KR100657793B1 - Method and apparatus for controlling home-network devices - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed are a method and apparatus for controlling a home network device that can integrally control a device connected to a home network in various protocol environments.

An apparatus for controlling a home network device according to the present invention includes an XML processor for extracting device information, protocol adapter information, and protocol driver information included in an XML message transmitted from a remote client, and device information and protocol adapter extracted from the XML processor. A device manager for searching for a protocol adapter using information, a protocol driver manager for searching for a protocol driver using device information and protocol driver information extracted from the XML processor, and locations of the searched protocol adapters and protocol drivers; It includes an XML storage for storing information.

According to the present invention, by providing a protocol adapter and protocol driver information for controlling the home network device through a standardized XML message, it is possible to provide an environment for controlling the home network device connected through various protocols.

Web Services, XML, Home Networks

Description

Method and apparatus for controlling home network devices

1 is a view showing an example of the structure of a conventional home network.

2 is a schematic diagram of an overall network structure including a control device of a home network device according to the present invention;

3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the apparatus for controlling a home network device according to the present invention;

4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a user interface provided to a remote client in the home network device control apparatus according to the present invention.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a process of registering protocol information of a device in a control device of a home network device according to the present invention;

6 is a flowchart illustrating a process of inquiring protocol information of a device connected to a home network when a remote client executes a remote control service according to the present invention.

The present invention relates to the control of a home network device, and more specifically, to a protocol adapter and a protocol driver for controlling a home network device using a simple object access protocol (SOAP) through a web service at a remote location. The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for controlling a home network device that can integrally control a device connected to a home network in various protocol environments.

The home network is intricately connected to consumer electronics devices in different fields such as information appliances such as computers / printers / faxes, AV appliances such as TVs / audio / video / DVDs, and control appliances such as lighting / door locks / air conditioning / washing machines. It is. The consumer electronic device is connected through various protocols such as telephone line, power line (PLC), Ethernet, Bluetooth, IEEE 1394 and the like.

1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a structure of a conventional home network.

Referring to FIG. 1, a telephone line 12 is connected to a telephone 12a, a notebook computer 12b, a fax 12c, and a computer to form a sub network. The notebook computer 13a and the PDA 13b are connected to the wireless or Bluetooth network 13. The computer 14a, the printer 14b, and the scanner 14c are connected to the USB network 14. The IEEE 1394 15 is a communication protocol for AV devices, to which a TV 15a, a camcorder 15b, and an audio 15c are connected. The coffee maker 16a, the rice cooker 16b, the refrigerator 16c, and the washing machine 16d are connected to the power line 160. These sub-networks 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16 are interconnected by a connection device 17 such as a bridge to form a home network. The gateway or home server 11 functions as a path connecting each device existing in these sub-networks with an external network.

As described above, the conventional home network 10 is a mixture of existing networks such as telephone lines and power lines, and new networks such as Bluetooth networks and IEEE 1394 networks.

Since each device of the home network operates on different hardware and software platforms, a separate user interface has to be constructed to control each device connected to the home network 10. In addition, since the protocols are different for each manufacturer even among devices in the same subnetwork, there is a problem in that a user interface must be designed and developed for a specific device in order to control a home network device. That is, in the related art, a user interface for integrating and controlling all home appliances connected to a home network is not provided, and there is a problem in that a user interface must be developed for each product.

In addition, according to the related art, by configuring a socket server and a client for TCP / IP communication at a remote location, definition of data transmitted and received is cumbersome, and there is a security problem because communication data is included in a screen of a remote client.

In addition, according to the related art, since a configuration for giving a control command to a home network device at a remote location is dependent on each device, the communication between the remote site and the home server is defined for each device and the application to be manually loaded on the middleware is manually implemented. There is a problem that must be fitted.

 Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the above problems, the control of the home network device that can integrally control the home network devices of various protocols at a remote location by using SOAP communication supporting the XML-based standard protocol It is an object to provide a method and an apparatus thereof.

In addition, the present invention provides a single interface at the remote location with the control command, status command abstracted to the device connected to the home network, providing a unified user interface regardless of the protocol of each device to control the home network device at the remote location The purpose is to facilitate.

In addition, the present invention is to define a simple and intuitive application programming interface (API) when controlling a device connected to a home network from a remote location, and to apply to standard device control such as web services or XML to control devices of various protocols Its purpose is to construct a home network system that can make a service component capable of being made available and to reuse that service.

In order to solve the above technical problem, the control device of the home network device of the present invention includes an XML processing unit for extracting device information, protocol adapter information, and protocol driver information included in an XML message transmitted from a remote client; A device manager searching for a protocol adapter by using device information and protocol adapter information extracted by the XML processor; A protocol driver manager to search for a protocol driver using device information and protocol driver information extracted by the XML processor; And an XML storage unit for storing information including locations of the searched protocol adapters and protocol drivers.

When the device manager receives a remote control request from a client of the remote location, the device manager may form a protocol adapter object using location information of the protocol adapter stored in the XML storage.

When the protocol driver manager receives a remote control request from a client of the remote location, the protocol driver manager forms a protocol driver object by using location information of the protocol driver stored in the XML storage.

The control device preferably provides the remote client with a user interface called using a web service.

A control method of a home network device according to an aspect of the present invention includes analyzing a registration request XML message of a home network device and extracting protocol adapter and protocol driver information included in the XML message; Searching for a protocol adapter and a protocol driver by using the extracted protocol adapter and protocol driver information; And storing location information of the found protocol adapter and protocol driver.

The location information of the retrieved protocol adapter and protocol driver is preferably stored in the form of an XML document.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of controlling a home network device, the method comprising: receiving device information through an XML message from a remote client; Querying protocol adapter and protocol driver information of a corresponding device using the device information.

The method may further include forming a protocol adapter and a protocol driver object by using the inquired protocol adapter and protocol driver information.

Preferably, the XML message includes predetermined location information for receiving a protocol adapter and a protocol driver.

First, a web service will be described in order to help understanding of the present invention.

Web service technology is a service integration technology that can automate tasks using data communication between different applications on different platforms. Web services are getting more attention as the various heterogeneous platform environments that dynamically interact on the network become popular.

Web services ensure interoperability so that programs written in separate languages on separate platforms can communicate with each other on a standards-based basis. The same concept exists in the conventional CORBA (Common Object Request Broker Architecture), but the framework using SOAP is highly scalable and flexible. When these web services are realized, any device and any program can perform the desired functions remotely through SOAP.

The present invention provides a protocol adapter and protocol driver information for controlling a device connected to a home network at a remote location through SOAP communication supporting an XML-based standard protocol by using the advantages of a platform- and protocol-independent web service. It is to provide a home network control apparatus operable in a protocol environment.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

2 is a diagram schematically showing an overall network structure including a control device 200 of a home network device according to the present invention.

The remote client 100 transmits a control command for controlling the devices 201 to 203 of the home network in the form of an XML message 110 using SOAP using a web service standard. Here, the devices 201 to 203 of the home network may be connected using various protocols such as PLC communication, RF communication, IEEE 1394 communication, Bluetooth, wireless LAN, HomePNA, JINI, UPnP.

The control command transmitted from the remote client 100 in the form of an XML message may include a status inquiry of the home network device, an operation command, registration, modification, and deletion of the device.

The control device 210 of the home network device according to the present invention provides the remote client 100 with an integrated user interface for controlling the home network device, and transmits it from the remote client through the XML message 110. The devices 201 to 203 connected through various protocols by generating a protocol adapter and a protocol driver for converting the control command into a command recognizable by the devices by using the information included in the XML message 110. ) To control. Here, the control device 210 of the home network device may be provided inside the home server or home gateway or may be provided separately.

The XML message 110 includes model information, protocol adapter information, protocol driver information, control command, etc. of a device to be controlled. The home network device controller 210 according to the present invention processes the XML message 110 to search for a protocol adapter and a driver of a corresponding device to be controlled by a remote client, and the predetermined control command requested by the remote client. It provides an environment that can convert the data into a form that each device can recognize.

3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the home network device control apparatus 210 according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3, the home network device control apparatus 210 according to the present invention includes an XML processor 211, an XML storage 212, a device manager 213, and a protocol driver manager 214.

The XML processor 211 processes the XML message transmitted from the remote client 100 to extract device information, protocol adapter information, and protocol driver information included in the XML message. The device information may include information regarding a model name, a manufacturer, and the like of the device. The protocol adapter information and protocol driver information include information about an IP address of a server that can receive the actual protocol adapter and protocol driver.

Here, the protocol adapter is responsible for converting a control command delivered in the form of an abstracted XML message into a control command that can be applied to an actual protocol. The protocol driver is a logical protocol and an actual physical network of each device manufacturer. The part in charge of communication between.

In addition, the information about the protocol adapter and the protocol driver of the device, the protocol adapter and the protocol driver itself provided by the manufacturer of the device for a particular device may be an XML document, or otherwise receive the protocol adapter and protocol driver May be the address of a particular server.

The home network device control apparatus 210 according to the present invention searches for the protocol adapter and the protocol driver that are individually defined and used according to the protocol by using the device information, the protocol adapter information, and the protocol driver information included in the XML message. This enables the control of integrated home network devices in various protocol environments.

In other words, the communication between the remote client and the home network is performed in a unified form called a SOAP-based XML message, and by providing the XML message with information such as the location where the protocol adapter or protocol driver can be provided, a specific protocol is provided. It is to be provided with the protocol adapter and protocol driver required according to the device to be controlled without being bound to it.

The device manager 213 searches for a protocol adapter for the corresponding device by using the device information and protocol adapter information extracted from the XML processor 211, and stores the location information where the protocol adapter is stored in the XML storage unit ( 212).

When the device manager 213 receives a remote control command such as a status inquiry or an operation command from a remote client, the device manager 213 inquires the XML storage unit 212 and inquires the location information of the protocol adapter. Instantiate a protocol adapter object by reading the protocol adapter stored in the location information.

The protocol driver manager 214 manages a protocol driver implemented based on a driver provided by a device manufacturer, receives device information from the XML processor 211, and searches for a protocol driver necessary for controlling the corresponding device. The location information is stored in the XML storage unit 212.

In addition, when the protocol driver manager 214 receives a remote control command such as a status query or an operation command from a remote client, the protocol driver manager 214 requests the XML storage unit 212 to query the location information of the protocol driver. The protocol driver is read from a predetermined location indicated by the location information, and the protocol driver object of the corresponding device is instantiated.

The XML storage unit 212 stores location information about the protocol adapter and protocol driver retrieved from the device manager 213 and the protocol driver manager 214.

4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a user interface 204 provided to a remote client in the home network device control apparatus according to the present invention. The control device 210 of the home network device according to the present invention is called by a web service from a remote user, and provides one interface for controlling registration, modification, and deletion of the home network device.

Referring to FIG. 4, the apparatus for controlling a home network device according to the present invention provides a remote client with a status inquiry 204a, a device operation command 204b, a device registration 204c, a device modification 204d, and a device deletion ( A single user interface 204, such as 204e), and the remote client may select which control operations to perform on the device via the user interface 204.

The control command input through the user interface 204 is transmitted to the control device of the home network device according to the present invention in the form of the XML message, and is processed by the XML processor 211, and the device manager 213 and The protocol driver manager 214 performs management operations such as registering, modifying, and deleting a protocol adapter and a driver of a device to be controlled, or perform a control operation such as a status inquiry or an operation command.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a process of registering protocol information of a device in a control device of a home network device according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, when a remote device intends to register a predetermined device in a home network, when a device registration is selected through the user interface, an XML message including a model name of the device and information on a protocol adapter and a protocol driver is included. Is transmitted to the home network device controller to call the device registration service to the controller 210 (step 300).

The XML processor 211 processes the XML message and transmits device information and protocol adapter information to the device manager 213 to request a protocol adapter registration (step 310). The device manager 213 receiving the registration request searches for a corresponding protocol adapter by using the device information and protocol adapter information, and requests the registration information of the protocol adapter to the XML storage unit 212 (step 320). .

In addition, the XML processor 211 makes a driver registration request for the corresponding device to the protocol driver manager 214 (step 330). The protocol driver manager 214 receiving the driver registration request searches for a corresponding protocol driver by using the device information and protocol driver information, and requests registration of the protocol driver's location information to the XML storage unit 212 ( Step 340).

Through the above process, protocol adapter and driver location information about a specific device to be incorporated into a home network is stored in the XML storage unit 212.

In FIG. 5, the device registration process has been described. However, the device modification or deletion operation is performed by the same process as described above.

6 is a flowchart illustrating a process of inquiring protocol information of a device connected to a home network when a remote client executes a remote control service according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6, when a remote client transmits a status inquiry or operation command of a device connected to a home network through an XML message (step 400), the XML processing unit 211 may transmit device information included in the XML message. The extracted information is transmitted to the device manager 213 to request an inquiry of the protocol adapter for the corresponding device (step 410). The device manager 213 requests a protocol adapter information inquiry from the XML storage unit 212 according to the inquiry request (step 420).

At the same time, the XML processor 211 makes a protocol driver inquiry request to the protocol driver manager 214 (step 430), and the protocol driver manager 214 receives the request to the XML storage unit 212 of the device. Request information inquiry of the protocol driver (step 440).

Through the above process, the device manager 213 and the protocol driver manager 214, which have obtained the location information about the protocol adapter and the protocol driver, respectively, from the predetermined storage point indicated by the location information, the protocol adapter object of the corresponding device. And reading the protocol driver and creating the object to provide an environment for controlling the home network device from a remote location.

As such, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention may be implemented in a modified form without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention. Therefore, the disclosed embodiments should be considered in descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation. The scope of the present invention is shown in the claims rather than the foregoing description, and all differences within the scope will be construed as being included in the present invention.

According to the present invention as described above, by providing the protocol adapter and protocol driver information for the control of the home network device through a standardized XML message can provide an environment for the control of the home network device connected by various protocols. have.

Claims (9)

In the control device of a home network device, An XML processor for extracting device information, protocol adapter information, and protocol driver information included in an XML message transmitted from a remote client; A device manager searching for a protocol adapter by using device information and protocol adapter information extracted by the XML processor; A protocol driver manager to search for a protocol driver using device information and protocol driver information extracted by the XML processor; And An XML storage unit for storing information including the location of the found protocol adapter and protocol driver, and when receiving a remote control request from a client of the remote location, the device manager and the protocol driver manager respectively store protocols stored in the XML storage unit. And a protocol adapter object and a protocol driver object by using the location information of the adapter and the protocol driver. delete delete The method of claim 1, And the control device provides the remote client with a user interface called using a web service. In the control method of a home network device, Receiving a registration request XML message of a home network device to be registered in the home network from a remote client, and analyzing the XML message to extract device information, protocol adapter and protocol driver information included in the XML message; Searching for a corresponding protocol adapter and a protocol driver of a home network device to be registered in the home network by using the extracted device information, protocol adapter and protocol driver information; And And storing location information of the retrieved protocol adapter and protocol driver in the form of an XML document. delete In the control method of a home network device, Receiving, via an XML message, information about a device to be inquired from devices connected to the home network from a remote client; Extracting device information included in the XML message and inquiring protocol adapter and protocol driver information of the corresponding device using the extracted device information; And And forming a protocol adapter and a protocol driver object by using the inquired protocol adapter and protocol driver information. delete The method of claim 7, wherein The XML message includes a predetermined location information for receiving a protocol adapter and a protocol driver.

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