Remote equipment control method, edge controller and building automatic control system

Abstract

The invention relates to the field of industrial automation control, and provides a remote equipment control method, an edge controller and a building automatic control system. The method is applied to a remote control agent module of an edge controller, and comprises the following steps: if it is determined that remote equipment controlled by the edge controller comprises a to-be-configured physical point location, locally creating a local agent point location corresponding to the to-be-configured physical point location; related configuration information of the to-be-configured physical point location is written into the local agent point location to establish a mapping relation between the local agent point location and the to-be-configured physical point location; and performing remote monitoring on the to-be-configured physical point location of the remote equipment based on the mapping relation. According to the invention, the number of point locations which can be supported to be monitored by the edge controller can be obviously increased, network and bus communication load balancing of the building automatic control system can be realized, centralized control of massive physical point locations on the edge side can be realized, and reasonable and effective utilization of edge side resources can be realized.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of industrial automation control, and in particular to a remote device control method, an edge controller, and a building automation system. Background Art

[0002] With the development of building automation control systems (hereinafter referred to as "building automation systems"), more and more remote devices (or terminal devices) need to be connected to the building automation systems, and the number of physical points of remote devices that need to be monitored will also increase dramatically.

[0003] Currently, a single general-purpose controller used in building automation systems to monitor the physical locations of remote devices can only support monitoring of 16 to 64 locations, and some high-end controllers can only support monitoring of 200+ locations. For some small building automation systems, traditional general-purpose or high-end controllers can meet the monitoring needs of remote device physical locations. However, for some large building automation systems, the number of remote devices connected to them far exceeds that of small building automation systems, and the number of physical locations that need to be monitored also far exceeds the number of physical locations that a small building automation system needs to monitor.

[0004] To meet the automation control needs of large-scale building automation systems, the current solution is to deploy a large number of general-purpose controllers or high-end controllers. However, this solution not only increases the network and bus communication load of the building automation system, but also makes it difficult to achieve centralized control of massive physical points, affecting the response and control efficiency of remote devices, and greatly increasing the cost of building automation control. Summary of the Invention

[0005] In view of this, the embodiments of the present application provide a remote device control method, an edge controller and a building automation system to solve the problem in the prior art that in order to meet the automation control needs of large-scale building automation systems, a large number of general controllers or high-end controllers need to be deployed, which not only increases the network and bus communication load of the building automation system, but also makes it difficult to achieve centralized control of a large number of physical points, affects the response and control efficiency of remote devices, and greatly increases the cost of building automation control.

[0006] In a first aspect of an embodiment of the present application, a remote device control method is provided, which is applied to a remote control agent module of an edge controller, comprising the following steps:

[0007] Identify remote devices controlled by the edge controller;

[0008] If it is determined that the remote device includes a physical point to be configured, a local proxy point corresponding to the physical point to be configured is created locally;

[0009] Obtain relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured, and write the relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured at the local proxy point to establish a mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured;

[0010] Based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy points and the physical points to be configured, the physical points to be configured of the remote device are remotely monitored.

[0011] A second aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides another remote device control method, which is applied to an edge controller, wherein the edge controller includes a master agent module and at least one sub-agent module, wherein each sub-agent module is used to manage remote devices supporting different communication protocols;

[0012] The method comprises the following steps:

[0013] The general agent module determines the remote device controlled by the edge controller and determines the type of communication protocol supported by the remote device;

[0014] The general agent module calls the target sub-agent module corresponding to the communication protocol type supported by the remote device;

[0015] If the target sub-agent module determines that the remote device includes a physical point to be configured, it obtains the relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured, creates a local proxy point locally and writes the relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured, and establishes a mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured;

[0016] The target sub-agent module remotely monitors the physical points to be configured of the remote device based on the mapping relationship between the local agent points and the physical points to be configured.

[0017] In a third aspect of an embodiment of the present application, an edge controller is provided, including a remote control agent module, the remote control agent module including:

[0018] a determining unit configured to determine a remote device controlled by the edge controller;

[0019] a creating unit configured to create a local proxy point corresponding to the physical point to be configured locally if it is determined that the remote device includes the physical point to be configured;

[0020] an establishing unit configured to obtain relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured, write the relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured into the local proxy point, and establish a mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured;

[0021] The remote control unit is configured to remotely monitor the physical point to be configured of the remote device based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured.

[0022] According to a fourth aspect of an embodiment of the present application, another edge controller is provided, comprising a general agent module and at least one sub-agent module, wherein each sub-agent module is respectively configured to manage remote devices supporting different communication protocols;

[0023] The general agent module is configured to determine a remote device controlled by the edge controller, determine a communication protocol type supported by the remote device, and call a target sub-agent module corresponding to the communication protocol type supported by the remote device;

[0024] The target sub-agent module is configured to obtain relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured if it is determined that the remote device includes a physical point to be configured, create a local proxy point locally and write the relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured, establish a mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, and remotely monitor the physical point to be configured of the remote device based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured.

[0025] According to a fifth aspect of an embodiment of the present application, a building automation system is provided, comprising an edge controller, a link layer, and at least one remote device group;

[0026] A remote device group includes at least one remote device, different remote device groups support different communication protocols, and remote devices in the same remote device group support the same communication protocol; the edge controller includes a remote control agent module; the link layer includes at least one communication link, and different communication links support different communication protocols;

[0027] The remote control agent module is connected to the remote devices in each remote device group through each communication link of the link layer;

[0028] The remote control agent module is used to execute the steps of the method of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0029] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the embodiments of the present application include at least: by deploying a remote control agent module on an edge controller (which can be an existing general controller or a high-end controller) to reconstruct its core functional services, using the remote control agent module to locally create a local agent point corresponding to the communication protocol type supported by the remote device controlled by the edge controller, and writing the relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured of the remote device at the local agent point to establish a mapping relationship between the local agent point and the physical point to be configured, and finally synchronizing the point status of the local agent point and the physical point to be configured based on the mapping relationship to realize remote monitoring of the physical point to be configured of the remote device. Through the above-mentioned proxy control mode, on the one hand, the number of monitoring points that the edge controller can support can be significantly increased without changing the hardware structure of the edge controller (a single edge controller can support monitoring of up to 2000+ points), thereby reducing the number of controllers deployed in large-scale building automation systems, and thus reducing the cost of building automation control; on the other hand, it can achieve network and bus communication load balancing of the building automation system, reducing the direct communication pressure between the edge controller and remote devices; thirdly, it can realize centralized control of massive physical points on the edge side, thereby improving the response and control efficiency of remote devices, and realizing the rational and effective use of edge side resources. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments or descriptions of the prior art. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without any creative work.

[0031] Figure 1 1 is a schematic diagram of the system structure of a building automation system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0032] Figure 2 This is a flowchart of a remote device control method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0033] Figure 3 1 is a schematic diagram of the system structure of another building automation system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0034] Figure 4 This is a flowchart of another remote device control method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0035] Figure 5 This is a flowchart of another remote device control method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0036] Figure 6This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an edge controller provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0037] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of another edge controller provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0038] Figure 8 This is a structural diagram of an electronic device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0039] In the following description, specific details such as specific system structures and techniques are provided for purposes of illustration rather than limitation to facilitate a thorough understanding of the embodiments of the present application. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present application may be implemented in other embodiments without these specific details. In other cases, detailed descriptions of well-known systems, devices, circuits, and methods are omitted to avoid obscuring the description of the present application with unnecessary detail.

[0040] In related technologies, building automation systems mainly remotely control remote devices (terminal devices) through controllers (existing general-purpose controllers or high-end controllers). The controller and remote devices generally communicate using the BACnet / IP protocol, and use object-oriented programming (OOP) concepts to read and write remote devices or various services in real time through centralized polling control or event-driven mechanisms to control the point actions of remote devices (such as reading and writing switch points, analog value points). However, when using the above-mentioned control method, the amount of data packet interaction is often large when performing complex calculations or frequent starts and stops. The existing single general-purpose controller can only support the monitoring of 16 to 64 points, and some high-end controllers can only support the monitoring of 200+ points at most.

[0041] For some small building automation systems, traditional general-purpose or high-end controllers can meet the monitoring needs of remote device physical points. However, for some large building automation systems, the number of remote devices connected far exceeds that of small building automation systems, and the number of physical points that need to be monitored also far exceeds that of small building automation systems. To meet the automation control needs of large building automation systems, adopting the above control methods requires deploying a large number of general-purpose or high-end controllers. This not only increases the network and bus communication load of the building automation system, but also makes it difficult to achieve centralized control of a large number of physical points, affecting the response and control efficiency of remote devices, and significantly increasing the cost of building automation control.

[0042] In view of this, an embodiment of the present application provides a remote device control method, an edge controller and a storage medium, by deploying a remote control agent module on the edge controller (which can be an existing general controller or a high-end controller) to reconstruct its core functional services, and using the remote control agent module to locally create a local agent point corresponding to the communication protocol type supported by the remote device controlled by the edge controller, and write the relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured of the remote device at the local agent point to establish a mapping relationship between the local agent point and the physical point to be configured, and finally synchronize the point status of the local agent point and the physical point to be configured based on the mapping relationship to realize remote monitoring of the physical point to be configured of the remote device. Through the above-mentioned proxy control mode, on the one hand, the number of monitoring points that the edge controller can support can be significantly increased without changing the hardware structure of the edge controller (a single edge controller can support monitoring of up to 2000+ points), thereby reducing the number of controllers deployed in large-scale building automation systems, and thus reducing the cost of building automation control; on the other hand, it can achieve network and bus communication load balancing of the building automation system, reducing the direct communication pressure between the edge controller and remote devices; thirdly, it can realize centralized control of massive physical points on the edge side, thereby improving the response and control efficiency of remote devices, and realizing the rational and effective use of edge side resources.

[0043] The remote device control method, edge controller and building automation system according to the embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0044] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the system structure of a building automation system provided by an embodiment of the present application. Figure 1The building automation system includes an edge controller (or building controller) 101, a link layer 102, and at least one remote device group (e.g., including remote device groups 1, 2, and 3). The edge controller 101 may include a remote control proxy module 1011, as well as a state prediction module 1012 and a logic operation module 1013 that are communicatively connected to the remote control proxy module 1011 (or proxy device). The link layer 102 may include a BACnet / IP (Building Automation and Control Network) communication link that supports the BACnet / IP protocol, an MSTP (Master-Slave / Token-Passing) protocol communication link that supports the MSTP protocol, and a MODBUS communication link that supports the MODBUS protocol. Remote device group 1 may include remote devices 1-1, 1-2, ..., 1-n that support the BACnet / IP protocol, such as refrigerators, BACnet sub-devices, etc.; remote device group 2 may include remote devices 2-1, 2-2, ..., 2-m that support the MSTP protocol; remote device group 3 may include remote devices 3-1, 3-2, ..., 3-k that support the MODBUS protocol.

[0045] Each remote device in remote device group 1 can communicate with the remote control agent module 1011 in the edge controller 101 via a BACnet / IP communication link. Each remote device in remote device group 2 can communicate with the remote control agent module 1011 in the edge controller 101 via an MSTP communication link. Each remote device in remote device group 3 can communicate with the remote control agent module 1011 in the edge controller 101 via a MODBUS communication link.

[0046] Each remote device in each remote device group includes at least one physical point, such as AI (analog input interface) point, AO (analog output interface) point, BI (switch input interface) point, BO (switch output interface) point, ACC point (monitoring or control point related to the accumulation function), etc.

[0047] In actual applications, the remote control proxy module 1011 (Proxy_Device) can be used to create local proxy points corresponding to the physical locations of the remote devices in each remote device group (usually the locations that need to be monitored). Local proxy points include: local AI proxy points, local AO proxy points, local BI proxy points, local BO proxy points, local ACC proxy points, etc.

[0048] The embodiment of the present application uses a linked list data structure to design a hierarchical model between the remote control agent module (local agent point)-link layer-remote device (physical point to be monitored). Based on this hierarchical model, the status of each remote device (such as initialization status, connection status, configuration status, online status, offline status, update status, etc.) can be mapped locally on the edge controller 101, and real-time monitoring of the physical points that need to be monitored by each remote device can be achieved.

[0049] The status prediction module 1012 is used to receive the historical point data of the monitored physical points of the remote device provided by the remote control agent module 1011, and make predictions based on the historical point data to obtain the predicted point status of the monitored physical points of the remote device, so as to facilitate subsequent maintenance operations on the remote device based on the predicted point status.

[0050] As an example, the state prediction module 1012 can compress and store the historical location data (historical location data within two weeks) of the remote device's monitored physical locations, count the transition frequencies, calculate the transition matrix, and optimize the fixed-point numbers to calculate the predicted value of the next device state. After each 100 historical records of the remote device's state are completed, the count matrix is ​​updated, the probability matrix is ​​recalculated, and the data is written to flash memory. The previous operation is repeated to obtain the predicted device state.

[0051] The logic operation module 1013 is used to receive the real-time point data of the monitored physical points of the remote device provided by the remote control agent module 1011, and perform logic operations (such as complex operations such as PID) based on the real-time point data to obtain the operation results, and feed the operation results back to the remote control agent module 1011, so that the remote control agent module 1011 assigns these operation results to the monitored physical points of the remote device to achieve real-time remote control of the physical points of the remote device.

[0052] Figure 2 This is a flow chart of a remote device control method provided by an embodiment of the present application. The remote device control method can be Figure 1 Refer to the remote control agent module 1011 in Figure 2 , the remote device control method comprises the following steps:

[0053] Step S201: Determine a remote device controlled by an edge controller.

[0054] Remote devices can be air-conditioning equipment, power supply and distribution equipment, lighting equipment, water supply and drainage equipment, elevator equipment, etc. that are controlled by the edge controller of the building automation system.

[0055] Step S202: If it is determined that the remote device includes a physical point to be configured, a local proxy point corresponding to the physical point to be configured is created locally.

[0056] The physical point to be configured refers to a physical point (real point) set on a remote device that has no corresponding local proxy point configured.

[0057] The local proxy point refers to a proxy point (virtual point) created locally by the remote control proxy module 1011 and corresponding to the physical point to be configured.

[0058] As an example, combining Figure 1 Assume that the remote devices controlled by edge controller 101 include remote device 1-1, remote device 2-1, and remote device 3-2. Remote device 1-1 includes three physical locations to be configured, designated as physical locations 1-1-1, 1-1-2, and 1-1-3. Remote device 2-1 includes two physical locations to be configured, designated as physical locations 2-1-1 and 2-1-2. Remote device 3-2 includes one physical location to be configured, designated as physical location 3-2-1. Then, remote control agent module 1011 can locally create local agent locations 1-1-1, 1-1-2, 1-1-3, 2-1-1, 2-1-2, and 3-2-1 on edge controller 101, corresponding to physical locations 1-1-1, 1-1-2, 1-1-3, 2-1-1, 2-1-2, and 3-2-1.

[0059] Step S203: obtaining relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured, and writing the relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured into the local proxy point to establish a mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured.

[0060] For ease of understanding, continuing with the above example, first, the remote control agent module 1011 obtains the relevant configuration information of the physical points to be configured 1-1-1, 1-1-2, 1-1-3, 2-1-1, 2-1-2, and 3-2-1; then, the relevant configuration information of the physical points to be configured 1-1-1, 1-1-2, 1-1-3, 2-1-1, 2-1-2, and 3-2-1 is written into the local agent points 1-1-1, 1-1-2, 1-1-3, 2-1-1, 2-1-2, and 3-2-1, respectively, to establish a one-to-one mapping relationship between the physical points to be configured 1-1-1, 1-1-2, 1-1-3, 2-1-1, 2-1-2, and 3-2-1 and the local agent points 1-1-1, 1-1-2, 1-1-3, 2-1-1, 2-1-2, and 3-2-1.

[0061] Step S204: remotely monitor the physical point to be configured of the remote device based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured.

[0062] For ease of understanding, continuing with the above example, the remote control agent module 1011 implements remote monitoring of the physical points to be configured 1-1-1, 1-1-2, 1-1-3, 2-1-1, 2-1-2 and 3-2-1 of the remote device 1-1, the physical points to be configured 2-1-1 and 2-1-2 of the remote device 2-1, and the physical point to be configured 3-2-1 of the remote device 3-2 based on the mapping relationship between the physical points to be configured 1-1-1, 1-1-2, 1-1-3, 2-1-1, 2-1-2 and 3-2-1 and the local agent points 1-1-1, 1-1-2, 1-1-3, 2-1-1, 2-1-2 and 3-2-1.

[0063] The technical solution provided in the embodiments of the present application can, on the one hand, significantly increase the number of monitoring points that the edge controller can support without changing the hardware structure of the edge controller (a single edge controller can support monitoring of up to 2000+ points), thereby reducing the number of controllers deployed in large-scale building automation systems, and thus reducing the cost of building automation control; on the other hand, it can achieve network and bus communication load balancing of the building automation system, and reduce the direct communication pressure between the edge controller and remote devices; thirdly, it can achieve centralized control of massive physical points on the edge side, thereby improving the response and control efficiency of remote devices, and realizing the rational and effective use of edge side resources.

[0064] In some embodiments, determining that the remote device includes a physical location to be configured includes:

[0065] Read device attribute information of remote devices;

[0066] If the remote device is determined to be a local sub-device based on the device attribute information, the first software version information of the remote device and the second software version information of the edge controller are read; if the first software version information and the second software version information are inconsistent, it is determined that the remote device includes a physical location to be configured;

[0067] If it is determined based on the device attribute information that the remote device is a third-party device, it is determined that the remote device includes a physical point to be configured.

[0068] Device property information includes but is not limited to: device ID (PROPERTY OBJECT IDENTIFIER), device name (PROPERTY OBJECT NAME), vendor ID (PROPERTY_VENDOR_ID), vendor name (PROPERTY VENDORNAME), supported communication protocols (PROPERTY PROTOCOL_SUPPORT), maximum data segment length (PROPERTY MAXAPDU LENGTH), maximum number of supported data segments (PROPERTY MAX SEGMENTS ACCEPTED), software version (PROPERTY SW_VERSION), hardware version (PROPERTY HW_VERSION), protocol version (PROPERTYPROTOCOL_VERSION), etc.

[0069] As an example, combining Figure 1 Taking remote device 1-1 as an example, the remote control agent module 1011 can first read the device attribute information of the remote device 1-1, then extract the manufacturer ID and manufacturer name therein, and compare the manufacturer ID and manufacturer name of the remote device 1-1 with the manufacturer ID and manufacturer name of the edge controller 101 to see if they are consistent; if they are consistent, the remote device 1-1 is determined to be a local sub-device (i.e., a device of this manufacturer). Next, the first software version information of the remote device 1-1 (i.e., software version (PROPERTY SW_VERSION)) is extracted to determine whether the first software version information is consistent with the second software version information of the edge controller 101. If they are consistent, it indicates that the physical point on the remote device 1-1 has been configured with the corresponding local proxy point, and no further configuration is required. At this time, the remote device 1-1 can directly update its status. If they are inconsistent, it indicates that the remote device 1-1 includes physical points to be configured, that is, there are physical points that are not configured with corresponding local proxy points.

[0070] If the manufacturer ID and manufacturer name of the remote device 1-1 are inconsistent with the manufacturer ID and manufacturer name of the edge controller 101, the remote device 1-1 is determined to be a third-party device (ie, a device not from this manufacturer), and the remote device 1-1 is determined to include a physical point to be configured.

[0071] In some embodiments, the configuration information of the physical point to be configured is written to the local proxy point, including:

[0072] Establish a communication connection between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured;

[0073] If a communication connection is successfully established between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, the relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured is written into the local proxy point.

[0074] The relevant configuration information includes hardware attribute information and point attribute information corresponding to the point type of the physical point to be configured.

[0075] As an example, taking the example of writing configuration information related to the physical point 1-1-1 to be configured at the local proxy point 1-1-1, first, the remote control proxy module 1011 initializes the local proxy point 1-1-1, and then establishes a communication connection between the local proxy point 1-1-1 and the physical point 1-1-1 to be configured (the corresponding communication connection can be established according to the communication protocol supported by the remote device. For example, if the remote device 1-1 supports the BACnet / IP protocol, then a BACnet / IP communication connection can be established between the local proxy point 1-1-1 and the physical point 1-1-1 to be configured). When the communication connection between the local proxy point 1-1-1 and the physical point 1-1-1 to be configured is successfully established, the configuration information related to the physical point 1-1-1 to be configured is written to the local proxy point 1-1-1.

[0076] In some embodiments, the configuration information of the physical point to be configured is written to the local proxy point, including:

[0077] Determine the point type of the physical point to be configured;

[0078] Obtain the hardware attribute information and point attribute information corresponding to the point type, and write the hardware attribute information and point attribute information to the local proxy point.

[0079] Point types include but are not limited to: AI (analog input interface) point, AO (analog output interface) point, BI (digital input interface) point, BO (digital output interface) point, and ACC point.

[0080] AI point is a hardware component used to receive continuously changing physical signals (such as temperature, pressure, current, voltage, etc.) and convert them into digital signals.

[0081] AO point is a hardware component used to convert digital signals into continuously changing analog signals (such as voltage, current, etc.).

[0082] BI point is a hardware component used to receive discrete signals from external devices (such as switch on / off, relay contact status, etc.) and convert physical states into digital signals.

[0083] BO point is a hardware component used to convert digital signals (0 or 1) into physical states recognizable by external devices (such as relay energization / disengagement, transistor on / off) to control the action of actuators (such as solenoid valves, indicator lights, contactors).

[0084] ACC points usually refer to monitoring or control points related to accumulation functions, such as flow accumulation, count accumulation, energy consumption accumulation, etc.

[0085] The hardware attribute information of AI points and AO points includes: supported signal types (such as voltage signals and current signals), measurement range (the maximum and minimum values ​​of the signal that the interface can measure), conversion accuracy, resolution, sampling rate, interface type (such as terminal type and pin type), pin function, power supply requirements, power consumption, etc.

[0086] The hardware attribute information of the BI point includes: signal type (including dry contact signal and wet contact signal), input voltage range, input current threshold, input threshold and logic definition, response time, filtering function, overvoltage protection, overcurrent protection, reverse connection protection, interface type (such as terminal type, pin type, etc.), pin function, power supply requirements, power consumption, operating temperature range, etc.

[0087] The hardware attribute information of the BO point includes: output type (such as relay output, transistor output, thyristor output, etc.), load type adaptation (such as resistive load (such as indicator light, resistance heating), inductive load (such as relay, motor), capacitive load (such as capacitive sensor)), output electrical parameters (including output voltage range, output current capacity, voltage drop / on-resistance), response time and switching frequency, interface type (such as terminal type, pin type, etc.), pin function, power supply requirements, power consumption, operating temperature range, etc.

[0088] The hardware attribute information of the ACC point includes: the original signal form of the accumulated quantity (such as analog signal (such as 4-20mA current signal, 0-10V voltage signal, corresponding to the accumulation of continuous quantities such as flow and pressure)), signal processing method (such as whether the hardware supports signal filtering, anti-shake (for pulse / switch quantity), linearization (for analog nonlinear conversion), etc., to ensure the accuracy of the accumulated data), accumulation range and accuracy (such as range, resolution, error level), interface and communication properties (such as physical interface type, supported communication protocols), operating voltage, power consumption, operating temperature range, etc.

[0089] The point attribute information of the AI ​​point includes: sensor type attribute (PROPERTY_SENSOR_TYPE), offset / zero point calibration attribute (PROPERTY_OFFSET), maximum input value (upper range limit) (PROPERTY_MAX_INPUT_VALUE), minimum input value (lower range limit) (PROPERTY_MIN_INPUT_VALUE), maximum output value (full-scale output) (PROPERTY_MAX_OUTPUT_VALUE), minimum output value (zero point output) (PROPERTY_MIN_OUTPUT_VALUE), and internal unit (base unit of the system / module) (PROPERTY_UNITS_INTERNAL).

[0090] The point attribute information of the AO point includes: offset calibration (PROPERTY_OFFSET), upper range limit conversion value (PROPERTY_CONVERT_HIGH), lower range limit conversion value (PROPERTY_CONVERT_LOW), and abandoning the default value / exiting the default mode (PROPERTY_RELINQUISH_DEFAULT).

[0091] The point properties of the BI point, BO point, or ACC point include: polarity, signal direction (PROPERTY_POLARITY), and abandoning the default configuration / exiting the default mode (PROPERTY_RELINQUISH_DEFAULT).

[0092] In some embodiments, remote monitoring of the physical location to be configured of the remote device based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy location and the physical location to be configured includes:

[0093] If the physical point to be configured supports the COV subscription service, a COV registration request is sent to the physical point to be configured. The COV registration request includes a trigger condition for triggering the physical point to be configured to report data;

[0094] If a confirmation response message is received from the physical point to be configured in response to the COV registration request, it is determined that the local proxy point has successfully registered for the COV subscription service of the physical point to be configured;

[0095] Obtain the physical point data reported by the physical point to be configured, update the local point data of the local proxy point using the physical point data based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, and remotely monitor the physical point to be configured of the remote device based on the updated local point data.

[0096] The trigger condition for data reporting can be when the status value of the point to be configured changes. For example, when the status value change (such as temperature change value, pressure change value, etc.) of the point to be configured falls within a preset threshold range, data reporting is triggered.

[0097] Physical point data refers to the point status data detected by the physical point to be configured, such as temperature, humidity, pressure difference, valve position, etc.

[0098] As an example, using local proxy point 1-1-1 to remotely monitor physical point 1-1-1 to be configured, assuming that physical point 1-1-1 to be configured supports the COV subscription service, when the status value of physical point 1-1-1 to be configured changes within a preset threshold range, the physical point data reporting is triggered. Upon receiving the physical point data reported by physical point 1-1-1 to be configured, remote control proxy module 1011 synchronously writes the physical point data to local proxy point 1-1-1 based on the mapping relationship between physical point 1-1-1 to be configured and local proxy point 1-1-1, thereby updating the local point data of the local proxy point. Thereafter, remote control proxy module 1011 can remotely monitor physical point 1-1-1 to be configured on remote device 1-1 based on the updated local point data of local proxy point 1-1-1.

[0099] In some embodiments, remote monitoring of the physical location to be configured of the remote device based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy location and the physical location to be configured includes:

[0100] If the physical location to be configured does not support the COV subscription service, a data read request is sent to the physical location to be configured according to the preset polling rules;

[0101] Receive the physical point data fed back by the physical point to be configured in response to the data read request, and based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, use the physical point data to update the local point data of the local proxy point, and remotely monitor the physical point to be configured of the remote device based on the updated local point data.

[0102] The preset polling rule may be to poll and read the status data of the to-be-configured point of the remote device at a preset time interval.

[0103] As an example, using local proxy point 1-1-1 to remotely monitor physical point 1-1-1 to be configured, assuming that physical point 1-1-1 to be configured does not support the COV subscription service, a data read request can be sent to physical point 1-1-1 to be configured at a preset time interval. Upon receiving the physical point data returned by physical point 1-1-1 in response to the data read request, the physical point data can be synchronously written to local proxy point 1-1-1 based on the mapping relationship between physical point 1-1-1 to be configured and local proxy point 1-1-1, thereby updating the local point data of the local proxy point. Thereafter, remote control agent module 1011 can remotely monitor physical point 1-1-1 to be configured on remote device 1-1 based on the updated local point data of local proxy point 1-1-1.

[0104] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the system structure of another building automation system provided by the embodiment of the present application. Figure 3 , the building automation system and Figure 1 The structure of the building automation system shown is essentially the same, differing in that edge controller 101 includes a master agent module 1014 and at least one sub-agent module (e.g., sub-agent modules 1, 2, and 3). Each sub-agent module is configured to manage remote devices supporting different communication protocols. Master agent module 1014 is in communication with sub-agent modules 1, 2, and 3.

[0105] Each remote device in remote device group 1 can communicate with sub-agent module 1 in edge controller 101 via a BACnet / IP communication link. Each remote device in remote device group 2 can communicate with sub-agent module 2 in edge controller 101 via an MSTP communication link. Each remote device in remote device group 3 can communicate with sub-agent module 3 in edge controller 101 via a MODBUS communication link.

[0106] Figure 4 1 is a flow chart of another remote device control method provided in an embodiment of the present application. The remote device control method includes the following steps:

[0107] Step S401: The general agent module determines a remote device controlled by the edge controller and determines the type of communication protocol supported by the remote device;

[0108] Step S402: The general agent module calls the target sub-agent module corresponding to the communication protocol type supported by the remote device;

[0109] Step S403: If the target sub-agent module determines that the remote device includes a physical point to be configured, it obtains configuration information related to the physical point to be configured, creates a local proxy point locally, writes the configuration information related to the physical point to be configured, and establishes a mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured.

[0110] Step S404: the target sub-agent module remotely monitors the physical point to be configured of the remote device based on the mapping relationship between the local agent point and the physical point to be configured.

[0111] As an example, suppose the remote device controlled by the edge controller is Figure 3 If remote device 1-1 in FIG. 1 supports the BACnet / IP protocol, then general agent module 1014 can determine that the target sub-agent module is sub-agent module 1 based on the protocol supported by remote device 1-1 and call sub-agent module 1. Sub-agent module 1 executes steps S403 and S404 above to remotely monitor the physical location to be configured on remote device 1-1.

[0112] The technical solution provided in the embodiments of the present application can, on the one hand, significantly increase the number of monitoring points that the edge controller can support without changing the hardware structure of the edge controller (a single edge controller can support monitoring of up to 2000+ points), thereby reducing the number of controllers deployed in large-scale building automation systems, and thus reducing the cost of building automation control; on the other hand, it can achieve network and bus communication load balancing of the building automation system, and reduce the direct communication pressure between the edge controller and remote devices; thirdly, it can achieve centralized control of massive physical points on the edge side, thereby improving the response and control efficiency of remote devices, and realizing the rational and effective use of edge side resources.

[0113] All of the above optional technical solutions can be combined in any way to form optional embodiments of the present application, and will not be described in detail here.

[0114] Figure 5 This is a flow chart of another remote device control method provided by the embodiment of the present application. Figure 5 , the method comprises the following steps:

[0115] Step S501: The remote control agent module reads device attribute information of a remote device controlled by an edge controller.

[0116] Step S502: The remote control agent module determines whether the remote device is a local sub-device based on the remote device attribute information.

[0117] Step S503: If the remote device is a local sub-device, determine whether the first software version information of the remote device is consistent with the second software version information of the edge controller.

[0118] Step S504: If the first software version information of the remote device is consistent with the second software version information of the edge controller, it is determined that the remote device includes a physical location to be configured.

[0119] Step S505 : If the first software version information of the remote device is inconsistent with the second software version information of the edge controller, directly update the physical point data of the remote device.

[0120] Step S506: If the remote device is a third-party device, it is determined that the remote device includes a physical point to be configured.

[0121] Step S507: the remote control agent module locally creates a local agent point corresponding to the physical point to be configured of the remote device.

[0122] Step S508: Initialize the local proxy point.

[0123] Step S509: establishing a communication connection between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured.

[0124] Step S510: When a communication connection is successfully established between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, the point type of the physical point to be configured is determined.

[0125] Step S511: Obtain hardware attribute information and point attribute information corresponding to the point type, and write the hardware attribute information and point attribute information into the local proxy point to establish a mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured.

[0126] Step S512: Determine whether the physical location to be configured supports the COV subscription service.

[0127] Step S513: If the physical point to be configured supports the COV subscription service, a COV registration request is sent to the physical point to be configured. When a confirmation response message is received from the physical point to be configured in response to the COV registration request, it is determined that the local proxy point has successfully registered for the COV subscription service of the physical point to be configured, and the physical point data reported by the physical point to be configured is obtained. Based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, the local point data of the local proxy point is updated using the physical point data, and the physical point to be configured of the remote device is remotely monitored based on the updated local point data.

[0128] Step S514: If the physical point to be configured does not support the COV subscription service, a data reading request is sent to the physical point to be configured according to the preset polling rules, and the physical point data fed back by the physical point to be configured in response to the data reading request is received. Based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, the local point data of the local proxy point is updated using the physical point data, and the physical point to be configured of the remote device is remotely monitored based on the updated local point data.

[0129] Compared with the traditional centralized polling control or event-driven mechanism, the technical solution provided by the embodiment of the present application is to deploy a remote control agent module on the edge controller (which can be an existing general controller or a high-end controller) to reconstruct its core functional services and use the agent mode to achieve communication load balancing, which can reduce the direct communication pressure between the main controller and the sub-devices. It can support up to 2000+ point control points. The state machine supports offline operation in the case of network disconnection and automatically synchronizes the status after the network is restored. A unified interface is achieved through the agent mode, which is compatible with devices from different manufacturers and different protocols. New remote devices only need to add the corresponding agent without modifying the main control logic, which improves scalability and maintainability.

[0130] The following are device embodiments of the present application, which can be used to implement the method embodiments of the present application. For details not disclosed in the device embodiments of the present application, please refer to the method embodiments of the present application.

[0131] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an edge controller provided by an embodiment of the present application. Figure 6 As shown, the edge controller 101 includes: a remote control agent module 1011; the remote control agent module 1011 includes:

[0132] a determining unit 10111 configured to determine a remote device controlled by the edge controller;

[0133] The creating unit 10112 is configured to create a local proxy point corresponding to the physical point to be configured locally if it is determined that the remote device includes the physical point to be configured;

[0134] The establishing unit 10113 is configured to obtain relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured, write the relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured into the local proxy point, and establish a mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured;

[0135] The remote control unit 10114 is configured to remotely monitor the physical point to be configured of the remote device based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured.

[0136] Figure 7This is a schematic diagram of the structure of another edge controller provided in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 7 As shown, the edge controller 101 includes: a general agent module 1014 and at least one sub-agent module (such as including sub-agent modules 1, 2, ..., w), wherein each sub-agent module is used to manage remote devices supporting different communication protocols;

[0137] The general agent module 1014 is configured to determine a remote device controlled by the edge controller, determine the type of communication protocol supported by the remote device, and call a target sub-agent module corresponding to the type of communication protocol supported by the remote device;

[0138] The target sub-agent module is configured to obtain relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured if it is determined that the remote device includes a physical point to be configured, create a local proxy point locally and write the relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured, establish a mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, and remotely monitor the physical point to be configured of the remote device based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured.

[0139] An embodiment of the present application further provides a building automation system, comprising an edge controller, a link layer, and at least one remote device group;

[0140] A remote device group includes at least one remote device, different remote device groups support different communication protocols, and remote devices in the same remote device group support the same communication protocol; the edge controller includes a remote control agent module; the link layer includes at least one communication link, and different communication links support different communication protocols;

[0141] The remote control agent module is connected to the remote devices in each remote device group through each communication link of the link layer;

[0142] The remote control agent module is used to execute the steps of the above-mentioned remote device control method.

[0143] It should be understood that the size of the serial numbers of the steps in the above embodiments does not mean the order of execution. The execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of this application.

[0144] Figure 8 Schematic diagram of an electronic device 800 provided in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 8As shown, the electronic device 800 of this embodiment includes: a processor 801, a memory 802, and a computer program 803 stored in the memory 802 and executable by the processor 801. When the processor 801 executes the computer program 803, the steps of the above-described method embodiments are implemented. Alternatively, when the processor 801 executes the computer program 803, the functions of the modules / units in the above-described device embodiments are implemented.

[0145] The electronic device 800 may be a desktop computer, a notebook, a PDA, a cloud server, or other electronic device. The electronic device 800 may include but is not limited to a processor 801 and a memory 802. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that Figure 8 The electronic device 800 is merely an example and does not limit the electronic device 800 . The electronic device 800 may include more or fewer components than shown in the figure, or different components.

[0146] The processor 801 may be a central processing unit (CPU), or other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSP), application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, etc.

[0147] The memory 802 can be an internal storage unit of the electronic device 800, such as a hard disk or memory of the electronic device 800. The memory 802 can also be an external storage device of the electronic device 800, such as a plug-in hard disk, a smart media card (SMC), a secure digital (SD) card, a flash memory card, etc. equipped on the electronic device 800. The memory 802 can also include both the internal storage unit of the electronic device 800 and an external storage device. The memory 802 is used to store computer programs and other programs and data required by the electronic device.

[0148] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that for the sake of convenience and brevity of description, only the division of the above-mentioned functional units and modules is used as an example for illustration. In actual applications, the above-mentioned functions can be distributed and completed by different functional units and modules as needed, that is, the internal structure of the device can be divided into different functional units or modules to complete all or part of the functions described above. The functional units and modules in the embodiments can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The above-mentioned integrated units can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional units.

[0149] If the integrated module / unit is implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the present application implements all or part of the processes in the above-mentioned embodiment method, and can also be completed by instructing the relevant hardware through a computer program. The computer program can be stored in a readable storage medium, and when the computer program is executed by the processor, it can implement the steps of the above-mentioned various method embodiments. The computer program may include computer program code, which may be in source code form, object code form, executable file or some intermediate form. The computer-readable medium may include: any entity or device capable of carrying computer program code, recording medium, USB flash drive, mobile hard disk, magnetic disk, optical disk, computer memory, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), electric carrier signal, telecommunication signal and software distribution medium. It should be noted that the content contained in the computer-readable medium can be appropriately increased or decreased according to the requirements of legislation and patent practice in the jurisdiction. For example, in some jurisdictions, according to legislation and patent practice, computer-readable media do not include electric carrier signals and electric signals.

[0150] The above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present application, rather than to limit them. Although the present application has been described in detail with reference to the aforementioned embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that they can still modify the technical solutions described in the aforementioned embodiments, or make equivalent replacements for some of the technical features therein. These modifications or replacements do not deviate the essence of the corresponding technical solutions from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the various embodiments of the present application, and should all be included in the scope of protection of the present application.

Claims

1. A remote device control method, characterized in that: The remote control agent module applied to the edge controller includes the following steps: determining a remote device controlled by the edge controller; If it is determined that the remote device includes a physical point to be configured, locally creating a local proxy point corresponding to the physical point to be configured; Acquiring relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured, and writing the relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured into the local proxy point to establish a mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured; Based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, the physical point to be configured of the remote device is remotely monitored.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that Determining that the remote device includes a physical location to be configured includes: Reading device attribute information of the remote device; If it is determined based on the device attribute information that the remote device is a local sub-device, reading the first software version information of the remote device and the second software version information of the edge controller, and if the first software version information is inconsistent with the second software version information, determining that the remote device includes a physical point to be configured; If it is determined based on the device attribute information that the remote device is a third-party device, it is determined that the remote device includes a physical point to be configured.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that Writing relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured into the local proxy point includes: Establishing a communication connection between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured; If a communication connection is successfully established between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, the relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured is written into the local proxy point.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that Writing relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured into the local proxy point includes: Determine the location type of the physical location to be configured; The hardware attribute information and the point attribute information corresponding to the point type are acquired, and the hardware attribute information and the point attribute information are written into the local proxy point.

5. The method according to claim 1 or 4, characterized in that Based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, remotely monitoring the physical point to be configured of the remote device includes: If the physical location to be configured supports the COV subscription service, a COV registration request is sent to the physical location to be configured, where the COV registration request includes a trigger condition for triggering the physical location to be configured to report data; If a confirmation response message is received from the physical point to be configured in response to the COV registration request, it is determined that the local proxy point has successfully registered for the COV subscription service of the physical point to be configured; Obtain physical point data reported by the physical point to be configured, update the local point data of the local proxy point using the physical point data based on a mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, and remotely monitor the physical point to be configured of the remote device based on the updated local point data.

6. The method according to claim 1 or 4, characterized in that Based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, remotely monitoring the physical point to be configured of the remote device includes: If the physical location to be configured does not support the COV subscription service, a data read request is sent to the physical location to be configured according to a preset polling rule; The physical point data fed back by the physical point to be configured in response to the data reading request is received, and based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, the local point data of the local proxy point is updated using the physical point data, and the physical point to be configured of the remote device is remotely monitored based on the updated local point data.

7. A remote device control method, characterized in that: Applied to an edge controller, the edge controller includes a general agent module and at least one sub-agent module, wherein each sub-agent module is used to manage remote devices supporting different communication protocols; The method comprises the following steps: The general agent module determines a remote device controlled by the edge controller and determines a type of communication protocol supported by the remote device; The general agent module calls a target sub-agent module corresponding to the communication protocol type supported by the remote device; If the target sub-agent module determines that the remote device includes a physical point to be configured, it obtains configuration information related to the physical point to be configured, creates a local proxy point locally and writes the configuration information related to the physical point to be configured, and establishes a mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured; The target sub-agent module remotely monitors the physical point to be configured of the remote device based on the mapping relationship between the local agent point and the physical point to be configured.

8. An edge controller, characterized in that: The remote control agent module includes: a determining unit configured to determine a remote device controlled by the edge controller; a creating unit configured to, if it is determined that the remote device includes a physical point to be configured, locally create a local proxy point corresponding to the physical point to be configured; an establishing unit configured to obtain relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured, write the relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured into the local proxy point, and establish a mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured; The remote control unit is configured to remotely monitor the physical point to be configured of the remote device based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured.

9. An edge controller, characterized in that: It includes a general agent module and at least one sub-agent module, wherein each sub-agent module is used to manage remote devices supporting different communication protocols; The general agent module is configured to determine a remote device controlled by the edge controller, determine a communication protocol type supported by the remote device, and call a target sub-agent module corresponding to the communication protocol type supported by the remote device; The target sub-agent module is configured to, if it is determined that the remote device includes a physical point to be configured, obtain relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured, create a local proxy point locally and write relevant configuration information of the physical point to be configured, establish a mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured, and remotely monitor the physical point to be configured of the remote device based on the mapping relationship between the local proxy point and the physical point to be configured.

10. A building automation system, characterized in that: including an edge controller, a link layer, and at least one remote device group; One of the remote device groups includes at least one remote device, different remote device groups support different communication protocols, and remote devices in the same remote device group support the same communication protocol; the edge controller includes a remote control agent module; the link layer includes at least one communication link, and different communication links support different communication protocols; The remote control agent module is communicatively connected with each remote device in the remote device group via each communication link of the link layer; The remote control agent module is used to execute the steps of the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

Images