METHOD FOR CONTROLLING NETWORK-TYPE ACTUATOR MODULE

• US 20150120002A1
• Filed: 10/26/2012
• Published: 04/30/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/26/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Robotis Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Robotis Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Kim, Byoung-Soo, Kim, Hee-Il
• Granted Patent: US 9,880,532 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/19
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/414 Structure of the control system, e.g. common controller or multiprocessor systems, interface to servo, programmable interface controller
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/33147 Address peripheral, controller
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/33166 Rs485 bus to control several modules, motors
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/33176 Rs485, mpi multipoint, multidrop interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46

Abstract

Described herein is a method for controlling a network-type actuator module, and provides a method for controlling a plurality of network-type actuator modules which are connected to a main controller through a multi-drop scheme including the steps of: the main controller transmitting to the actuator module one instruction packet comprising a plurality of IDs; and an actuator module, which corresponds to the ID, transmitting a status packet to the main controller, wherein the actuator module transmits the status packet according to the order of the ID, which is expressed on the instruction packet. Accordingly, unlimited information required from the plurality of actuators can be read from a single transmission of the packet instruction by flexibly expanding limitations due to limitations on the length of each field in accordance with an instruction set and a definition of a parameter.

Claims

1. A method for controlling a plurality of network-type actuator modules connected to a main controller in a multi-drop scheme, the method comprising:

transferring, by the main controller, one instruction packet including a plurality of IDs to the actuator modules; and

transferring, by the actuator module corresponding to the ID, a status packet to the main controller,

wherein the actuator modules transfer the status packet in an order of IDs indicated by the instruction packet.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the instruction packet includes an ID, a length of data to be read from the actuator module corresponding to the ID, and a start address of the data to be read from the actuator module corresponding to the ID which are repeatedly represented in the order of the IDs.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein each of the ID, the length of the data, and the start address of the data includes 2 bytes that include an upper byte and a lower byte.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the actuator module corresponding to a subsequent ID in the instruction packet transfers the status packet after the actuator module corresponding to a preceding ID has transferred the status packet.