Control device and communication system

• US 10,143,014 B2
• Filed: 04/09/2015
• Issued: 11/27/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/22/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Component Limited (Fujitsu Limited)
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Component Limited (Fujitsu Limited)
• Inventors: Katayama, Shinichi, Nagao, Naoyuki, Kobayashi, Mitsuru, Odajima, Tatsuya
• Primary Examiner(s): Cho, Un C
• Assistant Examiner(s): Rahman, Shah M
• Application Number:
  US14/682,459
• Publication Number:
  US 20150304884A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,328 Days
• Field of Search: 370338
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/0015 one node acting as a reference for the others
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/04 Scheduled access hybrid access H04W74/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/085 collision avoidance
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/20 Master-slave selection or change arrangements

Abstract

A control device that performs wireless communication and is connected to another control device via a wired network includes: an acquirer that acquires information relating to a channel and a communication timing used for wireless communication via the wired network from another control device that acts as a slave; a generator that generates a setting of a channel and a communication timing in which wireless communication performed by the another control device is free of interference, based on information relating to a channel and a communication timing used for wireless communication of the control device and information relating to the channel and the communication timing used for the wireless communication that are acquired by the acquirer; and a reporter that reports the setting of the channel and the timing generated by the generator to the another control device that acts as the slave via the wired network.

Claims

1. A control device that performs wireless communication and is connected to another control device via a wired network comprising:

a memory; and

a processor coupled to the memory and the processor configured to;

acquire information relating to a channel and a communication timing used for wireless communication via the wired network from another control device that is made to act as a slave;

generate a setting of a channel and a communication timing in which no interference occurs between wireless communication with a first opposing control device performed by the control device and wireless communication with a second opposing control device performed by the another control device, based on information relating to a channel and a communication timing used for wireless communication of the control device and the acquired information relating to the channel and the communication timing used for wireless communication of the another control device; and

report the generated setting of the channel and the timing to the another control device that is made to act as the slave via the wired network for minimizing interference in communication between the control devices and corresponding opposing control devices,

wherein;

the memory holds information on a first relationship between the control device and the first opposing control device managed by the control device and a second relationship between the another control device and the second opposing control device managed by the another control device,

the processor is further configured to;

acquire a first electrical power information of a first load connected to the first opposing control device from the first opposing control device according to the first relationship,

acquire a second electrical power information of a second load connected to the second opposing control device from the another control device according to the second relationship when the second electrical power information is requested from an information processing device connected to the control device via the wired network, and

send the first electrical power information and the second electrical power information to the information processing device for displaying the respective electrical power information to a user for corrective action by the user.

2. The control device as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the communication timing is a starting time and a cycle of wireless communication;

when there is a usable and unused channel when generating the setting, the processor sets a channel that is used by an object control device to the usable and unused channel; and

when there is no usable and unused channel when generating the setting, the processor sets the channel that is used by the object control device to a channel in which a number of assigned control devices is less and sets a starting time of the wireless communication to a starting time in which a number of assigned control devices is less.

3. The control device as claimed in claim 1, wherein when the another control device is added to the wired network or is deleted from the wired network, the processor re-acquires the information relating to the channel and the communication timing from the another control device connected to the wired network, the processor re-generates the setting of the channel and the communication timing in which no interference occurs between wireless communication performed by the control device and wireless communication performed by the another control device, and the processor re-reports the re-generated setting of the channel and the communication timing to the another control device that is made to act as the slave.

4. The control device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the memory that associates with each other a destination of the slave, information of the second opposing control device managed by the slave, and information of a group to which the second opposing control device managed by the slave belongs, and holds the associated information,

when the second electrical power information of the second opposing control device belonging to the group indicated by the information processing device is requested, the processor acquires the second electrical power information of the second opposing control device belonging to the group from a slave that manages the second opposing control device belonging to the group.

5. A communication system comprising:

a plurality of control devices that are connected to each other via a wired network;

a plurality of opposing control devices that respectively perform wireless communication with the plurality of control devices; and

an information processing device that is connected to the plurality of control devices via the wired network, and includes a setter that makes one of the plurality of control devices act as a master and makes the other control devices act as a slave,

wherein;

the master comprises;

a memory that holds information on relationships between the plurality of control devices and the plurality of opposing control devices managed by the plurality of control devices respectively; and

a first processor, coupled to the memory, configured to;

acquire information relating to a channel and a communication timing used for wireless communication via the wired network from the slave;

generate a setting of a channel and a communication timing in which no interference occurs between wireless communication with the first opposing control device of the plurality of opposing control devices performed by the master and wireless communication with the second opposing control device of the plurality of opposing control devices performed by the slave, based on information relating to a channel and a communication timing used for wireless communication of the master and the acquired information relating to the channel and the communication timing used for wireless communication of the slave; and

report the generated setting of the channel and the communication timing to the slave via the wired network for minimizing interference in communication between the control devices and corresponding opposing control devices,

the slave comprises a second processor that changes a channel and a communication timing used for wireless communication of the slave in accordance with the reported setting of the channel and the communication,

the first processor is further configured to;

acquire a first electrical power information of a first load connected to the first opposing control device from the first opposing control device according to the relationships,

acquire a second electrical power information of a second load connected to the second opposing control device from the slave according to the relationships when the second electrical power information is requested from the information processing device,

and send the first electrical power information and the second electrical power information to the information processing device for displaying the respective electrical power information to a user for corrective action by the user.

6. The communication system as claimed in claim 5, wherein:

the communication timing is a starting time and a cycle of a wireless communication;

when there is a usable and unused channel when generating the setting, the first processor sets a channel that is used by an object control device to the usable and unused channel; and

when there is no usable and unused channel when generating the setting, the first processor sets the channel that is used by the object control device to a channel in which a number of assigned control devices is less and sets a starting time of the wireless communication to a starting time in which a number of assigned control devices is less.

7. The communication system as claimed in claim 5, wherein when the slave is added to the wired network or is deleted from the wired network, the first processor re-acquires the information relating to the channel and the communication timing from another slave connected to the wired network, the first processor re-generates the setting of the channel and the communication timing in which no interference occurs between wireless communication with the first opposing control device performed by the master and wireless communication with the second opposing control device performed by the slave, and the first processor re-reports the re-generated setting of the channel and the communication timing to other control devices that is made to act as the slave.

8. The communication system as claimed in claim 5, wherein:

the memory associates with each other a destination of the slave, information of the second opposing control device managed by the slave, and information of a group to which the second opposing control device managed by the slave belongs, and holds the associated information,

when the second electrical power information of the second opposing control device belonging to a group indicated by the information processing device is requested, the first processor acquires the second electrical power information of the second opposing control device belonging to the group from the slave that manages the second opposing control device belonging to the group.

9. The communication system as claimed in claim 8, wherein when the information processing device requests a re-setting of the channel and the communication timing used for the wireless communication or the second electrical power information of the second opposing control device belonging to the group from the slave, the second processor of the slave sends back to the information processing device a re-direct instruction requesting the resetting of the channel and the communication timing used for the wireless communication or the second electrical power information of the second opposing control device belonging to the group from the master by using a destination of the master.