Distributed control network system

• US 6,128,315 A
• Filed: 12/15/1997
• Issued: 10/03/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Takeuchi, Yoichiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham, Chi H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Pham, Brenda H.
• Application Number:
  US08/990,538
• Time in Patent Office: 1,023 Days
• Field of Search: 370/400, 370/410, 370/466, 370/467, 395/705, 704/2, 709/201, 709/203
• US Class Current: 370/466
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2814 Exchanging control software or macros for controlling appliance services in a home automation network arrangements for maintenance or administration involving configuration of the network and network elements H04L41/08

Abstract

In the distributed control network system, the local control server has a just-in-time compiler with which the user transforms the control for each node described in Java into a code that can be executed on the node at the time of execution. Additionally, the local control server has a functional feature of transforming the protocol so as to make the nodes in its network able to communicate with the nodes in another network having a different protocol. There is also provided means for programming the control to be performed by each node and the flow of processing operations among the nodes in a GUI environment.

Claims

1. A distributed control network system, comprising:

a control client connected to a first communication network by means of a first communication protocol;

a plurality of event-driven type distributed control microcomputers connected to a second communication network by means of a second communication protocol for executing programs written in a language different from the program language used by said control client; and

a local control server connected to said first communication network by means of said first communication protocol, for controlling said distributed control microcomputers by means of said second communication protocol via said second communication network, said event-driven type executing programs written in the language same as the one used by said control client, transforming the processing program downloaded from said control client into a program written in the program language used by said distributed control microcomputers if said downloaded processing program being a program to be processed by said distributed control microcomputers and transmitting the transformed processing program to said distributed control microcomputers.

2. A distributed control network system according to claim 1, further comprising a third communication network connected to said first communication network and having a control server and a plurality of distributed control microcomputers connected thereto by way of a communication protocol different from said communication protocols for said first and second communication networks and the control server of said second communication network has means for transforming the communication protocol of said second communication network into the communication protocol of said third communication network and vice versa in order to make the distributed control microcomputers connected to said second communication protocol and the distributed control microcomputers connected to said third communication protocol capable of communicating with each other.

3. A distributed control network system according to claim 1, wherein said first communication network is a global network defined by the communication protocol of TCP/IP and said second communication network is a local network.

4. A distributed control network system, comprising:

a plurality of control nodes comprising so many event-driven type distributed control microcomputers connected to a second communication network by means of a second communication protocol for executing tasks assigned respectively to them and written in a language different from the program language used by said control client; and

a control server for enforcing a set of relationships among said plurality of distributed control microcomputers defined in a language same as the language used by said control client for the correspondence between a troubled one of said distributed control microcomputers and the one designed to replace the troubled microcomputer and execute its task and, upon the occurrence of a trouble in one of said plurality of distributed control microcomputers, causing the task assigned to the troubled microcomputer to be executed without interruption by a replacing distributed control microcomputer by automatically selecting said replacing microcomputer.

5. A distributed control network system according to claim 4, wherein said control client is shielded from the occurrence of a trouble in said distributed control microcomputers.

6. A program developing apparatus for a distributed control network system having a plurality of control nodes and a control server for controlling the control nodes, comprising:

a parts window for displaying a group of icons representing objects of control on a graphic display screen;

a program editing window;

means for moving the icons displayed on said parts window into said program editing window by means of drag and drop operation to visually and positionally combine said objects of control with respective nodes and defining the flow of processing operations by connecting said plurality of nodes by means of lines; and

means for generating source programs for the distributed control network system according to the positions of the objects of control combined with the respective nodes and the flow of processing operations defined by the preceding means.

7. A local control server connected between a first network and a second network, comprising:

a first interface connected to the first network and configured to receive a first control program written in a first computer language;

a converter configured to convert the first control program into a second control program in a second computer language to be executed by a distributed controller; and

a second interface connected to the second network and configured to output the second control program to the distributed controller through the second network.

8. A local control server connected between a first network and a second network, comprising:

receiving means connected to the first network for receiving a first control program written with a first computer language;

converting means for converting the first control program into a second control program with a second computer language to be executed by distributed controllers;

sending means connected to the second network for outputting the second control program to the second network; and

means for dividing the first control program received by the receiving means into predetermined processing units of the first control program, causing the converting means to convert the divided processing units of the first control program into processing units of the second control program with the second computer language, and causing the sending means to send the divided processing units of the second control program to the distributed controllers, respectively through the second network.