OTA upgrading method and system of wireless networking equipment based on Bluetooth

Abstract

The invention provides an OTA upgrading method and system for wireless networking equipment based on Bluetooth, and the method comprises the steps: uploading a firmware data package to a management platform, and appointing a firmware upgrading path planning strategy; transmitting the firmware data packet to a memory of a network controller for storage, and taking the network controller as an updater for firmware upgrading; the network controller issues a Bluetooth starting instruction through a ZigBee or Lora communication channel to start the Bluetooth functions of all the tracking control units, so that all the tracking control units start Bluetooth broadcasting; and the network controller selects the equipment stored with the firmware data packet as a distributor according to a firmware upgrading path planning strategy, and controls the distributor to transmit the firmware data packet to the tracking control unit to be upgraded through the BLE channel for upgrading. The method has the advantages that batch upgrading of TCU equipment of Lora and ZigBee networking can be well compatible, meanwhile, the upgrading efficiency can be effectively improved, and the upgrading cost is reduced.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This invention relates to the field of photovoltaic equipment upgrade technology, and in particular to an OTA upgrade method and system for Bluetooth-based wireless networking equipment. [Background Technology]

[0002] Currently, the tracking control unit (TCU) of photovoltaic tracking brackets uses wireless networking communication schemes, such as LoRa or ZigBee networking. During use, if functions need to be updated or bugs fixed, the TCU firmware must be upgraded.

[0003] For TCU firmware upgrades, some TCU manufacturers reserve a programming interface, and the update is performed by connecting the programming interface. However, in actual applications, the TCU may be installed at a height of 3-5 meters, and there are a large number of TCUs in the entire photovoltaic power station. If all of them are programmed by connecting the programming interface, it is not only very inconvenient to operate, but the entire upgrade process is also time-consuming, labor-intensive, and extremely costly.

[0004] Of course, TCUs for ZigBee networks typically have a standard OTA Cluster, which first downloads the TCU firmware to the Network Controller (NCU), and then announces the new image to the TCU via unicast or broadcast. Subsequently, each TCU will request firmware package data from the NCU out of order, which inevitably affects the NCU's polling process and results in low efficiency for batch upgrades. For TCUs in LoRa networks, due to LoRa's extremely low transmission rate and excessively long upgrade time, OTA upgrade functionality is generally not provided.

[0005] In view of the above-mentioned problems of existing technologies, there is an urgent need to provide an OTA upgrade that can be used for batch upgrades of TCU devices that are compatible with Lora and ZigBee networking, and can improve upgrade efficiency and reduce upgrade costs. [Summary of the Invention]

[0006] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an OTA upgrade method and system for Bluetooth-based wireless networking devices, which is compatible with batch upgrades of TCU devices in Lora and ZigBee networking, and can improve upgrade efficiency and reduce upgrade costs.

[0007] This invention is implemented as follows:

[0008] In a first aspect, an OTA upgrade method for a Bluetooth-based wireless networking device is provided, the upgrade method comprising the following steps:

[0009] Step S1: Upload the firmware data package to the management platform and specify the firmware upgrade path planning strategy;

[0010] Step S2: Transfer the firmware data packet to the network controller's memory for storage, and use the network controller as the firmware upgrade updater.

[0011] Step S3: The network controller sends a Bluetooth enable command through the ZigBee or LoRa communication channel to enable the Bluetooth function of all tracking control units, so that each tracking control unit can enable Bluetooth broadcasting.

[0012] Step S4: The network controller selects the device that has stored the firmware data packet as the distributor according to the firmware upgrade path planning strategy, and controls the distributor to transmit the firmware data packet to the tracking control unit to be upgraded through the BLE channel for upgrade.

[0013] Secondly, an OTA upgrade system for Bluetooth-based wireless networking devices, the upgrade system comprising a management module, a data packet transmission module, a Bluetooth enabling module, and an upgrade control module;

[0014] The management module is used to upload firmware data packages to the management platform and specify the firmware upgrade path planning strategy.

[0015] The data packet transmission module is used to transmit firmware data packets to the memory of the network controller for storage, and to use the network controller as an updater for firmware upgrades.

[0016] The Bluetooth enabling module is used by the network controller to send a Bluetooth enabling command through the ZigBee or LoRa communication channel to enable the Bluetooth function of all tracking control units, so that each tracking control unit can enable Bluetooth broadcasting.

[0017] The upgrade control module is used by the network controller to select a device that has stored firmware data packets as a distributor according to the firmware upgrade path planning strategy, and control the distributor to transmit the firmware data packets to the tracking control unit to be upgraded through the BLE channel for upgrade.

[0018] By adopting the technical solution of the present invention, at least the following beneficial effects are achieved: it can be well compatible with the batch upgrade of TCU devices in LoRa and ZigBee networking to solve problems such as anomalies caused by field bugs, while effectively improving upgrade efficiency and reducing upgrade costs. [Attached Image Description]

[0019] The present invention will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0020] Figure 1 This is a flowchart illustrating the execution process of an OTA upgrade method for a Bluetooth-based wireless networking device according to the present invention.

[0021] Figure 2This is a timing diagram of the network controller upgrading directly connected devices in this invention;

[0022] Figure 3 This is a timing diagram of how the network controller directs the upgraded tracking control unit to upgrade the tracking control unit to be upgraded in this invention.

[0023] Figure 4 This is an example diagram of the upgrade based on the source routing table in this invention;

[0024] Figure 5 This is a structural principle block diagram of an OTA upgrade system for a Bluetooth-based wireless networking device according to the present invention.

Detailed Implementation Methods

[0025] To better understand the technical solution of the present invention, the technical solution of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0026] Before proceeding, let me first introduce the core inventive concept of this invention: OTA upgrades are achieved by combining ZigBee / Lora with Bluetooth BLE. ZigBee / Lora serves as the command transmission path, while Bluetooth BLE serves as the firmware data transmission path. During the upgrade process, three roles are involved: the updater, the distributor, and the Tracking Control Unit (TCU) to be upgraded. The updater controls the distributor to initiate the upgrade for the designated TCU and monitors the transmission progress. The distributor initiates the upgrade for the TCU and transmits the firmware data. The TCU is the device that needs to undergo firmware upgrade.

[0027] Example 1

[0028] Please see Figure 1 As shown, the present invention provides an OTA upgrade method for a Bluetooth-based wireless networking device, the upgrade method comprising the following steps:

[0029] Step S1: Upload the firmware data package to the management platform and specify the firmware upgrade path planning strategy. In the specific implementation of this invention, after the firmware data package is developed, it needs to be uploaded to the management platform of the photovoltaic power station. The management platform can manage the uploaded firmware data package.

[0030] Because the entire photovoltaic power station uses a large number of devices, it typically includes multiple network controllers (NCUs). Each NCU is connected to several tracking control units (TCUs), and each TCU can further connect to several next-hop TCUs. The TCUs and NCUs are wirelessly networked using ZigBee / Lora. The path planning strategy specifically refers to planning the upgrade sequence and path of each TCU so that the TCUs can be upgraded according to the planned upgrade sequence and path in the future.

[0031] Step S2: The firmware data packet is transmitted to the memory of the network controller NCU for storage. The network controller NCU is used as the firmware updater. In other words, the network controller NCU plays the role of the updater in the whole upgrade process. The firmware data packet can be transmitted to the network controller NCU for storage via network / USB or other means.

[0032] Step S3: The network controller NCU sends a Bluetooth enable command through the ZigBee or LoRa communication channel to enable the Bluetooth function of all tracking control units TCUs, so that each tracking control unit TCU can enable Bluetooth broadcasting. In specific implementation of this invention, in addition to using ZigBee / Lora for wireless networking, each tracking control unit TCU and network controller NCU also needs to be equipped with a Bluetooth module so that the connected upstream device can use Bluetooth BLE to transmit firmware data packets to the downstream device.

[0033] Step S4: The network controller NCU selects the device that has stored the firmware data packet as the distributor according to the firmware upgrade path planning strategy, and controls the distributor to transmit the firmware data packet to the tracking control unit TCU to be upgraded through the BLE channel for upgrade.

[0034] In some embodiments of the present invention, please refer to Figure 2 As shown, in step S4, selecting the device that has stored the firmware data packet as the distributor and controlling the distributor to transmit the firmware data packet to the tracking control unit (TCU) to be upgraded via the BLE channel for upgrade specifically involves:

[0035] When the tracking control unit (TCU) to be upgraded is a directly connected device of the network controller (NCU), the network controller (NCU) is used as both the firmware updater and the distributor. Since the firmware data packet is transmitted to the network controller (NCU) for storage every time a firmware upgrade is performed, the network controller (NCU) needs to initiate the upgrade to the directly connected tracking control unit (TCU) first every time an upgrade is performed.

[0036] The network controller (NCU) initiates a BLE connection directly to the tracking control unit (TCU) to be upgraded (i.e., the device to be updated). Once the NCU and TCU are successfully connected, the NCU transmits the firmware data packet to the TCU via the BLE channel. The TCU stores the firmware data packet and performs the upgrade. After the upgrade is completed, if the TCU is connected to a next-hop device, it is used as a distributor for the next-hop device.

[0037] In a specific implementation of this invention, since the Network Controller (NCU) has already enabled the Bluetooth function of all Tracking Control Units (TCUs) by sending a Bluetooth enable command via the ZigBee or LoRa communication channel before the upgrade, the NCU can directly initiate a BLE connection to the directly connected Tracking Control Unit (TCU) to be upgraded according to the path planning strategy. At the same time, after the NCU establishes a BLE connection with the TCU, the NCU will use Bluetooth BLE to initiate a firmware upgrade request to the TCU. The TCU will return a response message to the NCU based on the firmware upgrade request, enabling the NCU to start transmitting firmware data packets to the TCU using the BLE channel.

[0038] In some embodiments of the present invention, please refer to Figure 3 As shown, in order to effectively improve the overall upgrade efficiency, in step S4, the selection of a device that has stored firmware data packets as a distributor, and the control of the distributor to transmit the firmware data packets to the tracking control unit (TCU) to be upgraded via the BLE channel, specifically involves:

[0039] When the tracking control unit (TCU) to be upgraded is a non-directly connected device of the network controller (NCU), the nearest hop device that has completed the upgrade is selected as the distributor; that is, when a tracking control unit (TCU) has completed the upgrade, since the tracking control unit (TCU) has stored the latest firmware data packet, if the tracking control unit (TCU) is still connected to the next hop device, the firmware data packet can be directly transmitted to the next hop device.

[0040] The Network Controller (NCU) sends upgrade control commands to the Tracking Control Unit (TCU), which acts as a distributor, via a ZigBee or LoRa communication channel. The TCU then initiates a BLE connection to the TCU to be upgraded based on these commands. Once the connection is successful, the TCU transmits the firmware data packet to the TCU via the BLE channel. The TCU then stores the firmware data packet and performs the upgrade. If the upgraded TCU is connected to a next-hop device, it will continue to act as the distributor for that next-hop device.

[0041] In practical implementation of this invention, since the Network Controller (NCU) has already enabled the Bluetooth function of all Tracking Control Units (TCUs) by sending a Bluetooth enable command via the ZigBee or LoRa communication channel before the upgrade, when it is necessary to use the upgraded Tracking Control Unit (TCU) to transmit firmware data packets to the TCU to be upgraded, the NCU only needs to send an upgrade control command to the upgraded TCU via the ZigBee or LoRa communication channel. This will instruct the upgraded TCU to initiate a BLE connection with the TCU to be upgraded and transmit the firmware data packets to the TCU. Simultaneously, after the upgraded TCU and the TCU to be upgraded establish a BLE connection, the upgraded TCU will initiate a firmware upgrade request to the TCU to be upgraded via Bluetooth BLE. The TCU to be upgraded will return a response message to the upgraded TCU based on the firmware upgrade request, enabling the upgraded TCU to start transmitting firmware data packets to the TCU to be upgraded via the BLE channel.

[0042] The upgrade process of this invention will be further described in detail below through a specific example:

[0043] like Figure 4 As shown, the Figure 4The table shown is a source routing table, where 0 represents the NCU and 1-9 represent the TCUs. When upgrading the TCU with ID 1, the NCU directly initiates a BLE connection to the TCU with ID 1 and uses the BLE channel to transmit the firmware data packet to the TCU with ID 1. When the TCU with ID 5 has been upgraded and the TCU with ID 8 needs to be upgraded, since the path from the NCU to the TCU with ID 8 is 0->1->5->8, the NCU needs to send an upgrade control command to the TCU with ID 5 through the ZigBee or LoRa communication channel, so that the TCU with ID 5 initiates a BLE connection to the TCU with ID 8 and uses the BLE channel to transmit the firmware data packet to the TCU with ID 8.

[0044] In a first specific embodiment of the present invention, in step S1, the source routing table of the tracking control unit (TCU) itself is directly used as the path planning strategy for firmware upgrade. Since the device sets up a source routing table during network formation (e.g., a ZigBee network), and this source routing table is a tree structure containing the path from the network controller (NCU) to each tracking control unit (TCU), it can be directly used as the path planning strategy for firmware upgrade to upgrade each tracking control unit (TCU).

[0045] In a second specific embodiment of the present invention, in step S1, a corresponding firmware upgrade path planning strategy is generated based on the field layout diagram of the tracking control unit (TCU). That is, in a specific implementation, the present invention can also plan and generate corresponding path planning strategies based on the field layout diagram of each tracking control unit (TCU), and upgrade each tracking control unit (TCU) according to the generated path planning strategy.

[0046] In some embodiments of the present invention, step S4 further includes: monitoring the transmission progress of each distributor through the network controller NCU and displaying the transmission progress of each distributor so that relevant personnel can intuitively understand the transmission status of each distributor.

[0047] In some embodiments of the present invention, step S4 further includes: performing differential calculation on the firmware data package and the current firmware version before the upgrade to obtain a differential file, and controlling the distributor to transmit the differential file to the tracking control unit (TCU) to be upgraded via the BLE channel; the TCU to be upgraded generates a complete firmware data package based on the differential file and the stored current firmware version, and performs the upgrade using the complete firmware data package. By performing differential calculation on the firmware data package and the current firmware version before the upgrade, and controlling the distributor to only transmit the differential file to the TCU to be upgraded, the amount of data transmitted can be effectively reduced in practical implementation, thereby helping to further improve the overall upgrade efficiency.

[0048] In the photovoltaic power plant industry, the NCU needs to continuously poll the status of all TCUs in the subarray within the Lora / ZigBee network. This results in a significant amount of Lora / ZigBee network channel resources being consumed during OTA upgrades, which in turn affects the NCU's polling process. Furthermore, the low data transmission rate of the firmware data packets on the Lora / ZigBee network severely impacts the overall upgrade efficiency. This invention employs a combination of ZigBee / Lora and Bluetooth BLE. When ZigBee is used, the upgrade process only briefly occupies the ZigBee channel used by the subarray for upgrade command scheduling, while transmission primarily uses BLE frequency hopping to automatically avoid the 2.4GHz channel currently used by ZigBee, effectively preventing disruption to normal services. Furthermore, BLE's PHY rate is 8 times faster than ZigBee, and due to its direct transmission, its transmission rate is more than 8 times faster than ZigBee's multi-hop forwarding. Additionally, through NCU command scheduling, the TCU that has received the firmware data packet can act as a distributor to transmit firmware data packets to other TCUs, effectively accelerating the firmware upgrade efficiency of the entire subarray. Similarly, when Lora is used, since Lora and Bluetooth BLE use completely different frequency bands, there is no impact on Lora communication services. Therefore, by adopting the technical solution of this invention, batch upgrades of TCU devices networked with both Lora and ZigBee can be well-compatible, resolving issues caused by field bugs and effectively improving upgrade efficiency while reducing upgrade costs.

[0049] Example 2

[0050] Please see Figure 5 As shown, the present invention provides an OTA upgrade system for Bluetooth-based wireless networking devices. The upgrade system includes a management module, a data packet transmission module, a Bluetooth enabling module, and an upgrade control module.

[0051] The management module is used to upload firmware data packages to the management platform and specify the firmware upgrade path planning strategy. In specific implementation of this invention, after the firmware data package is developed, it needs to be uploaded to the management platform of the photovoltaic power station, and the management platform can manage the uploaded firmware data package.

[0052] Because the entire photovoltaic power station uses a large number of devices, it typically includes multiple network controllers (NCUs). Each NCU is connected to several tracking control units (TCUs), and each TCU can further connect to several next-hop TCUs. The TCUs and NCUs are wirelessly networked using ZigBee / Lora. The path planning strategy specifically refers to planning the upgrade sequence and path of each TCU so that the TCUs can be upgraded according to the planned upgrade sequence and path in the future.

[0053] The data packet transmission module is used to transmit firmware data packets to the memory of the network controller NCU for storage, and to use the network controller NCU as a firmware upgrade updater. That is, the network controller NCU plays the role of an updater in the entire upgrade process. The firmware data packets can be transmitted to the network controller NCU for storage via network / USB or other means.

[0054] The Bluetooth enabling module is used by the network controller NCU to send a Bluetooth enabling command through the ZigBee or LoRa communication channel to enable the Bluetooth function of all tracking control units TCUs, so that each tracking control unit TCU can enable Bluetooth broadcasting. In specific implementation of the present invention, in addition to using ZigBee / Lora for wireless networking, each tracking control unit TCU and network controller NCU also needs to be equipped with a Bluetooth module so that the connected upstream device can use Bluetooth BLE to transmit firmware data packets to the downstream device.

[0055] The upgrade control module is used by the network controller (NCU) to select a device that has stored firmware data packets as a distributor according to the firmware upgrade path planning strategy, and control the distributor to transmit the firmware data packets to the tracking control unit (TCU) to be upgraded through the BLE channel for upgrade.

[0056] In some embodiments of the present invention, please refer to Figure 2 As shown, in the upgrade control module, the step of selecting a device that has stored firmware data packets as a distributor and controlling the distributor to transmit the firmware data packets to the tracking control unit (TCU) to be upgraded via the BLE channel specifically involves:

[0057] When the tracking control unit (TCU) to be upgraded is a directly connected device of the network controller (NCU), the network controller (NCU) is used as both the firmware updater and the distributor. Since the firmware data packet is transmitted to the network controller (NCU) for storage every time a firmware upgrade is performed, the network controller (NCU) needs to initiate the upgrade to the directly connected tracking control unit (TCU) first every time an upgrade is performed.

[0058] The network controller (NCU) initiates a BLE connection directly to the tracking control unit (TCU) to be upgraded (i.e., the device to be updated). Once the NCU and TCU are successfully connected, the NCU transmits the firmware data packet to the TCU via the BLE channel. The TCU stores the firmware data packet and performs the upgrade. After the upgrade is completed, if the TCU is connected to a next-hop device, it is used as a distributor for the next-hop device.

[0059] In a specific implementation of this invention, since the Network Controller (NCU) has already enabled the Bluetooth function of all Tracking Control Units (TCUs) by sending a Bluetooth enable command via the ZigBee or LoRa communication channel before the upgrade, the NCU can directly initiate a BLE connection to the directly connected Tracking Control Unit (TCU) to be upgraded according to the path planning strategy. At the same time, after the NCU establishes a BLE connection with the TCU, the NCU will use Bluetooth BLE to initiate a firmware upgrade request to the TCU. The TCU will return a response message to the NCU based on the firmware upgrade request, enabling the NCU to start transmitting firmware data packets to the TCU using the BLE channel.

[0060] In some embodiments of the present invention, please refer to Figure 3 As shown, in order to effectively improve the overall upgrade efficiency, in the upgrade control module, the selection of the device that has stored the firmware data package as the distributor and the control of the distributor to transmit the firmware data package to the tracking control unit (TCU) to be upgraded via the BLE channel are specifically as follows:

[0061] When the tracking control unit (TCU) to be upgraded is a non-directly connected device of the network controller (NCU), the nearest hop device that has completed the upgrade is selected as the distributor; that is, when a tracking control unit (TCU) has completed the upgrade, since the tracking control unit (TCU) has stored the latest firmware data packet, if the tracking control unit (TCU) is still connected to the next hop device, the firmware data packet can be directly transmitted to the next hop device.

[0062] The Network Controller (NCU) sends upgrade control commands to the Tracking Control Unit (TCU), which acts as a distributor, via a ZigBee or LoRa communication channel. The TCU then initiates a BLE connection to the TCU to be upgraded based on these commands. Once the connection is successful, the TCU transmits the firmware data packet to the TCU via the BLE channel. The TCU then stores the firmware data packet and performs the upgrade. If the upgraded TCU is connected to a next-hop device, it will continue to act as the distributor for that next-hop device.

[0063] In practical implementation of this invention, since the Network Controller (NCU) has already enabled the Bluetooth function of all Tracking Control Units (TCUs) by sending a Bluetooth enable command via the ZigBee or LoRa communication channel before the upgrade, when it is necessary to use the upgraded Tracking Control Unit (TCU) to transmit firmware data packets to the TCU to be upgraded, the NCU only needs to send an upgrade control command to the upgraded TCU via the ZigBee or LoRa communication channel. This will instruct the upgraded TCU to initiate a BLE connection with the TCU to be upgraded and transmit the firmware data packets to the TCU. Simultaneously, after the upgraded TCU and the TCU to be upgraded establish a BLE connection, the upgraded TCU will initiate a firmware upgrade request to the TCU to be upgraded via Bluetooth BLE. The TCU to be upgraded will return a response message to the upgraded TCU based on the firmware upgrade request, enabling the upgraded TCU to start transmitting firmware data packets to the TCU to be upgraded via the BLE channel.

[0064] The upgrade process of this invention will be further described in detail below through a specific example:

[0065] like Figure 4 As shown, the Figure 4The table shown is a source routing table, where 0 represents the NCU and 1-9 represent the TCUs. When upgrading the TCU with ID 1, the NCU directly initiates a BLE connection to the TCU with ID 1 and uses the BLE channel to transmit the firmware data packet to the TCU with ID 1. When the TCU with ID 5 has been upgraded and the TCU with ID 8 needs to be upgraded, since the path from the NCU to the TCU with ID 8 is 0->1->5->8, the NCU needs to send an upgrade control command to the TCU with ID 5 through the ZigBee or LoRa communication channel, so that the TCU with ID 5 initiates a BLE connection to the TCU with ID 8 and uses the BLE channel to transmit the firmware data packet to the TCU with ID 8.

[0066] In a first specific embodiment of the present invention, the source routing table of the tracking control unit (TCU) itself is directly used as the path planning strategy for firmware upgrades in the management module. Since devices set up source routing tables during network formation (e.g., when forming a ZigBee network), and these source routing tables are tree structures containing the paths from the network controller (NCU) to each tracking control unit (TCU), they can be directly used as the path planning strategy for firmware upgrades to upgrade each tracking control unit (TCU).

[0067] In a second specific embodiment of the present invention, the management module generates a corresponding firmware upgrade path planning strategy based on the field layout diagram of the tracking control units (TCUs). That is, in a specific implementation, the present invention can also plan and generate corresponding path planning strategies based on the field layout diagram of each tracking control unit (TCU), and upgrade each tracking control unit (TCU) according to the generated path planning strategy.

[0068] In some embodiments of the present invention, the upgrade control module is further configured to: monitor the transmission progress of each distributor through the network controller NCU, and display the transmission progress of each distributor so that relevant personnel can intuitively understand the transmission status of each distributor.

[0069] In some embodiments of the present invention, the upgrade control module is further configured to: perform differential calculation on the firmware data package and the current firmware version before the upgrade to obtain a differential file, and control the distributor to transmit the differential file to the tracking control unit (TCU) to be upgraded via the BLE channel; the TCU to be upgraded generates a complete firmware data package based on the differential file and the stored current firmware version, and performs the upgrade using the complete firmware data package. By performing differential calculation on the firmware data package and the current firmware version before the upgrade, and controlling the distributor to only transmit the differential file to the TCU to be upgraded, the amount of data transmitted can be effectively reduced in practical use, thereby helping to further improve the overall upgrade efficiency.

[0070] In the photovoltaic power plant industry, the NCU needs to continuously poll the status of all TCUs in the subarray within the Lora / ZigBee network. This results in a significant amount of Lora / ZigBee network channel resources being consumed during OTA upgrades, which in turn affects the NCU's polling process. Furthermore, the low data transmission rate of the firmware data packets on the Lora / ZigBee network severely impacts the overall upgrade efficiency. This invention employs a combination of ZigBee / Lora and Bluetooth BLE. When ZigBee is used, the upgrade process only briefly occupies the ZigBee channel used by the subarray for upgrade command scheduling, while transmission primarily uses BLE frequency hopping to automatically avoid the 2.4GHz channel currently used by ZigBee, effectively preventing disruption to normal services. Furthermore, BLE's PHY rate is 8 times faster than ZigBee, and due to its direct transmission, its transmission rate is more than 8 times faster than ZigBee's multi-hop forwarding. Additionally, through NCU command scheduling, the TCU that has received the firmware data packet can act as a distributor to transmit firmware data packets to other TCUs, effectively accelerating the firmware upgrade efficiency of the entire subarray. Similarly, when Lora is used, since Lora and Bluetooth BLE use completely different frequency bands, there is no impact on Lora communication services. Therefore, by adopting the technical solution of this invention, batch upgrades of TCU devices networked with both Lora and ZigBee can be well-compatible, resolving issues caused by field bugs and effectively improving upgrade efficiency while reducing upgrade costs.

[0071] While specific embodiments of the present invention have been described above, those skilled in the art should understand that the specific embodiments described are merely illustrative and not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Equivalent modifications and variations made by those skilled in the art in accordance with the spirit of the present invention should be covered within the scope of protection of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. An OTA upgrade method for Bluetooth-based wireless networking devices, characterized in that: The upgrade method includes the following steps: Step S1: Upload the firmware data package to the management platform and specify the firmware upgrade path planning strategy; Step S2: Transfer the firmware data packet to the network controller's memory for storage, and use the network controller as the firmware upgrade updater. Step S3: The network controller sends a Bluetooth enable command through the ZigBee or LoRa communication channel to enable the Bluetooth function of all tracking control units, so that each tracking control unit can enable Bluetooth broadcasting. Step S4: The network controller selects the device that has stored the firmware data packet as the distributor according to the firmware upgrade path planning strategy, and controls the distributor to transmit the firmware data packet to the tracking control unit to be upgraded through the BLE channel for upgrade.

2. The OTA upgrade method for a Bluetooth-based wireless networking device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: In step S4, selecting the device that has stored the firmware data package as the distributor and controlling the distributor to transmit the firmware data package to the tracking control unit to be upgraded via the BLE channel specifically involves: When the tracking control unit to be upgraded is a direct-connected device to the network controller, the network controller is used as both the firmware upgrade updater and the distributor. The network controller initiates a BLE connection directly to the tracking control unit to be upgraded. Once the network controller and the tracking control unit to be upgraded are successfully connected, the network controller transmits the firmware data packet to the tracking control unit to be upgraded through the BLE channel. The tracking control unit to be upgraded stores the firmware data packet and performs the upgrade. After the upgrade is completed, if the tracking control unit is connected to a next-hop device, the tracking control unit is used as a distributor for the next-hop device.

3. The OTA upgrade method for a Bluetooth-based wireless networking device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: In step S4, selecting the device that has stored the firmware data package as the distributor and controlling the distributor to transmit the firmware data package to the tracking control unit to be upgraded via the BLE channel specifically involves: When the tracking control unit to be upgraded is a non-directly connected device of the network controller, the nearest hop device that has completed the upgrade is selected as the distributor; The network controller sends upgrade control commands to the tracking control unit acting as a distributor via a ZigBee or LoRa communication channel. The tracking control unit acting as a distributor initiates a BLE connection to the tracking control unit to be upgraded based on the upgrade control commands. Once the tracking control unit acting as a distributor successfully connects with the tracking control unit to be upgraded, it transmits the firmware data package to the tracking control unit to be upgraded via the BLE channel. The tracking control unit to be upgraded stores the firmware data package and performs the upgrade. If the upgraded tracking control unit is connected to a next-hop device, the upgraded tracking control unit will continue to act as a distributor for the next-hop device.

4. The OTA upgrade method for a Bluetooth-based wireless networking device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: In step S1, the source routing table of the tracking control unit itself is directly used as the path planning strategy for firmware upgrade.

5. The OTA upgrade method for a Bluetooth-based wireless networking device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: In step S1, a corresponding firmware upgrade path planning strategy is generated based on the field layout diagram of the tracking control unit.

6. The OTA upgrade method for a Bluetooth-based wireless networking device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: Step S4 further includes: The network controller monitors and displays the transmission progress of each distributor.

7. The OTA upgrade method for a Bluetooth-based wireless networking device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: Step S4 further includes: The firmware data package is differentially calculated with the current firmware version before the upgrade to obtain a differential file, and the controller transmits the differential file to the tracking control unit to be upgraded through the BLE channel; the tracking control unit to be upgraded generates a complete firmware data package based on the differential file and the stored current firmware version, and uses the complete firmware data package for the upgrade.

8. An OTA upgrade system for Bluetooth-based wireless networking devices, characterized in that: The upgrade system includes a management module, a data packet transmission module, a Bluetooth enabling module, and an upgrade control module; The management module is used to upload firmware data packages to the management platform and specify the firmware upgrade path planning strategy. The data packet transmission module is used to transmit firmware data packets to the memory of the network controller for storage, and to use the network controller as an updater for firmware upgrades. The Bluetooth enabling module is used by the network controller to send a Bluetooth enabling command through the ZigBee or LoRa communication channel to enable the Bluetooth function of all tracking control units, so that each tracking control unit can enable Bluetooth broadcasting. The upgrade control module is used by the network controller to select a device that has stored firmware data packets as a distributor according to the firmware upgrade path planning strategy, and control the distributor to transmit the firmware data packets to the tracking control unit to be upgraded through the BLE channel for upgrade.

9. The OTA upgrade system for a Bluetooth-based wireless networking device as described in claim 8, characterized in that: In the upgrade control module, the specific steps of selecting a device that has stored firmware data packets as a distributor and controlling the distributor to transmit the firmware data packets to the tracking control unit to be upgraded via the BLE channel are as follows: When the tracking control unit to be upgraded is a direct-connected device to the network controller, the network controller is used as both the firmware upgrade updater and the distributor. The network controller initiates a BLE connection directly to the tracking control unit to be upgraded. Once the network controller and the tracking control unit to be upgraded are successfully connected, the network controller transmits the firmware data packet to the tracking control unit to be upgraded through the BLE channel. The tracking control unit to be upgraded stores the firmware data packet and performs the upgrade. After the upgrade is completed, if the tracking control unit is connected to a next-hop device, the tracking control unit is used as a distributor for the next-hop device.

10. The OTA upgrade system for a Bluetooth-based wireless networking device as described in claim 8, characterized in that: In the upgrade control module, the specific steps of selecting a device that has stored firmware data packets as a distributor and controlling the distributor to transmit the firmware data packets to the tracking control unit to be upgraded via the BLE channel are as follows: When the tracking control unit to be upgraded is a non-directly connected device of the network controller, the nearest hop device that has completed the upgrade is selected as the distributor; The network controller sends upgrade control commands to the tracking control unit acting as a distributor via a ZigBee or LoRa communication channel. The tracking control unit acting as a distributor initiates a BLE connection to the tracking control unit to be upgraded based on the upgrade control commands. Once the tracking control unit acting as a distributor successfully connects with the tracking control unit to be upgraded, it transmits the firmware data package to the tracking control unit to be upgraded via the BLE channel. The tracking control unit to be upgraded stores the firmware data package and performs the upgrade. If the upgraded tracking control unit is connected to a next-hop device, the upgraded tracking control unit will continue to act as a distributor for the next-hop device.

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