DESIGN AND CONTROL SYSTEMS, COMMISSIONING TOOLS, CONFIGURATION ADAPTERS AND METHOD FOR WIRELESS AND WIRED NETWORKS DESIGN, INSTALLATION AND AUTOMATIC FORMATION

• US 20110007665A1
• Filed: 11/19/2008
• Published: 01/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/29/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TriDiNetworks Ltd.
• Original Assignee: TriDiNetworks Ltd.
• Inventors: Dinur, Jehuda Julian
• Granted Patent: US 8,437,276 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/254
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0806 for initial configuration or provisioning, e.g. plug-and-play
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0846 based on copy from other elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/145 involving simulating, designing, planning or modelling of a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/18 Network planning tools
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/175 by remote control
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/199 Commissioning of light sources

Abstract

Design and control systems, commissioning tools, configuration adapters and a method for wireless and wired networks design, installation and automatic formation, including binding of the networks devices are provided. In the design system a scheme that uniquely identifies each network device by its type and its physical location is created and information for logical binding between the devices is prepared. In the design system is also created a device mapping that maps between the devices on the scheme and their network configuration data such as, radio IDs and startup attribute sets and wired communication link address. The data prepared in the design system is transferred to or accessed by a master controller and dedicated commissioning tools in the control system. According to devices'"'"' physical locations, appropriate configuration data is loaded from the commissioning tools into the devices through dedicated configuration adapters. The devices and their configuration adapters not necessarily have to be powered-up during configuration data loading. After power-up, the devices automatically update themselves with the loaded configuration data and the control system may initialize itself and identifies all the devices. The master controller in the control system uses the design system defined binding information and transmits binding commands for creating logical links between the devices and so networks may be automatically formed.

Claims

1-29. -29. (canceled)

30. A method of networks design, installation, and formation, the method comprising the main stages of:

(a) starting said networks, design, installation and formation;

(b) designing said networks;

(c) installing said networks; and

(d) forming said networks.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein said main stage of forming said networks is done automatically.

32. The method of claim 30, further comprising the main stage of:

(e) ending said networks design, installation, and formation.

33. The method of claim 30, wherein the main stage of starting said networks design, installation, and formation includes the stage of:

(i) providing a design system.

34. The method of claim 32, wherein the main stage of designing said networks includes the stages of:

(i) defining at least two types of devices;

(ii) defining binding links between said at least two types of devices;

(iii) defining a wired device mapping;

(iv) defining wireless device mapping; and

(v) defining an address translation sub-table for wireless devices.

35. The method of claim 34, wherein the stage of designing said networks further includes the sub-stage of:

(vi) accessing data created in said main stage of designing said networks, by a master controller through a standard communication link.

36. The method of claim 34, wherein the main stage of installing said networks includes the stage of:

(i) installing at least one device, selected from a group consisting of wireless devices and wired devices.

37. The method of claim 36, wherein the stage of installing at least one device includes the sub-stage of:

(A) accessing data created in said main stage of designing said networks, by a commissioning tool through a standard communication link.

38. The method of claim 31, wherein the main stage of forming said networks includes the stages of:

(i) initializing at least one wireless device;

(ii) initializing at least one wired device;

(iii) bindings formation; and

(iv) forming at least one wireless network.

40. The method of claim 34, wherein the stage of defining a wired device mapping includes the sub-stages of:

(A) using a master controller to automatically insert a wired logical ID of at least one wired device to a device mapping; and

(B) using said master controller to automatically allocate addresses for said at least one wired device.

41. The method of claim 34, wherein the stage of defining a wireless device mapping includes the sub-stages of:

(A) defining a startup attribute set for each of said wireless devices on a networks scheme;

(B) using a master controller to automatically start to create a wireless device mapping from a wireless logical ID of each of said wireless devices and its said startup attribute set;

(C) using a master controller to initiate a radio ID allocation;

(D) using said master controller to allocate a radio ID for each of said wireless logical IDs; and

(E) forming an additional address translation sub-table which specifies wired communication link address and an endpoint for each of said wired devices attached to each one of said wireless devices.

42. The method of claim 34, wherein the stage of defining an address translation sub-table for a wireless device includes the sub-stages of:

(A) using a master controller to initiate address translation sub-table calculation;

(B) using said master controller to automatically take a wired logical sub-ID and wired communication link address for each wired device from said wired device mapping and fill it in said address translation sub-table; and

(C) using said master controller to automatically enter an endpoint identifier.

43. The method of claim 36, wherein the stage of installing at least one wireless device includes the sub-stages of:

(A) physically installing at least one wireless device according to type and location taken from a networks scheme as it appears on a commissioning tool;

(B) marking said physically installed at least one wireless device on said commissioning tool;

(C) bringing said commissioning tool into at least proximity of a physically installed configuration adapter of wireless device; and

(D) initiating data download from said commissioning tool to said configuration adapter of wireless device using a commissioning tool'"'"'s user interface, wherein there is no need to power-up configuration adapter of said wireless device.

44. The method of claim 36, wherein the stage of installing at least one wired device includes the sub-stages of:

(A) physically installing at least one wired device according to type and location taken from a networks scheme as it appears on a commissioning tool;

(B) marking said physically installed at least one wired device on said commissioning tool;

(C) bringing into at least proximity said commissioning tool with said at least one installed wired device; and

(D) initiating data download from said commissioning tool to said at least one wired device using a commissioning tool'"'"'s user interface, wherein there is no need to power-up said wired device.

39. A method of automatically forming networks, the method comprising the stages of:

(i) initializing at least one wireless device;

(ii) initializing at least one wired device; and

(iii) bindings formation.

45. The method of claim 39, wherein the stage of initializing at least one wireless device including the sub-stages of:

(A) powering up at least one wireless device;

(B) reading an ID, which is downloaded from a commissioning tool into a configuration adapter of said at least one wireless device,

(C) reading address translation sub-table entries, and using said entries to locate and communicate with each attached wired device;

(D) providing an indirect communication link between the wireless and wired networks;

(E) using said ID as its radio ID; and

(F) reading a startup attribute set, which is downloaded from said commissioning tool into said configuration adapter of wireless device, and using said startup attribute set and said radio ID to join a designated wireless network.

46. The method of claim 39, wherein the stage of initializing at least one wired device includes the sub-stages of:

(A) powering up at least one wired device; and

(B) reading data, which is downloaded from a commissioning tool into the configuration adapter of said wired device, and using a communication address for the specific wired communication protocol.

47. The method of claim 46, wherein the stage of bindings formation said networks includes the sub-stages of:

(A) using a master controller to initiate a binding process;

(B) reading binding links by said master controller, and using a wireless device mapping and the address translation sub-table in a wireless device mapping in order to translate wired logical IDs of wired devices found in said binding links to radio IDs and endpoints; and

(C) transmitting binding commands by said master controller.

48. The method of claim 46, wherein the stage of bindings formation said networks includes the sub-stages of:

(A) using a master controller to initiate a binding process;

(B) reading binding links by said master controller, and using a wireless device mapping and the address translation sub-table in a wireless device mapping in order to translate wired logical IDs of wired devices found in said binding links to radio IDs and endpoints; and

(C) reading data, which is downloaded from a commissioning tool into a configuration adapter of said wired device, and using bindings data for bindings formation.

49. A control system for controlling of wireless and wired networks, the control system comprising:

(a) a wired network, wherein said wired network includes at least one wired device; and

(b) a wired communication link, wherein said wired communication link is connecting said at least one wired device in said wired network.

50. The control system for controlling of wireless and wired networks of claim 49, wherein said wired communication link is connecting said at least one wired device in said wired network to a wireless device.

51. The control system for controlling of wireless and wired networks of claim 49, wherein said wired communication link is connecting said at least one wired device in said wired network to an access point.

52. The control system of claim 50, further comprising:

(c) a wireless device, wherein said wireless device has a wired communication interface for communicating with said wired network through said wired communication link;

(d) a wireless network, said wireless network including at least one wireless device; and

(e) a wireless communication link, wherein said wireless communication link is interconnecting said at least one wireless device in said wireless network.

53. The control system of claim 52, further comprising:

(f) at least one configuration adapter with a configuration interface and a device contact interface.

54. The control system of claim 53, further comprising:

(g) at least one access point, said access point being connected to at least one network wherein said network is selected from a group consisting of said wired network and said wireless network; and

(h) a master controller for access to a networks scheme;

wherein each of said at least one wired device, at least one commissioning tool, said wireless device, and said at least one access point has a configuration adapter for a complementary configuration link, wherein only said configuration adapter of said commissioning tool must be powered-up during a configuration data loading.

55. The control system of claim 53, further comprising:

(g) a configuration interface for transferring data;

(h) at least one device contact interface for connecting to each of said at least one wired device for reading data;

(i) at least one device contact interface for connecting to each of said at least one wireless device for reading data;

(j) a configuration interface operating, with no need to power-up said configuration adapter;

(k) at least one commissioning tool for downloading data into said configuration adapter of wired devices, into said configuration adapter of access point and into said configuration adapter of wireless devices;

(l) at least one device contact interface for connecting to each of said at least commissioning tool for writing data;

(m) at least one access point, said access point is connected to at least one network wherein said network is selected from a group consisting of said wired network and said wireless network; and

(n) at least one device contact interface for connecting to each of at least one access point for reading data.

56. The control system of claim 51, further comprising:

(c) a wireless device, wherein said wireless device has a wired communication interface for communicating with said wired network through said wired communication link;

(d) a wireless network, said wireless network including at least one wireless device; and

(e) a wireless communication link, wherein said wireless communication link is interconnecting said at least one wireless device in said wireless network.

57. The control system of claim 56, further comprising:

(f) at least one access point, said access point is connected to at least one network wherein said network is selected from a group consisting of said wired network and said wireless network;

(g) a master controller for access to a networks scheme; and

(h) at least one configuration adapter with a configuration interface and a device contact interface, wherein each of said at least one wired devices, at least one commissioning tool, said wireless device, and said at least one access point has a configuration adapter for a complementary configuration link, wherein only said configuration adapter of said commissioning tool must be powered-up during a configuration data loading.

58. The control system for controlling of wireless and wired networks of claim 49, further comprising:

(c) a master controller; and

(d) an access point operatively connected to said master controller through a design/control system interface.

59. A configuration adapter comprising:

(a) a configuration interface for receiving and transmitting data, wherein there is no need to power-up said configuration adapter;

(b) a control and memory module, for storing and for transferring said data, wherein there is no need to power-up said configuration adapter, wherein said control and memory module is operatively connected to said configuration interface; and

(c) a device contact interface for reading and writing data, wherein said device contact interface is operatively connected to said control and memory module, and wherein said device contact interface is operatively connected to at least one device.

60. The configuration adapter of claim 59, wherein said configuration interface is operatively connected to a configuration link.

61. A commissioning tool comprising:

(a) a master controller, wherein said master controller includes;

(i) a configuration adapter;

wherein said master controller is operatively connected to an access point by a design/control system interface.