Communication device, communication method, and program

Abstract

To provide a communication device which is adapted to real-time communication with a reduced cost.SOLUTION: A communication device according to an embodiment includes: a communicator for receiving a telegraphic message to control a light via a base station with the use of a wireless network; a master station for connecting the wireless network to a power line network by bridge connection with the communicator, so as to acquire the telegraphic message from the communicator; and a slave station for acquiring the telegraphic message from the master station with the use of the power line network by connecting a primary side to the master station, and controlling the light based on the telegraphic message by connecting a secondary side to a switch corresponding to the light.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a communication device, a communication method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Airports are equipped with numerous lighting devices to assist aircraft navigation. For example, some lighting devices are installed on buildings and other facilities to assist aircraft flight in poor visibility conditions, such as at night, while others are installed on runways and taxiways to assist in guiding aircraft taking off and landing. These lights are connected to a control system that controls their on / off status, as well as a core break detection system that detects when a light device has become unlit due to a broken core.

[0003] Therefore, at airports, large amounts of cables are laid over vast areas to light the lights installed on runways and taxiways. However, these require not only the cost of the cables themselves, but also construction costs for civil engineering work, piping work, cable laying work, work related to broken core detection systems, and work to establish redundancy to ensure continued operation in the event of a failure, and can take a long time to complete.

[0004] In addition, systems known as power line carrier communications systems, in which the power lines that supply power to lights also serve as the communications medium for monitoring and controlling the lights, are widely used in stop line light systems (STBLs) that turn lights on and off to guide aircraft on the ground, runway status light systems (RWSLs), and for detecting broken light cores. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-189802 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The objects to be monitored and controlled include those installed on the ground, such as lights, as well as those buried underground. The placement of antennas that send and receive control signals poses a problem when wireless communication is required for buried antennas. This means that it is necessary to consolidate communication networks to accommodate both real-time and non-real-time communications, such as those for monitoring and control, while also ensuring stable communication performance, while avoiding interference with aircraft traveling on the ground.

[0007] The embodiments of the present invention have been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and have an object to provide a communication device, a communication method, and a program that are suitable for real-time communication and can keep costs low. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] A communication device according to one embodiment includes a communication device that uses a wireless network to receive a message to control a light via a base station, a parent station that connects the wireless network to a power line network via a bridge connection with the communication device and acquires the message from the communication device, and a child station that connects its primary side to the parent station, acquires the message from the parent station using the power line network, and connects its secondary side to a switch corresponding to the light, thereby controlling the light based on the message. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an example of the configuration of a monitoring and control system including a communication device according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the layout of a unique IP network, a base station, and an IP communication device. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a communication device according to an embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of network slicing in which the network is sliced ​​according to response performance. [Figure 5]FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of communication control in power line communication. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating another example of communication control in power line communication. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a light control process in a communication device according to an embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating another example of a communication device according to an embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating another example of a communication device according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, a communication device, a communication method, and a program according to an embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the scale of each part in the drawings used to explain the following embodiments has been changed as appropriate. Also, in the drawings used to explain the following embodiments, configurations may be omitted as appropriate for the sake of explanation.

[0011] FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an example of the configuration of a monitoring and control system including a communication device according to an embodiment.

[0012] The monitoring and control system 100 shown in Figure 1 is a system that manages lights and sensors installed in fields such as airport runways and taxiways, and is interconnected with a power source 200, multiple other systems 400, a vehicle 500 equipped with multiple IP communication devices, and multiple terminals 600 using wired or wireless communication.

[0013] The monitoring and control system 100 includes, for example, a host device 110, a controller 120, a unique IP network 130, a base station 140, and a communication device 150. The host device 110 is a device that manages messages (control commands, status, abnormality information, etc.) related to the monitoring and control of lights 155 and sensors 156 (described later). These messages are collected and processed by the controller 120. The controller 120 controls the lights 155 and sensors 156 based on instructions included in the messages from the host device 110.

[0014] Furthermore, the controller 120 is interconnected with other systems 400, base stations 140, and communication devices 150 using a proprietary IP network 130, which is a wireless network unique to the monitoring and control system 100. For example, the proprietary IP network 130 is a local 5G communication system. Note that the proprietary IP network 130 is not limited to local 5G, and may be private 5G, which is a nearly dedicated wireless network provided by a telecommunications carrier.

[0015] When using local 5G, measures such as preventing radio wave leakage outside the premises are required, so this embodiment assumes the layout shown in Figure 2. Figure 2 is a diagram showing an example of the layout configuration of a proprietary IP network, base stations, and IP communication devices.

[0016] For example, areas A, B, C, and D are constructed via a proprietary IP network 130. In areas A and B, base stations 140 with adjusted radio wave output according to the area where communication is required and multiple IP communication devices 151 are distributed and arranged. In areas C and D, a distributed antenna system 160 is used to expand the antenna of base station 140, thereby flexibly distributing multiple IP communication devices 151 and the area where communication is required.

[0017] The base station 140 acquires a message for controlling the light 155 and the sensor 156 from the controller 120 via the unique IP network 130 and transmits it to the communication device 150 .

[0018] Next, a detailed configuration of the communication device 150 will be described with reference to Fig. 1 and Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a communication device according to an embodiment.

[0019] The communication device 150 includes an IP communication device 151, a PLC master station 152, a PLC slave station 153, a switch 154, a light 155, and a sensor 156. The IP communication device 151 is connected to the base station 140 and the PLC master station 152 via a wireless network. The PLC master station 152, the PLC slave station 153, the switch 154, the light 155, the sensor 156, and the power source 200 are connected via power lines.

[0020] The power supply 200 is, for example, a constant current power supply device, and supplies power to the PLC master station 152, the PLC slave station 153, the switch 154, the light 155, and the sensor 156. The PLC master station 152, the PLC slave station 153, the switch 154, the light 155, and the sensor 156 are configured to be able to send and receive messages to and from each other via power line communications.

[0021] The IP communication device 151 receives messages for controlling the lights and sensors from the controller 120 via the base station using the proprietary IP network 130, which is a wireless network. The IP communication device 151 also transmits messages notifying the occurrence of an abnormality in the lights 155 to the controller 120 and the higher-level device 110 via the base station 140. When the sensor 156 detects an aircraft 300 or a vehicle in the field, the IP communication device 151 transmits messages notifying the detection to the controller 120 and the higher-level device 110 via the base station 140.

[0022] In addition, the IP communication device 151 may be attached to any part of the sensor 156, in which case the sensor 156 may be configured to communicate wirelessly directly with the higher-level device 110 and the controller 120 via the base station 140, without going through the PLC master station 152 and the PLC slave station 153.

[0023] Furthermore, the IP communication device 151 is placed at any point in the field. For example, the antenna of the IP communication device 151 may be placed on the aircraft 300 or at a point that is less susceptible to rainfall or snowfall. This makes it possible to prevent communication from becoming unstable due to the effects of radio wave attenuation, etc. The IP communication device 151 is an example of a communication device.

[0024] The PLC master station 152 is connected to a plurality of PLC slave stations 153 via power lines. The PLC master station 152 is also bridge-connected to the IP communication device 151, and the power line network used by the PLC master station 152 is connected to the wireless network used by the IP communication device 151, whereby the PLC master station 152 acquires (receives) messages from the IP communication device 151. That is, the IP communication device 151 transmits messages for controlling lights and sensors to the PLC master station 152 via the bridge connection with the PLC master station 152.

[0025] The PLC master station 152 transmits a message to the PLC slave station 153 connected to the light 155 to be controlled based on information contained in the message, such as a light identifier. The PLC master station 152 also transmits a message to the PLC slave station 153 connected to the sensor 156 to be controlled based on information contained in the message, such as a sensor identifier. The PLC master station 152 is an example of a master station.

[0026] One side (primary side) of the PLC slave station 153 is connected to the PLC master station 152, and the other side (secondary side) is connected to a switch 154 corresponding to a lamp 155. Another PLC slave station 153 connects to a sensor 156 on the secondary side.

[0027] The PLC slave station 153 obtains a message including the light identifier of the light 155 to be controlled from the PLC master station 152 using the power line network. The destination of the message may be determined in advance by the PLC master station 152 from the light identifier, or the PLC master station 152 may simultaneously transmit the light identifier to multiple PLC slave stations 153, and in response to a response from the PLC slave station 153 connected to the light that matches the light identifier, transmit a message to the PLC slave station 153 to which the light to be controlled is connected.

[0028] The PLC slave station 153 controls the switch 154 based on the acquired message to perform on / off control of the light 155 to be controlled. By performing on / off control of the plurality of lights 155, guidance to the aircraft 300 is performed.

[0029] The PLC slave station 153 obtains a message including the sensor identifier of the sensor 156 to be controlled from the PLC master station 152 using the power line network. The destination of the message may be determined in advance by the PLC master station 152 from the sensor identifier, or the sensor identifier may be simultaneously transmitted to multiple PLC slave stations 153, and a message for controlling the sensor may be transmitted to the PLC slave station 153 to which the sensor to be controlled is connected in response to a response from the PLC slave station 153 connected to the sensor that matches the sensor identifier.

[0030] The PLC slave station 153 performs detection control of the sensor 156 to be controlled based on the acquired message. When the sensor 156 performing detection processing through detection control detects the aircraft 300, the PLC slave station 153 acquires a message including detection information from the sensor 156 and transmits it to the PLC master station 152. By performing detection control on multiple sensors 156, it is possible to know the field position information of the aircraft 300 and time information associated with the position information. The PLC slave station 153 is an example of a slave station.

[0031] Next, network slicing used in the network of this embodiment will be described. Fig. 4 is a diagram for explaining an example of network slicing sliced ​​according to response performance. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of communication control in power line communication. Fig. 6 is a diagram showing another example of communication control in power line communication.

[0032] The local 5G assumed in the communication system of this embodiment can apply network slicing technology as shown in Fig. 4 according to the response performance required by the system. Network slicing has a network slicing identifier for network resources defined according to required performance such as large capacity, low latency, and multiple connections.

[0033] The network slicing identifier, called S-NSSAI (Signal Network Slice Selection Assistance Information), consists of 32 bits: 8 bits of SST (Slice / Service Type) that indicate slice behavior for functions and services, and 24 bits of SD (Slice Differentiator) to distinguish multiple slices in the same SST. The network slicing identifier can be set to values ​​other than those defined in the standard.

[0034] Generally, low latency performance is a required performance for the monitoring and control system 100, but the required performance is not constant depending on the application field (lighting circuit in this embodiment). In this embodiment, which bridges an IP communication device 151 that uses a wireless network and a PLC master station 152 that uses a power line network, messages are multi-staged between the base station 140, IP communication device 151, PLC master station 152, and PLC slave station 153, and it is expected that the response characteristics until the switch 154 and the light 155 are controlled will differ.

[0035] By extending and applying the network slicing identifier to the PLC side as shown in Figure 4, it becomes possible to control the PLC operation pattern so as to guarantee the response time of the lighting circuit to which it is applied. In other words, by applying the definition of response characteristics that differ for each application to networks other than local 5G, it becomes possible to efficiently manage and operate the system end-to-end.

[0036] The operation on the PLC side will now be described. The PLC slave station 153 requests a network slicing identifier from the PLC master station 152, the network slicing identifier being defined based on the requested response performance required to control the lamp 155 and the switch 154 connected to the secondary side using the power line network. That is, the PLC slave station 153 transmits the requested network slicing identifier to the PLC master station 152.

[0037] The PLC master station 152 receives the requested network slicing identifier and transmits it to the IP communication device 151. The IP communication device 151 transmits the requested network slicing identifier from the local 5G 5G network to the data network via the base station 140.

[0038] In the data network, a network slicing identifier is defined based on the requested response performance included in the requested network slicing identifier. The PLC master station 152 acquires the defined network slicing identifier from the IP communication device 151 via the 5G network and the base station 140.

[0039] The PLC parent station 152 obtains a network slicing identifier defined based on the requested response performance included in the requested network slicing identifier from the IP communication device 151, and assigns (applies) the network slicing identifier to the PLC child station 153 corresponding to the light 155.

[0040] The PLC master station 152 may adapt to the PLC slave station 153 corresponding to the light 155 or the sensor 156 by varying the operating patterns of multiple modulation / demodulation based on a network slicing identifier defined based on the response characteristics of modulation / demodulation, such as a network slicing identifier defined to ensure a fast response time by using short symbols of modulation / demodulation 1 as shown in Figure 5 and targeting a communication band with low noise, or a network slicing identifier defined to ensure a slow response time even in the presence of noise by using long symbols of modulation / demodulation 2.

[0041] In addition, the PLC master station 152 may adapt to the PLC slave station 153 corresponding to the light 155 or the sensor 156 by varying the operating pattern from the channel resulting from the carrier frequency based on a network slicing identifier defined based on the response characteristics of different carrier frequencies, as in the modem 12 shown in Figure 5. By using different carrier frequencies as in the modem 12, it becomes possible to communicate, for example, through multiple channels for switch control and sensor information with different response characteristics.

[0042] PLC master station 152 may also adapt to PLC slave station 153 corresponding to light 155 or sensor 156 by changing the channel resulting from the carrier frequency to a pattern in which multiple channels operate simultaneously based on a network slicing identifier defined based on the different response characteristics of modulation / demodulation 1 and modulation / demodulation 2 as shown in Fig. 5. By using different carrier frequencies in modulation / demodulation 1 and modulation / demodulation 2 to multi-channel communication, it becomes possible to obtain the same response characteristics in parallel.

[0043] 6, when the transmission output of the PLC affects the response time due to constraints on the available power resource (capacity), the PLC transmission distance, or the number of PLC slave stations 153 accommodated, the PLC master station 152 may vary the operation pattern of the transmission output based on a network slicing identifier defined based on the response characteristics of the transmission output to adapt to the PLC slave station 153 corresponding to the light 155 or the sensor 156. These can be accommodated by multi-staged the PLC transmission output using the network slicing identifier.

[0044] Next, a light control process of the communication device 150 will be described with reference to Fig. 7. Fig. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of a light control process in a communication device according to an embodiment.

[0045] The light control process is started at any time. When the light control process is started, the IP communication device 151 included in the communication device 150 uses the wireless network to determine whether it has received a message for controlling the light from the controller 120 via a base station (step S1). If the IP communication device 151 determines that it has received a message for controlling the light (step S1, YES), it transmits the received message for controlling the light to the PLC master station 152 using the wireless network and the power line network connected by a bridge connection with the PLC master station 152. The IP communication device 151 remains in a standby state until it determines that it has received a message for controlling the light (step S1, NO).

[0046] Next, the PLC master station 152 determines whether a message has been received from the IP communication device 151 (step S2). If the PLC master station 152 determines that a message has been received from the IP communication device 151 (step S2, YES), it transmits the message to the PLC slave station 153 connected to the light 155 to be controlled (step S3). Note that if a message has not been received from the IP communication device 151 for a certain period of time after the processing of step S1 (step S2, NO), the processing returns to step S1.

[0047] After the process of step S3, the PLC slave station 153 acquires a message for controlling the light 155 to be controlled from the PLC master station 152 using the power line network, and controls the turning on and off of the light 155 based on the message (step S4). After the process of step S4 ends, the light control process by the communication device 150 ends. It is assumed that the light control process is performed in parallel for multiple lights 155.

[0048] Modified examples of the communication device 150 will be described with reference to Fig. 8 and Fig. 9. Fig. 8 is a block diagram showing another example of the communication device according to an embodiment. Fig. 9 is a block diagram showing another example of the communication device according to an embodiment.

[0049] 8, the communication device 150 includes a PLC relay slave station 157. When the transmission distance from the PLC master station 152 to the PLC slave station 153 is long, the PLC relay slave station 157 functions as a repeater, making it possible to extend the transmission distance.

[0050] 9, the communication device 150 includes a PLC relay slave station 157 that connects different power sources, power source 1 and power source 2. By connecting different power sources, the PLC relay slave station 157 makes it possible to extend the transmission distance without increasing the number of PLC master stations 152, even when there are multiple power sources.

[0051] As described above, the communication device, communication method, and program of the present embodiment are suitable for real-time communication and can keep costs low.

[0052] Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be embodied in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included within the scope and spirit of the invention, and are also included in the scope of the invention and its equivalents as defined in the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0053] 100...Monitoring and control systems 110...Host device 120...Controller 130…Original IP network 140...Base station 150...Communication equipment 151...IP communication device 152…PLC master station 153…PLC slave station 154...Switch 155...light 156...Sensor 157...PLC relay slave station 160...Distributed Antenna System 200…Power supply 300...Aircraft

Claims

1. A communication device that receives messages to control the lights via a base station using a wireless network; a master station that connects the wireless network and the power line network by a bridge connection with the communication device and acquires the telegram from the communication device; a slave station that connects a primary side to the master station to acquire the message from the master station using the power line network, and connects a secondary side to a switch corresponding to the lamp to control the lamp based on the message; A communication device comprising:

2. The slave station requests a network slicing identifier based on the request response performance of the corresponding light using the power line network; The communication device described in claim 1, wherein the parent station assigns the network slicing identifier to the child station corresponding to the light by obtaining a network slicing identifier defined based on the request response performance from the communication device using the wireless network.

3. The communication device described in claim 2, wherein the master station varies the operation patterns of the modulation and demodulation based on the network slicing identifier defined based on the response characteristics of the modulation and demodulation and applies them to the slave stations corresponding to the lights.

4. The communication device described in claim 2, wherein the master station varies its operating pattern from the channel resulting from the carrier frequency based on the network slicing identifier defined based on response characteristics depending on the carrier frequency to adapt to the slave station corresponding to the light.

5. The communication device described in claim 2, wherein the master station adapts to the slave station corresponding to the light by changing the channel resulting from the carrier frequency to a pattern in which multiple channels operate simultaneously based on the network slicing identifier defined based on different response characteristics.

6. The communication device according to claim 2, wherein the master station varies the operating pattern of the transmission output based on the network slicing identifier defined based on response characteristics according to the transmission output to adapt to the slave station corresponding to the light.

7. Using a wireless network, it receives messages to control the lights via a base station, acquiring the message from the wireless network by bridging the wireless network with the power line network; A communication method for controlling the light by controlling a switch connected to the light based on the acquired telegram.

8. A program for causing a computer to execute the communication method according to claim 7.

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