Network user for maintaining data and energy transmission

• US 4,973,954 A
• Filed: 01/24/1989
• Issued: 11/27/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 09/16/1986
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Siegfried Schwarz
• Original Assignee: Siegfried Schwarz
• Inventors: Schwarz, Siegfried
• Primary Examiner(s): Weldon, Ulysses
• Application Number:
  US07/301,013
• Time in Patent Office: 672 Days
• Field of Search: 370/89, 370/85, 370/85.1, 370/85.2, 370/85.3, 370/85.4, 370/91, 340/310 R, 340/310 A, 340/825.06, 340/825.07, 340/825.14, 340/825.15, 340/825.52, 340/825.53, 340/825.54, 340/825.1, 340/825.16 , 340/825.17
• US Class Current: 370/475
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00 Circuit arrangements for providing remote indication of network conditions, e.g. an instantaneous record of the open or closed condition of each circuitbreaker in the network; Circuit arrangements for providing remote control of switching means in a power distribution network, e.g. switching in and out of current consumers by using a pulse code signal carried by the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/44 Arrangements for feeding power to a repeater along the transmission line
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/10 Current supply arrangements

Abstract

The transmission of data and energy takes place by separate or the same lines, and the users of the network do not themselves supply any energy into the network. For transmission, the users successively modulate the supplied energy. The energy consumption of the users is minimized through the data transmission procedure, in which the users are successively set into operating state and after completion of the required action automatically return into the "ready for operation" state with lower energy consumption.

Claims

1. A local area network, comprising:

means for transmitting data and energy throughout the local area network;

means for supplying energy to said transmitting means at a predetermined level from a central location on the local area network, wherein the energy is alternating-current voltage with a half-wave cycle for synchronizing data;

at least one network user connected to said transmitting means for sending data containing destination addresses throughout the network and for receiving data only if the destination address identifies said network user, so when the data is for said network user identified by the destination address, said network user also receives the energy with the alternating-current voltage, otherwise said network user being connected to said transmitting means merely modulates the energy on said transmitting means to the predetermined level of the local area network, wherein on failure of said energy supply means said user is converted by a network driver, into the "out of operation" state with low energy consumption, and the operation energy is maintained by an accumulator is said user, until said network driver converts the user back into the "ready for operation" state after receipt of a destination address, and

said user coupled with UART, USART through said network driver to the network.

2. A network according to claim 1 wherein said user are separated with said transforming means galvanically from the network.

3. A network according to claim 1, wherein said user differentiate three stages to reduce their consumed energy, said stages being "in operation", "ready for operation" and "out of operation" on storage, of the operation data, and the energy consumed by said user is controlled throughout the data transmission and so the energy is distributed.

4. A network according to claim 3, wherein each network driver to reduce the energy of its user checks, acting for its user, whether the destination address of a message is valid for its user and only then converts its user from "ready for operation" state into the "in operation" state, when the destination address coincides with the address of the user, whereby the user takes over the message, performs the required operation and after its completion automatically returns into the "ready for operation" state with a lower energy consumption.

5. A network according to claim 1, wherein said user contain a CMOS-single chip computer with a serial UART.

6. A network according to claim 1 wherein for data and energy transmission or only for data transmission one and the same protocol is used.

7. A network according to claim 1 wherein the network driver having a responder not only undertakes the address recognition and passes the data on to its user, but also transmits data.

8. A local area network according to claim 1, wherein said network user includes means for transferring the energy with the alternating-current voltage from said transmitting means to said network user by magnetic induction and for transferring enough energy from said network user to said transmitting means so the energy on said transmitting means remains at the predetermined level.

9. A local are network according to claim 8, wherein said network user includes

a network driver connected to said transferring means, said network driver having means for storing a particular address of said network user, an address switch connected to said transmitting means for allowing the data containing the destination address to enter said network driver from said transmitting means, and means for identifying the destination address as the address of said network user by comparing the destination address with the stored address.

10. A local area network according to claim 9, wherein said network user includes:

an analogue to digital converter for converting received analogue data to digital data;

means for transforming the received energy with alternating-current voltage to direct-current voltage so when said network user short-circuits, said network can still transmit data to and receive data; and

means for storing energy in case of a network failure, said energy storage means receiving and accumulating energy from said network driver, such as extra energy received because the energy on said transmitting means is at the predetermined level, so when a network failure occurs, said stored energy can preserve data in said network user.

11. A local area network according to claim 10, wherein some of said plurality of network users include a computer and act as a master network user while others of said plurality of network users include a computerless responder and act as a slave network user.

12. A network user for maintaining data and energy transmission on a local area network, comprising:

means for transferring energy with alternating-current voltage from the local area network to said network user;

a network driver connected to said transferring means, said network driver including

means for storing a source address which is unique to said network user and identifies said network user as particular network user on the local area network,

an address switch for switching said network user from a reduced energy consumption state such as "ready for operation" to an energy consumption state such as "in operation",

means for identifying a destination address from the local area network as the address for said particular network user by comparing the destination address with the unique stored source address, so when the compared addresses match said network driver through said address switch power-ups said network user; and

a responder for transmitting a reply either by the source address stored and then the destination address, thereby taking over the access priority of the requesting, network user, or said responder starts transmission of the reply without said source address and appends to the received request command its transmitting reply with said responder forming a data-security from the transmitted reply and appending it to the reply as a termination.

13. A network user according to claim 12, including:

an analogue to digital converter;

means for transforming the transferred energy with alternating-current voltage to direct-current voltage; and

means for storing energy, in case of a network failure in the local area network, by receiving and accumulating energy from said transferring means so when the network failure occurs data stored in said network user is preserved.

14. A network user according to claim 13, including:

responder means connected to said network driver for controlling said network user during the "in operation state" by receiving a signal from said network driver to power-up and for receiving any data received with the destination address, said responder means including means for storing data, means for performing any required operation, and means for powering-down so when said responder has responded to the received data, said responder automatically switches to the "ready for operation" state with reduced energy consumption.

15. A network user according to claim 12, wherein said user establishes a network access according to a central master principle, the CSMA/CD method or the token passing method, wherein with the driving token passing method as said network access, the responder can return the access priority to the requesting, commanding user after its reply.