Multi-module communication system based on concentrator

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention provides a concentrator-based multi-module communication system, which relates to the technical field of concentrator communication and comprises a data center, a service application module and a communication gateway module, the data center is provided with a database with a uniform structure; the data center exchanges data with the service application module and the communication gateway module through the database. And the communication gateway module exchanges data with the service application module through an IP protocol stack. According to the technical scheme, an existing network communication system is optimized, and the flexibility, expandability and stability of the system are improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of concentrator communication technology, and in particular to a multi-module communication system based on a concentrator. Background Art

[0002] In the rapid development of global smart grid and communication infrastructure, concentrators play a vital role as the core equipment of key power infrastructure of power systems and communication base stations. The versatility of concentrators is reflected in their ability to install a variety of communication modules to adapt to different communication scenarios and needs. These modules include but are not limited to G3, PRIMEPLC, HPLC, Wi-SUN, LoRaWAN, RS485, etc. Each technology has its specific application scenarios and technical advantages.

[0003] Different regions and countries have adopted different communication protocols and technologies according to the characteristics of their own power grids, geographical conditions, technological development levels, and policy support. For example, in Europe, G3, as a power line communication technology, is widely used in smart meters and home automation systems due to its robustness and high data rate. G3 uses OFDM modulation technology to provide robust communication in the power line channel, maintaining the reliability of data transmission even in environments with multiple interferences.

[0004] At the same time, Wi-SUN technology is based on the IEEE 802.15.4 standard, and through mesh network structure and active frequency hopping technology, it realizes long-distance communication and efficient data transmission between devices. It is used in smart cities and smart energy management in some areas of Japan and North America, demonstrating its great potential in improving IoT connection efficiency, reducing costs and enhancing user experience.

[0005] In other areas, LPWAN technologies such as LoRaWAN may be used, which support connecting a large number of devices with low power consumption in a wide geographical area, although there may be some compromises in data rate and real-time performance. LoRaWAN technology, with its long-range communication capabilities and good penetration, is an ideal choice for smart grid communications in some rural areas or sparsely populated areas.

[0006] In addition, as a traditional serial communication protocol, RS485 is still used in some specific industrial applications and automation systems due to its stability and anti-interference ability.

[0007] The concentrator's diverse communication module support capabilities enable it to flexibly adapt to different communication environments and needs. Whether it is smart meter cluster management in densely populated urban areas or distributed energy monitoring in remote areas, the concentrator can provide stable and reliable communication solutions. This flexibility and scalability are critical to the operation of smart grids. They not only improve the efficiency of grid operation, but also provide possibilities for future technology upgrades and expansions. In addition, as the number of gateway types continues to increase, the volume of concentrator applications has also increased. This expansion of volume not only makes the startup and operation of applications slower, but also increases the instability of the system. In some cases, frequent updates and maintenance of applications may cause unforeseen errors in the system, affecting overall reliability.

[0008] More importantly, there is a high degree of coupling between the gateway application and the business application of the traditional concentrator. This coupling makes application development complicated and time-consuming. Developers not only need to have a deep understanding of the internal implementation of the gateway application, but also need to consider how to effectively integrate these applications with the business logic. This highly coupled development model not only prolongs the development cycle, but also limits the flexibility and scalability of the system. In the face of rapidly changing market demands, this development model is obviously difficult to meet users' needs for rapid response and flexible adjustment.

[0009] Therefore, the concentrator urgently needs a new communication architecture that can solve the above problems. Summary of the invention

[0010] The embodiments of the present application provide a multi-module communication system based on a concentrator to solve the technical problems existing in the prior art.

[0011] Other features and advantages of the present application will become apparent from the following detailed description, or may be learned in part by the practice of the present application.

[0012] According to a first aspect of an embodiment of the present application, there is provided a concentrator-based multi-module communication system, comprising: a data center, a business application module, and a communication gateway module;

[0013] The data center is provided with a database with a unified structure;

[0014] The data center exchanges data with the business application module and the communication gateway module respectively through the database;

[0015] The communication gateway module exchanges data with the business application module through the IP protocol stack.

[0016] In some embodiments of the present application, based on the aforementioned solution, the communication gateway module includes: a G3 gateway application submodule, a PRIME gateway application submodule and an RS485 gateway application submodule.

[0017] In some embodiments of the present application, based on the aforementioned solution, the database includes: a basic information part, a signal statistics part, a registration status part, and a communication statistics part;

[0018] The basic information includes module address, IP address, communication address, level and parent node address;

[0019] The signal statistics part includes uplink signal strength, downlink signal strength, noise and RANK;

[0020] The registration status part includes the node registration status, the last registration time and the last offline time;

[0021] The communication statistics section includes the cumulative number of sent messages, the cumulative number of received messages, the time of the last message sent and the time of the last message received.

[0022] In some embodiments of the present application, based on the aforementioned solution, a firewall is further provided between the communication gateway module and the business application module.

[0023] In some embodiments of the present application, based on the above solution, it also includes:

[0024] A WEB front end is connected to the data center.

[0025] In some embodiments of the present application, based on the aforementioned solution, the business application module includes a collection application submodule, a registration application submodule, a file management application submodule and an upgrade application submodule.

[0026] The technical solution of the present application optimizes the existing network communication system and improves the flexibility, scalability and stability of the system.

[0027] It should be understood that the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the present application. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] The drawings herein are incorporated into the specification and constitute a part of the specification, showing embodiments consistent with the present application, and together with the specification, are used to explain the principles of the present application. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application, and for ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative work. In the drawings:

[0029] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of deployment of a multi-module communication system based on a concentrator according to an embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0030] Figure 2 A system architecture diagram of a concentrator-based multi-module communication system according to an embodiment of the present application is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] Example embodiments will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, example embodiments can be implemented in a variety of forms and should not be construed as limited to the examples set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this application will be more comprehensive and complete and fully convey the concept of the example embodiments to those skilled in the art.

[0032] In addition, described feature, structure or characteristic can be combined in one or more embodiments in any suitable manner. In the following description, many specific details are provided to provide a full understanding of the embodiments of the present application. However, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the technical scheme of the present application can be put into practice without one or more of the specific details, or other methods, components, devices, steps, etc. can be adopted. In other cases, known methods, devices, realizations or operations are not shown or described in detail to avoid blurring the various aspects of the application.

[0033] The block diagrams shown in the accompanying drawings are merely functional entities and do not necessarily correspond to physically independent entities. That is, these functional entities may be implemented in software form, or in one or more hardware modules or integrated circuits, or in different networks and / or processor devices and / or microcontroller devices.

[0034] The flowcharts shown in the accompanying drawings are only exemplary and do not necessarily include all the contents and operations / steps, nor must they be executed in the order described. For example, some operations / steps can be decomposed, and some operations / steps can be combined or partially combined, so the actual execution order may change according to actual conditions.

[0035] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the present invention clearer, the technical solution in the embodiment of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiment of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiment is only a part of the embodiment of the present invention, not all the embodiments. Based on the embodiment of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0036] Some embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In the absence of conflict, the following embodiments and features in the embodiments may be combined with each other.

[0037] In order to solve the technical problems existing in the prior art, an embodiment of the present application provides a multi-module communication system based on a concentrator, which has flexibility, scalability and stability.

[0038] Specifically, Figure 1 As shown, a multi-module communication system based on a concentrator includes: a data center, a business application module and a communication gateway module;

[0039] The data center is provided with a database with a unified structure;

[0040] The data center exchanges data with the business application module and the communication gateway module respectively through the database;

[0041] The communication gateway module exchanges data with the business application module through the IP protocol stack.

[0042] It should be noted that in the traditional concentrator software architecture, every time a new gateway application is developed, the data center and the WEB need to be interface compatible. The reason is that the data structure of the database is not unified. In the embodiment, a unified database structure is adopted according to the individuality and commonality of each communication gateway to standardize the development of communication gateway applications.

[0043] It should be noted that the application of traditional concentrators directly interacts with node data through gateway protocols, which is not conducive to the development of new gateways and the development and expansion of new functions. The present invention adopts an advanced IP protocol stack, converts the MAC address of the gateway node device into a unique IP address, and realizes unified management of the devices under the concentrator. This design not only simplifies device management, but also improves the scalability of the system.

[0044] Furthermore, the present invention achieves complete decoupling of the gateway application and the business application through design. Each application can be independently managed by a different development team, and the business application does not need to have a deep understanding of the internal implementation of the gateway application when referencing the gateway function. This decoupling design not only reduces the complexity of the system, but also improves the development efficiency, shortens the development cycle, and enables the system to respond to market changes more quickly.

[0045] It should be noted that the IP protocol stack provides a unified network communication standard, enabling seamless interaction between different devices and systems. This simplifies the development process because developers can rely on standard protocols to implement network communication functions.

[0046] Since the IP protocol stack is the foundation of the Internet, almost all network devices support the IP protocol. This means that the gateway developed using the IP protocol stack can be compatible with a variety of devices and network environments, improving the applicability and flexibility of the gateway.

[0047] The design of the IP protocol stack allows for unlimited expansion of network size. As IoT devices increase, this scalability is critical to handling large numbers of devices and data.

[0048] The IP protocol stack not only supports basic IP communication, but also supports multiple transport layer protocols such as TCP, UDP, and other application layer protocols such as HTTP, CoAP, etc., which facilitates the development of different types of gateways.

[0049] Gateways using IP protocol stacks can be configured and managed through standard network management tools, simplifying the complexity of network management.

[0050] In some feasible embodiments, based on the above-mentioned solution, the communication gateway module includes: a G3 gateway application submodule, a PRIME gateway application submodule and an RS485 gateway application submodule.

[0051] The present invention supports flexible installation or uninstallation of different gateway applications according to business needs. This modular design enables the system to be quickly adjusted according to actual needs, greatly improving the scalability and flexibility of the system. Users can selectively install the required gateway applications according to specific business scenarios, thereby optimizing the use of system resources and improving overall performance.

[0052] When a new module is inserted into the system, the present invention can automatically identify and load the corresponding gateway application without manual intervention. This automatic loading mechanism not only improves the automation of the system, but also reduces the possibility of operational errors, making the system more stable and reliable.

[0053] In some feasible embodiments, based on the aforementioned solution, the database includes: a basic information part, a signal statistics part, a registration status part, and a communication statistics part;

[0054] The basic information includes module address, IP address, communication address, level and parent node address;

[0055] The signal statistics part includes uplink signal strength, downlink signal strength, noise and RANK;

[0056] The registration status part includes the node registration status, the last registration time and the last offline time;

[0057] The communication statistics section includes the cumulative number of sent messages, the cumulative number of received messages, the time of the last message sent and the time of the last message received.

[0058] Exemplarily, the database structure is shown in Table 1.

[0059] Table 1 Database structure

[0060]

[0061]

[0062] In some feasible embodiments, based on the above solution, a firewall is further provided between the communication gateway module and the business application module.

[0063] It is understandable that the firewall that is set up can perform security control on the communication data between the two.

[0064] In some feasible embodiments, based on the above solution, it also includes:

[0065] A WEB front end is connected to the data center.

[0066] It should be noted that the data center implements data interaction with the communication gateway by calling a unified database, and then presents the data to the WEB front end to display the data on the WEB front end, such as topology diagrams, configurations, etc.

[0067] In some feasible embodiments, based on the above-mentioned solution, the business application module includes a collection application submodule, a registration application submodule, a file management application submodule and an upgrade application submodule.

[0068] In summary, in this application, decoupling makes the system more modular, and each module can be developed and maintained independently, thereby simplifying the system structure. Due to the independence of the gateway and business applications, they can be updated and upgraded independently without the need for the other party to make changes, which provides the system with higher flexibility. Different development teams can work on their respective applications in parallel without waiting for the work of other teams to be completed, which can significantly improve development efficiency. Decoupled systems are easier to unit test and debug because each module can be tested independently without considering the status of other modules. Due to the independence of business applications and gateway applications, even if there is a problem with the gateway application, it will not affect the operation of the business application, thereby improving the stability of the entire system.

[0069] The following is an application example of a multi-module communication system based on a concentrator.

[0070] like Figure 2As shown, in this example, the system includes not only a data center, a business application module and a communication gateway module, but also basic applications, including an application center, security management and system monitoring.

[0071] Step 1: Initialize the concentrator:

[0072] Start basic applications: system monitoring application, application center, data center, etc.

[0073] Step 2: Module identification:

[0074] The hardware detection application automatically detects the communication module inserted into the concentrator and notifies the application center to start the corresponding communication gateway application.

[0075] Step 3: Load the communication gateway application:

[0076] 1) The communication gateway module starts and loads the corresponding configuration.

[0077] 2) The communication gateway module performs hardware identification and verification, and sends corresponding alarm events and records corresponding logs for incorrect communication modules or tampered communication modules.

[0078] 3) The communication gateway and the business application module initialize data interaction.

[0079] Step 4: The electric meter of the corresponding communication gateway is registered to the concentrator:

[0080] The communication gateway module assigns an IPv6 address to the meter registered on the concentrator. The IPv6 address is calculated based on the MAC address of the meter.

[0081] Step 5: Read the basic information of the communication layer of the meter:

[0082] The communication gateway module reads the basic information of the communication layer of the electric meter and stores it in the database managed by the communication gateway module, including the MAC address, IPv6 address and other necessary information of the electric meter.

[0083] Step 6: Business application communicates with the meter

[0084] The business application module implements data interaction with the electricity meter through the IPv6 address.

[0085] Step 7: Gateway application management

[0086] Users can install and uninstall all communication gateway modules through the Web interface.

[0087] Step 8. Web interface display

[0088] The Web accesses the data center to display the topology map and gateway configuration.

[0089] Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate other embodiments of the present application after considering the specification and practicing the embodiments disclosed herein. The present application is intended to cover any variations, uses or adaptations of the present application, which follow the general principles of the present application and include common knowledge or customary techniques in the art that are not disclosed in the present application. It should be understood that the present application is not limited to the precise structures described above and shown in the accompanying drawings, and various modifications and changes can be made without departing from the scope thereof. The scope of the present application is limited only by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A multi-module communication system based on a concentrator, characterized in that: include: Data center, business application module and communication gateway module; The data center is provided with a database with a unified structure; The data center exchanges data with the business application module and the communication gateway module respectively through the database; The communication gateway module exchanges data with the business application module through the IP protocol stack.

2. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that The communication gateway module includes: a G3 gateway application submodule, a PRIME gateway application submodule and an RS485 gateway application submodule.

3. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that The database includes: a basic information part, a signal statistics part, a registration status part and a communication statistics part; The basic information includes module address, IP address, communication address, level and parent node address; The signal statistics part includes uplink signal strength, downlink signal strength, noise and RANK; The registration status part includes the node registration status, the last registration time and the last offline time; The communication statistics section includes the cumulative number of sent messages, the cumulative number of received messages, the time of the last message sent and the time of the last message received.

4. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that A firewall is also provided between the communication gateway module and the business application module.

5. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that Also includes: A WEB front end is connected to the data center.

6. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that The business application module includes a collection application submodule, a registration application submodule, a file management application submodule and an upgrade application submodule.

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