METHOD AND DEVICE FOR ALLOCATING MAC ADDRESSES IN A CARRIER-CURRENT COMMUNICATION NETWORK

• US 20110235656A1
• Filed: 05/28/2009
• Published: 09/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/02/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sagemcom Energy & Telecom SAS (Sagemcom Holding SAS)
• Original Assignee: Sagem Communications SAS
• Inventors: Pigeon, Ncolas
• Granted Patent: US 8,842,697 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/475
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/12 Arrangements for remote connection or disconnection of substations or of equipment thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/622 Layer-2 addresses, e.g. medium access control [MAC] addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5038 for local use, e.g. in LAN or USB networks, or in a controller area network [CAN]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/50 in wire-line communication networks, e.g. low power modes or reduced link rate

Abstract

In the field of the allocating of communication addresses to devices connected to a carrier-current communication network and more particularly, networks for the remote reading of electrical meters from a data concentration apparatus through the electrical network, there is proposed an improved method of allocating MAC addresses for this type of network making it possible to save a great deal of time during the address allocation phase. This method proposes in particular that a list associating the serial numbers of the devices and the MAC address allocated be stored at the level of the central device for allocating addresses. It is also proposed that a cataloguing request be sent, serving to allocate the MAC address prior to the sending of a communication frame.

Claims

1. Method of allocating addresses known as MAC addresses to devices connected to an electricity distribution network by a data concentration apparatus, each device being provided with a distinct unchangeable serial number, comprising the following steps:

a step of sending a discovery demand request in general broadcast mode over the network;

a step of receiving at least one discovery notification in response to this request coming from a device not having an MAC address allocated, the said device being identified by means of its serial number;

a step of allocating an available MAC address to the device that responded;

a step of sending a cataloguing request to the device that responded containing its serial number and the MAC address allocated to it;

characterised in that it also comprises;

a step of storing the association between the serial number of the device and the MAC address allocated to it.

2. Method according to claim 1, characterised in that, the device being liable to lose the MAC address allocated to it after the elapse of a given time without communication, it also comprises:

a step of sending a cataloguing request prior to the sending of a communication frame to the device.

3. Method according to claim 1, characterised in that the step of sending the registration frame prior to the sending of a communication frame is performed systematically for each sending of a communication frame.

4. Method according to claim 1, characterised in that the moment of the last sending of a communication frame to a device being stored, the step of sending the cataloguing request prior to the sending of a communication frame is performed only if the time since the last communication frame exceeds a given threshold.

5. Method according to claim 1, characterised in that the method also comprises:

a step of sending a cataloguing request to any device the association of which is stored during a phase of re-initialisation of the system.

6. Method according to claim 1, characterised in that the method also comprises:

a step of periodic sending of a discovery demand request in general broadcast mode to enable a MAC address to be allocated to new devices that have appeared on the network.

7. Method according to claim 6, characterised in that, the discovery demand requests comprising a first parameter defining a response percentage, the devices not having an allocated MAC address taking a response decision in accordance with a random drawing with a probability of response equal to this first parameter, the first parameter is defined with a probability of one hundred percent.

8. Method according to claim 6, characterised in that, the discovery demand requests comprising a second parameter defining a response window, the devices responding to this request having to define randomly a response time within this response window, this window is defined as less than 30 seconds.

9. Method according to claim 6, characterised in that, the discovery demand request comprises second parameter defining a response window, the devices responding to this request having to define randomly a response time within this response window, this second parameter is calculated according to the number of devices that have responded and the number of collisions detected during a previous discovery step.

10. Device for allocating addresses known as MAC addresses to devices connected to an electricity distribution network, each connected device being provided with a distinct unchangeable serial number, comprising:

a step of sending a discovery demand request in general broadcast mode over the network;

means of receiving at least one discovery notification in response to this request coming from a device not having an MAC address allocated, the said device being identified by means of its serial number;

means of allocating an available MAC address to the device that responded;

means of sending a cataloguing request to the device that responded containing its serial number and the MAC address allocated to it;

characterised in that it also comprises;

means of storing the association between the serial number of the device and the MAC address allocated to it.

11. Device according to claim 10, characterised in that, the device being liable to lose the MAC address allocated to it after the elapse of a given time without communication, the device also comprises:

means of sending a registration frame prior to the sending of a communication frame to the device.