KR20020081635A - System and method for remotely controlling a controlled device by using the internet - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A remote control system and method is provided to control an apparatus at a remote place over the internet, specially irrespective of a network IP allocation method or the kind of an OS(Operating System) so that it can support a continuous update of a control drive or protocol as the number of the apparatuses are increased. CONSTITUTION: The system comprises a direct control client(100), a remote control client(400) and a relay server(300). The direct control client(100), connected to an apparatus being controlled, includes an instrument card(110) and a measurement device(120). The remote control client(400) transmits a control instruction for controlling the apparatus over the internet, and checks an operation state of the apparatus. The relay server(300) relays the control instruction and the operation state of the apparatus between the remote control client(400) and the direct control client(100). The relay server(300) includes a database server and an algorithm database engine. The database server operates an algorithm database storing drivers and protocols for controlling the apparatus. The algorithm database engine transmits a driver and protocol, needed for a corresponding apparatus, to the direct control client(100).

Description

Remote control system and method thereof of the controlled device over the Internet {SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR REMOTELY CONTROLLING A CONTROLLED DEVICE BY USING THE INTERNET}

The present invention relates to a remote control system, and more particularly, to a system and a method for controlling a device remotely using the Internet.

Attempts have been made to automatically control the controlled elements (or devices) in building automation, factory automation, constant temperature and humidity rooms or laboratories. The controlled element may be a device for adjusting the brightness and temperature of the room when the automatic control is used, for example, for building automation or factory automation, and for controlling a temperature, humidity, pressure, etc. in a constant temperature chamber or a laboratory. It may be a device.

In such a case, a control system can be constructed in which the two methods are usually mixed. That is, a control system that connects an instrument card having a driver that can directly control the device and a measuring instrument that can understand the state of the device through protocol communication to a computer can be configured.

At this time, when the compatibility of the protocol between the computer and the measuring instrument is a problem, it is cumbersome to purchase a separate device or to create a new program. The possession of components or libraries owned by a computer may be different, which may be a problem in software compatibility between the controller and the computer. In addition, if the software in each controller and the computer system is written using different software tools, there may be no problem in a single system, but there are many difficulties in integrating the system.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a remote control system capable of controlling a remote controlled device remotely using the Internet.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a remote control method that can control a remote control device using the Internet.

A remote control system according to an embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above object includes: a client PC for direct control to which a controlled device to be controlled is connected; At least one remote control client PC configured to check a command to control the controlled device through the Internet at a remote location and an operation state of the controlled device corresponding to the command; And a relay server system for relaying information between the direct control client PC and the remote control client PC, the control command for the controlled device and information including an operation state of the controlled device according to the command, through the Internet. Characterized in that.

In addition, the present invention is characterized by using its own protocol for generalization due to the compatibility and system integration problem of the above-mentioned protocol.

According to another embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above object, a method for remotely controlling a controlled device between a relay server system and a plurality of client PCs connected through the Internet includes: one of the plurality of client PCs; Is a direct controlling client PC to which the controlled device is connected, and the rest is a remote controlling client PC to control the controlled device from a remote location;

Providing a control system configuration solution for establishing a control environment of the controlled device from the relay server system when the direct controlling client PC is connected to the relay server system; Providing, by the direct control client PC, the selected driver and protocol from the relay server system according to a request for supplying a driver and a protocol suitable for the controller through the control system configuration solution; Transmitting a command for controlling the controlled device generated from the client PC for remote control in the relay server system to the client PC for direct control through a unique protocol of the present invention; In response to the command, controlling the controlled device at the direct controlling client PC, and transmitting information on an operation state of the corresponding controlled device to the relay server system; And providing information on an operation state of the controlled device to the client PC for remote control in the relay server system.

1 is a schematic block diagram of a remote control system constructed in accordance with the present invention;

2 is a hardware and software block diagram of each client PC shown in FIG.

3 is a hardware and software block diagram of the relay server system shown in FIG. 1;

4A is a flowchart illustrating a process for building a control system environment of a client PC for direct control;

4B is a flowchart for explaining a remote control method of a controlled device according to the present invention;

5A to 5F illustrate a web page screen illustrating a remote control method according to the present invention.

<Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

100: direct control client PC300: relay server system

400: client PC for remote control

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail the operation of the preferred embodiment according to the present invention.

The remote control system of the present invention provides a relay server 300 for relaying control commands between a plurality of client PCs 100 and 400 and a plurality of client PCs connected to the Internet 300, and information on a state corresponding to the commands. Include.

The plurality of client PCs 100, 400 includes PCs of all registered users who have registered as general users or members who use a personal computer connectable to the relay server system 300 which is the Internet service site of the present invention. Basically, each client PC 100, 400 is a communication network interface 136 having a CPU 130, a ROM 132, a RAM 134, a modem, etc. as hardware modules, as shown in FIG. And an operating system 140, a web browser 142, and a user interface module 146 as software modules. The software module illustrated in FIG. 1 is an executable program that can be loaded into the RAM 134 under the control of the CPU 130 in practical operation to realize a corresponding function.

Any one of the plurality of client PCs 100, 400, for example, PC 100 is used as a direct controlling client PC 100 to which a controlled device (not shown) to be controlled is connected, and the remaining client PCs are remote. It is used as the control client PC 400.

The client PC 100 for direct control is connected to an instrument card 110 having a driver capable of controlling a controlled device and a measuring device 120 for checking the status of the controlled device through a protocol.

The control method using the instrument card 110 has a built-in drive driver such as a device algorithm, an interface method and an operation method supplied by the manufacturer of the controlled device to control the controlled device according to a command provided from the PC 100. In this way, such a driver may be provided from the manufacturer of the controlled device at the time of purchasing the instrument card 110, or may be supplied from the relay server 300 according to the present invention described below.

The control method using the communication protocol is a method in which the client PC 100 for direct control and the instrument 120 control the controlled device while communicating via RS232, RS485, USB, GP-IB or TCP / IP protocols. It is supplied from the relay server 300 according to the present invention.

The client PC 100 for direct control connects to the service site of the relay server 300 of the present invention through the Internet 200, and downloads a driver algorithm or protocol required for the controller to the user interface 144 to control the controller. You can build an environment that controls In addition, the client PC 100 for direct control downloads the control system configuration solution provided from the relay server 300 to the user interface 144 while being connected to the relay server 300 through the Internet 200. You can also configure a custom-made web page for the control of.

The remote control client PC 400 may control a control device connected to the direct control client PC 100 at a location far from the direct control client PC 100 through the relay server 300 using a unique protocol of the present invention. Provide a response to the control command. At this time, the remote control client PC 400 accesses the service site of the relay server 300 and directly calls a web page constructed by the control client PC 100 and receives a command and a response through the web page. can do.

Here, when the unique protocol is controlled by the client PC 400 for remote control, the device algorithm DB 324 retrieves and converts the corresponding command after the call through the relay server 300 to directly transmit the converted command to the client PC 100 for control, The values received from the respective devices in the direct control client PC 100 are converted and transmitted from the relay server 300 to the graphic control designed in the remote control client PC 400.

Meanwhile, the relay server 300 may be connected to the client PC 100 for direct control and the plurality of remote control client PCs 400 through the Internet 200, and may relay a control command and a response therebetween. Perform. Basically, the relay server 300 includes a CPU 310, a ROM 312, a RAM 314, and a network interface 316 as hardware modules, and a database (hereinafter abbreviated as DB) server 320 as a software module. ), A system configuration server 330, and a command relay server 340. It will be appreciated that the software module illustrated in FIG. 3 is an executable program that can be loaded into the RAM 314 of the server system 300 to realize the corresponding function in practical operation.

The DB server 320 is a client DB 322 for client management of a plurality of direct control and remote control client PCs 100 and 400, a device algorithm DB 324 storing communication protocols and drivers of various controlled devices. , Customized service interface used for directly or remotely controlling the controlled device connected to the direct control client PC 100 in which the control interface is established and the user interface required for establishing the control environment of the client PC 100 for direct control A control system configuration solution DB 326 for configuring (see also) a web page in the form of a web page, and a log file DB 328 for recording tracks or changed setting values of the client PCs 100 and 400, and the like.

In the present invention, communication protocols and drivers of various controlled devices stored in the device algorithm DB 324 of the DB server 300 are updated with new protocols and drivers according to expansion of the controlled devices, and updated protocols and drivers. Information related to the information is provided to the client PC 100 for direct control and updated.

The system configuration server 330 stores a driver and communication protocol stored in the device algorithm DB 324 according to a request for supplying a driving driver and a communication protocol of a controlled device selected from a client PC 100 for direct control to establish a control environment. To provide. In addition, the system configuration server 330 provides a solution for constructing a web page directly from the control system configuration solution DB 326 to the control client PC 100. These solutions consist of the screen configuration required for the control system, the graphic controls used for the screen configuration, the simulation of the graphical sequence of the controlled devices, the control programming tools and compilers applied to the controlled devices, and the control from the controlled devices. Internal calculation tools and the like used when calculating response data corresponding to the command.

The command relay server 300 directly transmits a controlled device control command input from each remote control client PC 400 to the controlling client PC 100 and relates to a state of the controlled device responding according to the control command. It performs the function of providing the information back to the remote control client PC (400).

The remote control system of the present invention having the above-described configuration will be described in detail as follows with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

Referring to FIG. 4A, the client PC 100 for direct control according to the present invention connects to the server system 300 through the Internet 200 and downloads a drive or protocol of the controlled device according to the present invention. Shows the process.

First, in step 410, the client PC 100 for direct control connects to the server system via the Internet 200. At this time, if necessary, the procedure of joining as a member may be performed.

In the case of joining as a political party member, a solution required for constructing a web page for establishing and controlling a control environment from the server system 300 can be directly controlled from the system configuration solution DB 326 of the server system 300 through such a connection. 100 and stored in the user interface module 144 (step 420).

Then, the status of the controlled device connected to the direct controlling client PC 100 is searched by the downloaded solution (see FIG. 5A), and the searched result is displayed on the direct controlling client PC 100 (see FIG. 5B). ) (Step 430).

Thereafter, in step 440, if the user of the direct controlling client PC 100 selects an item of a controlled device from the list of controlled devices found in FIG. 5B, a drive for controlling the selected controlled device as needed. Alternatively, the protocol is downloaded and stored directly from the device algorithm DB 324 of the server system 300 to the controlling client PC 100, while detailed information about the controlled device is displayed (see FIG. 5C). At this time, the user of the direct control client PC (100) can selectively specify the use value of the controlled device.

In a subsequent step 450, the user of the direct controlling client PC 100 is listed on the screen displayed on his monitor, for building a web home page for customizing the controlled device set as described above. For example, select the desired design from Main Frame, Connect Frame, Control Frame, Home Frame, Chat Frame, Graph Frame, and WebCam Frame. 5D illustrates that Main Frame, Connect Frame, and Control Frame are selected. In this case, as illustrated in FIG. 5E, the user may change a setting value of the selected frame.

FIG. 5F shows a web page screen set up by a user, and an example of a graph frame selected in the web page is shown in the lower part of FIG. 5F.

Referring to FIG. 4B, in the state where a control environment for controlling a controlled device and a web page are constructed as described above, the client PC 400 for remote control and the client PC for direct control are provided through the relay server 300 of the present invention. The communication process made between the 100 is described.

First, when the remote control client PC 400 accesses the server system 300 (step 510), and is authenticated as a party user through the authentication process of a user having an existing membership (step 520), the server system 300 In step 530, a web page constructed as illustrated in FIG. 5F may be called.

Thereafter, as in step 540, in order to prevent confusion caused by multiple users controlling a control device for one control system, whether the user connected to the server system 300 is a user who merely checks the operation state of the device. Otherwise, the process of distinguishing whether the user has the control right of the controlled device is performed. In this case, the user who has the control right is referred to as the administrator of the control system, and the user who does not have the control right but only checks the information on the control state of the controlled device is called a guest. The administrator and guest can be distinguished by a combination of user profiles stored in the user DB.

Then, if the user accessing the server system 300 at the remote location is authenticated as an administrator, proceed to step 550; otherwise, if authenticated as a guest, proceed to step 610.

In step 550, when the administrator who is a user of the remote control client PC 400 clicks the access button on the web page screen (see FIG. 5F) displayed on his PC 400, the administrator directly controls the client PC ( 100) and the server system 300, the online state, the remote controllable state of the controlled device and the state to grasp the current situation is prepared. In this regard, the client PC 100 for direct control, which is connected to the server system 300 via the Internet 200, is connected to the user configuration web page screen for control via the server system 300. At the time of current connection, his IP status is logged in the server system 300.

Thereafter, the user of the remote control client PC 400 wants to know the status of the controlled device on the web page screen, for example, data measurement status, operation status, etc., or as desired by the controlled device, for example, on / off control. In order to press a numbered selection button on a web page, this command is received through a real-time command check loop of the command relay server 340 of the server system 300, and directly controlled by the client PC via the Internet 200. Provided to 100 (step 560).

Then, the direct-control client PC 100 controls the controlled device connected thereto in response to the command transmitted from the server system 300, and responds to the controlled device controlled according to the command, or Obtain a controlled state (step 570).

In a subsequent step 580, the information obtained by the direct controlling client PC 100 is provided to the command relay server 340, and then sent back to the remote controlling client PC 400 therethrough.

In this case, the information regarding the operation state from the relay server 340 to the client PC 400 for remote control may be displayed as, for example, a numerical value illustrated in the web page of FIG. 5F. If you would like to see this behavior in a graph, you can also press the graph button.

On the other hand, except that the control process by the guest in the steps 610 to 640 provides a command to confirm only the operating state of the controlled device instead of controlling the controlled device in the above-described control process by the administrator. Since the process is the same as the control process by the administrator, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As described above, the present invention has been described and illustrated as a preferred embodiment, but may be modified by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, in the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the remote control client PC 400 controls the controlled device connected directly to the controlling PC 100 through the server system 300 of the present invention via the Internet 200. Although described, alternatively, it may be possible to connect the direct controlling client PC 100 and the remote controlling client PC 400 directly online without going through the server 300 of the present invention. This is possible by the server system 300 receiving the current IP status of the direct controlling client PC 100 from the direct controlling client PC 100, in which case the remote controlling client PC (as illustrated in the web page of FIG. 5F). The target IP of 400 will be made by receiving the current IP information of the client PC 100 for direct control from the log DB.

In addition, although the remote control method of the present invention is described and illustrated as being made in a state of being connected to a relay server system via the Internet, the control system construction solution is directly controlled via an external storage medium, for example, a CD ROM, or the like. May be provided. In this case, the remote control client PC will be able to remotely control the controlled device connected to the client PC for direct control using the fixed IP described above.

As described above, the remote control system of the present invention is not limited to the type of network connection method, that is, fixed IP or dynamic IP, and it is possible to build a remote control system independent of the operating system by using a web application. It is possible. In addition, it is possible to continuously update the drive and protocol of the controlled device in accordance with the expansion of the controlled device, thereby enabling the construction of a quick and convenient control system, and it is possible to provide an advantage that it is easy to cope with an abnormal occurrence.

Claims (7)

In a system for controlling a remote control device over the Internet, A direct control client PC to which the controlled device to be controlled is connected; At least one remote control client PC configured to check a command to control the controlled device through the Internet at a remote location and an operation state of the controlled device corresponding to the command; And a relay server system for relaying information between the direct control client PC and the remote control client PC, the control command for the controlled device and information including an operation state of the controlled device according to the command, through the Internet. Remote control system, characterized in that. The method of claim 1, The relay server system is: A database server having a device algorithm database storing drivers and protocols for controlling various controlled devices; A device algorithm database engine providing the direct control client PC with a driver and a protocol required for the controlled device selected from among the drivers and protocols of the controlled devices stored in the device algorithm database; A relay server that provides a command from the remote control client PC to the direct control client PC via the Internet, and transmits information on an operation state of the controlled device according to the command to the remote control client PC; Remote control system, characterized in that. The method of claim 2, The database server stores a control system configuration solution for allowing the direct controlling client PC to select a drive and protocol of the controlled device connected thereto, and establishing an environment for controlling the controlled device according to the selected drive and protocol. Further comprising a control system configuration solution database; The system configuration server is: And when the direct control client PC is connected to the relay server system via the Internet, providing the control system configuration solution stored in the system configuration solution database to the direct control client PC. The method of claim 3, wherein The control system configuration solution comprises a solution for constructing a web page in a customized form to build an environment in which the direct control client PC controls the controlled device. The method of claim 4, wherein The remote control client PC transmits a command for controlling the controlled device through the web page through a unique protocol, and confirms an operation state corresponding to the command of the controlled device through the web page. Remote control system. The method of claim 5, And said unique protocol for control and status check between said remote control client PC, said relay server, and direct control client PC. In a method of controlling a remote controller between a relay server system and a plurality of client PCs connected through the Internet, One of the plurality of client PCs is a direct controlling client PC to which the controlled device is connected, and the other is a remote controlling client PC to control the controlled device from a remote location; Providing a control system configuration solution for establishing a control environment of the controlled device from the relay server system when the direct controlling client PC is connected to the relay server system; Providing, by the direct control client PC, the selected driver and protocol from the relay server system according to a request for supplying a driver and a protocol suitable for the controller through the control system configuration solution; Transmitting a command for controlling the controlled device generated from the client PC for remote control in the relay server system to the client PC for direct control; In response to the command, controlling the controlled device at the direct controlling client PC, and transmitting information on an operation state of the corresponding controlled device to the relay server system; And providing information on an operation state of the controlled device to the client PC for remote control in the relay server system.