Control system with wireless messages containing message sequence information

• US 7,983,211 B2
• Filed: 01/11/2007
• Issued: 07/19/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fisher-Rosemount Systems Incorporated (Emerson Electric Company)
• Original Assignee: Fisher-Rosemount Systems Incorporated (Emerson Electric Company)
• Inventors: Sybesma, Eric W., Orth, Kelly M., Lovegren, Eric R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Gelin; Jean A
• Assistant Examiner(s): TAYLOR, NATHAN SCOTT
• Application Number:
  US11/652,401
• Publication Number:
  US 20070160001A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,650 Days
• Field of Search: 370/328, 370/341, 370/311, 370351-357, 455/574, 455/410, 710/100, 710/300, 709/218
• US Class Current: 370/328
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/31162 Wireless lan
• 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 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/045 for graphical visualisation of monitoring data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/22 Alternate routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/24 Multipath
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/28 using route fault recovery
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/28 in relation to timing considerations
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/34 ensuring sequence integrity, e.g. using sequence numbers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/18 Network planning tools
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/22 Traffic simulation tools or models
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/08 Testing, supervising or monitoring using real traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/02 Traffic management, e.g. flow control or congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/18 Information format or content conversion, e.g. adaptation by the network of the transmitted or received information for the purpose of wireless delivery to users or terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/00 Communication routing or communication path finding
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/08 based on transmission power
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/10 based on available power or energy
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/22 using selective relaying for reaching a BTS [Base Transceiver Station] or an access point
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/24 : Connectivity information management, e.g. connectivity discovery or connectivity update
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/02 : Power saving arrangements in wired systems H04L12/12; signaling of mobile application services, e.g. low battery notifications H04W4/20
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0225 : using monitoring of external events, e.g. the presence of a signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0229 : where the received signal is a wanted signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/00 : Synchronisation arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/20 : Manipulation of established connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 : Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/26 : Network addressing or numbering for mobility support
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/00 : Wireless network protocols or protocol adaptations to wireless operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 : Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 : Gateway arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/00 : Interfaces specially adapted for wireless communication networks
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 : in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A control system uses a wireless mesh network to provide communication between a host computer and field devices. The host and the field devices communicate with one another using wireless messages containing requests and responses that are routed through the wireless mesh network. The wireless messages include sequence information that allow the receiving device to identify and reject messages that are received out of order.

Claims

1. An industrial process control system comprising:

a host;

a field device; and

a wireless mesh network for routing wireless messages between the host and the field device, the wireless messages including message sequence information and a function code wherein a receiver of a message detects stale messages based on the message sequence information and rejects the stale messages unless message sequence based acceptance rules are overridden by the function code that forces acceptance of the detected stale message.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the message sequence information is embedded as a payload of a wireless message.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the message sequence information includes a message ID number.

4. The system of claim 3 , wherein the function code and the message ID number are embedded as a payload of a wireless message.

5. An industrial process control system comprising:

a plurality of field devices;

a host for sending control messages to field devices and receiving response messages from the field devices; and

a wireless network routing wireless messages among a plurality of nodes, each node including at least one of the plurality of field devices, wherein the wireless messages include content of a control message or response message, message sequence information relating to the control message or response message, and a function code for overriding message sequence information based acceptance rules to force acceptance of a message, wherein a receiver of a message determines whether to accept the message based, in part, on the message sequence information and the function code.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the message sequence information is embedded in the wireless message.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the message sequence information includes a message ID number.

8. A method of sending messages from a host to field devices of an industrial process control system over a wireless network having a plurality of nodes, the method comprising:

sending a control message addressed to a field device address from the host to the wireless network;

sending a wireless message containing content of the control message, message sequence information, and a function code through the network to the node having the corresponding wireless address; and

delivering the content of the control message to the field device if the message sequence information indicates that the control message is received in an acceptable order or the function code forces acceptance of the control message despite the message sequence information.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the wireless message includes the message sequence information in a payload.

10. The method of claim 8 and further comprising:

opening the wireless message;

extracting the message sequence information from the wireless message; and

determining whether to accept the content of the control message based on the message sequence information.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the message sequence information includes a message ID number.

12. A method of sending messages between a host and a selected field device of an industrial process control system over a wireless mesh network having a plurality of nodes, the method comprising:

generating at the host a control message to the selected field device;

sending the control message to the wireless network;

sending a wireless message containing content of the control message, message sequence information, and a function code through the wireless network;

receiving the wireless message at a node associated with the selected field device; and

determining whether to deliver the content of the control message to the selected field device based upon the message sequence information and a meaning of the function code, wherein a force accept function code causes the content of the control message to be delivered despite the message sequence information.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the message sequence information includes a message ID number.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein determining whether to deliver the content comprises:

opening the wireless message at the node;

extracting the message sequence information from the wireless message; and

determining whether the message ID number is in an acceptable order with respect to a previously received message ID number.

15. The method of claim 12 and further comprising:

generating a response by the selected field device to the control message; and

sending the wireless message containing the response and the message ID number associated with the control message through the network.

16. The method of claim 15 and further comprising:

delivering the response from the wireless mesh network to the host.