JP6779667B2 - Wireless communication devices, wireless communication methods, control systems and computer programs - Google Patents

Description

Embodiments of the present invention relate to wireless communication devices, wireless communication methods, control systems and computer programs.

Equipment to be managed in order to realize integrated management (monitoring, control, etc.) of equipment in buildings such as office buildings, hotels, factories, and commercial facilities (hereinafter collectively referred to as "buildings"). In addition, it is necessary to collect information necessary for equipment management from various sensors that measure the state inside and outside the building and equipment such as setting devices for operating the equipment to be managed. For example, in order to manage air conditioning equipment, information such as temperature and humidity in a living room and information such as set temperature input to a setting device are required. Therefore, in order to realize integrated building management, a network for communicating information necessary for equipment management is indispensable, and communication related to this equipment management has been generally realized by wired communication in the past. ..

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2008-15837 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 7-273770 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 7-307740

However, there are a large number of communication devices related to such building management, and communication wiring becomes complicated, so that wiring work and wiring management may require a lot of labor. On the other hand, in recent years, there has been a demand for shorter construction periods for the construction of equipment control systems for building construction and renovation, and development studies have been conducted on control systems that can meet these demands.
The present invention is to provide a wireless communication device, a wireless communication method, a control system and a computer program capable of solving the above problems.

The wireless communication device of the embodiment is a control system capable of transferring data related to device control to a destination by a plurality of transfer paths based on the destination information added to the data, and a part or all of the transfer paths. It is a wireless communication device to be configured. The wireless communication device has a storage unit and a transmission unit. The storage unit stores correspondence information indicating the correspondence relationship between the plurality of wireless communication devices and the device. When the destination identified based on the destination information of the data is a device associated with the own device by the corresponding information, the transmission unit transmits the data to which the destination information is added to the device.

The figure which shows the specific example of the system structure of the control system 100 of 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the specific example of the functional structure of the gateway device 1 in 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the specific example of the correspondence information in 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the specific example of the correspondence information in 1st Embodiment. The flowchart which shows the flow of the relay processing performed by the gateway device 1. The figure which shows the operation example of the control system 100 of 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the specific example of the frame transmitted and received in the operation example of FIG. The sequence diagram which shows the operation example of the control system 100 of 1st Embodiment. The sequence diagram which shows the operation example of the control system 100 of 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the specific example of the functional structure of the gateway device 1a in 2nd Embodiment. The figure which shows the specific example of the correspondence information in 2nd Embodiment. The figure which shows the specific example of the correspondence information in 2nd Embodiment. The figure which shows the specific example of the logical path. The figure which shows the specific example of the logical path. The figure which shows the operation example of the control system 100 of 2nd Embodiment. The figure which shows the specific example of the frame transmitted and received in the operation example of FIG. The figure which shows the specific example of the functional structure of the gateway device 1b in 3rd Embodiment. A flowchart showing the flow of processing in which correspondence information is generated. The figure which shows the specific example of the functional structure of the gateway device 1c in 4th Embodiment. The figure which shows the specific example of the functional structure of the gateway device 1c in 4th Embodiment.

Hereinafter, the wireless communication device, the wireless communication method, the control system, and the computer program of the embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.

(First Embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a specific example of the system configuration of the control system 100 of the first embodiment. In the control system 100 of the first embodiment, the upper control device 10 installed in the monitoring control room of the building has various facilities installed in each floor of the first floor to the Nth floor and the machine room (hereinafter, "management"). It is a system that manages "target equipment"). In the example of FIG. 1, as an example of the equipment to be managed, an air conditioning equipment 21, a lighting equipment 31, a heat source pump 41 as a heat source equipment, and a heat source valve 42 are shown. The air conditioning equipment 21 and the lighting equipment 31 are installed on the first floor to the Nth floor, and the heat source pump 41 and the heat source valve 42 are installed in the machine room. The management terminal 101 installed in the monitoring and control room is a terminal used for the operation of the control system 100, for example, a terminal used for displaying information about the control system 100 and inputting an operation to the control system 100.

In addition to the equipment to be managed, various equipment necessary for managing the equipment to be managed will be installed on each floor and machine room. For example, an air conditioner setting device 22, an air conditioner sensor 23, and an air conditioner control device 24 are installed on each floor as equipment necessary for managing the air conditioner equipment 21. The air-conditioning setting device 22 is a device used by the user to input ON / OFF, temperature setting, and the like of the air-conditioning equipment 21. The air-conditioning sensor 23 is a sensor that acquires information (for example, room temperature, etc.) necessary for controlling the air-conditioning equipment 21. The air conditioning control device 24 is a device that performs air conditioning control processing.

The air conditioning control process is a process related to the control of the air conditioning equipment 21. For example, the air conditioning control process includes a process of determining the operating conditions of the air conditioning equipment 21, a process of notifying the determined operating conditions, a process of transmitting and receiving information necessary for determining the operating conditions, and the like. For example, the air conditioning control device 24 transmits sensor information such as room temperature and humidity acquired from the air conditioning sensor 23 to the host control device 10. The upper control device 10 determines the set temperature of the first floor based on the sensor information, and notifies the air conditioning control device 24. The air conditioning controller 24 determines the operating conditions of the air conditioning equipment 21 based on the notified set temperature. Hereinafter, the air conditioning equipment 21, the air conditioning setting device 22, the air conditioning sensor 23, and the air conditioning control device 24 are collectively referred to as an air conditioning system device 20.

Further, for example, a lighting setting device 32, a lighting sensor 33, and a lighting control device 34 are installed on each floor as equipment necessary for managing the lighting equipment 31. The lighting setting device 32 is a device used by the user to input ON / OFF, dimming rate, and the like of the lighting equipment 31. The lighting sensor 33 is a sensor that acquires information necessary for controlling the lighting equipment 31 (for example, room brightness, distribution of people, incident state of outside light, etc.). The lighting control device 34 is a device that performs lighting control processing.

The lighting control process is a process related to the control of the lighting equipment 31. For example, the lighting control process includes a process of determining the operating conditions of the lighting equipment 31, a process of notifying the determined operating conditions, a process of transmitting and receiving information necessary for determining the operating conditions, and the like. For example, the lighting control device 34 transmits sensor information such as brightness acquired from the lighting sensor 33 to the host control device 10. The upper control device 10 determines the set illuminance of the first floor based on the sensor information, and notifies the lighting control device 34. The lighting control device 34 determines the operating conditions of the lighting equipment 31 based on the notified set illuminance. Hereinafter, the lighting equipment 31, the lighting setting device 32, the lighting sensor 33, and the lighting control device 34 are collectively referred to as a lighting system device 30.

Further, for example, a pump sensor 43, a valve sensor 44, and a heat source control device 45 are installed in the machine room as equipment necessary for managing the heat source pump 41 and the heat source valve 42. When the heat source pump 41 is a compressor that compresses the refrigerant and the heat source valve 42 is an expansion valve that reduces the pressure of the refrigerant, for example, the pump sensor 43 and the valve sensor 44 are the heat source pump 41 and the heat source valve 42. It is a sensor that measures the current and voltage, the temperature of the refrigerant, etc., which indicate the operating state of. The heat source control device 45 is a device that performs a heat source control process.

The heat source control process is a process related to control of the heat source pump 41 and the heat source valve 42. For example, the heat source control process includes a process of determining the operating conditions of the heat source pump 41 and the heat source valve 42, a process of notifying the determined operating conditions, a process of transmitting and receiving information necessary for determining the operating conditions, and the like. For example, the heat source control device 45 transmits sensor information indicating the operation information of the heat source pump 41 and the heat source valve 42 acquired from the pump sensor 43 and the valve sensor 44 to the host control device 10. The host control device 10 determines the output intensity of the heat source pump 41 and the opening degree of the heat source valve 42 based on the sensor information, and notifies the heat source control device 45. The heat source control device 45 determines the operating conditions of the heat source pump 41 and the heat source valve 42 based on the notified output intensity and opening degree. Hereinafter, the heat source pump 41, the heat source valve 42, the pump sensor 43, the valve sensor 44, and the heat source control device 45 are collectively referred to as a heat source system device 40.

In general, the above-mentioned managed equipment and related equipment have different communication protocols depending on the type of equipment such as air conditioning system, lighting system, heat source system, and control system. Therefore, in the conventional control system,
On each floor and machine room, local servers were installed to perform intermediate processing for each type of equipment. The intermediate processing referred to here is relaying communication (for example, protocol conversion) between a higher-level control device and a lower-level control device (for example, an air conditioning control device), and converting or aggregating transmitted / received information. It is a process. Each local server is configured to be able to communicate with the upper control device via the upper network, and is configured to be able to communicate with the lower control device via the lower network.

The communication medium and communication protocol that constitute the upper network are arbitrary, but at present, a configuration that combines Ethernet (registered trademark) and BACnet (Building Automation and Control Networking protocol) protocol is widely used. In this way, the host controller can manage different types of managed equipment in an integrated manner by the intermediate processing performed by the local server. In such a conventional control system, communication of an upper control device, a lower control device, various sensors, a setting device, and the like is generally configured by wire. In contrast to such a conventional configuration, the control system 100 of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 comprises various devices and devices by configuring a first wireless network 63 and a second wireless network 64 for each floor or machine room. Achieve wireless communication.

The first wireless network 63 is a wireless mesh network. A wireless mesh network is a mesh-like network that does not require an access point or a base station, and the nodes that make up the network are directly connected to a plurality of other nodes. In such a wireless mesh network, a communication path is dynamically constructed according to the state of the nodes participating in the network. Therefore, by using a wireless mesh network, it is possible to construct a wireless communication network with high fault tolerance while omitting physical wiring.

One first wireless network 63 is provided in each control area in the building. The control area means each area in the building where the space in which the managed equipment may be installed is divided according to a predetermined standard. FIG. 1 is an example in which each of the first floor to the Nth floor and the machine room is regarded as one control area. In this case, one first wireless network 63 is provided in each of the first floor to the Nth floor and the machine room. In FIG. 1, a first wireless network 63-n is provided on each of the nth floors (1 ≦ n ≦ N), and a first wireless network 63-M is provided in the machine room. A gateway device 1 constituting an edge of a wireless mesh network is arranged in the first wireless network 63 of each control area. The gateway device 1 (wireless communication device) connects another device or network directly or indirectly accommodated by the own device to the first wireless network 63.

For example, in FIG. 1, a gateway device 1-1 (second gateway device) and a gateway device 1-11-1-14 are arranged in the first wireless network 63-1. The gateway device 1-1 connects the upper network 61 to the first wireless network 63-1. The gateway device 1-11 connects the air conditioning control device 24 to the first wireless network 63-1. The gateway device 1-12 connects the second wireless network 64-1-1 to the first wireless network 63-1. The gateway device 1-13 connects the lighting control device 34 to the first wireless network 63-1. The gateway device 1-14 connects the second wireless network 64-1-2 to the first wireless network 63-1.

The second wireless network 64 is a network that wirelessly accommodates each device in the control area. For example, in FIG. 1, the second wireless network 64-1-1 accommodates an air-conditioning setting device 22, an air-conditioning sensor 23, and a lighting sensor 33. The second wireless network 64-1-2 accommodates the air-conditioning equipment 21, the lighting equipment 31, and the lighting setting device 32. In this case, each device connected to the first wireless network 63 via the second wireless network 64 has a wireless communication function for connecting to the second wireless network 64.

The second wireless network 64 may be realized by a network having any configuration as long as it is a network that wirelessly accommodates each device to be accommodated. For example, the second wireless network 64 may be configured as a mesh network like the first wireless network 63, or may be configured as a tree-like network such as a network composed of access points and base stations. .. When there are many devices to be accommodated, a tree-shaped network having a relatively low processing load may be adopted for the second wireless network 64 instead of a network having a high processing load for communication control such as a mesh network. For example, in this case, the gateway device 1-12 constitutes a second wireless network 64-1-1 having a function as an access point and accommodating the air conditioning setting device 22, the air conditioning sensor 23, and the lighting sensor 33. May be good.

By the way, in the control system 100 of the first embodiment, any gateway device 1 in each control area is configured to function as a local server in each control area. For example, on the first floor, any one of the gateway device 1-1 and the gateway devices 1-11-1-14 has a function of executing intermediate processing. In this case, for example, as in the conventional configuration, the gateway device 1-1, which is the connection point between the upper network 61 and the first wireless network 63-1, has a function of executing intermediate processing for both air conditioning and lighting. You may. Further, the gateway device 1-11 to which the air conditioning control device 24 is connected has a function of executing the intermediate processing for air conditioning, and the gateway device 1-13 to which the lighting control device 34 is connected executes the intermediate processing for lighting. It may have a function to perform. If there is no system limitation on the length of the communication path, the gateway device 1-12 and the gateway device 1-13 may have a function of executing intermediate processing.

Further, for the sake of simplicity, the equipment configuration for the second floor to the Nth floor is omitted here, but the equipment configuration for the second floor to the Nth floor is basically the same as that for the first floor. Have. The machine room also has basically the same equipment configuration as the first floor, although the number of the second wireless networks 64 and the types of equipment to be accommodated are different.

The flow of control communication in the control system 100 having such a configuration is the same as that of the conventional control system. However, the control system 100 of the first embodiment is different from the conventional control system in that each device in the control area communicates with another device via the first wireless network 63 or the second wireless network 64. For example, when the air conditioning control device 24 transmits data to the air conditioning equipment 21, the gateway device 1-11 needs to transfer the received data to the gateway device 1-14 accommodating the air conditioning equipment 21 which is the destination. In this case, the gateway device 1-11 needs to identify the gateway device 1 accommodating the destination air-conditioning equipment 21 from the gateway devices 1-11-1-14. Therefore, the gateway device 1 in the first embodiment is configured to be able to identify the correspondence between the device that is the destination of data transmission and the gateway device 1 that houses the destination device.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a specific example of the functional configuration of the gateway device 1 according to the first embodiment. The gateway device 1 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a memory, an auxiliary storage device, and the like connected by a bus, and executes a gateway device program. The gateway device 1 is a device including a first communication unit 11, a second communication unit 12, a storage unit 13, a first protocol processing unit 14, a second protocol processing unit 15, and a relay processing unit 16 by executing a gateway device program. Function. All or part of each function of the gateway device 1 may be realized by using hardware such as ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), PLD (Programmable Logic Device), and FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array). The gateway device program may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. The computer-readable recording medium is, for example, a flexible disk, a magneto-optical disk, a portable medium such as a ROM or a CD-ROM, or a storage device such as a hard disk built in a computer system. The gateway device program may be transmitted over a telecommunication line.

The first communication unit 11 includes a wireless communication interface for connecting the own device to the first wireless network 63. Further, the second communication unit 12 is configured to include a communication interface for connecting the own device to the second network. The second network is a network connected to the first wireless network 63 by the gateway device 1, and is a second network when the first wireless network 63 is used as the first network. For example, in the gateway device 1-1, the upper network 61 becomes the second network, and in the gateway device 1-11, the wired network between the gateway device 1-1 and the air conditioning control device 24 becomes the second network. Further, in the gateway device 1-12, the second wireless network 64 becomes the second network.

Note that FIG. 2 illustrates the functional configuration of the gateway device 1-12 as an example of the gateway device 1, but the other gateway devices 1 basically have the same functional configuration as that of FIG. .. Therefore, by replacing the second wireless network 64 to which the second communication unit 12 is connected with another second network, FIG. 2 can be read as a functional configuration diagram of the other gateway device 1.

The storage unit 13 is configured by using a storage device such as a magnetic hard disk device or a semiconductor storage device. The storage unit 13 stores in advance correspondence information indicating the correspondence relationship between the device to be the communication destination and the gateway device 1 to which the destination device is connected.

The first protocol processing unit 14 executes communication processing (hereinafter, referred to as “first protocol processing”) according to the communication protocol of the first wireless network 63 (hereinafter, referred to as “first protocol”). By executing this first protocol process, transmission / reception of frames in the first wireless network 63 is realized.

The second protocol processing unit 15 performs communication processing (hereinafter, “second protocol”) according to the communication protocol (hereinafter, referred to as “second protocol”) of the second network (corresponding to the second wireless network 64 in the example of FIG. 2). 2 Protocol processing ”) is executed. By executing this second protocol process, transmission / reception of frames in the second network is realized.

The relay processing unit 16 (transmission unit) performs relay processing for relaying a frame between the first wireless network 63 and the second wireless network 64. Specifically, the relay processing unit 16 relays the reception frame on the second wireless network 64 side to the first wireless network 63 side, and relays the reception frame on the first wireless network 63 side to the second wireless network 64 side. To do. At this time, the relay processing unit 16 determines the necessity of relay processing based on the destination information included in the received frame. Specifically, the destination information is information indicating the destination and the transmission source of the frame. The relay processing unit 16 executes relay processing when the destination of the reception frame on the second wireless network 64 side exists in another second network, and relays the reception frame to the first wireless network 63 side.

At this time, the relay processing unit 16 determines the gateway device 1 (hereinafter, referred to as “transfer destination gateway”) as the transfer destination of the received frame in the first wireless network 63 based on the corresponding information. Specifically, the gateway device 1 connected to the second network to which the destination of the receiving frame belongs is determined as the transfer destination gateway. The relay processing unit 16 combines the data and destination information acquired from the received frame and the information indicating the gateway device 1 determined as the transfer destination gateway (hereinafter, referred to as “transfer information”) in the first protocol processing unit 14. Output to.

On the other hand, when the destination of the frame received from the first wireless network 63 side exists on the second wireless network 64 side to which the own device belongs, the relay processing unit 16 relays the received frame to the second wireless network 64 side. .. Specifically, the relay processing unit 16 outputs the data and destination information acquired from the received frame to the second protocol processing unit 15.

3 and 4 are diagrams showing specific examples of correspondence information in the first embodiment. The correspondence information in the first embodiment is held as, for example, the correspondence information table 131 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. The correspondence information table 131-1, the correspondence information table 131-11, and the correspondence information table 131-12 of FIG. 3 are the correspondence information held by the gateway device 1-1, the gateway device 1-11, and the gateway device 1-12, respectively. This is an example. Further, the correspondence information table 131-M, the correspondence information table 131-M1 and the correspondence information table 131-M2 of FIG. 4 are supported by the gateway device 1-M, the gateway device 1-M1 and the gateway device 1-M2, respectively. This is an example of information.

The correspondence information table 131 has a correspondence information record for each destination identifier. The correspondence information record has each value of a destination identifier, a destination address, and a destination GW address. The destination identifier is identification information of a device, a device, or the like (hereinafter, referred to as "destination device") to which data is to be addressed. The destination address represents the network address of the destination device indicated by the destination identifier. The destination GW identifier is identification information of the transfer destination gateway that accommodates the destination device on the second network side. The destination GW address represents the network address of the transfer destination gateway.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of relay processing performed by the gateway device 1. First, the gateway device 1 receives the frame transmitted from the second network side (step S301). The gateway device 1 refers to the correspondence information and determines the gateway device 1 corresponding to the destination device indicated by the receiving frame as the transfer destination gateway (step S302). The gateway device 1 adds transfer information indicating the determined transfer destination gateway to the received data (step S303). The gateway device 1 transmits the received data to which the transfer information is added to the first wireless network 63 side via the first communication unit 11 (step S304). The received data transmitted to the first wireless network 63 side is transferred to the transfer destination gateway by the wireless mesh network.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an operation example of the control system 100 of the first embodiment. FIG. 6 shows an example in which the air conditioning sensor 23 transmits data to the air conditioning control device 24. As described above, in the first wireless network 63, the communication path between the two points is dynamically determined according to the state of the network. In the description here, in the data transmission from the air conditioning sensor 23 to the air conditioning control device 24, the transfer path on the first wireless network 63 is a sequence of the gateway device 1-12, the gateway device 1-13, and the gateway device 1-14. It is assumed that the case is decided.

Further, FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a specific example of the frames transmitted and received in the operation example of FIG. The frame 511 of FIG. 7 represents a frame transmitted from the air conditioning sensor 23 to the gateway device 1-12. The frame 512 represents a frame transmitted from the gateway device 1-12 to the gateway device 1-13. The frame 513 represents a frame transmitted from the gateway device 1-13 to the gateway device 1-14. The frame 514 represents a frame transmitted from the gateway device 1-14 to the air conditioning control device 24.

Each frame includes a data unit, a destination information storage unit, and a protocol information storage unit. The data unit is an area in which transmission data is stored. The destination information storage unit is an area in which destination information of transmission data is stored. The protocol information storage unit is an area in which information necessary for communication on the network to be used (hereinafter referred to as "protocol information") is stored. The protocol information includes at least identification information of the source and destination devices. The protocol information is stored in the protocol information storage unit in a format corresponding to the protocol used. In FIG. 7, for simplification of the description of the operation example, only the identification information of the source and destination devices is described as the protocol information.

In this case, the air conditioning sensor 23, which is the transmission source, includes, for example, a data transmission unit 231, a second protocol processing unit 232, and a wireless communication unit 233. First, the data transmission unit 231 generates (or acquires) transmission data. Here, the data transmission unit 231 is configured so that the destination device (here, the air conditioning control device 24) to be the transmission destination of the transmission data can be identified according to the type of the generated transmission data. For example, the data transmission unit 231 may store in advance a correspondence table between the types of transmission data and the destination device. The data transmission unit 231 outputs the generated transmission data and information indicating the destination device of the transmission data to the second protocol processing unit 232 (step S401).

The second protocol processing unit 232 generates a frame 511 for transmitting transmission data to the destination device by executing the second protocol processing. Specifically, the second protocol processing unit 232 first stores the transmission data in the data unit, and the source is its own device (“0x1043”) and the destination is the air conditioning control device 24 (“0x1044”). The destination information indicating that there is is stored in the destination information storage unit. Subsequently, the second protocol processing unit 232 generates the protocol information of the second protocol (hereinafter, referred to as “second protocol information”) and stores it in the protocol information storage unit. Specifically, the second protocol processing unit 232 identifies that the destination device is not a device belonging to the second wireless network 64-1-1 based on the destination information. In this case, the second protocol processing unit 232 generates the second protocol information indicating that the source is the own device (“0x1043”) and the destination is the gateway device 1-12 (“0x1002”). .. The second protocol processing unit 232 outputs the frame 511 thus generated to the wireless communication unit 233 (step S402). The wireless communication unit 233 modulates the transmission frame 511 output from the second protocol processing unit 232 into radio waves and transmits the transmission frame 511 to the second wireless network 64-1-1 side (step S403).

The frame 511 transmitted from the air conditioning sensor 23 is received by the gateway device 1-12 via the second wireless network 64-1-1. The second communication unit 12 of the gateway device 1-12 outputs the received frame to the second protocol processing unit 15 (step S404). The second protocol processing unit 15 removes the second protocol information from the reception frame 511 by executing the second protocol processing, and outputs the second protocol information to the relay processing unit 16 (step S405). Specifically, the second protocol processing unit 15 determines whether or not the transmission destination of the frame is the own device based on the second protocol information of the reception frame 511. If the destination of the received frame is not its own device, the second protocol processing unit 15 discards the received frame. On the other hand, when the reception frame is addressed to the own device, the second protocol processing unit 15 removes the second protocol information from the reception frame and outputs the second protocol information to a higher-level functional unit (here, the relay processing unit 16).

The relay processing unit 16 acquires the destination information and the transmission data from the frame 511 output from the second protocol processing unit 15. The relay processing unit 16 executes the relay processing based on the acquired destination information. By executing this relay process, the transfer destination gateway that is the transfer destination of the received frame is determined. Specifically, the relay processing unit 16 refers to the correspondence information table 131-12 and selects the correspondence information record having the value of the destination address indicated by the destination information. The relay processing unit 16 acquires the value (“0x1004”) of the destination GW address from the selected correspondence information record. The relay processing unit 16 determines the gateway device 1-14 indicated by the value of the acquired destination GW address as the transfer destination gateway. The relay processing unit 16 outputs the transfer information indicating the transfer destination gateway determined in this way to the first protocol processing unit 14 together with the transmission data and the destination information (step S406).

The first protocol processing unit 14 generates a frame 512 for transferring the transmission data to the gateway device 1-14 determined as the transfer destination gateway by executing the first protocol processing. Specifically, the first protocol processing unit 14 first stores the transmission data in the data unit and stores the destination information in the destination information storage unit. Subsequently, the first protocol processing unit 14 generates protocol information related to the first protocol (hereinafter, referred to as “first protocol information”) and stores it in the protocol information storage unit. Specifically, the first protocol processing unit 14 inputs the first protocol information indicating that the source is the own device (“0x1002”) and the destination is the transfer destination gateway (“0x1004”) indicated by the transfer information. Generate. The frame to which the first protocol information destined for the transfer destination gateway is added is transferred to the transfer destination gateway in the order of the transfer path by the first protocol process of each gateway device 1 on the transfer path. Hereinafter, the process in which the first protocol processing unit 14 transfers the received frame to the transfer destination gateway in this way is referred to as a transfer process. The first protocol processing unit 14 outputs the frame 512 thus generated to the first communication unit 11 (step S407). The first communication unit 11 modulates the transmission frame 512 output from the first protocol processing unit 14 into radio waves and transmits the transmission frame 512 to the first radio network 63-1 side (step S408).

The frame 512 transmitted from the gateway device 1-12 is received by the gateway device 1-13 located next to the gateway device 1-12 on the transfer path. The first communication unit 11 of the gateway device 1-13 outputs the reception frame 512 to the first protocol processing unit 14 (step S409). By executing the first protocol processing, the first protocol processing unit 14 generates a frame 513 for transferring the transmission data to the gateway device 1 located next to the own device on the transfer path. Specifically, the first protocol processing unit 14 identifies that the transfer destination gateway is the gateway device 1-14 based on the first protocol information of the reception frame 512. In this case, the first protocol processing unit 14 has the source of the own device (“0x1003”) and the destination of the gateway device 1-14 (“0x1004”) located next to the own device on the transfer path. The first protocol information indicating is generated. The first protocol processing unit 14 generates the transmission frame 513 by replacing the first protocol information of the reception frame 512 with the newly generated first protocol information. The first protocol processing unit 14 outputs the frame 513 thus generated to the first communication unit 11 (step S410). The first communication unit 11 modulates the transmission frame 513 output from the first protocol processing unit 14 into radio waves and transmits the transmission frame 513 to the first radio network 63-1 side (step S411).

The frame 513 transmitted from the gateway device 1-13 is received by the gateway device 1-14 located next to the gateway device 1-13 on the transfer path. The first communication unit 11 of the gateway device 1-14 outputs the reception frame 513 to the first protocol processing unit 14 (step S412). The first protocol processing unit 14 removes the first protocol information from the reception frame 513 by executing the first protocol processing, and outputs the first protocol information to the relay processing unit 16 (step S413). Specifically, the first protocol processing unit 14 determines whether or not the frame is addressed to its own device based on the first protocol information of the reception frame 513. If the receiving frame is not addressed to the own device, the first protocol processing unit 14 discards the receiving frame. On the other hand, when the reception frame is addressed to the own device, the first protocol processing unit 14 removes the first protocol information from the reception frame and outputs the first protocol information to a higher-level functional unit (here, the relay processing unit 16).

The relay processing unit 16 acquires the destination information and the transmission data from the frame 513 output from the first protocol processing unit 14. The relay processing unit 16 executes the relay processing based on the acquired destination information. Specifically, the relay processing unit 16 identifies that the destination device of the receiving frame is the air conditioning control device 24 accommodated by the own device based on the destination information. The relay processing unit 16 outputs the acquired destination information and transmission data to the second protocol processing unit 15 (step S414).

The second protocol processing unit 15 generates a frame 514 for transmitting transmission data to the destination device by executing the second protocol processing. Specifically, the second protocol processing unit 15 first stores the transmission data in the data unit and stores the destination information in the destination information storage unit. Subsequently, the second protocol processing unit 15 generates the second protocol information and stores it in the protocol information storage unit. Specifically, the second protocol processing unit 15 generates the second protocol information indicating that the transmission source is the own device (“0x1004”) and the destination is the air conditioning control device 24 (“0x1044”). The second protocol processing unit 15 outputs the frame 514 generated in this way to the second communication unit 12 (step S415). The second communication unit 12 transmits the transmission frame 514 output from the second protocol processing unit 15 to the second network side (step S416).

The frame 514 transmitted from the gateway device 1-14 is received by the air conditioning control device 24 via the second wired network. In this case, the destination air-conditioning control device 24 includes, for example, a communication unit 241, a second protocol processing unit 242, and a data receiving unit 243. The communication unit 241 outputs the received frame to the second protocol processing unit 242 (step S417). The second protocol processing unit 242 removes the second protocol information from the reception frame 514 by executing the second protocol processing, and outputs the second protocol information to the data reception unit 243 (step S418). Specifically, the second protocol processing unit 242 determines whether or not the frame is addressed to its own device based on the second protocol information of the reception frame 514. If the receiving frame is not addressed to the own device, the second protocol processing unit 242 discards the receiving frame. On the other hand, when the reception frame is addressed to the own device, the second protocol processing unit 242 removes the second protocol information from the reception frame and outputs it to a higher-level functional unit (here, data reception unit 243). The data receiving unit 243 acquires transmission data from the frame 514 output from the second protocol processing unit 242.

8 and 9 are sequence diagrams showing an operation example of the control system 100 of the first embodiment. The operation examples shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 differ from the conventional control system in that communication between the devices is performed via the first wireless network 63 or the second network. Further, the control system 100 of the first embodiment is different from the conventional control system in that any gateway device 1 connected to the first wireless network 63 plays the role of a local server.

FIG. 8 describes an example in which the air conditioning control device 24 controls the air conditioning equipment 21 in response to a control instruction from the host control device 10. First, the upper control device 10 generates first control information for instructing the set temperature of the first floor (step S101). The host control device 10 transmits the generated first control information to the gateway device 1-11 to which the air conditioning control device 24 is connected to the second network side (step S102). In the operation example of FIG. 8, the gateway device 1-11 plays a role as a local server for air conditioning. In this case, the first control information transmitted from the host control device 10 is transferred to the gateway device 1-11 by the transfer process and the relay process of the gateway device 1-1 (step S103).

The gateway device 1-11 receives the first control information transmitted from the host control device 10 (step S104). The gateway device 1-11 executes the intermediate process based on the received first control information (step S105). By executing this intermediate process, the received first control information is converted into the second control information which is the control information for the air conditioning control device 24. The gateway device 1-11 transmits the generated second control information to the air conditioning control device 24 (step S106). The air conditioning control device 24 receives the second control information transmitted from the gateway device 1-11 (step S107). The air conditioning control device 24 executes the air conditioning control process based on the received second control information (step S108).

Specifically, the air conditioning control device 24 determines the operating conditions of the air conditioning equipment 21 required to realize the control conditions indicated by the second control information. For example, the air conditioning controller 24 grasps the state of the first floor based on the measured value of the air conditioning sensor 23, and sets the operating conditions of the air conditioning equipment 21 (for example, the temperature and intensity of the output air, the operating time, etc.) on the floor. Determined according to the state of. The air-conditioning controller 24 generates third control information for operating the air-conditioning equipment 21 under the determined operating conditions and transmits the third control information to the air-conditioning equipment 21. The air-conditioning equipment 21 receives the third control information transmitted from the air-conditioning control device 24, and operates its own device based on the operating conditions indicated by the third control information. By executing such an air conditioning control process, the temperature of the first floor is adjusted to the set temperature instructed by the host control device 10.

Subsequently, the air conditioning control device 24 generates fourth control information for reflecting the information regarding the control performed on the air conditioning equipment 21 in the air conditioning setting device 22. For example, the fourth control information is information indicating a set temperature set for the air conditioning equipment 21. The air conditioning control device 24 transmits the generated fourth control information to the air conditioning setting device 22 (step S109). In this case, the fourth control information transmitted from the air conditioning control device 24 is transferred to the air conditioning setting device 22 by the transfer processing and the relay processing of the gateway device 1-11 and the gateway device 1-12 (step S110).

The air conditioning setting device 22 receives the fourth control information transmitted from the air conditioning control device 24 (step S111). When the air-conditioning setting device 22 includes a display unit for displaying the room temperature and the set temperature of the first floor, the air-conditioning setting device 22 needs to update these displays according to the execution result of the air-conditioning control process. Therefore, the air-conditioning setting device 22 updates, for example, the display of the set temperature based on the received fourth control information (step S112).

Subsequently, in FIG. 9, the upper control device 10 acquires the processing result of the air conditioning control process performed based on the measured value of the air conditioning sensor 23, and updates the state of the first floor grasped by the own device. An example of this will be described. The upper control device 10 can grasp the latest state of each floor by performing the processing as described below. The state of each floor grasped in this way is information necessary for controlling the air conditioning equipment 21 according to the floor state.

First, the air conditioning sensor 23 measures the room temperature of the first floor and generates fifth control information indicating the measured room temperature. The air conditioning sensor 23 transmits the generated fifth control information to the air conditioning control device 24 (step S201). In this case, the fifth control information transmitted from the air conditioning sensor 23 is transferred to the air conditioning control device 24 by the transfer processing and relay processing of the gateway device 1-11 and the gateway device 1-12 (step S202). The air conditioning control device 24 receives the fifth control information transmitted from the air conditioning sensor 23 (step S203). The air conditioning control device 24 executes the air conditioning control process based on the received fifth control information (step S204).

Specifically, the air conditioning controller 24 controls the air conditioning equipment 21 so as to lower the room temperature when the room temperature is higher than the set temperature, and raises the room temperature when the room temperature is lower than the set temperature. 21 is controlled. As described above, the air conditioning control process is not only executed according to the instruction of the upper control device 10, but also may be executed adaptively according to the change of the room temperature or the like of each floor. The air-conditioning control device 24 generates a sixth control information for notifying the host control device 10 of information regarding the control performed on the air-conditioning equipment 21. The air conditioning control device 24 transmits the generated sixth control information to the gateway device 1-11, which plays a role as a local server for air conditioning (step S205). For example, the sixth control information is information indicating the room temperature of the first floor changed by the air conditioning control process.

The gateway device 1-11 receives the sixth control information transmitted from the air conditioning control device 24 (step S206). The gateway device 1-11 records the received sixth control information in the own device (step S207), and at the same time, the seventh control indicating the state change of the first floor based on the sixth control information stored in the own device. Generate information (step S208). The seventh control information may be any information as long as it is information indicating the state of the first floor obtained as a result of the air conditioning control process. For example, the seventh control information may be information indicating a change in room temperature, or may be information indicating the room temperature itself measured by the air conditioning sensor 23. The gateway device 1-11 transmits the generated seventh control information to the host control device 10 (step S209). In this case, the seventh control information transmitted from the gateway device 1-11, which plays a role as a local server for air conditioning, is transferred to the host control device 10 by the relay process of the gateway device 1-1 (step S210).

The host control device 10 receives the seventh control information transmitted from the gateway devices 1-11 (step S211). The host control device 10 records the received seventh control information in its own device (step S212). The upper control device 10 determines a control target (for example, a set temperature) of each floor based on the seventh control information accumulated in the own device in this way, and sets the determined control target to each gateway device 1 (local). By notifying the server), the control of the managed equipment is instructed.

The control system 100 of the first embodiment configured in this way accommodates each device in the control area by wireless communication or wired communication, and transmits / receives information between the devices via the first wireless network 63. The gateway device 1 to be realized is provided. Specifically, the gateway device 1 transmits and receives between each device by relay processing between the first wireless network 63 and the second network based on the correspondence information and transfer processing in the first wireless network 63 based on the transfer information. To realize. By providing such a configuration, in the control system 100, most of the communication in the system can be made wireless, and the management load of the system can be reduced.

Hereinafter, a modified example of the control system 100 of the first embodiment will be described.

Generally, in wireless communication, a certain terminal can also receive a frame transmitted from another terminal within the wireless communication range and not destined for its own device. The terminal receives data by selecting frames based on the destination of the received frame. Therefore, the gateway device 1 may be configured to relay the frame to another gateway device 1 when a frame not addressed to the own device is received. For example, this relay function may be provided in the relay processing unit 16 of the gateway device 1.

For example, a frame destined for gateway device 1-14 is transmitted from gateway device 1-11, and the transfer route of this frame is determined in the order of gateway device 1-11, gateway device 1-12, and gateway device 1-14. Suppose. In this case, when the gateway device 1-13 receives the frame transmitted by the gateway device 1-11, the gateway device 1-13 may relay the received frame to the gateway device 1-14. Further, for example, when a frame destined for the air conditioning equipment 21 is transmitted from the air conditioning setting device 22 and the frame is received by the gateway device 1-1, the gateway device 1-1 transfers the received frame to the gateway which is the transfer destination gateway. It may be relayed to devices 1-14. According to such a relay function, it is possible to improve the fault tolerance of the control communication related to the control system 100.

(Second Embodiment)
The control system 100 of the second embodiment is different from the control system 100 of the first embodiment in that the gateway device 1a is provided in place of the gateway device 1. The system configuration of the control system 100 of the second embodiment is the same as that of the control system 100 of the first embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a specific example of the functional configuration of the gateway device 1a according to the second embodiment. The gateway device 1a is different from the gateway device 1 in the first embodiment in that it includes a storage unit 13a instead of the storage unit 13 and further includes a transfer processing unit 17. Other functional units are the same as the gateway device 1 in the first embodiment. Therefore, the same functional unit as the gateway device 1 in the first embodiment will be designated by the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 2, and the description thereof will be omitted.

The storage unit 13a stores correspondence information in a mode different from that of the first embodiment. Specifically, in the correspondence information in the second embodiment, the correspondence relationship between the gateway device 1a and the device accommodated in the gateway device 1a is represented by a transfer path between the gateway devices 1a.

11 and 12 are diagrams showing specific examples of correspondence information in the second embodiment. The correspondence information in the second embodiment is held as, for example, the correspondence information table 132 shown in FIG. The correspondence information table 132-1, the correspondence information table 132-11, and the correspondence information table 132-12 of FIG. 11 are the correspondence information held by the gateway device 1a-1, the gateway device 1a-11, and the gateway device 1a-12, respectively. This is an example. Further, the correspondence information table 132-M, the correspondence information table 132-M1 and the correspondence information table 132-M2 of FIG. 12 are supported by the gateway device 1-M, the gateway device 1-M1 and the gateway device 1-M2, respectively. This is an example of information.

The correspondence information table 132 is different from the correspondence information table 131 in that the correspondence information record for each destination identifier has the value of the logical path identifier instead of the destination GW address. The logical path identifier is the identification information of the logical path. The logical path referred to here is a transfer path from the transfer source gateway device 1a to the transfer destination gateway in the first wireless network 63.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a specific example of the logical path. The logical path is represented by a logical path identifier and transfer route information. The logical path identifier is the identification information of the logical path. The transfer route information is information representing the permutation of the gateway device 1a constituting the transfer route. For example, in FIG. 13, the logical path identified by the logical path identifier of “0x12” is transferred starting from the gateway device 1-1 (“0x100F”) and ending at the gateway device 1a-14 (“0x1004”). It represents a route. Such a logical path may be arbitrarily set by the user, or may be set based on the route information determined by the protocol of the wireless mesh network. The method of setting the logical path based on the route information will be described later in the third embodiment.

Returning to the description of FIG. The transfer processing unit 17 performs transfer processing of the received data with a logical path according to the destination of the received data based on the correspondence information. Specifically, the transfer process performed by the transfer processing unit 17 is performed in a higher layer of the transfer process performed by the first protocol processing unit 14. Hereinafter, in order to distinguish between these transfer processes, the transfer process performed by the first protocol processing unit 14 is referred to as a first transfer process, and the transfer process performed by the transfer processing unit 17 is referred to as a second transfer process. As described above, the first transfer process is a process of transferring the received frame to the transfer destination gateway by the transfer path determined based on the protocol of the wireless mesh network. On the other hand, the second transfer process is a process of transferring received data by a transfer path in which a part or all of the route is preset as a logical path. Note that the transfer of the route that is not set as the logical path in the second transfer process is performed by the first transfer process.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a specific example of the logical path. FIG. 14 shows seven logical paths of logical paths 701 to 707. The start point of the arrow indicating each logical path represents the start point of the logical path, and the end point of the arrow represents the end point of the logical path. In FIG. 14, the gateway device 1a-1 and the gateway device 1a-11 to 1a-14 are shown as the gateway device 1a constituting the first wireless network 63, but in reality, the first wireless network 63 is It is configured to include a communication device other than the gateway device 1a constituting the edge. Therefore, these communication devices and other gateway devices 1a may intervene between the gateway devices 1a that are the start and end points of each logical path. All intervening communication devices and gateway devices 1a may be set in the logical path, or only a part of them may be set.

For example, when three communication devices A, B, and C are interposed on the path of the logical path 701 in FIG. 14, “Gateway device 1a-1 → Communication device A → Communication device B → Communication device C → Gateway device 1a-” All intervening devices such as "11" may be set in the logical path, or only some intervening devices such as "gateway device 1a-1-> communication device B-> gateway device 1a-11" are set. May be done. In the former case, the transfer route by the first transfer process and the transfer route by the second transfer process are the same route. On the other hand, in the latter case, a route without communication devices A and C may be selected as the transfer path between the gateway device 1a-1 and the gateway device 1a-11 and the communication device B. In either case, the transfer path can be fixed to some extent by setting the transfer path as a logical path in advance.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an operation example of the control system 100 of the second embodiment. FIG. 15 shows an example in which the air conditioning sensor 23 transmits data to the air conditioning control device 24, as in FIG. Here, the same processing as in FIG. 6 is designated by the same reference numerals as in FIG. 6, and the description thereof will be omitted. Further, in the logical path in this case, the gateway device 1a-13 is set as a transfer path between the gateway device 1a-12 which is the transfer source (start point) and the gateway device 1a-14 which is the transfer destination (end point). Suppose that

Further, FIG. 16 is a diagram showing a specific example of frames transmitted and received in the operation example of FIG. The frame 521 in FIG. 16 represents a frame transmitted from the air conditioning sensor 23 to the gateway device 1a-12. The frame 522 represents a frame transmitted from the gateway device 1a-12 to the gateway device 1a-13. The frame 523 represents a frame transmitted from the gateway device 1a-13 to the gateway device 1a-14. The frame 524 represents a frame transmitted from the gateway device 1a-14 to the air conditioning control device 24.

In this case, the relay processing unit 16 of the gateway device 1-12 executes the relay processing based on the destination information output from the second protocol processing unit 15. By executing this relay process, the logical path used for forwarding the received frame is determined. Specifically, the relay processing unit 16 refers to the correspondence information table 132-12 and selects the correspondence information record having the value of the destination address indicated by the destination information. The relay processing unit 16 acquires the value of the logical path identifier (“0x19”) from the selected correspondence information record. The relay processing unit 16 outputs the acquired value of the logical path identifier to the first protocol processing unit 14 together with the transmission data and the destination information (step S501).

The first protocol processing unit 14 generates a frame 522 for transferring the transmission data to the gateway device 1-14 at the end point of the designated logical path by executing the first protocol processing. Specifically, the first protocol processing unit 14 first stores the transmission data, the destination information, and the logical path identifier in the data unit, the destination information storage unit, and the logical path storage unit, respectively. Subsequently, the first protocol processing unit 14 generates the first protocol information and stores it in the protocol information storage unit. Specifically, the first protocol processing unit 14 has a gateway device 1-13 (“0x1003”) whose source is its own device (“0x1002”) and whose destination is located next to its own device on the logical path. First protocol information indicating that is generated. The first protocol processing unit 14 outputs the frame 523 thus generated to the first communication unit 11 (step S502).

The first protocol processing unit 14 of the gateway device 1-13 removes the first protocol information from the reception frame 522 by executing the first protocol processing, and outputs the first protocol information to the transfer processing unit 17 (step S503). Specifically, the first protocol processing unit 14 determines whether or not the frame is addressed to its own device based on the first protocol information of the reception frame 522. If the receiving frame is not addressed to the own device, the first protocol processing unit 14 discards the receiving frame. On the other hand, when the reception frame is addressed to the own device, the first protocol processing unit 14 removes the first protocol information from the reception frame and outputs it to a higher-level functional unit (here, transfer processing unit 17).

The transfer processing unit 17 acquires the destination information, the transmission data, and the logical path identifier from the frame 522 output from the first protocol processing unit 14. The transfer processing unit 17 determines whether or not the own device is the end point of the logical path in the logical path indicated by the acquired logical path identifier. When the own device is the end point of the logical path, the transfer processing unit 17 outputs the destination information and the transmission data to a higher-level functional unit (for example, a relay processing unit 16). On the other hand, when the own device is not the end point of the logical path, the transfer processing unit 17 executes the second transfer process based on the logical path identifier. By executing this second transfer process, the transfer processing unit 17 determines the gateway device 1a-14 located next to the own device on the logical path as the next transfer destination of the transmission data. The transfer processing unit 17 outputs the transfer information indicating the gateway device 1a to be the next transfer destination determined in this way to the first protocol processing unit 14 together with the transmission data, the destination information, and the logical path identifier (step S504). ..

The first protocol processing unit 14 generates a frame 524 for transferring the transmission data to the gateway device 1a-14 determined as the next transfer destination by executing the first protocol processing. Specifically, the first protocol processing unit 14 first stores the transmission data, the destination information, and the logical path identifier in the data unit, the destination information storage unit, and the logical path storage unit, respectively. Subsequently, the first protocol processing unit 14 generates the first protocol information and stores it in the protocol information storage unit. Specifically, the first protocol processing unit 14 indicates that the source is the own device (“0x1003”) and the destination is the gateway device 1a-14 (“0x1004”) indicated by the transfer information. Generate information. The first protocol processing unit 14 outputs the frame 524 thus generated to the first communication unit 11 (step S505).

The control system 100 of the second embodiment configured in this way includes a gateway device 1a that performs a second transfer process based on a logical path. By providing such a configuration, in the control system 100, most of the communication in the system can be made wireless, and the management load of the system can be reduced. Further, in the control system 100 of the second embodiment, by setting the logical path in advance, it is possible to design the transfer path of the transmission data in advance to some extent. If such a design becomes possible, when a failure occurs in the first wireless network 63, the failure site can be more easily identified. It is also possible to localize the range of influence of the failure within a pre-designed range. Further, by designing the transfer path of the transmission data in advance to some extent, it is possible to distribute the communication load of the gateway device 1a to a plurality of gateway devices 1a according to the communication status and the load.

A plurality of logical paths for one destination identifier may be set. In this case, the relay processing unit 16a may select one logical path from a plurality of logical paths to transmit data, or select a plurality of logical paths and the same for all the selected logical paths. Data may be sent.

(Third Embodiment)
The control system 100 of the third embodiment is different from the control system 100 of the second embodiment in that the gateway device 1b is provided in place of the gateway device 1a. The system configuration of the control system 100 of the third embodiment is the same as that of the control system 100 of the second embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a specific example of the functional configuration of the gateway device 1b according to the third embodiment. The gateway device 1b in the third embodiment is different from the gateway device 1a in the second embodiment in that the corresponding information generation unit 18 is further provided. The correspondence information generation unit 18 generates correspondence information by communicating with the correspondence information generation unit 18 of another gateway device 1b.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing in which correspondence information is generated. First, the first protocol processing unit 14 of the gateway device 1b configures the first wireless network 63 by communicating with the first protocol processing unit 14 of the other gateway device 1b (step S601). Specifically, by configuring the first wireless network 63, each gateway device 1b generates route information for communication destined for another gateway device 1b. The correspondence information generation unit 18 assigns a logical path identifier to all the routes indicated by the generated route information (step S602). By assigning this logical path identifier, for example, a logical path as shown in FIG. 13 is formed.

The route information generated by the first protocol processing unit 14 may include communication devices other than the gateway device 1b constituting the edge of the first wireless network 63. On the other hand, the logical path required for the relay process or the transfer process is indicated by the route information indicating the route whose end point is the gateway device 1b. Therefore, the correspondence information generation unit 18 may select a route whose end point is the gateway device 1 from the routes indicated by the route information and assign a logical path identifier.

Subsequently, the corresponding information generation unit 18 moves from the gateway device 1b, which is the end point of each logical path, to the second communication unit 12 side of the gateway device 1b for each route (that is, the logical path) for each logical path identifier. The address information of the connected device (hereinafter, referred to as “accommodating device”) is acquired (step S603). The correspondence information generation unit 18 generates correspondence information as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 based on the logical path information and the address information of the accommodating device acquired from the gateway device 1b other than the own device (step). S604).

The control system 100 of the third embodiment configured in this way collects the address information of the accommodating device from the gateway device 1b located at the end point of the logical path to which the own device belongs and generates the correspondence information. A generation unit 18 is provided. By providing such a function, in the control system 100, it is not necessary to set the correspondence information in each gateway device 1b in advance, so that the management load related to the control system can be reduced.

(Fourth Embodiment)
The control system 100 of the fourth embodiment is different from the control system 100 of the first embodiment in that the gateway device 1c is provided in place of the gateway device 1. The system configuration of the control system 100 of the fourth embodiment is the same as that of the control system 100 of the first embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 19 is a diagram showing a specific example of the functional configuration of the gateway device 1c according to the fourth embodiment. The gateway device 1c in the fourth embodiment is different from the gateway device 1 in the first embodiment in that it includes a second protocol processing unit 15c instead of the second protocol processing unit 15 and further includes a protocol selection unit 19. .. The second protocol processing unit 15c includes a plurality of protocol processing units that execute the second protocol processing with different protocols. The second protocol processing unit 15c in the example of FIG. 19 includes a third protocol processing unit 151 and a fourth protocol processing unit 152 as a plurality of protocol processing units that execute the second protocol processing with different protocols. When the frame is received from the second wireless network 64 side, the second protocol processing unit 15c causes all the protocol processing units provided by the second protocol processing unit 15c to execute the second protocol processing, and transfers the frame to the second wireless network 64. When transmitting to the side, the protocol processing unit designated by the protocol selection unit 19 is made to execute the second protocol processing.

The protocol selection unit 19 selects a protocol processing unit that executes the second protocol processing for a reception frame or a transmission frame from a plurality of protocol processing units included in the second protocol processing unit 15c. Specifically, when a frame is received from the second wireless network 64 side, the protocol selection unit 19 performs the second protocol processing according to the type of received data from the processing results of a plurality of protocol processing units for the same received frame. Select the executed processing result and provide it to the upper layer. In this case, the type of received data may be identified by any method. For example, when each protocol processing unit outputs an error for an unexpected reception frame, the type of received data may be identified based on the presence or absence of an error in each protocol processing. Further, for example, when the reception frame includes information indicating the data type in advance (hereinafter, referred to as “type information”), the data type may be identified based on the content of the reception frame. In this case, the type information may be included in the receiving frame on the side of the device that transmits the data. On the other hand, when the frame is transmitted to the second wireless network 64 side, the data transmission unit (not shown) outputs transmission data to which information indicating the data type is added to the second protocol processing unit 15c.

In general, the second protocol is often different depending on the type of device to be communicated with. For example, air-conditioning-related equipment communicates with the second protocol for air-conditioning, and lighting-related equipment communicates with the second protocol for lighting. When the communication protocol differs depending on the type of device in this way, a second communication unit 12 is provided for each type of device of the communication partner, and the second communication unit 12 is provided according to the type of device with which each communicates. It is necessary to make the second protocol processing unit have a one-to-one correspondence. However, if the communication method of the physical layer is the same, providing the second communication unit 12 for each type of the device of the communication partner may complicate the hardware configuration of the device and cause various cost increases.

The gateway device 1c according to the fourth embodiment is provided with a protocol selection unit 19 that selects a second protocol process according to the type of the device as the communication partner for the frames transmitted and received by the second communication unit 12, and thus the types are different. Communication with a plurality of devices can be performed with the same wireless communication interface.

Further, in the gateway device 1 according to the fourth embodiment, one processing result corresponding to the type of the device or data is selected from all the different second protocol processing results. According to such a reception process, the second protocol process can be executed with priority given to the frame reception process. Specifically, it is not necessary to determine the type of the second protocol processing to be executed between the second communication unit 12 and the second protocol processing unit 15c. By providing such a configuration, it is possible to suppress a decrease in reception processing performance due to sharing of the wireless communication interface.

(Fifth Embodiment)
The control system 100 of the fifth embodiment is different from the control system 100 of the first embodiment in that the gateway device 1d is provided in place of the gateway device 1. The system configuration of the control system 100 of the fourth embodiment is the same as that of the control system 100 of the first embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 20 is a diagram showing a specific example of the functional configuration of the gateway device 1d according to the fifth embodiment. The gateway device 1d in the fifth embodiment includes a second communication unit 12d instead of the second communication unit 12, a second protocol processing unit 15d instead of the second protocol processing unit 15, and an IF notification unit. It differs from the gateway device 1 in the first embodiment in that it further includes 1A.

The second communication unit 12d is different from the second communication unit 12 in that the second communication unit 12 includes a single wireless communication unit, whereas the second communication unit 12 includes a plurality of wireless communication units. In the example of FIG. 20, the second communication unit 12d includes a wireless communication unit 121-1 and a wireless communication unit 121-2 as an example of the plurality of wireless communication units. Each wireless communication unit 121 includes a wireless IF unit 122 and a system information storage unit 123. The wireless IF unit 122 included in each wireless communication unit 121 may communicate in a different radio frequency band, or may communicate in a different protocol.

The wireless IF unit 122 includes a wireless communication interface for connecting the own device to the second wireless network 64. The system information storage unit 123 is configured by using a storage device such as a magnetic hard disk device or a semiconductor storage device, and stores system information in advance. The system information is information indicating the wireless communication system of the wireless IF unit 122 provided in the same wireless communication unit 121.

The IF notification unit 1A is provided for each wireless communication unit 121 included in the second communication unit 12d, and acquires system information from the system information storage unit 123 of the corresponding wireless communication unit 121. The IF notification unit 1A outputs the acquired method information to the second protocol processing unit 15d.

The second protocol processing unit 15d executes the second protocol processing based on the method information notified from the plurality of IF notification units 1A. Specifically, the second protocol processing unit 15d selects and executes the second protocol processing according to the communication method of the wireless communication unit 121 for the reception frame output from each wireless communication unit 121. For example, when the wireless communication unit 121-1 communicates with a lighting-related device and the wireless communication unit 121-2 communicates with an air-conditioning-related device, the second protocol processing unit 15d should execute the reception frame. 2 It is determined based on the method information whether the protocol processing is the second protocol processing for lighting or the second protocol processing for air conditioning. In this way, the second protocol processing unit 15d selects and executes the second protocol processing according to the device communicating with each wireless communication unit 121 for the received frame.

The control system 100 of the fifth embodiment configured in this way includes a gateway device 1d capable of selecting and executing a second protocol process according to the device of the communication partner. By providing such a configuration, one gateway device 1d can wirelessly accommodate a plurality of devices of different types.

According to at least one embodiment described above, a transfer processing unit that transfers received data to the gateway device accommodating the destination device and received data based on the correspondence information indicating the correspondence relationship between the gateway device and the accommodating device. By having a relay processing unit that relays received data between the second network and the first wireless network according to the destination of the control system, the management load of the control system can be reduced.

Although some embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention as well as the invention described in the claims and the equivalent scope thereof.

100 ... Control system, 1,1a, 1b, 1c, 1d ... Gateway device, 11 ... First communication unit, 12, 12d ... Second communication unit, 121 ... Wireless communication unit, 122 ... Wireless IF unit, 123 ... Protocol information Storage unit, 13, 13a ... Storage unit, 131, 132 ... Correspondence information table, 14 ... First protocol processing unit, 15, 15c, 15d ... Second protocol processing unit, 151 ... Third protocol processing unit, 152 ... Fourth Protocol processing unit, 16, 16a ... Relay processing unit, 17 ... Transfer processing unit, 18 ... Corresponding information generation unit, 19 ... Protocol selection unit, 1A ... Notification unit, 63 ... First wireless network, 64 ... Second wireless network, 101 ... Management terminal, 511-514 ... Frame, 521-524 ... Frame, 701-707 ... Logical path, 10 ... Higher control device, 20 ... Air conditioning equipment, 21 ... Air conditioning equipment, 22 ... Air conditioning setting device, 23 ... Air conditioning sensor, 231 ... Data transmission unit, 232 ... Second protocol processing unit, 233 ... Wireless communication unit, 24 ... Air conditioning control device, 241 ... Communication unit, 242 ... Second protocol processing unit, 243 ... Data receiving unit, 30 ... Lighting equipment, 31 ... Lighting equipment, 32 ... Lighting setting device, 33 ... Lighting sensor, 34 ... Lighting control device, 40 ... Heat source equipment, 41 ... Heat source pump, 42 ... Heat source valve, 43 ... Pump Sensor, 44 ... Valve sensor, 45 ... Heat source controller

Claims (8)

Each of a plurality of wireless communication devices constituting a wireless mesh network as a first wireless network capable of transferring data related to device control to a destination by a route dynamically configured according to the state of a participating node .
A storage unit that stores correspondence information indicating the correspondence relationship between each of the other plurality of wireless communication devices and the device accommodated in the second wireless network to which each wireless communication device belongs .
If the destination device of the data received by the first wireless network side is present in the second wireless network belonging to its own device, with relays before the Kide over data to the second radio network side, the second wireless network side When the destination device of the data received in is present in the second wireless network to which the other wireless communication device belongs, the data is transferred to the other wireless communication device associated with the destination device according to the corresponding information. With a relay processing unit that relays data to the first wireless network side
A transfer processing unit for transferring the data received from the other wireless communication apparatus of the first wireless network to the destination wireless communication device,
A wireless communication device to be equipped. The correspondence information is information indicating a transfer path of Lud over data put between the plurality of wireless communication devices for each destination equipment of the data,
The transfer processing unit is specified based wireless communication device located in the next own device on the transfer path associated with the destination equipment of the received data in the correspondence information, identified the wireless communication device to determine as a transfer destination before Kide over data,
The wireless communication device according to claim 1. A protocol processing unit constituting the communication path with another wireless communication device by executing a protocol processing of the wireless mesh network,
A correspondence information generation unit that generates the correspondence information by associating a communication path with the other wireless communication device with a device accommodated by the wireless communication device on the communication path is further provided.
The wireless communication device according to claim 1 or 2. It is a communication unit for communicating with devices housed in the same second wireless network as its own device.
Multiple protocol processing units that perform communication processing with different protocols,
A protocol selection unit that selects a protocol processing unit corresponding to the device to be communicated with from the plurality of protocol processing units, and a protocol selection unit.
The communication unit is further provided.
The wireless communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 3. It also has a communication unit for communicating with devices housed in the same second wireless network as its own device using multiple communication interfaces with different protocols.
The relay processing unit transmits data addressed to the device by the communication interface corresponding to the protocol of the device of the communication destination among the plurality of communication interfaces.
The wireless communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 4. Each of the plurality of wireless communication devices constituting the wireless mesh network as the first wireless network, which can transfer the data related to the control of the device to the destination by the route dynamically configured according to the state of the participating node ,
Stores correspondence information indicating the correspondence relationship between each of the other plurality of wireless communication devices and the device accommodated in the second wireless network to which each wireless communication device belongs .
If the destination device of the data received by the first wireless network side is present in the second wireless network belonging to its own device, with relays before the Kide over data to the second radio network side, the second wireless network When the destination device of the data received on the side exists in the second wireless network to which the other wireless communication device belongs, the other wireless communication device associated with the destination device according to the corresponding information is set as the transfer destination. The data is relayed to the first wireless network side ,
The data received from the other wireless communication apparatus of the first wireless network to transfer to the transfer destination radio communication device,
Wireless communication method. A computer program for operating a computer as the wireless communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 5. A plurality of wireless communication devices that configure a wireless mesh network as a first wireless network that can transfer data related to device control to a destination by a route dynamically configured according to the state of participating nodes .
A control device that transmits / receives the data to / from the device via the wireless communication device, and
With
Each of the plurality of wireless communication devices
A storage unit that stores correspondence information indicating the correspondence relationship between each of the other plurality of wireless communication devices and the device accommodated in the second wireless network to which each wireless communication device belongs .
If the controller or the device that is the destination of data received by the first wireless network side is present in the second wireless network belonging to its own device, with relays before the Kide over data to the first radio network side, the 2 When the destination device of the data received on the wireless network side exists in the second wireless network to which the other wireless communication device belongs, the other wireless communication device associated with the destination device is transferred according to the corresponding information. As a first step, a relay processing unit that relays the data to the first wireless network side ,
A transfer processing unit for transferring the data received from the other wireless communication apparatus of the first wireless network to the destination wireless communication device,
Control system with.

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