Apparatus and process for data communication, in particular for the parameterization and remote monitoring of heating installations

• US 7,158,525 B2
• Filed: 02/26/2002
• Issued: 01/02/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/26/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Viessmann Werke GmbH & Company KG
• Original Assignee: Viessmann Werke GmbH & Company KG
• Inventors: Daffner, Klaus-Josef, Ciliox, Andreas, Heinmöller, Gerhard, Hoffmann, Jörg
• Primary Examiner(s): Wiley; David
• Assistant Examiner(s): JEAN GILLES, JUDE
• Application Number:
  US10/085,817
• Publication Number:
  US 20020120671A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,771 Days
• Field of Search: 709203-207, 709/217, 709/219, 709/238, 341/141, 710/14, 370/330, 370/335, 370/401
• US Class Current: 370/401
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2836 Protocol conversion between an external network and a home network controlling appliance services of a home automation network from a device located outside the home and the home network H04L12/2818; protocol conversion H04L69/08; adaptation of digital video signals for transport over a specific home network H04N7/24
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/285 Generic home appliances, e.g. refrigerators
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/08 Protocols for interworking; Protocol conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/16 Implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/06 Simultaneous speech and data transmission, e.g. telegraphic transmission over the same conductors

Abstract

The invention relates to an apparatus and a process for the data communication between a system unit (8) and technical facilities (2, 3, 4) in buildings for the flexible and convenient parameterization and remote monitoring of the facilities (2, 3, 4), an existing communication infrastructure being usable to reduce the expenditure resulting from cabling and to enable cost-effective data communication. The apparatus comprises a system unit (8) which is suited for data transmission according to a first data transmission protocol, at least one facility (2, 3, 4) which is suited for data transmission according to a second data transmission protocol, a protocol converter (1) which is connected to system unit (8) and converts data of the first data transmission protocol into data of the second data transmission protocol and vice versa, and a bus system (5) to which the facilities (2, 3, 4) and the protocol converter (1) can be connected.

Claims

1. Apparatus for the remote monitoring and parameterization of facilities, in particular heating installations, comprising:

a system unit configured for data transmission according to a first data transmission protocol, the system unit also configured to monitor at least one facility and to communicate with other system units, wherein the system unit comprises a central database that is configured to be accessed by the other system units;

the at least one facility configured for the data transmission according to a second data transmission protocol;

a protocol converter for converting received data, the protocol converter including a memory configured to store predetermined data received from the at least one facility, the protocol converter being configured to convert data of the first data transmission protocol into data of the second data transmission protocol and data of the second data transmission protocol into data of the first data transmission protocol and to retrieve the predetermined data from the at least one facility at given time intervals, wherein after the receipt of the predetermined data or after request by the system unit, the protocol converter is further configured to control a data transmission device in order to establish a connection to the system unit, transmit the stored predetermined data by means of the data transmission device to the system unit and to induce the data transmission device to disconnect the connection to the system unit; and

a bus system for the data transmission according to the second data transmission protocol, to which the facilities and the protocol converter are connected;

wherein the controllable data transmission device allows the data transmission according to the first data transmission protocol between the system unit and the protocol converter.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the facilities connectable to the bus system are heating, air conditioning and/or cooling installations and/or measuring or control devices for operating heating, air conditioning and/or cooling installations.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the bus system is a house field bus and/or the second data transmission protocol is a LON protocol.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first data transmission protocol is a protocol on the basis of the Internet Protocol (IP), in particular the Simple Network Management Protocol SNMP, the Hypertext Transport Protocol HTTP, the Transport Protocol TCP or the LonWorks Network Protocol.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the protocol converter sends data received from the system unit and destined for a certain facility via the bus system to the corresponding facility.

6. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the protocol converter activates a predetermined connection when a trouble report or maintenance report is received from one of the facilities.

7. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the protocol converter sends a predetermined message, in particular a facsimile, a voice message, an e-mail, or an SMS message, when a trouble report or maintenance report is received from one of the facilities and the connection to the system unit is troubled.

8. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the connection between the protocol converter and the system unit is established via an analog and/or a digital telephone line and comprises an analog modem, a GSM modem or an ISDN modem.

9. Apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the connection between the protocol converter and the system unit is established via a call-back procedure.

10. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the system unit establishes a connection to the protocol converter at given time intervals and retrieves predetermined data which were previously retrieved from the facilities and buffered by the protocol converter.

11. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the system unit establishes a connection to the protocol converter and/or sends data for a certain facility to the protocol converter and/or receives data of a certain facility from the protocol converter.

12. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the system unit comprises a database which contains the configuration, commissioning, maintenance and/or operation data of facilities and/or of the protocol converter, in particular trouble reports and maintenance reports.

13. Apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the system unit comprises an internet server and/or WAP server for the access to the database.

14. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the system unit sends a predetermined message, in particular a facsimile, a voice message, an e-mail or an SMS message, when a certain trouble report or maintenance report is received from one of the facilities.

15. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein several system units establish connections to protocol converters and/or receive data from the protocol converters and/or send data to the protocol converters, the system units being connectable to each other via the internet.

16. Apparatus according to claim 15, wherein one of the system units comprises a central database to which the other system units report data changes and/or with which the databases of the other system units are collated.

18. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the other system units include respective databases and are configured to send data updates to the central database and/or collate the respective databases with the central database.

17. Method for the remote monitoring and parameterization of facilities, in particular heating installations, comprising:

transmitting data according to a first data transmission protocol between a system unit and a protocol converter;

monitoring at least one facility with the system unit and communicating with other system units where the other system units access a central database of the system unit;

transmitting data according to a second data transmission protocol by at least one facility;

converting received data by a protocol converter wherein the protocol converter converts data of the first data transmission protocol into data of the second data transmission protocol and data of the second data protocol into data of the first data transmission protocol, stores data in a memory, retrieves predetermined data from at least one facility at given time intervals, stores the data received from the at least one facility in the memory, wherein after receipt of the predetermined data or after request by the system unit, the protocol converter controls a controllable data transmission device in order to establish a connection to the system unit, transmits the stored data by means of the data transmission device to the system unit, and induces the data transmission device to disconnect the connection to the system unit;

transmitting data according to the second data transmission protocol by a bus system to which the facilities and the protocol converter are connected; and

transmitting data according to the first data transmission protocol between the system unit and the protocol converter by the controllable data transmission device.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the other system units send data updates to the central database and/or collate respective databases of the other system units with the central database.