Equipment firmware remote updating system and method

Abstract

The invention provides an equipment firmware remote updating system and method, and the system comprises a microcontroller which is provided with a specified transmission interface and is used for obtaining a specified firmware package through the specified transmission interface, and the specified firmware package comprises a first firmware package and a second firmware package; the first firmware package is used for being provided to the microcontroller to enable the microcontroller to execute a first upgrading operation; the memory is connected with the microcontroller and is used for storing a second firmware package copied to the memory by the microcontroller; and the SOC chip is connected to the microcontroller, when the SOC chip receives the SOC upgrading request, the microcontroller is controlled to grab the second firmware package from the memory, the second firmware package is transmitted back to the SOC chip, and the SOC chip executes a second upgrading operation by using the second firmware package. According to the method and the system, the SOC chip without a network function can be upgraded by using the specified firmware package, so that the maintenance cost of a product is greatly reduced, and the sustainability of the product is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of device firmware upgrade, and in particular to a device firmware remote update system and method. Background Art

[0002] In the existing Android system network architecture, the SOC can be upgraded by downloading firmware from the cloud after connecting to a wired or wireless network. However, since the Android system is an open source system, there may be some potential system vulnerabilities that can be illegally exploited by unauthorized elements, posing a security risk to the product.

[0003] Therefore, in order to improve product safety, some products currently use non-Android system solutions, such as some embedded systems or IoT devices. These systems or devices may only need to perform specific tasks, so they are not equipped with complex operating systems. These systems or devices generally use firmware to achieve tasks. However, without a system, the SOC chip in the electronic device does not have network functions, and it is impossible to directly download firmware from the cloud for upgrading. After the electronic device is shipped, the firmware can only be upgraded manually, which makes maintenance and management extremely inconvenient, and the maintenance cost is also very high. Summary of the invention

[0004] The embodiment of the present invention provides a device firmware remote update system and method to solve the problems existing in the related art. The technical solution is as follows:

[0005] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a device firmware remote update system, comprising:

[0006] The microcontroller is provided with a designated transmission interface, and is used to obtain a designated firmware package through the designated transmission interface, wherein the designated firmware package includes a first firmware package and a second firmware package; the first firmware package is used to provide the microcontroller to enable the microcontroller to perform a first upgrade operation;

[0007] A memory, connected to the microcontroller, and used to store a second firmware package copied from the microcontroller to the memory;

[0008] The SOC chip is connected to the microcontroller. When the SOC chip receives the SOC upgrade request, the microcontroller is controlled to grab the second firmware package from the memory and transmit the second firmware package back to the SOC chip. The SOC chip uses the second firmware package to perform a second upgrade operation.

[0009] In one embodiment, it further includes:

[0010] A digital signal processor is connected to the microcontroller.

[0011] In one embodiment, the designated firmware package also includes a third firmware package, which is stored in the memory. When an upgrade request from the digital signal processor is received, the third firmware package is captured from the memory and transmitted back to the digital signal processor, so that the digital signal processor performs a third upgrade operation.

[0012] In one embodiment, it further includes:

[0013] The switch chip is connected to the microcontroller and is provided with a plurality of network ports. The switch chip is connected to the network through the network ports and downloads a specified firmware package through the network.

[0014] In one embodiment, it further includes:

[0015] The network card chip is connected to the switch chip and is used to convert the network connected to the switch chip to obtain a USB signal;

[0016] The OPS module is connected to the USB interface of the network card chip and is used to access the USB signal to obtain the network through the network card chip and download the specified firmware package;

[0017] The OPS module is connected to the microcontroller and is used to transmit the downloaded specified firmware package to the microcontroller.

[0018] In one implementation, the SOC chip is connected to a multiplexer, which is connected to a USB device via the multiplexer. The USB device contains a second firmware package, and the second upgrade operation is performed directly using the second firmware package in the USB device.

[0019] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a method for remotely updating device firmware, comprising:

[0020] The microcontroller obtains a designated firmware package received by its designated transmission interface and stores the designated firmware package; the designated firmware package includes a first firmware package and a second firmware package, the first firmware package is provided to the microcontroller so that the microcontroller performs a first upgrade operation; wherein the microcontroller is connected to the SOC chip;

[0021] When receiving the upgrade request sent by the SOC chip, the microcontroller captures the second firmware package from the memory and transmits it back to the SOC chip, so that the SOC chip uses the second firmware package to perform the second upgrade operation.

[0022] In one embodiment, it further includes:

[0023] The microcontroller copies and stores the second firmware package in a memory connected to the microcontroller, where the memory is a non-volatile memory.

[0024] In one embodiment, it further includes:

[0025] The microcontroller obtains the specified firmware package uploaded by the OPS module connected to it, and the OPS module accesses the network through the switch chip and downloads the specified firmware package through the network;

[0026] The microcontroller executes a first upgrade operation according to the first firmware package. When receiving an upgrade request sent by the SOC chip, the microcontroller returns the designated firmware package to the SOC chip, so that the SOC chip executes a second upgrade operation using the designated firmware package.

[0027] In one embodiment, it further includes:

[0028] The microcontroller obtains a specified firmware package uploaded by a switch chip connected thereto, wherein the switch chip accesses a network through its network port and downloads the specified firmware package through the network;

[0029] The microcontroller executes a first upgrade operation according to the first firmware package. When receiving an upgrade request sent by the SOC chip, the microcontroller returns the designated firmware package to the SOC chip, so that the SOC chip executes a second upgrade operation using the designated firmware package.

[0030] The advantages or beneficial effects of the above technical solution include at least:

[0031] The SOC chip of the present invention expands the microcontroller MCU, and obtains the specified firmware package that can be used to upgrade the MCU and the SOC chip through the MCU. While meeting the demand for upgrading the MCU chip, the SOC chip that does not have a network function can also be upgraded using the specified firmware package, which greatly reduces the maintenance cost of the product and improves the sustainability of the product.

[0032] The above summary is for illustrative purposes only and is not intended to be limiting in any way. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments and features described above, further aspects, embodiments and features of the present invention will be readily apparent by reference to the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0033] In the accompanying drawings, unless otherwise specified, the same reference numerals throughout the multiple drawings represent the same or similar parts or elements. These drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale. It should be understood that these drawings only depict some embodiments disclosed in the present invention and should not be regarded as limiting the scope of the present invention.

[0034] Figure 1 A signal transmission schematic diagram of a device firmware remote update system according to Embodiment 1 and Embodiment 2 of the present invention;

[0035] Figure 2 This is a signal transmission diagram of a device firmware remote update system according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention;

[0036] Figure 3 This is a signal transmission diagram of a device firmware remote update system according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0037] Figure 4 This is a flowchart of a method for remotely updating device firmware according to Embodiment 5 of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0038] In the following, only some exemplary embodiments are briefly described. As those skilled in the art will appreciate, the described embodiments may be modified in various ways without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. Therefore, the drawings and descriptions are considered to be exemplary and non-restrictive in nature.

[0039] In the existing Android system network architecture, the SOC can be upgraded by downloading firmware from the cloud after connecting to a wired or wireless network. However, since the Android system is an open source system, there may be some potential system vulnerabilities that can be illegally exploited by unauthorized elements, posing a security risk to the product.

[0040] Therefore, in order to improve product safety, some products currently use non-Android system solutions, such as some embedded systems or IoT devices. These systems or devices may only need to perform specific tasks, so they are not equipped with complex operating systems. These systems or devices generally use firmware to achieve tasks. However, without a system, the SOC chip in the electronic device does not have network functions, and it is impossible to directly download firmware from the cloud for upgrading. After the electronic device is shipped, the firmware can only be upgraded manually, which makes maintenance and management extremely inconvenient, and the maintenance cost is also very high.

[0041] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides embodiments 1 to 4, which can all achieve the purpose of firmware upgrade for SOC chips that originally do not have network functions, replace the original manual upgrade method, improve the convenience of maintenance and management, and also reduce maintenance costs.

[0042] Embodiment 1

[0043] The device firmware remote update system of this embodiment includes a SOC chip and a USB device.

[0044] It should be noted that the SOC chip mentioned below refers to a SOC chip that originally does not have a network function.

[0045] The SOC chip can be directly connected to the USB device through the multiplexer. The USB device stores firmware for upgrading the SOC chip, and the firmware can be named XXX.bin.

[0046] It should be noted that the main function of the multiplexer is to select one or more signals from multiple input signals and combine them into a single output signal to save the number of communication channels, thereby reducing the cost and complexity of the system.

[0047] When the device is powered on, the file names of each file in the USB device are read, and the corresponding firmware is determined based on the file names. If the firmware is detected, the firmware stored in the USB device is compared with the existing firmware. If the two are inconsistent, the firmware stored in the USB device is captured to the SOC chip, so that the SOC chip can perform an upgrade operation according to the firmware stored in the USB device. If the firmware in the USB device is consistent with the existing firmware, the upgrade operation is not performed.

[0048] like Figure 1 As shown, Figure 1 The circuit shown in ① is a circuit for directly obtaining firmware from a USB device for the SOC chip to perform firmware upgrade.

[0049] Embodiment 2

[0050] The device firmware remote update system of this embodiment includes a SOC chip, a USB device, a microcontroller and a memory.

[0051] The SOC chip is connected to the USB device through a multiplexer. The USB device stores all firmware for upgrading different devices. All firmware are collectively referred to as a designated firmware package.

[0052] The SOC chip of this embodiment is also connected to a microcontroller through a multiplexer. The microcontroller is also called MCU (Microcontroller Unit). The microcontroller can obtain a specified firmware package from a USB device.

[0053] In addition, when the designated firmware package includes a first firmware package for upgrading the microcontroller, the microcontroller may compare the first firmware package with its existing firmware. If the two are inconsistent, the microcontroller may use the first firmware package to perform a first upgrading operation.

[0054] It should be noted that, specifically, the SOC chip controls the microcontroller through I2C and UART to achieve IO function expansion of the SOC.

[0055] like Figure 1 As shown, the microcontroller in this embodiment is connected to the memory. After the microcontroller obtains the specified firmware package from the USB device, the specified firmware package is stored in the memory, wherein the memory is a non-volatile memory.

[0056] It should be noted that, specifically, the memory is a TF / SPI Nand device, which is connected to the microcontroller through the SDIO port or the SPI interface. The microcontroller drives the TF / SPI Nand device, and the microcontroller virtualizes the TF / SPINand device as a USB device and outputs it from the USB port of the microcontroller. When the USB of the microcontroller is connected to the computer, the computer can recognize it as a USB device, thereby achieving the purpose of copying files into it.

[0057] In addition, other devices such as eMMC can also be used as memory. The microcontroller uses an eMMC interface to connect to the eMMC device to achieve firmware storage purposes, but the cost of using eMMC will be relatively high.

[0058] like Figure 1 As shown, Figure 1 The second line in the embodiment is a specified firmware package obtained from the USB device and stored in the memory. When the SOC chip needs to be upgraded, Figure 1 As shown in line ③, the microcontroller grabs the second firmware package suitable for SOC chip upgrade in the specified firmware package from the memory, and transmits the second firmware package to the SOC chip. The SOC chip determines whether the second firmware package is consistent with its existing firmware. If not, the SOC chip can perform a second upgrade operation according to the second firmware package.

[0059] In another embodiment, the device firmware remote update system may further include a digital signal processor, which may also be referred to as a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), for rapidly executing various digital signal processing algorithms. DSP is usually used in applications that require real-time or high-performance processing of digital signals.

[0060] When the specified firmware package contains a third firmware package that can be upgraded by the DSP, such as Figure 1 In line ④, the microcontroller can obtain the third firmware package from the memory and transmit it to the DSP, and the DSP uses the third firmware package to perform the third upgrade operation.

[0061] Similarly, the device firmware remote update system may also include other components or connect to other devices. As long as other components or other devices need to be upgraded, the corresponding firmware packages can be obtained through the above method, and each component or device can use its adapted firmware package to perform firmware upgrades.

[0062] Embodiment 3

[0063] The device firmware remote update system of this embodiment includes a SOC chip, a microcontroller, a memory, and a switch chip.

[0064] It should be noted that the connection method of the SOC chip, the microcontroller and the memory has been described in the second embodiment and will not be repeated here.

[0065] Among them, the switch chip, also known as Ethernet Switch, is a chip with multiple ports. Figure 2 As shown, the switch chip has a 1000BaseT RJ45 wired network port. When the wired network port is connected to a network cable, the switch chip can be connected to the network.

[0066] Figure 2 Line ⑤ in the middle means that after the switch chip of this embodiment is connected to the network, it can download the specified firmware package from the cloud through the network. The switch chip of this embodiment can be connected to the microcontroller through the network port, so as to transmit the downloaded specified firmware package to the microcontroller, and the microcontroller copies the specified firmware package and stores it in the memory.

[0067] When the SOC chip needs to be upgraded, such as Figure 2 In line ③, the microcontroller obtains the second firmware package from the memory and transmits it back to the SOC chip, so that the SOC chip can perform firmware upgrade according to the second firmware package; when the microcontroller needs to be upgraded, the microcontroller directly grabs the first firmware package from the memory for firmware upgrade; Figure 2 In line ④, when the DSP needs to be upgraded, the microcontroller obtains the third firmware package from the memory and transmits it back to the DSP, so that the DSP can perform firmware upgrade according to the third firmware package.

[0068] Embodiment 4

[0069] The device firmware remote update system of this embodiment includes a SOC chip, a microcontroller, a memory, a switch chip, a network card chip and an OPS module.

[0070] It should be noted that the connection method of the SOC chip, the microcontroller and the memory has been described in the second embodiment and will not be repeated here.

[0071] like Figure 3 As shown, the switch chip of this embodiment also has multiple network ports, through which the wired network is accessed. The switch chip is directly connected to the network card chip, and is used to convert the network accessed by the switch chip to obtain a USB signal.

[0072] The OPS module is connected to the USB interface of the network card chip and is used to access the USB signal to obtain the network through the network card chip and download the specified firmware package.

[0073] Specifically, the network card chip is Gbit Ethernet To USB3.0. The chip is connected to the switch on the board through PCB traces. The network card chip can convert 1000M wired network into USB3.0 signal. The USB3.0 signal is given to the OPS interface. After the OPS interface is connected to the OPS module, the OPS module can obtain the network. Figure 3 In the middle line ⑥, the OPS module that obtains the network downloads the specified firmware package from the cloud.

[0074] In this embodiment, the OPS module is connected to the microcontroller. Figure 3 In the middle line ⑦, the OPS module transmits the specified firmware package downloaded from the cloud to the microcontroller, and the microcontroller stores the specified firmware package in the memory.

[0075] like Figure 3 In line ③, when the SOC chip needs to be upgraded, the microcontroller obtains the second firmware package from the memory and transmits it back to the SOC chip, so that the SOC chip can perform firmware upgrade according to the second firmware package; when the microcontroller needs to be upgraded, the microcontroller directly grabs the first firmware package from the memory for firmware upgrade; Figure 3 In middle line ④, when the DSP needs to be upgraded, the microcontroller obtains the third firmware package from the memory and transmits it back to the DSP, so that the DSP can perform firmware upgrade according to the third firmware package.

[0076] Embodiment 5

[0077] This embodiment is a method embodiment based on the second to fourth embodiments. The embodiment of the present invention provides a method for remotely updating device firmware, such as Figure 4 As shown, the method comprises the following steps:

[0078] Step S1: The microcontroller obtains a designated firmware package received by its designated transmission interface; the designated firmware package includes a first firmware, a second firmware package, a third firmware package, etc. The first firmware package is used to provide to the microcontroller so that the microcontroller performs a first upgrade operation, the second firmware package is used to provide to the SOC chip so that the SOC chip performs a second upgrade operation, and the third firmware package is used to provide to the DSP so that the DSP performs a third upgrade operation.

[0079] Step S2: storing the specified firmware package.

[0080] The microcontroller itself also has a certain storage capacity, and the microcontroller can store the specified firmware package temporarily.

[0081] However, in order to improve the processing efficiency of the microcontroller, the microcontroller is connected to an additional memory, which is a non-volatile memory. The microcontroller copies and stores the specified firmware package in the memory connected to the microcontroller. When an upgrade is required, the corresponding firmware package is captured from the memory for firmware upgrade.

[0082] Step S3: When receiving the upgrade request sent by the SOC chip, the microcontroller captures the second firmware package from the memory and transmits it back to the SOC chip, so that the SOC chip performs the second upgrade operation using the second firmware package.

[0083] Specifically, for the scenario of the third embodiment, the device firmware remote update method includes:

[0084] The microcontroller obtains a specified firmware package uploaded by a switch chip connected thereto, wherein the switch chip accesses a network through its network port and downloads the specified firmware package through the network;

[0085] The microcontroller executes a first upgrade operation according to the first firmware package. When the microcontroller receives an upgrade request issued by the SOC chip, the microcontroller returns the second firmware package in the specified firmware package to the SOC chip, so that the SOC chip uses the second firmware package to execute the second upgrade operation. In addition, when the microcontroller receives an upgrade request from the DSP, it captures the third firmware package and returns it to the DSP, so that the DSP uses the third firmware package to execute the third upgrade operation.

[0086] In addition, for the scenario of the fourth embodiment, the device firmware remote update method includes:

[0087] The microcontroller obtains the specified firmware package uploaded by the OPS module connected to it, and the OPS module accesses the network through the switch chip and downloads the specified firmware package through the network;

[0088] The microcontroller executes a first upgrade operation according to the first firmware package. When the microcontroller receives an upgrade request issued by the SOC chip, the microcontroller returns the second firmware package in the specified firmware package to the SOC chip, so that the SOC chip uses the second firmware package to execute the second upgrade operation. In addition, when the microcontroller receives an upgrade request from the DSP, it captures the third firmware package and returns it to the DSP, so that the DSP uses the third firmware package to execute the third upgrade operation.

[0089] The SOC chip of the present invention expands the microcontroller MCU, and obtains the specified firmware package that can be used to upgrade the MCU and the SOC chip through the MCU. While meeting the demand for upgrading the MCU chip, the SOC chip that does not have a network function can also be upgraded using the specified firmware package, which greatly reduces the maintenance cost of the product and improves the sustainability of the product.

[0090] In the description of this specification, the description with reference to the terms "one embodiment", "some embodiments", "example", "specific example", or "some examples" means that the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present invention. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described may be combined in any one or more embodiments or examples in a suitable manner. In addition, those skilled in the art may combine and combine different embodiments or examples described in this specification and the features of different embodiments or examples, unless they are contradictory.

[0091] In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features. Therefore, the features defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of the features. In the description of the present invention, the meaning of "plurality" is two or more, unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0092] The above is only a specific embodiment of the present invention, but the protection scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art can easily think of various changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed by the present invention, which should be included in the protection scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A device firmware remote update system, characterized in that: include: The microcontroller is provided with a designated transmission interface, and is used to obtain a designated firmware package through the designated transmission interface, wherein the designated firmware package includes a first firmware package and a second firmware package; The first firmware package is used to provide to the microcontroller so that the microcontroller performs a first upgrade operation; a memory connected to the microcontroller and used to store the second firmware package copied from the microcontroller to the memory; The SOC chip is connected to the microcontroller. When the SOC chip receives the SOC upgrade request, the microcontroller is controlled to grab the second firmware package from the memory and transmit the second firmware package back to the SOC chip. The SOC chip uses the second firmware package to perform a second upgrade operation.

2. The device firmware remote update system according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: A digital signal processor is connected to the microcontroller.

3. The device firmware remote update system according to claim 2, characterized in that: The designated firmware package also includes a third firmware package, which is stored in the memory. When an upgrade request from the digital signal processor is received, the third firmware package is captured from the memory and transmitted back to the digital signal processor, so that the digital signal processor performs a third upgrade operation.

4. The device firmware remote update system according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: The switch chip is connected to the microcontroller and is provided with a plurality of network ports. The switch chip accesses the network through the network ports and downloads the specified firmware package through the network.

5. The device firmware remote update system according to claim 4, characterized in that: Also includes: A network card chip, connected to the switch chip, for converting the network connected to the switch chip to obtain a USB signal; An OPS module is connected to the USB interface of the network card chip and is used to access the USB signal to obtain the network through the network card chip and download the specified firmware package; The OPS module is connected to the microcontroller and is used to transmit the downloaded designated firmware package to the microcontroller.

6. The device firmware remote update system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The SOC chip is connected to a multiplexer, and is connected to a USB device via the multiplexer. The second firmware package exists in the USB device, and the second upgrade operation is performed directly using the second firmware package in the USB device.

7. A method for remotely updating device firmware, characterized in that: include: The microcontroller obtains a designated firmware package received by its designated transmission interface, and stores the designated firmware package in a memory; The designated firmware package includes a first firmware package and a second firmware package, wherein the first firmware package is provided to the microcontroller so that the microcontroller performs a first upgrade operation; wherein the microcontroller is connected to a SOC chip; When receiving the upgrade request sent by the SOC chip, the microcontroller captures the second firmware package from the memory and transmits it back to the SOC chip, so that the SOC chip performs a second upgrade operation using the second firmware package.

8. The device firmware remote update method according to claim 7, characterized in that: Also includes: The microcontroller copies and stores the second firmware package in a memory connected to the microcontroller, where the memory is a non-volatile memory.

9. The device firmware remote update method according to claim 7, characterized in that: Also includes: The microcontroller obtains the specified firmware package uploaded by the OPS module connected thereto, and the OPS module accesses the network through the switch chip and downloads the specified firmware package through the network; The microcontroller performs the first upgrade operation according to the first firmware package. When receiving the upgrade request issued by the SOC chip, the microcontroller returns the specified firmware package to the SOC chip, so that the SOC chip uses the specified firmware package to perform the second upgrade operation.

10. The device firmware remote update method according to claim 7, characterized in that: Also includes: The microcontroller obtains the specified firmware package uploaded by the switch chip connected to it, wherein the switch chip accesses the network through its network port and downloads the specified firmware package through the network; The microcontroller performs the first upgrade operation according to the first firmware package. When receiving the upgrade request issued by the SOC chip, the microcontroller returns the specified firmware package to the SOC chip, so that the SOC chip uses the specified firmware package to perform the second upgrade operation.

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