Data relay device and data management system using the same

• US 20060058982A1
• Filed: 10/07/2003
• Published: 03/16/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/09/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: ARKRAY, Inc
• Original Assignee: ARKRAY, Inc
• Inventors: Chikakiyo, Hirokazu, Yamada, Kinnichi, Kinose, Tamotsu
• Application Number:
  US10/530,107
• Publication Number:
  US 20060058982A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/189
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/385 for adaptation of a particular data processing system to different peripheral devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/2871 Implementation details of single intermediate entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/288 Distributed intermediate devices, i.e. intermediate devices for interaction with other intermediate devices on the same level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5682 Policies or rules for updating, deleting or replacing the stored data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/08 Protocols for interworking; Protocol conversion

Abstract

A data relay device and a data management system that eliminate the need for changing the setting when a new testing or measuring device is added is provided. An adapter 4 for connecting to a LAN 3 plural kinds of testing devices 5a, 5b . . . generating data in different formats stores in advance a conversion program for converting an individual message of each of the devices into a common message according to the kinds of the testing devices 5a, 5b . . . , converts the individual message sent from the testing devices 5a, 5b . . . in a serial manner into a common format and sends it to a communication management terminal 2.

Claims

1. A data relay device for connecting to a network a plurality of kinds of data generating devices generating data in different formats, comprising:

a data receiving portion for receiving the data from the plurality of kinds of data generating devices; and

a converting portion for converting the data received by the data receiving portion into a common format that is processable by other devices on the network.

2. The data relay device according to claim 1, further comprising

a connected device information storing portion for storing device information on the connected data generating devices, and

a device information updating portion for, when receiving from one of the data generating devices data containing device information of the data generating device, making a comparison of the device information in the received data and the device information stored in the connected device information storing portion and updating a content of the connected device information storing portion according to a result of the comparison.

3. The data relay device according to claim 2, further comprising a device information sending portion for sending the device information received from the data generating device to a data management device for processing the data from the data generating device via the network.

4. The data relay device according to claim 1, further comprising

a conversion program storing portion for storing a conversion program for causing the converting portion to conduct a conversion processing according to the kind of each of the data generating devices, and

a conversion program obtaining portion for determining whether a conversion program for a data generating device is stored in the conversion program storing portion when the data generating device is newly connected and, if not, requesting the conversion program.

5. The data relay device according to claim 4, further comprising an analyzing portion for extracting a feature of the data received from the data generating device, thereby specifying the kind of the connected data generating device.

6. A data management system in which, using a data relay device for connecting to a network a plurality of kinds of data generating devices generating data in different formats, the data generating devices are connected to a data management device on the network, the data relay device comprising:

a data receiving portion for receiving the data from the plurality of kinds of data generating devices; and

a converting portion for converting the data received by the data receiving portion into a common format that is processable by other devices on the network;

wherein the data management device processes the data from the data generating devices in the common format.

7. The data management system according to claim 6, wherein the data relay device further comprises

a connected device information storing portion for storing device information on the connected data generating devices, and

a device information updating portion for, when receiving from one of the data generating devices data containing device information of the data generating device, making a comparison of the device information in the received data and the device information stored in the connected device information storing portion and updating a content of the connected device information storing portion according to a result of the comparison.

8. The data management system according to claim 7, wherein the data relay device further comprises a device information sending portion for sending the device information received from the data generating device to the data management device via the network.

9. The data management system according to claim 6, further comprising a conversion program storing device for storing conversion programs for various kinds of the data generating devices,

wherein the data relay device further comprises

a conversion program storing portion for storing a conversion program for causing the converting portion to conduct a conversion processing according to the kind of each of the data generating devices, and

a conversion program obtaining portion for determining whether a conversion program for a data generating device is stored in the conversion program storing portion when the data generating device is newly connected and, if not, requesting the conversion program from the conversion program storing device.

10. The data management system according to claim 9, wherein the data relay device further comprises an analyzing portion for extracting a feature of the data received from the data generating device, thereby specifying the kind of the connected data generating device.

11. The data management system according to claim 9, wherein the conversion program storing device further comprises an analyzing portion for extracting a feature of the data received from the data generating device, thereby specifying the kind of the connected data generating device.

12. The data management system according to claim 9, wherein the data relay device sends the conversion program obtained from the conversion program storing device to other data relay devices connected to the network.

13. The data management system according to claim 9, wherein the data relay device periodically accesses the conversion program storing device and, if a new conversion program is stored, obtains the conversion program and stores it in the conversion program storing portion.