KR20200134007A - control system for stage dveicE and operating method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

According to the present invention, disclosed are a stage device control system and an operating method thereof, wherein the stage device control system includes: a plurality of stage devices; at least one slave board each connected to the plurality of stage devices; a control module connected to the at least one slave board; a main server and a sub-server connected to the control module; a main console for operating the main server; and a sub-console for operating the sub-server.

Description

Stage device control system and its operating method {control system for stage dveicE and operating method thereof}

The present invention relates to a stage device control, and more particularly, to a dual EtherCAT master system capable of immediate recovery in case of failure of a console server or an EtherCAT master module in a stage device system controlled in real time.

Various stage equipment such as sound equipment, lighting equipment, event generating equipment, etc. may be used as equipment used for the stage, and these stage equipment must be provided with a function capable of differently adjusting the output according to the situation of the stage. However, since it is not easy for a person to directly control each stage device according to the situation in a situation where performances such as plays, operas, and concerts are being performed, a stage device control system that controls each stage device from the central control station Was developed.

Conventional stage device control systems use serial communication of RS-232 (Recommended Standard-232), RS-422 or RS-485, and each of them through TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) communication from a central server. It is configured to control the stage equipment. On the other hand, in the conventional stage device control system, when a communication failure such as disconnection or traffic congestion occurs, each stage device cannot be automatically controlled at the central control station and must be switched to manual control by a person until the corresponding communication failure is restored. There is a problem.

Unexamined Patent Publication No. 10-2011-0134819 (Publication date: 2011. 12. 15)

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to secure the system stability by configuring the system to immediately recover the system in real time when a failure or communication failure of the EtherCAT master occurs in the stage device control system, and a stage device that can be applied to various performance venue environments. It is to provide a control system and a method of operating the same.

The present invention is based on system duplication between a console server that generates control commands for stage equipment in a concert hall and an EtherCAT master in charge of real-time control of the stage equipment, and provides consoles and servers for various stage equipment such as sound, lighting and video equipment. Or, it is to provide a stage device control system that can support immediate recovery when problems such as equipment failure or communication failure of the EtherCAT master occur, and a method of operating the same.

The stage device control system according to the present invention includes a plurality of stage devices, at least one slave board each connected to the plurality of stage devices, a control module connected to the at least one slave board, and a main server connected to the control module. And a sub server, a main console for operating the main server, and a sub server for operating the sub server.

The control module may include an Ethernet switching hub connected to the main sub and the sub server, and a first Ethercat master and a second Ethercat master respectively connected to the Ethernet switching sub.

The stage device control system includes a first Ethercat switching hub connected to the first Ethercat master, a second Ethercat switching hub connected to the second Ethercat master, the first Ethercat switching hub, and the second Ether. A third Ethercat switching hub disposed between the cat switching hub and the slave board may be further included.

The main console may include a key for turning-on or turn-off control of the first Ethercat switching hub.

The sub-console may include a key for controlling turn-on or turn-off of the second Ethercat switching hub.

A method of operating a stage device control system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a stage device control including a main server and a sub server selectively connected to a plurality of stage devices and at least one slave board respectively connected to the plurality of stage devices. In the operating method of the system, the step of determining whether there is an Ethernet communication error by accessing the main server based on a main console, and when the Ethernet communication is normal, determining whether there is an error in the EtherCAT communication interface connected to the main server. The step, when an abnormality in the Ethercat communication interface occurs, may include performing control of the plurality of stage devices by accessing the sub server based on the sub console.

The operating method may further include turning off power to the EtherCAT switching hub connected between the main server and the at least one slave board when an abnormality in the EtherCAT communication interface occurs.

According to the stage apparatus control system and its operation method according to the present invention, the present invention can improve the stability of the stage apparatus system in a concert hall by configuring two EtherCAT masters.

The stage device control system and its operation method of the present invention can use an existing EtherCAT slave as it is, thereby reducing hardware research and development costs. In addition, the present invention does not require other fieldbuses other than EtherCAT, so there is no need for duplication of cables or hardware, and there is an advantage in that the system structure can be concisely configured.

1 is a diagram schematically showing an example of a stage device control system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a view showing in more detail the configuration of a control module in the configuration of the stage device control system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a diagram showing an example of a method of operating a stage device control system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In the following description, it should be noted that only parts necessary to understand the embodiments of the present invention will be described, and descriptions of other parts will be omitted so as not to obscure the subject matter of the present invention.

The terms or words used in the specification and claims described below should not be construed as being limited to a conventional or dictionary meaning, and the inventor is appropriate as a concept of terms in order to describe his own invention in the best way. It should be interpreted as a meaning and concept consistent with the technical idea of the present invention on the basis of the principle that it can be defined. Therefore, the embodiments described in the present specification and the configurations shown in the drawings are only preferred embodiments of the present invention, and do not represent all of the technical spirit of the present invention, and various equivalents that can replace them at the time of application And it should be understood that there may be variations.

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

The stage device control system and its operation method of the present invention described below can reduce installation and maintenance costs by supporting dual control technology without topology modification by two EtherCAT masters using an EtherCAT switching hub in the existing single EtherCAT master system. In addition, even in the event of a failure of the EtherCAT master or communication failure that cannot be resolved in the past, it is possible to support immediate system recovery using a real-time EtherCAT switching hub. In addition, the stage device control system and its operating method of the present invention enable the two EtherCAT masters to monitor in real time using a communication channel between each other, so that when a problem occurs in the system, immediate recovery can be supported.

1 is a diagram schematically showing an example of a stage device control system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the stage device control system 50 of the present invention includes a stage device 10, a slave board 20, a control module 100, a main server 102, a sub server 202, and a main console ( 101) and a sub console 201 may be included.

The stage device 10 is an audio device, a lighting device, an image device, etc. installed on a stage, and may include various devices capable of electrical control. Meanwhile, in the illustrated drawings, the stage device 10 is illustrated as one block, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, as described above, the stage device 10 may include at least one of a plurality of sound devices, a plurality of lighting devices, and a plurality of video devices.

In the illustrated drawing, one slave board (eg, slave board 1… slave board N) is connected to one stage device configuration, and will be described based on this, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the slave board may be configured as a single board, and may include a multi-input/output interface, and may be connected to a plurality of stage devices 10.

The slave board 20 is a board device that supports the stage device 10 to communicate with the main server 20 using TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) communication, and each stage It is mounted corresponding to the device 10. In this case, the slave board 20 may include a communication module supporting real-time network communication. Each of the communication modules supporting the real-time network communication is connected to the stage device 10. The slave board 20 supports communication between the corresponding stage apparatus 10 and the main server 20 or the sub server 202 through a plurality of real-time communication modules connected to the stage apparatus 10.

Here, the real-time communication module may include an EtherCAT (Ethernet for Control Automation Technology) communication module, an EtherNet/IP communication module, and a CC-Link IE (Industrial Ethernet) field communication module. EtherCAT communication module, EtherNet/IP communication module, and CC-Link IE field communication module are communication modules that support EtherCAT network protocol, EtherNet/IP network protocol, and CC-Link IE network protocol, respectively. In addition, the EtherCAT network protocol, the EtherNet/IP network protocol, and the CC-Link IE network protocol are protocols that guarantee real-time network communication, respectively, and a technology for this is a known technology, so detailed descriptions thereof are omitted here. The slave board 20 may include a non-real-time communication module connected to each stage device 10.

The main server 102 may provide information related to the control of the stage device 10 through the slave board 20. The main server 102 may receive a user input from the connected main console 101 and transmit information according to the received user input to at least one stage device 10 through the slave board 20. The main server 102 stores and manages various control information classified according to the characteristics or types of each stage device 10, and provides the corresponding control information to the stage device 10 according to the control of the main console 101. I can.

The main console 101 may establish a communication channel with the main server 102. The main console 101 may include an input unit related to user manipulation, and may transmit input information according to the user manipulation to the main server 102. The main console 101 may be directly connected to the control module 100. The main console 101 may generate input information for controlling a first specific module of the control module 100 according to a user manipulation, and provide the input information to the specific module. The main console 101 may include a manual operation key capable of directly performing turn-on or turn-off control of the first specific module of the control module 100.

The sub server 202 may be a server capable of backing up the main server 102. The sub server 202 may store and manage various control information related to the operation of the stage device 10. The sub server 202 forms a communication channel with the sub console 201, receives input information according to operation of the sub console 201, and transmits control information corresponding to the received input information to a specific stage device 10. Can provide.

The sub console 201 may include at least one input unit related to operation of the sub server 202. The sub console 201 may provide input information according to user manipulation to the sub server 202. The sub console 201 may be directly connected to a second specific module of the control module 100. The sub-console 201 may generate specific input information according to user manipulation, and may directly transmit the generated specific input information to a specific module of the control module 100. The sub-console 201 may include a manual operation key capable of directly performing turn-on or turn-off control of the second specific module of the control module 100.

The control module 100 is selectively connected to at least one of the main server 102 and the sub server 202, and according to the control, control information from the main server 102 or the sub server 202 is received. It can be delivered to the stage device 10 through the slave board 20. The control module 100 may double-connect each server and the slave board 20 to selectively operate the main server 102 and the sub server 202. The control module 100 may selectively connect a specific server to the slave board 20 according to a communication connection state with the main server 102 or the sub server 202. Based on this, the control module 100 establishes an environment in which the stage device 10 can be immediately controlled even when communication connection with a specific server (eg, the main server 102 or the sub server 202) is impossible. Can provide.

2 is a view showing in more detail the configuration of a control module in the configuration of a stage device control system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2, the control module 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes an Ethernet switching hub 151, a first Ethercat master 103, a second Ethercat master 203, and a first Ethercat switching hub. 104, a second Ethercat switching hub 204, and a third Ethercat switching hub 152 may be included.

The Ethernet switching hub 151 may switch the main server 102 and the sub server 202. The Ethernet switching hub 151 is connected to the first EtherCAT master 103 and the second EtherCAT master 203. The Ethernet switching hub 151 connects the main server 102 to the first Ethercat master 103 when operating the main server 102, and connects the sub server 202 to the second EtherCAT when operating the sub server 202. It can be connected with the master 203.

One side of the first Ethercat master 103 is connected to the main server 102 through the Ethernet switching hub 151, and the other side of the first Ethercat master 103 is connected to the first Ethercat switching hub 104. Can be connected. The first Ethercat master 103 may serve to transfer control information of the main server 102 to the stage device 10 connected to the slave board 20. The first EtherCAT master 103 may communicate with the second EtherCAT master 203 through the Ethernet switching hub 151. Alternatively, the control module 100 may further include a separate communication signal line connecting the first Ethercat master 103 and the second Ethercat master 203. The first Ethercat master 103 may check the state of the second Ethercat master 203 by performing communication with the second Ethercat master 203. The first Ethercat master 103 may check whether there is a system abnormality related to the control of the stage device 10 and, when an abnormality occurs, guide this to the second Ethercat master 203. Additionally, the first Ethercat master 103 may output an alarm corresponding to the occurrence of a system abnormality in the process of performing an operation related to the control of the stage device 10. In this regard, the control module 100 may further include at least one of a lamp, a speaker, a display, and a vibration module for guiding the occurrence of a system abnormality.

One side of the second Ethercat master 203 is connected to the sub server 202 through the Ethernet switching hub 151, and the other side of the second Ethercat master 203 is connected to the second Ethercat switching hub 204. Can be connected. The second Ethercat master 203 may serve to transmit control information of the sub server 202 to the stage device 10 connected to the slave board 20. The second EtherCAT master 203 may form a communication channel with the first EtherCAT master 103 through the Ethernet switching hub 151 or a separate communication signal line. Based on the communication channel, the second Ethercat master 203 may check status information on the first Ethercat master 103. In the process of performing a control operation related to the control of the stage device 10, the second Ethercat master 203 may check whether there is a system abnormality and, when an abnormality occurs, guide this to the first Ethercat master 103. have. Additionally, the second Ethercat master 203 may output an alarm corresponding to the occurrence of a system abnormality similarly to the first Ethercat master 103. In this regard, the control module 100 may further include at least one of a lamp, a speaker, a display, and a vibration module for guiding the occurrence of a system abnormality.

The first Ethercat switching hub 104 may be disposed on the first Ethercat master 103 and the third Ethercat switching hub 152. The first Ethercat switching hub 104 may be directly connected to the main console 101. Accordingly, the first Ethercat switching hub 104 may be turned on or off according to a manual operation of the main console 101. As another example, the first Ethercat switching hub 104 may be turned on or off according to the control of the first Ethercat master 103. The first Ethercat switching hub 104 can switch the first Ethercat master 103 and the main server 102 to operate independently of the second Ethercat master 203 and the sub server 202. have. For example, depending on whether the power of the first Ethercat switching hub 104 is cut off, an interlock function capable of independently operating the sub server 202 may be supported.

The second Ethercat switching hub 204 may be disposed on the second Ethercat master 203 and the third Ethercat switching hub 152. The second Ethercat switching hub 204 may be directly connected to the sub console 201. Accordingly, the second Ethercat switching hub 204 may be turned on or turned off according to the manual operation of the sub console 201. As another example, the second Ethercat switching hub 204 may be turned on or off according to the control of the second Ethercat master 203. The second Ethercat switching hub 204 can switch the second Ethercat master 203 and the sub server 202 to operate independently of the first Ethercat master 103 and the main server 102. have. For example, depending on whether the power of the second Ethercat switching hub 204 is cut off, an interlock function capable of independently operating the main server 102 may be supported.

The third Ethercat switching hub 152 may be disposed between the first Ethercat switching hub 104 and the slave board 20 or between the second Ethercat switching hub 204 and the slave board 20. The third Ethercat switching hub 152 connects the slave board 20 to one of the first Ethercat switching hub 104 and the second Ethercat switching hub 204 to control the stage device 10 Control information can be delivered.

The control module 100 of the present invention described above can provide an easy system recovery function in case of a problem by connecting two EtherCAT masters to a console and a console server system in which redundancy is implemented in the existing one-to-one correspondence topology configuration. It can be used as it is without hardware modification of the EtherCAT slave, and it can be applied to the stage system system composed of EtherCAT, thus providing various applications. In addition, according to the present invention, the user manipulates a control command of the stage device 10 from the main console 101 and immediately responds to the sub console 201 when a problem occurs, thereby improving system stability. In addition, as described above, the two EtherCAT masters enable real-time monitoring of the system using a communication channel between each other, thereby enabling immediate recovery when a system problem occurs.

3 is a diagram showing an example of a method of operating a stage device control system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3, in relation to the method of operating the stage device control system according to an embodiment of the present invention, a communication channel may be established between the main console 101 and the main server 102 in step 210. In this regard, operation of the main console 101 for accessing the main server 102 or a user input is received, and accordingly, access to the main server 102 of the main console 101 is performed, so that a communication channel can be established. have.

In step 220, when the main console 101 is connected to the main server 102, the control module 100 may check whether there is an error in the Ethernet communication of the main server 102. When there is an error in Ethernet communication, an operation for restoring an Ethernet hub may be performed in step 230. For example, the control module 100 may output an alarm according to an Ethernet communication error.

When there is no abnormality in the Ethernet communication, the control module 100 may form a communication channel for communication with the server in step 240. For example, the control module 100 may perform an operation for forming a communication channel between the main server 102 and the first EtherCAT master 103.

In step 250, the control module 100 may check whether there is an error in EtherCAT communication. If there is no abnormality in EtherCAT communication in step 250, the control module 100 may perform EtherCAT communication in step 260 to perform control of the stage device 10. Thereafter, the control module 100 may branch to step 230 and perform the following operation again, or branch to step 240 and perform the following operation again.

In step 250, when an error occurs in the Ethercat communication, the control module 100 may establish a communication channel related to access to the sub-server 202 based on the sub-console 201 in step 270.

According to the formation of a communication channel, in step 280, the control module 100 may access the sub server 202 and perform EtherCAT communication with a server (eg, the sub server 202) in step 290. Thereafter, the control module 100 may control the stage device 10 while performing steps 250 and 260, and may perform processing according to the occurrence of an event. For example, in the process of performing EtherCAT communication based on the sub server 202, the control module 100 may output an alarm for control or a restoration request related to EtherCAT communication restoration of the main server 102. have. Even when EtherCAT communication recovery with the main server 102 is completed, the control module 100 may maintain control of the stage device 10 through the sub server 202. When an error occurs in EtherCAT communication through the sub server 202, the control module 100 may control the formation of a communication channel related to access to the main server 102 based on the main console 101 in step 270. .

As another example, when the main server 102 is restored, the control module 100 establishes a communication channel for EtherCAT communication using the main server 102 regardless of whether there is an EtherCAT communication error with the sub server 202 You may.

As in the above-described operation description, when a problem occurs in the main console 101 and the operation of the sub-console 201 is required, the control module 100 of the present invention uses the manual operation keys of each console. (EtherCAT Switching HUB) (for example, the first EtherCAT switching hub 104) may be powered off and power may be supplied to the second EtherCAT switching hub 204 to support an interlock function. As described above, the control module 100 of the present invention prevents simultaneous power-on of the first Ethercat switching hub 104 and the second Ethercat switching hub 204, thereby maintaining the Ethercat topology and the slave board 20 Can prevent malfunction of the product.

On the other hand, the embodiments disclosed in the drawings are merely presented specific examples to aid understanding, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. It is apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that other modifications based on the technical idea of the present invention may be implemented in addition to the embodiments disclosed herein.

10: stage device 20: slave board
50: stage device control system 100: control module
101: main console 102: main server
103: first Ethercat master 104: first Ethercat switching hub
151: Ethernet switching hub 152: third Ethernet switching hub
201: sub console 202: sub server
203: second Ethercat master 204: second Ethercat switching hub

Claims (7)

A plurality of stage devices;
At least one slave board each connected to the plurality of stage devices;
A control module connected to the at least one slave board;
A main server and a sub server connected to the control module;
A main console for operating the main server;
A stage apparatus control system comprising: a sub server for operating the sub server. The method of claim 1,
The control module
An Ethernet switching hub connected to the main sub and the sub server;
A stage device control system comprising: a first Ethercat master and a second Ethercat master respectively connected to the Ethernet switching sub. The method of claim 2,
The control module
A first Ethercat switching hub connected to the first Ethercat master;
A second Ethercat switching hub connected to the second Ethercat master;
The first Ethercat switching hub and a third Ethercat switching hub disposed between the second Ethercat switching hub and the slave board; a stage apparatus control system further comprising: The method of claim 3,
The main console is
A stage device control system comprising a key for controlling turn-on or turn-off of the first Ethercat switching hub. The method of claim 3,
The sub console is
A stage device control system comprising a key for controlling turn-on or turn-off of the second Ethercat switching hub. A method of operating a stage device control system comprising a plurality of stage devices and a main server and a sub server selectively connected to at least one slave board respectively connected to the plurality of stage devices,
Accessing the main server based on the main console and determining whether there is an Ethernet communication error;
When the Ethernet communication is normal, determining whether or not an EtherCAT communication interface connected to the main server is abnormal;
When an abnormality in the Ethercat communication interface occurs, accessing the sub server based on a sub console to control the plurality of stage devices. The method of claim 6,
When an abnormality in the EtherCAT communication interface occurs, turning off power to the EtherCAT switching hub connected between the main server and the at least one slave board; and operating a stage device control system further comprising.

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