Method for transmitting a beacon in a star network (master-slave ad hoc network) and a sensor node in a star network

• US 9,049,644 B2
• Filed: 11/03/2010
• Issued: 06/02/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: ANF Data SPOL SRO, Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Lahner, Frank, Vicari, Norbert, Bahr, Michael, Husak, Jan
• Primary Examiner(s): Jiang, Charles C
• Assistant Examiner(s): KAMARA, MOHAMED A
• Application Number:
  US13/509,073
• Publication Number:
  US 20120224537A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,672 Days
• Field of Search: 370/310, 370/312, 370329-330, 370/241.1, 370/336, 370/338, 370/345, 370400-401
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/12 using downlink control channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0229 where the received signal is a wanted signal
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A method for transmitting a beacon for a star network in manufacturing automation, for use in a communications protocol, such as IEEE Standard 802.15.4e, for manufacturing automation, using at least one gateway and at least one sensor node, wherein the beacon comprises a field including information about a number of base time slots in a superframe.

Claims

1. A gateway for a star network including at least one gateway and at least one sensor node, the gateway comprising:

a processor; and

memory, said gateway transmitting a beacon for the star network and said beacon including;

a flag field for receiving control information for the beacon for identifying one of (i) a production/online mode, (ii) a configuration mode and (iii) a discovery mode; and

a field containing, within the production/online mode, information indicating a number of base time slots in a superframe.

2. The system gateway as claimed in claim 1, wherein the beacon comprises further fields including at least one of a gateway identification field for identifying a gateway belonging to a respective sensor node, and a time slot size field for indicating a size of a base time slot.

3. The gateway as claim in claim 1, wherein the beacon further comprises a group acknowledgement field for acknowledging successful reception of data.

4. The gateway as claimed in claim 1, wherein counting the number of base time slots in the superframe starts after the management time slots of the superframe.

5. A gateway for a star network including at least one sensor node, the gateway comprising:

a processor; and

memory, said gateway transmitting a superframe for the star network and said superframe including;

a beacon for the star network comprising a flag field for receiving control information for the beacon for identifying one of (i) a production/online mode, (ii) a configuration mode and (iii) a discovery mode, and a field containing, within the production/online mode, information indicating a number of base time slots in the superframe.

6. The superframe as claimed in claim 5, wherein one management time slot is available for each transmission direction and management time slots are arranged directly after the beacon.

7. A plurality of sensor nodes in a star network, each of the plurality of sensor nodes having a processor, and memory, and receiving a beacon for the star network and said beacon including:

a flag field for receiving control information for the beacon for identifying one of (i) a production/online mode, (ii) a configuration mode and (iii) a discovery mode; and

a field containing, within the production/online mode, information indicating a number of base time slots in a superframe.

8. A star network with at least one gateway and at least one sensor node as claimed in claim 7.

9. A method for operating a star network as comprising a gateway and a plurality of sensor nodes, the method comprising:

receiving, by a sensor node, a beacon of a star network, said beacon comprising a flag field for receiving control information for the beacon for identifying one of (i) a production/online mode, (ii) a configuration mode and (iii) a discovery mode, and comprising a field including, within the production/online mode, information about a number of base time slots in a superframe; and

overwriting a value held in the sensor node representing the number of base time slots in the superframe with a received value for the number of base time slots in the superframe.

10. A sensor node for a star network including at least one gateway and at least one sensor node, the sensor node comprising:

a processor; and

memory, said sensor node receiving a beacon for the star network and said beacon including;

a flag field for receiving control information for the beacon for identifying one of (i) a production/online mode, (ii) a configuration mode and (iii) a discovery mode; and

a field containing, within the production/online mode, information indicating a number of base time slots in a superframe.

11. The sensor node as claimed in claim 10, wherein the beacon further comprises fields including at least one of a gateway identification field for identifying a gateway belonging to a respective sensor node, a configuration sequence field for identifying different configurations, and a time slot size field for indicating a size of a base time slot.

12. The sensor node as claim in claim 10, wherein the beacon further comprises a group acknowledgement field for acknowledging successful reception of data.

13. The sensor node as claimed in claim 10, wherein counting the number of base time slots in the superframe starts after the management time slots of the superframe.