JP2016177531A - Ups management device and method using hid_usb communication - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable a UPS management device to perform information communication such as the state monitoring or setting of a UPS incorporating a device of an HID class only via USB communication by using a USB driver whose application is standardly included in an OS of the UPS management device in the case of performing the state monitoring or setting of the UPS.SOLUTION: A UPS management device 20 transmits a "device request" common to all devices indicating the specification information of a device connected to a UPS 10 via an end point 0(11) to the UPS 10. A device 10 of an HID class returns a response to the UPS management device 20 by using the end point 0(11), and returns the information of the end point to be used for communication with the UPS management device 20 in the response, and furthermore, informs the UPS management device 20 of the use of communication by control transfer by using an end point 14, and transfers information such as the state monitoring or setting of the UPS by using another end point 15 to be used for the transfer system.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention uses an HID_USB (Universal Serial Bus) communication for an uninterruptible power supply (Uninterruptible Power Supply, hereinafter abbreviated as “UPS”) incorporating a device having HID (Human Interface Devices) as a device class. The present invention relates to a UPS management apparatus and method capable of bidirectional communication. In particular, when a host (eg, server, PC, etc.) manages a UPS, it communicates information (control information) such as the status monitoring and setting of a UPS with a device having a HID as a device class. The present invention relates to a UPS management apparatus and method for enabling communication using only HID_USB communication instead of 232C (COM port) communication or the like.

First, UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) will be described.
The UPS may protect the power supply by continuing to supply power without interruption by instantaneously switching to backup operation that supplies power from the UPS battery when a power failure such as a power failure or lightning strikes. Well known to those skilled in the art.

  In a UPS used to protect the power supply of a computer such as a PC (Personal Computer), when the UPS enters backup operation, the battery capacity is limited, so the computer is automatically shut down while the battery remains. Make it safe even when the power is turned off.

  When the computer shuts down, no further backup is required, so the UPS is stopped to prevent unnecessary discharge of the UPS battery and extend the life of the UPS battery.

  In this way, the UPS has a communication unit to operate in conjunction with the management device according to the situation, and UPS status monitoring and operation / stopping are performed using that communication unit. There are many.

In some cases, the UPS is monitored on the network. In such a case, an option card that supports network communication may be mounted on the UPS.
There are various types of network communication, and Modbus (registered trademark), which is known for industrial networks, uses communication baud rate, communication method (mode) (RTU / ASCII), parity bit, device ID (identification) before communication. It is necessary to determine the setting value.

In order to make these settings, a communication unit is essential for UPS. Conventionally, RS-232C known as COM port was used for communication with this UPS.
FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a UPS management apparatus using conventional RS-232C (COM port) communication. In FIG. 5, the CPU in the UPS obtains measurement information such as input voltage and output voltage by feedback while controlling the converter (eg, A / D converter, D / A converter) and holds it inside. ing.

  On the other hand, in the management apparatus (PC), a “UPS management program” (application program) for managing the UPS is installed in the PC, and UPS information is obtained using the COM port (P1 port shown in the figure). In this way, RS-232C communication using the COM port is used to obtain UPS information.

  Also, the UPS is equipped with an RS-232C driver IC that enables RS-232C communication as a communication unit that communicates with the PC, and the UPS retains it by exchanging commands with the CPU inside the UPS with 8-bit ASCII data Measurement information to be obtained.

By the way, RS-232C has been used in many devices for a long time because it allows easy communication with a few parameters such as the communication baud rate and the number of data bits.
The UPS management software (application) of the management device (PC) determines the UPS status based on the information obtained through the RS-232C communication.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a correspondence relationship between UPS management apparatuses that perform UPS power management using the above-described conventional RS-232C communication. In the correspondence between the UPS management device and the UPS in FIG. 6, if the PC side obtains whether the UPS is performing backup operation due to an input error, and that state is maintained for a certain time (OS shutdown start time), At the same time as shutting down the OS on the PC side, a command to stop the UPS after a specified time (UPS output stop delay time) can be sent to link the PC shutdown and UPS output stop operations. .

  By the way, in recent years, there are many cases where only the minimum necessary interface is mounted on the PC for the purpose of reducing the price of the PC, and while a general-purpose USB port has become mainstream, there is a COM port for RS-232C communication The number of PCs that do not increase is increasing. For this reason, there is a problem of cost increase in that it is necessary to add a device that converts a USB port to a COM port in order to communicate with the UPS or makes the UPS compatible with the USB port.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a configuration example (No. 1) of a conventional UPS management apparatus using USB (described later). In FIG. 7, a UPS management apparatus using a virtual COM port will be described as an example.
First, by installing the USB driver software on the management device (PC), a virtual COM port (virtual COM P1 port shown) is created inside the PC.

  By connecting the management device (PC) and the UPS with a USB cable and converting the data obtained from the UPS using USB (described later) into data that can be handled by this virtual COM port, the conventional RS-232C As with communication, communication using a virtual COM port can be performed between the UPS and the management device (PC).

  For this reason, when viewed from the UPS management program (application program) of the management device (PC), it seems to communicate with the COM port as before, so communication can be performed without the need for expansion or modification of equipment. it can.

  However, since the driver software strongly depends on the OS, it is necessary to create the driver software every time the OS environment changes, and there is a problem that the effort required for that is increased.

Here, the USB (also referred to as “USB communication” including the communication protocol) will be described.
USB ("USB communication") is generally composed of four communication lines, and because it is a physically simple configuration, the mounting cost is low, and in recent years USB is mounted on many devices. .

  For example, it is widely used for communication with various devices such as a device (external device) connected to a personal computer (PC), for example, a keyboard, a mouse, a USB memory, and a printer. A communication protocol for communicating with such various devices is preset in USB.

  A communication protocol is configured in units called packets, and a number (eg, ID) for identifying a corresponding device in each packet is determined. Various devices are “grouped” under the concept of “class”, and device-specific specifications are defined according to each “class”. The specification details of the “class” corresponding to each device are disclosed in USB-IF (Implementers Forum) (http://www.usb.org/), and anyone can check the definition contents of the specification. it can.

  In order to communicate with each device using USB, driver software and application software for performing the communication are required. The driver software must be installed in advance on the host (eg, server, PC, etc.). If it is not installed, it will be treated as an unknown device and communication via USB cannot be performed.

New devices that are not defined in “classes” or manufacturer-specific devices must create and provide dedicated driver software for communicating with the devices.
USB has a serial bus connection configuration and can connect a plurality of devices. The serial bus adopts a master-slave system and is connected in a configuration in which only one bus master is provided. In general, the “bus master” side is often referred to as “host”, and the “bus slave” side is often referred to as “target”.

  The host was mounted on a computer with a certain degree of performance such as a PC. However, in recent years, the performance of embedded computers has increased, so there are many embedded devices having a host. Slaves (devices) are often found in embedded devices and can be mounted relatively easily.

Next, I will briefly explain the software that uses USB.
In order for the management device (control subject) to use the USB port, dedicated driver software (a part used by the operating system) and an application (a part used by the user) for communicating with the driver (software) are required.

  Devices such as keyboard, mouse, USB memory, etc., known as standard device classes, have dedicated driver software installed in advance on an operating system such as a PC (for example, Windows (registered trademark), Linux (registered trademark), Macintosh (registered trademark)) Etc.), and the device can be used without installing a driver. And since the USB communication protocol starts communication mainly by the host (eg, server, PC, etc.), there is no communication from the device side.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a configuration example (part 2) of a conventional UPS management apparatus using USB. Inside the UPS 110 shown on the left side of FIG. 8, a USB device configuration (this configuration itself is well known to those skilled in the art) is shown. In other words, the USB device is configured to have “end point 0” 111 used as a default and one or more “interfaces” 113-1 and 113-2 defined hierarchically in the configuration 112. The “interfaces” 113-1 and 113-2 can also have one or more “end points” 114 and 115 hierarchically.

  For example, in the USB device configuration shown on the left side of FIG. 8, the configuration 112 has two interfaces 113-1 and 113-2 that are hierarchically divided into interface 0 and interface 1, and interface 0 (113-1). Then, hierarchically, using one endpoint 114-1 for which “control transfer” is selected and a different endpoint 115-1, and using this transfer method, it is included in the OS of the UPS management apparatus 200. It communicates with the defined USB driver (general-purpose part) 231-1.

  In addition, in interface 1 (113-2), one endpoint 114-2 in which “bulk transfer” is selected as one endpoint and another endpoint 115-2 different from that are used hierarchically. The USB driver (general-purpose part) 231-2 that is different from the USB driver (general-purpose part) 231-1 used by the interface 0, defined in the OS of the UPS management apparatus 200 using the transfer method. Communicate with.

Note that each endpoint in the interface is enabled when the configuration is active.
On the other hand, in the UPS management apparatus 200 shown on the right side of FIG. 8, the above-described two USB drivers (general-purpose units) 231-1 and 231-2 and these two USB drivers ( General-purpose part) USB driver (dedicated part) 232 linked to application (proprietary creation) 241 as part 240 that user uses 231-1 and 231-2 is prepared, application (proprietary creation) 241 is USB driver (dedicated Unit) 232, and can be linked to one of the two USB drivers (general-purpose units) 231-1 and 231-2. The USB driver (dedicated unit) 232 is prepared as a driver that operates in the kernel mode.

  As described above, the conventional configuration example (No. 2) is a driver software (USB driver (dedicated) that communicates with the endpoint in the interface every time the interface of the USB device configuration shown in the left part of FIG. 8 is created. Part)) and an application (original creation) that communicates with the driver (software).

  Usually, applications (software) are often made to run on various OSs using API (Application Programming Interface), but driver software (USB driver (dedicated part)) is the host side operating system (OS). Since it is executed from the beginning, there is a problem that it is necessary to recreate the driver software (USB driver (dedicated part)) every time the OS is upgraded.

  Under such circumstances, the following Patent Document 1 discloses various external devices that connect a USB device to a USB port of a predetermined terminal and share the input means of the predetermined terminal with an external device to perform Bluetooth communication with the USB device. A USB device that can provide an input interface to a device without a separate input means is disclosed.

  In Patent Document 2 below, a key code is interrupt-transferred to a computer from a plurality of endpoints used for communication with a computer and at least one of the plurality of endpoints used for HID class communication. A printer system that includes a control unit and can easily notify data to an application provided in a computer without using a device driver or software that performs complicated processing is disclosed.

JP 2012-190436 A JP 2012-213859 A

  As described above, in the past, when USB is implemented in a device that is not defined in the device class (non-standard device), both USB driver software and application software are required to perform USB communication with that device. There was a need to create.

  Since the driver software is a part used by the Operating System, it is necessary to check whether the driver operates correctly every time the Operating System is upgraded. Therefore, it can be used only after sufficient operation confirmation and evaluation. For this reason, there has been a problem that the creation of the driver software requires a large cost and time.

  Even if it is created as a standard device such as HID (Human Interface Devices) defined in the device class, depending on the industrial field, it is often not suitable for the actual product application, so it can be used as it is. There is little that can be done.

  In addition, there are many devices for which drivers (software) are not prepared in advance on the host side even if they are defined in the device class, and serial communication such as the COM port of the Communication class should be used with standard drivers (software). Therefore, there is a problem that each device manufacturer must also provide a driver (software).

  As described above, USB ports (USB communication ports) are becoming mainstream in recent years, but it is necessary to create and provide drivers (software) and applications (software) together, so there are many in product development, operation, and maintenance. There is a problem that it takes a lot of time and money.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to use the USB driver included in the standard of the OS of the UPS management device for the USB communication by the application when the UPS management device performs the status monitoring or setting of the UPS incorporating the HID class device. It is simply to provide a UPS management apparatus that enables information communication such as UPS status monitoring and settings.

In order to solve the above problems, the invention according to the UPS management device according to claim 1 is:
A UPS management device that manages a UPS that incorporates a device of the HID class using HID_USB communication, and the UPS management device includes:
One general purpose USB driver,
An application for accessing one of the general-purpose USB drivers;
With
The UPS is a USB device configuration to be implemented,
One interface in the configuration,
Below the interface, a first endpoint that defines a transfer method;
And a second end point that performs transfer according to the defined transfer method.

  The invention according to claim 2 is the invention according to claim 1, wherein the UPS management apparatus is commonly used in USB compatible devices using the transfer method defined in the second endpoint. It is characterized by exchanging information about UPS status monitoring and settings only by an application using control packets of “GET_DESCRIPTOR” and “SET_DESCRIPTOR” defined in the communication field of the standard request.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the present invention, the transfer method is control transfer.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the UPS includes a control controller unit and a card slot in which a USB communication card having a HID as a device class is mounted in the casing. ,
By mounting the USB communication card in the card slot, it is possible to perform USB communication with the control controller unit and the UPS management device.

  The invention according to claim 5 is the invention according to claim 4, wherein the USB communication card has at least a CPU and a RAM therein, and power is supplied from the control controller unit to the periphery thereof. A second interface that communicates with the control controller unit, and a USB connector port that is connected to a USB cable.

In order to solve the above problem, the invention according to the UPS management method according to claim 6 is:
A management method in a UPS management apparatus that manages a UPS incorporating a device of HID class using HID_USB communication, wherein the UPS management apparatus
A general-purpose USB driver and an application for accessing the general-purpose USB driver;
For the transfer method defined at the endpoint of the USB device configuration implemented in the UPS and the endpoint that performs transfer by the transfer method, the application is used in the communication field of the standard request that is commonly used in USB compatible devices. The control information of “GET_DESCRIPTOR” and “SET_DESCRIPTOR” that are defined is used to exchange information on the status monitoring and setting of the UPS.

  The invention described in claim 7 is characterized in that, in the invention described in claim 6, the transfer method is control transfer.

  According to the present invention, when the UPS management device performs status monitoring or setting of a UPS having a built-in HID class device, the application simply performs USB communication using the USB driver included in the OS of the UPS management device. Can communicate information such as UPS status monitoring and settings.

It is a figure which shows the structural example of the UPS management apparatus using HID_USB communication which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structural example of UPS which concerns on embodiment of this invention. FIG. 3 is an enlarged configuration diagram of a USB communication card (option) shown in FIG. 2. It is a figure which shows the mutual relationship when the UPS management apparatus using HID_USB communication which concerns on embodiment of this invention performs power management of UPS. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the UPS management apparatus using the conventional RS-232C (COM port) communication. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a correspondence relationship when the UPS management apparatus using the conventional RS-232C communication shown in FIG. 5 performs UPS power management. It is a figure which shows the structural example (the 1) of the conventional UPS management apparatus using USB. It is a figure which shows the structural example (the 2) of the conventional UPS management apparatus using USB.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a UPS management apparatus using HID_USB communication according to an embodiment of the present invention. HID (Human Interface Devices) is one of many device classes described in USB (Universal Serial Bus), and if a HID class device is installed, it can communicate with the host via USB. It will be.

  1, a UPS management apparatus using HID_USB communication according to an embodiment of the present invention has a USB device configuration inside the UPS 10 shown on the left side of FIG. As described above, the “end point 0” 11 used as a default and one “interface” 13 defined in the configuration 12 are configured. The “interface” 13 can have one or more “end points” 14 and 15.

  That is, in the USB device configuration shown on the left side of FIG. 1, the configuration 12 has an interface 0 (13), and the interface 0 (13) includes one endpoint 14 for which “control transfer” is selected. A different endpoint 15 is used to realize bidirectional communication with a USB driver (general-purpose unit) defined in the OS of the management apparatus using the transfer method.

Note that each endpoint 14, 15 in the interface 13 is enabled when the configuration 12 is active.
On the other hand, in the UPS management apparatus 20 shown on the right side of FIG. 1, the above-mentioned one USB driver (general-purpose unit) 31 is prepared as a part 30 used by the OS. Can be linked to the application (software) 41 of the part 40 used by the user.

  In this case, in order for the application (software) 41 to access the USB driver (general-purpose unit) 31, it can be easily realized by using an API (Application Programming Interface) that directly accesses the general-purpose driver software. Since the API itself is well known to those skilled in the art, a description thereof will be omitted here.

  By the way, if it is a device of the HID class, as described above, USB communication is possible, and it is a device that accepts input from the user even if it is a UPS remote from the management device, like an existing keyboard or mouse. Function. In other words, if the device class conforms to HID, simply connect a USB cable (not shown), the UPS management device will recognize that it is a HID class device, and the UPS management device can recognize the operation of the device accordingly. .

  Therefore, until the UPS management device recognizes a device of the HID class, it is usually necessary to determine by performing many USB communications. In the following, the communication operation from the connection of the USB cable until the UPS management device recognizes the HID class device will be described in detail.

  In USB (Universal Serial Bus), four types of communication methods, control transfer, bulk transfer, interrupt transfer, and isochronous transfer, are prepared in advance, and these transfer methods are selected according to the characteristics of each device. . Note that actual communication (transfer) is defined in “communication connection units” called “endpoints”, and each endpoint has an ID (identification) for identification. ing.

  As a premise for communicating device information to the UPS management device, “Endpoint 0” 11 that is always implemented in the USB device configuration is used. In other words, “Endpoint 0” 11 is an indispensable endpoint for exchanging control information between the UPS 10 and the UPS management device 20, and the permitted communication method is “Control Transfer”. The interface number used for actual information transfer (communication), the endpoint ID, etc. need to be determined in advance by both of them.

  Normal endpoints 14 and 15 other than “endpoint 0” 11 are grouped by “interface” 13 as described above, and the above four transfer methods (control transfer, bulk transfer) are transferred to one endpoint 14 in interface 13. It is necessary to specify whether to use transfer, interrupt transfer, or isochronous transfer.

  A USB device can have one or more interfaces 13 defined by a configuration descriptor (details will be described later) in the configuration 12, and one or more interfaces defined by an interface descriptor (details will be described later). Endpoints 14 and 15 can be included in the interface 13. The direction of data flow (IN and OUT as viewed from the management device) is defined in the end point 14, and it is necessary to have end points to be used for transmission = OUT and reception = IN. Therefore, if the direction of information flow is defined in advance by the descriptor, bidirectional communication can be performed using the above-described “control transfer”. This will be described later.

A USB device always has a descriptor, and its contents are defined by the USB-IF (Implementers Forum) described above.
More specifically, the descriptor in the USB device has a device descriptor at the highest level, a configuration descriptor at the lower level, and an interface descriptor and an endpoint descriptor at the lower level. Descriptors are defined in a hierarchy. In the interface descriptor, it is also possible to define an HID descriptor only in the HID class standard, and a report descriptor and an optional physical descriptor below the HID descriptor.

  The device descriptor can include basic information such as the supported USB specification version, device class, protocol, maximum packet length that can be used for transfer to endpoint 0, vendor ID, and product ID.

The configuration descriptor can include information such as device attributes and power consumption.
The interface descriptor is a descriptor required for each interface, and can include an interface identification number, an interface class, the number of supported endpoints, and the like. The HID descriptor limited to the HID class standard is defined below the interface descriptor, and the type and size of the descriptor belonging to the HID are defined in the HID descriptor.

  Furthermore, the endpoint descriptor is a descriptor required for each endpoint specified by the interface descriptor, and defines a transfer type (transfer direction), a maximum packet length that can be used for transfer, and a transfer interval. However, endpoint 0 cannot have this descriptor by rule.

  In the present embodiment, one interface 0 (13) is defined in the lower hierarchy of the configuration 12, and the endpoint descriptor further includes a transfer type (direction viewed from the management device defined by transfer direction = IN and OUT). ), Maximum packet length to be used for transfer, transfer interval, etc. are defined, and agreement is made between the USB device installed in UPS10 and UPS management device 20 before actual communication to realize HID_USB communication Like to do.

  More specifically, when the UPS management device 20 and the HID class device 10 are connected by a USB cable (not shown), the UPS management device 20 is connected to the UPS 10 via the endpoint 0 (11). A “device request” common to all devices indicating the specification information of the device is sent.

  The HID class device connected to the UPS 10 returns a response to the requested “device request” to the UPS management device 20 through the endpoint 0 (11), and communicates with the UPS management device 20 in the response. Returns information about the endpoint used in.

  Then, using the endpoint 14 in the lower layer of the interface 0 (13), it is notified that “control transfer” of the above four transfer methods has been selected, and control transfer is performed to the UPS management device 20. In addition to notifying that communication is performed, another endpoint 15 for performing the control transfer is designated, and information such as UPS status monitoring and setting is exchanged using the endpoint 15.

  Note that the information flow directed to IN and OUT as viewed from the UPS management device 20 is defined by the GET_DESCRIPTOR (control as viewed from the UPS management device 20) defined in the communication field of the standard request commonly used in USB compatible devices. IN) ”and“ SET_DESCRIPTOR (control OUT as viewed from the UPS management device 20) ”control packets can be used to perform communication of any content using only the“ control transfer ”described above. This eliminates the need for dedicated USB driver software (abbreviated as a driver) as in the conventional example, and allows only application software (abbreviated as an application) to exchange information such as UPS status monitoring and settings. can do.

  In FIG. 1, it is not impossible for the part 30 used by the OS to be realized by using a dedicated class driver (HID). However, because it is a dedicated class driver, it will be used. Because the UPS10 side must prepare a driver corresponding to it, this embodiment dares not to use a dedicated class driver (HID), but to use one general-purpose USB driver 31 for UPS status monitoring and settings, etc. Information exchange is realized.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a UPS according to the embodiment of the present invention. The UPS 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 2 is one in which the USB communication card 3 is mounted in the card slot 2 to enable HID_USB communication.

  More specifically, the UPS 1 is provided with a control controller unit 4 and a card slot 2 in its casing. In the illustrated example, an exterior part (not shown) is made transparent, an interface (abbreviated as I / F) for connecting the controller unit 4 and the USB communication card (option) 3 (refer to the left part in the figure), and a USB An interface (abbreviated as I / F) for connecting the communication card (option) 3 and a USB cable (not shown) (see the right part in the figure) is provided.

  The UPS 1 installs a USB communication card (option) 3 in the card slot 2 prior to USB communication with a UPS management device (not shown). That is, by installing the USB communication card (option) 3 having HID as the device class in the card slot 2, the UPS 1 can perform HID_USB communication with a UPS management apparatus (not shown).

  By doing so, the UPS 1 can mount a USB communication port (USB port) (see FIG. 3) for HID_USB communication with a UPS management device (not shown). HID-USB communication becomes possible just by providing a general-purpose part.

  That is, the UPS 1 shown in FIG. 2 adds a USB communication card (option) 3 to the card slot 2 to add a USB communication port (USB port) (see FIG. 3) to the UPS 1 and performs UPS management (not shown). Enables HID-USB communication from the device. The details of the USB communication card (option) 3 that is detachable from the card slot 2 will be described later.

  FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the configuration of the USB communication card (option) 3 shown in FIG. In FIG. 3, an interface 3-1 to which power is supplied from the control controller unit 4 (see FIG. 2) of the UPS 1 and an interface 3-2 for communicating with the control controller unit 4 (see FIG. 2) are provided. .

  The USB communication card (option) 3 includes at least a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 3-3, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 3-4, and a USB connector port (USB communication port) 3-6. Yes.

  The USB connector port (USB communication port) 3-6 of the USB communication card (option) 3 is in the form of the USB device controller 3-5 built in the CPU 3-3 in the USB communication card (option) 3 or dedicated. The USB device controller 3-5 may be of any type.

Next, the operation when the USB connector is connected will be described.
When the USB communication card (option) 3 for USB connection is installed in the card slot 2 described above, the UPS management device (host) (not shown) uses the end pointer 0 to query the device side for the device configuration. A “device request” common to all devices is sent.

  The device side returns that it is a HID class device in response to the above “device request”, and then uses the endpoint descriptor described above to transfer the transfer type (transfer direction = IN and OUT bidirectional), transfer Define the maximum packet length, transfer interval, etc. used in, and negotiate between the USB device installed in the UPS and the UPS management device before actual communication. In this way, an endpoint used for actual communication is established between the host side and the device side.

  Originally, a device-specific ID (identification) such as a mouse or keyboard is returned to the host side, but in this system, the device side only returns a code as a HID general-purpose machine to the host side. ID exchange is simplified.

  Once the endpoint is established, the application (software) for USB communication on the host side uses the control packets of “SET_DESCRIPTOR (host-side control OUT)” and “GET_DESCRIPTOR (host-side control IN)”. Any information exchange (bidirectional data communication) for obtaining or setting the status of the device in the UPS can be performed.

  As a restriction, the data size (payload size) that can be transmitted / received by one-time exchange of arbitrary information is limited to 64 bytes, so if you need to exchange more data than that, multiple times Needless to say, communication is performed separately.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a correspondence relationship between UPS management apparatuses (PCs) using HID_USB communication according to an embodiment of the present invention when UPS power management is performed.
The correspondence between the UPS management device (PC) and UPS in Fig. 4 uses the above-mentioned HID_USB communication to indicate whether there is no power supply abnormality (eg, output stop) on the UPS side and whether it is operating in normal operation. If the PC side obtains and normal operation is maintained, the PC side maintains the AC adapter connection, and transitions without monitoring the power supply drop.

  Therefore, when a power supply abnormality occurs on the UPS side, the UPS shifts from normal operation to backup operation, and it is found that the state has been continued for a certain time or more by monitoring on the PC side, for example, By switching to battery-powered operation, it will be possible to monitor the power supply drop due to battery-powered PCs themselves.

  Since such a battery-driven power supply drop monitoring is normally performed on a commercially available notebook computer, the UPS management device described above must acquire the power supply abnormal state of the device in the UPS using HID_USB communication. Can be easily realized.

  In other words, in this example, when the UPS management device (PC) performs UPS power management, the UPS power supply of the UPS is controlled by matching the voltage drop monitoring when the PC battery is running with the UPS output stop operation. Can be monitored.

1 Uninterruptible power supply (UPS)
2 Card slot 3 USB communication card (optional)
4 Control controller section 3-1 Interface (for power supply)
3-2 Interface (for communication)
3-3 CPU (Central Processing Unit)
3-4 RAM (Random Access Memory)
3-5 USB device controller 3-6 USB connector port (USB communication port)
10 UPS
11 Endpoint 0
12 Configuration 13 Interface 0
14 Endpoints that define the transfer method 15 Endpoints used during transfer 20 UPS management device 30 Parts used by the operating system 31 USB driver (general-purpose part)
40 Parts used by users 41 Applications

Claims (7)

A UPS management device that manages a UPS that incorporates a device of the HID class using HID_USB communication, and the UPS management device includes:
One general purpose USB driver,
An application for accessing one of the general-purpose USB drivers;
With
The UPS is a USB device configuration to be implemented,
One interface in the configuration,
Below the interface, a first endpoint that defines a transfer method;
A second endpoint for forwarding according to the defined forwarding method;
A UPS management device characterized by comprising: The UPS management device uses the transfer method defined by the second endpoint to send control packets of “GET_DESCRIPTOR” and “SET_DESCRIPTOR” defined in the communication field of the standard request commonly used in USB compatible devices. Use only applications to exchange information about UPS status monitoring and settings,
The UPS management device according to claim 1. The transfer method is control transfer.
The UPS management device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein The UPS includes a control controller unit and a card slot in which a USB communication card having HID as a device class is mounted in a housing,
By mounting the USB communication card in the card slot, it is possible to perform USB communication with the control controller unit and the UPS management device.
The UPS management device according to claim 1. The USB communication card has at least a CPU and a RAM inside, a first interface to which power is supplied from the control controller unit, and a second interface that communicates with the control controller unit in the periphery thereof And having a USB connector port to connect with the USB cable,
The UPS management device according to claim 4. A management method in a UPS management apparatus that manages a UPS incorporating a device of HID class using HID_USB communication, wherein the UPS management apparatus
A general-purpose USB driver and an application for accessing the general-purpose USB driver;
For the transfer method defined at the endpoint of the USB device configuration implemented in the UPS and the endpoint that performs transfer by the transfer method, the application is used in the communication field of the standard request that is commonly used in USB compatible devices. Exchange information about the UPS status monitoring and settings using the defined control packets of "GET_DESCRIPTOR" and "SET_DESCRIPTOR"
UPS management method characterized by this. The transfer method is control transfer.
The UPS management method according to claim 6.