Network communication

• US 6,160,795 A
• Filed: 09/21/1999
• Issued: 12/12/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Hosemann, Axel
• Primary Examiner(s): NGO, RICKY QUOC
• Application Number:
  US09/401,023
• Time in Patent Office: 448 Days
• Field of Search: 370/254, 370/255, 370/256, 370/400, 370/401, 370/408
• US Class Current: 370/256
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/00 Arrangements for maintenance, administration or management of data switching networks, e.g. of packet switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/344 Out-of-band transfers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/02 Topology update or discovery

Abstract

A method for communication in a network, in particular for communication in an electrical low voltage network, transmits a status check from a master to a plurality of slaves in several network paths. A slave that cannot be directly accessed by the master, such as an additionally installed salve, is included in the network with the help of a neighboring slave. The neighboring slave is used as a router slave for the slave that cannot be directly accessed. For this purpose, a network management software for the master is provided with a software module for assigning at least one router slave to each slave. Each slave is assigned a corresponding software module to identify a neighboring slave as a potential router slave. A network for communication is also provided.

Claims

1. A method for communication within a network, which comprises:

transmitting a status check from a master to a plurality of slaves in a plurality of network routes of a network, the plurality of slaves including an indirectly accessible slave having neighboring slaves;

storing addresses of the neighboring slaves with the indirectly accessible slave;

registering, with the indirectly accessible slave, the indirectly accessible slave at at least one of the neighboring slaves, the at least one of the neighboring slaves serving as a router slave;

registering the indirectly accessible slave at the master via the router slave;

installing the indirectly accessible slave in the network by assigning, with the master, an address of the router slave to the indirectly accessible slave; and

addressing, with the master, the router slave for checking the indirectly accessible slave.

2. The method according to claim 1, which comprises passing or a further status check of the master to the indirectly accessible slave via the router slave.

3. The method according to claim 1, which comprises:

assigning each of the plurality of slaves at least one router slave;

cyclically checking each of the plurality of slaves for the at least one router slave; and

assigning an address of each of the plurality of slaves to a respective address of the at least one router slave.

4. The method according to claim 1, which comprises:

providing a further router slave for the indirectly acessible slave;

assigning respective priorities to the router slave and the further router slave based on an accessibility of the indirectly accessible slave; and

installing, based on the respective priorities, the indirectly accessible slave in the network via one of the router slave and the further router slave.

5. The method according to claim 4, which comprises assigning, with the master, an address to the indirectly accessible slave.

6. The method according to claim 1, which comprises spontaneously transmitting a registration signal into the network with the indirectly accessible slave, subsequent to the storing step.

7. The method according to claim 1, which comprises providing the master and the plurality of slaves in an electrical low-voltage network.

8. A network for communication, comprising:

a master;

network routes connected to said master;

a plurality of slaves provided in said network routes, said plurality of slaves including an indirectly accessible slave and router slaves, each of said router slaves having an address;

a network management software module including a first module assigned to said master and a second module assigned to each of said plurality of slaves;

said indirectly accessible slave executing said second software module for identifying at least one of said router slaves based on said address thereof, said indirectly accessible slave generating a spontaneous registration signal to be received by any of said master and said slaves; and

said master checking a status of said plurality of slaves, storing said addresses of said router slaves, and executing said first software module for assigning said address of said at least one router slave, identified by said indirectly accessible slave, to said indirectly accessible slave.

9. The network according to claim 8, wherein said master executes said first software module for assigning at least two of said router slaves to said indirectly accessible slave for establishing a first route and a second route as an alternative route to said first route.

10. The network according to claim 8, wherein said master executes said first software module for assigning an address to said indirectly accessible slave.

11. The network according to claim 8, wherein said plurality of slaves includes neighboring slaves of said indirectly accessible slave, and said indirectly accessible slave executes said second software module for generating a priority list of addresses of said neighboring slaves based on a proximity to said indirectly accessible slave and for passing on a list produced by one of said neighboring slaves to said master.