JP2018026763A - Wireless communication system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a wireless communication system capable of suppressing battery consumption. SOLUTION: In a wireless communication system 1 which is an intermittent drive radio 2 and a constant drive radio 4, the constant drive radio 4 operates by receiving power supply from an external commercial power source 6, and the intermittent drive radio 2 is built-in. It operates by being powered by a battery. Then, the constant drive radio 4 transmits a survival confirmation request signal in response to the beacon signal from the intermittent drive radio 2. [Selection diagram] Fig. 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a wireless communication system that performs intermittent communication.

  Conventionally, for example, a sensor device such as a gas meter and a monitoring / alarm device such as an alarm device can communicate with each other through a wired connection, and measures such as blocking an object with the sensor device according to an alarm from the monitoring / alarm device. Had gone. Further, in such a wired system, connection confirmation with the other party is performed, and in the communication system composed of the sensor device and the monitoring / warning device described above, the sensor side is mainly the monitoring / warning device. The connection was confirmed.

  In recent years, a communication system including the above-described sensor device and a monitoring / warning device is also performed by wireless communication. Since the sensor device and the monitoring / warning device are often driven by a battery such as a battery, if the power consumption increases due to the wireless connection, the battery will be consumed. In view of this, a method has been proposed in which intermittent driving is performed and data is transmitted while transmitting beacon signals for synchronization, and data is exchanged by synchronizing beacon signals with continuous reception (for example, Patent Documents). 1).

Japanese Patent No. 2009-10703

  However, even with the above-described method, a wireless device that transmits data is in a continuous reception state, which causes a problem that power consumption increases and the battery is consumed.

  Therefore, if the transmission period of the beacon signal is shortened so as to shorten the period of the continuous reception state, the congestion may be promoted by interference, which cannot be easily accelerated.

  In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a wireless communication system capable of suppressing battery consumption.

  The invention according to claim 1, which has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, wirelessly performs communication by periodically transmitting a beacon signal and receiving response information within a predetermined period after transmitting the beacon signal. A wireless communication system having a plurality of communication devices, wherein a first wireless communication device of the plurality of wireless communication devices operates by receiving power supply from outside, and a second wireless communication device is supplied with power by a built-in battery. The wireless communication system is configured to receive and operate, and the first wireless communication device transmits a connection confirmation signal in response to the beacon signal transmitted from the second wireless communication device.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the first wireless communication device is in a state where the signal from the second wireless communication device can always be received. It is what.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the present invention, the second wireless communication device may provide the first wireless communication device with respect to the first wireless communication device when the connection confirmation signal cannot be received for a predetermined period. Then, a connection confirmation request signal is transmitted.

  The invention according to claim 4 is the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a sensor device for detecting or measuring a predetermined object is connected to the second wireless communication device. The first wireless communication apparatus is connected to a device that performs monitoring or alarm related to the object.

  As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the first wireless communication apparatus operates by receiving power supply from the outside. Therefore, the first wireless communication apparatus does not consider consumption of a battery or the like. It is possible to wait for reception of a beacon signal from the second wireless communication apparatus. On the other hand, since the second wireless communication apparatus can maintain intermittent communication, it is possible to suppress the consumption of the battery of the second wireless communication apparatus.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the beacon signal from the second wireless communication apparatus can be always received, the connection confirmation signal can be immediately transmitted when the beacon signal is received. Therefore, the reception standby time of the second wireless communication apparatus can be shortened, and battery consumption can be suppressed.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, the connection confirmation request signal can be transmitted from the second wireless communication apparatus even when the connection confirmation signal is not transmitted from the first wireless communication apparatus.

  According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, in a wireless communication system having a sensor device and a monitoring / warning device, battery consumption of the battery-driven wireless communication device on the sensor device side can be suppressed.

It is a schematic block diagram of the radio | wireless communications system concerning one Embodiment of this invention. It is a functional block diagram of the intermittent drive radio | wireless machine shown by FIG. It is a functional block diagram of the always drive radio | wireless machine shown by FIG. It is a sequence diagram of the alive monitoring operation in the conventional wireless communication system. FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram of a life and death monitoring operation in the wireless communication system shown in FIG. 1. It is a flowchart of the alive monitoring operation | movement of the intermittent drive radio | wireless machine shown by FIG. FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an alive monitoring operation of the always-on radio shown in FIG. 3. FIG. FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an alive monitoring operation of the always-on radio shown in FIG. 3. FIG.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a wireless communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  The wireless communication system 1 includes an intermittently driven wireless device 2 as a second wireless communication device, a sensor device 3, a constantly driven wireless device 4 as a first wireless communication device, a monitoring / alarm device 5, a commercial power supply 6. A sensor device 3 is integrally configured or connected to the intermittent drive radio 2 by a cable, a connector, or the like. A monitoring / alarm device 5 is integrally configured or connected to the constant drive radio device 4 by a cable, a connector, or the like. And the intermittent drive radio | wireless machine 2 and the always drive radio | wireless machine 4 can communicate by radio | wireless.

  A schematic configuration diagram of the intermittent drive radio 2 is shown in FIG. The intermittent drive wireless device 2 includes an antenna 21, a wireless unit 22, a control unit 23, an intermittent operation control unit 24, and a battery 25.

  The wireless unit 22 transmits and receives data by wireless communication with the constantly driven wireless device 4 and the like via the antenna 21. The wireless unit 22 includes a wireless transmission circuit 221, a wireless reception circuit 222, and a switching unit 223.

  The wireless transmission circuit 221 modulates the data output from the control unit 23 and transmits the data wirelessly to a target wireless device such as the constantly driven wireless device 4. The wireless receiving circuit 222 receives and demodulates a signal transmitted from a wireless device such as the constantly driven wireless device 4 and outputs it to the control unit 23 as data. The switching unit 223 performs transmission / reception switching control by a control signal (not shown) from the control unit 23.

  The control unit 23 governs overall control of the intermittent drive wireless device 2. The control unit 23 includes a reception interval monitoring device 231, a simultaneous transfer transmission / reception device 232, a relay packet transmission / reception device 233, a relay stage number table 234, and a packet transmission / reception control device 235.

  The reception interval monitoring device 231 has a time monitoring timer and monitors a reception interval of a survival confirmation signal described later.

  The simultaneous transfer transmission / reception device 232 outputs (transfers), for example, a beacon signal or the like to other wireless devices simultaneously via the wireless unit 22 based on the control of the packet transmission / reception control device 235. Further, the simultaneous transfer transmitting / receiving apparatus 232 receives the data (packet) addressed to the intermittent drive wireless device 2 based on the control of the packet transmission / reception control device 235 or transmits data addressed to other wireless devices 22. Or output to

  The relay packet transmission / reception device 233 once receives a packet relayed by the intermittent drive radio device 2 and transmits it to a destination radio device or a further relay destination based on the control of the packet transmission / reception control device 235. In the configuration shown in FIG. 1, one-to-one communication is performed between the intermittently driven wireless device 2 and the constantly driven wireless device 4, but the wireless communication system 1 shown in FIG. 1 is a wireless network such as a known mesh network. In this case, a packet transmitted through the wireless network is relayed by the intermittently driven wireless device 2.

  The relay stage number table 234 is a table that holds the number of logical relays (the number of hops) from the intermittently driven wireless device 2 to all the wireless devices in the wireless network described above.

  The packet transmission / reception control device 235 is configured to designate another wireless device as a destination and transmit data to the destination.

  The intermittent operation control unit 24 controls the simultaneous transfer transmission / reception device 232 and the like of the control unit 23 based on the time value measured by a timer or the like, and intermittently shifts the wireless unit 22 to the operation state.

  The battery 25 is built in the intermittent drive radio 2 and functions as a power source for supplying power to the intermittent drive radio 2. The battery 25 can be replaced. The battery 25 may be a primary battery or a secondary battery.

  The sensor device 3 is a sensor that measures a predetermined physical quantity of a measurement object, and can set measurement parameters such as an operation mode as well as outputting measurement values. The sensor device 3 may be, for example, a measuring instrument having a means for controlling a sensor such as a gas meter, a water meter, or an electric meter, instead of a so-called sensor alone.

  FIG. 3 shows a schematic configuration diagram of the constantly driven radio 4. The always-drive radio 4 includes an antenna 41, a radio unit 42, and a control unit 43.

  The wireless unit 42 transmits and receives data by wireless communication with the intermittent drive wireless device 2 and the like via the antenna 41. The wireless unit 42 includes a wireless transmission circuit 421, a wireless reception circuit 422, and a switching unit 423.

  The wireless transmission circuit 421 modulates the data output from the control unit 43 and transmits the data wirelessly to a target wireless device such as the intermittent drive wireless device 2. The wireless reception circuit 422 receives a signal transmitted from a wireless device such as the intermittent drive wireless device 2, demodulates it, and outputs it to the control unit 43 as data. The switching unit 423 performs transmission / reception switching control by a control signal (not shown) from the control unit 43.

  The control unit 43 governs overall control of the constantly driven wireless device 4. The control unit 43 includes a periodic packet transmission device 431, a simultaneous transfer transmission / reception device 432, a relay packet transmission / reception device 433, a relay stage number table 434, and a packet transmission / reception control device 435.

  The periodic packet transmitter 431 periodically transmits survival confirmation request information, which will be described later, via the wireless unit 42.

  The simultaneous transfer transmission / reception device 432 simultaneously outputs (transfers), for example, a beacon signal to other wireless devices via the wireless unit 42 based on the control of the packet transmission / reception control device 435. The simultaneous transfer transmitting / receiving device 432 receives the data (packets) addressed to the always-driven wireless device 4 based on the control of the packet transmission / reception control device 435 and transmits the data addressed to other wireless devices. Or output to

  The relay packet transmission / reception device 433 temporarily receives a packet relayed by the always-driven radio device 4 and transmits it to a destination radio device or a further relay destination based on the control of the packet transmission / reception control device 435.

  The relay stage number table 434 is a table that holds the number of logical relays (the number of hops) from the always-driven wireless device 4 to each of the wireless devices in the wireless network described above.

  The packet transmission / reception control device 435 is configured to designate another wireless device as a destination and transmit data to the destination.

  The monitoring / warning device 5 is a device that monitors / warns an abnormal state related to an object to be measured by the sensor device 3. Examples of the monitoring / alarm device 5 include a gas leak alarm and a fire alarm. For example, in the case of a gas leak alarm device, the measurement target is a gas supplied to a gas appliance or the like, and the corresponding sensor device 3 includes a gas meter. The monitoring / alarm device 5 is not limited to directly monitoring / alarming an object to be measured, such as a gas leak alarm device. For example, a gas appliance such as a fire alarm device or a carbon monoxide alarm device. It also includes devices that monitor and warn about abnormalities caused by the use of (objects).

  The commercial power source 6 is an external power source that supplies power to the constantly driven radio device 4. In the present embodiment, the commercial power source 6 is used, but an in-house power generation device or the like may be used, and the power storage amount is sufficiently larger than that of the battery 25 of the intermittent drive radio device 2. A large-capacity storage battery may be used as long as it does not exist.

  Next, the life and death monitoring operation in the wireless communication system 1 configured as described above will be described with reference to FIGS. The life and death monitoring operation is an operation for periodically confirming whether the connection destination device is operating. FIG. 4 is a diagram in the case where both the conventional sensor device 3 side and the monitoring / alarm device 5 side are driven by a battery.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the wireless device on the sensor device 3 side and the wireless device on the monitoring / alarm device 5 side transmit beacon signals at a predetermined intermittent period. The beacon signal includes identification information of the device itself as in the prior art, and is broadcast to surrounding wireless devices. Then, each wireless device repeats an intermittent operation in which a short reception state is entered and then a long sleep state is entered.

  The wireless device on the sensor device 3 side periodically performs alive monitoring. When alive monitoring is started, the wireless device on the sensor device 3 side is in a continuous reception state, and when a beacon signal is received from the wireless device on the monitoring / alarm device 5 side, a survival confirmation request signal (connection confirmation request signal) is monitored as a response signal.・ Send to the alarm device 5 side radio. This survival confirmation request signal is a signal for requesting confirmation of whether the monitoring / alarm device 5 is operating normally, and the radio device on the monitoring / alarm device 5 side that has received this signal is connected to the monitoring / alarm device 5 connected thereto. A survival check is performed on the alarm device 5.

  Further, the radio on the monitoring / alarm device 5 side receives the survival confirmation request signal and enters the continuous reception state when the survival confirmation is completed. When the beacon signal is received from the radio on the sensor device 3 side, the survival response is received as a response signal. The signal is transmitted to the wireless device on the sensor device 3 side. The survival response signal is a signal that includes a result of confirming the survival of the wireless device on the monitoring / alarm device 5 side with respect to the connected monitoring / alarm device 5. In this way, one survival confirmation (life / death confirmation) is completed.

  In the case of the conventional method shown in FIG. 4, a radio that transmits data such as a survival confirmation request signal is in a continuous reception state in order to receive a beacon signal, so that power consumption increases and battery consumption is accelerated. was there. Further, if the transmission interval of the beacon signal is increased, congestion may be promoted by interference and cannot be easily accelerated.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, the intermittent drive wireless device 2 on the sensor device 3 side is driven by a battery, and the constantly driven wireless device 4 on the monitoring / alarm device side is always driven by an external power source, and then the always driven wireless device 4 is intermittent. In response to the beacon signal from the drive wireless device 2, the existence confirmation signal is transmitted as a connection confirmation signal to confirm the existence. This survival confirmation signal is a signal indicating whether the monitoring / warning device 5 is operating normally. Details will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 5, both the intermittent drive radio 2 and the always drive radio 4 transmit a beacon signal at a predetermined intermittent period as in FIG. And the intermittent drive radio | wireless machine 2 by the side of the sensor apparatus 3 will start the time monitoring timer in the reception interval monitoring apparatus 231, if alive monitoring is started.

  On the other hand, the constantly driven wireless device 4 on the monitoring / alarm device 5 side continues the continuous reception state from the start-up because there is no worry of battery consumption. Then, a survival confirmation signal is transmitted as a response to the beacon signal from the intermittent drive radio 2. Note that the confirmation of whether the monitoring / warning device 5 is operating normally at the time of transmitting the survival confirmation signal has been completed. This survival confirmation signal is transmitted periodically. Since the beacon signal from the intermittent drive radio 2 is transmitted at a predetermined intermittent period, for example, the periodic packet transmission device 431 of the constantly driven radio 4 transmits a survival confirmation signal once every time the beacon signal is received. Will be sent periodically.

  That is, the always-drive radio 4 (first radio communication device) transmits a survival confirmation signal (connection confirmation signal) in response to the beacon signal transmitted from the intermittent drive radio 2 (second radio communication device). To do. In addition, the constantly driven wireless device 4 (first wireless communication device) is in a state where the signal from the intermittently driven wireless device 2 (second wireless communication device) can always be received.

  In addition, as described in FIG. 5, if the life monitoring request signal cannot be received from the always-driven wireless device 4 and the time monitoring timer is up, the survival monitoring is not confirmed if it is left as it is, so the intermittently driven wireless device The survival confirmation request signal may be transmitted from 2 as shown in FIG. That is, the intermittent drive radio 2 (second radio communication device) is alive with respect to the constantly driven radio 4 (first radio communication device) when the survival confirmation signal (connection confirmation signal) cannot be received for a predetermined period. A confirmation request signal (connection confirmation request signal) is transmitted.

  Here, the above-described operation is summarized in the flowcharts shown in FIGS. FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the operation of the intermittent drive wireless device 2.

  First, in step S101, the time monitoring timer of the reception interval monitoring device 231 is activated to start alive monitoring. Next, in step S102, it is determined whether or not a survival confirmation signal has been received from the always-on radio device 4. If received (YES), the survival confirmation is completed.

  On the other hand, if the survival confirmation signal is not received in step S102 (in the case of NO), it is determined in step S103 whether or not the time monitoring timer has expired. It switches so that the survival confirmation request | requirement may be made from the intermittent drive radio | wireless machine 2 instead of the survival confirmation from 4. FIG. In step S104, it is determined whether or not a beacon signal is received from the always-driven wireless device 4. When a beacon signal is received (in the case of YES), a survival confirmation request signal is transmitted to the constantly driven radio device 4 in step S105.

  When the survival confirmation request signal is transmitted in step S105, it is determined in step S106 whether or not a survival response signal has been received. If received (YES), the survival confirmation is completed. When the survival response signal cannot be received, the survival is not confirmed, and for example, processing such as recording as a log or notifying the host device or the like that the survival is not confirmed is performed.

  Next, an operation of transmitting the survival confirmation request signal of the always-driven wireless device 4 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, in step S201, the periodic packet transmitter 431 determines whether or not it is time to transmit a survival confirmation signal. If it is time to transmit, the survival confirmation signal is transmitted to the intermittent drive radio device 2 in step S202.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart of the operation (corresponding to step S105 and subsequent steps in FIG. 6) when the always-driven wireless device 4 receives the survival confirmation request signal. First, in step S301, it is determined whether or not a survival confirmation request signal has been received from the intermittent drive radio 2. If received (YES), whether or not a beacon signal has been received from the intermittent drive radio 2 in step S302. Judge whether or not. When a beacon signal is received in step S302, a survival response signal is transmitted to the intermittent drive radio device 2 in step S303.

  According to the radio communication system 1 described above, in the radio communication system 1 including the intermittent drive radio 2 and the always drive radio 4, the always drive radio 4 operates by receiving power supply from the external commercial power supply 6. The intermittent drive radio 2 operates by receiving power supply from the built-in battery 25. And the always drive radio | wireless machine 4 responds to the beacon signal from the intermittent drive radio | wireless machine 2, and transmits a survival confirmation signal. By doing so, the constantly driven radio 4 is powered by the commercial power supply 6 and can therefore wait for the reception of a beacon signal from the intermittently driven radio 2 without considering battery consumption. In addition, by transmitting a survival confirmation signal as a response to the beacon signal from the battery-driven intermittent drive radio 2, the intermittent drive radio 2 can maintain intermittent communication, thereby minimizing the continuous reception state. can do. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the battery consumption of the intermittently driven wireless device 2 that is battery driven.

  Moreover, since the always-drive radio 4 is in a state where the signal from the intermittent-drive radio 2 can always be received, the survival confirmation signal can be immediately transmitted when the beacon signal is received. Therefore, the reception standby time of the intermittent drive radio device 2 can be shortened, and battery consumption can be suppressed.

  In addition, when the survival confirmation signal cannot be received for a predetermined period, the intermittent drive wireless device 2 transmits a survival confirmation request signal to the constantly driven wireless device 4, so that the survival confirmation request signal is not transmitted from the always driven wireless device 4. Even in such a case, it is possible to monitor the life and death by transmitting a survival confirmation request signal from the intermittent drive radio 2. Since the survival confirmation request signal is transmitted from the intermittently driven wireless device 2 only when the survival confirmation request signal cannot be received from the always-driven wireless device 4, the occurrence frequency is usually not high and the battery is less affected.

  In addition, a sensor device 3 that detects or measures a predetermined object is connected to the intermittent drive radio 2, and a monitoring / alarm device 5 that performs monitoring or alarm related to the object is connected to the constantly driven radio 4. Yes. By doing so, in the wireless communication system 1 having the sensor device 3 and the monitoring / warning device 5, battery consumption of the intermittently driven wireless device 2 on the battery-driven sensor device 3 side can be suppressed.

  In the above-described embodiment, the sensor device 3 side is the intermittent drive radio device 2 and the monitoring / alarm device 5 side is the constant drive radio device 4. However, the sensor device 3 side can be easily supplied with power from an external power source. If it is possible, the sensor device 3 side may be the constantly driven radio device 4.

  In the above-described embodiment, the one-to-one communication has been described. However, when there are three or more wireless devices, at least one of the wireless devices may be a constant drive wireless device.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. That is, those skilled in the art can implement various modifications in accordance with conventionally known knowledge without departing from the scope of the present invention. Of course, such modifications are included in the scope of the present invention as long as the configuration of the wireless communication system of the present invention is provided.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Radio | wireless communications system 2 Intermittent drive radio | wireless machine (2nd radio | wireless communication apparatus)
3 sensor device 4 always drive radio (first radio communication device)
5 Monitoring / alarm device (equipment for monitoring or alarming)

Claims (4)

A wireless communication system having a plurality of wireless communication devices that periodically transmit beacon signals and intermittently communicate by receiving response information within a predetermined period after transmitting the beacon signals,
Among the plurality of wireless communication devices, the first wireless communication device operates by receiving power supply from the outside, and the second wireless communication device operates by receiving power supply by the built-in battery,
The first wireless communication device transmits a connection confirmation signal in response to the beacon signal transmitted from the second wireless communication device;
A wireless communication system.   The wireless communication system according to claim 1, wherein the first wireless communication device is in a state in which a signal from the second wireless communication device can be constantly received.   The said 2nd wireless communication apparatus transmits a connection confirmation request signal with respect to a said 1st wireless communication apparatus, when the said connection confirmation signal cannot be received for a predetermined period. Wireless communication system. A sensor device that detects or measures a predetermined object is connected to the second wireless communication device,
The first wireless communication device is connected to a device that performs monitoring or alarm related to the object.
The wireless communication system according to claim 1, wherein the wireless communication system is a wireless communication system.

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