. The terminal information INF is generated from the measurement information D1 to D3 measured by S3, and the communication control unit CN transmits the terminal information INF from the communication unit CM. In parallel with the transmission of the terminal information INF corresponding to the received command information CMD, the terminal device receives the command information CMD for the other terminal devices and the terminal information INF of the other terminal devices. The data is relayed while being received and transmitted to an adjacent terminal device or monitoring device.

  As shown in FIG. 10, these monitoring devices and terminal devices are configured so that no communication failure occurs in the monitoring system that concentrates the terminal information INF of a plurality of terminal devices on one monitoring device. It works well while wireless communication is normal. However, in such a monitoring system, for example, when a communication failure occurs in the terminal device T-n, all the terminal devices after the terminal device T-n cannot receive the command information CMD. The monitoring device cannot receive the terminal information INF of those terminal devices.

  On the other hand, in the above monitoring system, for example, if a monitoring device is also installed on the side of the terminal device TN, even if a communication failure occurs in the terminal device T-n, the terminal device T- ( Since the terminal information INF of (n + 1) to TN can be received, the entire monitoring system can suppress the influence of communication failure and improve the reliability of wireless communication. However, since the terminal device shown in FIG. 9 transmits the terminal information INF to the command information CMD transmitted from a plurality of monitoring devices, the amount of information transmitted / received increases as a whole monitoring system. The speed of wireless communication will decrease.

  Therefore, there is a trade-off relationship in which as the number of monitoring devices is increased in order to improve the wireless communication reliability of the monitoring system, the wireless communication speed decreases.

  The main present invention that solves the above-described problem is a terminal device used in a monitoring system including a monitoring device and a plurality of terminal devices, and is transmitted from the monitoring device and a communication unit that wirelessly transmits and receives information. A storage unit that stores command identification information indicating the content of command information, direction identification information indicating a direction in which the communication unit has received the command information, and an information processing unit that generates terminal information according to the command information And a communication control unit that controls wireless transmission / reception of the communication unit while storing the command identification information and the direction identification information in the storage unit, and the communication control unit includes the communication unit, Only when the command information having a content different from the content indicated by the command identification information is received or when the command information is received from the direction indicated by the direction identification information, the command identification information and the direction are stored in the storage unit. When the command information is information for the terminal device while storing other information, the terminal information of the terminal device is transmitted from the communication unit in the direction indicated by the direction identification information, and the command information is When the information is information on another terminal device, the command information is transmitted from the communication unit, and when the communication unit receives the terminal information of the other terminal device, The terminal device is characterized in that the terminal information is transmitted from the communication unit in a direction indicated by the direction identification information.

  Other features of the present invention will become apparent from the accompanying drawings and the description of this specification.

  According to the present invention, reliability can be improved without reducing the speed of wireless communication of the monitoring system.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the terminal station apparatus in 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the whole monitoring system in 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows an example of a structure of the monitoring apparatus used for the monitoring system in 1st and 2nd embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the terminal station apparatus in 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the terminal station apparatus in 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows a part of structure of the whole monitoring system in 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the terminal station apparatus in 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows an example of a structure of a general monitoring apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows an example of a structure of a general terminal station apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the example of application and schematic structure of the whole monitoring system.

  At least the following matters will become apparent from the description of this specification and the accompanying drawings.

<First Embodiment>
=== Configuration of the entire monitoring system ===
Hereinafter, the configuration of the entire monitoring system including the terminal device in the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In the monitoring system of the present embodiment, for example, a monitoring device 1b having a plurality of communication units as shown in FIG. 3 is used, and in FIG. 2, only the plurality of communication units of the monitoring device 1b are shown. Has been.

  Further, for example, the communication unit 11 is disposed in the vicinity of the information processing unit 10 and directly inputs / outputs the command information CMD and the terminal information INF to the information processing unit 10, while other than that The communication unit is remote from the information processing unit 10 and inputs / outputs command information CMD and terminal information INF to / from the information processing unit 10 via a wired LAN or the like. For this reason, even if the information processing unit 10 attempts to transmit the command information CMD having the same content from all the communication units at the same time, a shift occurs in the transmission timing of each communication unit. It is assumed that the interval until the transmission of CMD is sufficiently small.

  The monitoring system shown in FIG. 2 is a system for centrally monitoring the state of a plurality of towers and the surroundings of each tower including transmission lines as shown in FIG. And includes a monitoring device 1b (not shown) having a plurality of communication units and a plurality of terminal devices. In the monitoring system of this embodiment, the number and arrangement of communication units included in the monitoring device 1b and the number and arrangement of terminal devices can be appropriately changed according to the number and arrangement of monitoring targets. As an example, in FIG. 2, a monitoring device 1b having three communication units 11 to 13, nine terminal devices T-11 to T-13, T-12 to T-23, and T-31 to T -33 is shown.

  The communication unit 11 and the terminal station device T-11 are arranged adjacent to each other so as to be capable of wireless communication with each other, and the terminal station devices T-11, T-12, T-13, T-23, and T-22. , And T-21 are arranged adjacent to each other in a wireless communication distance in that order. Also, the terminal device T-21 and the communication unit 12 are arranged adjacent to each other so that they can communicate with each other wirelessly. Further, branching from the terminal device T-13, the terminal devices T-13, T-33, T-32, and T-31 are arranged adjacent to each other in a wireless communication distance in that order. ing. And the terminal station apparatus T-31 and the communication part 13 are arrange | positioned adjacent to the distance which can mutually communicate wirelessly.

  In the power transmission system monitoring system as shown in FIG. 10, adjacent towers on which overhead transmission lines are installed are in line of sight, and an antenna for wireless communication can be attached at a high place. By using a highly efficient antenna, wireless communication is possible between terminal devices installed on steel towers separated by several hundred meters to several kilometers.

=== Operation in the common mode of the entire monitoring system ===
Next, the operation of the entire monitoring system in this embodiment will be described. As described above, for example, an IEEE802.11 standard wireless LAN is used for wireless communication between devices. Further, a common radio channel ch-A is used for the entire monitoring system.

  Hereinafter, an operation in the common mode in which the communication units 11 to 13 of the monitoring device 1b transmit the common command information CMD for the terminal devices almost simultaneously will be described.

First, an operation during normal communication in which no communication failure occurs in the entire monitoring system and wireless communication is normally performed between devices will be described.
The communication unit 11 transmits the command information CMD to the terminal device T-11, and the terminal device T-11 relays the command information CMD while receiving the command information CMD, and transmits the command information CMD to the terminal device T-12. Further, the communication unit 12 transmits the command information CMD to the terminal device T-21, and the terminal device T-21 relays the command information CMD while receiving the command information CMD, and transmits the command information CMD to the terminal device T-22. Further, the communication unit 13 transmits the command information CMD to the terminal device T-31, and the terminal device T-31 relays the command information CMD while receiving the command information CMD and transmits the command information CMD to the terminal device T-32.

  Similarly, the command information CMD is relayed while being received at each terminal device, and sequentially transmitted to adjacent terminal devices. If the relay transmission of the command information CMD as described above is referred to as DL (downlink) communication, the order of DL communication is based on the communication route information when the command information CMD includes the communication route information. Determined.

  However, in the monitoring system according to the present embodiment, each terminal device performs DL communication only for the first received command information CMD transmitted substantially simultaneously from the communication units 11 to 13 by the determination process described later. The process including the above is performed, and the process is not performed for those received after that.

  For example, if the terminal devices T-13, T-23, and T-33 receive the command information CMD transmitted from the communication units 11, 12, and 13, respectively, the command received first Only information CMD (hereinafter referred to as first command information CMD) is subjected to processing including DL communication. Therefore, the terminal station devices T-11 and T-12 receive only the command information CMD transmitted from the communication unit 11, and the terminal station devices T-21 and T-22 receive the command information transmitted from the communication unit 12. Only the CMD is received, and the terminal devices T-31 and T-32 receive only the command information CMD transmitted from the communication unit 13. Hereinafter, it is assumed that the first command information CMD includes only one command information CMD thus received.

  On the other hand, each terminal device generates terminal information INF from measurement information of a steel tower or a sensor (not shown) installed around the tower according to the first command information CMD, and the adjacent terminal device or communication unit Send to. Also, the terminal information INF is relayed while being received at each terminal device, and is transmitted to the communication unit that transmitted the first command information CMD among the communication units 11 to 13 in the order opposite to the order of DL communication. The If the relay transmission of the terminal information INF as described above is referred to as UL (uplink) communication, each terminal information INF does not include communication path information indicating the order of UL communication, and the order of UL communication. Is determined by a method to be described later.

  In this way, among the common command information CMD transmitted from the communication units 11 to 13 almost simultaneously, only the first command information CMD in each terminal device is relayed (DL communication), and the first command information CMD is transmitted. Accordingly, the terminal information INF sequentially transmitted from each terminal device is relayed (UL communication) to the communication unit that transmitted the first command information CMD.

  Note that when a communication failure occurs in any of the terminal devices of the monitoring system, when the failure occurs, the first command information CMD in each terminal device may be changed. For example, when a communication failure occurs in the terminal device T-32, the first command information CMD in the terminal device T-33 is transmitted from the communication unit 11, and the terminal information of the terminal device T-33 is obtained. The INF is relayed (UL communication) to the communication unit 11. However, each terminal device, when receiving the first command information CMD, performs DL communication, generates terminal information INF and performs UL communication, and receives terminal information INF of other terminal devices. In such a case, the UL communication is performed so that the first command information CMD is transmitted to the communication unit that has transmitted it.

=== Operation of the entire monitoring system in single mode ===
Hereinafter, the operation in the single mode in which the communication units 11 to 13 of the monitoring device 1b transmit the command information CMD to any one terminal device substantially simultaneously will be described. Here, as an example, the operation when the communication units 11 to 13 transmit the command information CMD for only the terminal device T-32 will be described.

  The terminal station devices T-11 to T-13 operate in the same manner as in the common mode in DL communication, and the command information CMD transmitted from the communication unit 11 is relayed while being received at each terminal device. The data is transmitted to the device T-13, and further transmitted from the terminal device T-13 to the terminal devices T-23 and T-33. However, the terminal device T-11 to T-13 determines that the first command information CMD transmitted from the communication unit 11 is not for itself, and does not generate the terminal information INF.

  Further, the terminal station devices T-21 to T-23 operate in the same manner as in the common mode in DL communication, and the command information CMD transmitted from the communication unit 12 is relayed while being received at each terminal device. The data is transmitted to the terminal device T-23, and further transmitted from the terminal device T-23 to the terminal device T-13. However, the terminal device T-21 to T-23 determines that the first command information CMD transmitted from the communication unit 12 is not for itself, and does not generate the terminal information INF.

  Further, the terminal device T-31 operates in the same manner as in the common mode in DL communication, and the command information CMD transmitted from the communication unit 13 is relayed while being received by the terminal device T-31. Transmit to device T-32. However, the terminal device T-31 determines that the first command information CMD transmitted from the communication unit 13 is not for itself, and does not generate the terminal information INF.

  On the other hand, the terminal device T-32 determines that the first command information CMD transmitted from the communication unit 13 is only for itself and not for other terminal devices, and generates terminal information INF. However, DL communication to the terminal device T-33 is not performed. Therefore, the terminal device T-33 receives the command information CMD transmitted from the communication unit 11 first, and receives the first command information CMD as in the case where a communication failure occurs in the terminal device T-32. Although it determines that it is not for itself and performs DL communication to the terminal device T-33, it does not generate the terminal information INF.

  Thus, only the first command information CMD in each terminal device among the command information CMD for the terminal device T-32 transmitted almost simultaneously from the communication units 11 to 13 is relayed (DL communication), and the terminal information is transmitted. Only the station device T-32 transmits the terminal station information INF in accordance with the first command information CMD transmitted from the communication unit 13. Also, the terminal station information INF of the terminal station device T-32 is relayed (UL communication) to the communication unit 13 that transmitted the first command information CMD, as in the common mode.

  In addition to the common mode and the single mode, the monitoring system in this embodiment has a plurality of modes in which the communication units 11 to 13 of the monitoring device 1b transmit command information CMD for a plurality of terminal devices substantially simultaneously. Also good. In the multiple mode, each terminal device operates in substantially the same manner as in the single mode. When it is determined that the first command information CMD is for itself, the terminal device generates the terminal information INF and the first command information CMD. Is determined to be for another terminal device, DL communication is performed.

=== Configuration of Terminal Station Device ===
Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 1, the structure of the terminal station apparatus in this embodiment is demonstrated.
The terminal device T-n illustrated in FIG. 1 is one of a plurality of terminal devices used together with the monitoring device 1b illustrated in FIG. 3 in the monitoring system, for example, and includes a communication unit CM and a communication control unit CN. , A storage unit ME, an information processing unit PR, and sensors S1 to S3. Note that each terminal device has one or more sensors as appropriate according to the installation location, equipment, etc., but in FIG. 1, for convenience of explanation, three sensors S1 to S3 are shown. In addition, the sensors S1 to S3 include the weather sensor and the proximity sensor as described above, but may also include a microphone and a camera that can be used for detecting a weather condition and an intrusion similarly.

  The communication unit CM has an antenna for transmitting and receiving radio signals. The communication control unit CN is configured as a logic circuit such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), and receives command information CMD and terminal information INF with the communication unit CM. And outputs command identification information c and direction identification information t, which will be described later, to and from the storage unit ME. Further, the information processing unit PR is constituted by, for example, a microcomputer having a function of a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and inputs / outputs command information CMD and terminal information INF to / from the communication control unit CN. is doing. The measurement information D1 to D3 output from the sensors S1 to S3, respectively, are all input to the information processing unit PR.

=== Operation in Common Mode of Terminal Station Device ===
Next, with reference to FIG. 1 and FIG. 4, operation | movement of the terminal station apparatus in this embodiment is demonstrated. In FIG. 4, the processing in the communication control unit CN and the processing in the communication unit CM and the storage unit ME controlled by the communication control unit CN are arranged on the left side of the alternate long and short dash line, and the processing and information processing in the information processing unit PR The processes in the sensors S1 to S3 controlled by the part PR are arranged on the right side of the alternate long and short dash line.

  Hereinafter, the operation in the common mode will be described. Note that the command information CMD in the common mode is not only for the terminal device T-n itself, but also for other than the terminal device T-n (other terminal devices).

When receiving the command information CMD, the communication unit CM outputs the command information CMD to the communication control unit CN (S10).
Next, the communication control unit CN determines that the input information is the command information CMD based on, for example, header information (S11: CMD), and further performs a determination process as to whether or not it is the first command information CMD ( S121 and S122). In the determination process, the communication control unit CN is input when the content of the input command information CMD does not match the content indicated by the command identification information c stored in the storage unit ME (S121: NO). Only when the monitoring device 1b or the terminal device that last transmitted the command information CMD matches the monitoring device 1b or the terminal device indicated by the direction identification information t stored in the storage unit ME (S122: YES). The first command information CMD is determined. In the present embodiment, the processing order of S121 and S122 may be switched.

  In the above determination processing, for example, the former case (S121: NO) includes a case where the monitoring device 1b newly transmits command information CMD having contents different from the previous time, and the latter case (S122: YES). Includes a case where the monitoring apparatus 1b has not received the terminal information INF within a predetermined time, and therefore retransmits the command information CMD having the same contents as the previous time. Further, the monitoring device 1b or the terminal device that last transmitted the command information CMD indicates the monitoring device 1b or the terminal device that transmitted the command information CMD immediately before the terminal device T-n receives the command information CMD. For example, in FIG. 2, when the terminal device T-11 receives the first command information CMD transmitted from the communication unit 11, the terminal device T-33 is transmitted from the communication unit 13 to indicate the monitoring device 1b. When the first command information CMD is received, the terminal device T-32 is indicated.

  Further, the content of the command information CMD identified by the command identification information c includes not only processing content information indicating processing performed by each terminal device according to the command information CMD but also processing according to the command information CMD, for example. Target device information indicating a terminal device to be performed, transmission time information indicating a time when the monitoring device 1b transmits the command information CMD, and the like may also be included. Therefore, when the target device information and the transmission time information are also identified by the command identification information c, when the monitoring device 1b retransmits the command information CMD having the same content as the previous time, the target device information, the transmission time information, etc. Must be the same as last time. On the other hand, for example, when the monitoring device 1b repeatedly transmits the command information CMD including the same processing content information and target device information at regular intervals, a series of numbers different for each cycle is used as the transmission time information. By including it in the CMD, it is possible to newly transmit the command information CMD having contents different from the previous one.

  Next, when the communication control unit CN determines that the input command information CMD is the first command information CMD (S121: NO or S122: YES), the communication control unit CN sends the command information CMD to the information processing unit PR. At the same time, the command identification information c and the direction identification information t for the command information CMD are stored in the storage unit ME (S12).

  The instruction identification information c is information indicating the contents of the instruction information CMD, and can be generated by performing an operation on the instruction information CMD, for example. As an example, a CRC (Cyclic Redundancy Code) generated from the instruction information CMD can be used as the instruction identification information c. Further, for example, the instruction identification information c can be extracted from the header information by transmitting the instruction information CMD after the monitoring apparatus 1b adds the instruction identification information c to the header information.

  The direction identification information t is information indicating the monitoring device 1b or the terminal device that last transmitted the command information CMD, and can be extracted from the communication path information included in the command information CMD, for example. Further, for example, in S14 described later, each terminal device can extract the direction identification information t from the header information by transmitting the command information CMD after adding the direction identification information t to the header information. Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, the monitoring device 1b or the terminal device indicated by the direction identification information t is generally expressed as a device T-t.

  Next, the information processing unit PR determines that the input command information CMD is for (other than) the terminal device Tn (S23: YES), and the communication control unit CN adds the command information CMD to the command information CMD. Command information CMD is transmitted from the communication unit CM based on the included communication path information (S14).

  Next, the information processing unit PR determines that the input command information CMD is for the terminal device T-n itself (S25: YES), and determines the sensor S1 to S3 according to the command information CMD. Is measured / detected, terminal information INF is generated from the measured / detected measurement information D1 to D3, and is output to the communication control unit CN (S26).

  Finally, the communication control unit CN transmits the input terminal station information INF from the communication unit CM to the device T-t (S17), and ends the processing according to the command information CMD for the terminal station device T-n itself. (S19).

  When the communication control unit CN determines that the input command information CMD is not the first command information CMD (S121: YES and S122: NO), the communication control unit CN does not perform processing for the command information CMD (S19). .

  On the other hand, when the communication unit CM receives the terminal information INF other than the terminal device T-n, the communication unit CM outputs the terminal information INF to the communication control unit CN (S10), and the communication control unit CN receives the input information. Is determined to be terminal station information INF (S11: INF), the terminal station information INF is transmitted from the communication unit CM to the apparatus T-t (S18), and the terminal station information INF other than the terminal station apparatus T-n The relay transmission process is terminated (S19).

  In this way, in the common mode, the terminal device T-n performs DL communication for transmitting the first command information CMD from the communication unit CM based on the communication path information only for the first command information CMD. Then, the terminal station information INF generated according to the first command information CMD or the terminal station information INF other than the terminal station device Tn is transmitted from the communication unit CM to the device Tt. Therefore, in the monitoring system according to the present embodiment, each terminal device transmits DL communication and terminal information only to one of the command information CMD transmitted substantially simultaneously from the communication units 11 to 13 of the monitoring device 1b. Since the INF is generated, the entire monitoring system does not increase the amount of information transmitted and received, and can improve the reliability without reducing the speed of wireless communication.

  Also, as shown in S17 and S18 of FIG. 4, in the terminal device T-n of the present embodiment, the counterpart that performs UL communication is always the device indicated by the direction identification information t stored in the storage unit ME. T-t. Therefore, the terminal station information INF and the transmission packet of the terminal station information INF do not need to include communication path information, respectively, and increase the amount of UL communication information that can be transmitted within a predetermined period. Transmission speed (speed at which the terminal information INF is transmitted to the monitoring device 1) can be improved.

=== Operation of terminal device in single mode ===
Hereinafter, an operation when the command information CMD is for only the terminal device T-n in the single mode will be described.

When receiving the command information CMD, the communication unit CM outputs the command information CMD to the communication control unit CN (S10).
Next, the communication control unit CN determines that the input information is command information CMD (S11: CMD), and determines whether or not it is the first command information CMD, as in the common mode. Performed (S121 and S122).
Next, when the communication control unit CN determines that the input command information CMD is the first command information CMD (S121: NO or S122: YES), the communication control unit CN sends the command information CMD to the information processing unit PR. At the same time, the command identification information c and the direction identification information t for the command information CMD are stored in the storage unit ME (S12).

Next, since the information processing unit PR determines that the input command information CMD is not for the terminal device T-n (S23: NO), the communication control unit CN does not perform further DL communication.
Next, the information processing unit PR determines that the input command information CMD is for the terminal device T-n itself (S25: YES), and determines the sensor S1 to S3 according to the command information CMD. Is measured / detected, terminal information INF is generated from the measured / detected measurement information D1 to D3, and is output to the communication control unit CN (S26).
Finally, the communication control unit CN transmits the input terminal station information INF from the communication unit CM to the device T-t (S17), and ends the processing according to the command information CMD for the terminal station device T-n itself. (S19).

When the communication control unit CN determines that the input command information CMD is not the first command information CMD (S121: YES and S122: NO), the communication control unit CN does not perform processing for the command information CMD (S19). .
On the other hand, since the command information CMD is only for the terminal device Tn, the communication unit CM does not receive the terminal information INF other than the terminal device Tn, and the communication control unit CN The relay transmission processing of the terminal station information INF other than the station device T-n is not performed.

  Next, an operation when the command information CMD is for any one other than the terminal device Tn in the single mode will be described.

When receiving the command information CMD, the communication unit CM outputs the command information CMD to the communication control unit CN (S10).
Next, the communication control unit CN determines that the input information is command information CMD (S11: CMD), and determines whether or not it is the first command information CMD, as in the common mode. Performed (S121 and S122).
Next, when the communication control unit CN determines that the input command information CMD is the first command information CMD (S121: NO or S122: YES), the communication control unit CN sends the command information CMD to the information processing unit PR. At the same time, the command identification information c and the direction identification information t for the command information CMD are stored in the storage unit ME (S12).

Next, the information processing unit PR determines that the input command information CMD is for other than the terminal device T-n (S23: YES), and the communication control unit CN performs communication included in the command information CMD. Based on the path information, command information CMD is transmitted from the communication unit CM (S14).
Next, since the information processing unit PR determines that the input command information CMD is not for the terminal device T-n itself (S25: NO), the information processing unit PR does not perform processing according to the command information CMD (S19). .
When the communication control unit CN determines that the input command information CMD is not the first command information CMD (S121: YES and S122: NO), the communication control unit CN does not perform processing for the command information CMD (S19). .

  On the other hand, when the communication unit CM receives the terminal information INF other than the terminal device T-n, the communication unit CM outputs the terminal information INF to the communication control unit CN (S10), and the communication control unit CN receives the input information. Is determined to be terminal station information INF (S11: INF), the terminal station information INF is transmitted from the communication unit CM to the apparatus T-t (S18), and the terminal station information INF other than the terminal station apparatus T-n The relay transmission process is terminated (S19).

  In this way, in the single mode as well as in the common mode, the terminal device T-n generates the terminal information INF when the first command information CMD is for the terminal device Tn itself. Then, UL communication is performed from the communication unit CM to the device T-t, and when the first command information CMD is for a device other than the terminal device T-n, DL communication is performed, and a terminal station other than the terminal device T-n. When the information INF is received, UL communication is performed from the communication unit CM to the device T-t. As described above, also in the multiple mode, the terminal device T-n operates in substantially the same manner as in the single mode.

<Second Embodiment>
=== Configuration and Operation of Entire Monitoring System ===
The overall configuration of the monitoring system according to the second embodiment of the present invention is substantially the same as the overall configuration of the monitoring system according to the first embodiment. However, as will be described later, the communication unit of each terminal device includes two transmission / reception units that use different radio channels, and the entire monitoring system has three radio channels ch-A, ch-B, and ch- C is used.

  Next, the operation of the entire monitoring system in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The overall operation of the monitoring system in this embodiment is the same as the overall operation of the monitoring system in the first embodiment, except for the setting of the radio channel used for DL communication and UL communication between adjacent devices. In FIG. 6, only the communication unit 11 of the monitoring device 1b and the terminal devices T-11 to T-13 are shown.

  The communication unit 11 transmits the command information CMD to the terminal device T-11 using the wireless channel ch-A, and the terminal device T-11 receives the command information CMD using the wireless channel ch-A. Then, the data is relayed and transmitted to the terminal device T-12 using the radio channel ch-B. Further, the terminal station device T-12 relays the command information CMD using the radio channel ch-B and transmits the command information CMD to the terminal station device T-13 using the radio channel ch-C. The device T-13 uses the radio channel ch-C to receive and relay the command information CMD, and transmits to the terminal station devices T-23 and T-33 (not shown) using the radio channel ch-A. To do.

  On the other hand, each terminal device generates terminal information INF from measurement information of a steel tower or a sensor (not shown) installed around the tower according to the first command information CMD, and the adjacent terminal device or communication unit Send to. Also, the terminal station information INF is relayed while being received at each terminal apparatus, and is transmitted to the communication unit 11 that transmitted the first command information CMD in the order opposite to the order of DL communication. Note that the radio channel used for UL communication between adjacent devices is the same as the radio channel used for DL communication. Similarly to the monitoring system of the first embodiment, each terminal information INF does not include communication path information indicating the order of UL communication, and the order of UL communication is determined by a method described later.

  In this way, as in the monitoring system of the first embodiment, only the first command information CMD in each terminal device is relayed and transmitted as appropriate among the command information CMD transmitted almost simultaneously from each communication unit of the monitoring device 1b. The terminal information INF that is transmitted (DL communication) and appropriately transmitted from each terminal device according to the first command information CMD is relayed (UL communication) to the communication unit that transmitted the first command information CMD.

  Also, as shown in FIG. 6, in the monitoring system of this embodiment, the radio channels used for DL communication and UL communication between adjacent devices are ch-A, ch-B, ch-C, ch-A. It is set repeatedly in the order of ... Therefore, by setting the three radio channels ch-A, ch-B, and ch-C to radio channels that do not cause radio wave interference with each other, a plurality of terminal devices can simultaneously perform DL communication or UL communication. And the transmission speed of the terminal information INF can be improved. As an example, when an IEEE802.11b standard wireless LAN is used for DL communication and UL communication, wireless channels 1ch, 6ch, and 11ch that do not cause radio wave interference with each other can be used as the three wireless channels.

=== Configuration and Operation of Terminal Station Device ===
Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 5, the structure of the terminal station apparatus in this embodiment is demonstrated.
The terminal device T-n illustrated in FIG. 5 is one of a plurality of terminal devices used together with the monitoring device 1b illustrated in FIG. 3 in the monitoring system, for example, and includes a communication unit CM and a communication control unit CN. , A storage unit ME, an information processing unit PR, and sensors S1 to S3.

  The communication unit CM includes transmission / reception units C1 and C2 each having an antenna for transmitting / receiving a radio signal. The communication control unit CN inputs / outputs command information CMD and terminal information INF to / from the transmission / reception units C1 and C2, and receives command identification information c and direction identification information t, which will be described later, from the storage unit ME. m is input and output. Furthermore, the information processing unit PR inputs and outputs command information CMD and terminal information INF with the communication control unit CN. The measurement information D1 to D3 output from the sensors S1 to S3, respectively, are all input to the information processing unit PR.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 5 and FIG. 7, the operation of the terminal device in the present embodiment will be described. The transceivers C1 and C2 use different radio channels ch-n1 and ch-n2, respectively. In this embodiment, the radio channels ch-n1 and ch-n2 are the above-described three radio channels ch- Any two of A, ch-B, and ch-C.

First, the operation in the common mode will be described.
When receiving the command information CMD, the transmission / reception unit C1 or C2 outputs the command information CMD to the communication control unit CN (S10).
Next, the communication control unit CN determines that the input information is the command information CMD (S11: CMD), and whether or not it is the first command information CMD as in the terminal device of the first embodiment. The determination process is performed (S121 and S122).
Next, when the communication control unit CN determines that the input command information CMD is the first command information CMD (S121: NO or S122: YES), the communication control unit CN sends the command information CMD to the information processing unit PR. At the same time, the command identification information c and the direction identification information t and m for the command information CMD are stored in the storage unit ME (S12).
The direction identification information m is information indicating the transmission / reception unit that has received the command information CMD, and may be 1-bit information represented by 0 or 1, but in this embodiment, for convenience of explanation, when m = 1 Is the transmission / reception unit C1, and when m = 2, the transmission / reception unit C2 is represented, and the transmission / reception unit indicated by the identification information m is represented by Cm.

Next, the information processing unit PR determines that the input command information CMD is for (other than) the terminal device Tn (S23: YES), and the communication control unit CN adds the command information CMD to the command information CMD. Based on the included communication path information, the command information CMD is transmitted from the transmission / reception unit C1 or C2 (S14).
Next, the information processing unit PR determines that the input command information CMD is for the terminal device T-n itself (S25: YES), and determines the sensor S1 to S3 according to the command information CMD. Is measured / detected, terminal information INF is generated from the measured / detected measurement information D1 to D3, and is output to the communication control unit CN (S26).
Finally, the communication control unit CN transmits the input terminal station information INF from the transmission / reception unit Cm to the device T-t (S17), and ends the processing according to the command information CMD for the terminal station device T-n itself. (S19).

  On the other hand, when the transmission / reception unit C1 or C2 receives the terminal station information INF other than the terminal station device T-n, the transmission / reception unit C1 or C2 outputs the terminal station information INF to the communication control unit CN (S10), and the communication control unit CN is input. The terminal information is determined to be terminal station information INF (S11: INF), the terminal station information INF is transmitted from the transmitting / receiving unit Cm to the apparatus T-t (S18), and the terminal station information other than the terminal station apparatus T-n is transmitted. The INF relay transmission process is terminated (S19).

  In this way, in the common mode, the terminal device T-n performs DL communication for transmitting the first command information CMD from the transmission / reception unit C1 or C2 based on the communication path information only for the first command information CMD. At the same time, UL communication is performed in which the terminal information INF generated according to the first command information CMD or the terminal information INF other than the terminal device T-n is transmitted from the transmission / reception unit Cm to the device Tt. Therefore, in the monitoring system according to the present embodiment, each terminal device transmits DL communication and terminal information only to one of the command information CMD transmitted substantially simultaneously from the communication units 11 to 13 of the monitoring device 1b. Since the INF is generated, the entire monitoring system does not increase the amount of information transmitted and received, and can improve the reliability without reducing the speed of wireless communication.

  Further, as shown in S17 and S18 of FIG. 7, in the terminal device T-n according to the present embodiment, the partner that performs UL communication is always the device indicated by the direction identification information t stored in the storage unit ME. The transmission / reception unit that performs the UL communication is the transmission / reception unit Cm indicated by the direction identification information m stored in the storage unit ME. Therefore, the terminal station information INF and the transmission packet of the terminal station information INF do not need to include communication path information, respectively, and increase the amount of UL communication information that can be transmitted within a predetermined period. The transmission speed can be improved.

  In the single mode and the plurality of modes, similarly to the common mode, the terminal device T-n receives the terminal information INF when the first command information CMD is for the terminal device T-n itself. Generate and perform UL communication from the transmitting / receiving unit Cm to the device T-t, perform DL communication when the first command information CMD is for a device other than the terminal device T-n, and perform a terminal communication other than the terminal device T-n. When the station information INF is received, UL communication is performed from the transmission / reception unit Cm to the apparatus T-t.

  As described above, in the terminal device T-n, when the command information CMD is received, it is determined whether or not it is the first command information CMD using the command identification information and the direction identification information. When the CMD is for the terminal device T-n itself, the terminal information INF is generated and UL communication is performed in the direction indicated by the direction identification information, and the first command information CMD is for other than the terminal device T-n. When DL communication is performed and terminal information INF other than the terminal device T-n is received, UL communication is performed in the direction indicated by the direction identification information, so that the amount of information transmitted and received does not increase. Reliability can be improved without reducing the speed of wireless communication. Further, the communication path information of the terminal station information INF becomes unnecessary, and the transmission speed can be improved.

  Further, by storing the direction identification information t indicating the monitoring device or the terminal device that transmitted the command information CMD last (immediately before the terminal device T-n receives the command information), the communication path information is stored in the terminal information INF. It is possible to determine the other party that performs the UL communication as the device T-t without including it.

  In addition, the communication unit CM includes transmission / reception units C1 and C2 that use different radio channels, and stores the direction identification information m indicating the transmission / reception unit that has received the command information CMD, so that the communication path information is stored in the terminal information INF. A transmission / reception unit that performs UL communication without being included can be determined as a transmission / reception unit Cm. Furthermore, it becomes possible for a plurality of terminal devices to perform DL communication or UL communication simultaneously, and the transmission speed of the terminal information INF can be improved.

  Further, in the monitoring system including the monitoring device 1b and a plurality of terminal devices, the terminal device T-n as shown in FIG. 1 or FIG. Reliability can be improved without reducing the speed. Further, among the relay transmission processing in the terminal station T-n, the relay processing by the communication control unit CN is performed according to the communication protocol of the application layer as shown in FIGS. The number of relay transmission stages can be increased regardless of the lower layer communication protocol restriction.

  In addition, by installing a plurality of terminal devices on the steel tower, the state of each steel tower and the surrounding conditions of each steel tower including the transmission line are intensively monitored at a substation where the monitoring device 1b is installed. Can do.

  In addition, the said embodiment is for making an understanding of this invention easy, and is not for limiting and interpreting this invention. The present invention can be changed and improved without departing from the gist thereof, and equivalents thereof are also included in the present invention.

  In the said embodiment, although monitoring systems, such as a steel tower and a power transmission line, were shown in FIG. 10 as an application example of terminal unit TN, it is not limited to this. The terminal device T-n includes a plurality of terminal devices, and can be applied to a monitoring system in which information is relayed between the monitoring device and each terminal device. In addition to the power system monitoring system, It can also be applied to gas and water system monitoring systems.

  In the above embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, there is a branch from the terminal station device T-13 in the communication path of DL communication and UL communication, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, in the case of a monitoring system in which each terminal device is arranged in a line and two communication units of the monitoring device are arranged at both ends, the command identification information c and the direction identification information are used without using the direction identification information t. It is also possible to determine whether or not it is the first instruction information CMD using only m.

1, 1a, 1b Monitoring device 2 Substation 10 Information processing unit 11, 12, 13 Communication unit Sn (1 ≦ n ≦ N) Steel tower Tn (1 ≦ n ≦ N) Terminal device CM communication unit C1, C2 transceiver unit CN communication control unit ME storage unit PR information processing unit S1, S2, S3 sensor

Claims (5)

A terminal device used in a monitoring system including a monitoring device and a plurality of terminal devices,
A communication unit that wirelessly transmits and receives information;
A storage unit for storing command identification information indicating the content of the command information transmitted from the monitoring device; and direction identification information indicating a direction in which the communication unit has received the command information;
An information processing unit for generating terminal information according to the command information;
A communication control unit that controls wireless transmission and reception of the communication unit while storing the command identification information and the direction identification information in the storage unit;
Have
The communication control unit
Only when the communication unit receives the command information having a content different from the content indicated by the command identification information or when the command information is received from the direction indicated by the direction identification information, the command identification is stored in the storage unit. When the command information is information for the terminal device while storing information and the direction identification information, the terminal information of the terminal device is transmitted from the communication unit in the direction indicated by the direction identification information. When the command information is information for another terminal device, the command information is transmitted from the communication unit,
When the communication unit receives the terminal information of another terminal device, the terminal information of the other terminal device is transmitted from the communication unit in a direction indicated by the direction identification information. A terminal device. The direction identification information includes information indicating the monitoring device or other terminal device that last transmitted the command information,
The terminal device according to claim 1, wherein the communication control unit causes the terminal device information to be transmitted from the communication unit to the monitoring device or another terminal device indicated by the direction identification information. The communication unit includes first and second transmission / reception units that use different radio channels,
The direction identification information includes information indicating a transmission / reception unit that has received the command information among the first and second transmission / reception units,
The terminal device according to claim 1, wherein the communication control unit causes the terminal information to be transmitted from a transmission / reception unit indicated by the direction identification information. A plurality of terminal devices;
A monitoring device for transmitting command information for the plurality of terminal devices and receiving terminal information transmitted from the plurality of terminal devices;
With
The plurality of terminal devices are:
A communication unit that wirelessly transmits and receives the command information and the terminal information;
A storage unit for storing command identification information indicating the content of the command information, and direction identification information indicating a direction in which the communication unit has received the command information;
An information processing unit that generates the terminal information according to the command information;
A communication control unit that controls wireless transmission and reception of the communication unit while storing the command identification information and the direction identification information in the storage unit;
Each with
The communication control unit
Only when the communication unit receives the command information having a content different from the content indicated by the command identification information or when the command information is received from the direction indicated by the direction identification information, the command identification is stored in the storage unit. When the command information is information for the terminal device while storing information and the direction identification information, the terminal information of the terminal device is transmitted from the communication unit in the direction indicated by the direction identification information. When the command information is information for another terminal device, the command information is transmitted from the communication unit,
When the communication unit receives the terminal information of another terminal device, the terminal information of the other terminal device is transmitted from the communication unit in a direction indicated by the direction identification information. Monitoring system. The plurality of terminal devices are each installed on a steel tower that supports a power transmission line,
The monitoring system according to claim 4, wherein the terminal station information is a state of the power transmission line, a state of the steel tower, a state around the steel tower, or a combination thereof.

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