JP5701728B2 - Monitoring system, monitoring apparatus and monitoring method - Google Patents

Description

  Embodiments described herein relate generally to a monitoring system, a monitoring apparatus, and a monitoring method applied to building automation and the like. In particular, an embodiment of the present invention relates to a system to which BACnet (registered trademark) is applied as a communication protocol.

  Building Automation and Control Networking Protocol (BACnet (registered trademark)) is a communication protocol defined to standardize a method for representing and communicating data communicated between monitoring devices / monitored devices in facilities such as buildings and factories. It is. Currently, it is also an ISO standard, and BACnet (registered trademark) is a notable technology for promoting multi-vendorization in building management systems.

  A monitoring system using BACnet (registered trademark) includes a BACnet Operator Workstation (B-OWS) and a BACnet Building Controller (B-BC). B-OWS has a monitoring function and is positioned higher than B-BC, and B-BC is a controller that controls a monitored device and is positioned lower than B-OWS.

  BACnet (Registered Trademark) stipulates that when the status of a device to be monitored changes, the B-BC notifies the B-OWS to that effect by an event notification (UDP packet). Event notifications are both confirmed and unconfirmed. In other words, BACnet (registered trademark) supports both ConfirmedEventNotification and UnconfirmedEventNotification.

  In order to avoid an increase in network load and a decrease in display performance at a monitoring terminal, a general multi-vendor monitoring system often uses an unacknowledged event notification broadcast. However, in such an environment, a situation such as “not-received event notification to B-OWS at the time of network failure” or “missing event notification after B-BC failure recovery” may occur. If such a situation occurs, the state held by the B-BC (the actual state of the monitored device) and the content displayed on the B-OWS monitor may not match (inconsistency), which is not preferable.

[Search September 26, 2011], Internet <URL: http://www.bacnet.org/>

  As described above, in the existing monitoring system using the unacknowledged event notification, there is a difference between the state held by the B-BC and the state recognized by the B-OWS (that is, the state acquired by the B-OWS). Matching can occur. In order to avoid this, in the existing technology, a read property (ReadProperty: UDP packet) is periodically transmitted from each B-OWS to the B-BC, and the current correctness of the devices to be monitored (hereinafter collectively referred to as monitored devices). I was trying to get the status.

  However, if the transmission cycle of the read property is short, the communication load of B-BC increases. If the read property frequently exceeds the limit, there are cases where the B-BC is down, and special attention must be paid in a multi-vendor environment. Conversely, if the transmission cycle is lengthened, it takes time until the mismatch is resolved. Thus, it is difficult for the existing technology to achieve both a reduction in communication load and a shortening of the mismatch period, and a solution is being sought.

  An object is to provide a monitoring system, a monitoring apparatus, and a monitoring method capable of quickly recognizing the state of a monitored apparatus with a minimum communication load.

According to the embodiment, the monitoring system is a monitoring system that conforms to BACnet (registered trademark) and uses UnconfirmedEventNotification. The monitoring system includes a plurality of controllers for controlling the monitored devices, respectively, and a plurality of monitoring devices including a communicable representative monitoring apparatus and a plurality of controllers. Each of the monitoring devices includes a detection unit, an acquisition unit, and a distribution unit. The detection unit detects that the controller in which the abnormality has occurred has returned from the abnormality by receiving I-Am notified from the restored controller . Acquisition unit, when a representative supervisory apparatus, the status of the monitored devices connected to the controller returns from the abnormality sends a ReadProperty to return the controller to retrieve from the controller. Distributing unit distributes the state of acquired the monitored device to the monitoring device other than the representative supervisory apparatus.

The system diagram which shows an example of the monitoring system concerning embodiment. The functional block diagram which shows 1st Embodiment of the monitoring apparatuses 11-1n. The flowchart which shows the process sequence in 1st Embodiment. The figure for demonstrating the effect | action in 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the existing monitoring system for a comparison. It is a functional block diagram which shows 2nd Embodiment of the monitoring apparatuses 11-1n. The flowchart which shows the process sequence in 2nd Embodiment. The figure for demonstrating the effect | action in 2nd Embodiment.

  FIG. 1 is a system diagram illustrating an example of a monitoring system according to the embodiment. In FIG. 1, a plurality of monitoring devices 11 to 1n and local controllers 21 to 2m are connected to a local area network (LAN) 100 as a communication network. In the embodiment, BACnet (registered trademark) is formed in the upper layer of the LAN 100. That is, the monitoring system according to the embodiment conforms to BACnet (registered trademark). Accordingly, different vendor systems can be mixed in the monitoring system.

  Nodes are connected to the local controllers 21 to 2m via communication lines, respectively. Each node is, for example, an air conditioning device, a lighting device, or a power device for each floor. Each of the local controllers 21 to 2m recognizes a connected node as a monitored device and monitors its state. The local controllers 21 to 2m function as B-BC in the embodiment.

  The monitoring devices 11 to 1n have a function as a server that receives a monitoring result notified from the local controllers 21 to 2m and monitors and controls the monitoring system at a higher level and provides various information to the operator. The monitoring devices 11 to 1n function as B-OWS in the embodiment.

  In the embodiment, one of the monitoring devices 11 to 1n is caused to function as a representative of the monitoring devices 11 to 1n. The representative monitoring device will be referred to as a representative server. In determining the representative server, a unique number is previously determined for each of the monitoring devices 11 to 1n, and the monitoring device with the smallest number among the normal monitoring devices is caused to function as the representative server. Of course, the monitoring device with the largest number may be used as the representative server.

[First Embodiment]
FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the first embodiment of the monitoring devices 11 to 1n shown in FIG. The monitoring devices 11 to 1n include a network interface unit 41, a display unit 42, an input / output unit 43, a database unit 44, and a main control unit 45. The interface unit 41 performs interface processing related to communication with the LAN 100.

  The display unit 42 provides a user interface together with the input / output unit 43 to construct a GUI (Graphical User Interface) environment. The database unit 44 is a storage device such as a hard disk drive, and stores a management table 44a. The management table 44a stores individual states of monitored devices (nodes) in the system. The display unit 42 and the input / output unit 43 process data acquired from the management table 44a, and notify the user of information in the form of a Web browser, for example.

Incidentally, the main control unit 45 includes a detection unit 45a, an acquisition unit 45b, and a distribution unit 45c as processing functions according to this embodiment.
The detection unit 45a detects that the local controller in which the abnormality has occurred has returned from the abnormality. In the embodiment, the detection unit 45a detects that the local controller of the transmission source has been restored by receiving I-Am notified from the local controller that has recovered from the abnormality.

  BACnet (registered trademark) defines a mechanism for checking the soundness of B-OWS / B-BC. That is, if the I-Am (sanity notification, UDP packet) transmitted from each device every 60 seconds does not reach for 150 seconds, it is determined that an abnormality has occurred in the I-Am transmission source device. ing. In addition, if I-Am is delivered from a device that has been determined to be abnormal, it is determined that the device has returned to normal. The detection unit 45a uses this rule to detect normal return of the local controller.

  The abnormality is a concept including not only a failure of the local controller itself but also a failure in a communication line (including the LAN 100) connecting the monitoring device and the local controller. In short, in the embodiment, a state in which a failure occurs in communication between the monitoring device and the local controller is referred to as an abnormality. Such a situation can occur in any situation, such as a board failure, network disconnection, or thermal runaway.

  If the acquisition unit 45b is a representative server, the acquisition unit 45b acquires the state of each node connected to the local controller that has recovered from the abnormality. That is, the acquisition unit 45b transmits ReadProperty to the restored local controller and receives the reply to acquire the state of the node connected to the local controller of the transmission destination.

  The distribution unit 45c distributes the acquired state of each node to a monitoring device other than the representative server, that is, another monitoring device via the LAN 100. At this time, the distribution unit 45c suppresses traffic flowing through the LAN 100 by compressing and distributing information indicating the state of each node. Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure in the first embodiment. This will be described in conjunction with FIG. In FIG. 4, in order to clarify the role in BACnet (registered trademark), the monitoring device is denoted as B-OWS, and the local controllers 21 to 2m are denoted as B-BC. For convenience, it is assumed that the monitoring device 11 is a representative server and an abnormality occurs in the local controller 21.

  In FIG. 3, when the monitoring device 11 detects a return from the abnormality of the local controller 21 (step S1), the monitoring device 11 determines whether or not it is a representative server (step S2). If it is not a representative server (No in step S2), the monitoring device 11 waits for a notification from another device without performing the main processing related to FIG.

  Since the monitoring device 11 is a representative server (Yes in step S2), ReadProperty is transmitted to the restored local controller 21, and the state of the node under the local controller 21 is acquired (step S3). Next, the monitoring device 11 compresses the acquired data in a predetermined format (step S4), and then distributes the data to another monitoring device (step S5). The procedure of step S5 is repeated the number of other monitoring devices, that is, n-1 times in the loop of steps S61 to S62. The order of distribution may be, for example, the order of monitoring device numbers.

  As shown in FIG. 4, when the local controller 21 as the B-BC recovers from the abnormality [(1)], I-Am is transmitted and received by the monitoring device 11. The monitoring apparatus 11 that has received I-Am detects the return of the local controller 21 [(2)], and acquires the state of the node from the local controller 21 [(3)]. When the data acquisition is completed, the monitoring device 11 compresses the acquired data and distributes it to all the other monitoring devices 12 to 1n [(4)].

  As shown in FIG. 5A, unconfirmed event notification does not guarantee the arrival of a packet, so that a message may not be delivered. In addition, when an abnormality occurs in the B-BC or the communication line, the message may not be transmitted. In such a case, there is a case where information (including the state of the node) held by both B-BC and B-OWS does not match. In order to avoid this, as shown in FIG. 5 (b), there is a system in which Readproperty is transmitted from B-OWS to B-BC at a constant period, but the communication load increases.

  Therefore, in the first embodiment, in a monitoring system that is based on BACnet (registered trademark) and performs status notification mainly by UnconfirmedEventNotification, a recovery from a B-BC abnormality is used as a trigger to perform a process of a node by B-OWS main processing. I try to get the status. That is, the B-OWS that has detected the return of the B-BC transmits ReadProperty to the returned B-BC and requests a return of the status of the subordinate node. However, this process is executed only by the B-OWS when it is the representative server. As a result, the communication load of the restored B-BC can be minimized.

  When the B-OWS acquires the status by replying to the ReadProperty, the B-OWS compresses the acquired data and distributes it to the other B-OWS. Thereby, the communication load of the LAN 100 can also be suppressed. In addition, the amount of communication can be significantly reduced compared to when all the B-OWS individually inquire about the restored B-BC.

  Less communication load means that the time required for data synchronization (matching) between B-BC and B-OWS and between each B-OWS can be shortened. In the first embodiment, the ReadProperty is transmitted immediately after the return of the B-BC rather than the periodic transmission of the ReadProperty, so that the time required for acquiring the state of the node in the B-OWS is minimized. be able to. Therefore, the period in which the state held by the B-BC and the state recognized by the B-OWS do not match can be shortened as much as possible. Accordingly, it is possible to provide a monitoring system, a monitoring device, and a monitoring method that can quickly recognize the state of the monitored device with a minimum communication load.

[Second Embodiment]
FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram illustrating a second embodiment of the monitoring devices 11 to 1n. In FIG. 6, parts that are the same as those in FIG.

In the second embodiment, the main control unit 45 includes a search unit 45d, a request unit 45e, and a transmission unit 45f.
The search unit 45d detects another monitoring device that is operating normally when its own monitoring device is activated. The request unit 45e requests at least one of the monitoring devices detected by the search unit 45d to acquire the state of the node (monitored device) in the monitoring system recognized by the monitoring device. Upon receiving the request from another monitoring device, the transmission unit 45f transmits the status of the monitored device in response to the request. At that time, the transmission unit 45f suppresses traffic flowing through the LAN 100 by compressing and distributing information indicating the state of each node. Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure in the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, a process when the monitoring apparatus, that is, the B-OWS is activated will be described. Hereinafter, processing when the monitoring device 1n is activated will be described.
In FIG. 7, when the monitoring device 1n (B-OWS) is activated (step S7), the monitoring device 1n searches whether there is another B-OWS operating normally on the LAN 100 (step S8). . If a sound B-OWS is found (Yes in step S8), the monitoring apparatus 1n transmits ReadProperty to any of the B-OWS, and the state of the system held in the B-OWS, that is, all B-OWS. The BC state is acquired (step S9). Here, for example, necessary data is acquired from B-OWS (monitoring device 11) as a representative server.
At this time, the monitoring device 11 that is the data transmission source compresses the requested data and returns it to the monitoring device 1n that is the ReadProperty transmission source. As a result, traffic on the LAN 100 can be reduced. If a sound B-OWS is not found (No in step S8), the monitoring device 1n transmits ReadProperty to all the B-BCs and individually acquires the state of each B-BC (step S10).
As shown in FIG. 8, when the monitoring device 1n as B-OWS is activated [(1)], the monitoring device 1n finds a normal monitoring device. If the representative monitoring device 11 is normal, the monitoring device 1n acquires the compressed data from the monitoring device 11 [(2)].

As described above, in the second embodiment, required data is requested from the representative B-OWS without transmitting ReadProperty to the B-BC in the state alignment sequence with the B-BC when the B-OWS is activated. I try to get it.
That is, when the B-OWS is activated, the status is acquired from all the B-BCs in order to display the correct information at that time. Therefore, in the second embodiment, the communication load is reduced by acquiring information indicating the state from another healthy B-OWS. Further, the B-OWS that receives the request further reduces the communication load by compressing and transmitting the state data. Since it did in this way, it becomes possible to acquire the effect similar to 1st Embodiment also at the time of starting of a monitoring apparatus.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, when the recovery from the occurrence of an abnormality is made in a short period of time, the B-OWS may not be able to detect an abnormality in the B-BC. In preparation for such a case, the acquisition of the state by ReadProperty may be executed to the extent that the communication load does not become excessive. Alternatively, the ReadProperty command may be input by an operation of the operator's manual.

  Also, in the embodiment, BACnet (registered trademark) has been described. However, the idea disclosed in the embodiment is not limited to a system in which notification of device health and acquisition of a state are defined by a protocol. The present invention can also be applied to systems other than BACnet (registered trademark).

  Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the invention described in the claims and the equivalents thereof.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11-1n ... Monitoring apparatus, 21-2m ... Local controller, 100 ... Local Area Network (LAN), 41 ... Network interface part, 42 ... Display part, 43 ... Input / output part, 44 ... Database part, 44a ... Management table, 45 ... main control unit, 45a ... detection unit, 45b ... acquisition unit, 45c ... distribution unit, 45d ... search unit, 45e ... request unit, 45f ... transmission unit

Claims (9)

A monitoring system that conforms to BACnet (registered trademark) and uses UnconfirmedEventNotification,
A plurality of controllers each controlling a monitored device;
And a plurality of monitoring devices including a communicable representative monitoring device and the plurality of controllers,
Each of the monitoring devices
A detection unit that detects that the controller in which the abnormality has occurred has returned from the abnormality by receiving I-Am notified from the controller that has returned ;
When the representative monitoring device , the status of the monitored device connected to the controller that has returned from the abnormality , the acquisition unit that transmits the ReadProperty to the restored controller and acquires from the controller,
A monitoring system comprising: a distribution unit that distributes the acquired state of the monitored device to a monitoring device other than the representative monitoring device . A monitoring system that conforms to BACnet (registered trademark) and uses UnconfirmedEventNotification,
A plurality of controllers each controlling a monitored device;
A plurality of monitoring devices capable of communicating with the plurality of controllers,
At least one of the monitoring devices is
A detection unit that detects that the controller in which the abnormality has occurred has returned from the abnormality by receiving I-Am notified from the controller that has returned;
The acquisition unit that acquires the status of the monitored device connected to the controller that has recovered from the abnormality, and transmits the ReadProperty to the recovered controller from the controller,
A monitoring system comprising: a distribution unit that distributes the acquired state of the monitored device to another monitoring device . The monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein the distribution unit compresses and distributes the acquired information indicating the state of the monitored device . In accordance with BACnet (registered trademark), a plurality of controllers each controlling a monitored device and a plurality of monitoring devices including a representative monitoring device that can communicate with the plurality of controllers, and used in a monitoring system using UnconfirmedEventNotification A monitoring device,
A detection unit that detects that the controller in which the abnormality has occurred has returned from the abnormality by receiving I-Am notified from the controller that has returned;
When the representative monitoring device, the status of the monitored device connected to the controller that has returned from the abnormality, the acquisition unit that transmits the ReadProperty to the restored controller and acquires from the controller,
A monitoring apparatus comprising: a distribution unit that distributes the acquired state of the monitored apparatus to a monitoring apparatus other than the representative monitoring apparatus. A monitoring device that is used in a monitoring system that conforms to BACnet (registered trademark) and uses UnconfirmedEventNotification, and that can communicate with a plurality of controllers that respectively control monitored devices.
A detection unit that detects that the controller in which the abnormality has occurred has returned from the abnormality by receiving I-Am notified from the controller that has returned;
The acquisition unit that acquires the status of the monitored device connected to the controller that has recovered from the abnormality, and transmits the ReadProperty to the recovered controller from the controller,
  A monitoring apparatus comprising: a distribution unit that distributes the acquired state of the monitored apparatus to another monitoring apparatus. The monitoring device according to claim 4, wherein the distribution unit compresses and distributes the acquired information indicating the state of the monitored device. In accordance with BACnet (registered trademark), a plurality of controllers each controlling a monitored device and a plurality of monitoring devices including a representative monitoring device that can communicate with the plurality of controllers, and used in a monitoring system using UnconfirmedEventNotification A monitoring method by a monitoring device,
The monitoring device detects that the controller in which the abnormality has occurred has returned from the abnormality by receiving I-Am notified from the controller that has returned,
The representative monitoring device acquires the status of the monitored device connected to the controller that has recovered from the abnormality by transmitting ReadProperty to the recovered controller from the controller,
A monitoring method in which the representative monitoring device distributes the acquired state of the monitored device to a monitoring device other than the representative monitoring device. A monitoring method using a monitoring device that is compliant with BACnet (registered trademark) and uses UnconfirmedEventNotification, and that can communicate with a plurality of controllers that respectively control the monitored devices.
It is detected by receiving I-Am notified from the restored controller that the controller in which the abnormality has occurred has recovered from the abnormality,
The status of the monitored device connected to the controller that has returned from the abnormality is acquired from the controller by sending ReadProperty to the restored controller,
A monitoring method for distributing the acquired status of the monitored device to another monitoring device. The monitoring method according to claim 7, wherein the distributing includes compressing and distributing the acquired information indicating the status of the monitored device.

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