JP7149512B2 - communication device, communication system - Google Patents

Description

The present disclosure relates to communication devices and communication systems that perform communication.

As the speed of communication on the link from the terminal device to the base station increases, the amount of heat generated in the terminal device increases. On the other hand, laws and regulations stipulate the maximum temperature of the surface of the terminal device, and even if heat is generated, the temperature of the surface of the terminal device must be kept below the maximum temperature. In order to suppress temperature rise due to heat generation, a terminal device that lowers the maximum transmission speed information from the current value and transmits it to the base station when the detected internal temperature exceeds a threshold value. (See Patent Document 1, for example).

WO 10/016418

In the case of one-to-one communication between a terminal device and a base station, the temperature of the terminal device can be lowered by lowering the communication speed of the transmitted signal. On the other hand, when a multi-hop network is formed by a plurality of terminal devices, the terminal device not only transmits a signal as a starting point, but also transfers a signal whose starting point is another terminal device. Therefore, the temperature of the terminal device cannot be lowered simply by lowering the communication speed of the signal transmitted as the starting point. In particular, when the multi-hop network has a hierarchical structure, terminal devices located in higher layers have a relatively high frequency of communication, so the temperature tends to rise.

The present disclosure has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a technique for suppressing temperature rise of terminal devices in a multi-hop network.

In order to solve the above problems, a communication device according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a transmission unit that transmits a first signal to each of a plurality of terminal devices that form a multihop network, and a transmission unit that transmits the first signal. A receiving unit that receives a second signal as a response to the first signal from each of a plurality of terminal devices, and transmission of the first signal that is received by a terminal device having a temperature equal to or higher than a threshold among the plurality of terminal devices. and a control unit for controlling the The control unit sets the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold to be longer than the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device when the temperature is lower than the threshold. do .

Another aspect of the disclosure is a communication system. This communication system includes a plurality of terminal devices forming a multi-hop network, and a communication device communicating with each of the plurality of terminal devices. A communication device receives a second signal as a response to the first signal from a transmitting unit that transmits a first signal to each of a plurality of terminal devices, and from each of the plurality of terminal devices to which the transmitting unit has transmitted the first signal. and a control unit configured to control transmission of a first signal received by a terminal device having a temperature equal to or higher than a threshold among the plurality of terminal devices . The control unit sets the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold to be longer than the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device when the temperature is lower than the threshold. do .

It should be noted that any combination of the above-described components and expressions of the present disclosure converted between methods, devices, systems, computer programs, recording media recording computer programs, etc. are also effective as aspects of the present disclosure. be.

Advantageous Effects of Invention According to the present disclosure, it is possible to suppress temperature rise of terminal devices in a multi-hop network.

1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a communication system according to Example 1; FIG. 2(a) and 2(b) are diagrams showing configurations of the communication device and the terminal device in FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an overview of a routing table stored in a storage unit shown in FIG. 2(a); FIG. It is a figure which shows the data structure of the table of the temperature memorize|stored in the memory|storage part of Fig.2 (a). FIGS. 5(a) and 5(b) are diagrams showing configurations of a server and a watt-hour meter in which the communication devices and terminal devices in FIGS. 2(a) and 2(b) are installed. 3 is a flowchart showing a procedure for transmitting a first signal by the communication device of FIG. 2(a); 7A and 7B are diagrams showing data structures of tables stored in a storage unit according to the second embodiment. FIG. 10 is a flow chart showing a procedure for transmitting a first signal by the communication device according to the second embodiment; 10 is a flow chart showing a procedure for setting the transmission interval of the first signal by the communication device according to the third embodiment; FIG. 12 is a flow chart showing a procedure for setting the transmission interval of the first signal by the communication device according to the fourth embodiment; FIG.

(Example 1)
Before specifically describing the embodiments of the present disclosure, an outline of the present embodiments will be described. The embodiment relates to a communication system in which a plurality of terminal devices forming a multihop network are connected to one communication device. For example, the communication device is installed in a server, and the terminal device is installed in a power meter. In such a configuration, the communication device collects data from each terminal device. The data includes, for example, the results of power consumption measurement. In order to collect data, the communication device transmits a request signal for requesting transmission of data (hereinafter also referred to as "first signal") to the terminal device. A terminal device that receives the first signal transmits a response signal containing data (hereinafter also referred to as a “second signal”) to the communication device.

Since a plurality of terminal devices form a multi-hop network, the first signal is received by the destination terminal device while being forwarded by one or more terminal devices. Also, the second signal is received by the communication device while being forwarded by one or more terminal devices. Here, when the multi-hop network has a hierarchical structure, and the one closer to the communication device is called the upper layer of the hierarchical structure, the terminal device in the higher layer has a higher transfer frequency. Therefore, the terminal device in the higher layer tends to have a higher temperature. Under such circumstances, even if the transmission frequency of the first signal addressed to the terminal device whose temperature has risen or the second signal originating from the terminal device is reduced or the communication speed is reduced, the terminal device The temperature of the terminal device does not decrease unless the frequency of transfer in .

In order to suppress temperature rise of terminal devices in a multi-hop network, the communication device according to the present embodiment controls transmission of the first signal received by terminal devices having a temperature equal to or higher than a threshold. In other words, transmission is controlled not only for the first signal addressed to the terminal device having the temperature equal to or higher than the threshold value, but also for the first signal transferred to the terminal device. One example of transmission control is lengthening the transmission interval.

FIG. 1 shows the configuration of a communication system 1000. As shown in FIG. The communication system 1000 includes a communication device 100, a first relay device 200a, a second relay device 200b, a third relay device 200c, an N-th relay device 200n, a first terminal device 300, and a terminal device 300. It includes the device 300a to the ninth terminal device 300i. The numbers of relay devices 200 and terminal devices 300 are not limited to those in FIG. The first relay device 200 a to the Nth relay device 200 n are connected to the communication device 100 , and one or more terminal devices 300 are connected to each relay device 200 . Communication between the communication device 100, the relay device 200, and the terminal device 300 may use wired communication, wireless communication, or a combination thereof. For wired communication, for example, optical communication, power line communication (PLC: Power Line Communications), etc. can be used, and for wireless communication, mobile phone communication, wireless LAN (Local Area Network), etc. can be used. .

The communication device 100 communicates with each of the plurality of terminal devices 300 via the relay device 200 and collects data from the plurality of terminal devices 300 . At that time, the communication device 100 transmits a first signal to the terminal device 300 and receives a second signal from the terminal device 300 . For example, a first signal transmitted from the communication device 100 to the second terminal device 300b is transferred in order by the first relay device 200a and the first terminal device 300a. Also, the second signal transmitted from the second terminal device 300b to the communication device 100 is transferred in order by the first terminal device 300a and the first relay device 200a.

The terminal device 300 provides data to the communication device 100 in response to requests from the communication device 100 . At that time, the terminal device 300 receives the first signal from the communication device 100 and transmits the second signal toward the communication device 100 . As illustrated, a multi-hop network is formed by a plurality of terminal devices 300 . In a multi-hop network, when a terminal device 300 included in a path between communication device 100 and another terminal device 300 receives the first signal from communication device 100, it transmits the first signal toward other terminal device 300. Send. For example, when the first terminal device 300a receives the first signal from the communication device 100 via the first relay device 200a, it transmits the first signal toward the second terminal device 300b. Further, when receiving a second signal from another terminal device 300 , the terminal device 300 transmits the second signal to the communication device 100 . For example, when the first terminal device 300a receives the second signal from the second terminal device 300b, it transmits the second signal toward the communication device 100 via the first relay device 200a.

As shown, the multihop network has a hierarchical structure. A terminal device 300 closer to the communication device 100 in the hierarchical structure, that is, a terminal device 300 with a smaller number of hops to the communication device 100 is called a terminal device 300 in a higher layer. On the other hand, a terminal device 300 far from the communication device 100, that is, a terminal device 300 with a large number of hops to the communication device 100 is called a terminal device 300 in a lower layer. Under such circumstances, the frequency of occurrence of transfer processing in the communication device 100 in the upper layer is higher than the frequency of occurrence of transfer processing in the communication device 100 in the lower layer. Therefore, the temperature of the upper-layer communication device 100 tends to be higher than the temperature of the lower-layer communication device 100 .

The relay device 200 is arranged between the communication device 100 and the terminal device 300 and relays signals. For example, when the first relay device 200a receives the first signal from the communication device 100, it transmits the first signal toward the first terminal device 300a, and when it receives the second signal from the first terminal device 300a, A first signal is transmitted toward the communication device 100 . In other words, communication between the communication device 100 and the plurality of terminal devices 300 is relayed by at least one of the two or more relay devices 200 . If the relay device 200 is a gateway device, a separate network is formed for each terminal device 300 connected to the relay device 200 . For example, one network is formed by the first terminal device 300a to the third terminal device 300c connected to the first relay device 200a, and the fourth terminal device 300d to the sixth terminal device 300f connected to the second relay device 200b. form another network.

2(a) and 2(b) show configurations of the communication device 100 and the terminal device 300. FIG. In the following, these configurations will be described in order of (1) data acquisition processing and (2) temperature control processing.
(1) Data Acquisition Processing Data acquisition processing is processing for the communication device 100 to collect data from the terminal device 300 as described above. FIG. 2A shows the configuration of the communication device 100. As shown in FIG. Communication device 100 includes storage section 110 , interface section 112 , control section 120 and communication section 130 , and communication section 130 includes transmission section 132 and reception section 134 . The storage unit 110 stores a routing table when the communication device 100 communicates with the relay device 200 and the terminal device 300 in the network shown in FIG. FIG. 3 shows an overview of the routing table stored in the storage unit 110. As shown in FIG. The routing table shows the connection relationship between the relay device 200 and the terminal device 300 so as to have the same configuration as in FIG. A known technique may be used for the data structure of the routing table and the generation of the routing table, so the explanation is omitted here. Return to FIG.

The interface unit 112 is an interface with the outside of the communication device 100, and inputs and outputs predetermined information. For example, when the communication device 100 is installed in a server, the interface unit 112 receives an instruction to collect data from each of the plurality of terminal devices 300 as information from the server. The interface unit 112 outputs input information, such as an instruction to collect data, to the control unit 120 .

Control unit 120 controls communication processing in communication unit 130 . For example, when the control unit 120 receives an instruction to collect data from the interface unit 112 , the control unit 120 generates a first signal, which is a request signal for requesting data transmission, for each terminal device 300 . At that time, the control unit 120 sets the route to each terminal device 300 to the first signal. Control unit 120 outputs the generated first signal to transmission unit 132 . The communication unit 130 communicates with the terminal device 300 via the relay device 200 (not shown). The communication unit 130 may perform wired communication or wireless communication. Since wired communication and wireless communication are as described above, descriptions thereof are omitted here. Upon receiving the first signal from the control unit 120 , the transmission unit 132 transmits the first signal to each of the plurality of terminal devices 300 .

The receiving unit 134 receives the second signal as a response to the first signal from each of the plurality of terminal devices 300 to which the transmitting unit 132 has transmitted the first signal. The second signal contains data. Receiving section 134 outputs the received second signal to control section 120 . Upon receiving the second signal from receiving section 134 , control section 120 acquires a combination of data and information of terminal device 300 . Control unit 120 outputs a combination of data and information of terminal device 300 to interface unit 112 as a response to the data collection instruction received from interface unit 112 . The interface unit 112 outputs a combination of data and information of the terminal device 300 as predetermined information.

FIG. 2(b) shows the configuration of the terminal device 300. As shown in FIG. The terminal device 300 includes a communication section 310 , a control section 320 and an acquisition section 330 . The communication unit 310 communicates with the communication device 100 via the relay device 200 (not shown). The communication unit 130 may perform wired communication or wireless communication. Since wired communication and wireless communication are as described above, descriptions thereof are omitted here. Communication unit 310 receives the first signal from communication device 100 . Communication unit 310 outputs the received first signal to control unit 320 . When the destination of the received first signal is terminal device 300, control section 320 extracts a data transmission request from the first signal. Control unit 320 receives data via acquisition unit 330 in accordance with a data transmission request. The acquisition unit 330 is an interface with the outside of the terminal device 300 and receives predetermined information such as data. The controller 320 generates a second signal including data in response to the first signal. At that time, the control unit 320 sets the second signal to the path opposite to the path of the first signal. Control unit 320 outputs the second signal to communication unit 310 . Upon receiving the second signal from control unit 320 , communication unit 310 transmits the second signal toward communication device 100 .

If the destination of the received first signal is not the terminal device 300 but another terminal device 300, the control section 320 causes the communication section 310 to transmit the first signal toward the other terminal device 300. . That is, communication unit 310 transfers the first signal along the path. Also, the communication unit 310 receives a second signal from another terminal device 300 . Communication unit 310 outputs the received second signal to control unit 320 . Control unit 320 causes communication unit 310 to transmit the second signal toward communication device 100 . That is, the communication unit 310 transfers the second signal along the reverse route.

(2) Temperature Control Processing Control unit 120 of communication device 100 in FIG. generated each time. At that time, the control unit 120 sets the route to each terminal device 300 to the third signal. Control unit 120 outputs the generated third signal to transmission unit 132 . Upon receiving the third signal from the control unit 120 , the transmission unit 132 transmits the third signal to each of the plurality of terminal devices 300 .

The communication unit 310 of the terminal device 300 in FIG. 2B receives the third signal from the communication device 100 . Communication unit 310 outputs the received third signal to control unit 320 . When the destination of the received third signal is terminal device 300, control section 320 extracts a request for transmission of temperature information from the third signal. Control unit 320 receives temperature information via acquisition unit 330 in accordance with a request for transmission of temperature information. Acquisition unit 330 receives temperature information of terminal device 300 measured by a temperature sensor (not shown). The controller 320 generates a fourth signal including temperature information in response to the third signal. At that time, the control unit 320 sets the fourth signal to the path opposite to the path of the third signal. Control unit 320 outputs the fourth signal to communication unit 310 . Upon receiving the fourth signal from control unit 320 , communication unit 310 transmits the fourth signal toward communication device 100 . The communication unit 310 and the control unit 320 transfer the third signal and the fourth signal as well as the first signal and the second signal.

The receiving unit 134 of the communication device 100 in FIG. 2A receives the fourth signal, which is temperature information, as a response to the third signal from each of the plurality of terminal devices 300 to which the transmitting unit 132 has transmitted the third signal. . Receiving section 134 outputs the received fourth signal to control section 120 . Upon receiving the fourth signal from receiving section 134 , control section 120 acquires a combination of temperature information and information on terminal device 300 . Control unit 120 stores a combination of temperature information and information of terminal device 300 in storage unit 110 .

FIG. 4 shows the data structure of the temperature table stored in the storage unit 110 . As shown, the temperature and acquisition time for each terminal device 300 are shown. The acquisition time is the time when the communication device 100 acquires the temperature information, and may be the time when the receiver 134 receives the fourth signal. Return to FIG. The control unit 120 refers to the temperature table stored in the storage unit 110, and determines to request transmission of the temperature information of the terminal device 300 corresponding to the acquisition time when a certain period of time has passed since the acquisition time. . This is followed by the processing described above. The temperature information may be sent voluntarily by the terminal device 300 to the communication device 100 without being requested by the communication device 100 to the terminal device 300 . In that case, the transmission of the third signal is not performed, and only the transmission of the fourth signal is performed. Also, the temperature information may be included in the second signal.

Control unit 120 refers to the temperature table stored in storage unit 110 and compares each temperature with a threshold value. This corresponds to comparing the temperature information received by the receiving unit 134 with the threshold value. When there is a terminal device 300 having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold, the control unit 120 identifies the terminal device 300 and acquires the temperature of the terminal device 300 from the table. The control unit 120 holds the temperature decrease rate of the terminal device 300 in advance. The temperature drop rate of the terminal device 300 is the temperature of the terminal device 300 that drops per second when the terminal device 300 does not execute processing. Based on the temperature decrease rate, control unit 120 also derives a period until the temperature of terminal device 300 becomes lower than the threshold value (hereinafter also referred to as "stop period"). If the temperature decrease rate is indicated as 'α'° C./sec and the temperature of the terminal device 300 is indicated as 'x'° C., the shutdown period is indicated as (x−X)/α(+margin). Here, “X”° C. is the allowable temperature of the terminal device 300 .

The control unit 120 refers to the routing table stored in the storage unit 110 to identify the destination of the first signal received by the identified terminal device 300 . This destination includes the destination of the first signal that is finally received by the identified terminal device 300 and also includes the destination of the first signal that is transferred in the identified terminal device 300 . Further, control unit 120 determines to stop transmission of the first signal to the identified destination during the derived stop period. Thereby, the transmission of the first signal received by the terminal device 300 is stopped until the temperature of the terminal device 300 becomes less than the allowable value "X" degrees Celsius. That is, the control unit 120 instructs the terminal device 300 to lengthen the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device 300 having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold among the plurality of terminal devices 300. Control the transmission of the received first signal.

5(a) and 5(b) show configurations of a server 500 and a power meter 600 on which the communication device 100 and the terminal device 300 are installed. FIG. 5(a) shows the configuration of the server 500. As shown in FIG. Server 500 includes communication device 100 , processing unit 510 , and storage unit 512 . The processing unit 510 collects the power amount measurement results from each of the plurality of terminal devices 300 and manages them. The processing unit 510 outputs to the communication device 100 an instruction to collect the power amount measurement results of each of the plurality of power meters 600 . In response to this, the transmission unit 132 of the communication device 100 transmits a request signal for transmission of the measurement result as the first signal. The receiving unit 134 of the communication device 100 receives the encrypted data including the measurement result as the second signal. The processing unit 510 receives the measurement result of the power amount in each of the plurality of power meters 600 from the communication device 100 . The processing unit 510 stores the received measurement result of the power amount in the storage unit 512 .

FIG. 5(b) shows the configuration of the watt-hour meter 600. As shown in FIG. An example of the electricity meter 600 is a smart meter. The sensor 612 measures the amount of electric power used by consumers such as houses, for example, the amount of power purchased. Since a well-known technique may be used for measuring the electric energy, the explanation is omitted here. The processing unit 610 receives the measurement result of the power amount from the sensor 612 . When the terminal device 300 receives the first signal from the communication device 100 , the terminal device 300 outputs to the processing unit 610 an instruction to collect the power amount measurement results. Upon receiving the instruction, processing unit 610 outputs the power amount measurement result to processing unit 610 . The terminal device 300 transmits a second signal including the power amount measurement result.

The subject of an apparatus, system, or method in this disclosure comprises a computer. The main functions of the device, system, or method of the present disclosure are realized by the computer executing the program. A computer has a processor that operates according to a program as its main hardware configuration. Any type of processor can be used as long as it can implement functions by executing a program. The processor is composed of one or more electronic circuits including a semiconductor integrated circuit (IC) or LSI (Large Scale Integration). A plurality of electronic circuits may be integrated on one chip or may be provided on a plurality of chips. A plurality of chips may be integrated into one device, or may be provided in a plurality of devices. The program is recorded in a non-temporary recording medium such as a computer-readable ROM, optical disk, hard disk drive, or the like. The program may be pre-stored in a recording medium, or may be supplied to the recording medium via a wide area network including the Internet.

The operation of the communication system 1000 configured as above will be described. FIG. 6 is a flow chart showing the transmission procedure of the first signal by the communication device 100. As shown in FIG. The control unit 120 acquires the temperature of the communication unit 130 (S10). If the temperature is equal to or higher than the threshold value (Y of S12), control unit 120 derives the stop period (S14). If the stop period has not passed (N of S16), it waits. If the stop period has passed (Y of S16), the transmitter 132 transmits the first signal (S18). If the temperature is not equal to or higher than the threshold value (N of S12), the transmitter 132 transmits the first signal (S18). The threshold may be appropriately set based on the temperature limits of hardware components represented by the processor included in the terminal device 300 and the surface temperature limits of the terminal device 300 defined by laws and regulations.

According to this embodiment, transmission of the first signal received by the terminal device 300 having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold value is controlled, so temperature rise of the terminal device 300 in the multi-hop network can be suppressed. Moreover, since the temperature information is received from the terminal device 300 and the temperature information is compared with the threshold value, the terminal device 300 having the temperature equal to or higher than the threshold value can be specified accurately. Further, since the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device 300 having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold is made longer than before, the temperature of the terminal device 300 can be lowered. Further, based on the temperature decrease rate of the terminal device 300, the period until the temperature of the terminal device 300 becomes lower than the threshold value is derived, and the first signal received by the terminal device 300 during the derived period is Since transmission is stopped, a period matching the temperature of the terminal device 300 can be set. In addition, since the communication device 100 is mounted on the server 500 , power measurement results from the power meter 600 can be collected.

Moreover, since the temperature rise is suppressed, shortening of the hardware life of the terminal device 300 can be suppressed. In addition, since control is performed so that relaying in a specific terminal device 300 does not occur continuously, overloading of the terminal device 300 can be suppressed. In addition, since the communication frequency is lowered to suppress the temperature rise during signal transmission/reception, the load on the terminal device 300 can be reduced.

A summary of one aspect of the present disclosure is as follows. A communication apparatus 100 according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a transmitting unit 132 that transmits a first signal to each of a plurality of terminal devices 300 forming a multihop network, and a plurality of terminal devices to which the transmitting unit 132 has transmitted the first signal. 300, a receiving unit 134 that receives a second signal as a response to the first signal, and transmission of the first signal received by the terminal device 300 having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold among the plurality of terminal devices 300 and a control unit 120 that controls the

The receiving unit 134 may receive temperature information indicating the temperature of the terminal device 300, and the control unit 120 may compare the temperature information received by the receiving unit 134 with a threshold value.

The control unit 120 may compare the temperature of the external environment of the terminal device 300 with the threshold as the temperature of the terminal device 300 .

Control unit 120 may lengthen the transmission interval of the first signal received by terminal device 300 having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold.

Based on the temperature decrease rate of terminal device 300, control unit 120 derives a period until the temperature of terminal device 300 becomes lower than the threshold value, and determines the first time received by terminal device 300 during the derived period. 1 signal transmission may be stopped.

The communication device 100 is a server 500 that collects measurement results from each of a plurality of terminal devices 300, the transmission unit 132 transmits a request signal for transmission of measurement results as a first signal, and the reception unit 134 Data containing measurement results may be received as the second signal.

Another aspect of the disclosure is a communication system 1000 . This communication system 1000 includes a plurality of terminal devices 300 that form a multihop network, and a communication device 100 that communicates with each of the plurality of terminal devices 300 . The communication apparatus 100 transmits the first signal as a response to the first signal from the transmitting unit 132 that transmits the first signal to each of the plurality of terminal devices 300 and from each of the plurality of terminal devices 300 to which the transmitting unit 132 has transmitted the first signal. 2 signals, and a control unit 120 for controlling transmission of the first signal received by the terminal device 300 having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold among the plurality of terminal devices 300 .

(Example 2)
Next, Example 2 will be described. Example 2, like Example 1, relates to a communication system in which a plurality of terminal devices forming a multi-hop network are connected to one communication device, and the communication device collects data from each terminal device. The communication device according to the first embodiment causes a terminal device having a temperature equal to or higher than a threshold value to transmit a first signal received by the terminal device during a suspension period until the temperature becomes lower than the threshold value. Stop. On the other hand, the communication apparatus according to the second embodiment adjusts the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device according to the duty ratio of the terminal device having the temperature equal to or higher than the threshold value. longer than up to A communication system 1000, a communication device 100, and a terminal device 300 according to the second embodiment are of the same type as those shown in FIGS. 1 and 2(a)-(b). Here, the description will focus on the differences from the first embodiment.

The communication device 100 and the terminal device 300 perform processing similar to that of the first embodiment, whereby the communication device 100 acquires the temperature information of the terminal device 300 . The control unit 120 of the communication device 100 in FIG. 2( a ) generates, for each terminal device 300 , a fifth signal that is a request signal for requesting transmission of ratio information indicating the duty ratio of the terminal device 300 . Here, the duty ratio is the ratio of time spent on communication processing per unit time in the terminal device 300 . Also, the control unit 120 sets the route to each terminal device 300 to the fifth signal. Control unit 120 outputs the generated fifth signal to transmission unit 132 . Upon receiving the fifth signal from the control unit 120 , the transmission unit 132 transmits the fifth signal to each of the plurality of terminal devices 300 .

The communication unit 310 of the terminal device 300 in FIG. 2B receives the fifth signal from the communication device 100 . Communication unit 310 outputs the received fifth signal to control unit 320 . When the destination of the received fifth signal is terminal device 300, control section 320 extracts a request for transmission of ratio information from the fifth signal. Control unit 320 receives the duty ratio via acquisition unit 330 in accordance with the request for transmission of ratio information. The acquisition unit 330 receives the duty ratio of the terminal device 300 measured by the terminal device 300 . A well-known technique may be used to measure the duty ratio, so the description is omitted here. The controller 320 generates a sixth signal including ratio information, which is a duty ratio, as a response to the fifth signal. At that time, the control unit 320 sets the path of the fifth signal in the opposite direction to the path of the sixth signal. Control unit 320 outputs the sixth signal to communication unit 310 . Upon receiving the sixth signal from control unit 320 , communication unit 310 transmits the sixth signal to communication device 100 . The communication unit 310 and the control unit 320 transfer the fifth signal and the sixth signal as well as the first signal and the second signal.

The receiving unit 134 of the communication device 100 in FIG. 2(a) receives the sixth signal, which is ratio information, as a response to the fifth signal from each of the plurality of terminal devices 300 to which the transmitting unit 132 has transmitted the fifth signal. . Receiving section 134 outputs the received sixth signal to control section 120 . Upon receiving the sixth signal from receiving section 134 , control section 120 acquires a combination of ratio information and information on terminal device 300 . The control unit 120 stores the combination of the ratio information and the information of the terminal device 300 in the storage unit 110 .

7A and 7B show data structures of tables stored in the storage unit 110. FIG. FIG. 7A shows a table of temperatures and duty ratios stored in the storage unit 110. FIG. As in FIG. 4, the temperature and acquisition time for each terminal device 300 are shown, and the duty ratio is also shown. FIG.7(b) is mentioned later and it returns to Fig.2 (a). The ratio information may be sent voluntarily by the terminal device 300 to the communication device 100 without being requested by the communication device 100 to the terminal device 300 . In that case, the transmission of the fifth signal is not performed, and only the transmission of the sixth signal is performed. Also, the ratio information may be included in the second signal or the fourth signal.

As in the first embodiment, the control unit 120 refers to the temperature table stored in the storage unit 110, and if there is a terminal device 300 having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold value, specifies the terminal device 300. FIG. Further, the control unit 120 acquires the duty ratio corresponding to the identified terminal device 300 from the table. Control unit 120 identifies the transmission interval corresponding to the acquired duty ratio using the table stored in storage unit 110 and shown in FIG. 7B. FIG. 7(b) shows a range of transmission intervals with respect to a range of duty ratios. Here, T1<T2<T3. T1 is made longer than the transmission interval defined when the temperature is below the threshold. In this way, the control unit 120 lengthens the transmission interval of the first signal received by the identified terminal device 300 as the duty ratio increases. The first signal to be subjected to such processing is identified in the same manner as in the first embodiment.

The operation of the communication system 1000 configured as above will be described. FIG. 8 is a flow chart showing a procedure for transmitting the first signal by the communication device 100. As shown in FIG. The control unit 120 acquires the temperature of the communication unit 130 (S50). If the temperature is equal to or higher than the threshold (Y of S52), the controller 120 acquires the duty ratio (S54) and sets the transmission interval (S56). The transmitter 132 transmits the first signal (S58). If the temperature is not equal to or higher than the threshold (N of S52), the transmitter 132 transmits the first signal (S58).

According to this embodiment, the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device 300 is made longer based on the duty ratio, so that the temperature of the terminal device 300 can be lowered.

A summary of one aspect of the present disclosure is as follows. The receiving unit 134 receives ratio information indicating the ratio of time spent on communication processing per unit time in the terminal device 300, and the control unit 120 controls the terminal device 300 based on the ratio information received in the receiving unit 134. The interval between transmissions of the first signals received at 300 may be longer than before.

(Example 3)
Next, Example 3 will be described. Example 3, as before, relates to a communication system in which a plurality of terminal devices forming a multihop network are connected to one communication device, and the communication device collects data from each terminal device. In the communication apparatus according to the third embodiment, unlike the above, the terminal apparatus having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold receives the first signal according to the number of other terminal apparatuses to which the first signal is transferred. The transmission interval of one signal is made longer than before. A communication system 1000, a communication device 100, and a terminal device 300 according to the third embodiment are of the same type as those shown in FIGS. 1 and 2(a)-(b). Here we will focus on the differences.

As before, control unit 120 refers to the temperature table stored in storage unit 110, and if terminal device 300 having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold exists, specifies terminal device 300. FIG. Also, the control unit 120 refers to the routing table stored in the storage unit 110 and counts the number of other terminal devices 300 that receive the first signal via the specified terminal device 300 . For example, when the first terminal device 300a in FIG. 1 is identified, the number of other terminal devices 300 is "1", and when the fourth terminal device 300d is identified, the number of other terminal devices 300 is " 2”. When one other terminal device 300 is further connected to the lower layer side of the second terminal device 300b, the number of other terminal devices 300 is "2" when the first terminal device 300a is identified.

The control unit 120 specifies the transmission interval of the first signal received by the specified terminal device 300 according to the counted number of the other terminal devices 300 . A transmission interval is specified as T×n. Here, T is a predetermined fixed value, and n is the number of other terminal devices 300 counted. T is made longer than the transmission interval defined when the temperature is below the threshold. That is, the control unit 120 lengthens the transmission interval of the first signal received by the specified terminal device 300 as the counted number of the other terminal devices 300 increases. The first signal to be subjected to such processing is identified in the same manner as in the first embodiment.

The operation of the communication system 1000 configured as above will be described. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a procedure for setting the transmission interval of the first signal by communication apparatus 100. As shown in FIG. The control unit 120 acquires the temperature of the communication unit 130 (S100). If the temperature is equal to or higher than the threshold (Y of S102), the control unit 120 acquires the number of other terminal devices 300 that receive the first signal via the specified terminal device 300 (S104), A transmission interval is set according to the number of terminal devices 300 (S106). If the temperature is not equal to or higher than the threshold value (N of S102), the process is terminated.

According to this embodiment, transmission of the first signal received by the terminal device 300 is performed according to the number of other terminal devices 300 that receive the first signal via the terminal device 300 having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold. Since the interval is made longer than before, the temperature of the terminal device 300 can be lowered. Moreover, since the number of other terminal devices 300 that receive the first signal via the terminal device 300 having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold value is used, the processing can be simplified.

A summary of one aspect of the present disclosure is as follows. Control unit 120 adjusts the transmission interval of the first signal received by terminal device 300 according to the number of other terminal devices 300 that receive the first signal via terminal device 300 having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold. It can be longer than before.

(Example 4)
Next, Example 4 will be described. Example 4 relates to a communication system in which a plurality of terminal devices forming a multi-hop network are connected to one communication device as before, and the communication device collects data from each terminal device. The communication device according to the fourth embodiment differs from the conventional one in that for a terminal device having a temperature equal to or higher than a threshold value, the first temperature signal received by the terminal device according to the number of hops from the communication device or the relay device. Increase the interval between signal transmissions. A communication system 1000, a communication device 100, and a terminal device 300 according to the fourth embodiment are of the same type as those shown in FIGS. 1 and 2(a)-(b). Here we will focus on the differences.

As before, control unit 120 refers to the temperature table stored in storage unit 110, and if terminal device 300 having a temperature equal to or higher than the threshold exists, specifies terminal device 300. FIG. Further, the control unit 120 refers to the routing table stored in the storage unit 110, and obtains the number of hops between the specified terminal device 300 and a reference point closer to the communication device 100 than the specified terminal device 300. . The reference point may be, for example, the communication device 100 or the relay device 200 arranged between the identified terminal device 300 and the communication device 100 . The latter, for example, corresponds to the first relay device 200a when the second terminal device 300b in FIG. 1 is identified.

The control unit 120 specifies the transmission interval of the first signal received by the specified terminal device 300 according to the acquired hop count. A transmission interval is specified as T×n. Here, T is a predetermined fixed value and n is the specified number of hops. T is made longer than the transmission interval defined when the temperature is below the threshold. That is, the control unit 120 lengthens the transmission interval of the first signal received by the specified terminal device 300 as the number of hops increases. The first signal to be subjected to such processing is identified in the same manner as in the first embodiment.

The operation of the communication system 1000 configured as above will be described. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a procedure for setting the transmission interval of the first signal by communication apparatus 100. As shown in FIG. The control unit 120 acquires the temperature of the communication unit 130 (S150). If the temperature is equal to or higher than the threshold (Y of S152), the control unit 120 acquires the number of hops between the specified terminal device 300 and the reference point (S154), and sets the transmission interval according to the number of hops ( S156). If the temperature is not equal to or higher than the threshold value (N of S152), the process is terminated.

According to this embodiment, the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device 300 is made longer than before according to the hop count, so the temperature of the terminal device 300 can be lowered. Also, since the number of hops is used, the processing can be simplified.

A summary of one aspect of the present disclosure is as follows. Control unit 120 controls the first temperature received by terminal device 300 according to the number of hops between terminal device 300 having a temperature equal to or higher than a threshold and a reference point closer to communication device 100 than terminal device 300 . The signal transmission interval may be longer than before.

The present disclosure has been described above based on the examples. However, it should be understood by those skilled in the art that this embodiment is merely an example, and that various modifications can be made to the combination of each component or each treatment process, and such modifications are within the scope of the present disclosure. By the way.

In this embodiment, the communication device 100 receives temperature information from each of the terminal devices 300 . However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the communication device 100 may estimate the temperature of the terminal device 300 from another temperature without directly receiving the temperature information from the terminal device 300 . The communication device 100 connects to a server that provides temperature prediction information (hereinafter referred to as an “information providing server”) via the Internet, and acquires temperature prediction information from the information providing server. Further, the communication device 100 holds in advance information about the area where the communication system 1000 is installed, and selects the temperature prediction information for the area corresponding to the held information from the acquired temperature prediction information. The communication device 100 performs the above processing using the selected temperature prediction information as the temperature of the terminal device 300 . That is, the control unit 120 of the communication device 100 compares the temperature of the external environment of the terminal device 300 with the threshold as the temperature of the terminal device 300 . As the temperature of the external environment, a value measured as the temperature of the external environment in which the terminal device 300 is installed using a thermometer or the like may be used. The communication device 100 may perform the above-described processing using a value obtained by adding or subtracting a predetermined value to or from the selected temperature prediction information as the temperature of the terminal device 300 . According to this modified example, the degree of freedom in configuration can be improved.

In this embodiment, the communication device 100 is mounted on a power meter 600 . However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the communication device 100 may be installed in an electronic device other than the power meter 600, for example. According to this modified example, the degree of freedom in configuration can be improved.

In this embodiment, communication device 100 is connected to relay device 200 . However, not limited to this, for example, the communication device 100 may be directly connected to the plurality of terminal devices 300 without going through the relay device 200 . The terminal device 300 directly connected to the communication device 100 may relay communication to the terminal device 300 in the lower layer and execute the above processing. According to this modified example, the degree of freedom in configuration can be improved.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 100 communication device 110 storage unit 112 interface unit 120 control unit 130 communication unit 132 transmission unit 134 reception unit 200 relay device 300 terminal device 310 communication unit 320 control unit 330 acquisition unit 1000 communication system.

Claims (9)

a transmission unit that transmits a first signal to each of a plurality of terminal devices forming a multihop network;
a receiving unit that receives a second signal as a response to the first signal from each of the plurality of terminal devices to which the transmitting unit has transmitted the first signal;
A control unit that controls transmission of a first signal received by a terminal device having a temperature equal to or higher than a threshold among the plurality of terminal devices ,
The control unit adjusts the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device having a temperature equal to or higher than a threshold to the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device when the temperature is lower than the threshold. A communication device characterized by being longer than The receiving unit receives temperature information indicating the temperature of the terminal device,
2. The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control section compares the temperature information received by the receiving section with a threshold value. 2. The communication device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit compares the temperature of the external environment of the terminal device with the threshold as the temperature of the terminal device. Based on the temperature decrease rate of the terminal device, the control unit derives a period until the temperature of the terminal device becomes lower than a threshold value, and during the derived period, the first temperature received by the terminal device is 2. The communication device according to claim 1 , wherein the transmission of the No. 1 signal is stopped. The receiving unit receives ratio information indicating a ratio of time spent on communication processing per unit time in the terminal device,
2. The communication according to claim 1 , wherein the controller lengthens the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device as the ratio indicated by the ratio information received by the receiver increases. Device. The control unit lengthens the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device as the number of other terminal devices that receive the first signal via the terminal device having a temperature equal to or higher than a threshold increases. The communication device according to claim 1 , characterized in that: The controller controls the first signal received by the terminal device as the number of hops between the terminal device having a temperature equal to or higher than a threshold and a reference point closer to the communication device than the terminal device increases. 2. The communication apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the transmission interval of is lengthened . The communication device is a server that collects measurement results from each of the plurality of terminal devices,
The transmission unit transmits a request signal for transmission of measurement results as the first signal,
The communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the receiving section receives data including a measurement result as the second signal. a plurality of terminal devices forming a multi-hop network;
A communication device that communicates with each of the plurality of terminal devices,
The communication device
a transmission unit that transmits a first signal to each of the plurality of terminal devices;
a receiving unit that receives a second signal as a response to the first signal from each of the plurality of terminal devices to which the transmitting unit has transmitted the first signal;
A control unit that controls transmission of a first signal received by a terminal device having a temperature equal to or higher than a threshold among the plurality of terminal devices ,
The control unit adjusts the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device having a temperature equal to or higher than a threshold to the transmission interval of the first signal received by the terminal device when the temperature is lower than the threshold. A communication system characterized in that it is longer than

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