JP7189698B2 - Communication slave unit, communication base unit, wireless communication system, and communication method - Google Patents

Description

The present disclosure relates to a communication method between a communication slave device and a communication master device.

For example, in a low-power radio system, since it can be used without a license, radio communication may be performed in media such as the 920 MHz band and the 2.4 GHz band. For example, compared to the 2.4 GHz band, the 920 MHz band has a longer communication distance and can transmit and receive data more efficiently. There are many (see patent documents 1 and 2). For example, in Patent Document 1, using a specific low-power radio frequency such as the 920 MHz band, the measurement values of sensors such as temperature sensors are transmitted from a plurality of slave units to the master unit, and the master unit receives the measurement data. A monitoring system is disclosed that then transmits an ACK (acknowledgement) to the slave device of the transmission source. Further, regarding the above retransmission control, Patent Document 2 discloses that the parent device instructs the child device to increase the maximum number of retransmissions as the reception strength of the radio signal transmitted from the child device decreases. ing.

However, for wireless communication using the 920 MHz band as a communication medium, continuous transmission is prohibited in accordance with the domestic radio law (ARIB-STD-T108) for the purpose of avoiding interference with other nearby wireless networks. It is essential to implement functions such as a time limit for transmission (transmission time limit) and carrier sense to confirm that there are no other transmission radio waves around before transmission. If such a function is essential, there is a problem that the communication data to be transmitted, including the above ACK, cannot be transmitted in a timely manner at the desired timing.

JP 2017-147699 A JP-A-2000-286991

As described above, due to the influence of laws such as the Radio Law, if an ACK cannot be sent in a timely manner at the desired timing, the sending side may send the same communication data a predetermined number of times (set number of times). A possible method is to increase the probability that the receiving side can receive the communication data by transmitting the data multiple times. According to this method, it is possible to improve the reliability of communication without performing retransmission control by ACK.

However, in the method of transmitting the same communication data multiple times as described above, for example, even if the communication environment is very good and the receiving side can surely receive the communication data if the transmitting side transmits the communication data only once, the transmitting side will transmit the same communication data for the set number of times. In other words, in this case, the transmitting side repeatedly transmits the same communication data more than necessary, which is inefficient in terms of power consumption and the like. Conversely, if the communication environment is bad and the receiving side can receive the communication data only after the sending side attempts to send the same communication data many times, the receiving side may not be able to receive the communication data if the set number of times is small. Therefore, there is a problem from the viewpoint of reliability.

In view of the circumstances described above, it is an object of at least one embodiment of the present invention to provide a communication method capable of performing highly reliable communication efficiently without performing retransmission control using delivery confirmation. and

(1) A communication base unit according to at least one embodiment of the present invention,
A communication parent device configured to communicate with a communication child device,
a first notification unit configured to notify frequency setting information for determining the set number of times to the communication slave device that transmits the same communication data for a set number of times when a prescribed condition is satisfied;
an acquisition unit configured to acquire information stored in a specific area for storing the cumulative number of transmissions of the same communication data, which is provided in a transmission frame transmitted from the communication slave device;
The number-of-times setting information is the acquired information of the specific area or a calculated value based on the information of the specific area.

According to the above configuration (1), for example, when a prescribed condition such as periodicity is established, the same communication data (measurement data of a sensor, etc.) is repeatedly transmitted to the communication base unit for a set number of times, thereby ensuring reliable communication. The communication master device notifies the communication slave device configured to perform data communication of frequency setting information for setting (updating) the above-mentioned set frequency. More specifically, the communication slave unit stores information (cumulative number of transmissions) indicating how many repetitions of transmission correspond to the same communication data repeatedly transmitted up to a set number of times, in a transmission frame for carrying communication data. Store in a specific area. On the other hand, the communication base unit uses the information obtained from this specific area as the number of times of transmission necessary to communicate the communication data in the communication environment at that time, the value itself, or the calculated value based on the value, Notify the communication cordless handset.

The above specific area information (cumulative number of transmissions) is information that can be obtained only when the communication master unit successfully communicates with the communication slave unit. It is an index that can measure the number of repeated transmissions that enable reliable communication between the communication parent device and the communication child device in a communication state such as a communication state. Therefore, by notifying the communication slave unit of the number setting information such as the cumulative number of times of transmission described above from the communication master unit to the communication slave unit, the communication slave unit can transmit the same communication data each time the specified condition is satisfied. The number of transmission repetitions (set number of times) can be set according to the information in the specific area, and the above set number of times set in the communication slave unit can be optimized according to the communication environment. can.

Therefore, for a communication slave unit installed in a place with a good communication environment, for example, by reducing the number of settings described above, the number of repetitions of transmission can be reduced. amount) can be reduced. Also, for a communication slave unit installed in a poor communication environment, by increasing the number of settings above, it is possible to increase the number of repetitions of transmission, so that communication data can be delivered to the communication base unit more reliably. can. In addition, even if the communication environment changes due to changes in the surrounding environment after the communication child device is installed, the above set number of times can be adjusted automatically. It is possible to reduce the cost and labor of maintenance such as.

(2) In some embodiments, in the configuration of (1) above,
further comprising a monitoring unit configured to monitor a radio wave state when receiving the communication data,
The monitoring unit transmits to the communication slave device a command for resetting the set number of times set in the communication slave device to a default value based on the monitoring result of the radio wave state.
According to the above configuration (2), when the radio wave state (for example, radio wave intensity such as RSSI) at the time of receiving the communication data transmitted by the communication slave device changes significantly, the communication master device Assuming that the environment has changed, the set number of times set in the communication slave unit is initialized (reset to the default value). As a result, even if the communication environment changes, such as when the installation location of the communication slave unit is moved or when the wireless environment changes, the communication of communication data performed every time the prescribed conditions are satisfied can be reliably performed successfully. so you can figure it out.

(3) In some embodiments, in the configurations of (1) to (2) above,
The notification frequency of the frequency setting information is determined based on a communication success rate indicating the ratio of the number of times that at least one of the communication data transmitted from the communication slave unit can be received, out of the number of times that the specified condition is met. Further comprising an adjuster configured to adjust.

As described above, the communication slave unit communicates communication data to the communication master unit each time the prescribed condition is satisfied. Depending on the communication environment, there are both cases where the communication base unit can receive the communication data (communication success) and when the communication data cannot be received (communication failure) every time the specified conditions are satisfied.

According to the configuration of (3) above, the communication base unit is based on the achievement of communication success or communication failure (communication success rate) of communication data performed each time a specified condition that sequentially arrives with the passage of time is satisfied. to adjust the notification frequency of the number setting information to the communication slave unit. This makes it possible to optimize the update frequency of the set number of times in the communication slave device according to the communication success rate. Therefore, when the communication success rate is low, for example, if the above set number of times is updated frequently, the set number of times can be updated frequently according to the communication environment, and the communication success rate can be improved. can be planned. Conversely, if the communication success rate is high, for example, by reducing the frequency of updating the set number of times, it is possible to reduce the number of transmissions and receptions of the set number of times information, thereby suppressing the power consumption of the communication slave unit and the communication base unit. can be achieved.

(4) In some embodiments, in the configurations of (1) to (3) above,
a frequency transition storage unit configured to store the time transition of the frequency information by storing the frequency information obtained based on the information of the specific region acquired each time the specified condition is satisfied;
a prediction unit that calculates a predicted value of the number of times information based on the time transition of the number of times information,
The number-of-times setting information is a predicted value of the number-of-times information.

For example, when a communication slave unit is installed in a mobile object such as a forklift that moves in a factory and communicates the operation data of the mobile object to the communication master unit as the above-mentioned communication data, the operation status of the mobile object (running location), the communication environment changes. At this time, there are cases where the communication environment for each hour can be predicted from the movement of the mobile body for each hour, such as when this mobile operates periodically. Similarly, when communicating measured values from sensors installed in various facilities in a factory to the communication base unit as communication data, the communication environment is poor during the daytime due to the effects of workers and heavy machinery such as cranes. In some cases, it is possible to predict the communication environment for each time period, such as the nighttime period where the communication environment is good without being affected by heavy machinery.

According to the above configuration (4), the number setting information is, for example, one or more of the cumulative number of transmissions obtained by receiving one or more of the communication data transmitted the set number of times when the specified condition is satisfied. It is a predicted value that can be calculated based on the cumulative number of transmissions itself, such as the smallest value, or the time transition of the number of times information, which is a calculated value based on the cumulative number of transmissions. That is, the communication master device predicts the number of transmissions that the communication slave device will transmit until the communication from the communication slave device succeeds, and notifies the communication slave device of the predicted value as the frequency setting information. Accordingly, by updating the set number of times based on the predicted value, it is possible to improve the reliability of communication of the communication slave unit installed in a place where the communication environment changes according to the surrounding environment or the like.

(5) In some embodiments, in the configurations of (1) to (4) above,
The notification unit notifies the number-of-times setting information only to a specific communication slave device.
According to the configuration (5) above, the set number of times is updated only for communication slave units selected from the viewpoint of, for example, importance of communication data and power consumption of the communication slave units. As a result, it is possible to optimize the number of times set for a specific communication slave device according to the communication environment.

(6) In some embodiments, in the configuration of (5) above,
The notification unit identifies the specific communication slave device based on preset information for identifying a notification destination.
With configuration (6) above, it is possible to specify the notification destination of the number-of-times setting information based on preset notification destination identification information.

(7) In some embodiments, in the configuration of (5) above,
The notification unit identifies the specific communication slave device based on information on necessity of notification of the number-of-times setting information stored in the transmission frame.
With configuration (7) above, the communication master device can identify the notification destination of the number setting information based on the information obtained from the transmission frame transmitted by the communication slave device.

(8) In some embodiments, in the configuration of (7) above,
The notification unit acquires information as to whether or not notification of the number setting information is necessary from the specific area of the transmission frame.
According to the above configuration (8), the communication master device can specify the notification destination of the number setting information based on the information obtained from the transmission frame transmitted by the communication slave device.

(9) In some embodiments, in the configurations of (1) to (8) above,
The notification unit corrects the number-of-times setting information based on the information of the specified condition stored in the transmission frame, and notifies the corrected number-of-times setting information.
According to the above configuration (9), the communication base unit corrects the number setting information based on the prescribed conditions that determine the timing at which the communication child unit communicates the communication data, and transmits the corrected number setting information to the communication child unit. to notify. This makes it possible to more appropriately determine the set number of times N to be set in the communication slave device.

(10) In some embodiments, in the configurations of (1) to (9) above,
a reception intensity acquisition unit configured to acquire a reception radio wave intensity indicating the radio wave intensity at the time of reception of the communication data;
a transmission strength acquisition unit configured to acquire a transmission radio field strength indicating a radio field strength at the time of transmission of the communication data transmitted from the communication slave device;
a transmission output instruction value for setting the transmission radio wave intensity, the transmission output instruction value calculated based on the received radio wave intensity or based on the received radio wave intensity and the transmitted radio wave intensity; and an indicator configured to instruct to.

According to the above configuration, the communication master device updates the output (radio field intensity) of the communication slave device when transmitting communication data by instructing the communication slave device of the transmission output instruction value. As a result, the output of the communication slave device when transmitting communication data can be optimized according to the communication environment. Therefore, for example, it is possible to avoid the communication slave unit from performing wireless communication with an output that is higher than necessary, or from performing wireless communication with an output that is too weak for the communication master unit to receive, thereby performing more reliable wireless communication. can be planned as follows.

(11) In some embodiments, in the configurations of (1) to (10) above,
A second notification unit configured to notify the communication slave device of the command value when the command value of the set number of times is received.
According to the configuration (11) above, the administrator or the like can update the set count of the communication slave device to an arbitrary value. With this, for example, if you do not need to worry about the battery capacity of the communication slave unit, but you want to ensure that the communication data communication succeeds, you can set the number of times to be set large according to the application. You can force it to a desired value.

(12) A communication slave device according to at least one embodiment of the present invention,
A communication slave device that transmits the same communication data to a communication master device for a set number of times when a specified condition is established,
a counting unit configured to count the number of cumulative transmissions of the same communication data;
a transmission unit configured to transmit the transmission frame with the cumulative transmission count stored in a specific area provided in the transmission frame for transmitting the communication data;
a setting unit configured to set the set number of times based on number setting information notified by the communication base station that has received the transmission frame in response to reception of the cumulative number of transmissions.

According to the above configuration (12), when the communication slave unit repeatedly transmits the same communication data for the set number of times when the specified condition is satisfied, the communication slave unit stores the cumulative number of transmissions in the above-mentioned repeated transmissions in the transmission frame of the communication data. Store it in a specific area and send it. Further, the communication slave unit is configured to be notified by the communication master unit of information (count setting information based on the cumulative number of transmissions) that can be obtained from the specific area when the communication master unit receives the above communication data. Therefore, the number of times of transmission required for the communication base unit to receive the communication data can be set as the number of times of transmission. Therefore, in the same manner as described above, it is possible to optimize the specified number of repetitions (set number of times) that the communication slave device performs each time the specified condition is satisfied, according to the communication environment.

(13) In some embodiments, in the configuration of (12) above,
The transmission unit further stores in the transmission frame at least one of necessity of notification of the number setting information from the communication master device, the prescribed condition, and transmission radio wave intensity for transmitting the communication data.
According to the configuration (13) above, as with (5) to (8) above, it is possible to optimize the number of times set for a specific communication slave device according to the communication environment. can do.

(14) A wireless communication system according to at least one embodiment of the present invention,
a communication base unit according to any one of (1) to (11) above;
and a communication slave device according to any one of (12) to (13) above.
According to the configuration (14), the same effects as those of (1) to (13) are obtained.

(15) A communication method according to at least one embodiment of the present invention,
A communication method performed by a communication parent device configured to wirelessly communicate with a communication child device,
a step of notifying frequency setting information for determining the set number of times to the communication slave device that transmits the same communication data for a set number of times when a specified condition is satisfied;
obtaining information stored in a specific area for storing the cumulative number of transmissions of the same communication data, which is provided in a transmission frame transmitted from the communication slave device;
The number-of-times setting information is the acquired information of the specific area or a calculated value based on the information of the specific area.
According to the configuration of (15) above, the same effect as that of (1) above is achieved.

(16) A communication method according to at least one embodiment of the present invention,
A communication method performed by a communication slave device that transmits the same communication data to a communication master device for a set number of times when a prescribed condition is established,
counting the number of cumulative transmissions of the same communication data;
a step of transmitting the transmission frame with the cumulative transmission count stored in a specific area provided in the transmission frame for transmitting the communication data;
and setting the set number of times based on number setting information notified by the communication parent device that has received the transmission frame in response to reception of the cumulative number of transmissions.
According to the configuration of (16) above, the same effect as that of (12) above is achieved.

According to at least one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a communication method capable of performing highly reliable communication efficiently without performing retransmission control using delivery confirmation.

1 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of a radio communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a communication master device and a communication slave device according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a communication master device and a communication slave device according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the communication master device includes a monitoring unit; FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a communication master device according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the communication master device includes an adjustment unit; FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a communication master device according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the communication master device includes a number-of-times transition storage unit and a number-of-times prediction unit; FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a communication master device that notifies a communication slave device specified based on notification destination specifying information according to one embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a communication parent device that notifies a communication slave device specified based on notification necessity information stored in a transmission frame according to an embodiment of the present invention, and shows notification necessity information provided in the transmission frame; indicates that notification is required in the storage area. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a communication parent device that notifies a communication slave device specified based on notification necessity information stored in a transmission frame according to an embodiment of the present invention, and shows notification necessity information provided in the transmission frame; is set to not required for the storage area. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a communication parent device that notifies a communication slave device specified based on notification necessity information stored in a transmission frame according to an embodiment of the present invention, and shows notification necessity information in a specific area of the transmission frame. to store FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a communication base unit that generates number-of-times setting information I based on information on specified conditions stored in a transmission frame according to one embodiment of the present invention; 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a communication master device and a communication slave device according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the communication master device controls the transmission output of the communication slave device; FIG. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a communication master device and a communication slave device according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which the set number of times is forcibly set; FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a communication method performed by a communication master device and a communication slave device according to one embodiment of the present invention;

Several embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the dimensions, materials, shapes, relative arrangements, etc. of the components described as embodiments or shown in the drawings are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, and are merely illustrative examples. do not have.
For example, expressions denoting relative or absolute arrangements such as "in a direction", "along a direction", "parallel", "perpendicular", "center", "concentric" or "coaxial" are strictly not only represents such an arrangement, but also represents a state of relative displacement with a tolerance or an angle or distance to the extent that the same function can be obtained.
For example, expressions such as "identical", "equal", and "homogeneous", which express that things are in the same state, not only express the state of being strictly equal, but also have tolerances or differences to the extent that the same function can be obtained. It shall also represent the existing state.
For example, expressions that express shapes such as squares and cylinders do not only represent shapes such as squares and cylinders in a geometrically strict sense, but also include irregularities and chamfers to the extent that the same effect can be obtained. The shape including the part etc. shall also be represented.
On the other hand, the expressions "comprising", "comprising", "having", "including", or "having" one component are not exclusive expressions excluding the presence of other components.

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of a radio communication system 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention. Moreover, FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the communication master device 2 and the communication slave device 6 according to one embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, the wireless communication system 1 includes at least one communication master device 2 and at least one communication slave device 6, and the communication master device 2 and the communication slave device 6 are connected by radio. configured to communicate. More specifically, the communication slave device 6 communicates with the communication master device 2 when a prescribed condition T (regular timing), such as periodicity, is satisfied, and transmits arbitrary communication data D to the communication master device 2. Send to At this time, the communication slave unit 6 is set with the same communication data D in order to increase the probability that the communication master unit 2 can receive the communication data D to be communicated when the specified condition T is satisfied. It is always transmitted by the number of times (hereinafter referred to as the set number of times N, where N is an integer equal to or greater than 1).

Therefore, when the set number of times N is 2 or more, the communication base unit 2 may receive one or more pieces of the same communication data D if the communication environment is relatively good. When the environment is bad, there are cases where none of the communication data D transmitted multiple times can be received. Even if the communication environment is bad, it is sufficient if the communication base unit 2 can receive at least one piece of communication data D, so the success rate of communication when the specified condition T is satisfied can be increased accordingly. That is, when the specified condition T is a periodic condition, the specified condition T is satisfied one or more times with the passage of time. Communication is successful when the communication master unit 2 can receive even one of the communication data D transmitted for the set number of times N, and communication fails when the communication master unit 2 cannot receive the communication data D at all. .

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the wireless communication system 1 includes one communication master unit 2 and a plurality of communication slave units 6, and performs wireless communication using a medium (radio waves) in the 920 MHz band. is configured as The communication cordless handset 6 uses, as the communication data D, measurement value data (hereinafter referred to as measurement data Ds) of various sensors 6s for measuring the measurement target at the installation location, and transmits data at regular timing such as every several hours or at a specified time. It is configured to communicate with the communication base unit 2 (when the specified condition T is satisfied). Moreover, in this embodiment, the sensor 6s is installed in the plant. The communication slave device 6 and the sensor 6s have separate housings, respectively, and may be connected by a cable or the like, or the communication slave device 6 and the sensor 6s may be accommodated in one housing. may be integrated by On the other hand, the communication master device 2 has a wireless communication function for wirelessly communicating with the communication slave device 6 . The communication base unit 2 is connected (wired in this embodiment) to a server 2s that collects the communication data D transmitted from each communication slave unit 6, and the communication data D received from each communication slave unit 6 is sent to the server 2s. Transfer to 2s.

Further, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the communication master device 2 receives any of the same communication data D transmitted from the communication slave device 6 the set number of times N, and wirelessly sends the communication data D to the communication slave device 6. It is configured not to transmit an acknowledgment (ACK, NACK, etc.) for informing the transmitting side of the presence or absence of reception in the interval. This avoids the use of radio resources for transmission and reception of acknowledgments, and improves the probability that communication data D can be transmitted and received at arbitrary timing. However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. In some other embodiments, the communication master device 2 may be configured to transmit the above acknowledgment to the communication slave device 6 . In this case, delivery confirmation may be performed in the second layer of communication, for example, when the communication slave device 6 and the communication master device 2 are directly connected by radio. If there is a relay node or the like between the communication slave device 6 and the communication base device 2, the delivery confirmation performed by the communication base device 2 is performed in a higher layer (fourth layer, etc.). Further, the delivery confirmation may be performed once for a set number of times N of transmissions performed each time the defined condition T is satisfied, or may be performed for each of N times of transmission.

The measurement targets of the various sensors 6s described above are arbitrary, and may be, for example, temperature, humidity, pressure, illuminance, sound, rotation speed, and the like. When the same communication data D is repeatedly transmitted for the set number of times N, it may be transmitted on different frequencies (different unit channels) or may be transmitted in parallel. Moreover, the installation location of the various sensors 6s does not have to be in the plant, and may be installed in other locations such as inside the home or outdoors. The medium of wireless communication is also arbitrary and is not limited to the 920 MHz band. In some other embodiments, frequency bands used in radio stations that do not require a license (provided in Article 4 of the Radio Law), such as specified low-power radio stations and radio stations for low-power data communication systems, and other frequency bands can be

In the wireless communication system in which the communication slave unit 6 transmits the communication data D to be communicated to the communication base unit 2 for the set number of times N each time the specified condition T is satisfied, as described above, if the set number of times N is fixed, the specified In order to make the communication successful when the condition T is satisfied, it is necessary to increase the set number of times N to some extent in preparation for deterioration of the communication environment. However, in this case, as already described, even if the communication environment is good, the same communication data D is transmitted only the set number of times N, which is inefficient in terms of power consumption, radio resources, and the like. Therefore, if the set number of times N is set small with emphasis on efficiency, the possibility that the communication master device 2 cannot receive the communication data D will increase, which poses a problem from the viewpoint of reliability. At this time, it is conceivable to make the above set number of times N variable. Even if an attempt is made to obtain the reception status, timely acknowledgment of delivery may not be possible depending on the communication standard.

Therefore, the inventors of the present invention have attempted to find out what number of communication data D the communication base unit 2 has received out of the N transmissions of the communication data D transmitted from the communication slave unit 6 a set number of times N. Based on the information, it is considered possible to update (optimize) the set number of times N according to the communication environment at that time by updating the above-described set number of times N for controlling the transmission of the communication cordless handset 6. , I devised a new method for this purpose. According to this method, even when delivery confirmation cannot be performed in a timely manner or when delivery confirmation is not performed in the first place, it is possible to update the set number of times N according to the communication environment.

The communication master device 2 and the communication slave device 6 of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to FIG.
Each of the communication base unit 2 and the communication slave unit 6 may be configured by a computer, and includes a CPU (processor) (not shown) and storage units (2m, 6m) such as ROM and RAM serving as memories. there is Then, the CPU operates (data calculation, etc.) according to the instructions of the program loaded in the memory (main storage device), thereby realizing each of the above functional units. In other words, the above program is software for causing a computer to implement each functional unit described later, and may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium.
(Communication cordless handset 6)

The communication slave device 6 of the present invention is a wireless communication device that wirelessly transmits (repeatedly transmits) the same communication data D to the communication master device 2 for a set number of times N when the prescribed condition T is satisfied. The communication slave unit 6 indicates in the transmission frame F (for example, the second layer of the communication layer) for transmitting the communication data D to be delivered to the communication base unit 2, the number of transmissions out of the set number of transmissions N. It is configured to store information and transmit a transmission frame F. For this purpose, as shown in FIG. 2 , the communication slave device 6 includes a cumulative transmission number counting section 7 , a transmission section 8 , and a set number of times setting section 9 .

The cumulative number of transmissions counting unit 7 is a functional unit configured to count the cumulative number of transmissions C when the same communication data D is transmitted up to the set number of times N. The cumulative number of transmissions C indicates the number of transmissions of each communication data D (transmission frame F) during the period from when the specified condition T is established until the communication data D is transmitted up to the set number of times N. This is information for grasping (storing) the number of transmissions. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the communication slave device 6 initializes the cumulative number of transmissions C to an initial value such as 1 when the specified condition T is established. Then, each time a transmission frame F is transmitted by the transmission unit 8, which will be described later, the cumulative number of transmissions C is incremented by 1, for example. As a result, by confirming the cumulative number of transmissions C, it is possible to indicate what number (of the set number of times N) the transmission frame F to be transmitted is transmitted. Note that, as described above, the cumulative number of transmissions C is information for grasping the number of transmissions during communication performed each time the specified condition T is satisfied. The cumulative number of transmissions to be grasped may be counted by another method such as decrementing the number of times C by one.

The transmission unit 8 transmits the transmission frame F (communication data D) in a state in which the cumulative number of transmissions C is stored in the specific region R provided in the transmission frame F for transmitting the communication data D to be communicated each time the specified condition T is satisfied. A function configured to transmit. That is, the transmission frame F is provided with the above specific area R, and the cumulative number of transmissions C at that time is set in the specific area R of the transmission frame F to be transmitted. In general, the transmission frame F is composed of a header portion Fh and a data portion Fd, and the communication data D is stored in the data portion Fd. may be provided. Further, the specific area R may be provided at a specific position (byte position) in the format of the transmission frame F, or where in the transmission frame F the information of the specific area R is stored (where in the format). Using information (tag information, etc.) indicated, it may be provided at an arbitrary position such as the data section Fd indicated by the information.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the specific area R is provided at a prescribed position in the data portion Fd of the transmission frame F. In the embodiment shown in FIG. The size and position of the specific area R are shared between the communication master device 2 and the communication slave device 6 according to a predetermined communication protocol or the like. Therefore, when the communication slave unit 6 transmits the transmission frame F containing the cumulative number of transmissions C to a specified position, the communication base unit 2 transmits data of the size of the specific region R from the specified position of the received transmission frame F. is read, the cumulative number of transmissions C is obtained.

In addition, the transmission unit 8 transmits, in the transmission frame F, the necessity of notification of the number setting information I from the communication base unit 2 (notification necessity information r described later), which is information described later, the above specified condition T, or At least one of the intensity of the transmission radio wave for transmitting the communication data D from the communication slave device 6 may be stored.

Based on the number setting information I notified by the communication master device 2 that has received the transmission frame F based on the information stored in the specific area R (accumulated number of transmissions C in this embodiment), This is a functional unit configured to set (update) the above-described set number of times N. FIG. The frequency setting information I is information for updating the set frequency N set in the communication slave device 6 . The communication slave device 6 may update the set number of times N set at that time with the value of the received number of times setting information I itself. In this case, the set number of times N is updated based on the instruction value (number of times setting information I) from the communication base unit 2 . Alternatively, the communication slave unit 6 determines an update value for updating the set number of times N set at that time by performing arbitrary calculation on the value of the number of times setting information I, and uses the update value to The set number of times N may be updated. For example, the update value may be determined by multiplying the number setting information I by a predetermined safety factor for increasing the value of the number setting information I. Since the update value is larger than the value of the number setting information I due to the safety factor, the number of times N is increased, and the probability of successful communication can be increased.

How the communication base unit 2 determines the number setting information I will be described later. Also, it determines whether or not the updated value obtained based on the number setting information I is the same value as the set number of times N (current value) set at that time, and if the current value and the updated value are different values is updated by rewriting with the current value, and if the value is the same, the current value may be set as it is. Alternatively, the current value may be rewritten with the updated value without making such determination.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the cumulative number of transmissions counting section 7 stores the cumulative number of transmissions C in the storage section 6m. In addition, the measurement data Ds measured by the sensor 6s and the set number of times N are stored in the storage unit 6m. Then, the transmission unit 8 acquires the set number of times N, the communication data D, and the cumulative number of transmissions C from the storage unit 6m. A transmission frame F in which D and the cumulative number of transmissions C are stored is generated, and transmitted by the set number of times N while the cumulative number of transmissions C is incremented for each transmission. In FIG. 2, the communication base unit 2 could not receive the first transmission frame F (C=1) and the second transmission frame F (C=2) transmitted by the communication slave unit 6. , exemplarily shows a case where the m-th transmission frame F (C=m) can be received.

In addition, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the communication slave device 6 further includes a receiving unit 62 that receives the transmission frame F wirelessly transmitted from the communication base device 2 or the like. The setting number setting section 9 is connected to the receiving section 62 and acquires the number setting information I from the transmission frame F received by the receiving section 62 .
(Communication base unit 2)

On the other hand, the communication master device 2 of the present invention is a communication device configured to communicate with the above-described communication slave device 6, generates the above-described frequency setting information I, and notifies (transmits) it to the communication slave device 6. Configured. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 2, the communication master device 2 includes a cumulative transmission count acquisition unit 3 and a count setting information notification unit 4 .

The cumulative number of transmissions acquiring unit 3 acquires the cumulative number of transmissions C ( description) is configured to acquire information stored in a specific area R for storing the description. As described above, since the communication base unit 2 can know where the specific region R is provided in the transmission frame F, the information stored in the specific region R of the received transmission frame F (accumulated transmission By reading the number C), the accumulated transmission number C is obtained. The cumulative number of transmissions acquiring unit 3 can acquire the cumulative number of transmissions C only when the transmission frame F can be received from the communication slave device 6 .

Then, the cumulative number of transmissions acquisition unit 3 stores the information (cumulative number of transmissions C) stored in the specific region R or information obtained by performing a calculation on the information as the number of times information Rf in the storage unit 2m. store in For example, once the specified condition T is satisfied, the communication slave device 6 transmits N transmission frames F, so the communication master device 2 may receive a plurality of transmission frames F. FIG. When the communication base unit 2 receives a plurality of transmission frames F, the number-of-times information Rf may be the cumulative number of transmissions C obtained from one of the plurality of transmission frames F. It may be the cumulative number of times of transmission C obtained from the transmission frame F that could be received. Alternatively, the number information Rf may be a statistical value such as an average value or a median value of a plurality of cumulative transmission numbers C obtained from a plurality of transmission frames F, respectively. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the number-of-times information Rf is the information itself obtained from the specific region R of the transmission frame F that could be received first from the communication slave unit 6 when the specified condition T is satisfied. there is

The number-of-times setting information notification unit 4 is a functional unit configured to notify the above-described number-of-times setting information I for determining the number of times N to be set to the communication slave device 6 described above. The frequency setting information I is information determined for each communication slave device 6 based on the frequency information Rf obtained for each communication slave device 6. Alternatively, it is a calculated value based on the information of the specific region R. That is, the number-of-times setting information I may be the number-of-times information Rf itself. Alternatively, the specified condition T is satisfied multiple times as time elapses, and the statistical value may be a statistical value based on a plurality of times information Rf obtained each time the specified condition T is satisfied. A predicted value based on the transition of the plurality of times information Rf may be used. Alternatively, the number-of-times information Rf may be obtained by calculating a safety factor (described above) with respect to the number-of-times information Rf itself, its statistical value, or a predicted value. In addition, when performing the calculation based on this safety factor, it may be performed by either the communication base unit 2 or the communication slave unit 6, but may be performed by both of them.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the communication master device 2 includes a receiving unit 22 that receives a transmission frame F wirelessly transmitted from a communication partner such as the communication slave device 6, and a communication partner such as the communication slave device 6. A transmission unit 21 for transmitting communication data (transmission frame) is further provided. The accumulated transmission count acquiring unit 3 is connected to the receiving unit 22, reads (acquires) the information of the specific area R of the transmission frame F first received by the receiving unit 22, and stores the read value itself in the storage unit. 2m is stored. 2, 2, 5, 1, and 2 are stored in the specific area R of the transmission frame F first received by each of the communication slave units 6 A, B, C, and D when the specified condition T is satisfied. It exemplifies what was done.

Further, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the frequency setting information notification unit 4 is connected to the transmission unit 21, reads the frequency information Rf stored in the storage unit 2m, generates the frequency setting information I, and then transmits the information. A transmission frame for carrying (notifying) the number setting information I is transmitted from the unit 21 . In other words, in FIG. 2, the communication master device 2 notifies the communication slave devices 6 A, B, C, and D of 2, 5, 1, and 2, respectively, as the number-of-times setting information I. . The number-of-times setting information notifying section 4 periodically makes this notification.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the server 2s is connected to the communication base unit 2, but in some other embodiments, the server 2s may be the communication base unit 2 having the configuration described above. In some other embodiments, the communication master device 2 may have the function of the server 2s.

According to the above configuration, the transmission frame F used by the communication slave device 6 to transmit the same communication data D to the communication master device 2 for the set number of times N is stored with the cumulative number of transmissions C described above. is provided. Then, the communication base unit 2 generates the number setting information I based on the information stored in the specific area R obtained by receiving the transmission frame F, and periodically notifies the communication base unit 6 of the number setting information I. .

The information of the specific area R (cumulative number of transmissions C) is information that can be obtained only when the communication master device 2 successfully communicates with the communication slave device 6 by radio. It is an index capable of measuring the number of repeated transmissions that enable communication between the communication master device 2 and the communication slave device 6 to be reliably performed in an environment (such as a wireless communication state). Therefore, by notifying the communication slave device 6 from the communication master device 2 of the frequency setting information I, such as the cumulative number of transmissions C described above, the communication slave device 6 can perform The number of repetitions of transmission of the same communication data D (set number of times N) can be set according to the information of the specific area R, and the set number of times N set in the communication slave device 6 can be set to It can be optimized according to the communication environment.

Therefore, for the communication slave unit 6 installed in a place with a good communication environment, for example, by reducing the setting number N, the number of repetitions of transmission can be reduced. battery consumption, etc.) can be reduced. Also, for the communication slave unit 6 installed in a place with a poor communication environment, the number of repetitions of transmission can be increased by increasing the number of times N set above. can be delivered to In addition, even if the communication environment changes due to a change in the surrounding environment after the communication slave unit 6 is installed, the setting number of times N can be automatically adjusted, and the battery of the communication slave unit 6 can be replaced and the communication performance can be improved. It is possible to reduce the cost and labor of maintenance such as countermeasures against deterioration.

Next, other configurations that the communication base unit 2 having the configuration described above may have will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 10. FIG. 3 to 10, the above-described functional units provided in the communication base unit 2 or the communication slave unit 6 and the connections with those functional units are not particularly necessary for explaining the additional functions shown in each figure. If not, the description is omitted for simplification.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the communication master device 2 and the communication slave device 6 according to one embodiment of the present invention.
In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 3, the communication base unit 2 further includes a reception radio wave state monitoring unit 51 configured to monitor the radio wave state (such as RSSI) when the communication data D is received. It's okay to be there. Then, based on the result of monitoring the radio wave state, the reception radio wave state monitoring unit 51 sends a command Id to the communication slave device 6 for resetting the set number of times N set in the communication slave device 6 to the default value Nd. 6. More specifically, the reception radio wave state monitoring unit 51 transmits the command Id to the communication slave device 6 via the transmission unit 21 by executing the command Id to the communication slave device 6 .

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the reception radio wave state monitoring unit 51 is connected to the transmission unit 21 and the reception unit 22 provided in the communication base unit 2, respectively. By acquiring the strength (hereinafter, appropriately, received radio wave strength Wr), the received radio wave strength Wr is monitored. Then, for example, when the change in the received radio wave intensity Wr exceeds a preset threshold value, the received radio wave state monitoring unit 51 sets the set number of times N set in the communication slave unit 6 to the default value Nd. When it is determined that setting is necessary, the command Id is transmitted to the communication cordless handset 6 via the transmission section 21 . The communication slave device 6 includes a set number of times initialization section 63. When the set number of times initialization section 63 receives the command Id via the receiving section 22, the set number of times N stored in the storage section 2m is changed to initialize. Note that in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the default value Nd is set to a relatively large number of times in order to ensure the communication of the communication data D to the communication base unit 2. FIG.

According to the above configuration, when the communication master unit 2 receives the communication data D transmitted by the communication slave unit 6, the radio wave state (for example, the radio wave intensity of RSSI, etc.) at the time of reception changes significantly. 2, it is assumed that the communication environment has changed, and the set count N set in the communication handset 6 is initialized (reset to the default value Nd). As a result, even if the communication environment changes due to a change in the installation location of the communication slave unit 6 or a change in the wireless environment, the communication of the communication data D can be performed every time the specified condition T is satisfied. We can work hard to ensure your success.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the communication master device 2 according to one embodiment of the present invention.
In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 4, the communication master device 2 was able to receive at least one communication data D transmitted from the communication slave device 6 out of the number of times the specified condition T was met. and a notification frequency adjusting unit 52 configured to adjust the frequency of notification of the number of times setting information I by the number of times setting information notifying unit 4 based on a communication success rate S that indicates the ratio of the number of times (successful communication) in each case. can be For example, the communication success rate S is compared with a preset threshold, and if the communication success rate S is greater than the threshold, the notification frequency is reduced, and if the communication success rate S is equal to or less than the threshold, the notification frequency can be raised. If the notification frequency is high, changes in the communication environment can be quickly fed back to the communication cordless handset 6 . On the other hand, if the notification frequency is low, the processing load associated with updating the set number of times N and the increase in traffic due to the notification can be suppressed. I can plan.

As described above, the communication slave device 6 communicates the communication data D to the communication master device 2 each time the specified condition T is satisfied. If the communication data D is transmitted repeatedly, depending on the communication environment, the communication base unit 2 can receive the communication data D (successful communication) and the communication data D cannot be received ( communication failure) and both cases are possible.

At this time, if the specified condition T is a periodic condition, the specified condition T will be satisfied one by one as time elapses. Become. Then, the notification frequency adjusting unit 52 calculates the rate of communication success (communication success rate S) from the result of communication success (described above) or communication failure (described above) each time the specified condition T is satisfied. In other words, if the number of times the specified condition T is met is n1 and the number of successful communications is n2, then the communication success rate S is n2/n1. Note that n1 and n2 are integers, and n1≧1 and n2≧0.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the communication base unit 2 grasps the specified condition T for starting communication with each communication slave unit 6, and counts the number of times (n1) that the specified condition T is satisfied based on the specified condition T. It is designed to judge. For example, the specified condition T of each communication slave device 6 may be stored in the storage unit 2m of the communication master device 2, or the specified condition T of each communication slave device 6 may be stored while communicating with each communication slave device 6. may be estimated, or it may be estimated on the premise that the specified condition T of each communication slave unit 6 is a periodic condition. In addition, the notification frequency adjustment unit 52 stores in the storage unit 2m or the like the result of communication success or communication failure in each time when the specified condition T would have been satisfied, and at least the information of the result stored in the storage unit 2m A communication success rate S is calculated using a portion.

According to the above-described configuration, the communication base unit 2 has a record of successful or unsuccessful communication (communication success rate S) of the communication data D each time the specified condition T that sequentially arrives with the passage of time is satisfied. Based on this, the notification frequency of the number-of-times setting information I to the communication cordless handset 6 is adjusted. Thereby, the update frequency of the set count N in the communication slave device 6 can be optimized according to the communication success rate S. Therefore, when the communication success rate S is low, for example, by updating the set number of times N frequently, it is possible to frequently update the set number of times according to the communication environment, and the communication success rate S can be improved. Conversely, when the communication success rate S is high, for example, by reducing the frequency of updating the set number of times, the number of times of transmission and reception of the number setting information I can be reduced. Power consumption can be suppressed.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the communication base unit 2 according to one embodiment of the present invention.
In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 5, the communication base unit 2 obtains data based on the information of the specific region R obtained by the above-described cumulative number of transmissions obtaining unit 3 each time the specified condition T is satisfied. By storing the number of times information Rf (described above) stored in the number of times information Rf (described above), the number of times information Rf stored in the number of times information Rf stored in the number of times transition storage unit 53 configured to store the time transition Tr of the number of times information Rf A frequency prediction unit 54 for calculating a predicted value P of the frequency information Rf based on the transition Tr is further provided. In this case, the number-of-times setting information I notified from the communication master device 2 to the communication slave device 6 may be the predicted value P of the number-of-times information Rf predicted by the number-of-times prediction unit 54 . As already described, the number-of-times information Rf is the information itself stored in the specific area R, or a calculated value obtained by performing a predetermined calculation on the information.

For example, when the communication slave unit 6 is installed in a mobile object such as a forklift that moves in a factory and communicates operation data of the mobile object to the communication master unit 2 as communication data D, the operation status of the mobile object ( The communication environment changes depending on the driving location). At this time, there are cases where the communication environment for each hour can be predicted from the movement of the mobile body for each hour, such as when this mobile operates periodically. Similarly, even when the measured values of the sensors 6s installed in various facilities in the factory are communicated to the communication base unit 2 as the communication data D, communication during the daytime is affected by workers and heavy machinery such as cranes. In some cases, it is possible to predict the communication environment for each time period, such as the environment being bad and the communication environment being good at night because there is no influence from heavy machinery.

Therefore, the frequency prediction unit 54 calculates the predicted value P of the frequency information Rf based on the time transition Tr (a plurality of frequency information Rf) of the frequency information Rf stored in the frequency transition storage unit 53 . As this prediction method, a well-known method for predicting the future target information value from the time transition Tr of the target information may be applied.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the frequency transition storage unit 53 is connected to the cumulative transmission frequency acquisition unit 3, and each time the specified condition T is satisfied, the transmission frequency is stored in the specific region R acquired by the cumulative transmission frequency acquisition unit 3. The number information Rf generated based on the obtained information is stored in the storage unit 2m. This frequency information Rf may be generated by the frequency transition storage unit 53 or may have a value different from the frequency information Rf stored by the cumulative transmission frequency acquisition unit 3 . Further, the frequency prediction unit 54 calculates the predicted value P of the frequency information Rf based on the time transition Tr of the frequency information Rf, and stores it in another area of the storage unit 2m. Then, the frequency setting information notification unit 4 acquires the frequency information Rf (actual value) stored in the storage unit 2m and its predicted value P, and sets the larger one as the frequency setting information I. 6. That is, by using the larger one of the actual value and the predicted value P of the number-of-times information Rf as the number-of-times setting information I, the communication success rate S of the communication data D is increased.

According to the above configuration, the number-of-times setting information I is, for example, one or more cumulative number of transmissions C obtained by receiving one or more of the communication data D transmitted the set number of times N when the specified condition T is satisfied. It is the value of the cumulative number of transmissions C such as the smallest value among them, or the predicted value P that can be calculated based on the time transition Tr of the number of times information Rf, which is a calculated value based on the cumulative number of transmissions C and the like. That is, the communication master device 2 predicts the number of transmissions that the communication slave device 6 will transmit until the communication from the communication slave device 6 succeeds, and notifies the communication slave device 6 of the predicted value P as the frequency setting information I. . Accordingly, by updating the set number of times N based on the predicted value P, it is possible to improve the reliability of communication of the communication slave unit 6 installed in a place where the communication environment fluctuates according to the surrounding environment or the like. .

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the communication master device 2 that notifies the communication slave device 6 specified based on the notification destination specifying information L according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7A is a diagram showing the communication master device 2 that notifies the communication slave device 6 specified based on the notification necessity information r stored in the transmission frame F according to one embodiment of the present invention. A case where notification is set in an area for storing notification necessity information r provided in F is shown. FIG. 7B is a diagram showing the communication master device 2 that notifies the communication slave device 6 specified based on the notification necessity information r stored in the transmission frame F according to one embodiment of the present invention. F indicates the case where the notification necessity information r is set to notification unnecessary. FIG. 7C is a diagram showing the communication master device 2 that notifies the communication slave device 6 specified based on the notification necessity information r stored in the transmission frame F according to one embodiment of the present invention. The notification necessity information r is stored in the specific area R of F.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 6 to 7C, the number-of-times setting information notifying unit 4 described above sends a The number of times setting information I may be notified only to That is, in the present embodiment, the set number of times N is updated only for the communication slave units 6 selected from the viewpoint of the importance of the communication data D, the power consumption of the communication slave units 6, and the like. This makes it possible to optimize the number of times N set for a specific communication slave device 6 according to the communication environment.

Specifically, in some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 6, the number-of-times setting information notifying unit 4 uses preset information for specifying a notification destination (hereinafter referred to as notification destination identification information L). may be used to specify a specific communication slave device 6 to which the number setting information I should be notified. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the notification destination identification information L is stored as a list in the storage unit 2m of the communication master device 2. In the embodiment shown in FIG. In the notification destination identification information L illustrated in FIG. 6, the child device A, which is the communication child device 6, needs to be notified of the number setting information I, and the child device B does not need to be notified. Therefore, based on this notification destination specifying information L, the communication base unit 2 notifies the handset A of the number setting information I, but does not notify the handset B. FIG.

According to the above configuration, it is possible to specify the notification destination of the frequency setting information I based on the notification destination identification information L set in advance.

In some other embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 7A to 7C, the number-of-times setting information notification unit 4 receives notification of the number-of-times setting information I stored in the transmission frame F transmitted from the communication slave device 6. A specific communication slave device 6 may be specified based on the necessity information (hereinafter referred to as notification necessity information r). That is, the transmission frame F transmitted from the communication slave device 6 to the communication base device 2 is provided with an area for storing the notification necessity information r. Then, the communication slave device 6 sets in the transmission frame F whether or not to notify the number setting information I, and transmits this information together with the communication data D. FIG. Note that the area for storing the notification necessity information r in the transmission frame F may be either the header part Fh or the data part Fd, similarly to the specific area R described above. It may be a fixed position in , or an arbitrary position indicated by using tag information or the like.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 7A, the communication slave device 6 transmits to the communication master device 2 a transmission frame F in which a value (1 in this embodiment) indicating that notification is necessary is set as the notification necessity information r. is doing. Therefore, by reading the notification necessity information r stored in the transmission frame F, the communication master device 2 determines that the number setting information I needs to be notified to the communication slave device 6 that transmitted the transmission frame F. Since it judges, it comes to make the notification.

On the other hand, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 7B, the communication slave device 6 transmits a transmission frame F in which a value (0 in this embodiment) indicating that notification is unnecessary is set as the notification necessity information r to the communication master device 2. are sending to Therefore, by reading the notification necessity information r stored in the transmission frame F, the communication master device 2 determines that the number setting information I does not need to be notified to the communication slave device 6 that transmitted the transmission frame F. Since it judges, the notification will not be performed.

According to the above configuration, the communication master device 2 can specify the notification destination of the number setting information I based on the information (notification necessity information r) obtained from the transmission frame F transmitted by the communication slave device 6. can.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7C, the number-of-times setting information notification unit 4 includes information on whether or not to notify the number-of-times setting information I in the transmission frame F. It may be obtained from the specific region R described above. That is, in the present embodiment, the transmission frame F transmitted from the communication slave device 6 to the communication base device 2 does not have an area for storing the notification necessity information r. Then, the communication slave device 6 sets the notification necessity information r by overwriting the information of the specific area R described above, and transmits the transmission frame F. FIG.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 7C, the value indicating the necessity of notification in the notification necessity information r is a value that is never taken as the cumulative number of times of transmission. In the present embodiment, the cumulative number of transmissions C does not have a value of 0, so the value indicating that notification is unnecessary in the notification necessity information r is set to 0. Therefore, when reading the information of the specific area R stored in the transmission frame F, if the value is 0, the communication master device 2 sends the transmission frame F to the communication slave device 6. determines that the notification of the number of times setting information I is unnecessary, it does not perform the notification.

However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. In some other embodiments, the communication slave device 6 does not increment the cumulative number of transmissions C when repeatedly transmitting the communication data D for the set number of times N, and always stores a predetermined value such as a default value in the specific region R. By storing and transmitting it to the communication master device 2, the need for notification in the notification necessity information r may be indicated.

According to the above configuration, the communication master device 2 can specify the notification destination of the number-of-times setting information I based on the information obtained from the transmission frame F transmitted by the communication slave device 6 . Since the transmission frame F does not have an area for the notification necessity information r, the processing can be simplified. In addition, since an additional area for the notification necessity information r is not required in the transmission frame F, it is possible to more easily deal with the case where the communication data D is large.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the communication base unit 2 that generates the number setting information I based on the information of the specified condition T stored in the transmission frame F according to one embodiment of the present invention.
In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 8, the number-of-times setting information notifying unit 4 corrects the number-of-times setting information I based on the information of the specified condition T stored in the transmission frame F, and the corrected number of times Setting information I (post-correction number setting information Im) may be notified. In other words, the transmission frame F transmitted from the communication slave device 6 to the communication master device 2 has an area for storing the information of the above-described specified condition T that determines the timing at which the communication slave device 6 communicates with the communication master device 2. is provided. Then, the communication cordless handset 6 sets the information of the specified condition T in the transmission frame F, and transmits this information together with the communication data D. FIG. Therefore, the number-of-times setting information notification unit 4 (communication master device 2) can acquire the specified condition T from the transmission frame F.

For example, the transmission frame F stores a communication cycle as a specified condition T, and the number-of-times setting information notifier 4 corrects the number-of-times setting information I according to the size of the communication cycle read from the transmission frame F. good. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the frequency setting information notification unit 4 corrects the frequency setting information I to a larger value when the communication cycle is greater than a predetermined threshold value (for example, once a day). It's like As the communication cycle becomes longer, the communication data D cannot be obtained on the communication base unit 2 side for a longer period of time if the communication does not succeed every time the prescribed condition T is satisfied. Therefore, by correcting the number-of-times setting information I to a larger value, it becomes possible to ensure that the communication succeeds each time the specified condition T is satisfied.

On the other hand, when the communication cycle is equal to or less than the above threshold (for example, once every 10 minutes), the frequency setting information I is corrected to a smaller value. If the communication cycle is short, even if the communication is not successful every time the previous specified condition T is met, the next specified condition T will be met after a relatively short period of time (that is, 10 minutes in this case). Therefore, even if the communication is not successful and the communication data D at the time when the specified condition T is satisfied is not obtained, there is a case where there is no practical problem. Therefore, by correcting the number-of-times setting information I to a smaller value, it is possible to reduce the power consumption of the communication slave device 6 .

Note that the area for storing the specified condition T in the transmission frame F may be the header portion Fh or the data portion Fd, similarly to the specific area R described above. A fixed position in the frame F may be used, or an arbitrary position indicated by using tag information or the like may be used. Further, when correcting the number setting information I, the larger the absolute value of the difference between the communication cycle and the threshold, the larger or smaller the number setting information I may be.

According to the above configuration, the communication master device 2 corrects the number setting information I based on the specified condition T that determines the timing at which the communication slave device 6 communicates the communication data D, and the corrected number setting information I. The communication cordless handset 6 is notified. Thereby, the set number of times N to be set in the communication slave device 6 can be determined more appropriately.

Next, an embodiment in which the communication master device 2 controls the transmission output of the communication slave device 6 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the communication master device 2 and the communication slave device 6 according to one embodiment of the present invention. The communication master device 2 controls the transmission output of the communication slave device 6.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 9, the communication base unit 2 includes a reception strength acquisition unit 55 (the above-described a received radio wave state monitoring unit 51); The transmission output instruction value Iw for setting the transmission radio wave intensity Ws of is calculated based on the received radio wave intensity Wr or based on the received radio wave intensity Wr and the transmitted radio wave intensity Ws. A transmission output instructing section 57 configured to instruct the slave device 6 may be further provided. The transmission output instruction value Iw generated by the transmission output instruction section 57 is transmitted to the communication slave device 6 via the transmission section 21 .

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 9, the received signal strength acquiring unit 55 has the same function as the received radio wave state monitoring unit 51 described above, and stores the acquired received radio wave intensity Wr in the storage unit 2m. Further, the transmission frame F transmitted by the communication slave device 6 is provided with an area for storing the transmission radio wave intensity Ws. The transmission frame F is transmitted with Ws stored. Therefore, the transmission intensity acquisition unit 56 can acquire from the transmission frame F the transmission radio wave intensity Ws when the transmission frame F is transmitted by the communication slave device 6 . However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. For example, when it is determined that the communication slave unit 6 transmits with the maximum radio wave intensity, the information of the radio wave intensity when the communication slave unit 6 transmits the transmission frame F is stored in advance in the storage unit 2m of the communication master unit 2. The communication base unit 2 may acquire the above transmission radio wave intensity Ws from the storage unit 2m by storing it.

Further, the transmission output instruction section 57 may calculate the transmission output instruction value Iw as follows. X [dBM] is the value obtained by converting the unit of the transmission radio wave output [mW] of the communication slave device 6, Y [dBm] is the received radio wave intensity when the communication master device 2 receives the radio wave, , Z [dBm] is the reception sensitivity that can be restored, and L [dB] is the loss due to the effects of noise, shielding, etc. on the radio path between the communication slave device 6 and the communication master device 2 . Note that the conversion between mW and dBm can be performed by the formula dBm=10log ₁₀ (mW).

Then, the communication slave device 6 transmits the communication data D (transmission frame F) at X [dBm], and by grasping the received radio wave intensity [dBm] when the communication master device 2 receives it, the communication slave device 6 and A loss Ls during transmission on the radio path to the communication master unit 2 is obtained by the formula Ls=XY. At this time, based on its own reception sensitivity Z [dBm] and path loss Ls [dB], the communication master device 2 has a radio wave output that the communication master device 2 should be able to receive the transmission frame F transmitted by the communication slave device 6. X' is calculated by the formula of X'=Z+L, and the value based on this calculation result is notified to the communication cordless handset 6 as the transmission output instruction value Iw. In this case, the transmission output instruction value Iw may be the value of X' itself, or may be a value obtained by adding a margin to this X'. Upon receiving the transmission output instruction value Iw, the communication slave device 6 updates the output of subsequent transmission frames F to the transmission output instruction value Iw. If this transmission output instruction value Iw is smaller than the transmission radio wave output [mW] before updating, the communication slave unit 6 can reduce the output and perform wireless communication by that amount, so power consumption can be reduced. becomes possible. Note that the margin added to X' may be added on the side of the communication slave unit 6 .

According to the above configuration, the communication master device 2 updates the output (radio field intensity) of the communication slave device 6 when transmitting the communication data D by instructing the transmission output instruction value Iw to the communication slave device 6. . As a result, the output of the communication slave device 6 when transmitting the communication data D can be optimized according to the communication environment. Therefore, for example, it is possible to avoid wireless communication with an unnecessarily high output of the communication slave unit 6 or wireless communication with an output so weak that the communication master unit 2 cannot receive the wireless communication, thereby ensuring more reliable wireless communication. can be designed to

Next, an embodiment in which the set number of times N set in the communication slave device 6 is forcibly set from the communication master device 2 side will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the communication master device 2 and the communication slave device 6 according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which the set number of times is forcibly set.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 10, the communication base unit 2 receives the command value Ic of the set number of times N, and includes a command value setting unit 58 that notifies the communication slave unit 6 of the command value Ic. , may be further provided. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 10 , the administrator of the communication slave device 6 or the like first determines the setting number N of the communication slave device 6 . Then, with the PC 14 connected to the communication base unit 2, the administrator or the like operates the PC 14 to input the determined setting number N, so that the determined setting number N is sent to the communication base unit 2 as the command value Ic. is entered as Upon receiving the command value Ic, the command value setting unit 58 transmits the command value Ic received via the transmission unit 21 of the communication master device 2 to the communication slave device 6 . The communication slave device 6 updates the set number of times N by overwriting the current set number of times N with the command value Ic received by the set number of times setting unit 9 .

According to the above configuration, the administrator or the like can update the set count N of the communication slave device 6 to an arbitrary value. As a result, for example, if you do not need to worry about the battery capacity of the communication slave unit 6, but you want to ensure that the communication of the communication data D succeeds, you can set the set number of times N to be large. The set number of times N can be forcibly set to a desired value.

A communication method performed by the communication master device 2 or the communication slave device 6 having the configuration (function) described above will be described below with reference to FIG. 11 . FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a communication method performed by the communication master device 2 and the communication slave device 6 according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 11 shows a communication method performed by the communication master unit 2 (described above) configured to communicate with the communication slave unit 6, and a communication method in which the same communication data D is sent to the communication master unit 2 for the set number of times N when the prescribed conditions are met. The communication method performed by the communication slave unit 6 (described above) that transmits data to it is also described.

As shown in FIG. 11, the communication method performed by the communication slave unit 6 includes a cumulative transmission count counting step (S1) for counting the cumulative transmission count C described above, and A transmission step (S2) of transmitting a transmission frame F (communication data D) in a state in which the number of transmissions C is stored; and a setting number update step (S6) for setting the above-described setting number N based on the number setting information I notified based on. The cumulative number of transmissions counting step (S1), the transmission step (S2), and the set number of times update step (S6) are the processes executed by the already explained cumulative number of transmissions counting section 7, the transmission section 8, and the set number of times setting section 9, respectively. Since it is the same as the content, the details are omitted.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 11, the communication method performed by the communication master device 2 is to acquire information stored in the above-described specific region R provided in the transmission frame F carrying the communication data D transmitted from the communication slave device 6. and a number setting information notifying step (S5) for notifying the communication slave device 6 of the number of times setting information I for determining the number of times N to be set. Since the accumulated transmission count acquisition step (S4) and the number of times setting information notification step (S5) are the same as the processing contents executed by the already explained cumulative transmission count acquisition unit 3 and number of times setting information notification unit 4, the details are as follows. omitted.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 11, in steps S1 to S3, the communication slave unit 6 repeats the cumulative transmission count step (S1) and the transmission step (S2) until the set number N of times. At this time, the communication base unit 2 executes the accumulated transmission count acquisition step in step S4 for each of the N transmission frames F transmitted by the communication slave unit 6 in the transmission step of step S2. After that, in step S5, the communication master device 2 executes the number-of-times setting information notification step. In step S6, the communication slave device 6 receives the frequency setting information I notified (transmitted) from the communication base device 2 in the frequency setting information notifying step (S5), thereby executing the set frequency updating step.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 11, steps S1 to S6 described above are performed each time the specified condition T is satisfied. At this time, step S5 following step S4 is executed after a predetermined time has elapsed. This predetermined time may be determined for each communication slave device 6 and is shorter than the communication cycle determined by the specified condition T for each communication slave device 6 . However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. In some other embodiments, it may be longer than the communication period. In this case, steps S1 to S4 are performed each time the defined condition T is satisfied, but steps S5 to S6 are collectively performed each time the defined condition T is satisfied, for example, multiple times.

The above-described communication method performed by the communication base unit 2 includes the reception radio wave state monitoring unit 51, the notification frequency adjustment unit 52, the frequency transition storage unit 53, the frequency prediction unit 54, the reception intensity acquisition unit 55, and the transmission intensity acquisition unit 55, which have already been described. At least one step of performing the same processing contents as those executed by the unit 56, the transmission output instructing unit 57, and the command value setting unit 58 may be further provided. Since these steps are the same as the processing contents of the corresponding functional units, the details are omitted.

Note that the communication slave device 6 in the above-described embodiment is an example of a communication slave device. Also, the cumulative number of transmissions acquisition unit 3 is an example of an acquisition unit. The number-of-times setting information notification unit 4 is an example of a first notification unit. The received radio wave state monitoring unit 51 is an example of a monitoring unit. The notification frequency adjustment unit 52 is an example of an adjustment unit. The number transition storage unit 53 is an example of a storage unit. The number-of-times prediction unit 54 is an example of a prediction unit. The transmission output instructing section 57 is an example of an instructing section. Command value setting unit 58 is an example of a second notification unit. The cumulative number of transmissions counting section 7 is an example of a counting section. The set count setting unit 9 is an example of a setting unit.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and includes modifications of the above-described embodiments and modes in which these modes are combined as appropriate.

1 wireless communication system 2 communication base unit 2m storage unit 21 transmission unit 22 reception unit 2s server 3 cumulative number of transmission acquisition unit (acquisition unit)
4 Frequency setting information notification unit (first notification unit)
51 Reception radio wave condition monitoring unit (monitoring unit)
52 notification frequency adjustment unit (adjustment unit)
53 Number transition storage unit (storage unit)
54 frequency prediction unit (prediction unit)
55 Reception intensity acquisition unit 56 Transmission intensity acquisition unit 57 Transmission output instruction unit (instruction unit)
58 command value setting unit (second notification unit)
6 Communication cordless handset 63 Setting number initialization unit 6m Storage unit 62 Receiving unit 6s Sensor 7 Cumulative transmission number counting unit (counting unit)
8 transmission unit 9 setting number setting unit (setting unit)

T Specified condition N Number of settings C Cumulative number of transmissions I Number of times setting information R Specific area Rf Number of times information D Communication data Ds Measurement data F Transmission frame Fd Data part Fh Header part Ic Instruction value Id for setting number of times Command to set default value Nd Default value Im Modified frequency setting information Iw Transmission output indication value L Notification destination identification information Ls Loss P Predicted value Tr Time transition S Communication success rate Wr Received radio wave intensity Ws Transmitted radio wave intensity X Radio wave output Z Receiving sensitivity r Necessity information S Communication success rate

Claims (18)

A communication parent device configured to wirelessly communicate with a communication child device,
a first notification unit configured to notify frequency setting information for determining the set number of times to the communication slave device that transmits the same communication data for a set number of times when a prescribed condition is satisfied;
an acquisition unit configured to acquire information stored in a specific area for storing the cumulative number of transmissions of the same communication data provided in a transmission frame transmitted from the communication slave device;
a monitoring unit configured to monitor a radio wave state when the communication data is received;
The number setting information is the information of the acquired specific area or a calculated value based on the information of the specific area,
The monitoring unit transmits to the communication slave device a command for resetting the set number of times set in the communication slave device to a default value based on the result of monitoring the radio wave state. communication base unit. The notification frequency of the frequency setting information is determined based on a communication success rate indicating the ratio of the number of times that at least one of the communication data transmitted from the communication slave unit can be received, out of the number of times that the specified condition is met. 2. The communication master unit of claim 1, further comprising an adjustment unit configured to adjust. a storage unit configured to store time transition of the number of times information by storing the number of times information obtained based on the information of the specific region acquired each time the specified condition is satisfied;
a prediction unit that calculates a predicted value of the number of times information based on the time transition of the number of times information,
3. The communication base unit according to claim 1, wherein the number-of-times setting information is a predicted value of the number-of-times information. 4. The communication master device according to claim 1, wherein said notification unit notifies said number setting information only to a specific communication slave device. 5. The communication base unit according to claim 4, wherein the notification unit identifies the specific communication slave unit based on preset information for identifying a notification destination. 5. The communication parent according to claim 4, wherein the notification unit identifies the specific communication slave device based on information on whether or not to notify the number setting information, which is stored in the transmission frame. machine. 7. The communication base unit according to claim 6, wherein the notification unit acquires information as to whether or not notification of the number setting information is necessary from the specific area of the transmission frame. According to any one of claims 1 to 7, the notification unit corrects the number-of-times setting information based on the information of the specified condition stored in the transmission frame, and notifies the corrected number-of-times setting information. A communication base unit according to any one of the above items. a reception intensity acquisition unit configured to acquire a reception radio wave intensity indicating the radio wave intensity at the time of reception of the communication data;
a transmission strength acquisition unit configured to acquire a transmission radio field strength indicating a radio field strength at the time of transmission of the communication data transmitted from the communication slave device;
a transmission output instruction value for setting the transmission radio wave intensity, the transmission output instruction value calculated based on the received radio wave intensity or based on the received radio wave intensity and the transmitted radio wave intensity; The communication base unit according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising an instruction unit configured to instruct to. 10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, further comprising a second notification unit configured to notify the communication slave device of the command value when the command value of the set number of times is received. Communication base unit described. A communication parent device configured to wirelessly communicate with a communication child device,
a first notification unit configured to notify frequency setting information for determining the set number of times to the communication slave device that transmits the same communication data for a set number of times when a prescribed condition is satisfied;
an acquisition unit configured to acquire information stored in a specific area for storing the cumulative number of transmissions of the same communication data provided in a transmission frame transmitted from the communication slave device;
The notification frequency of the frequency setting information is determined based on a communication success rate indicating the ratio of the number of times that at least one of the communication data transmitted from the communication slave unit can be received, out of the number of times that the specified condition is met. an adjuster configured to adjust,
The communication base unit, wherein the number-of-times setting information is the acquired information of the specific area or a calculated value based on the information of the specific area. A communication parent device configured to wirelessly communicate with a communication child device,
a first notification unit configured to notify frequency setting information for determining the set number of times to the communication slave device that transmits the same communication data for a set number of times when a prescribed condition is satisfied;
an acquisition unit configured to acquire information stored in a specific area for storing the cumulative number of transmissions of the same communication data, which is provided in a transmission frame transmitted from the communication slave device;
The number setting information is the information of the acquired specific area or a calculated value based on the information of the specific area,
The communication base unit, wherein the notification unit corrects the number setting information based on the information of the specified condition stored in the transmission frame, and notifies the corrected number setting information. a communication base unit according to any one of claims 1 to 12;
and a communication slave device that transmits to the communication master device . a communication base unit according to any one of claims 1 to 12;
A communication slave device that transmits the same communication data to the communication master device for a set number of times when a specified condition is satisfied,
a counting unit configured to count the cumulative number of transmissions of the same communication data;
a transmission unit configured to transmit the transmission frame with the cumulative transmission count stored in the specific area provided in the transmission frame for transmitting the communication data;
a setting unit configured to set the set number of times based on the number setting information notified by the communication base station that has received the transmission frame in response to reception of the cumulative number of transmissions; A wireless communication system comprising: The transmission unit further stores in the transmission frame at least one of necessity of notification of the number setting information from the communication master device, the prescribed condition, or transmission radio wave intensity for transmitting the communication data. 15. A wireless communication system as claimed in claim 14. A communication method performed by a communication parent device configured to wirelessly communicate with a communication child device,
a step of notifying frequency setting information for determining the set number of times to the communication slave device that transmits the same communication data for a set number of times when a specified condition is satisfied;
a step of acquiring information stored in a specific area for storing the cumulative number of times of transmission of the same communication data provided in a transmission frame transmitted from the communication slave device;
a step of monitoring the radio wave state at the time of receiving the communication data,
The number setting information is the information of the acquired specific area or a calculated value based on the information of the specific area,
A communication method, characterized in that, based on the result of monitoring the radio wave state, a command is transmitted to the communication slave device for resetting the set number of times set in the communication slave device to a default value. A communication method performed by a communication parent device configured to wirelessly communicate with a communication child device,
a step of notifying frequency setting information for determining the set number of times to the communication slave device that transmits the same communication data for a set number of times when a specified condition is satisfied;
a step of acquiring information stored in a specific area for storing the cumulative number of times of transmission of the same communication data provided in a transmission frame transmitted from the communication slave device;
The notification frequency of the frequency setting information is determined based on a communication success rate indicating the ratio of the number of times that at least one of the communication data transmitted from the communication slave unit can be received, out of the number of times that the specified condition is met. a step of adjusting;
The communication method, wherein the number-of-times setting information is the acquired information of the specific area or a calculated value based on the information of the specific area. A communication method performed by a communication parent device configured to wirelessly communicate with a communication child device,
a step of notifying frequency setting information for determining the set number of times to the communication slave device that transmits the same communication data for a set number of times when a specified condition is satisfied;
obtaining information stored in a specific area for storing the cumulative number of transmissions of the same communication data, which is provided in a transmission frame transmitted from the communication slave device;
The number setting information is the information of the acquired specific area or a calculated value based on the information of the specific area,
The communication method, wherein the step of notifying corrects the number-of-times setting information based on the information of the specified condition stored in the transmission frame, and notifies the corrected number-of-times setting information.

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