Communication system and method and computer program product

Abstract

The invention provides a communication system and method and a computer program product. A communication system in which a master device and a plurality of sub-devices connected to the master device via a communication network communicate in parallel (bus) with each other, the communication system including: the plurality of sub-devices each including a switch configured to open or close a connection of a parallel (bus) communication line with the master device, and a terminal resistor configured to connect the plurality of sub-devices to the master device; the terminal resistor is configured to be wired to the parallel (bus) communication line; and the master device connected to the plurality of sub-devices through the parallel (bus) communication line, and configured to set communication IDs of the plurality of sub-devices, and diagnose a communication failure in the communication network based on the communication IDs.

Description

[0001] This application claims priority to and the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2023-0109869 filed in the Korean Intellectual Property Office on August 22, 2023, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference. Technical Field

[0002] The embodiments relate to a parallel (bus) communication system and method for a plurality of devices, and a computer program product stored on a recording medium to execute the method. Background Art

[0003] In a network configuration in which multiple devices communicate with each other, a communication ID may be set for each device to configure a communication system. For example, in a communication structure in which multiple devices are connected on a 1:n (multiple) basis, a master device sets communication IDs of multiple sub-devices to communicate with the multiple sub-devices. For example, in an energy storage system (ESS) including multiple battery racks, a system battery management system (BMS) as a master device communicates with multiple rack BMSs as sub-devices. Summary of the invention

[0004] An embodiment relates to a communication system, wherein a main device and a plurality of sub-devices connected to the main device via a communication network communicate with each other in parallel (bus), the communication system comprising: the plurality of sub-devices each comprising a switch and a terminal resistor, the switch being configured to open or close a connection between a parallel (bus) communication line and the main device, the terminal resistor being configured to be capable of being wired to the parallel (bus) communication line; and the main device being connected to the plurality of sub-devices via the parallel (bus) communication line and being configured to set communication IDs of the plurality of sub-devices, and diagnose communication faults in the communication network based on the communication IDs.

[0005] In an embodiment, for a first sub-device that can be connected to the main device via the parallel (bus) communication line to the nth sub-device sequentially connected to the main device, starting from the first sub-device, the main device can sequentially cut off the switch set in each sub-device to sequentially connect the parallel (bus) communication line to the terminal resistor, and connect each sub-device to the communication network to sequentially set the communication ID of each sub-device.

[0006] In an embodiment, if communication is not established with the (n+1)th sub-device after setting the communication ID of the nth sub-device, the main device may set the nth sub-device as an end sub-device and may terminate the communication ID setting.

[0007] In an embodiment, if communication is not established with the (n+1)th sub-device after setting the communication ID of the nth sub-device, the main device may set the nth sub-device as an end sub-device to be diagnosed, and may diagnose the communication failure by comparing the end sub-device set when setting the previous communication ID with the end sub-device to be diagnosed.

[0008] In an embodiment, the main device may diagnose the communication fault based on whether the communication ID of the terminal sub-device set when setting the previous communication ID matches the communication ID of the terminal sub-device to be diagnosed.

[0009] In an embodiment, the main device can diagnose the communication failure in the following manner: starting from a preset mth sub-device, if communication with the sub-device is established, repeatedly executing a first operation, wherein the first operation identifies whether communication with a sub-device among a preset number of sub-devices after the sub-device is feasible, and if communication with the sub-device is not established, repeatedly executing a second operation, wherein the second operation identifies whether communication with a sub-device among a preset number of sub-devices before the sub-device is feasible.

[0010] In an embodiment, if the communication ID of a communicable sub-device is k and the communication ID of a non-communicable sub-device is k+1, the main device may diagnose a communication failure between the sub-device with communication ID #k and the sub-device with communication ID #k+1.

[0011] An embodiment relates to a communication method, wherein a main device and a plurality of sub-devices connected to the main device communicate with each other in parallel (bus), the communication method comprising: setting communication IDs of a plurality of sub-devices, each sub-device comprising a switch and a terminal resistor, the switch being configured to disconnect or close the connection between the parallel (bus) communication line and the main device, the terminal resistor being configured to enable wiring to the parallel (bus) communication line; and diagnosing communication faults in a communication network based on the communication ID.

[0012] In an embodiment, setting the communication ID may include: for a first sub-device connected to a main device via a parallel (bus) communication line to an nth sub-device sequentially connected to the main device, starting from the first sub-device, sequentially cutting off a switch set in each sub-device to sequentially connect the parallel (bus) communication line to a terminal resistor; and connecting each sub-device to the communication network, and sequentially setting the communication IDs of the multiple sub-devices.

[0013] In an embodiment, setting the communication ID may include: if communication with the (n+1)th sub-device is not established after setting the communication ID of the nth sub-device, setting the nth sub-device as an end sub-device and terminating the communication ID setting.

[0014] In an embodiment, diagnosing the communication failure may include: if communication is not established with the (n+1)th sub-device after setting the communication ID of the nth sub-device, setting the nth sub-device as an end sub-device to be diagnosed; and diagnosing the communication failure by comparing the end sub-device set when setting the previous communication ID with the end sub-device to be diagnosed.

[0015] In an embodiment, diagnosing the communication fault may include: diagnosing the communication fault based on whether the communication ID of the terminal sub-device set when setting the previous communication ID matches the communication ID of the terminal sub-device to be diagnosed.

[0016] In an embodiment, diagnosing the communication failure may include, starting from a preset mth sub-device: a first operation, if communication with the sub-device is established, identifying whether communication with a sub-device among a preset number of sub-devices after the sub-device is feasible; a second operation, if communication with the sub-device is not established, identifying whether communication with a sub-device among a preset number of sub-devices before the sub-device is feasible; and diagnosing the communication failure by repeatedly performing the first operation and the second operation.

[0017] In an embodiment, diagnosing the communication failure may include diagnosing a communication failure between a sub-device with communication ID #k and a sub-device with communication ID #k+1 if the communication ID of the sub-device capable of communication is k and the communication ID of the sub-device incapable of communication is k+1.

[0018] An embodiment relates to a computer program product stored on a recording medium for executing the communication method as described above by using a computing device. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] Features will become readily apparent to those skilled in the art by describing exemplary embodiments in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0020] Figure 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating components of a parallel (bus) communication system according to an embodiment;

[0021] Figure 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating components of a parallel (bus) communication system according to the prior art;

[0022] Figure 3 is a diagram for describing a communication failure in a parallel (bus) communication system according to the prior art;

[0023] Figure 4 is a diagram for describing a communication failure in a parallel (bus) communication system according to an embodiment;

[0024] Figures 5 to 7 is a diagram for describing a method of setting a communication ID according to an embodiment;

[0025] Figure 8 is a flowchart of a method for setting a communication ID according to an embodiment;

[0026] Fig. 9 is a flow chart of a method for diagnosing a communication failure according to an embodiment; and

[0027] Fig.10 is a diagram for describing a method for diagnosing a communication failure according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] Example embodiments will now be described more fully below with reference to the accompanying drawings; however, example embodiments may be implemented in different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey exemplary implementations to those skilled in the art.

[0029] In the accompanying drawings, the sizes of layers and regions may be exaggerated for clarity. It should also be understood that when a layer or element is referred to as being "on" another layer or substrate, it can be directly on the other layer or substrate, or there may be intervening layers. In addition, it should be understood that when a layer is referred to as being "below" another layer, it can be directly below, and there may also be one or more intervening layers. In addition, it should also be understood that when a layer is referred to as being "between" two layers, it can be the only layer between the two layers, or there may also be one or more intervening layers. The same reference numerals always indicate the same elements.

[0030] As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. When a phrase such as "at least one of..." follows a list of elements, it modifies the entire list of elements rather than the individual elements in the list.

[0031] Furthermore, in order to clearly describe the present disclosure, elements irrelevant to the description are omitted in the drawings, and the same reference numerals in the drawings denote the same elements.

[0032] Throughout the specification, it will also be understood that when an element is referred to as being "connected to" another element, it may be directly connected to the other element, or it may be electrically connected to the other element, and there may be intervening elements. In addition, when an element "includes" another element, unless there is a specific description to the contrary, the element may also include other elements without excluding other elements.

[0033] Some embodiments can be described according to function block components and various processing steps. Such function blocks can be implemented by any number of hardware components and / or software components configured to perform specific functions. In an embodiment, the function blocks of the present disclosure can be implemented by one or more microprocessors, or can be implemented by a circuit configuration for a specific function. The function blocks of the present disclosure can be implemented in various programming languages ​​or scripting languages. The function blocks of the present disclosure can be implemented as algorithms running on one or more processors. The functions performed by the function blocks of the present disclosure can be performed by multiple function blocks, or the functions performed by multiple function blocks in the present disclosure can be performed by one function block. In addition, the present disclosure can adopt related technologies for electronic environment settings, signal processing and / or data processing.

[0034] Figure 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating components of a parallel (bus) communication system according to an embodiment. Figure 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating components of a parallel (bus) communication system according to the prior art.

[0035] First, refer to Figure 2 In a parallel (bus) communication system according to the prior art, a master device (device #0) can be connected to a plurality of slave devices (device #1 to device #n) via communication lines. Figure 2 As shown, in a parallel (bus) communication system according to the prior art, a terminal resistor may be provided at a terminal sub-device (device #n) provided at an end point of a communication line. For example, inside a plurality of sub-devices (device #1 to device #n), the communication line may be simply connected in parallel (bus) while passing through the sub-devices.

[0036] In a parallel (bus) communication system according to the prior art, if a plurality of devices are connected to each other, a terminal resistor may have to be located in an end device, and therefore, there may be a prerequisite that a fixed number of communication devices can be set in the communication ID setting method. In order to apply the communication ID setting method according to the related art, a terminal resistor may be located at a position of an end communication line in a device configured in parallel (bus) in a corresponding communication network.

[0037] In typical parallel (bus) communications (RS485 / 422 or CAN, etc.), terminal resistors may be present in the first device and the end device to prevent communication errors. For reference, regarding the function of the terminal resistor, since the impedance difference of the communication line may cause mismatch, by installing the terminal resistor, signal reflection and degradation caused by signal reflection or communication failure caused by attenuation can be prevented.

[0038] Since the terminal communication device in the parallel (bus) communication system according to the prior art may need a terminal resistor, it may be necessary to configure a terminal resistor circuit at the terminal level of the communication device in order to flexibly use multiple communication devices. Another problem may be that if a physical defect occurs in the communication network while the communication device is operating normally after setting the communication ID, all devices connected to the communication network may have a communication failure due to the absence of a terminal resistor at the end point of the communication line, hindering normal communication.

[0039] Reference Figure 1 , shows a communication system 1 in which a main device (device #0) and a plurality of sub-devices (devices #1 to device #n) connected to each other via a communication network communicate in parallel (bus). In the communication system 1 according to the embodiment, the main device (device #0) can be connected to a plurality of sub-devices (devices #1 to device #n) via a communication line. In an embodiment, as Figure 1 As shown, a plurality of sub-devices (device #1 to device #n) may each include a switch 10 and a terminal resistor 20.

[0040] The main device (device #0) can be connected to multiple sub-devices (devices #1 to device #n) through parallel (bus) communication lines. In addition, the main device (device #0) can set communication IDs of multiple sub-devices (devices #1 to device #n) respectively. In an embodiment, the main device (device #0) can diagnose communication failures in the communication network based on the communication IDs.

[0041] The switch 10 can open or close the parallel (bus) communication line with the main device (device #0). In one embodiment, a plurality of sub-devices (device #1 to device #n) may include a switch 10 for blocking the communication line and wiring the terminal resistor in each communication line. In some embodiments, the switch 10 may allow the terminal resistor 20 to be wired to the communication line by opening or closing the switch 10.

[0042] The terminal resistor 20 may be located in each of the plurality of sub-devices (device #1 to device #n). In an embodiment, the terminal resistor 20 may be configured to be wired to a parallel (bus) communication line.

[0043] A main device (device #0) and a plurality of sub-devices (device #1 to device #n) according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may each include a communication module, a processor, and a memory.

[0044] The processor can control the communication between each device. The processor can also control the opening and closing operations of the switch 10. In an embodiment, the processor can be implemented in the form of selectively including an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), another chipset, a logic circuit, a register, a communication modem and / or a data processing device, which is known to be suitable in the art. The processor can perform basic arithmetic operations, logical operations and input / output operations, and, for example, execute program codes stored in the memory. The processor can store data in the memory or load data stored in the memory.

[0045] The memory may be a recording medium that can be read by a processor, and may include non-permanent mass storage devices, such as random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), and disk drives. An operating system and at least one program or application code may be stored in the memory. According to an embodiment, program code for parallel (bus) communication may be stored in the memory.

[0046] The main device (device #0) and the plurality of sub-devices (device #1 to device #n) may further include a communication module. In an embodiment, the main device (device #0) and the plurality of sub-devices (device #1 to device #n) may exchange data with each other using the communication module.

[0047] The communication method of the communication module may include a communication method using a communication network (e.g., a mobile communication network, a wired Internet, a wireless Internet, a broadcast network), and may also include short-range wireless communication between devices. In an embodiment, the network may include any one or more of a personal area network (PAN), a local area network (LAN), a campus network (CAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), a wide area network (WAN), a broadband network (BBN), the Internet, etc. In some embodiments, the network may include any one or more network topologies, including, for example, a bus network, a star network, a ring network, a mesh network, a star bus network, a tree or a hierarchical network, etc.

[0048] In addition, a communication system according to the present disclosure may include an input / output interface. An input / output interface may be an element for interfacing with an input / output device. In an embodiment, an input device may include a device such as a keyboard or a mouse, and an output device may include a device such as a display for displaying a communication session of an application. In an embodiment, an input / output interface may be an element for interfacing with a device (such as a touch screen) in which input and output functions are integrated.

[0049] Figure 3 is a diagram for describing a communication failure in a parallel (bus) communication system according to the prior art. Figure 4 is a diagram for describing a communication failure in a parallel (bus) communication system according to an embodiment.

[0050] First, refer to Figure 3 If a communication failure occurs in a parallel (bus) communication system according to the prior art, all devices connected to the communication network may become unable to communicate. Figure 3 As shown, if a fault (eg, disconnection, etc.) occurs in the communication network, all devices connected to the communication network may have a communication fault due to the absence of terminal resistors at the end points of the communication lines, thereby preventing normal communication.

[0051] Reference Figure 4 , if a communication failure occurs in the parallel (bus) communication system according to the embodiment, communication can be performed through terminal resistor wiring.

[0052] If communication with the (n+1)th sub-device (device #(n+1)) is not established after setting the communication ID of the nth sub-device (device #n), the main device (device #0) according to the embodiment may set the nth sub-device (device #n) as the terminal sub-device to be diagnosed. Figure 4 As shown, if a communication failure occurs between the third sub-device (device #3) and the fourth sub-device (device #4), and if communication with the fourth sub-device (device #4) is not established after setting the communication ID of the third sub-device (device #3), the main device (device #0) may set the third sub-device (device #3) as the terminal sub-device to be diagnosed.

[0053] In some embodiments, the main device (device #0) according to the embodiment of the present disclosure can diagnose the communication failure by comparing the terminal sub-device set when setting the previous communication ID with the terminal sub-device to be diagnosed. Figure 4 As shown, if a communication failure occurs between the third sub-device (device #3) and the fourth sub-device (device #4), the main device (device #0) can diagnose the communication failure by comparing the end sub-device (device #n) set when setting the previous communication ID with the end sub-device (device #3) to be diagnosed.

[0054] In some embodiments, the main device (device #0) according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may diagnose a communication fault based on whether the communication ID of the terminal sub-device set when setting the previous communication ID matches the communication ID of the terminal sub-device to be diagnosed. Figure 4 As shown, the main device (device #0) can diagnose a communication failure because the communication ID of the end sub-device (device #n) set when setting the previous communication ID and the communication ID of the end sub-device (device #3) to be diagnosed do not match each other.

[0055] Refer to Figure 3 and Figure 4 In the communication system according to the present disclosure, even if a communication failure occurs in the middle of the communication line, communication is possible due to the terminal resistor in each sub-device and the terminal resistor wiring effect through the switch. Figure 4 As shown, a switch in a sub-device may allow a terminal resistor in the sub-device to be wired to a communication line by opening or closing the switch.

[0056] Figures 5 to 7 is a diagram for describing a method of setting a communication ID according to an embodiment.

[0057] For the first sub-device connected to the main device (device #0) via a parallel (bus) communication line to the nth sub-device sequentially connected to the main device (device #0), starting from the first sub-device, the main device (device #0) according to the embodiment can sequentially cut off the switch set in each sub-device to sequentially connect the parallel (bus) communication line to the terminal resistor, and connect each sub-device to the communication network to sequentially set the communication ID of each sub-device.

[0058] If communication is not established with the (n+1)th sub-device after setting the communication ID of the nth sub-device, the master device (device #0) may set the nth sub-device as the end sub-device and terminate the communication ID setting. Figure 5 The terminal resistor of the first sub-device (device #1) in Figure 6 The terminal resistor of the second sub-device (device #2) in Figure 7 The terminal resistors of the nth child device (device #n) in the example can be sequentially wired, and therefore, the communication IDs of the child devices can be sequentially set.

[0059] Figure 8 is a flowchart of a method for setting a communication ID according to an embodiment.

[0060] Reference Figure 8 , in operation S110, in setting an initialization state, all sub-devices of the communication network may be disconnected, and a terminal resistor may be connected.

[0061] In operations S120 and S130, the device capable of communicating in the initialized state may be a first sub-device, and a communication ID #1 of the first sub-device may be set.

[0062] If a communication ID is set for the first sub-device, the first sub-device can be connected to the communication network and can communicate with the main device. If the communication connection between the first sub-device and the main device is not feasible, the main device can wait until communication is established with the first sub-device. In some embodiments, if the communication connection with the main device is feasible, the communication ID #1 of the first sub-device can be set.

[0063] In operations S140 and S150, communication may be performed with the nth sub-device, and a communication ID#n may be set for the nth sub-device. In some embodiments, if a communication ID is set for the nth sub-device, the nth sub-device may be connected to a communication network, and the terminal resistor may be disconnected. Next, communication ID setting of the (n+1)th sub-device may be performed.

[0064] In operation S160, if the nth child device receives communication indicating that the communication ID of the (n+1)th child device has been assigned, communication ID setting of the nth child device may be completed.

[0065] In operations S170 and S180, if the communication ID of the (n+1)th sub-device is not assigned, the nth sub-device may be identified as an end communication device, a terminal resistor of the nth sub-device may be wired, and communication ID setting may be completed.

[0066] Fig. 9 is a flow chart of a method for diagnosing a communication failure according to an embodiment.

[0067] Reference Fig. 9 In operation S210, the master device may enter a communication fault diagnosis mode. In operation S220, as a setting initialization state in which a communication ID may be initialized, all sub-devices of the communication network may be disconnected and a terminal resistor may be connected.

[0068] In operations S230 and S240, the device capable of communicating in the initialized state may be the first sub-device, and a communication ID #1 of the first sub-device may be set.

[0069] If a communication ID is set for the first sub-device, the first sub-device can be connected to the communication network and can communicate with the main device. If the communication connection between the first sub-device and the main device is not feasible, the main device can wait until communication is established with the first sub-device. In some embodiments, if the communication connection with the main device is feasible, the communication ID #1 of the first sub-device can be set.

[0070] In operations S250 and S260, communication may be performed with the nth sub-device, and a communication ID#n may be set for the nth sub-device. In some embodiments, if a communication ID is set for the nth sub-device, the nth sub-device may be connected to a communication network, and the terminal resistor may be disconnected. Next, communication ID setting of the (n+1)th sub-device may be performed.

[0071] In operation S270, if the nth child device receives a communication indicating that the communication ID of the (n+1)th child device has been assigned, communication ID setting for the nth child device may be terminated.

[0072] In operations S280 and S290, if the communication ID of the (n+1)th sub-device is not assigned, the nth sub-device may be identified as an end communication device.

[0073] In operation S310, it is determined whether the communication ID of the terminal communication device identified when diagnosing the communication failure matches the communication ID of the terminal communication device set when setting the previous communication ID. If the communication ID of the terminal communication device identified when diagnosing the communication failure matches the communication ID of the terminal communication device set when setting the previous communication ID, it is diagnosed that no communication failure has occurred, and the communication ID setting is terminated.

[0074] In operation S320, if the communication ID of the terminal communication device identifiable when diagnosing the communication fault does not match the communication ID of the terminal communication device that can be set when setting the previous communication ID, it can be diagnosed that a communication fault has occurred, and it can be diagnosed that a communication line defect has occurred at the position of the communication line after the terminal communication device identified when diagnosing the communication fault.

[0075] Fig.10 is a diagram for describing a method of diagnosing a communication failure according to an embodiment.

[0076] Reference Fig.10 , starting from the preset mth sub-device, if communication is established with the sub-device, the master device according to the embodiment may determine whether communication with a sub-device in a preset number of sub-devices after the sub-device is feasible. In an embodiment, if communication is not established with the sub-device, the master device may determine whether communication with a sub-device in a preset number of sub-devices before the sub-device is feasible. The master device may diagnose a communication failure by repeatedly performing a process of checking whether communication is feasible.

[0077] In some embodiments, if the communication ID of the sub-device capable of communication is k and the communication ID of the sub-device incapable of communication is k+1, the main device may determine a communication failure between the sub-device with communication ID #k and the sub-device with communication ID #k+1.

[0078] In an embodiment, if Fig.10As shown, starting from the preset fourth sub-device, if communication is established with the fourth sub-device, the main device may determine whether communication with the eighth sub-device is feasible, and the eighth sub-device may be a sub-device with a preset number of four after the fourth sub-device. If communication is not established with the eighth sub-device, the main device may determine whether communication with the sixth sub-device is feasible, and the sixth sub-device may be a sub-device with a preset number of two before the eighth sub-device. If communication is established with the sixth sub-device, the main device may determine whether communication with the seventh sub-device is feasible, and the seventh sub-device is a sub-device with a preset number of one after the sixth sub-device. If communication with the seventh sub-device is not established, the main device may diagnose that a communication failure has occurred between the sixth sub-device and the seventh sub-device.

[0079] According to the present disclosure, by including in a sub-device a terminal resistor previously manually installed in an end communication device in a communication network, installation time and man-hours can be reduced by determining the end communication device itself and automatically setting the terminal resistor.

[0080] According to the present disclosure, if communication is not possible due to a defect in a communication line or communication equipment even during normal operation of the communication equipment, the location of the defect can be identified by itself using a fault diagnosis algorithm, and the location of the fault can be sent, thereby minimizing maintenance time and man-hours.

[0081] In the prior art, if a plurality of communication devices communicate with each other, if a communication failure may occur in all the communication devices connected to the communication line, a failure (disconnection, short circuit, etc.) may occur anywhere in the communication line. However, according to the present disclosure, the fault position of the communication line can be determined by itself, and the communication line can be removed, and a terminal resistor can be connected at a stage before the faulty communication line, thereby allowing communication until the position where the communication line is defective.

[0082] The various embodiments described above are examples and are not necessarily distinguished from each other and implemented independently. The embodiments described in this specification may be implemented in combination with each other.

[0083] The various embodiments described above may be implemented in the form of a computer program that can be executed on a computer through various components, and such a computer program may be recorded on a computer-readable medium. In this case, the medium may continuously store a program that can be executed by a computer, or temporarily store a program for execution or downloading. In some embodiments, the medium may be various recording devices or storage devices in the form of a single hardware or a combination of hardware including multiple hardware, but is not limited to a medium directly connected to a specific computer system, and may be distributed on a network. Examples of media include magnetic media (such as hard disks, floppy disks, and tapes), optical recording media (such as compact disk-ROMs (CD-ROMs) and digital versatile disks (DVDs)), magneto-optical media (such as optical magnetic floppy disks), and ROMs, RAMs, flash memories, etc. configured to store program instructions. In some embodiments, examples of other media include recording media or storage media managed by an application store that distributes applications, and sites or servers for supplying or distributing various other software.

[0084] In this specification, a "unit", "module", etc. may be a hardware component such as a processor or a circuit, and / or a software component executed by a hardware component such as a processor. Therefore, a "unit", "module" may be implemented by, for example, a component (such as a software component, an object-oriented software component, a class component, and a task component) and a process, a function, a property, a procedure, a subroutine, a program code segment, a driver, firmware, microcode, a circuit, data, a database, a data structure, a table, an array, and a variable.

[0085] According to the present disclosure, a communication system and method for efficient parallel (bus) communication between a plurality of devices, and a computer program product stored in a recording medium for executing the method may be provided.

[0086] By way of summary and review, if there are a large number of devices constituting a communication system, it may be difficult to set a communication ID by communicating 1:1 with each device. To solve this problem, a method of automatically assigning a communication ID by applying a specific program to manually connect only one communication line to each device may be used. The communication ID may be set by manually or semi-automatically applying power to each communication device one by one when the communication line is connected to each device.

[0087] One or more embodiments may include a parallel (bus) communication system and method for a plurality of devices, and a computer program product stored in a recording medium for executing the method.

[0088] Example embodiments have been disclosed herein, and although specific terms are employed, they are used and interpreted only in a general and descriptive sense and not for purposes of limitation. In some cases, as will be readily understood by those of ordinary skill in the art when filing this application, unless otherwise specifically stated, features, characteristics, and / or elements described in conjunction with a particular embodiment may be used alone or in combination with features, characteristics, and / or elements described in conjunction with other embodiments. Therefore, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in form and detail without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A communication system, wherein: A main device and a plurality of sub-devices connected to the main device via a communication network communicate with each other in parallel, and the communication system comprises: The plurality of sub-devices each include a switch and a terminal resistor, the switch being configured to open or close a parallel communication line connected to the main device, and the terminal resistor being configured to be wired to the parallel communication line; and The main device is connected to the plurality of sub-devices through the parallel communication lines and is configured to set communication IDs of the plurality of sub-devices and diagnose a communication failure in the communication network based on the communication IDs.

2. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein: For the first sub-device connected to the main device through the parallel communication line to the nth sub-device sequentially connected to the main device, starting from the first sub-device, the main device sequentially cuts off the switch set in each of the first sub-device to the nth sub-device to sequentially connect the parallel communication line to the terminal resistor, and connects each of the first sub-device to the nth sub-device to the communication network to sequentially set the communication ID of each of the first sub-device to the nth sub-device.

3. The communication system according to claim 2, wherein: If communication is not established with the (n+1)th child device after setting the communication ID of the nth child device, the host device sets the nth child device as an end child device and terminates the communication ID setting.

4. The communication system according to claim 2, wherein: If communication is not established with the n+1th sub-device after setting the communication ID of the nth sub-device, the main device sets the nth sub-device as the terminal sub-device to be diagnosed, and diagnoses the communication fault by comparing the terminal sub-device set when setting the previous communication ID with the terminal sub-device to be diagnosed.

5. The communication system according to claim 4, wherein: The main device diagnoses the communication failure based on whether the communication ID of the terminal sub-device set when setting the previous communication ID matches the communication ID of the terminal sub-device to be diagnosed.

6. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein: The main device diagnoses the communication failure in the following manner: starting from a preset mth sub-device, if communication with the sub-device is established, repeatedly executing a first operation, the first operation identifying whether communication with a sub-device among a preset number of sub-devices after the sub-device is feasible, and if communication with the sub-device is not established, repeatedly executing a second operation, the second operation identifying whether communication with a sub-device among a preset number of sub-devices before the sub-device is feasible.

7. The communication system according to claim 6, wherein: If the communication ID of the child device capable of communication is k and the communication ID of the child device incapable of communication is k+1, the main device diagnoses a communication failure between the child device having communication ID#k and the child device having communication ID#k+1.

8. A communication method, wherein: A main device and a plurality of sub-devices connected to the main device communicate with each other in parallel, and the communication method includes: setting communication IDs of the plurality of sub-devices, each of the sub-devices including a switch configured to open or close a parallel communication line connection with the main device and a terminal resistor configured to enable wiring to the parallel communication line; and A communication fault in the communication network is diagnosed based on the communication ID.

9. The communication method according to claim 8, wherein: Setting the communication ID includes: For a first sub-device connected to the main device through a parallel communication line to an nth sub-device sequentially connected to the main device, starting from the first sub-device, sequentially turning off a switch provided in each sub-device to sequentially connect the parallel communication line to the terminal resistor; and Each of the sub-devices is connected to the communication network, and the communication IDs of the plurality of sub-devices are sequentially set.

10. The communication method according to claim 9, wherein: Setting the communication ID includes: if communication with the (n+1)th child device is not established after the communication ID of the nth child device is set, setting the nth child device as an end child device and terminating the communication ID setting.

11. The communication method according to claim 9, wherein: Diagnosing the communication fault includes: If communication with the (n+1)th sub-device is not established after the communication ID of the nth sub-device is set, setting the nth sub-device as a terminal sub-device to be diagnosed; and A communication failure is diagnosed by comparing the end sub-device set when the previous communication ID was set with the end sub-device to be diagnosed.

12. The communication method according to claim 11, wherein: Diagnosing the communication fault includes diagnosing the communication fault based on whether the communication ID of the terminal sub-device set when setting the previous communication ID matches the communication ID of the terminal sub-device to be diagnosed.

13. The communication method according to claim 8, wherein: Diagnosing the communication fault includes, starting from a preset mth sub-device: A first operation is to identify whether communication with a sub-device among a preset number of sub-devices subsequent to the sub-device is feasible if communication with the sub-device is established; A second operation, if communication with the sub-device is not established, identifying whether communication with a sub-device among a preset number of sub-devices preceding the sub-device is feasible; as well as The communication failure is diagnosed by repeatedly performing the first operation and the second operation.

14. The communication method according to claim 13, wherein: Diagnosing the communication failure includes diagnosing a communication failure between a child device having communication ID #k and a child device having communication ID #k+1 if the communication ID of the child device capable of communication is k and the communication ID of the child device incapable of communication is k+1.

15. A computer program product stored on a recording medium, for executing the communication method according to any one of claims 8 to 14 by using a computing device.

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