COMMUNICATION CIRCUIT, RELAY CONNECTING CIRCUIT, AND COMMUNICATION NETWORK

• US 20110176560A1
• Filed: 12/30/2010
• Published: 07/21/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/15/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company), RIB Laboratory, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company), RIB Laboratory, Inc.
• Inventors: MORI, Setsuro
• Granted Patent: US 9,065,676 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/498
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/40013 Details regarding a bus controller
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/40143 involving priority mechanisms hybrid switching fabrics H04L12/6402; intermediate storage or scheduling H04L49/90; time-division multiplex systems H04J3/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/40182 by using a plurality of communication lines
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4035 in which slots of a TDMA packet structure are assigned based on a contention resolution carried out at a master unit TDM/TDMA multiplex systems per se H04J3/1694; hybrid switching systems H04L12/64
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/417 with deterministic access, e.g. token passing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/90 Buffering arrangements

Abstract

The present invention provides a communication circuit, a relay connecting circuit, and a communication network that have a very simple configuration and high reliability, and can transmit/receive contact signals usable for automatic control.

The present invention includes a transmitting section 4 for transmitting a contact signal input into an input/output section 3a, 3b to a communication line 2, a receiving section 5 for receiving a signal via the communication line 2, an input/output circuit 6 for outputting the contact signal received by the receiving section 5 via the input/output section 3a, 3b and interlocking to prevent input of another contact signal via the input/output section 3a, 3b that outputs a contact signal, and a time division communication control section 7 for switching a communication direction among the transmission section 4, the receiving section 5 and the input/output circuit at time-divided timing.

Claims

1. A communication circuit characterized by including a transmitting section for transmitting a contact signal input into an input/output section to a communication line, a receiving section for receiving a signal via the communication line, an input/output circuit for outputting the contact signal received by the receiving section via the input/output section and interlocking to prevent input of another contact signal via the input/output section that outputs a contact signal, and a time division communication control section for switching a communication direction among the transmission section, the receiving section and the input/output circuit at time-divided timing.

3. The communication circuit according to claim 1, wherein the time division communication control section has a token control section for holding communication according to a token passing system.

5. The communication circuit according to claim 1, wherein the communication line has a wiring branching section that is branched and connected, a storage section for storing contact signals received from terminals of the communication lines branched and connected, and a logical sum operating section for obtaining a logical sum of the contact signal at the terminals of the communication lines stored in the storage section as a received contact signal are provided.

7. The communication circuit according to claim 3, wherein the communication line has a wiring branching section that is branched and connected, a storage section for storing contact signals received from terminals of the communication lines branched and connected, and a logical sum operating section for obtaining a logical sum of the contact signal at the terminals of the communication lines stored in the storage section as a received contact signal are provided.

9. A relay connecting circuit characterized by including at least one set of a transmitting section, a receiving section and a time division communication control section that is connected to at least one communication line connected to the communication circuit according to claim 1 and has the same constitution as the set of the communication circuit as many as the signal lines, a plurality of internal contact output sections for outputting contact signals received by the receiving section, a plurality of internal contact input sections for inputting contact signals to be transmitted to the communication line via the transmitting section, and a grid-shaped wire connecting circuit for arbitrarily connecting the internal contact output sections and the internal contact input sections.

10. The relay connecting circuit according to claim 9, wherein a relay input/output section that is connected directly to the grid-shaped wire connecting circuit and relays signals is provided.

11. A communication network formed by connecting a plurality of communication lines into a mesh shape via the relay connecting circuit according to claim 9, characterized in that the grid-shaped wire connecting circuit is formed by a programmable logic device, the internal contact output sections have a writing port for writing wire connection information, the receiving section has a reliability monitoring circuit for counting how many times defective communication occurs and/or how many times proper reception cannot be carried out so as to obtain reliability of the communication lines, and a wire connection adjusting section for adjusting wire connecting states by means of the grid-shaped wire connecting circuits so that a communication line with low reliability is bypassed on a position communicable to the reliability monitoring circuit and the writing port is provided.

12. A communication network formed by connecting a plurality of communication lines into a mesh shape via the relay connecting circuit according to claim 10, characterized in that the grid-shaped wire connecting circuit is formed by a programmable logic device, the internal contact output sections have a writing port for writing wire connection information, the receiving section has a reliability monitoring circuit for counting how many times defective communication occurs and/or how many times proper reception cannot be carried out so as to obtain reliability of the communication lines, and a wire connection adjusting section for adjusting wire connecting states by means of the grid-shaped wire connecting circuits so that a communication line with low reliability is bypassed on a position communicable to the reliability monitoring circuit and the writing port is provided.

14. A relay connecting circuit characterized by including at least one set of a transmitting section, a receiving section and a time division communication control section that is connected to at least one communication line connected to the communication circuit according to claim 3 and has the same constitution as the set of the communication circuit as many as the signal lines, a plurality of internal contact output sections for outputting contact signals received by the receiving section, a plurality of internal contact input sections for inputting contact signals to be transmitted to the communication line via the transmitting section, and a grid-shaped wire connecting circuit for arbitrarily connecting the internal contact output sections and the internal contact input sections.

16. A relay connecting circuit characterized by including at least one set of a transmitting section, a receiving section and a time division communication control section that is connected to at least one communication line connected to the communication circuit according to claim 5 and has the same constitution as the set of the communication circuit as many as the signal lines, a plurality of internal contact output sections for outputting contact signals received by the receiving section, a plurality of internal contact input sections for inputting contact signals to be transmitted to the communication line via the transmitting section, and a grid-shaped wire connecting circuit for arbitrarily connecting the internal contact output sections and the internal contact input sections.

18. A relay connecting circuit characterized by including at least one set of a transmitting section, a receiving section and a time division communication control section that is connected to at least one communication line connected to the communication circuit according to claim 7 and has the same constitution as the set of the communication circuit as many as the signal lines, a plurality of internal contact output sections for outputting contact signals received by the receiving section, a plurality of internal contact input sections for inputting contact signals to be transmitted to the communication line via the transmitting section, and a grid-shaped wire connecting circuit for arbitrarily connecting the internal contact output sections and the internal contact input sections.

2. A communication circuit characterized by including a transmitting section for converting a plurality of contact signals input into a plurality of input/output sections into serial signals so as to transmit them to a communication line, a receiving section for parallel-converting the serial signals received via the communication line so as to make them as the plurality of received contact signals, an input/output circuit for outputting the plurality of contact signals received by the receiving section via the plurality of input/output sections and interlocking to prevent input of another contact signal via the input/output section outputting a contact signal, and a time division communication control section for switching a communication direction among the transmitting section, the receiving section and the input/output circuit at time-divided timing.

4. The communication circuit according to claim 2, wherein the time division communication control section has a token control section for holding communication according to a token passing system.

6. The communication circuit according to claim 2, wherein the communication line has a wiring branching section that is branched and connected, a storage section for storing contact signals received from terminals of the communication lines branched and connected, and a logical sum operating section for obtaining a logical sum of the contact signal at the terminals of the communication lines stored in the storage section as a received contact signal are provided.

8. The communication circuit according to claim 4, wherein the communication line has a wiring branching section that is branched and connected, a storage section for storing contact signals received from terminals of the communication lines branched and connected, and a logical sum operating section for obtaining a logical sum of the contact signal at the terminals of the communication lines stored in the storage section as a received contact signal are provided.

13. A relay connecting circuit characterized by including at least one set of a transmitting section, a receiving section and a time division communication control section that is connected to at least one communication line connected to the communication circuit according to claim 2 and has the same constitution as the set of the communication circuit as many as the signal lines, a plurality of internal contact output sections for outputting contact signals received by the receiving section, a plurality of internal contact input sections for inputting contact signals to be transmitted to the communication line via the transmitting section, and a grid-shaped wire connecting circuit for arbitrarily connecting the internal contact output sections and the internal contact input sections.

15. A relay connecting circuit characterized by including at least one set of a transmitting section, a receiving section and a time division communication control section that is connected to at least one communication line connected to the communication circuit according to claim 4 and has the same constitution as the set of the communication circuit as many as the signal lines, a plurality of internal contact output sections for outputting contact signals received by the receiving section, a plurality of internal contact input sections for inputting contact signals to be transmitted to the communication line via the transmitting section, and a grid-shaped wire connecting circuit for arbitrarily connecting the internal contact output sections and the internal contact input sections.

17. A relay connecting circuit characterized by including at least one set of a transmitting section, a receiving section and a time division communication control section that is connected to at least one communication line connected to the communication circuit according to claim 6 and has the same constitution as the set of the communication circuit as many as the signal lines, a plurality of internal contact output sections for outputting contact signals received by the receiving section, a plurality of internal contact input sections for inputting contact signals to be transmitted to the communication line via the transmitting section, and a grid-shaped wire connecting circuit for arbitrarily connecting the internal contact output sections and the internal contact input sections.

19. A relay connecting circuit characterized by including at least one set of a transmitting section, a receiving section and a time division communication control section that is connected to at least one communication line connected to the communication circuit according to claim 8 and has the same constitution as the set of the communication circuit as many as the signal lines, a plurality of internal contact output sections for outputting contact signals received by the receiving section, a plurality of internal contact input sections for inputting contact signals to be transmitted to the communication line via the transmitting section, and a grid-shaped wire connecting circuit for arbitrarily connecting the internal contact output sections and the internal contact input sections.

20. The relay connecting circuit according to claim 13,wherein a relay input/output section that is connected directly to the grid-shaped wire connecting circuit and relays signals is provided.