JP5492021B2 - Wireless communication system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a radio communication system including a plurality of radio stations, and more particularly to a radio communication system in which each radio station operates using a battery as a power source.

  Conventionally, there is one described in Patent Document 1 as a wireless communication system including a plurality of wireless stations that operate using a battery as a power source. In the conventional system described in Patent Document 1, each radio station intermittently activates a reception circuit to check whether or not a desired radio wave (a radio signal transmitted by another radio station) can be received. If radio waves are not captured, the average power consumption is greatly reduced by immediately stopping the receiving circuit and shifting to a standby state.

  However, when the intermittent reception operation is performed as described above, the timing of receiving the radio signal that should be received is delayed by the intermittent reception interval of the reception circuit. Therefore, the intermittent reception interval cannot be simply extended for the purpose of reducing power consumption.

  On the other hand, the present applicant sets a specific radio station as a relay station from among a plurality of radio stations, and the specific radio station (relay station) receives a radio signal transmitted from any one of the radio stations. The timing at which the receiving circuit of each radio station is activated by receiving the synchronization signal is aligned with the timing of starting the receiving circuit at the other radio station. A radio communication system has been proposed in which a radio signal transmitted from one radio station can be received by all other radio stations by transmitting a radio signal. In this wireless communication system, intermittent reception is performed to reduce power consumption and extend battery life, while shortening a delay time until another wireless station can receive a wireless signal transmitted by any wireless station. be able to.

  Incidentally, the intermittent reception interval in the conventional system is counted by counting the oscillation signal (clock signal) of the oscillator. For such an oscillator, a tuning fork type crystal resonator (frequency is about 32 kilohertz) having a frequency deviation of about several tens of ppm is usually used. Therefore, if the intermittent reception interval is counted by the clock signal with such low accuracy, it is difficult for each wireless station to maintain synchronization of the intermittent reception interval over a long period of time.

  On the other hand, the present applicant detects the time lag between the reception timing of the synchronization signal and the intermittent reception interval counted by the timer and executes a process for correcting the detected time lag at each radio station, thereby generating an oscillation circuit. A wireless communication system has been proposed in which loss of synchronization due to time deviation due to frequency deviation is prevented.

  Further, the interval (cycle) at which the synchronization signal is transmitted is determined based on the frequency deviation of the oscillator (tuning fork type crystal resonator) used in the oscillator. For example, if the maximum value of the frequency deviation is about ± 50 ppm and the signal width of the synchronization signal is 2.8 seconds, the synchronization may be lost in about 7.8 hours. Therefore, in consideration of individual differences of the oscillators, it is necessary to set the period of the synchronization signal assuming that the frequency deviation becomes the maximum value. For example, in the above example, the period of the synchronization signal must be set to a time shorter than about 7.8 hours.

JP 2009-251907 A

  However, if the timing at the completion of counting the intermittent reception interval in a certain radio station is greatly shifted and out of synchronization, the other radio station transmits in synchronization with the timing at the completion of counting the intermittent reception interval. The wireless signal cannot be received. For example, when dew condensation occurs in the radio station and an operation abnormality occurs in the tuning fork type crystal resonator, the timing at the time of completion of counting of the intermittent reception interval may be greatly shifted as described above, resulting in loss of synchronization. On the other hand, detecting and correcting a time lag to prevent loss of synchronization complicates system operation. Furthermore, the shorter the transmission period of the synchronization signal, the more frequently the synchronization is performed, which may shorten the battery life.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to extend the intermittent reception interval and the period of the synchronization signal while avoiding the extension of the delay time.

  The wireless communication system of the present invention is a wireless communication system in which each of three or more wireless stations determines whether or not a wireless signal using a radio wave as a medium can be received for each intermittent reception interval having the same period length. The radio station includes a main relay station and a sub-relay station. The main relay station and the sub-relay station count the intermittent reception interval so that the timings of the main relay station and the sub-relay station do not coincide with each other while having the same period length. When the relay station receives a radio signal notifying the occurrence of a predetermined event from a radio station other than the sub relay station, the relay station relays the radio signal notifying the occurrence of the event at the next intermittent reception opportunity of the sub relay station, When the sub relay station receives the radio signal relayed by the main relay station, the main relay station subsequently transmits the event occurrence notification radio signal transmitted next to the event signal. Characterized in that relays wireless signal notifying the cement occurs.

  In this wireless communication system, the wireless communication system includes three or more wireless stations, and transmits and receives wireless signals using radio waves as a medium between the wireless stations. Each wireless station transmits a wireless signal. Transmitting means, receiving means for receiving a radio signal, starting the transmitting means when a predetermined event occurs, and transmitting a radio signal including a message corresponding to the event during a predetermined transmission period A transmission control means for stopping the transmission means when the event does not occur alternately and an operation for pausing the transmission of the radio signal during the pause period, a timer means for repeatedly counting a constant intermittent reception interval, and the timer While the intermittent reception interval is counted by the means, the reception means is stopped, and the intermittent reception interval is counted by the timer means. A reception control means for activating the reception means each time, and a power supply means for supplying an operation power supply of each means using a battery as a power source, and the reception control means receives the synchronization signal when the reception means receives the synchronization signal. The timer means stops counting the intermittent reception interval, and restarts counting the intermittent reception interval by the timer means when a certain waiting time has elapsed from the end of the synchronization signal. Occurs, the transmission unit transmits a radio signal during the transmission period that overlaps with the time point at which the intermittent reception interval count by the timer unit is completed, and two of the plurality of radio stations receive the reception signal. When the wireless signal containing the message is received by the means, the transmission control means sends the wireless signal containing the message from the transmitting means. And the one reception control unit of the two wireless stations has a standby time different from the standby time in the other reception control unit of the two wireless stations, and performs the relay. The transmission control unit of one of the two radio stations transmits the radio signal from the transmission unit before the time when the intermittent reception interval is counted by the timer unit when the radio signal is relayed. And the transmission control means of one of the two radio stations performing the relay performs the radio signal after the time when the intermittent reception interval is counted by the timer means when the radio signal is relayed. Is preferably transmitted from the transmission means.

  In this wireless communication system, the reception control means of one of the two wireless stations that performs the relay is an intermittent reception interval by the timer means of the wireless station that does not perform the relay of the plurality of wireless stations. The reception means of the other radio station of the two radio stations that activates the reception means earlier than half of the transmission period by the half of the transmission period and performs the relay is the plurality of radio stations It is preferable to activate the receiving means later than half of the transmission period from the time point when the intermittent receiving interval is counted by the timer means of the wireless station that does not perform relaying.

  In this wireless communication system, one of the two wireless stations performing the relay periodically transmits a wireless signal including a periodic monitoring message to all other wireless stations except the wireless station. Periodic monitoring means for monitoring all the other radio stations depending on whether or not a radio signal including a response message to the regular monitoring message is received by the receiving means from the other radio station, The other radio station detects a time lag between the reception timing of the radio signal and the intermittent reception interval counted by the timer means when the receiving means receives the radio signal including the periodic monitoring message. The transmission control unit of the other radio station returns a time shift detected by the time shift detection unit together with the response message. The one radio station selects the radio station with the smallest time lag among all the other radio stations as another radio station that performs the relay, and the selected radio station It is preferable that a radio signal including a message instructing to perform the relay is transmitted from the transmission unit, and the radio station that has received the message becomes the other radio station that performs the relay.

  The wireless communication system of the present invention has an effect that the intermittent reception interval and the period of the synchronization signal can be extended while avoiding the extension of the delay time.

It is a block diagram of a fire alarm (radio station) in an embodiment of the present invention. It is a frame format of the radio signal in the same as above. (a), (b) is a time chart for demonstrating operation | movement of the main relay station and sub relay station same as the above. It is a time chart for demonstrating the operation | movement which changes to a fire interlocking state from a standby state same as the above. It is a time chart for demonstrating the operation | movement which changes to the interlocking stop state from the interlocking ringing state same as the above. It is a time chart for demonstrating the operation | movement which changes to the interlocking stop state from the interlocking ringing state same as the above. It is a time chart for demonstrating the operation | movement which changes to a standby state from a fire interlocking state same as the above. It is a time chart for demonstrating the operation | movement in a fire interlocking state same as the above. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of the time shift detection means in the same as the above.

  Hereinafter, the technical idea of the present invention to a radio communication system (fire alarm system) using a fire alarm device as a radio station, which detects a fire and sounds an alarm sound and transmits a radio signal including a fire detection message using a radio wave as a medium. An embodiment to which is applied will be described.

  FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram of this embodiment, and a fire alarm system is configured by a plurality of (only three in the figure) fire alarms TR. In the following description, when the fire alarms TR are individually indicated, they are indicated as fire alarms TR1, TR2,..., TRn, and when collectively indicated, they are indicated as fire alarms TR.

  The fire alarm TR transmits a radio signal using radio waves as a medium from the antenna 3 and receives a radio signal transmitted from another fire alarm TR via the antenna 3 and a sound (buzzer sound or voice message). The main component is an alarm unit 5 for notifying (sounding from a speaker) a fire alarm (hereinafter referred to as “alarm sound”) and a memory unit 1a including a microcomputer and a rewritable nonvolatile semiconductor memory. When the fire detection unit 4 detects a fire, the radio transmission / reception unit 2 transmits a radio signal including a fire alarm message for causing the alarm unit 5 to sound an alarm sound and for other fire alarms TR to notify the fire alarm. A control unit 1 for transmission, an oscillator 6 that oscillates a clock signal with a fixed period, an operation input reception unit 7 that receives an operation input for stopping the ringing of an alarm sound, as will be described later, a dry cell, etc. And comprising a battery power supply unit 8 for supplying operating power to each unit of the battery as the power source. The operation input receiving unit 7 has one or more switches (for example, push button switches). When the switch is operated, an operation input corresponding to each switch is received and an operation signal corresponding to the operation input is controlled. Output to part 1. Each fire alarm device TRi (i = 1, 2,..., N) is assigned a unique identification code and stored in the memory unit 1a. Alarm TRi can be specified.

  The radio transmission / reception unit 2 transmits / receives a radio signal using radio waves as a medium in accordance with “radio station of low power security system” defined in Article 6, Paragraph 4, Item 3 of the Radio Law Enforcement Regulations. In addition, the fire detection unit 4 detects fire by detecting smoke, heat, flames, and the like generated with the fire, for example. However, detailed configurations of the wireless transmission / reception unit 2 and the fire detection unit 4 are well known in the art and will not be described in detail.

  The control unit 1 realizes various functions described later by executing a program stored in a memory (ROM or EEPROM) (not shown) by a microcomputer. When the fire detection unit 4 detects the occurrence of a fire, the control unit 1 drives a buzzer included in the alarm unit 5 to sound an alarm sound, or an alarm stored in the memory (or the memory unit 1a) in advance. In order to notify a fire alarm by sounding a voice message (for example, `` It is a fire '') on the speaker, and also to notify the fire alarm in other fire alarms TR, a radio signal including a fire alarm message is sent. The wireless transmission / reception unit 2 transmits the data. Also, when the wireless transmission / reception unit 2 receives a wireless signal transmitted from another fire alarm device TR, the control unit 1 controls the alarm unit 5 to sound an alarm sound. That is, in the control unit 1, when the fire detection unit 4 detects a fire, the alarm unit 5 sounds an alarm sound to notify the fire alarm, and the wireless transmission / reception unit 2 transmits a radio signal including the fire alarm message. Have.

  The oscillator 6 oscillates an operation clock (clock signal) of a microcomputer constituting the control unit 1 using a tuning fork type crystal resonator. However, since the circuit configuration of the oscillator 6 is well known in the art, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

  Here, according to Article 49-17 “Radio Equipment of Radio Stations of Low Power Security System” of Radio Equipment Regulations of the Radio Law Enforcement Regulation, the period during which radio signals may be transmitted (transmission period) is 3 seconds or less In addition, it is stipulated that a period during which a radio signal should not be transmitted (pause period) provided between the transmission period and the transmission period is 2 seconds or more (see No. 5 of the same article). For this reason, in the control unit 1 in the present embodiment, the wireless signal is transmitted during the transmission period that complies with the wireless facility rules, and the transmission is stopped and received during the suspension period.

  In order to extend the battery life of the battery power supply unit 8 as much as possible, the control unit 1 uses a timer (timer means) built in the microcomputer to perform a predetermined intermittent reception interval (however, the intermittent reception interval is longer than the transmission period). Is repeatedly counted, and every time the intermittent reception interval is counted, the wireless transmitter / receiver 2 is activated to check whether or not a desired radio wave (radio signal transmitted by another fire alarm TR) can be received. If radio waves are not captured, the average power consumption is greatly reduced by immediately stopping the wireless transmission / reception unit 2 and shifting to the standby state. The radio wave reception check is performed based on a received signal strength indication signal (RSSI signal) that is a DC voltage signal output from the wireless transmission / reception unit 2 and proportional to the magnitude of the received signal strength. The details are well known in the art and will be omitted.

  Further, the control unit 1 of a specific fire alarm device TR1 (hereinafter referred to as a master station) activates the wireless transmission / reception unit 2 periodically (for example, every 24 hours), and other fire alarm devices TR2, TR3,. (Hereinafter referred to as a slave station) is caused to transmit a radio signal including a regular monitoring message. In the slave station TRj (j = 2, 3,...), The control unit 1 monitors whether or not the fire detection unit 4 has failed and whether or not the battery power supply unit 8 has run out of battery at regular intervals (for example, every hour). At the same time, the monitoring results (whether there is a failure and whether the battery has run out) are stored in the memory unit 1a. When a regular monitoring message is received from the master station TR1, a radio signal including a response message for notifying the monitoring result stored in the memory unit 1a is returned to the master station TR1. After transmitting the radio signal including the periodic monitoring message, the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 switches the radio transmission / reception unit 2 to the reception state and receives the radio signal transmitted from each slave station TRj. Then, the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 determines that there is a slave station TRj that does not transmit a response message within a predetermined time from the transmission of the periodic monitoring message, or when the monitoring result of the response message is faulty or the battery is dead. A buzzer included in the alarm unit 5 is driven to sound a notification sound. As a result, it is possible to notify the user that an abnormality (communication failure, failure, battery exhaustion, etc.) has occurred in any of the slave stations TRj. When the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 and the slave station TRj determines that a failure or a battery has run out, the alarm unit 5 immediately issues a warning sound (buzzer sound, voice message, etc.) to notify the occurrence of an abnormality. Let it ring.

  In addition, the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 transmits a fire alarm message to each slave station TRj (j = 2,..., N) while the fire detection unit 4 senses a fire and sounds an alarm sound from the alarm unit 5. After or after receiving a fire alarm message from any of the slave stations TRj, the wireless transmission unit 2 is caused to transmit a synchronous beacon at a constant period. This synchronous beacon is a signal that defines a time slot necessary for performing TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access) wireless communication (hereinafter referred to as “synchronous communication”) between multiple fire alarms TR. The one period (cycle) is divided into a plurality of time slots, and one different time slot is assigned to each of the slave stations TRj. The message from the master station TR1 to the slave station TRj is transmitted in the synchronization beacon, and the radio signal containing the message from the slave station TRj to the master station TR1 is stored in the time slot assigned to each slave station TRj. To be sent. Therefore, collision of radio signals transmitted from a plurality of fire alarm devices TR (master station TR1 and slave station TRj) can be reliably avoided. The time slot assignment for each fire alarm device TR may be fixed, but the time slot assignment information may be notified to each slave station TRj by a synchronous beacon transmitted from the master station TR1.

  FIG. 2 shows a frame format of a radio signal transmitted and received by the fire alarm device TR. The synchronization bit (preamble: PA), the frame synchronization pattern (unique word: UW), the destination address DA, the source address SA, the message M, One frame is composed of a CRC code. Here, if the identification code of each fire alarm device TR is set as the destination address DA, only the fire alarm device TR of the identification code receives a radio signal and acquires a message. By setting a special bit string that is not assigned to the fire alarm TR (for example, a bit string with all bits set to 1), a wireless signal is broadcast (multicast) and a message is acquired for all the fire alarm TRs. Can be made. For example, a radio signal including a fire alarm message is broadcast from the master station TR1 to all the slave stations TRj.

  Here, since the timing at which each fire alarm device TR starts to operate (the timer starts counting the intermittent reception interval) does not normally match, the timing at which the control unit 1 activates the wireless transmission / reception unit 2 to receive radio waves is also included. It becomes uneven. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, when the synchronization signal is received by the wireless transmission / reception unit 2 of each fire alarm device TR, the control unit 1 stops counting the intermittent reception interval Tx by the timer and from the end of the synchronization signal. When the fixed waiting time Tw has elapsed, the counting of the intermittent reception interval Tx by the timer is resumed (see FIG. 4). Therefore, after receiving the synchronization signal, the timing at which the timer finishes counting the intermittent reception interval Tx is set in each fire alarm device TR. The synchronization signal is transmitted from the master station TR1, which is a specific fire alarm, as will be described later.

  By the way, if low-power radio is used, the radio communication distance can be sufficiently covered as long as it is within the area of a normal house, so usually the radio signal transmitted from one of the fire alarms TR Should be received by fire alarm TR. As described above, the master station TR1 transmits a radio signal including a periodic monitoring message to each slave station TRj, and the normality of the communication path is confirmed between the master station TR1 and each slave station TRj. ing. However, since the communication path between the slave stations TRj is not confirmed, there is a possibility that the radio signal transmitted from any slave station TRj is not received by any other slave station TRk due to the influence of an obstacle, for example. .

  Therefore, in the control unit 1 of the master station TR1, when the radio transmission / reception unit 2 receives a radio signal including a fire alarm message transmitted from any slave station TRj, it is intermittent to the other slave stations TRk by a timer. The wireless signal including the fire alarm message is transmitted (relayed) during the transmission period including the reception completion time of the reception interval Tx. In this way, even in the slave station TRk that cannot receive the radio signal transmitted from the other slave station TRj due to the presence of an obstacle or the like, the fire signal can be received by receiving the radio signal relayed by the master station TR1. The possibility increases.

  By the way, the intermittent reception interval is measured by counting the operation clock (the clock signal oscillated by the oscillator 6; the same shall apply hereinafter) by the microcomputer constituting the control unit 1. Since the oscillation frequency of the tuning fork type crystal resonator used in the oscillator 6 (= oscillation frequency of the oscillator 6) is generally 32.768 kHz, for example, when the intermittent reception interval is 10 seconds, the control unit 1 operates. Intermittent reception is performed every time the clock is counted 327680 (= 32.768kHz × 10s). However, the frequency stability (frequency deviation) of the tuning fork type crystal resonator is about several tens of ppm, and there are individual differences. Therefore, when a tuning fork type crystal resonator with a large frequency deviation is used for the oscillator 6, the time difference of the intermittent reception interval gradually increases due to long-term use, and synchronization is established between the master station TR1 and the slave station TRj. There is a risk that the intermittent reception interval due to the signal may not be synchronized (out of synchronization will occur). In the fire alarm device TR in which such out-of-synchronization occurs, the count of the intermittent reception interval from the other fire alarm device TR (master station TR1 or slave station TRj) is completed until the next synchronization signal is received. The wireless signal transmitted in the transmission period including the time point cannot be received. For example, as shown in FIG. 3A, when the reception timing of the slave station (see the downward solid line arrow in FIG. 3A) falls outside the range of the allowable period ΔTz, the slave station transmits from the master station. The received radio signal cannot be received.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 3B and 4, two radio stations (relay stations) for relaying radio signals are the master station TR1 and any one slave station (eg, TR3). The transmission periods of the respective relay stations (hereinafter, the master station TR1 is referred to as “main relay station” and the slave station TR3 is referred to as “sub relay station”) are temporally continuous. That is, when the main relay station (master station TR1) and the sub relay station (slave station TR3) continuously relay the radio signal, the transmission period Ttx of the relayed radio signal is substantially doubled. Therefore, since the allowable period ΔTz ′ of the time difference of the intermittent reception interval due to the frequency deviation of the oscillator 6 is also doubled when there is one relay station (ΔTz ′ = ΔTz × 2), the probability of reception is 2 Can be doubled. Alternatively, if the probability that any slave station TRj cannot receive a radio signal due to loss of synchronization is the same, the period of the synchronization signal can be doubled. As described above, according to the present embodiment, the intermittent reception interval Tx and the period of the synchronization signal are extended while avoiding the extension of the delay time until the other radio station can receive the radio signal transmitted by any one of the radio stations. Can be planned.

  A radio station (fire alarm TR) with a large time lag detects a fire earlier than another radio station (fire alarm TR) with a little time lag and detects a radio signal (fire When a wireless signal including an alarm message is transmitted, there is a possibility that the wireless signal transmitted from the wireless station when the intermittent reception interval is counted is not received by another wireless station. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the timing for completing the intermittent reception interval Tx in the sub relay station (slave station TR3) is a predetermined time than the timing for completing the counting of the intermittent reception interval Tx in the main relay station (master station TR1). Delayed by ΔTx (or earlier). By shifting the timing at which the two relay stations perform intermittent reception in this way, the probability of receiving a radio signal transmitted from a radio station having a large time difference as described above at any relay station is increased. can do. However, the time difference ΔTx between the intermittent reception timings of the two relay stations may be equal to or less than the value obtained by subtracting the frame length (time length Tf for one frame of the radio signal) from the transmission period Tx (ΔTx ≦ Tx−Tf). desirable.

  Next, the transmission / reception operation of this embodiment before and after the fire detection will be described with reference to the time chart of FIG. However, in the following description, the fire alarm (slave station) TR3 is used as a sub-relay station. Also, the main relay station (master station TR1) and sub relay station (slave station TR3) have a frequency deviation from the tuning-fork type crystal unit used in the oscillation circuit of other radio stations (slave stations TR2 and TR4). An oscillation circuit using a tuning fork type crystal resonator with a relatively small is mounted. Because the tuning fork type crystal resonator with relatively high accuracy (small frequency deviation) is used in this way, each of the main relay station (master station TR1) and the sub relay station (slave station TR3) as described later It becomes easy to connect the transmission period Ttx.

  For example, when the fire detection unit 4 detects a fire in the slave station TR2, the control unit 1 of the slave station TR2 sounds an alarm sound from the alarm unit 5 and sets the wireless transmission / reception unit 2 before the completion of the intermittent reception interval Tx by the timer. to start. Then, the control unit 1 of the slave station TR2 transmits the radio signal M1 including the fire alarm message to all other fire alarms TR (the master station TR1 and the other slave stations TR3 and TR4) within the transmission period including the count completion time. Send to. At this time, the control unit 1 of the transmission source child station TR2 continuously transmits radio signals for the number of frames that can be transmitted within the transmission period Ttx, and performs radio transmission / reception in the idle period (reception period) after the transmission period Ttx. Switch unit 2 to the reception state. At this time, if there is no problem in the radio wave environment, the radio signal M1 transmitted from the slave station TR2 is naturally also received by the master station TR1 (see the broken line arrow (1) in FIG. 4).

  The control unit 1 of the main relay station (master station TR1) that has received the fire alarm message at the intermittent reception timing (time T1) that overlaps the transmission period Ttx of the radio signal M1 receives the radio signal from the slave station TR2. A radio signal including a fire alarm message within the transmission period Ttx including the timing at which the intermittent reception interval Tx is counted at the sub-relay station (slave station TR3) at the timing when the predetermined time ΔTx has elapsed since the completion of the counting at the intermittent reception interval Tx. M2 is transmitted from the wireless transmission / reception unit 2. This radio signal M2 is transmitted aiming at the intermittent reception timing of the sub relay station (slave station TR3) known by the main relay station (master station TR1), and a transfer signal (radio signal M3) described later In order to connect and transmit the re-transfer signal (wireless signal M4), it plays the role of a wireless signal intended to communicate from the main relay station (master station TR1) to the sub relay station (slave station TR3) (Fig. (See dashed arrow (2) in 4).

  Thereafter, the control unit 1 of the main relay station (master station TR1) sends a fire alarm message at a timing earlier than the scheduled completion time (time T2) of the intermittent reception interval Tx by its own timer by the transmission period Ttx. The included wireless signal M3 is transmitted (relayed) from the wireless transmission / reception unit 2 within the transmission period Ttx. At this time, the transmission period Ttx of the radio signal M2 is a specified transmission period, for example, 3 seconds in the radio equipment rule Article 49-17 “Radio equipment of a low-power security system” already described. The following period may be exceeded. Therefore, if there is a possibility, the transmission of the radio signal M2 is stopped before the specified transmission period is exceeded, and after a specified pause period (for example, 2 seconds or more) from the point of stoppage, a fire alarm message is again generated. A wireless signal M3 including is transmitted.

  On the other hand, the control unit 1 of the sub relay station (slave station TR3) that has received the radio signal M2 relayed to the main relay station (master station TR1) completes counting of the intermittent reception interval Tx in the main relay station (master station TR1). From the time, the wireless signal M4 including the fire alarm message is transmitted (relayed) from the wireless transmission / reception unit 2 within the transmission period Ttx. As a result, the radio signal M4 including the fire alarm message is transmitted following the radio signal M3 including the fire alarm message, and the transmission period Ttx is extended to twice the original period (connection period) to the receiving side (slave station) The reception opportunity of TR4) can be increased (see broken line arrow (4) in FIG. 4). Accordingly, since the transmission period of the radio signal relayed by the two relay stations (master station TR1 and slave station TR3) is twice the original transmission period Ttx, for example, the time lag in the slave station TR4 is the transmission period Ttx. Even if it exceeds half of the above, there is a high possibility that the wireless signal can be received.

  When the control unit 1 of the other slave station TR4 receives a fire alarm message transmitted (relayed) from any relay station (master station TR1 or slave station TR3), it immediately sounds an alarm sound from the alarm unit 5 and wirelessly. A response message (ACK) for confirming reception of the fire alarm message from the transmission / reception unit 2 is returned as a radio signal. In addition, when all the fire alarms TR notify the fire alarm (sound an alarm sound) when a fire is detected by at least one fire alarm TR in this way, it is hereinafter referred to as “fire interlocking”. .

  When the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 receives ACKs from all the other slave stations TR4, the control unit 1 causes the radio transmission / reception unit 2 to transmit a synchronization beacon for defining a time slot at a constant period. In the present embodiment, the first time slot TS1 is assigned to the child station TR2, the second time slot TS2 is assigned to the child station TR3, and the third time slot TS3 is assigned to the child station TR4.

  When all the fire alarms TR start to sound by sounding an alarm sound, as described above, a synchronous beacon is transmitted from the master station TR1 at a constant period, and a transition to TDMA synchronous communication is made. In the synchronous communication, the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 repeatedly transmits a fire alarm message to all the slave stations TRj at a constant cycle by including it in the synchronous beacon. The control unit 1 of each slave station TRj checks the state of the alarm unit 5 every time a fire alarm message transmitted from the master station TR1 is received. If the alarm unit 5 is stopped, the control unit 1 again Sound an alarm sound. Therefore, after fire alarms are started to be notified by all fire alarms TR, all other slave stations TRj are assigned to multiple time slots defined by the synchronous beacon transmitted by the master station TR1, and time division multiple access (TDMA ) To avoid collisions. Furthermore, the fire alarm can be reliably notified by periodically including the fire alarm message in the synchronous beacon from the master station TR1 to all the other slave stations TRj. As a result, a plurality of fire alarms TR can be effectively linked while avoiding radio signal collision.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, since fire alarms are notified by all fire alarms TR in the event of a fire, safety is increased because the user has more opportunities to perceive fire alarms (listening to alarm sounds). Can be improved.

  In other words, the wireless communication system (fire alarm system) of the present embodiment determines whether or not each of the three or more wireless stations can receive a wireless signal using radio waves as a medium for each intermittent reception interval of the same period length. In the radio communication system, the plurality of radio stations include a main relay station and a sub-relay station, and the main relay station and the sub-relay station have the same period length so that the mutual timings do not coincide with each other. When the main relay station receives a radio signal notifying the occurrence of a predetermined event from a radio station other than the sub relay station, the main relay station generates the event at the next intermittent reception opportunity of the sub relay station. When the sub relay station receives the radio signal relayed by the main relay station, the main relay station transmits the event to be transmitted next. Following radio signal occurrence notification, and characterized in that relays wireless signal for notifying the event generation.

  Note that the transmission periods Ttx of the main relay station (master station TR1) and the sub relay station (slave station TR3) may partially overlap on the time axis. In this case, in a period in which the respective transmission periods Ttx overlap, it cannot be received immediately after the radio signals collide. However, the slave stations TR2 and TR4 that determine whether or not to start reception sense that the received electric field strength (RSSI signal level) is greater than the predetermined value, so that the intermittent reception is not terminated and the reception state is continued as it is. Can do. Therefore, when the period in which the two transmission periods Ttx overlap and collide is terminated, the retransmission signal (radio signal M4) that is the transmission period Ttx emitted by the sub-relay station (child station TR3) can be received. As a result, the opportunity to receive the retransmission signal (radio signal M4) just because the intermittent reception operation was started during the period when the transfer signal (radio signal M3) and the retransmission signal (radio signal M4) overlapped and collided. There is no miss. Thus, it is preferable that the reception process at the receiving-side radio station is continued without interruption, rather than the two transmission periods Ttx are not continuous (connected).

  By the way, the fire alarm system of this embodiment transits three operation states of a standby state, an interlocking ringing state, and an interlocking stop state. The standby state is a state in which no fire is detected in any fire alarm TR. The interlocking sounding state is a state where all the fire alarms TR are sounding an alarm sound. In addition, the interlocking stop state means that only the fire alarm TR (fire source) that detects a fire sounds the alarm sound and the fire alarm TR other than the fire source stops the alarm sound as described later. State. That is, when a fire is detected by at least one of the fire alarm devices TR (for example, the slave station TR2) in the standby state, the fire slave station TR2 and the two relay stations (master station TR1) as described above. When the fire alarm message is sent from the slave station TR3) to all the other slave stations TRj, the alarm sound is sounded by all the fire alarms TR including the master station TR1 and the slave station TRj, and transitions to the linked sound state. To do.

  When the operation input for stopping the alarm sound is received by the operation input receiving unit 7 of any fire alarm TR in the interlocked sounding state, if the fire alarm TR is the master station TR1, The station TR1 transmits a message (alarm stop message) requesting stop of the alarm sound to all the slave stations TRj. Alternatively, if the fire alarm device TR is the slave station TRj, the master station TR1 that has received the alarm stop message from the slave station TRj transmits an alarm stop message to the other slave stations TRj. Then, when the alarm stop message is received by the fire alarm device TR other than the fire source, the alarm sound of the alarm unit 5 is stopped and a transition to the interlock stop state is made. However, when an operation input for stopping the alarm sound is received by the operation input receiving unit 7 of the fire alarm device TR of the fire source, the alarm sound is also stopped in the fire alarm device TR of the fire source. Here, the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 holds the fire detection status for each master station TR1 and each slave station TRj in the memory unit 1a while being updated as needed. Transition from the fire interlocking state to the standby state when no longer occurs.

  Further, when the interlocking sounding state is changed to the interlocking stop state, the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 starts a predetermined alarm sound stop time (for example, 5 minutes). Then, after the warning sound stop time has elapsed, the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 refers to the fire detection status held in the memory unit 1a, and if all the fire alarms TR have not detected a fire, they are synchronized. Transition from the fire-linked state to the standby state by sending a recovery notification message using a beacon. On the other hand, if a fire is detected by at least one fire alarm device TR, a fire alarm message is transmitted by a synchronous beacon to make a transition from the interlock stop state to the interlock ringing state. Even if any fire alarm TR detects a new fire in the interlock stop state, the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 transmits the fire alarm message by the synchronous beacon to change from the interlock stop state to the interlock ringing state. Transition.

  For example, as shown in the time chart of FIG. 5, in a fire-linked state (linked ringing state) with the master station TR1 as the fire source, an operation input for stopping the alarm sound is made at the operation input receiving unit 7 of the slave station TR4 that is not the fire source. When the alarm stop message is transmitted from the slave station TR4 by being accepted, the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 that has received the alarm stop message transmits the alarm stop message M2 by the synchronous beacon and sets the time limit of the alarm sound stop time. Do. However, in the master station TR1, which is the source of fire, the alarm unit 5 continues to sound an alarm sound. After the warning sound stop time has elapsed, the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 confirms the fire detection status of its own fire detection unit 4 and the fire detection status of the slave station TRj. When at least one of the fire alarms TR detects a fire, the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 transmits a fire alarm message again to each slave station TRj by using a synchronous beacon so that the slave station TR1 can stop the interlocking stop state. Transition to the linked ringing state.

  On the other hand, as shown in the time chart of FIG. 6, if the fire is extinguished within the alarm sound stop time and the fire detection unit 4 stops detecting the fire, the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 After the elapse, a recovery notification message is transmitted to each slave station TRj by a synchronous beacon. When the ACK returned from all the slave stations TRj is received, the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 shifts from the interlock stop state to the standby state, and stops the transmission of the synchronous beacon, thereby performing wireless communication by the TDMA method. Return to wireless communication by intermittent transmission and reception.

  In addition, as shown in the time chart of FIG. 7, when the fire at the fire station 4 is extinguished and the fire detection unit 4 of the slave station TR4 does not detect the fire in the interlocking ringing state with the slave station TR4 as the fire source, A recovery notification message is transmitted from the station TR4 to the master station TR1. The control unit 1 of the master station TR1 that has received the recovery notification message refers to the fire detection status held in the memory unit 1a. If no fire is detected by all the fire alarms TR, the recovery notification message is sent by a synchronous beacon. M3 is transmitted to each slave station TRj. Then, if the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 receives ACKs returned from all the slave stations TRj, it transitions from the interlocking stop state to the standby state, and stops transmitting synchronous beacons, thereby intermittently starting from the TDMA wireless communication. Return to wireless communication by transmission and intermittent reception.

  On the other hand, as shown in the time chart of FIG. 8, when a fire is newly detected by another fire alarm (for example, slave station TR3), a recovery notification message is received from the slave station TR4 that is the first fire source. The control unit 1 of the master station TR1 refers to the fire detection status held in the memory unit 1a. At this time, the control unit 1 of the master station TR1 does not send the recovery notification message because the slave station TR3 is detecting a fire, and continues to send the fire alarm message to maintain the fire-linked state.

  By the way, the timing at which the control unit 1 of the main relay station (master station TR1) activates the radio transmission / reception unit 2 and performs intermittent reception (timing at which the radio transmission / reception unit 2 is activated in the reception state) is the original timing (not the sub relay station). The timing at which the slave station TRj receives intermittently (the same applies hereinafter) is advanced by half the transmission period Ttx, and the control unit 1 of the sub-relay station (slave station TR3) activates the radio transmission / reception unit 2 to perform intermittent reception. The timing may be delayed by half the transmission period Ttx from the original timing. This increases the possibility that any relay station can receive a radio signal transmitted at a timing earlier or later than the original timing.

  Here, in the two relay stations (master station TR1 and slave station TR3), it is desirable that the time difference in counting of the intermittent reception interval Tx by the timer is smaller than in other radio stations. Therefore, when the oscillators 6 of the two relay stations use tuning fork crystal resonators, the reception timing of the synchronization signal and the intermittent reception interval counted by the timer when the wireless transmission / reception unit 2 receives the synchronization signal. The sub relay station may include a time shift detection unit that detects a time shift between the sub relay station and a correction unit that corrects the count operation of the timer so as to reduce the time shift detected by the time shift detection unit. However, both the time shift detection means and the correction means are realized by causing the microcomputer of the control unit 1 to execute a dedicated program.

  As shown in FIG. 9, when the synchronization signal has a frame structure composed of a preamble and a unique word (UW), the control unit 1 serving as a time shift detection means completes the reception of the unique word from the time t0 when the preamble of the synchronization signal is received. The time (detection time) until time t1 is measured. For example, assuming that the time width of the synchronization signal is T (seconds) and the intermediate value (= T / 2) of the synchronization signal is a reference point for time shift detection, the time shift ΔT is calculated as ΔT = detection time−T / 2. (See FIG. 9).

  Next, correction processing of the control unit 1 serving as correction means will be described. The control unit 1 corrects the time shift ΔT detected by the above-described method by finely adjusting the count operation of the timer according to the magnitude of ΔT. That is, since the intermittent reception interval Tx can be changed by increasing / decreasing the count value of the timer that counts the intermittent reception interval Tx from the regular value, the control unit 1 can increase the time by increasing / decreasing the timer count value. The shift ΔT can be corrected. Here, as described above, the tuning fork type crystal oscillator normally oscillates at 32.768 kHz. For example, when the intermittent reception interval Tx is 5 seconds, intermittent reception is performed every count of 163840 (= 32.768 kHz × 5). Therefore, the amount of change when increasing or decreasing by one count is approximately ± 6 ppm (≈1 ÷ 163840), which is the minimum unit that can be corrected. Therefore, since it cannot correct | amend that the detected time shift | offset | difference (DELTA) T is a value smaller than the said minimum value, in this case, the control part 1 performs increase / decrease in a count value at a rate of once every 10 minutes, for example. To correct the time difference ΔT. Note that the count value is increased or decreased immediately before the accumulated time lag exceeds the upper limit value, with the time during which the sync signal can be received (a value slightly smaller than half the time width T of the sync signal) as the upper limit value. It doesn't matter if you do.

  Further, instead of using the above-described time shift detection means and correction means, the oscillator 6 in the two relay stations may have a frequency deviation sufficiently smaller than that of an oscillator using a tuning fork crystal resonator.

  By the way, from all the slave stations TRj except the main relay station (master station TR1), the main relay station selects a sub relay station by the method described below, and the selected slave station TRj is sent from the master station TR1. It may be configured to operate as a sub relay station by receiving an instruction.

  That is, the time lag detecting means described above is provided in each slave station TRj, and the time lag detecting means detects the time lag when receiving a radio signal including the periodic monitoring message transmitted from the parent station TR1, and the time The deviation is returned to the master station TR1 together with the response message. The control unit 1 of the master station TR1 compares the time lags received from the respective slave stations TRj, and selects the slave station TRj having the smallest time lag as a sub relay station. Then, a message instructing the slave station TRj selected as the sub relay station to execute the operation of the sub relay station is transmitted from the master station TR1.

  By selecting the slave station TRj having the smallest time difference as the sub-relay station in this way, it is not necessary to provide the above-described correction means or mount the high-precision oscillator 6.

TR1 Fire alarm (main relay station)
TR2 Fire alarm (sub relay station)
TR3 Fire alarm (radio station)
1 Control unit (transmission control means, reception control means, timer means)
2 Wireless transceiver (transmitting means, receiving means)
6 Oscillator (Timer means)
7 Battery power supply (power supply means)

Claims (4)

  A wireless communication system in which each of three or more wireless stations determines whether or not a wireless signal can be received using a radio wave as a medium for each intermittent reception interval having the same period length, and the plurality of wireless stations include a main relay station And the sub-relay station, the main relay station and the sub-relay station count the intermittent reception interval so that their timings do not coincide with each other while having the same period length, and the main relay station When a radio signal notifying the occurrence of a predetermined event is received from a radio station other than the sub-relay station, the sub-relay station relays the radio signal notifying the occurrence of the event at the next intermittent reception opportunity of the sub-relay station. When the radio signal relayed by the relay station is received, the main relay station transmits the event occurrence notification radio signal to be transmitted next, followed by the radio signal notifying the occurrence of the event. Wireless communication system, characterized by a relay. A wireless communication system comprising three or more wireless stations and transmitting and receiving wireless signals using radio waves as a medium between the wireless stations,
Each radio station activates the transmission unit when a predetermined event occurs, and transmits a message corresponding to the event during a predetermined transmission period, a transmission unit that transmits a radio signal, a reception unit that receives the radio signal, Including a transmission control unit that alternately repeats the operation of transmitting a wireless signal including the transmission of the wireless signal and stopping the transmission of the wireless signal during a predetermined suspension period, and stopping the transmission unit when the event does not occur, and a constant intermittent reception interval. Timer means for repeatedly counting, reception control means for stopping the reception means during counting of the intermittent reception interval by the timer means, and starting the reception means every time counting of the intermittent reception interval by the timer means is completed, Power supply means for supplying operation power of each means using a battery as a power source,
The reception control means stops counting the intermittent reception interval by the timer means when the synchronization signal is received by the reception means, and the timer means when a certain waiting time has elapsed from the end of the synchronization signal Restart the intermittent reception interval by
When the event occurs, the transmission control unit causes the transmission unit to transmit a radio signal during the transmission period overlapping with a time point at which the intermittent reception interval is counted by the timer unit,
In two of the plurality of radio stations, when the reception unit receives a radio signal including the message, the transmission control unit transmits the radio signal including the message from the transmission unit to another radio station. And the reception control means of one of the two wireless stations has a standby time different from the standby time of the other reception control means of the two wireless stations,
The transmission control means of one of the two radio stations performing the relay transmits the radio signal before the time point when the intermittent reception interval is counted by the timer means when the radio signal is relayed. The transmission control means of one of the two wireless stations that perform transmission from the transmission means and the relay control means after the point when the counting of the intermittent reception interval by the timer means is completed when the wireless signal is relayed 2. The radio communication system according to claim 1, wherein said radio signal is transmitted from said transmission means. The reception control unit of one of the two radio stations that performs the relay is more than the time when the intermittent reception interval is counted by the timer unit of the radio station that does not perform the relay of the plurality of radio stations. , Activate the receiving means earlier by half the transmission period,
The reception control means of the other wireless station of the two wireless stations that perform the relay is more than the time point when the counting of the intermittent reception interval by the timer means of the wireless station that does not perform the relay of the plurality of wireless stations is completed. 3. The wireless communication system according to claim 2, wherein the receiving means is activated later by a half time of the transmission period. One radio station of the two radio stations that perform the relay periodically transmits a radio signal including a regular monitoring message to all other radio stations except the radio station from the transmission unit. Periodic monitoring means for monitoring all the other wireless stations depending on whether or not a wireless signal including a response message to the periodic monitoring message is received by the receiving means from another wireless station;
The other radio station detects a time lag between the reception timing of the radio signal and the intermittent reception interval counted by the timer means when the receiving means receives the radio signal including the periodic monitoring message. The transmission control unit of the other radio station includes a detection unit, and causes the time shift detected by the time shift detection unit to be returned together with the response message.
The one radio station selects the radio station having the smallest time lag among all the other radio stations as another radio station that performs the relay, and relays the selected radio station to the selected radio station. A wireless signal including a message instructing to perform
4. The wireless communication system according to claim 2, wherein the wireless station that has received the message is the other wireless station that performs the relay.

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