MULTIHOP RADIO HAZARD REPORTING SYSTEM

• US 20100110924A1
• Filed: 04/03/2008
• Published: 05/06/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/05/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens Schweiz AG (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Meier, Andreas, Blum, Philipp, Strasser, Mario
• Granted Patent: US 8,228,847 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/252
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/009 Signalling of the alarm condition to a substation whose identity is signalled to a central station, e.g. relaying alarm signals in order to extend communication range
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/00 Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks routing or path finding in wireless networks H04W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/12 Shortest path evaluation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/121 by minimising delays
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/122 by minimising distances, e.g. by selecting a route with minimum of number of hops
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/10 based on available power or energy
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/12 based on transmission quality or channel quality

Abstract

A method and a system for the propagation of a message in a radio-operated communication network having a base unit and a plurality of members, wherein the base unit and the members each includes a transmitter and a receiver, the receiver being activated at cyclical switch-on times for a certain respective receiving period. A message to be sent from a member to the base unit is transmitted by the member to at least one adjacent member as a function of at least one rule, and the message is transmitted by the at least one adjacent member, according to the at least one rule, to at least one member adjacent thereto, in the direction of the base unit. The process is repeated such that the message is transmitted from at least one adjacent member receiving the message according to the at least one rule to at least one member adjacent thereto, in the direction of the base unit. The message is transmitted from the at least one member that is adjacent to the base unit to at least the base unit.

Claims

1-31. -31. (canceled)

32. A method for transmitting a message in a radio-operated communication network having a base unit and a plurality of nodes, wherein the base unit and the nodes each has a transmitter and a receiver, the method which comprises:

activating the receiver at cyclical switch-on times for a specific receiving time period in each case;

transmitting a message to be sent from a node to the base unit by the node to at least one adjacent node as a function of at least one rule;

in accordance with the at least one rule, transmitting the message from the at least one adjacent node in a direction of the base unit to at least one respectively adjacent node;

in accordance with the at least one rule, transmitting the message in each case from the at least one respectively adjacent node having received the message in the direction of the base unit to at least one of its respectively adjacent nodes; and

transmitting the message at least to the base unit from at least one node that is adjacent to the base unit.

33. The method according to claim 32, which comprises sending at least one item of information relating to a switch-on time of the node from each node to the respectively adjacent nodes.

34. The method according to claim 32, which comprises using the switch-on time of the node as at least one rule.

35. The method according to claim 34, which comprises transmitting the message from the node to the adjacent node having the earliest possible switch-on time.

36. The method according to claim 32, wherein the nodes are assigned to different communication levels in relation to the base unit.

37. The method according to claim 32, which comprises using the communication level of a node as at least one rule.

38. The method according to claim 32, which comprises determining the shortest distance from a node to the base unit in order to identify the communication level of the nodes.

39. The method according to claim 38, which comprises determining a shortest transmission path by:

sending a signaling message containing at least one parameter from the base unit to the adjacent nodes;

storing a communication level as a function of the parameter by the nodes receiving the signaling message;

sending a further signaling message containing a further parameter by the nodes to their adjacent nodes; and

storing a further communication level as a function of the further parameter by the nodes receiving the further signaling message; and

continuing the sending and storing steps until all the nodes have been assigned a communication level corresponding to the shortest transmission path between the node and the base unit.

40. The method according to claim 39, wherein the parameter in the signaling message specifies the number of nodes between the node and the base unit.

41. The method according to claim 39, which comprises, by the node receiving a signaling message containing a parameter, comparing the parameter in the signaling message with an already received parameter.

42. The method according to claim 41, which comprises discarding the signaling message containing the parameter if the value of the parameter is greater than an already received parameter.

43. The method according to claim 32, which comprises, in accordance with a rule, sending the message by a node to the base unit along a shortest transmission path.

44. The method according to claim 38, which comprises forwarding the message in accordance with a rule by the at least one node sending the message to at least one node having a lower communication level.

45. The method according to claim 44, which comprises identifying the at least one adjacent node having a lower communication level by the sending node by comparing its own communication level.

46. The method according to claim 32, wherein the base unit is at least one of a hazard warning control center and a hazard warning unit.

47. The method according to claim 32, wherein the nodes are hazard warning units.

48. The method according to claim 42, wherein the base unit is at least one hazard warning control center selected from the group consisting of a fire alarm control center, an intruder alarm control center, and a gas alarm control center.

49. The method according to claim 46, wherein the hazard warning unit is at least one unit selected from the group consisting of a fire alarm, an intruder alarm, a gas leak detector, an acoustic alarm unit, an optical alarm unit, a surveillance camera, and an optoacoustic alarm unit.

50. The method according to claim 32, wherein the message is selected from the group consisting of an alarm message, a signaling message, and a message relating to an exchange of payload data.

51. The method according to claim 32, wherein at least one rule specifies the number of adjacent nodes to which the message is to be transmitted.

52. The method according to claim 51, which comprises specifying a number of adjacent nodes that are to receive the message by way of a parameter stored at the node.

53. The method according to claim 32, which comprises transmitting a message only once from one node to at least one adjacent node.

54. The method according to claim 32, which comprises confirming a receipt of the message by the adjacent node to the sending node.

55. The method according to claim 54, wherein the message is not retransmitted to an adjacent node that has not confirmed the receipt of the message until at least one attempt to transmit the message to at least one other adjacent node was unsuccessful or only partially successful.

56. The method according to claim 54, which comprises giving adjacent nodes having a lower communication level precedence over the nodes having a higher communication level only during a first transmission attempt.

57. The method according to claim 54, which comprises, during a second transmission attempt, transmitting the message to the adjacent nodes as a function of their switch-on times.

58. The method according to claim 54, which comprises transmitting the message only to those adjacent nodes that have not yet sent a confirmation to the sending node.

59. The method according to claim 54, wherein a parameter stored at the sending node specifies the number of transmission attempts that are to be made.

60. The method according to claim 32, which comprises transmitting the message to be sent from the base unit to at least one node to nodes having a high communication level.

61. The method according to claim 60, which comprises determining an order of the transmission to the nodes having a high communication level according to the switch-on times of the nodes.

62. A system for transmitting a message in a radio-operated communication network, comprising:

a base unit and a plurality of nodes, each of said base unit and said nodes having a transmitter and a receiver, and said receiver is activated at cyclical switch-on times for a specific receiving time period in each case;

said nodes including;

a node for transmitting a message to be sent from said node to said base unit to at least one respectively adjacent node as a function of at least one rule;

said at least one adjacent node configured to transmit the message in the direction of said base unit in accordance with the at least one rule to at least one adjacent node respectively adjacent thereto;

said at least one adjacent node receiving the message for transmitting the message in accordance with the at least one rule in the direction of the base unit to at least one adjacent node respectively adjacent thereto; and

at least one node directly adjacent to said base unit and configured to transmit the message at least to said base unit.