Multi-pole wireless device and multi-pole wireless system

Abstract

To provide a multi-pole wireless device and a multi-pole wireless system that can improve convenience by being wireless.SOLUTION: A multi-pole wireless device 10 includes a connection unit CN that is connected to a facility and exchanges multiple types of information related to the facility, a message generating unit 15 that generates a message to a communication destination that can be selected for each of the multiple types of information, and a wireless unit 11 that transmits the message wirelessly. This can improve convenience when selecting a communication method compared to a wired connection.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a multi-pole wireless device and a multi-pole wireless system that are applied in equipment such as interlocking devices. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, a technique relating to an electronic interlocking system that controls an electric point machine (see Patent Document 1) and a technique relating to a wireless relay (see Patent Document 2) are known. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2014-125145 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2019-29258 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the above Patent Document 1, devices are connected in principle by wires such as metal cables, and although the above Patent Document 2 describes a wireless relay, in practice, for example, when connecting interlocking devices, wired connections using multi-pole connectors are adopted from the viewpoint of high compatibility, etc. However, in the case of wired connections, installation, switching, etc., are costly and time-consuming, and problems may arise in monitoring the communication status of the multi-pole connector.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned points, and an object of the present invention is to provide a multi-pole wireless device and a multi-pole wireless system that can improve convenience by being wireless. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] To achieve the above-mentioned objective, a multi-pole wireless device includes a connection unit that is connected to equipment and transmits and receives multiple types of information related to the equipment, a message generation unit that generates messages to communication destinations that can be selected for each of the multiple types of information, and a wireless unit that transmits the messages wirelessly.

[0007] In the multi-contact wireless device, when transmitting a message wirelessly, it is possible to select from among multiple types of information related to the equipment that is the source of the message for each piece of information. This makes it easier to select a communication method than, for example, a wired connection in which the communication destination is connected in a fixed one-to-one relationship.

[0008] In a specific aspect of the present invention, the message generator generates a message by unifying multiple types of information. In this case, by unifying multiple types of information related to the equipment into a message, it is possible to maintain rapid and accurate wireless communication with a simple configuration, while making the communication wireless makes it easier to install and maintain the communication equipment and to monitor the communication status.

[0009] In another aspect of the present invention, the electronic message generation unit generates an electronic message by packaging the presence or absence of changes in multiple types of information per unit time as a set of data. In this case, the amount of data generated can be reduced, and data can be generated and transmitted quickly.

[0010] In yet another aspect of the present invention, the electronic message generation unit generates an electronic message by packaging, as a set of data, information that has changed among a plurality of types of information for each unit time. In this case, it is possible to minimize the number of objects to be generated and transmitted.

[0011] In yet another aspect of the present invention, the equipment includes an interlocking device, and the wireless unit transmits a control signal in the railway as a telegram. In this case, convenience can be improved when the interlocking device is made wireless.

[0012] A multi-pole wireless system for achieving the above-mentioned object includes a plurality of any of the multi-pole wireless devices described above, a setting unit that performs communication settings between one multi-pole wireless device and another multi-pole wireless device, and a monitoring unit that monitors the communication status between the one multi-pole wireless device and the other multi-pole wireless device.

[0013] In the multi-pole wireless system, by including any one of the multi-pole wireless devices, when transmitting a message wirelessly, it is possible to select from among a plurality of types of information related to the equipment that is the source of the message for each piece of information. This makes it possible to improve the convenience of selecting a communication method, compared to, for example, a wired connection in which the communication destination is connected in a fixed one-to-one manner.

[0014] In a specific aspect of the present invention, the setting unit collectively monitors communication settings between multiple multi-pole wireless devices. In this case, for example, it is not necessary to perform communication settings for each communication between the multi-pole wireless devices, and the communication setting equipment can be configured simply.

[0015] In another aspect of the present invention, the monitoring unit monitors the communication state by capturing electromagnetic waves emitted during wireless communication between one multi-pole wireless device and another multi-pole wireless device. In this case, monitoring using electromagnetic waves is possible. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0016] [Figure 1] 1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining a multi-pole wireless device according to a first embodiment and a multi-pole wireless system including the same; [Diagram 2] 1A and 1B are conceptual diagrams for explaining the manner of wireless connection between multi-pole wireless devices. [Diagram 3] 1A to 1D are conceptual diagrams for explaining an example of a communication mode between multi-conductor wireless devices. [Figure 4] 13A and 13B are flowcharts for explaining an example of the operation of a multi-polar wireless device and a multi-polar wireless system including the same during communication. [Diagram 5]13A and 13B are conceptual diagrams for explaining an example of setting a wireless connection between multi-polar wireless devices. [Figure 6] 10 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an example of switching of wireless connections between multi-polar wireless devices. FIG. [Figure 7] 10 is a flowchart for explaining a process at the time of setting. [Figure 8] 13A and 13B are flowcharts for explaining the process at the time of setting. [Figure 9] FIG. 13 is a conceptual diagram showing another example of a multi-pole wireless system. [Figure 10] FIG. 1A is a diagram of a comparative example, and FIGS. 1B to 1D are diagrams showing an example of application of a multi-pole wireless device and a multi-pole wireless system including the same to an interlocking device. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing another example of application of a multi-pole wireless device and a multi-pole wireless system including the same to an interlocking device. [Figure 12] FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an overview of a multi-polar wireless device. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is a conceptual diagram for explaining a multi-pole wireless device according to a second embodiment and a multi-pole wireless system including the same. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0017] [First embodiment] Hereinafter, an example of a multi-pole wireless device and a multi-pole wireless system including the same according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 1 etc. Fig. 1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining a multi-pole wireless device 10 according to the present embodiment and a multi-pole wireless system 100 including the same.

[0018] As shown in the figure, the multi-pole wireless system 100 of this embodiment includes a plurality of multi-pole wireless devices 10 (two multi-pole wireless devices 10A, 10B in the illustrated example) and a monitoring device 50 that functions as a monitoring unit that monitors the communication state between the multi-pole wireless devices 10 (10A, 10B). The monitoring device 50 collectively monitors and stores the communication contents and communication settings between the plurality of multi-pole wireless devices 10A, 10B. Note that each multi-pole wireless device 10 is capable of exchanging information with each other by wireless communication regarding a plurality of types of information.

[0019] In the illustrated example, one multi-pole wireless device 10A is connected to one facility EQ1 and is capable of transmitting and receiving various signals to and from the facility EQ1, and another multi-pole wireless device 10B is connected to another facility EQ2 and is capable of transmitting and receiving various signals to and from the facility EQ2. As described above, the multi-pole wireless system 100 establishes transmission and reception of signals between the facilities EQ1 and EQ2 by wireless communication via the multi-pole wireless devices 10 (10A, 10B), and enables the monitoring device 50 to monitor the status of transmission and reception of the signals. The monitoring device 50 monitors and stores the communication state and communication contents by capturing electromagnetic waves transmitted during wireless communication between the one multi-pole wireless device 10A and the other multi-pole wireless device 10B.

[0020] Here, the target facilities EQ1, EQ2 can be various, but for example, interlocking devices are assumed. In this case, various signals such as on / off signals of signal lamps installed in stations and on / off signals of points are targets for communication using the multi-pole wireless system 100. Note that the mode in which the target facilities EQ1, EQ2 are interlocking devices will be described later.

[0021] In order to enable the above-mentioned wireless communication, as shown in a partially enlarged view within the area surrounded by a dashed line, the multi-pole wireless device 10 includes, in addition to the connection unit CN, a wireless unit 11, a setting recording unit 12, an input unit 13, an output unit 14, and a message generating unit 15. In the following, the multi-pole wireless device 10A will be described as a representative of the multi-pole wireless devices 10.

[0022] The connection part CN is connected to the equipment EQ1 and transmits and receives a plurality of types of information related to the equipment EQ1.

[0023] The wireless unit 11 is a device for communicating with other multi-pole wireless devices 10 (here, multi-pole wireless device 10B), and receives electromagnetic waves (information) from the outside to input to the input unit 13 in order to transmit telegrams wirelessly, and also transmits information to the outside from the output unit 14.

[0024] The setting recording unit 12 is a memory that records the settings of the communication mode. Here, information is stored each time the initial settings or settings are changed (switched). As will be described later, the multi-pole wireless device 10 has many pins, and each pin is configured to input and output information (on / off information) regarding on / off signals, making it possible to handle multiple types of information. For this reason, the setting recording unit 12 stores information regarding each pin.

[0025] The input unit 13 sorts various pieces of information received from the outside via the wireless unit 11 for each of the pins described above and receives them. The input unit 13 also sorts the signals of the equipment EQ1 received via the connection unit CN for each of the pins and receives them.

[0026] The output unit 14 outputs the signal received by the input unit 13 to a destination (communication destination) set for each pin via the wireless unit 11. In particular, in this embodiment, a destination (communication destination) can be selected for each of multiple types of information.

[0027] The electronic message generation unit 15 is a device for generating an electronic message to be output by the output unit 14. In particular, in this embodiment, a plurality of types of information are unified to generate an electronic message. This will be described in detail later.

[0028] An example of the wireless connection between the multi-pole wireless devices 10A and 10B will be described below with reference to Fig. 2. For example, in the example shown in Fig. 2(A), both the multi-pole wireless device 10A and the multi-pole wireless device 10B have n (a plurality of) pins. Hereinafter, the n pins provided on the multi-pole wireless device 10A will be referred to as pins α. 1 ~α n The n pins provided on the multi-pole wireless device 10B are defined as pins β 1 ~β n The pins on the multi-pole wireless device 10A side and the multi-pole wireless device 10B side are in one-to-one correspondence according to table data TD1, and in the example shown in FIG. 2(A), as shown in table data TD1, pins with the same subscript number correspond to each other. However, in this embodiment, such correspondence can be changed in various ways depending on the application, etc., and as another example, as shown in FIG. 2(B), table data TD2 showing a one-to-one correspondence different from the table data TD1 in FIG. 2(A) can be prepared, and correspondence can be established based on this. That is, in this embodiment, when setting up a wireless connection between the multi-pole wireless devices 10A and 10B, desired table data can be prepared to set up pin α 1 ~α n Each pin corresponds to 1 ~β n In other words, it is possible to select a destination (communication destination) for each of a plurality of types of information.

[0029] Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 3 and the like, an example of an operation mode in which a wireless connection including the above-mentioned correspondence is set and communication is performed will be described. FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an example of a communication mode between the multi-pole wireless devices 10A and 10B. Here, in order to simplify the explanation, as shown in FIG. 3(A), the multi-pole wireless device 10A has three pins α 1 ~α 3 and the multi-pole wireless device 10B has three pins β 1 ~β 3 and pin α 1 Gapin β 3 That is, pin α1 The on / off signal at pin β is transmitted to pin β by wireless communication between multi-pole wireless devices 10A and 10B. 3 Similarly, pin α 2 Gapin β 1 and pin α 3 Gapin β 2 In this case, the three pins α 1 ~α 3 reads three kinds of on / off signals from the equipment EQ1 (see Figure 1), and these are connected to the three pins α 1 ~α 3 In the above, it is assumed that the correspondence is established.

[0030] In FIG. 3B, the above-mentioned correspondence relationship is conceptually shown. That is, as shown in the figure, the first to third signals S1 to S3 indicating three on / off signals handled in the equipment EQ1 (see FIG. 1) are respectively connected to three pins α 1 ~α 3 In the illustrated example, the ON or OFF state is detected. i In the illustrated example, in the table SSα, ON is indicated by "1" and OFF is indicated by "0". For example, at time T 1 is the time t 0 From time t 1 We are looking at the change between t 0 On / off state and time t 1 This is equivalent to detecting whether there is a change by comparing the on / off state at time T 1 In this case, pin α 1 (First signal S1) is treated as having changed from on to off, i.e., from 1 to 0. Similarly, at time T 1 In this case, pin α 2 (Second signal S2) also changes from 1 to 0, and pin α 3(The third signal S3) changes from 0 to 1. Meanwhile, at time T 2 At time t 1 and time t 2 The change in the on / off state at pin α 1 This occurs only in the first signal S1, changing from 0 to 1. By repeating the above detection, i (i=1,2,3,...), it is possible to capture the change in the on / off state at each equal time interval. i The smaller the value of , the more finely the changes can be captured.

[0031] The information acquired in the above manner is stored in the form of messages TE1 to TE5 in the example shown in FIG. 3(C). i Specifically, the information is transmitted in a centralized manner at time T 1 The corresponding telegram TE1 has three pins α in the section showing the specific content between the common parts such as the header and parity check. 1 ~α 3 That is, the electronic message generating unit 15 generates the electronic message TE1 by unifying a plurality of types of information. 2 In the future, we will continue to unify multiple types of information in the same way, making it possible to maintain rapid and accurate wireless communication with a simple configuration.

[0032] Furthermore, for example, at time T 2 or time T 3 In the corresponding telegrams TE2 and TE3, three pins α 1 ~α 3 In such a case, in the illustrated example, only the items that have changed are included in the telegrams TE2 and TE3, thereby further shortening the length of the telegram to be transmitted and further reducing the communication load.

[0033] As described above, in this embodiment, the presence or absence of changes in multiple types of information per unit time is packaged as a single piece of data to generate a message, thereby reducing the amount of data generated and enabling rapid data generation and transmission.

[0034] The electronic messages TE1, etc., generated in the above manner are sequentially transmitted from the multi-pole wireless device 10A to the multi-pole wireless device 10B. The transmitted electronic messages TE1, etc. are received by the multi-pole wireless device 10B, and are transmitted to the corresponding pins β, as illustrated in FIG. 1 ~β 3 Here, from the correspondence relationship described with reference to FIG. 3(A), as shown in FIG. 3(D), the pin β 1 In this case, pin α 2 The second signal S2 corresponding to the pin β is restored as the signal R1. 2 In this case, pin α 3 The signal R2 corresponding to the third signal S3 corresponding to the pin β 3 In this case, pin α 1 A signal R3 corresponding to the first signal S1 corresponding to the time T i The corresponding time during restoration is time T' i However, by carrying out the above-mentioned rapid processing, the time T i and time T′ i This can minimize the difference between the

[0035] Hereinafter, an example of the operation during communication between the multi-pole wireless devices 10A and 10B constituting the multi-pole wireless system 100 will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 4(A) shows a series of operations on the multi-pole wireless device 10A side, and Fig. 4(B) shows a series of operations on the multi-pole wireless device 10B side. Note that here, in the drawings, the multi-pole wireless device 10A will also be simply referred to as device A, and the multi-pole wireless device 10B will also be simply referred to as device B.

[0036] First, as shown in FIG. 4A, the multi-pole wireless device 10A has pins α 1 ~αn The presence or absence of a change in the signal is confirmed, and a message (e.g., message TE1) is created based on the confirmation (step S101), the message is transmitted to multi-pole radio device 10B (step S102), and a response from multi-pole radio device 10B is awaited (step S103). In step S103, when a response is confirmed (step S103: Yes), the process for one message (e.g., message TE1) is terminated.

[0037] On the other hand, if there is no response in step S103 (step S103: No), the multi-pole radio device 10A checks whether there is a retransmission instruction from the multi-pole radio device 10B or whether a certain time has passed without a response (step S104). At least before the certain time has passed (step S104: No), the multi-pole radio device 10A continues to wait for a response from the multi-pole radio device 10B (step S103).

[0038] In step S104, if there is at least one of a retransmission instruction from multi-pole radio device 10B or a certain period of time has elapsed (step S104: Yes), multi-pole radio device 10A regenerates the message (step S105) and transmits it again to multi-pole radio device 10B (step S106).

[0039] Furthermore, the multi-pole radio device 10A checks whether the transmission to the multi-pole radio device 10B has been made a specified number of times (N times: N is an integer equal to or greater than 2) or more (step S107), and if the specified number of times has not been reached (step S107: No), it waits again for a response from the multi-pole radio device 10B (step S103).On the other hand, if the specified number of times has been reached (step S107: Yes), it determines that a problem has occurred in the message transmission, and outputs an error to the monitoring device 50 (step S108), and ends the series of processes.

[0040] The multi-pole radio device 10A performs the above-described telegram transmission for each of the telegrams TE1, TE2, . . . that are generated sequentially.

[0041] Next, as shown in FIG. 4(B), the multi-pole radio device 10B continuously checks whether a message has been received from the multi-pole radio device 10A (step S201). If reception is confirmed in step S201 (step S201: Yes), the multi-pole radio device 10B inspects the received message (step S202). If there is a problem (step S202: No), the multi-pole radio device 10B instructs the multi-pole radio device 10A to resend the message (step S203) and starts checking again for message reception from the multi-pole radio device 10A (step S201).

[0042] On the other hand, if there are no problems in the inspection in step S202 (step S202: Yes), a reply message indicating that the message has been received is generated and transmitted to the multi-pole wireless device 10A (step S204), and completion of transmission of the reply message is confirmed (step S205).

[0043] When the multi-pole wireless device 10B confirms the completion of the transmission in step S205 (step S205: Yes), the series of processes ends. On the other hand, when the completion of the transmission is not confirmed (step S205: No), it is assumed that a problem has occurred, and an error is output to the monitoring device 50 (step S206), and the series of processes ends. Note that, when an error is output in step S206, it is assumed that a separate method or the like is used for processing.

[0044] Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 5, an example of setting the wireless connection between the multi-polar radio devices 10A and 10B, which is a prerequisite for performing the above-mentioned operations, will be described.

[0045] Here, as shown in Fig. 5(A), the table data TD3 shows a specific example of the setting contents, and the table data TD3 is stored in the setting device SD, and the correspondence between the pins constituting each of the multi-pole wireless devices 10A and 10B is set according to an instruction from the setting device SD. Furthermore, the operation of the setting of each pin is checked based on the setting device SD. That is, in the multi-pole wireless system 100 of this embodiment, the setting device SD functions as a setting unit that sets communication between one multi-pole wireless device 10A and another multi-pole wireless device 10B.

[0046] As described above, when the pin correspondence is set in each of the multi-pole wireless devices 10A and 10B based on the table data TD3 stored in the setting device SD, a check is further made to see if communication is performed according to the correspondence, that is, a check is made on the operation of the communication. Here, as an example, a free pin that is not used in each of the multi-pole wireless devices 10A and 10B (here, pin α of the multi-pole wireless device 10A) is used. 39 ) and pin β of multi-pole radio device 10B 40 A case will be described in which the above confirmation is performed by shorting each of the multi-pole wireless devices 10A, 10B using a short-circuit current (assuming that both terminals are vacant) so that, as shown in FIG. 5(B), a detection on / off signal is output from the setting device SD to the multi-pole wireless device 10A, then from the multi-pole wireless device 10A to the multi-pole wireless device 10B, and further from the multi-pole wireless device 10B to the setting device SD.

[0047] First, in the table data TD3 shown in FIG. 5(A), the pin α 1 and Pin β 2 In this case, the multi-pole wireless device 10A has a switching unit SW, and the pin α 1 and Pin Alpha 39 Similarly, in the multi-pole wireless device 10B, the pin β 2 and Pin β 40The input terminal 13 and the output terminal 14 are connected so that they are short-circuited.

[0048] In the above-mentioned situation, as shown in FIG. 5B, the setting device SD is connected to the pin α 39 When an on / off signal for inspection is output to pin α (step 1), the multi-pole wireless device 10A 39 Pin α, which is short-circuited and receives this at 1 The on / off signal flows to pin α (step 2). 1 In step 3, when the multi-pole radio device 10B receives the signal from the radio unit 11 of the multi-pole radio device 10A, if the correspondence based on the table data TD3 is established as set, the pin α 1 The signal from pin β 2 The pin β is accepted and restored. 2 If restoration is performed at pin β 2 Pin β shorted to 40 The on / off signal flows to pin β (step 4). 40 The signal from the input pin β is transmitted from the radio unit 11 of the multi-pole radio device 10B and is received by the setting device SD (step 5). 40 The signal by pin α 39 The signal transmitted to the target device is compared with the signal transmitted to the target device to determine whether or not the wireless communication has been established (step 6).

[0049] An example of switching of wireless connection between the multi-pole wireless devices 10A and 10B will be described below with reference to Fig. 6. Here, as a typical example, a case will be described in which, when communication has been established between the multi-pole wireless device 10A and the multi-pole wireless device 10B, the old multi-pole wireless device 10B is switched (replaced) with a new multi-pole wireless device 10B' to establish new communication. When such new communication is established, a process related to pin setting as illustrated in Fig. 5 is also performed.

[0050] In Fig. 6, it is assumed that the multi-pole wireless device 10A shown by the solid line and the multi-pole wireless device 10B shown by the dashed line are wirelessly connected in the correspondence relationship shown in the table data TDx, and the state is switched from this state to the multi-pole wireless device 10A and the multi-pole wireless device 10B' shown by the solid line being wirelessly connected in the correspondence relationship shown in the table data TDz. More specifically, the pin α 1 ~α n The corresponding communication destination is pin β of the multi-pole wireless device 10B. 1 ~β n to pin β' of multi-pole wireless device 10B' 1 ~β′ n The above-mentioned series of switching processes may be performed based on an instruction from a setting device SD having table data TDx and table data TDz. Also, in the case of the switching, the newly associated pin α 1 ~α n and pin β' 1 ~β′ n It is checked whether communication is being carried out according to the corresponding relationship between them.

[0051] Hereinafter, with reference to the flow chart shown in Fig. 7, an example of a series of processes when setting becomes necessary (at the time of setting) as in the cases exemplified in Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 will be described. As described with reference to Fig. 5, here, first, pins are associated based on the setting device SD (or table data TD3 stored in the setting device SD), and then communication operation is confirmed.

[0052] Here, an example of the pin association process will be described with reference to FIG. 7. FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining pin setting in each multi-pole wireless device 10 (10A, 10B). As shown in FIG. 7, the multi-pole wireless device 10 waits for a setting command from the setting device SD (step S301), and when it receives the setting command (step S301: Yes), it sets the first pin out of the multiple settings (step S302). When the first pin setting is completed, it is confirmed whether all the settings are completed (step S303). If not completed (step S303: No), it sets the next pin (step S304). When the pin setting is completed, it is confirmed again whether all the settings are completed (step S303). The above operation is repeated until all the settings are completed (step S303: Yes), and after completion, a series of processes is terminated. The above operation is performed in each of the multi-pole wireless device 10A and the multi-pole wireless device 10B.

[0053] Next, a series of processes for confirming the communication operation will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in Fig. 8. Fig. 8(A) is a flowchart for explaining the operation in the setting device SD, and Fig. 8(B) is a flowchart for explaining the operation in each multipolar wireless device 10 (10A, 10B).

[0054] First, as shown in Fig. 8A, the setting device SD extracts pin setting information corresponding to the pin correspondence explained with reference to Fig. 7 from the table data (step S401), and identifies the first setting target pin (step S402). 1 and Pin β 2This corresponds to the above. Next, the setting device SD transmits (outputs) an on / off signal for inspection to the specified setting target pin (step S403), and continues to wait for a response from the multi-pole wireless device 10 (step S404). If there is a response (step S404: Yes) before a predetermined time has elapsed (step S405), the setting device SD compares the on / off signal output in step S403 with the response signal (step S406) and checks whether the content is within an allowable range (step S407). If there is no problem in the comparison in step S407 (step S407: Yes), the setting device SD checks whether the inspection is completed for all pin settings (step S408), and if not completed (step S408: No), it identifies the next setting target pin and performs the operation from step S403 for the newly identified target. On the other hand, if it is confirmed in step S408 that the inspection has been completed for all pin settings (step S408: Yes), the setting device SD ends the series of processes related to checking the communication operation.

[0055] If there is no response from the multi-pole wireless device 10 even after a predetermined time has elapsed in step S405 (step S405: Yes), or if the result of the comparison in step S407 is that the contents are not within the allowable range (step S407: No), the setting device SD records an error as a problem with the setting location (step S410). In this case, for example, it is possible to check the error location using a different method.

[0056] Next, with reference to FIG. 8(B), an example of the operation of each of the multi-polar radio devices 10A, 10B corresponding to the operation of the setting device SD described above will be described.

[0057] First, each of the multi-pole wireless devices 10A and 10B checks whether or not it has received an inspection on-off signal from the setting device SD or another multi-pole wireless device 10 (step S501). In the case of FIG. 5, the multi-pole wireless device 10A waits for a signal from the setting device SD, and the multi-pole wireless device 10B waits for a signal from the multi-pole wireless device 10A.

[0058] When the corresponding signal is received in step S501, the multi-pole wireless device 10 (10A, 10B) identifies the pin to be set from among its own pins from the received signal (step S502), identifies the pin to be output by short-circuiting (step S503), and performs output according to the pin identified in step S503 (step S504). By performing the above operations in the multi-pole wireless device 10A or multi-pole wireless device 10B in Fig. 5, the inspection on-off signal output from the setting device SD in step S403 in Fig. 7 is output again to the setting device SD and is received as a response signal in step S404.

[0059] In the manner described above, pin settings and confirmation of operations corresponding to the pin settings are performed in the multi-pole wireless system 100.

[0060] Here, in the above example, for the sake of simplicity, a configuration has been described in which two pieces of equipment EQ1, EQ2 are provided with a total of two multi-pole wireless devices 10A, 10B, one each, to establish wireless communication between the two pieces of equipment, as illustrated in FIG. 1, but the multi-pole wireless system 100 can also be applied to three or more pieces of equipment.

[0061] FIG. 9 is a conceptual diagram showing another example of the multi-pole wireless system 100. In the illustrated example, three pieces of equipment EQ1, EQ2, and EQ3 each have two multi-pole wireless devices 10A, totaling six. 1 ,10A 2 ,10B 1 ,10B 2 ,10C 1 ,10C 2The three facilities EQ1, EQ2, and EQ3 are provided with wireless communication between each other. More specifically, the multi-pole wireless device 10A 1 and multi-pole radio device 10B 1 Thus, wireless communication is established between the equipment EQ1 and the equipment EQ2, and the multi-pole wireless device 10A 2 and multi-pole radio device 10C 2 Thus, wireless communication is established between the equipment EQ1 and the equipment EQ3, and the multi-pole wireless device 10B 2 and multi-pole radio device 10C 1 In this way, wireless communication is established between the equipment EQ2 and the equipment EQ3. 1 For multiple pins constituting the above, it is possible to change (arbitrarily change) the correspondence as shown in FIG. 2(A) and FIG. 2(B).

[0062] In the above embodiment, the monitoring device 50 includes six multi-pole wireless devices 10A 1 ,10A 2 ,10B 1 ,10B 2 ,10C 1 ,10C 2 By capturing the electromagnetic waves emitted, it is possible to monitor the communication status of all of the above at once.

[0063] Hereinafter, an application example of the above-mentioned multi-pole wireless system 100 will be described with reference to Fig. 10 etc. Here, an example of application of the multi-pole wireless system 100 to an interlocking device LT will be described. Note that Fig. 10(A) is a diagram of a comparative example, showing a case where each device is connected by wire, not wirelessly.

[0064] In the comparative example shown in Fig. 10(A), the devices (facilities) constituting the interlocking device LT were connected by wired metal cables MC. In this case, for example, when replacing (switching) the devices, it was necessary to replace the metal cables MC, and the pin connections in the metal cables MC were fixed, making it impossible to adjust the connection destinations (communication destinations) on a pin-by-pin basis. In addition, the maintenance of the metal cables MC themselves was costly, and furthermore, monitoring during operation was not easy.

[0065] In contrast, in the case of this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 10(B), for example, instead of the metal cable MC in the case of Fig. 10(A), the devices (facilities) are wirelessly connected using a multi-pole wireless system 100, thereby making it possible to avoid or suppress the above problems. That is, in the interlocking device LT as the target facility to which the multi-pole wireless device 10 is attached, the multi-pole wireless device 10 having a wireless unit 11 (see Fig. 1, etc.) transmits control signals and display information in the railway as telegrams, thereby improving convenience.

[0066] For example, as shown in Figures 10(C) and 10(D), when communication has been established between a multi-pole wireless device 10A and a multi-pole wireless device 10B, the old multi-pole wireless device 10B is switched (replaced) with a new multi-pole wireless device 10B' to establish new communication, which makes it easy to respond to the switching (replacement) of each device (equipment) that constitutes the interlocking device LT.

[0067] Also, as shown in FIG. 11, for example, when applied to an interlocking device LT, the monitoring device 50 can collectively monitor the entire communication situation.

[0068] Furthermore, if we look at the above from a different perspective, it becomes possible to change an interlocking device LT that is in a configuration such as that shown in the comparative example of Figure 10(A) to that shown in Figure 10(B) without introducing any major equipment, etc.

[0069] Hereinafter, an overview of the multi-pole wireless device 10 constituting the multi-pole wireless system 100 of this embodiment will be described with reference to a conceptual diagram shown in FIG.

[0070] As described above and illustrated, the multi-pole radio device 10 of this embodiment is connected to the equipment EQ at the connection unit CN, takes in multiple types of information handled by the equipment EQ, and generates a telegram TE for the taken-in information by the telegram generation unit 15. At this time, the communication destination to which the telegram TE is to be sent can be selected for each of the multiple types of information, and the telegram TE is also created according to the communication destination and wirelessly transmitted via the wireless unit 11. As described above, the multi-pole radio device 10 can improve the convenience of selecting a communication method.

[0071] As described above, the multi-pole wireless device 10 of the present embodiment includes a connection unit CN that is connected to the equipment EQ and transmits and receives multiple types of information related to the equipment EQ, a message generating unit 15 that generates a message TE to a communication destination that can be selected for each of the multiple types of information, and a wireless unit 11 that transmits the message TE wirelessly. As a result, when transmitting the message TE wirelessly, the multi-pole wireless device 10 is able to select each of the multiple types of information related to the equipment EQ that is the source. As a result, it is possible to improve the convenience of selecting a communication method, for example, compared to a wired connection in which the communication destination is connected in a fixed one-to-one manner.

[0072] Moreover, the multi-pole wireless system 100 of the present embodiment includes a plurality of the multi-pole wireless devices 10, a setting device SD as a setting unit that sets communication between one multi-pole wireless device 10 and another multi-pole wireless device 10, and a monitoring device 50 as a monitoring unit that monitors the communication state between the one multi-pole wireless device 10 and another multi-pole wireless device 10. By including the multi-pole wireless device 10, the multi-pole wireless system 100 can improve convenience in selecting a communication method compared to the case of a wired connection.

[0073] Second Embodiment Hereinafter, a configuration example of a multi-pole wireless device and a multi-pole wireless system including the same according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to a conceptual diagram shown in Fig. 13. Fig. 13 corresponds to Fig. 2, and is similar to the first embodiment except for the wireless connection state between one multi-pole wireless device 10 and another multi-pole wireless device 10. Therefore, the matters described in the first embodiment will be appropriately used as necessary, and the overall configuration diagram and description will be omitted.

[0074] 13, this embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that one multi-pole wireless device 10A is associated with multiple (three) multi-pole wireless devices 10B, 10C, and 10D. More specifically, in the illustrated example, as shown in the table data TDm, multiple (n) pins α constituting the multi-pole wireless device 10A are associated with each other. 1 ~α n The three multi-pole wireless devices 10B, 10C, and 10D are connected to a plurality of (m) pins β 1 ~β m Or multiple (q) pins γ 1 ~γ q , multiple (p) pins δ 1 ~δ p In this way, by allowing multiple pin association patterns, it is possible to provide more diversity and perform wireless communication in various modes.

[0075] In the above embodiment, for example, the pin α associated between the multi-pole wireless device 10A and the multi-pole wireless device 10B may be 1 ,α 2 and Pin β 1 ,β 3 Regarding the above, as in the case described with reference to FIG. 3, a unified message may be generated by packaging the presence or absence of changes in multiple types of information per unit time as a single set of data.

[0076] In the present embodiment, the multi-pole wireless device 10 is provided, so that the convenience in selecting a communication method can be improved compared to the case of a wired connection. In particular, the present embodiment can provide an increased degree of freedom in the connection mode.

[0077] 〔others〕 The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be embodied in various forms without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

[0078] First, in the above, the interlocking device LT has been given as an example of an application, but the multi-pole wireless device 10 and the multi-pole wireless system 100 including the same can be applied to anything that requires communication between facilities, not limited to the interlocking device LT.

[0079] Moreover, the above-mentioned various aspects can be configured in various combinations as long as there are no contradictions.

[0080] Also, for example, evenly spaced time T i The time T can be set in various ways. For example, in the interlocking device LT, it is possible to set the communication speed to about 1 ms when relaying. In this case, it is possible to maintain a sufficiently high detection speed while preventing delays in data communication processing. i The presence or absence of change in time at both ends of time T i If the presence or absence of a change between the signal levels is determined, signals that are too small and considered to be noise can be removed. [Explanation of symbols]

[0081] 10, 10A, 10B, 10C, 10D, 10A 1 ,10A 2 ,10B 1 ,10B 2 ,10C 1 ,10C 2...Multi-pole wireless device, 11...wireless section, 12...setting and recording section, 13...input section, 14...output section, 15...telegram generating section, 50...monitoring device, 100...multi-pole wireless system, CN...connection section, EQ, EQ1, EQ2, EQ3...equipment, LT...interlocking device, MC...metal cable, R1, R2, R3...signal, S1, S2, S3...signal, SD...setting device, SSα...list, SW...switching section, T, T 1 ,T 2 ,T 3 ,T i ...time, TD1, TD2, TD3, TDm, TDx, TDz...table data, TE, TE1~TE5...telegram, t 0 ,t 1 ,t 2 ...Time, α 1 ~α n …Pin, β 1 ~β n …pin, γ 1 ~γ q … pin, δ 1 ~δ p …pin

Claims

1. a connection unit connected to a facility and configured to transmit and receive a plurality of types of information related to the facility; a message generating unit for generating a message to a communication destination selectable for each of the plurality of types of information; a wireless unit for transmitting the message by wireless; A multi-pole radio device comprising:

2. The multi-contact radio device according to claim 1 , wherein the electronic message generating unit generates the electronic message by unifying the plurality of types of information.

3. The multi-polar radio device according to claim 2 , wherein the electronic message generating unit generates the electronic message by packaging, as a set of data, whether or not the plurality of types of information have changed for each unit time.

4. The multi-polar radio device according to claim 3 , wherein the electronic message generating unit generates the electronic message by packaging, as a set of data, any information that has changed among the plurality of types of information for each unit time.

5. The equipment includes an interlocking device, 2. The multi-pole radio device according to claim 1, wherein the radio unit transmits a control signal in a railway as the telegram.

6. A plurality of multi-pole wireless devices according to any one of claims 1 to 5 are provided, A setting unit that performs communication setting between one of the multi-pole wireless devices and another of the multi-pole wireless devices; a monitoring unit that monitors a communication state between one of the multi-pole wireless devices and another of the multi-pole wireless devices; A multi-pole radio system comprising:

7. The multi-pole wireless system according to claim 6 , wherein the setting unit collectively monitors communication settings between the plurality of multi-pole wireless devices.

8. The multi-pole wireless system according to claim 6 , wherein the monitoring unit monitors a communication state by capturing electromagnetic waves emitted during wireless communication between one of the multi-pole wireless devices and another of the multi-pole wireless devices.

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