JPH11122277A - Multiplex communication control method and communication controller - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To send/receive device data independently of a controller in a control system where pluralities of devices such as sensors and actuators are partially multiplexed. SOLUTION: Device model information assigned definitely by a model and an operation is set to a register 16 with respect to devices 20-1-20-n connected by device connection sections 14-1-14-n of the communication controller 2. An MPU 4 stores the device model information corresponding to the devices 20-1-20-n to a table 101 for each IF/No and in the case of receiving data of a reception buffer 18 of each device I/F section 15, corresponding device model information is provided and copied to a transmission buffer 103 and sent to a network 1 via a communication protocol control section 8. When the device model information corresponds to pluralities of IF/Nos, only data of the priority device side are sent. Furthermore, the device model information provided in data received from the network 1 corresponds to pluralities of IF/Nos, data are transferred to pluralities of corresponding devices 20-1-20-n.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a communication control apparatus for connecting a plurality of devices including partial multiplexing to a network in a control system or the like, and a multiplexing communication control method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a logistics system that handles various types of products, products flowing on a belt conveyor are detected by sensors installed along the conveyor, and barcodes are read by dedicated devices corresponding to each process of the physical distribution. ,packing,
Sorting is performed. For example, in the packing process, an operation according to the process is performed by the controller, such as once stopping the conveyor once a product is detected and restarting the conveyor operation after packing is completed.

A sensor, a drive motor for a belt conveyor, a dedicated device for each process, and the like are connected to a controller via a PI / O, and each controller transmits and receives data via a network. That is, the sensor detects that the product has passed a predetermined position on the conveyor and transmits data to the controller, and an actuator such as a motor or a packing device receives data indicating that the product has been detected from the controller. To rotate / stop or pack. Control of each of these devices is performed by an application program installed in a controller to which the devices are connected.

In order to ensure the safety and reliability of a physical distribution system, sensors are multiplexed and installed at both ends of a conveyor, and if at least one of them detects the passage of a product, a process according to each physical distribution process is performed. Will be Further, the belt conveyor is provided with a plurality of motors, and each motor starts operation at the same number of rotations to drive the conveyor and stops at the same time according to the same instruction (data) from the controller.

[0005] When a part of control equipment such as a sensor and an actuator in a distribution system or the like is multiplexed, the multiplexing control depends on an application of a controller for connecting the equipment.

[0006]

As in the above-described distribution system, control devices and controllers such as sensors and motors are connected to a network, and data is exchanged between the control devices or between the control device and the controller via the network. In such a system, an application program for a controller that performs multiplexing control of a control device is created in consideration of a type of the control device that performs multiplexing control, a connection position viewed from the controller, and the like.

By the way, in a distribution system or the like, the rearrangement of lines and the replacement of sensors and the like frequently occur in accordance with the products to be handled. Therefore, there is a problem that the application for performing the multiplexing control needs to be remodeled every time the multiplexing configuration is changed from the change of the model or the connection position in the system to the single system to the double system or vice versa. .

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, eliminate the need to change applications by changing the equipment configuration such as a multiplexing configuration, and flexibly cope with system changes and a multiplexed communication control method. Is to provide.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a communication control system for transmitting / receiving a frame to / from another device in a network via a communication interface and transmitting / receiving data to / from a plurality of connected devices via a connection interface. In the device, in the multiplexing communication control method when the connected devices are partially multiplexed, the multiplexed communication control method is uniquely assigned according to the type and use mode of the connected device, and in the case of a multiplexed device, the same information is assigned. Device type information is registered for each device, and at the time of data transmission, data from a data transmission device (for example, a sensor) in the connected device is fetched in order, and device type information registered in the device is transmitted. Is added to the data, and a predetermined frame including the destination address is formed and transmitted to the network.

In the data receiving device (eg, actuator) in the connected device, the same device type information is registered in the device receiving the same data, and the data receiving device (eg, actuator) receives the same data from the frame received from the network. And the device type information is extracted, and the data is transmitted to one or more connected devices in which the same information as the device type information is registered.

[0011] Further, when transmitting data, in the case of the multiplexed device, only the data of the device having priority setting is transmitted.

A communication control device suitable for the multiplex communication method according to the present invention connects a communication interface unit connected to a network for transmitting and receiving data in accordance with a predetermined communication protocol, and a control device of the system. A plurality of connection interface units that exchange data with devices, a central processing unit that controls these interface units to perform data transmission / reception processing, and a storage device that stores the data and control information. Device type information that is uniquely assigned in correspondence with the type and use mode of the device connected to the connection interface unit is registered for each identification number of the connection interface unit, and one of the multiplexed devices is the same. Priority transmission is set for the device type information and for each device type information for non-multiplexed devices. If the device type information table is provided in the storage device, and the central processing unit has the setting of the priority transmission in the corresponding device type information to be added to the data acquired from the connected device, the data is transmitted to the communication interface unit. It is characterized by transferring.

When the multiplexing device is a duplex device, a counter use flag for setting ON for the multiplexing device and OFF for the non-multiplexing device and a transmission count of the number of times of transmission correspond to the device type information. The storage device includes a transmission counter table for storing an integrated value, and the central processing unit performs transmission processing by incrementing the transmission counter by +1 for data from a device having the priority transmission setting, and sets the priority transmission setting. No data is sent from the device without the counter, the transmission counter is decremented by one, and the transmission process is not performed. Also, depending on the combination of the integrated value of the transmission counter and ON / OFF of the counter use flag, failure of the multiplexing device or It is characterized by performing transmission processing following configuration changes due to recovery or the like.

Therefore, in the case of a duplex device, if the priority side and the non-priority side are operating normally, the integrated value at the end of the transmission timing is always 0. If the non-priority side is abnormal, Since the integrated value eventually exceeds the threshold value N, the duplex communication processing corresponding to the model-specific information is canceled (the transmission counter use flag is turned off).

In the data transmission process from the non-priority side,
If the counter use flag is OFF, the process returns to the duplex communication process because the non-priority side is restored (the transmission counter use flag is turned ON). Further, the integrated value is 0 in the data transmission processing from the non-priority side and the counter use flag is ON.
In the case of (2), when there is an abnormality on the priority side, priority / non-priority is switched (priority transmission flag change setting), and the duplex communication processing is continued. Even in the case of a triple device, the same management is possible if, for example, the transmission events of the two devices on the non-priority side are taken in by a logical OR.

[0016]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 shows a schematic configuration of a physical distribution system to which a multiplex communication control device (hereinafter, referred to as a communication control device) of the present invention is applied. Communication control device 2-
1-2 and the controllers 3-1 through 3-3 are connected to the network 1, and the communication control device 2 includes a control device 20.
-1 to 20-n are connected. Each of the communication control device 2 and the controller 3 is configured to correspond to each process of physical distribution, and transmits and receives messages via the network 1.

The communication control device 2 and the controller 3 each include an arithmetic processing device and a storage device for storing data in order to perform communication according to a predetermined communication protocol. The controller 3 is, for example, a computer (a control process computer, a workstation, or a personal computer) or a PC (programmable controller). Although the network 1 is shown as a bus type, any type of network may be used, and communication means such as wireless may be used.

Communication control device 2 connected to network 1
Connects control devices such as sensors, motors for driving the conveyor, and dedicated machines for packing and sorting in accordance with the logistics process.

For example, the sensors 20-1 and 20-2 are installed at predetermined positions on a belt conveyor in a packing process,
When the passage of the product is detected, the data is transmitted to the communication control device 2-1. The communication control device 2-1 has a duplicated sensor 2
When data is received from at least one of 0-1 and 20-2, the data is transmitted to the corresponding controller 3-1 via the network 1. The controller 3-1 includes a sensor 20-
1 (or 20-2), a command to stop the drive motor of the belt conveyor in the process is transmitted to the communication control device 2-1 and the communication control device 2-
1 simultaneously notifies the motors 20-i to 20-j connected thereto and stops their rotation. Further, the communication control device 2-1 includes the duplicated sensors 20-k, 20- (k
When receiving the data indicating the completion of the packing detected in +1), the data is transmitted to the controller 3-1 and the controller 3-1 is transmitted.
From the motors 20-i to 20-j
Tell at the same time.

The communication control device 2 adds a protocol header to data received from an input device such as a sensor (the above-described data transmission device) and transmits the data to the network as a frame. The data (control command) is taken out and the corresponding output device (the above-mentioned data receiving device) connected to itself is notified.

The data transmission / reception is not limited to between the communication control device 2 and the controller 3, but may be between a plurality of communication control devices. For example, the sensors 20-k, 20
− (K + 1) is connected to the communication control device 2-2,
Data indicating the completion of packing may be transmitted from the communication control device 2-2 to the communication control device 2-1.

FIG. 3 shows a frame format of a message transmitted and received by the communication control device of this embodiment. The communication frame includes a “header part” and a “trailer part” indicating a frame delimiter, a “destination address (DA) part” indicating a destination address of the frame, and an “address indicating the address of the communication control device 2 of the transmission source on the network 1”. Source address (SA)
Section "and" data section ". The data section is
It is composed of a “transmitted / received data section of the connected device” allocated to each device connected to the communication control device 2 and a “device type information portion” uniquely set according to the type and operation of each device.

FIG. 1 shows the configuration of a communication control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Communication control device 2 is MPU4, MPU
ROM 9 for storing a program for operating 4
AM 10, a communication protocol controller 8 for transmitting and receiving frames to and from the network 1, an internal bus 5, an interrupt signal line 6,
It is composed of a plurality of device connection units 14-1 to 14-n.
It should be noted that the dotted line portion in the drawing is a configuration added in a second embodiment described later.

The device connection units 14 each have an identification number (I / FNo) for the MPU 4 to identify, and a device I / F that serves as an interface between the communication control device 2 and the connected device 20.
F unit 15, device type information register 16, operation register 1
7 is comprised. The device I / F unit 15 includes the connected device 2
It has a reception buffer 18 for temporarily storing data received from 0.

Hereinafter, the detailed configuration and operation of the communication control device according to this embodiment will be described. First, the connection devices 20-1 to 20-
The device type information set corresponding to n will be described. As preprocessing prior to the start of operation of the device connected to the communication control device 2, device type information is set in the device type information register 16. For example, the device type information is represented by a four-digit hexadecimal number, and is set by a device type information setting switch 161 including four hexadecimal rotary switches.

The device type information is information uniquely assigned according to the type and operation of the device. The same device type information is assigned to a multiplexed device group or a device group that performs the same operation in response to one command. Assigned. However, if the same type of device has a different purpose or operation, different device type information is assigned. For example, when there are two sensors of the same type and the monitored targets are different, different device type information is assigned to these sensors.

When the operation switch 171 provided for the device connection unit 14 is turned on after the device type information is set, information indicating the start of operation of the connected device 20 is written in the operation register 17, and at this time, the MPU 4 An interrupt signal is received. Upon receiving the interrupt signal, the MPU 4 recognizes the I / F No of the corresponding device connection unit 14 and reads the device type information of the connected device 20 from the device type information register 16 of the I / F No. The above is the pre-operation processing for the connected device.

FIG. 4 shows an example of the device type information table in which the device type information corresponding to the I / F No is registered. The device type information table 101 is secured in the RAM 10 and registers the same device type information for multiplexed devices and devices having the same operation. Thereafter, the MPU 4 stores the device type information table 10
With reference to FIG. 1, data transmission / reception processing for the connected device 20 is performed.

When the operation switch 171 is turned off, information indicating the stop of the operation of the connected device 20 is written in the operation register 17 and an interrupt signal is input to the MPU 4. After receiving the interrupt signal, the MPU 4 recognizes which I / F No of the device connected to the device connection unit 14 has stopped operating, and deletes the device type information of the device from the device type information table 101. Therefore, the device connection unit 14 in which the device type information is not registered in the I / F No of the device type information table 101 means that the device is not connected or is not operating.

Next, a function of transmitting data in a communication frame received from a network to a connected device will be described.

When receiving the frame addressed to itself from the network 1, the communication protocol control unit 8 issues a reception interrupt signal to the MPU 4. MP interrupted
U4 copies the frame received by the communication protocol control unit 8 to the reception buffer 104 on the RAM 10, and reads the device type information and the data in the data portion of the communication frame. After that, referring to the device type information table 101,
The I / F No that registers information matching the device type information of the frame is checked, and the read data is transmitted to the corresponding connected device 20 via the device I / F unit 14 of the I / F No.

In this case, the device type information read from the frame corresponds to a plurality of I / FNs in the device type information table 101.
When registered in o, the same data is transmitted to a plurality of connected devices 20 corresponding to each I / F No.
In the case of the device type information table shown in FIG. 4, when the communication control device 2 receives the communication frame of “device type information = A”, it is connected to I / FNo = 0 and I / FNo = 3. The same data is transmitted to each of the two connected devices 20. For example, the motor group for driving the same conveyor described in the distribution system of FIG. 2 corresponds to this.

Next, a function of transmitting data received from the connection device 20 to the network 1 as a communication frame will be described.

When the device I / F unit 15 receives data from the connected device 20, the data is stored in the reception buffer 18. MPU
4 sequentially searches the device I / F unit 15 of each I / F No, fetches data from the reception buffer 18, and
0 to the transmission buffer 103.

After that, the MPU 4 refers to the device type information table 101 and adds the device type information of the corresponding I / F No to the fetched data. Further, a destination address (SA) and a transmission source address (DA) are added and passed to the communication protocol control unit 8. Communication protocol control unit 8
Sends a communication frame to the network 1 by adding a header and a trailer.

In this case, when the same device type information is registered in a plurality of I / F Nos in the device type information table 101, the devices connected to the connection unit 14 having these I / F Nos are multiplexed. Therefore, one of the plurality of data received from the device group is selected and transmitted to the network 1. Hereinafter, a process of selectively transmitting data using the priority transmission flag and the transmission counter will be described.

The MPU 4 is notified of the connection of the device from the device connection unit 14, and registers the device type information in the device type information table 101 if the device type information is unique in the table. The priority transmission flag is set ON, and if registered, the priority transmission flag of the corresponding I / F No is turned OFF.

FIG. 5 shows an example of a device type information table including a priority transmission flag. For example, I / FNo = 0 ~
3, device type information is A,
Assume that the devices B, C, and A are connected and start operating in this order. In this case, the priority transmission flag of the device corresponding to I / FNo = 0 to 2 is set to ON, and the priority transmission flag corresponding to the device of I / FNo = 3 is set to OFF.

Further, a transmission counter table 102 provided on the RAM 10 is registered in order to change a priority transmission device flag uniquely assigned to each device type information according to a change in the multiplexing configuration. At the time of pre-processing for starting the operation of a certain device, the MPU 4 executes the device type information table 101.
And if the device type information of the device is not registered,
A transmission counter and a counter use flag are registered corresponding to the device type information. The transmission counter at the time of registration is 0, and the counter use flag is OFF. However, if the same device type information already exists in the device type information table 101, the counter use flag of that information is turned ON.

FIG. 6 shows an example of the counter table. Devices whose device type information is A, B, C, and A are connected to the device connection units 14 of I / FNo = 0 to 3, respectively.
When the operation is started in the order of I / FNo = 0 to 3, the I / FN
Since the device type information A of o = 3 has already been registered, the counter use flag corresponding to the information A is set from OFF to ON. At this time, the transmission counter of the information A is n = 0. On the basis of these, a description will be given of the transmission data selection transmission processing performed while checking the change of the duplex configuration.

FIG. 7 shows the flow of the process of selecting and transmitting transmission data. The MPU 4 performs the following processing each time the transmission data and the I / F No are obtained from the device connection units 14-1 to 14-n.

First, referring to the device type information table, the device type information and the priority transmission flag set in the acquired I / F No are read (s101), and it is determined whether the priority transmission flag is ON (s102). If it is ON, it is determined whether or not the transmission counter n of the device type information is 0 with reference to the transmission counter table (s103). If n = 0, it is determined whether the counter use flag is ON (s104). If ON, since the device that issued the data is duplicated, the transmission counter n is incremented by one (s105), and the network The data is transmitted to No. 1 (s106), and the process ends.

In step s104, if the counter use flag is OFF, the device that issued the data is not duplicated, so that the transmission counter is kept at 0,
The data is transmitted to the network 1.

Also, in the determination in step s103, n ≠ 0
, The transmission counter n is incremented by 1 (s111), and it is determined whether the counter n at that time is equal to or more than a predetermined value N (s1).
12) If n <N, transmit data to network 1. However, if n ≧ N, it is considered that the device on the non-priority side of the duplexing (subordinate system) does not function due to a failure or the like.
The setting of the transmission counter n is changed to 0 and the counter use flag is set to OFF (s113), and the processing shifts to a single transmission system.

On the other hand, if the priority transmission flag is OFF in step s102, the device that issued the data is on the non-priority side of duplexing. In this case, it is determined whether the transmission counter n of the device type information is 0 (s121). If the transmission counter n is not 0, the transmission counter n is decremented by 1 (s131), and the process ends without transmitting data. As described above, the transmission counter n is incremented by +1 in the processing s105 on the priority side of the duplexer, and then decremented by −1 in the processing s121 on the non-priority side, so that n = 0. When operating, the transmission counter n does not exceed the predetermined value N.

At step s121, the transmission counter n = 0
If it is determined that the data of the device (main system) on the priority side of the duplication was not normally imported for some reason,
This is a case where the device configuration is changed (returned) from a single configuration to a dual configuration. Therefore, it is determined whether the counter use flag of the device type information is ON (s122). If the counter use flag is OFF, it is regarded as a change to duplexing, the counter use flag is set ON (s141), and the process ends.

In step s122, if the counter use flag is ON, the priority transmission flag of the I / FNo is turned on from OFF, and the priority transmission flag of the partner I / FNo is considered to be a problem on the priority side of the dual system. The main / slave system is switched from ON to OFF, the transmission counter n is incremented by 1 (s123), and the data is transmitted over the network. After the main-substitution replacement, if the original main-system equipment is out of order, the transmission counter n ≧ N, so that the processing shifts to the single-system processing in s113. In step s123, it is also possible to turn off the counter use flag and immediately shift to the single slave processing by the original slave.

According to this embodiment, devices conventionally connected to the network via the controller are connected to the network via a communication control device capable of transmitting and receiving multiplexed data. It is not necessary to change the application of the controller due to the change, and frequent configuration changes of the system including the change of the multiplex configuration such as the distribution system are facilitated.

According to the communication control apparatus of the present embodiment,
Since the device type information uniquely assigned to the type and operation of the device is set in each connected device, the process of selecting and transmitting transmission data from the multiplexing device or the reception when transferring one data to a plurality of devices is performed. Processing can be realized easily and for general purposes.

Furthermore, since the transmission counter of the multiplexed device type information can automatically respond to a change in the multiplexing configuration due to device failure or recovery, the reliability of the system can be improved.

Next, a description will be given of a data transmission process according to the second embodiment. In the data selective transmission processing according to the first embodiment, the data fetching and the transmission to the network 1 via the communication protocol unit 11 are performed in an integrated manner. On the other hand, in the second embodiment, in the case of multiplexed data, the process of taking in the data and the process of transmitting the data to the network 1 are separated and performed asynchronously. For this reason, an area of the common memory 106 is secured on the RAM 10.

The MPU 4 registers an area of the common memory 106 for each device type information at the time of a pre-operation process associated with the connection of the device 20. That is, the device type information table 10
1, the common memory use flag and the common memory area for the device type information are stored in the common memory table 10.
Register to 5. In this case, the common memory area for the newly registered device type information is not secured, and the common memory use flag is turned off. When registering another device having the same information as the registered model-specific information, the common memory use flag is turned on to secure a common memory area in the RAM 10, and its address and size are stored in the common memory table 105.
Register with.

FIG. 8 shows the structure of the common memory table. For example, the device connection unit 14- of I / FNo = 0 to 3
The device type information includes A, B, C,
It is assumed that the devices 20-1 to 20-4 of A are connected and the operation starts in the order of 0 to 3. In this case, I / FNo = 0 and I / F
Since the devices 20-1 and 20-4 having the same device type information A are connected to the device connection units 14-1 and 14-4 of No = 3, the common memory use flag corresponding to the information A is set to O.
N is set, and the common memory 106 for the information A is secured.

FIG. 9 shows a format of the common memory. The common memory 106 secured on the RAM 10 includes a writing flag, a periodic transmission stop flag, and a data area in which data taken from the device is written. The address and size of the common memory 106 are set for each device type information as shown in FIG.

As described above, the MPU 4 writes the data obtained from the multiplexed device group into the common memory 106 on the RAM 10 one after another. On the other hand, the interrupt processing is started at a fixed time period by the timer 7, and the common memory 106 is activated.
Is transmitted to the communication protocol controller 11 and transmitted to the network 1 as a frame.

FIG. 10 shows the flow of processing for selecting and transmitting data using the common memory. (A) shows a process of writing data to the common memory, and (b) shows a process of transmitting data from the common memory by a timer interrupt. Since the two processes are performed asynchronously, a timer interrupt process may be performed during the process of writing data to the common memory 106.

The process (a) of writing data to the common memory is started when data is transmitted from a multiplexing device having the same device type information. Data is acquired from the reception buffer 18 connected to the multiplexing device of I / FNo = x (S
301) and copy it to the common memory area (S30)
3). Data writing of the multiplexing device is overwritten in the operation order. Before and after the copy process, the writing flag of the common memory table 105 is turned ON / OFF (S3).
02, S304).

After the end of data writing, if the periodic transmission stop flag is ON (S305), the communication protocol control unit 8
And sends a frame to the network 1 (S306), and turns off the periodic transmission stop flag (S30).
7), end. If the periodic transmission stop flag is ON in step S305, the process ends without transmitting data. Thereafter, another multiplexing device (I /
When data is transmitted from FNo = x + i), the writing process is started again, and the same data is overwritten.

On the other hand, the timer interrupt processing (b) is periodically generated by setting the timer 7. When the MPU 4 receives an interrupt from the timer 7, the MPU 4
5 is checked (S401), and the OF flag is checked.
If F, the data in the common memory 106 is sent to the communication protocol control unit 8 (S402). However, if the writing flag is ON, it means that data is being written to the common memory 106, so the periodic transmission stop flag is turned ON (S403), and the timer interrupt ends. The MPU 4 sets this periodic transmission stop flag to O in step S305.
When N is determined, it is recognized that the timer interrupt processing that has occurred during data writing has been interrupted, and the written data is transmitted to the communication protocol control unit 8.

According to this embodiment, the multiplexed data acquisition and transmission processing are separated, so that it is not necessary to wait for the transmission processing until all the multiplexed data for the same device type information are collected. Is unnecessary, and the MPU overhead can be reduced as compared with the first embodiment.

In the above description, the common memory area is reserved only for the multiplexed data. However, the same configuration is applied to the other data, and the capture and transmission of all transmission data are separated and performed asynchronously. It is also possible.

[0062]

According to the communication control apparatus of the present invention, unique device type information is set in advance for each connected device with respect to the device type and the purpose of use (or operation), and transmission data from the multiplexed device group is set. Selective transmission on the network and reception of data such as multiplexing control and the same control from the network by a plurality of devices can be processed while determining using the device type information, and a general-purpose multiplex communication control device can be provided. .

Further, according to the present invention, transmission / reception processing independent of an application such as a controller can be performed, so that a system configuration including a multiplexing device can be easily changed at low cost.

Further, the transmission counter of the device type information of the multiplexed device can manage the change of the multiplexed device due to a failure, recovery, or expansion, so that it is suitable for a system in which the configuration is frequently changed, and the reliability of the system is improved. Can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a communication control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a distribution system to which the communication control device of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 3 is a format diagram of a communication frame transmitted and received by a communication control device.

FIG. 4 is an example diagram showing a configuration of a device type information table for managing device types of connected devices.

FIG. 5 is an example diagram showing a configuration of a device type information table including a priority transmission flag.

FIG. 6 is an example diagram showing a configuration of a transmission counter table for managing life and death of multiplexed information.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing data selection transmission processing according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an example diagram showing a configuration of a common memory table according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is an example diagram showing a configuration of a common memory according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing data selection transmission processing according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 network 2 communication controller 3 controller 4 MPU 5 internal bus 6 interrupt signal line
7: timer, 8: communication protocol control unit, 9: ROM,
10 RAM, 14 device connection unit, 15 device I / F
Unit, 16: device type information register, 17: operation register, 18: reception buffer, 20: connected device, 101: device type information table, 102: transmission counter table,
103: transmission buffer, 104: reception buffer, 105
... common memory table, 106 ... common memory.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Hiroshi Wataya 5-2-1 Omikacho, Hitachi City, Ibaraki Prefecture Inside the Omika Plant, Hitachi, Ltd. (72) Tomoaki Nakamura 5-chome, Omikamachi, Hitachi City, Ibaraki Prefecture No. 1 Inside the Omika Plant of Hitachi, Ltd.

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. While transmitting and receiving a frame to and from another device in a network via a communication interface,
In a multiplex communication control method in a case where the connection device is partially multiplexed in a communication control device that exchanges data with a plurality of connection devices via a connection interface, the type and use mode of the connection device In the case of a multiplexed device, device type information that is uniquely assigned and becomes the same information is registered for each device, and when data is transmitted, data is transmitted from a data transmission device (for example, a sensor) in the connected device. Multiplexed communication control method, wherein the multiplexed communication control method comprises: sequentially taking in data, adding device type information registered in the device to the data, forming a predetermined frame including a destination address, and transmitting the frame to a network. . 2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the same device type information is registered in a data receiving device (for example, an actuator) among the connected devices, the device receiving the same data. A multiplex communication control method comprising: extracting data and device type information from a frame addressed to the device; and transmitting the data to one or more connected devices in which the same information as the device type information is registered. 3. The multiplex communication control method according to claim 1, wherein, when transmitting data, in the case of the multiplex device, only the data of the device having priority setting is transmitted. 4. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein, for each of the device type information registered with respect to the connected device, the pre-processing side and the non-multiplexing device when the multiplexing device is a dual system. A priority transmission flag and a counter use flag are set to ON for each of the multiplexing devices. When transmitting data, if the priority flag of the corresponding device type information is ON, the transmission counter is incremented by one to perform transmission processing. If the value is OFF, the transmission counter is decremented by one and the transmission process is not performed. If the value of the transmission counter exceeds a threshold value, the counter use flag is turned OFF and the process proceeds to the non-multiplex transmission process If both the priority transmission flag and the counter use flag are OFF, the counter use flag for the non-priority multiplexing device is set to ON, and the priority transmission flag is OFF and When the counter use flag is ON, the priority transmission flag for the non-priority side of the multiplexing device is turned ON to perform priority / non-priority switching, and the transmission process is performed in response to a change in the configuration of the multiplexing device. Characteristic multiplex communication control method. 5. While transmitting and receiving a frame to and from another device in the network via a communication interface,
In a multiplex communication control method in a case where the connection device is partially multiplexed in a communication control device that exchanges data with a plurality of connection devices via a connection interface, the type and use mode of the connection device In the case of a multiplexed device, device type information which is uniquely assigned and becomes the same information is registered for each device, and data from the connected device is periodically taken in order. The data from the device is written into the common memory area, and the interruption of the transmission process is prohibited during the writing process of the data for one device. If there is a fact of the interrupt during the writing process, the common process is performed after the end of the writing process. A transmission process is performed in which the device type information is added to the data in the memory area, a predetermined frame including the destination address is formed, and the frame is transmitted to the network. On the other hand, generates an interrupt of the transmission processing at a predetermined cycle, multiplex communication control method characterized in that immediately performs the transmission process when not in the writing process. 6. A communication interface unit for connecting to a network and transmitting and receiving data according to a predetermined communication protocol, and a device for controlling the system, and the like.
A plurality of connection interface units for transmitting and receiving data to and from the connected devices, a central processing unit that controls these interface units to perform data transmission / reception processing, and a communication control device including a storage device that stores the data and the like. Device type information that is uniquely assigned in correspondence with the type and use mode of the device connected to the connection interface unit is registered for each identification number of the connection interface unit, and one of the multiplexed devices is the same. In the device type information, a device type information table for setting priority transmission for each device type information for a non-multiplexed device is provided in the storage device, and the central processing unit attaches the data taken from the connected device to the device. When the priority transmission is set in the corresponding device type information to be transmitted, the data is transmitted to the communication interface unit. Communication control apparatus characterized by transferring. 7. The use of a counter according to claim 6, wherein when the multiplex device is a duplex device, a counter corresponding to the device type information is set to ON for the multiplex device and OFF for the non-multiplex device. The storage device includes a flag and a transmission counter table that stores an integrated value of the number of transmissions.The central processing unit performs transmission processing by incrementing the transmission counter by +1 for data from a device having the priority transmission setting, Data from a device that does not have the priority transmission setting is decremented by the transmission counter to perform no transmission processing, and the integrated value of the transmission counter and ON / OFF of the counter use flag are set.
A communication control device that performs a transmission process following a configuration change due to a failure or recovery of the multiplex device according to a combination of OFF. 8. The data area according to claim 6, wherein data from the multiplexing device is written.
A common memory having an area of a writing flag and an area of a periodical transmission stop flag is provided in the storage device, and a timer is provided for interrupting the periodical transmission process to the central processing unit. While writing the data to the common memory, the writing flag is turned on to disable the interrupt, and after the writing is completed, if the periodic transmission stop flag is turned on, the data in the data area is transferred to the communication interface unit. On the other hand, when the interrupt is received from the timer, if the writing flag is OFF, the data in the data area is transferred to the communication interface unit, and
A communication control device, wherein when the writing flag is ON, the periodic transmission flag is turned ON and the interrupt processing is terminated.