KR20060002594A - Home network system - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a home network system, and in particular, by separately implementing an LnCP library to correspond to each client based on various protocols, it is easy to extend the LnCP library when it is necessary to support a client based on any protocol. There is a purpose. The present invention for this purpose is connected to the inside of the home network LnCP-based devices (410 ~ 430) that performs control commands outside the home network, and monitors the IP address assigned to the devices (410 ~ 430) When the control command for any of the devices 410 ~ 430 is received from outside the home network, the LnCP server 300 for transmitting the control command to the corresponding device and the status information response to the corresponding device, and the LnCP server 300 The gateway 200 connecting the external network of the home network and the control commands for the devices 410 ˜ 430 are transmitted to the LnCP server 300 and receive status information according to the control commands. It is characterized by including the client 100 to display.

Description

Home Network System {HOME NETWORK SYSTEM}

1 is a block diagram of a home network system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the drawings

100: client 200: gateway

300: LnCP server 310: network module

320: message processing module 330: LnGate API

340: LnCP Library Module

The present invention relates to home appliance control, and more particularly, to a home network system.

Recently, the construction of a home automation system that enables remote control via the Internet by connecting a plurality of home appliances installed in a home through a network is spreading.

Currently, home appliances have a microchip equipped with a serial communication function to communicate with a microcomputer or a device.

However, microchips embedded in home appliances have various resources that can be used for communication depending on the performance of the device.

For example, in the case of a personal computer (PC) or a multimedia device such as TV or audio, a high-performance hardware specification is adopted to realize various functions, and thus a specification for a large amount of data and high-speed communication is required.

On the other hand, functions such as refrigerators, washing machines, microwave ovens, lights, or boilers are very simple compared to those of PCs or multimedia devices, and generally adopt low-function microchips of 8 bits or less.

In the case of a home appliance employing such a low-function microchip, a standard capable of communicating with minimum resources is required for remote control or operation status monitoring.

LG Electronics has developed Living Network Control Protocol (LnCP) to provide Internet services to home appliances installed in homes.

LnCP-based home network is equipped with a home network server that can coordinate various home appliances in the home, and connects various electric appliances such as refrigerators, air conditioners, washing machines, and microwave ovens without any equipment or complicated construction. Power Line Communication (PLC) is used to connect various home appliances in one network.

Conventional LnCP generates, processes, and manages all messages through a single flow. In other words, the conventional LnCP does not implement a layer or a handler for each function, and thus processes a sequence from the header of the packet to the tail in one routine.

However, in the related art, it is difficult to expand when adding functions of various media by integrating and implementing an application for homenet control on a server without dividing them by layers.

Accordingly, the present invention has been devised to facilitate the extension of the LnCP library when it is necessary to support a client based on any protocol by separately implementing the LnCP library to correspond to each client of various protocols in order to improve the conventional disadvantage. An object of the present invention is to provide a home network system.

In particular, an object of the present invention is to implement a network module mounted on the LnCP server as a plurality of connection handlers that can support a variety of protocols so that clients of various protocols can easily access the home network.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a plurality of devices, which are LnCP-based home appliances that are connected inside a home network and also perform control commands outside the home network, and monitor the IP addresses assigned to the plurality of devices. When the control command for any of the devices of the outside of the home network is received from the LnCP server for transmitting it to the corresponding device and the status information response accordingly, and connecting the LnCP server and the external network of the home network It comprises a gateway (Gateway), and a client (client) for transmitting a control command for the plurality of devices to the LnCP server and receives the status information according to the control command to display on the screen.

In the above configuration, it characterized in that it comprises a portal server for transmitting a control command input from the client to the LnCP server.

The LnCP server includes a network module that performs message transmission and reception with a plurality of clients, a message processing module that interprets transmission and reception messages with the network module, and control interpreted by the message processor module. LnCP Library Module for transmitting commands to the corresponding device in the home network and a response under the control of the device to the message processing module, and LnGate API for the interface between the message processing module and LnCP library module It is characterized by the configuration.

The network module is characterized in that it comprises a plurality of connection handlers (Connection Handler) for supporting the home network connection of various media (for example, Internet, PDA, phone, UPnP, ...).

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

1 is a block diagram of a home network system according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, an LnCP-based device 410 to 430 connected to an inside of a home network to perform a control command outside the home network, and FIG. Monitors the IP addresses assigned to the devices 410 to 430, and when a control command for any of the devices 410 to 430 is received from outside the home network, transmits it to the corresponding device and sends a status information response accordingly. LnCP server 300 to transmit to the device, the gateway (Gateway) 200 for connecting the LnCP server 300 and the external network of the home network, and the control commands for the devices (410 ~ 430) and input the It comprises a client 100 for receiving the status information according to the control command to display on the screen.

The client 100 may be a web server 110, a DDR / MIR 120, a personal digital assistance 130, a UPnP-LnCP bridge 140 according to a supported protocol. ), A phone (Phone) 150 and the like.

The LnCP server 300 includes a network module 310 that performs message transmission and reception with a plurality of clients, a message processing module 320 that interprets transmission and reception messages with the network module, and a network module 310. A LnCP library module 340 for transmitting a control command interpreted by the message processor module to a corresponding device in a home network and a response according to the control of the device to the message processing module; And LnGate API 330 for the interface between the LnCP library module.

The network module 310 includes a plurality of connection handlers each supporting home network connection of various media (eg, Internet, PDA, phone, UPnP, ...).

In FIG. 1, the network module 310 only shows an Internet connection handler 311, a PDA connection handler 312, and a UPnP connection handler 313. If necessary, various handlers may be configured to further include, for example, a phone connection handler.

Referring to the operation and effect of the embodiment of the present invention configured as described above are as follows.

First, in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, it is assumed that a portal server (not shown) is included in order to transmit a control command input to the client 100 to the LnCP server 300. For example, the portal server (not shown) may include a DreamLG site.

The portal server (not shown) includes a simple mail transfer protocol (SMTP) server, a web server (Web server), a short message service (SMS) server, and a control command processed by the server through the LnCP server 300 through the Internet. It can be configured to include a remote control server for transmission to the network.

In addition, in an embodiment of the present invention, the LnCP server 300 gives an IP address to devices 410 to 430, which are LnCP-based home appliances connected to a home network, and checks them in real time and provides them to a portal server (not shown). do. If the floating IP addresses of the plurality of devices 410 to 430 are changed, the LnCP server 300 detects this and transmits the same to the portal server (not shown).

Accordingly, a client outside the home network can identify a device to be controlled at any time and transmit a control command to the device.

In the embodiment of the present invention, a process of controlling the devices 410 to 430 which are LnCP-based home appliances is as follows.

The client 100 transmits a control command of the user input to the LnCP server 300. For example, the home appliance control command input to the PDA 130 or the phone 150 is transmitted to the portal server (not shown) and then to the LnCP server 300. If the phone 150 is a mobile phone, the control command is transmitted to the portal server (not shown) through the WAP-based wireless base station and then to the LnCP server 300. In addition, the UPnP-LnCP bridge 140 transmits a control command written in an eXtensible Markup Language (XML) document to a portal server (not shown) in the UPnP-based device to the LnCP server 300.

The control command transmitted from the portal server (not shown) is transmitted to the LnCP server 300 through the gateway 200.

The gateway 200 may exchange information between communication networks by interconnecting different or same types of communication networks, and connects clients outside the home network with the LnCP server 300.

The LnCP server 300 interprets the control command received through the gateway 200 and transmits it to the corresponding device among the devices 410 ˜ 430 to perform an operation corresponding to the control command.

Thereafter, when the LnCP server 300 receives a response from the corresponding device according to the control command, the LnCP server 300 converts the Internet into a form capable of Internet transmission and transmits the result to the portal server (not shown).

Accordingly, the portal server (not shown) interprets the response, identifies the client to receive the response, and transmits the response to the client 100.

In addition, the operation of the LnCP server 300 will be described.

First, the LnCP server 300 receives a control command transmitted by the network module 310 from outside the home network. At this time, the network module 310 receives a command transmitted from the web server 110 by the Internet connection handler 311 and a command transmitted from the PDA 130 by the PDA connection handler 312 and a UPnP connection handler 313. ) Receives the command sent via the UPnP-LnCP bridge 140.

Subsequently, when the message processing module 320 interprets the control command received from the handler mounted in the network module 310, the LnGate API 330 converts the LnCP library module 340 into a form that can be recognized by the LnCP library module 340.

Accordingly, the LnCP library module 340 controls the corresponding device among the devices 410 to 430.

Subsequently, when the LnCP library module 340 responds to the state information on the result of performing the operation of the corresponding device to which the control command is transmitted, the LnCP library module 340 responds to the message processing module 320 through the LnGate API 330.

In this case, the message processing module 320 converts the state information into a form capable of Internet transmission and transmits the state information to the network module 310.

The network module 310 receives the status information according to the control result of the device, the control handler receives the control command and transmits the status information to the client through the gateway 200.

On the other hand, the process of controlling the device 410 in the PDA 130, for example, will be described as follows.

The user's control command input to the PDA 130 is input to the LnCP server 300 through the gateway 200.

The LnCP server 300 receives a control command of a user input from the PDA connection handler 312 mounted in the network module 310 and transmits the control command to the message processing module 320.

The message processing module 320 interprets the control command, checks which device is to be controlled or which control command for operation, and then transmits the message to the LnCP library module 340 through the LnGate API 330.

Accordingly, the LnCP library module 340 transmits a control command to the device 410 and receives a response thereto.

In this case, the device 410 performs an operation according to the control command and generates status information indicating the success or failure of the operation and responds to the LnCP server 300.

The state information responded to the LnCP server 300 is transmitted to the portal server (not shown) through the gateway 200.

At this time, the portal server (not shown) confirms that the status information transmitted from the device 410 by analyzing the header and the like contained in the data packet of the status information, and at the same time confirms that the status information should be transmitted to the PDA 130. Done.

Thereafter, the portal server (not shown) transmits the checked state to the PDA 130. Therefore, the status information according to the execution of the control command is displayed on the PDA R1, and the user confirms it.

As described in detail above, the present invention classifies a plurality of handlers supporting each protocol and mounts them in a network module to enable communication based on various protocols, as well as to connect a corresponding protocol-based client. Equipped with a bay, it is easy to extend the client.

Claims (4)

A plurality of LnCP-based devices connected inside the home network to perform control commands outside the home network; LnCP server for monitoring the IP address assigned to the plurality of devices, and if the control command for any one of the plurality of devices is received from the outside of the home network, and transmits it to the corresponding device and transmits the status information response to the corresponding device. Wow, A gateway connecting the LnCP server and an external network of a home network; And a client transmitting a control command for the plurality of devices to the LnCP server and receiving and displaying status information according to the control command on a screen. The home network system of claim 1, further comprising a portal server for transmitting a control command input from a client to the LnCP server. The method of claim 1, wherein the LnCP server A network module for transmitting and receiving messages to and from clients based on various protocols, A message processing module for interpreting transmission and reception messages with the network module; An LnCP library module which transmits a control command interpreted by the message processor module to a corresponding device in a home network and transmits a response according to the control of the device to the message processing module; And an LnGate API for interfacing between the message processing module and the LnCP library module. The network module of claim 3, wherein the network module is A home network system comprising a plurality of connection handlers each supporting a home network connection of a client based on various protocols (eg, Internet, PDA, phone, UPnP, ...) .

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