JP4678055B2 - Wireless terminal device, wireless relay device, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve efficiency of data transmission to a radio communication terminal and to save power of a radio terminal apparatus by achieving a radio communication system provided with radio terminal apparatuses different in beacon waiting condition. <P>SOLUTION: The radio relay apparatus 1 comprises: a radio transmission section 14 for periodically transmitting a beacon to a radio terminal apparatus; and a control section 10 for generating a beacon including an application ID indicating a kind of the radio terminal apparatus and a mask bit indicating a group to which the radio terminal apparatus of a reception object of the beacon belongs, for each kind of the radio terminal apparatus, and causing the radio transmission section to transmit the generated beacon to the radio terminal apparatus. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a wireless terminal device, a wireless relay device, and a program.

  In recent years, development of a wireless communication system in which a small-scale wireless network is constructed between a plurality of electronic devices to perform information communication has been advanced. In particular, the development of the field of small-scale wireless PAN (Personal Area Network) in which a person's surroundings are within the communication range is being promoted and is rapidly spreading. This wireless PAN is, for example, ZigBee (registered trademark) in which the physical layer and the MAC layer are standardized in IEEE 802.15, and Bluetooth (registered trademark) in which the physical layer and the MAC layer are standardized in IEEE 802.15.1. ) And the like.

  ZigBee is standardized by the ZigBee Alliance and uses IEEE802.15.4 for the physical layer and the MAC layer. Therefore, ZigBee is characterized by low cost, low power consumption, and easy installation, while being slower than Bluetooth, and the wireless relay device can be connected to many wireless terminal devices.

  A wireless communication system using ZigBee includes a wireless relay device and a wireless terminal device. A beacon mode is often used as a communication method of this wireless communication system. In the beacon mode, the wireless relay device periodically transmits a beacon signal at a predetermined cycle, all wireless terminal devices receive the beacon, and the wireless terminal device is the wireless relay device in synchronization with the received beacon. Wireless communication.

  When transmitting data from the wireless relay device to the wireless terminal device, the wireless relay device stores and transmits the address of the wireless terminal device that transmits data in the pending address in the beacon. The wireless terminal device that has received the beacon transmits a data request to the wireless relay device and receives data when the beacon has its own address.

  In the wireless communication system as described above, the maximum number of wireless terminal device addresses that can be stored in the pending address is up to 7 and is defined by IEEE 802.15.4. Therefore, for example, in a wireless communication system composed of one wireless relay device and a large number of eight or more wireless terminal devices, even when data is transmitted to all wireless terminal devices, Only up to 7 addresses can be stored. Therefore, although only a maximum of seven wireless terminal devices can receive data in one beacon transmission, all wireless terminal devices perform a receiving operation for each beacon transmission time. For this reason, since the wireless terminal device receives a beacon even when it is not necessary to receive data, there is a problem that power is wasted.

Conventionally, as a technique for reducing the power consumption of the wireless terminal device, in synchronization with the receiving means for receiving the radio wave transmitted from the wireless communication base station and the transmission timing of the beacon periodically transmitted by the wireless communication base station, Reception control means for performing the intermittent reception operation by returning the reception means from the pause state to the reception state for every beacon or for every one beacon, and intermittent reception according to the data bandwidth of the communication data used by the application program A wireless communication terminal comprising a reception interval control means for controlling an operation reception interval is disclosed (see Patent Document 1).
JP 2004-187002 A

  However, in the wireless communication system such as Patent Document 1, since the standby conditions such as the beacon reception interval are the same for all the wireless terminal devices, the wireless terminal devices having different types of the beacon standby conditions are the same. Cannot be accommodated in any wireless communication system. Therefore, it is necessary to construct a wireless communication system for each wireless terminal device of the same type, and there is a problem that a plurality of wireless communication systems exist in the same place.

  In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to realize a wireless communication system provided with different types of wireless terminal devices, to improve the efficiency of data transmission to the wireless terminal devices and to reduce the power consumption of the wireless terminal devices. It is to plan.

In order to solve the above-described problems, the invention described in claim 1 includes a transmitter that periodically transmits a beacon to a wireless terminal device, terminal type information indicating the type of the wireless terminal device, and the wireless terminal device. Group identification information indicating a group to which a wireless terminal device that is a beacon reception target belongs for each type, and the terminal type information for calculating the type and the timing for starting the reception unit of the wireless terminal device belonging to the group, and And a control unit that generates a beacon including group identification information and causes the transmission unit to transmit the generated beacon to the wireless terminal device.
Furthermore, a program for causing a computer to function as the main means shown in the invention described in claim 1 is provided (the invention described in claim 9).

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the wireless relay device according to the first aspect, the type of the wireless terminal device is classified by an interval at which the wireless terminal device receives a beacon.

  A third aspect of the present invention is the wireless relay device according to the first or second aspect, further comprising a terminal information storage unit that stores information for each wireless terminal device capable of communicating according to the type of the wireless terminal device, The group identification information is a value extracted from the sequence number based on a sequence number that increases each time the beacon is transmitted, and a total number of groups that divide the plurality of wireless terminal devices for each type of the wireless terminal device. The control unit, for each type of the wireless terminal device, according to the number of wireless terminal devices for each type of the wireless terminal device stored in the terminal information storage unit The mask information is determined.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the wireless terminal device including a receiving unit that receives a beacon, the beacon includes terminal type information indicating a type of the wireless terminal device, and beacon information for each type of the wireless terminal device. An identification information storage unit that includes group identification information indicating a group to which a wireless terminal device to be received belongs, the terminal type information indicating the type of the wireless terminal device of itself, and terminal identification information for identifying itself And based on the terminal type information and the group identification information included in the beacon received by the receiving unit, and the terminal type information and the terminal identification information stored in the identification information storage unit, And a control unit that calculates a timing for starting the receiving unit and stops the operation of the receiving unit until the calculated timing. A line terminal device.
Furthermore, a program for causing a computer to function as the main means shown in the invention described in claim 4 is provided (the invention described in claim 10).

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the wireless terminal device according to the fourth aspect, the type of the wireless terminal device is classified according to an interval at which the wireless terminal device receives a beacon.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the wireless terminal device according to the fourth or fifth aspect, the control unit is included in the beacon that matches the terminal type information stored in the identification information storage unit The group identification information corresponding to the type information is extracted, and based on the extracted group identification information and the terminal identification information, the beacon received by the reception unit determines the type of the wireless terminal device. It is characterized in that the beacon is addressed to the group to which it belongs.

  The invention according to claim 7 is the wireless terminal device according to any one of claims 4 to 6, wherein the group identification information includes a sequence number that increases every time the beacon is transmitted, and the terminal Mask information in which a value to be extracted from the sequence number is determined based on the total number of groups dividing the plurality of wireless terminal devices for each type of the wireless terminal device indicated by the type information, and the control unit includes the identification The mask information corresponding to the terminal type information included in the beacon that matches the terminal type information stored in the information storage unit is extracted, and a value extracted from the sequence number using the extracted mask information is extracted. A difference value between the first calculated value indicating the second calculated value indicating the value extracted from the terminal identification information using the extracted mask information is calculated and set in advance. Calculating a third calculated value indicating a value obtained by multiplying the interval at which the beacon is transmitted by the difference value, until the timing based on the time obtained by adding the third calculated value to the time when the beacon is received. It is characterized by stopping the operation.

  According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the wireless terminal device according to any one of the fourth to seventh aspects, the beacon includes terminal identification information of the wireless terminal device that is a transmission target of data, and the control unit Is characterized in that when the beacon received by the receiving unit is a beacon addressed to a group to which the receiving unit belongs, the receiving unit receives data when the beacon includes its own terminal identification information. Yes.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the radio | wireless communications system provided for every different kind of radio | wireless terminal apparatus is implement | achieved, The efficiency of the data transmission to a radio | wireless terminal apparatus can be achieved, and the power saving of a radio | wireless terminal apparatus can be achieved.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to this embodiment. The embodiment of the present invention shows the most preferable mode of the present invention, and the terminology of the present invention is not limited to this.

First, the configuration will be described.
FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration diagram of a wireless communication system A in the present embodiment.
As shown in FIG. 1, a wireless communication system A includes a wireless relay device 1 connected to another wireless relay device or an external device via a wired network 3, and a plurality of wireless relay devices 1 connected to the wireless relay device 1 via wireless communication. 1st wireless terminal device 2a, 2nd wireless terminal device 2b, and 3rd wireless terminal device 2c. The first wireless terminal device 2a, the second wireless terminal device 2b, and the third wireless terminal device 2c are of the type classified by the interval of receiving beacons transmitted from the wireless relay device 1, that is, the response performance of beacons. Since the configuration is the same except that the beacon reception interval is different, these are hereinafter collectively referred to as the wireless terminal device 2.

FIG. 2 shows a schematic configuration diagram of the wireless relay device 1.
As shown in FIG. 2, the wireless relay device 1 includes a control unit 10, a storage unit 11, a terminal information memory 12, a beacon transmission timer 13, a wireless transmission unit 14, a wireless reception unit 15, a SW (switching unit) 16, a wired connection An I / F (InterFace) unit 17, a buffer 18, an antenna 19 and the like are provided, and each unit is electrically connected.

  The control unit 10 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and the like. The control unit 10 reads programs, tables, and data specified from various programs, various tables, data, and the like stored in the storage unit 11 and the terminal information memory 12, and is used for RAM or the storage unit 11 and terminal information. The data is expanded in the work area of the memory 12, and various processes are executed in cooperation with the program. The processing results are stored in the RAM or a predetermined area of the storage unit 11 or the terminal information memory 12, and the wireless relay device 1 is instructed to control the overall operation of the wireless relay device 1.

  The control unit 10 generates a beacon including terminal type information and group identification information, and transmits the generated beacon to the first wireless terminal device 2a, the second wireless terminal device 2b, and the third wireless terminal device 2c by the wireless transmission unit 14. A beacon transmission process to be transmitted periodically is executed.

  The beacon is packet data transmitted from the wireless relay device 1 at regular intervals, and is wirelessly connected to the first wireless terminal device 2a, the second wireless terminal device 2b, the third wireless terminal device 2c connected to the wireless communication system A. This is for synchronizing the relay device 1 with each other.

FIG. 3 shows an example of a beacon format in the present embodiment.
As shown in FIG. 3, the beacon has a MAC (Media Access Control) header area B1, a MAC payload area B2, and an MFR (MAC Footer) area B3.

  The MAC payload area B2 includes an SS (Superframe Specification) B21, a GTS (Guaranteed Time Slot) field B22, a PA (Pending Address) field B23, a beacon payload B24, and the like.

  SS is a detailed information field of a superframe, and defines a beacon transmission interval and a beacon communication method for time management when a beacon is received. The GTS field includes information on a communication method (for example, GTS) guaranteed by a specific wireless terminal device. When there is data to be transmitted to the wireless terminal device, the PA field includes terminal identification information (node address) for identifying the wireless terminal device that transmits the data. The beacon payload B24 includes a plurality of combinations of the extension sequence number B24a, the application IDB 24b, and the mask bit B24c. The number of combinations of the application IDB 24b and the mask bit B24c is the number of types of wireless terminal devices 2 to which the wireless relay device 1 can be connected, and is not limited to the illustration.

  The extended sequence number increases every time a beacon is transmitted, and functions as a sequence number.

  The application ID is preset terminal type information indicating the type of the wireless terminal device. As shown in FIG. 1, when there are three types of wireless terminal devices, the first wireless terminal device 2a, the second wireless terminal device 2b, and the third wireless terminal device 2c, an application ID is set for each type. Yes.

  The mask bit is set for each application ID. Each mask bit has a value extracted from the extended sequence number based on the total number of groups that divide a plurality of wireless terminal devices of the same type, and functions as mask information. This extended sequence number and each mask bit function as group identification information indicating a group to which a wireless terminal device that is a beacon reception target belongs for each type of wireless terminal device.

FIG. 4 shows an example of combinations of application IDs and mask bits corresponding to the types of wireless terminal devices.
As shown in FIG. 4, the application ID of the wireless terminal device for high-speed response is “40h”, the application ID of the wireless terminal device for medium-speed response is “80h”, and the application ID of the wireless terminal device for low-speed response is “ “C0h” is set, and the others are reserved. Also, the mask bit of the wireless terminal device for high-speed response is set to “0001h”, the mask bit of the wireless terminal device for medium-speed response is set to “000Fh”, and the mask bit of the wireless terminal device for low-speed response is set to “00FFh”. Has been.

  An example of a wireless terminal device for high-speed response is a voice terminal or the like, and is a wireless terminal device whose beacon reception interval is shorter than other wireless terminal device types in order to achieve high-speed response. An example of a wireless terminal device for medium-speed response is an electronic message board, etc., and in order to realize a response that is slower than a high-speed response and faster than a low-speed response, the interval between receiving beacons is longer than the high-speed response and low-speed. The wireless terminal device is shorter than the response. An example of the wireless terminal device for low-speed response is an electronic shelf label or the like, and is a wireless terminal device in which a beacon reception interval is longer than other types of wireless terminal devices in order to realize low-speed response.

  In the present embodiment, the first wireless terminal device 2a is a wireless terminal device for high-speed response, the second wireless terminal device 2b is a wireless terminal device for medium-speed response, and the third wireless terminal device 2c is a wireless terminal for low-speed response. A device.

The beacon interval Tb in IEEE 802.15.4 is set by the wireless relay device 1 between 15.36 [ms] to 251 [s] defined by the following equation (1).
Tb = 15.36 [ms] × 2 ^SO (0 ≦ SO ≦ 14) (1)
Here, when SO = 2, the beacon interval Tb is 61.44 [ms].
For example, under the above conditions, the beacon reception interval of the wireless terminal device for high-speed response is 122.88 [ms], the beacon reception interval of the wireless terminal device for medium-speed response is 983.04 [ms] 44, and the low-speed response The beacon reception interval of the wireless terminal device for use is set to 1578.64 [ms].

  The storage unit 11 includes a nonvolatile memory that can be electrically erased and rewritten, such as a magnetic or optical recording medium or a semiconductor. The storage unit 11 is fixedly attached to the wireless relay device 1 or is detachable. It is to be attached. For example, FeRAM (Ferroelectric Random Access Memory), MRAM (Magneto resistive Random Access Memory), OUM (phase change recording memory by chalcogenide alloy), etc. can be mentioned. The storage unit 11 stores in advance various programs executed by the control unit 10 and various tables and data used by these programs.

  The terminal information memory 12 is composed of a memory that can be electrically erased and rewritten. The terminal information memory 12 stores information such as the node address of the wireless terminal device 2 existing in the communicable area of the wireless relay device 1 for each type of wireless terminal device, and functions as a terminal information storage unit. To do.

  The beacon transmission timer 13 is a timer that times the beacon transmission interval, and outputs a beacon transmission timing signal indicating that the time has reached the transmission interval to the control unit 10.

  The wireless transmission unit 14 includes a modulation circuit, an RF (Radio Frequency) circuit, and the like, adjusts the transmission power of the packet, encodes the data to be transmitted in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 10, and transmits the packet. The packet is modulated, and the packet is transmitted to the wireless terminal device 2 via the antenna 19.

  The wireless receiving unit 15 includes a demodulation circuit, an RF circuit, and the like, and is obtained by adjusting the reception sensitivity of the packet, demodulating the packet received via the antenna 19, and analyzing the demodulated packet. The data is output to the control unit 10.

  The SW 16 is provided between the antenna 19 and the wireless transmission unit 14 or the wireless reception unit 15, and transmits a packet from the wireless transmission unit 14 or receives a packet from the antenna 19 in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 10. Switch.

  The wired I / F 17 performs communication control for communicating with another wireless relay device 1 or an external device connected via the wired network 3 by a predetermined communication method.

  The buffer 18 temporarily stores data received via the wired I / F 17.

  The antenna 19 transmits a packet according to the set transmission power or receives a packet according to the set reception sensitivity.

FIG. 5 shows a schematic configuration diagram of the wireless terminal device 2.
As illustrated in FIG. 5, the wireless terminal device 2 includes a control unit 20, a storage unit 21, a memory 22, a startup timer 23, a power supply control unit 24, a display control unit 25 a, a display unit 25 b, a wireless transmission unit 26, and wireless reception. A unit 27, a SW (switching unit) 28, an antenna 29, and the like are provided, and each unit is electrically connected. The wireless terminal device 2 includes a battery B, and power is supplied from the battery B to each unit in response to a control signal from the power supply control unit 24.

  The control unit 20 includes a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, reads out various programs stored in the storage unit 21, various programs and tables and data specified from various tables and data, and stores them in the RAM or the storage unit 21. In the work area, execute various processes in cooperation with the above program, store the processing results in a predetermined area of the RAM or storage unit 21, and instruct each unit in the wireless terminal device 2, The overall operation of the wireless terminal device 2 is comprehensively controlled.

  The control unit 20 includes an extended sequence number, an application ID, and a mask bit included in the beacon received by the wireless reception unit 27, an application ID indicating the type of the wireless terminal device held in the address memory 22, and Based on the node address for identifying itself, a timing (activation timing) for starting the wireless reception unit is calculated, and a beacon reception process for stopping the operation of the wireless reception unit 27 is executed until the calculated activation timing.

  In calculating the activation timing, first, an application ID indicating the type of its own wireless terminal device stored in the memory 22 is read, and an application ID included in a beacon that matches the read application ID is extracted. The Then, a mask bit corresponding to the application ID is extracted from the beacon. Next, a first calculated value is extracted from the extended sequence number using the extracted mass bits. Further, the second calculated value is extracted from its own node address using the extracted mask bit. A difference value between the first calculated value and the second calculated value is calculated, and a third calculated value indicating a value obtained by multiplying a preset beacon transmission interval (beacon interval) by the difference value is calculated. And the time which added the 3rd calculated value to the time (T) which received the beacon is calculated as starting timing.

  Furthermore, the control unit 20 determines that the beacon received by the wireless reception unit 27 is a beacon addressed to a group to which the self belongs, among the groups that divide the type of the wireless terminal device based on the extended sequence number, the mask bit, and the node address. Determine.

  If the beacon received by the wireless receiver 27 is a beacon addressed to the group to which the wireless receiver 27 belongs, the controller 20 sends a data request by the wireless transmitter 26 if the PA field of the beacon includes its own node address. And the wireless receiving unit 27 executes a process of receiving data from the wireless relay device 1.

FIG. 6 shows examples of extended sequence numbers, mask bits, and node addresses. A calculation example of the first calculated value and the second calculated value will be described with reference to FIG.
As shown in FIG. 6, the extended sequence number, the mask bit, and the node address are each represented by 2 bytes (16 bits). In FIG. 6, description will be made using an example in which the extended sequence number is “AAAAh”, the mask bit is “000Fh”, and the node address is “FFAAh”. FIG. 6 shows a hexadecimal value corresponding to a binary value shown every 4 bits.

  The first calculated value is a value obtained by ANDing the extended sequence number and the mask bit. In FIG. 6, the shaded bit value “1010b” of the extended sequence number corresponding to the bit having 1 of the mask bit is calculated as the first calculated value. The second calculated value is a value obtained by ANDing the node address and the mask bit. In FIG. 6, the shaded bit value “1010b” of the node address corresponding to the bit having 1 of the mask bit is calculated as the second calculation.

  When the lower 4 bits of the mask bit are 1, there are 16 kinds of the first calculated value and the second calculated value extracted from the extended sequence number and the node address. Therefore, the control unit 20 identifies the plurality of wireless terminal devices by dividing them into groups for each wireless terminal device having the same lower 4 bits of the node address, based on the mask bits and the node address. For example, when the lower 4 bits of the mask bit are 1, the same type of wireless terminal device is divided into 16 groups.

  The value of each mask bit (the number of digits (bit number) in which 1 of the mask bit is set) is changed according to the number of wireless terminal devices of the same type that can be connected to the wireless relay device 1 that transmits a beacon. is there. IEEE 802.15.4 specifies that a maximum of seven node addresses are stored in one beacon (one group), so one group calculated according to the total number of wireless terminal devices and a multiple of 7 The value of the mask bit is determined by the number of hit wireless terminal devices.

  When the calculated first calculated value matches the second calculated value, the received beacon is determined to be a beacon addressed to the group to which the self belongs among the groups that divide the type of the wireless terminal device.

  The storage unit 21 is composed of a non-volatile memory that can be electrically erased and rewritten, such as a magnetic or optical recording medium or a semiconductor, and is provided in the wireless terminal device 2 or is detachable. It is to be attached. For example, FeRAM (Ferroelectric Random Access Memory), MRAM (Magneto resistive Random Access Memory), OUM (phase change recording memory by chalcogenide alloy), etc. can be mentioned. The storage unit 21 stores in advance various programs executed by the control unit 20 and various tables and data used in these programs.

  The memory 22 is configured by a nonvolatile memory that can be electrically erased and rewritten. The memory 22 stores an application ID indicating the type of its own wireless terminal device and terminal identification information (node address) for identifying itself, and functions as an identification information storage unit.

  The activation timer 23 is a timer that times the activation timing (activation time) of the wireless reception unit 27 calculated by the control unit 20, and outputs an activation timing signal indicating that the activation timing has been reached to the control unit 20.

  The power control unit 24 controls the power supply of the entire wireless terminal device 2 in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 20, and supplies power from the battery B to each unit in the wireless terminal device 2.

  The battery B is, for example, a primary battery such as an alkaline battery or a manganese battery, or a secondary battery such as a nickel cadmium battery, a nickel hydrogen battery, or a lithium ion battery.

  The display control unit 25a displays various information on the display unit 25b in accordance with the display instruction input from the control unit 20.

  The display unit 25b is configured by an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), an EL (Electro Luminescence) display, or the like, and displays various screens on the display in accordance with a signal input from the display control unit 25a.

  The wireless transmission unit 26 includes a modulation circuit, an RF (Radio Frequency) circuit, and the like, adjusts the transmission power of the packet, encodes data to be transmitted in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 20, and transmits the packet. The packet is modulated, and the packet is transmitted to the wireless relay device 1 via the antenna 29.

  The wireless reception unit 27 includes a demodulation circuit, an RF circuit, and the like, and is obtained by adjusting the reception sensitivity of the packet, demodulating the packet received via the antenna 29, and analyzing the demodulated packet. The data is output to the control unit 20.

  The SW 28 is provided between the antenna 29 and the wireless transmission unit 26 or the wireless reception unit 27, and transmits a packet from the wireless transmission unit 26 or receives a packet from the antenna 29 in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 20. Switch.

  The antenna 29 transmits a packet according to the set transmission power or receives a packet according to the set reception sensitivity.

Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 7 shows a main flowchart of the beacon transmission process executed in the wireless relay device 1. Note that the processing shown in FIG. 7 is executed by the cooperation of the control unit 10 and each unit in the wireless relay device 1 and is executed while power is being supplied to the wireless relay device 1. is there.

  First, the control unit 10 determines whether or not a packet including a node address has been received from the wireless terminal device 2 via the wireless reception unit 15 (step S1). When the packet including the node address is received (step S1; YES), the control unit 10 stores the node address included in the received packet in the terminal information memory 12 (step S2), and returns to the process of step S1.

  When a packet including a node address has not been received (step S1; NO), the control unit 10 performs a high-speed response mask bit setting process (step S3), a medium-speed response mask bit setting process (step S4), and a low-speed response. Mask bit setting processing (step S5) is executed.

  After setting the mask bit for each type of wireless terminal device (after Steps S3 to 5), the control unit 10 increments the extension sequence number (Step S6). The control unit 10 generates a beacon packet including an application ID indicating the type of each wireless terminal device, a mask bit set for each application ID, and an extended sequence number (step S7).

  The control unit 10 determines whether or not a beacon transmission timing signal is input from the beacon transmission timer 13 (step S8). When the beacon transmission timing signal is not input (step S8; NO), the control unit 10 returns to the process of step S8.

  When the beacon transmission timing signal is input (step S8; YES), the control unit 10 causes the wireless transmission unit 14 to transmit the generated beacon via the antenna 19 (step S9), clears the beacon transmission timer, and transmits the beacon. Timing of the transmission interval is started (step S10).

  The control unit 10 determines whether a data request is received from the wireless terminal device 2 via the wireless reception unit 15 (step S11).

  When the data request is not received (step S11; NO), the control unit 10 determines whether or not a preset time (predetermined time) has elapsed since the time measured by the beacon transmission timer (step S12). When the predetermined time has not elapsed (step S12; NO), the control unit 10 returns to the process of step S11, and when the processing time has elapsed (step S12; YES), the control unit 10 returns to the process of step S1.

  When the data request is received (step S11; YES), the control unit 10 generates data addressed to the wireless terminal device 2 that has transmitted the data request, transmits the data (step S13), and performs the process of step S1. Return.

  In this way, the wireless relay device 1 sets the mask bits indicating the total number of groups to which the wireless terminal device belongs for each type of wireless terminal device according to the number of wireless terminal devices 2 that can communicate for each type of wireless terminal device. The beacon including the mask bit (that is, the combination of the application ID and the mask bit) for each type of the wireless terminal device and the extended sequence number can be periodically transmitted to the wireless terminal device 2.

FIG. 8 shows a flowchart of the high-speed response mask bit setting process.
The control unit 10 calculates the total number of node addresses of high-speed response wireless terminal devices stored in the terminal information memory 12. In addition, the total number of groups divided by the value of the mask bits (hereinafter also referred to as high-speed mask bits) of the wireless terminal device for high-speed response set as the initial value is calculated. The control unit 10 calculates the number of node addresses per group based on the total number of node addresses and the total number of groups in the wireless terminal device for high-speed response. Then, the control unit 10 determines the number of node addresses per group (step S21).

  When the number of node addresses per group is 8 or more (step S21; 8 or more), the control unit 10 increases the number of digits in which 1 of the high-speed mask bits is set (step S22). In step S22, for example, when the low-order 2 bits of the high-speed mask bit is 1 in step S21, the low-order 3 bits are 1 in step S22, and the number of groups of wireless terminals for high-speed response is increased.

  When the number of node addresses per group is 3 or more and 7 or less (step S21; 3 or more and 7 or less), the control unit 10 does not change the high-speed mask bit (step S23). In step S23, for example, when the low-order 2 bits of the high-speed mask bit is 1 in step S21, the low-order 2 bits are also 1 in step S23, and the number of groups of wireless terminals for high-speed response does not change.

  When the number of node addresses per group is 2 or less (step S21; 2 or less), the control unit 10 decreases the number of digits in which the high-speed mask bit is 1 by 1 (step S24). In step S24, for example, when the low-order 2 bits of the high-speed mask bit is 1 in step S21, the low-order 1 bit is 1 in step S24, and the number of groups of wireless terminals for high-speed response is reduced.

  In step S24, the number of digits in which the high-speed mask bit 1 is set is reduced by one digit to reduce the number of groups, whereby the beacon reception interval can be shortened and within a pre-allowed range (from a preset upper limit value to a lower limit value). Responsiveness can be improved.

  After any of steps S22, S23, and S24, the control unit 10 determines whether or not the high-speed mask bit is smaller than a preset upper limit value (step S25). When the high-speed mask bit is equal to or higher than the upper limit value (step S25; NO), the control unit 10 sets the high-speed mask bit to the upper limit value (step S26).

  When the high speed mask bit is smaller than the upper limit value (step S25; YES) or after step S26, the control unit 10 determines whether or not the high speed mask bit is larger than a preset lower limit value (step S27). When the high-speed mask bit is larger than the lower limit value (step S27; YES), the control unit 10 ends the high-speed response mask bit setting process.

  When the high-speed mask bit is equal to or lower than the lower limit value (step S27; NO), the control unit 10 sets the high-speed mask bit to the lower limit value (step S28) and ends the high-speed response mask bit setting process.

  If the high-speed mask bit increases without limit, the number of groups increases, and there is a possibility that high-speed response cannot be maintained. Therefore, in S106, the high-speed mask bit is set to a predetermined upper limit value or less to ensure high-speed response.

FIG. 9 shows a flowchart of the medium speed response mask bit setting process.
The control unit 10 calculates the total number of node addresses of the medium-speed response wireless terminal devices stored in the terminal information memory 12. Also, the total number of groups divided by the value of the mask bit (hereinafter also referred to as the medium speed mask bit) of the wireless terminal device for medium speed response set as the initial value is calculated. The control unit 10 calculates the number of node addresses per group based on the total number of node addresses and the total number of groups of the wireless terminal devices for medium speed response. Then, the control unit 10 determines the number of node addresses per group (step S31).

  When the number of node addresses per group is 8 or more (step S31; 8 or more), the control unit 10 increases the number of digits in which the medium speed mask bit is 1 by one (step S32). In step S32, for example, if the lower 4 bits of the medium speed mask bit are 1 in step S31, the lower 5 bits are 1 in step S32, and the number of groups of wireless terminal devices for medium speed response is increased.

  When the number of node addresses per group is 3 or more and 7 or less (step S31; 3 or more and 7 or less), the control unit 10 does not change the medium speed mask bit (step S33). In step S33, for example, if the lower 4 bits of the medium speed mask bit is 1 in step S31, the lower 4 bits are also 1 in step S33, and the number of groups of the wireless terminal devices for medium speed response does not change.

  When the number of node addresses per group is 2 or less (step S31; 2 or less), the control unit 10 decreases the number of digits in which the medium speed mask bit is set by 1 (step S34). In step S34, for example, if the lower 4 bits of the medium speed mask bit are 1 in step S31, the lower 3 bits are 1 in step S34, and the number of groups of wireless terminal devices for medium speed response is reduced.

  In step S34, the number of digits in which the medium speed mask bit 1 is set is reduced by one digit to reduce the number of groups, so that the beacon reception interval can be shortened and within a pre-allowed range (from a preset upper limit value to a lower limit value). Responsiveness can be enhanced within the range of values.

  After any of steps S32, S33, and S34, the control unit 10 determines whether or not the high speed mask bit is smaller than the medium speed mask bit (step S35). When the high-speed mask bit is equal to or higher than the medium-speed mask bit (step S35; NO), the control unit 10 increases the number of digits in which the medium-speed mask bit is 1 by one digit (step S36).

  In step S36, the number of groups of wireless terminal devices for medium-speed response is smaller than the number of groups of wireless terminal devices for high-speed response, so that the wireless terminal device for medium-speed response is faster than the wireless terminal device for high-speed response. This also prevents receiving a beacon at a short cycle.

  When the high-speed mask bit is smaller than the medium-speed mask bit (step S35; YES) or after step S36, the control unit 10 determines whether or not the medium-speed mask bit is smaller than a preset upper limit value (step S37). ). When the medium speed mask bit is equal to or higher than the upper limit value (step S37; NO), the control unit 10 sets the medium speed mask bit to the upper limit value (step S38).

  If the medium speed mask bit increases without limit, the number of groups increases, and the set responsiveness may not be maintained. Therefore, in S38, the medium speed mask bit is set to a predetermined upper limit value or less to ensure responsiveness.

  When the medium speed mask bit is smaller than the upper limit value (step S37; YES) or after step S38, the control unit 10 determines whether or not the medium speed mask bit is larger than a preset lower limit value (step S39). When the medium speed mask bit is larger than the lower limit value (step S39; YES), the control unit 10 ends the medium speed response mask bit setting process.

  When the medium speed mask bit is equal to or lower than the lower limit value (step S39; NO), the control unit 10 sets the medium speed mask bit to the lower limit value (step S40) and ends the medium speed response mask bit setting process.

  If the medium-speed mask bit becomes infinitely small, the number of groups will decrease, and the wireless terminal apparatus will receive frequently. Therefore, the power consumption of the wireless terminal device increases. Therefore, in S40, the medium speed mask bit is set to a predetermined lower limit value or more to prevent an increase in power consumption.

FIG. 10 shows a flowchart of the low-speed response mask bit setting process.
The control unit 10 calculates the total number of node addresses of the low-speed response wireless terminal devices stored in the terminal information memory 12. Further, the total number of groups divided by the value of the mask bit (hereinafter also referred to as the medium speed mask bit) of the low-speed response wireless terminal set as the initial value is calculated. The control unit 10 calculates the number of node addresses per group based on the total number of node addresses and the total number of groups of wireless terminal devices for low-speed response. Then, the control unit 10 determines the number of node addresses per group (step S51).

  When the number of node addresses per group is 8 or more (step S51; 8 or more), the control unit 10 increases the number of digits in which the low-speed mask bit is 1 by one (step S52). In step S52, for example, when the lower 8 bits of the low-speed mask bits are 1 in step S51, the lower 9 bits are 1 in step S52, and the number of groups of the wireless terminal devices for low-speed response is increased.

  When the number of node addresses per group is 3 or more and 7 or less (step S51; 3 or more and 7 or less), the control unit 10 does not change the low-speed mask bit (step S53). In step S53, for example, when the lower 8 bits of the low-speed mask bit is 1 in step S51, the lower 8 bits are also 1 in step S53, and the number of groups of the wireless terminal devices for low-speed response does not change.

  When the number of node addresses per group is 2 or less (step S51; 2 or less), the control unit 10 decreases the number of digits in which the low-speed mask bit is 1 by 1 (step S54). In step S54, for example, when the lower 8 bits of the low-speed mask bit is 1 in step S51, the lower 7 bits are 1 in step S54, and the number of groups of wireless terminal devices for low-speed response is reduced.

  By reducing the number of groups in which the low-speed mask bit 1 is set by one digit in step S54, the beacon reception interval can be reduced, and the beacon reception interval can be shortened within a pre-allowed range (from a preset upper limit value to a lower limit value). Responsiveness can be improved.

  After any of steps S52, S53, and S54, the control unit 10 determines whether or not the medium speed mask bit is smaller than the low speed mask bit (step S55). When the medium speed mask bit is equal to or higher than the low speed mask bit (step S55; NO), the control unit 10 increases the number of digits at which 1 of the low speed mask bit is set by one digit (step S56).

  In step S56, the number of groups of the wireless terminal devices for low-speed response is smaller than the number of groups of the wireless terminal devices for medium-speed response, so that the wireless terminal device for low-speed response is more than the wireless terminal device for medium-speed response. This also prevents receiving a beacon at a short cycle.

  When the medium speed mask bit is smaller than the low speed mask bit (step S55; YES) or after step S56, the control unit 10 determines whether or not the low speed mask bit is smaller than a preset upper limit value (step S57). . When the low speed mask bit is equal to or higher than the upper limit value (step S57; NO), the control unit 10 sets the low speed mask bit to the upper limit value (step S58).

  If the low-speed mask bit increases without limit, the number of groups increases, and the set responsiveness may not be maintained. Therefore, in S58, the low speed mask bit is set to a predetermined upper limit value or less to ensure responsiveness.

  When the low speed mask bit is smaller than the upper limit value (step S57; YES) or after step S58, the control unit 10 determines whether or not the low speed mask bit is larger than a preset lower limit value (step S59). When the low speed mask bit is larger than the lower limit value (step S59; YES), the control unit 10 ends the low speed response mask bit setting process.

  When the low speed mask bit is equal to or lower than the lower limit value (step S59; NO), the control unit 10 sets the low speed mask bit to the lower limit value (step S60) and ends the low speed response mask bit setting process.

  If the low-speed mask bit becomes infinitely small, the number of groups will decrease, and the wireless terminal apparatus will receive frequently. Therefore, the power consumption of the wireless terminal device increases. Therefore, in S40, the low-speed mask bit is set to a predetermined lower limit value or more to prevent an increase in power consumption.

  As described above, the wireless relay device 1 can transmit a beacon including application IDs and mask bits for each of a plurality of types of wireless terminal devices having different beacon reception intervals, and an extended sequence number. The efficiency of data transmission to the device 2 can be improved. Furthermore, since the wireless relay device 1 can determine mask bits indicating the total number of groups to which the wireless terminal device belongs in accordance with the number of wireless terminal devices for each type of wireless terminal device, the wireless relay device 1 wirelessly transmits the beacon transmission frequency. It can be changed according to the type of terminal device, and the efficiency of data transmission can be improved.

  FIG. 11 shows a flowchart of a beacon reception process executed in the wireless terminal device 2. Note that the processing shown in FIG. 11 is executed by cooperation between the control unit 20 and each unit in the wireless terminal device 2 and is executed while power is supplied to the wireless terminal device 2. is there.

  The control unit 20 generates a packet including its own node address and application ID stored in the memory 22, and transmits the packet to the wireless relay device 1 via the wireless transmission unit 26 (step S71).

  The control unit 20 searches for a beacon periodically transmitted from the wireless relay device 1 (beacon search) in order to secure a wireless circuit with the wireless relay device 1 (step S72). When the beacon search is completed and a wireless circuit with the wireless relay device 1 is secured, the control unit 20 executes an activation timing calculation process described later (step S73).

  When the beacon is received by the wireless receiving unit 27 (step S74), the control unit 20 determines whether the beacon is addressed to the group to which the control unit 20 belongs based on the beacon analysis result by the wireless receiving unit 27 (step S75).

  In step S75, the extended sequence number, the application ID that matches the application ID stored in the memory 22, and the mask bit corresponding to the application ID are extracted from the received beacon. Then, it is determined whether or not the first calculated value calculated based on the extracted extended sequence number and mask bit matches the second calculated value calculated based on its own node address and mask bit. When the first calculated value and the second calculated value match, it is determined that the received beacon is a beacon addressed to the group to which the self belongs.

  When the received beacon is not a beacon addressed to the group to which the beacon belongs (step S75; NO), the control unit 20 returns to the process of step S72.

  When the received beacon is a beacon addressed to the group to which the own beacon belongs (step S75; YES), the control unit 20 determines whether or not the own node address is included in the PA field of the received beacon (step S76). ).

  When the own node address is not included in the PA field of the received beacon (step S76; NO), the control unit 20 proceeds to the process of step S78.

  When the own node address is included in the PA field of the received beacon (step S76; YES), the control unit 20 executes a data reception process (step S77). The data reception process in step S77 is a process of transmitting a data request packet indicating a data transmission request to the wireless relay device 1 and receiving a data packet transmitted from the wireless relay device 1 in response to the packet.

  Control part 10 performs starting timing calculation processing after Step S76; NO or after Step S77 (Step S78), and returns to processing of Step S74.

  FIG. 12 shows a flowchart of the activation timing calculation process. Note that the processing shown in FIG. 12 is executed by the cooperation of the control unit 20 and each unit in the wireless terminal device 2.

The control unit 20 sets the time when the beacon is received from the wireless relay device 1 to T (step S81), sets the beacon transmission interval included in the received beacon to SFI (step S82), and sets the received beacon. The extended sequence number included in the beacon payload is set to SCN (step S83).
The control unit 20 sets the mask bit corresponding to the application ID that matches the application ID stored in the memory 22 among the application IDs included in the received beacon to M (step S84). Further, the control unit 20 sets its own node address to ADDR (step S85).

  The control unit 20 sets the AND value of SCN and M to SCN, and sets the AND value of ADDR and M to ADDR (step S86). The SCN set in step S86 is the first calculated value, and ADDR is the second calculated value.

  The control unit 20 determines whether or not ADDR is larger than SCN (step S87). When ADDR is equal to or less than SCN (step S87; NO), the control unit 20 adds ADDR to a value obtained by adding 1 to M and sets a new ADDR (step S88). For example, in step S88, when M is “11b” and ADDR is “10b”, adding 1 to M results in “100b”. Then, “110b” obtained by adding the ADDR value “10b” to “100b” is set as a new ADDR.

  When ADDR is larger than SCN (step S87; YES), or after step S88, control unit 20 sets a value (difference value) obtained by subtracting SCN from ADDR in NSFI (step S89). This NSFI is the number of beacon transmission intervals from when a beacon is received until the next beacon is received. For example, when ADDR is “10b” and SCN is “00b”, NSFI is “10b”. In this case, NSFI is “2” in decimal. Therefore, the number of beacon transmission intervals from when a beacon is received until the next beacon is received, that is, NSFI is set to 2.

  The control unit 20 adds T to a value obtained by multiplying NSFI and SFI (third calculated value), subtracts a preset margin time α, and calculates a start timing (start time) (step S90). The control unit 20 sets the calculated activation timing in the activation timer (step S91), starts timing by the activation timer, and minimizes power supply to each unit such as the wireless transmission unit 26 and the wireless reception unit 27. The wireless terminal device 2 is set in a sleep state by stopping the operations of the wireless transmission unit 26 and the wireless reception unit 27 (step S92).

  The control unit 20 determines whether or not an activation timing signal is input from the activation timer 23, and determines whether or not it is an activation time (step S93). If it is not the activation time (step S93; NO), the control unit 20 returns to the process of step S93.

  If it is the activation time (step S93; YES), the control unit 20 clears the activation timer 23, activates each unit in the sleep state (step S94), and ends the activation timing calculation process.

  In this way, a plurality of wireless terminal devices 2 having different beacon reception intervals can receive the same beacon, and the efficiency of data reception from the wireless relay device can be improved. In addition, since the operation of the receiving unit can be stopped until the timing calculated based on the application ID and mask bit, the extended sequence number, and the own application ID and node address included in the received beacon, The efficiency can be improved and the power consumption of the wireless terminal device can be reduced.

  In addition, the wireless terminal device 2 determines whether its own wireless terminal device type is based on the application ID and mask bit, the extended sequence number, and its own application ID and node address included in the received beacon. The beacon addressed to the group to which it belongs can be determined. In addition, when the beacon is a beacon addressed to a group to which the self of the type of its own wireless terminal device belongs, and if the beacon includes its own node address, data can be received.

  Further, the wireless terminal device 2 can calculate the timing for starting the wireless reception unit using the extended sequence number included in the received beacon, the mask bit of the type of the wireless terminal device, and the node address. Since the sleep state is entered until the calculated timing, the operation of the wireless reception unit can be stopped. Therefore, unnecessary beacon standby reception is eliminated, and power consumption can be reduced.

It is a schematic block diagram of a radio | wireless communications system. It is a schematic block diagram of a radio relay apparatus. It is a figure which shows the example of a beacon format. It is a figure which shows the example of the combination of application ID and mask bit corresponding to the kind of wireless terminal device. It is a schematic block diagram of a radio | wireless terminal apparatus. It is a figure which shows the example of an extended sequence number, a mask bit, and a node address. It is a main flowchart of a beacon transmission process. It is a flowchart of a mask bit setting process for high-speed response. It is a flowchart of a mask bit setting process for medium speed response. It is a flowchart of a mask bit setting process for low-speed response. It is a flowchart of a beacon receiving process. It is a flowchart of a starting timing calculation process.

Explanation of symbols

1 wireless relay device 2 wireless terminal device 2a first wireless terminal device 2b second wireless terminal device 2c third wireless terminal device 3 wired network 10 control unit 11 storage unit 12 terminal information memory 13 beacon transmission timer 14 wireless transmission unit 15 wireless Receiver 16 SW
17 Wired I / F unit 18 Buffer 19 Antenna 20 Control unit 21 Storage unit 22 Memory 23 Startup timer 24 Power supply control unit 25a Display control unit 25b Display unit 26 Wireless transmission unit 27 Wireless reception unit 28 SW
29 Antenna A Wireless communication system B Battery B1 MHR area B2 MAC payload area B3 MFR area B21 SS
B22 GTS field B23 PA field B24 Beacon payload B24a Extended sequence number B24b Application ID
B24c mask bit

Claims (10)

A transmitter that periodically transmits a beacon to a wireless terminal device;
Terminal type information indicating the type of the wireless terminal device, and group identification information indicating a group to which a wireless terminal device that is a beacon reception target belongs for each type of the wireless terminal device, and belongs to the type and the group A control unit for generating a beacon including terminal type information and group identification information for calculating timing for starting a reception unit of the wireless terminal device, and transmitting the generated beacon to the wireless terminal device by the transmission unit;
A wireless relay device comprising: The type of the wireless terminal device is
Classified by the interval at which the wireless terminal device receives beacons,
The wireless relay device according to claim 1. A terminal information storage unit storing information for each wireless terminal device capable of communicating according to the type of wireless terminal device;
The group identification information is
A mask in which a sequence number that increases every time the beacon is transmitted and a value that is extracted from the sequence number based on the total number of groups that divide the plurality of wireless terminal devices for each type of wireless terminal device Information,
The controller is
Determining the mask information according to the number of wireless terminal devices for each type of wireless terminal device stored in the terminal information storage unit for each type of wireless terminal device;
The wireless relay device according to claim 1 or 2. In a wireless terminal device including a receiving unit that receives a beacon,
The beacon is
Terminal type information indicating the type of the wireless terminal device, and group identification information indicating a group to which the wireless terminal device to be received by the beacon belongs for each type of the wireless terminal device,
The terminal type information indicating the type of its own wireless terminal device, and an identification information storage unit storing terminal identification information for identifying itself;
Based on the terminal type information and the group identification information included in the beacon received by the receiving unit, and the terminal type information and the terminal identification information stored in the identification information storage unit, the receiving unit A control unit that calculates the timing of starting the receiver, and stops the operation of the receiving unit until the calculated timing;
Providing
A wireless terminal device. The type of the wireless terminal device is
Classified by the interval at which the wireless terminal device receives beacons,
The wireless terminal device according to claim 4. The controller is
The group identification information corresponding to the terminal type information included in the beacon that matches the terminal type information stored in the identification information storage unit is extracted, and the extracted group identification information and the terminal identification information are extracted. Based on the beacon received by the receiving unit is determined to be a beacon addressed to a group to which the self belongs among groups that divide the type of the wireless terminal device of the self,
The wireless terminal device according to claim 4 or 5. The group identification information is
Extracted from the sequence number based on the sequence number that increases every time the beacon is transmitted and the total number of groups that divide the plurality of wireless terminal devices for each type of wireless terminal device indicated by the terminal type information Including mask information with defined values,
The controller is
The mask information corresponding to the terminal type information included in the beacon that matches the terminal type information stored in the identification information storage unit is extracted, and extracted from the sequence number using the extracted mask information A difference value between a first calculated value indicating a value and a second calculated value indicating a value extracted from the terminal identification information using the extracted mask information, and an interval at which the preset beacon is transmitted Calculating a third calculated value indicating a value obtained by multiplying the difference value by the time, and stopping the operation of the receiving unit until a timing based on a time obtained by adding the third calculated value to a time when the beacon is received;
The wireless terminal device according to claim 4, wherein: The beacon is
Including terminal identification information of the wireless terminal device to be data-transmitted;
The controller is
If the beacon received by the receiving unit is a beacon addressed to a group to which the self belongs, if the beacon contains its own terminal identification information, receiving data by the receiving unit;
The wireless terminal device according to any one of claims 4 to 7. Computer
A transmission means for periodically transmitting a beacon to a wireless terminal device;
Terminal type information indicating the type of the wireless terminal device, and group identification information indicating a group to which a wireless terminal device that is a beacon reception target belongs for each type of the wireless terminal device, and belongs to the type and the group Control means for generating a beacon including terminal type information and group identification information for calculating timing for starting a receiving unit of the wireless terminal device, and transmitting the generated beacon to the wireless terminal device by the transmitting unit;
Program to function as. Computer
Receiving means for receiving a beacon including terminal type information indicating a type of wireless terminal device, and group identification information indicating a group to which a wireless terminal device that is a beacon reception target belongs for each type of the wireless terminal device;
Based on the terminal type information and the group identification information included in the received beacon, the terminal type information indicating the type of its own wireless terminal device, and the terminal identification information for identifying itself, the receiving means A control means for calculating the timing for starting the receiver and stopping the operation of the receiving means until the calculated timing;
Program to function as.

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