JP5005061B2 - Network system and communication control method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a network system and a communication control method that can reduce power consumption.

  Broadband Internet connections such as ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line) and optical communication via a “home gateway” are already prevalent in homes for information home appliances such as personal computers and televisions (for example, see Non-Patent Document 1). .

  In addition, the “smart grid” system, which automatically adjusts power supply and demand optimally and stably by providing communication functions in the power network, has become active. Using a “smart meter” that adds a communication function to the outside of the house (Internet) to each home's power meter, it is possible to remotely measure the amount of power used every hour and to control home appliances in the home (For example, see Non-Patent Document 2).

  With the spread of such a “smart grid”, each home is connected to the outside of the house by two devices such as a “home gateway” and a “smart meter”.

"Standard Technology Collection Web-based Internet Appliances 1-1-3-5 Home Network Security", Japan Patent Office, Fig. 1 "Standard Technology Collection Web-based Internet Home Appliances 1-1-2-16 Energy Meter Home Server", Japan Patent Office, Fig. 1

  The above-mentioned “home gateway” is installed by a resident, whereas the “smart meter” that is a power meter with a communication function for charging is installed by an electric power company. It is difficult to integrate the two. That is, the “home gateway” and the “smart meter” operate independently, and each has a connection port with the outside of the house, and thus has the following problems.

  First, there is a problem that the system cost increases due to the double installation of “home gateway” and “smart meter” having the same function such as a communication function.

  In addition, since both the “home gateway” and “smart meter” serving as connection ports to the outside of the house are always energized, there is a problem that energy consumption increases.

  Further, when viewed from outside the home, there is a problem that the configuration of the home system, such as which function of “home gateway” or “smart meter”, is unclear.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a network system and a communication control method capable of reducing power consumption.

To achieve the above object, a network system according to the present invention includes a first communication device connected to an external computer via a first communication network, and a second communication network having a communication speed slower than that of the first communication network. A network system in which a second communication device connected to an external computer via a network is connected to be communicable with each other via a network, wherein the first communication device is connected to the external computer via the first communication network. Sleep mode transition means for disabling communication with the external computer and transitioning to a sleep mode that consumes less power than when communication with the external computer is possible. In response to receiving a cancellation request from the second communication device via the network, the sleep mode transition means shifts. Sleep mode cancellation means for canceling the sleep mode, wherein the second communication device has received a communication command requesting cancellation of the sleep mode from the external computer via the second communication network. in response, Bei example, the external computer release request transmitting means for transmitting the release request to the first communication device via the network, the address of the address and the second communication apparatus of the first communication device Address storage means for storing the information in association with each other, and when the first communication device has shifted to the sleep mode, the address of the second communication device corresponding to the address of the first communication device is sent from the address storage means. The second communication network is connected to the second communication device having the address detected by the address detection means and the address detected by the address detection means. Characterized in that it comprises a communication command transmission means for transmitting a communication command requesting the release of the sleep mode with.

  According to this invention, the second communication device responds to the reception of the communication command transmitted from the external computer via the second communication network, and the external computer and the first communication device via the first communication network. The first communication device can shift to the sleep mode when such communication has not been performed for a predetermined period or longer. Here, the power consumption of the second communication device that communicates with the external computer via the second communication network that is slower than the first communication network is lower than that of the first communication device. In this way, while the communication between the external computer and the second communication device via the second communication network that can communicate with less power consumption than the first communication network remains possible, the first communication network When the communication between the external computer and the first communication device is not performed for a predetermined period or longer, the power consumption in the network system can be reduced by shifting the first communication device to the sleep mode with low power consumption.

It is a figure which shows the whole structure of the communication system which concerns on this embodiment. It is a functional block diagram which shows the logical structure of a home gateway. It is a functional block diagram which shows the logical structure of a smart meter. It is a figure which shows the structure of the communication command between a remote computer and a smart meter. It is a functional block diagram which shows the logical structure of an external computer. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of access destination notification process. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of an in-home wakeup process. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of a wake-up process outside a house.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of a communication system according to this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the communication system 100 includes a home network system 1 installed in a house and an out-of-home computer 2 installed outside the house such as an electric power company, and includes an Internet network 3 and a PHS (Personal Handyphone). System) via a network 4 so that they can communicate with each other.

  Here, the Internet network 3 is a high-speed communication network capable of transferring multimedia data such as optical fiber and ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line), and the PHS network 4 is a low-speed communication network capable of remote meter reading and remote control. It is.

  The home network system 1 includes a home gateway 10, a smart meter 20, and a home appliance 30, which are connected to each other via a home network 40 including, for example, a LAN (Local Area Network). Has been. Note that the home gateway 10 and the smart meter 20 in this embodiment are communicably connected via the home network 40, but may be directly connected by a dedicated line or the like.

  The home gateway 10 functions as a connection port of the home appliance 30 installed in the house to the outside computer 2 and is connected to the outside computer 2 via the Internet network 3.

  FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing a logical configuration of the home gateway. As shown in FIG. 2, the home gateway 10 includes a gateway processing unit 11, a home network communication unit 12, and an Internet communication unit 13.

  The gateway processing unit 11 includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and a RAM (Random Access Memory). The CPU uses the RAM as a work memory and is stored in the ROM. By appropriately executing various programs, a gateway function between the home network 40 and the Internet, a security function from Internet access, and the like are realized.

  The gateway processing unit 11 has a sleep function that shifts the home gateway 10 to a low power consumption mode (sleep mode) that reduces power consumption when communication from the outside computer 2 and the home appliance 30 is interrupted for a predetermined period or longer. is doing. In the sleep mode in this embodiment, all the functions of the home gateway 10 are stopped, but the function may not be stopped by reducing the transfer rate only on the home network 40 side. When the home gateway 10 shifts to the sleep mode, the home gateway 10 does not accept communication from the outside computer 2 or the home appliance 30.

  The home network communication unit 12 includes a communication device such as a NIC (Network Interface Card), for example, and receives a notification request transmitted from the smart meter 20. The notification request notifies the outside computer 2 of an access destination (here, an IP (Internet Protocol) address (for example, http: // [HomeGateway address] / [function name]) of the Internet side of the home gateway 10)). Is sent to the home gateway 10 and includes a request source (here, the IP address on the Internet side of the smart meter 20) and a notification destination (here, the IP address of the external computer 2).

  The home network communication unit 12 receives a wake-up (return) request for the home gateway 10 transmitted from the smart meter 20 or the home appliance 30 via the home network 40. In this embodiment, the home gateway 10 is woken up using, for example, a WOL (Wake On LAN) function for turning on power via a LAN. Specifically, the gateway processing unit 11 cancels the sleep mode in response to the home network communication unit 12 receiving a wakeup request. The wake-up request is transmitted in accordance with the WOL function. After the wake-up, the home computer 2 can be accessed from the outside computer 2 and the outside computer 30 can be accessed from the home device 30.

  The Internet communication unit 13 includes a communication device such as a NIC, for example, and is used when accessing the home network 40 from the outside computer 2 or accessing the Internet from the home appliance 30.

  In response to the notification request received by the home network communication unit 12, the Internet communication unit 13 sets the IP address on the Internet side of the home gateway 10 together with the IP address on the Internet side of the smart meter 20 included in the notification request. And sent to the IP address of the outside computer 2 included in the notification request.

  The smart meter 20 shown in FIG. 1 is connected to the outside computer 2 via the PHS network 4.

  FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram showing a logical configuration of the smart meter. As shown in FIG. 3, the smart meter 20 includes a smart meter processing unit 21, an Internet communication unit 22, and a home gateway communication unit 23.

  The smart meter processing unit 21 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like. The CPU uses the RAM as a work memory and appropriately executes various programs stored in the ROM and the like, thereby measuring as an electric power meter. Realize the function.

  The smart meter processing unit 21 detects the presence of the home gateway 10 by, for example, UPnP (Universal Plug and Play) when the smart meter 20 is activated.

  Unlike the gateway processing unit 11, the smart meter processing unit 21 does not shift to a sleep mode that stops the function of the smart meter 20, and the smart meter 20 is in a state in which power is always turned on after activation. .

  The Internet communication unit 22 includes a communication device such as a NIC, for example, and receives a communication command for requesting wake-up of the home gateway 10 transmitted from the outside computer 2.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a communication command between the outside computer and the smart meter. As shown in FIG. 4, the communication command has a 1-byte configuration, with the upper 4 bits addressed to the smart meter 20 and the lower 4 bits addressed to the home gateway 10.

  The most significant bit is a request for resetting the smart meter 20, and if this is “1”, the smart meter 20 is reset. The upper fifth bit is a request for resetting the home gateway 10, and if this is "1", the reset of the home gateway 10 is realized. The least significant bit is a request for wakeup of the home gateway 10. If this is “1”, the wakeup of the home gateway 10 is realized.

  The home gateway communication unit 23 shown in FIG. 3 includes a communication device such as a NIC, for example, and physically communicates with the home network 40, but logically communicates only with the home gateway 10. It is possible. That is, the smart meter 20 does not have a communication function with the home network 40, and all communication between the outside computer 2 and the home network 40 is performed via the home gateway 10 that can communicate at high speed.

  When the home gateway communication unit 23 detects the home gateway 10 in the smart meter processing unit 21, the home gateway communication unit 23 requests the detected home gateway 10 to notify the outside computer 2 of the IP address on the Internet side of the home gateway 10. Send a request.

  The home gateway communication unit 23 receives a meter-reading request transmitted from the outside computer 2 via the home gateway 10, and in response to this, the home gateway communication unit 23 sends the electric quantity measured by the smart meter processing unit 21 via the home gateway 10. Reply to the outside computer 2.

  The home gateway communication unit 23 responds to the reception of a communication command (in the example shown in FIG. 4, a communication command of “0x01” in hexadecimal) requesting the wake-up of the home gateway 10 by the Internet communication unit 22. The wake-up request is transmitted to the home gateway 10.

  A home electric appliance 30 shown in FIG. 1 is installed in a house, and includes, for example, a microcomputer. The home appliance 30 accesses the Internet via the home gateway 10 when performing home appliance control.

  The home appliance 30 transmits a wake-up request to the home gateway 10 when the home gateway 10 is inaccessible during the sleep mode.

  The outside computer 2 is composed of, for example, a framework or a workstation.

  FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram showing a logical configuration of the outside computer. As shown in FIG. 5, the out-of-home computer 2 includes an Internet communication unit 31 and an IP address storage unit 32.

  The Internet communication unit 31 is configured to include a communication device such as a NIC, for example, and includes an IP address (access destination) on the Internet side of the home gateway 10 and an IP address on the Internet side of the smart meter 20 transmitted from the home gateway 10. Receive. After receiving the access destination at the Internet communication unit 31, the outside computer 2 accesses the smart meter 20 and the home network 40 in the home using the high-speed home gateway 10.

  The internet communication unit 31 transmits a meter-reading request to the smart meter 20 via the home gateway 10 at a predetermined meter-reading timing, and in response to this, the electric quantity returned from the smart meter 20 via the home gateway 10 Receive.

  When the home gateway 10 cannot be accessed during the sleep mode, the Internet communication unit 31 transmits a communication command for requesting wakeup to the smart meter 20 that is always turned on.

  The IP address storage unit 32 includes, for example, a hard disk drive and stores the IP address on the Internet side of the home gateway 10 received by the Internet communication unit 31 and the IP address on the Internet side of the smart meter 20 in association with each other.

  Next, the operation of the communication system 100 will be described. The processes performed by the communication system 100 are roughly divided into the following three processes, that is, an access destination notification process, an in-home wake-up process, and an out-of-home wake-up process.

(Access destination notification processing)
First, the access destination notification process will be described. When activated, the smart meter 20 starts an access destination notification process.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing details of the access destination notification process. First, as shown in FIG. 6, the smart meter 20 detects the presence of the home gateway 10 in the smart meter processing unit 21 (step S101).

  When the home gateway 10 is detected, the smart meter 20 sends a notification request including the IP address on the Internet side of the smart meter 20 and the IP address of the outside computer 2 from the home gateway communication unit 23 to the process of step S101. Is transmitted to the detected home gateway 10 (step S102).

  The home gateway 10 receives the notification request transmitted from the smart meter 20 at the home network communication unit 12 (step S103).

  Subsequently, the home gateway 10 transmits its own IP address on the Internet side to the IP address of the outside computer 2 included in the notification request together with the IP address on the Internet side of the smart meter 20 included in the notification request. Thus, the access destination is notified to the outside computer 2 (step S104).

  The outside computer 2 receives the IP addresses on the Internet side of the home gateway 10 and the smart meter 20 transmitted from the home gateway 10 at the Internet communication unit 31 (step S105).

  Then, the outside computer 2 registers the IP address on the Internet side of the home gateway 10 and the IP address on the Internet side of the smart meter 20 received in step S105 in the IP address storage unit 32 in association with each other. (Step S106). Thereafter, the outside computer 2 accesses the smart meter 20 and the home network 40 in the home via the home gateway 10.

(In-house wake-up process)
First, the home wake-up process will be described. When the home gateway 10 cannot be accessed while the home gateway 10 is in the sleep mode, the home appliance 30 starts a home wake-up process.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing details of the home wake-up process. First, the home appliance 3 transmits a wake-up request to the home gateway 10 as shown in FIG. 7 (step S201).

  The home gateway 10 receives the wake-up request at the home network communication unit 12 (step S202), and in response to this, the gateway processing unit 11 cancels the sleep mode to wake up (step S203). . Thereafter, the home appliance 30 can access the outside computer 2.

(External wake-up process)
First, the outside wake-up process will be described. The out-of-home computer 2 starts an out-of-home wake-up process when the home gateway 10 cannot be accessed during the sleep mode.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing details of the home wake-up process. First, as shown in FIG. 8, the outside computer 2 detects the Internet-side IP address of the smart meter 20 corresponding to the Internet-side IP address of the home gateway 10 from the IP address storage unit 32 (step S301).

  The out-of-home computer 2 transmits a communication command for requesting wake-up from the Internet communication unit 31 to the IP address on the Internet side of the smart meter 20 detected in the process of Step S301 (Step S302).

  The smart meter 20 receives a communication command for requesting wake-up at the Internet communication unit 22 (step S303), and in response to this, transmits a wake-up request from the home gateway communication unit 23 to the home gateway 10 (step S303). S304).

  The home gateway 10 receives the wake-up request at the home network communication unit 12 (step S305), and in response to this, the gateway processing unit 11 cancels the sleep mode to wake up (step S306). . Thereafter, the home appliance 30 can be accessed from the outside computer 2.

  As described above in detail, according to this embodiment, the smart meter 20 activates the Internet network 3 in response to receiving a communication command transmitted from the outside computer 2 via the PHS network 4. Since the communication between the outside computer 2 and the home gateway 10 can be performed again, the home gateway 10 can shift to the sleep mode when the communication is not performed for a predetermined period or more.

  Here, the home gateway 10 that handles multimedia information and realizes high-speed communication via the Internet network 3 is used for monitoring electric energy and remote control of home appliances, and is also configured for low-speed communication via the PHS network 4. Power consumption is greater than possible smart meter 20.

  As described above, the smart meter 20 connected to the external computer 2 is always energized through the PHS network 4 capable of communicating with less power consumption than the Internet network 3 while keeping communication possible. When communication from the outside computer 2 is interrupted for a predetermined period or longer, the home gateway 10 is shifted to a low power consumption mode (sleep mode) that reduces power consumption, thereby reducing the power consumption in the home network system 1 to the minimum required reduction. be able to.

  In addition, the system cost can be minimized by adopting high-speed communication capable of handling multimedia for the home gateway 10 and low-cost low-speed communication sufficient for the low-speed smart meter 20 as communication with the outside computer 2. It can also be reduced.

  Furthermore, the function can be simplified by unifying the connection port of the home network system 1 viewed from the outside computer 2 into the home gateway 10 capable of high-speed communication.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, A various deformation | transformation and application are possible. Hereinafter, modifications of the above-described embodiment applicable to the present invention will be described.

  In the above embodiment, the program executed by the CPU has been described as being stored in advance in a ROM or the like. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a program for executing the above-described processing is an existing program. The home gateway 10 and the smart meter 20 may be used to function as the home gateway 10 and the smart meter 20 according to the above embodiment.

  A method for providing such a program is arbitrary. For example, the program may be stored and distributed on a computer-readable recording medium (flexible disk, CD (Compact Disc) -ROM, DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) -ROM, etc.). Alternatively, the program may be stored in a storage on a network such as the Internet and provided by downloading it.

  Furthermore, when the above processing is executed by sharing between the OS and the application program or by cooperation between the OS and the application program, only the application program may be stored in a recording medium or storage. It is also possible to superimpose a program on a carrier wave and distribute it via a network. For example, the program may be posted on a bulletin board (BBS: Bulletin Board System) on the network, and the program may be distributed via the network. Then, this program may be activated and executed in the same manner as other application programs under the control of the OS, so that the above processing can be executed.

  The present invention is suitable for a home network system in which a home gateway and a smart meter coexist.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Home network system 2 Remote computer 3 Internet network 4 PHS network 10 Home gateway 11 Gateway processing part 12 Home network communication part 13 Internet communication part 20 Smart meter 21 Smart meter processing part 22 Internet communication part 23 Home gateway communication part 31 Internet communication Unit 36 IP address storage unit 40 home network 100 communication system

Claims (4)

A first communication device connected to an external computer via a first communication network;
A second communication device connected to an external computer via a second communication network having a communication speed slower than that of the first communication network;
Network system connected to each other via a network,
The first communication device is
When communication with the external computer via the first communication network has not been performed for a predetermined period or longer, communication with the external computer is disabled and power consumption is less than when communication with the external computer is possible A sleep mode transition means for transitioning to the sleep mode;
In response to receiving a cancellation request from the second communication device via the network, sleep mode cancellation means for canceling the sleep mode transferred by the sleep mode transition means;
With
In response to receiving a communication command for requesting cancellation of the sleep mode from the external computer via the second communication network, the second communication device sends the cancellation request via the network to the first communication device. e Bei the release request transmission means for transmitting to the communication device,
The external computer is
Address storage means for storing the address of the first communication device and the address of the second communication device in association with each other;
An address detecting means for detecting, from the address storage means, an address of the second communication apparatus corresponding to an address of the first communication apparatus when the first communication apparatus is in the sleep mode;
Communication command transmission means for transmitting a communication command for requesting cancellation of the sleep mode to the second communication device at the address detected by the address detection means, via the second communication network;
Network system comprising: a. The second communication device transmits a notification request for requesting notification of the address of the first communication device to the external computer together with the address of the second communication device to the first communication device via the network. A notification request transmission unit;
In response to receiving the notification request transmitted by the notification request transmission unit, the first communication device assigns the address of the first communication device to the second communication transmitted by the notification request transmission unit. In addition to the address of the device, further comprising an address transmission means for transmitting to the external computer via the second communication network,
The external computer is
Address receiving means for receiving the address of the first communication device and the address of the second communication device transmitted by the address transmitting means;
Address registration means for registering the address of the first communication device and the address of the second communication device received by the address receiving means in association with the address storage means;
Further comprising
The network system according to claim 1 . When the first communication device is communicably connected to the first communication device via the network and the first communication device is in the sleep mode, the release request is sent to the first communication device via the network. An internal computer that enables communication with the external computer via the network and the first communication network by transmitting and causing the sleep mode cancellation means to cancel the sleep mode;
The network system according to claim 1 or 2 , characterized in that A first communication device connected to an external computer via a first communication network;
A second communication device connected to an external computer via a second communication network having a communication speed slower than that of the first communication network;
Is a communication control method in a network system in which communication is made possible via a network,
If the first communication device does not communicate with the external computer via the first communication network for a predetermined period or longer, the first communication device disables communication with the external computer and can communicate with the external computer. A sleep mode transition step for shifting to a sleep mode that consumes less power than when,
A sleep mode canceling step for canceling the sleep mode transferred in the sleep mode transition step in response to the first communication device receiving a cancel request from the second communication device via the network;
In response to the second communication device receiving a communication command requesting cancellation of the sleep mode from the external computer via the second communication network, the cancellation request is transmitted via the network to the first communication device. A release request sending step for sending to the communication device;
An address storing step in which the external computer stores the address of the first communication device and the address of the second communication device in association with each other in an address storage unit;
An address detecting step in which the external computer detects an address of the second communication device corresponding to an address of the first communication device from the address storage unit when the first communication device is in the sleep mode; ,
A communication command transmission step in which the external computer transmits a communication command for requesting the cancellation of the sleep mode to the second communication device of the address detected in the address detection step via the second communication network;
A communication control method comprising: