Industrial equipment systems, transmitting nodes, receiving nodes, communication methods

Abstract

We provide industrial equipment systems that enable stable communication in industrial settings. [Solution] An industrial equipment system 1 having multiple communicationable nodes comprises, among the multiple nodes, at least one transmitting node that transmits information includes a code addition unit 44 that adds an error correction code based on the data to be transmitted to the data to be transmitted, and a transmitting unit 45 that transmits the data to be transmitted and the error correction code; and among the multiple nodes that receive information includes a receiving unit 41 that receives the data to be transmitted and the error correction code transmitted by the transmitting unit 45, and an error correction unit 42 that corrects errors in the data to be transmitted based on the error correction code.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a system for industrial equipment and the like.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a home appliance including a master node and a plurality of slave nodes connected in series and in a ring shape to the master node. Examples of the slave nodes include sensors that measure various parameters of the home appliance and actuators that drive each part of the home appliance. By these slave nodes performing cooperative operations while communicating with the master node, the intended operation of the home appliance is realized.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] Unlike home appliances such as those in Patent Document 1, in an industrial equipment system used in an industrial site where products or services are produced or provided, relatively large industrial devices that make up the master node and slave nodes are individually procured, and installation, connection, and setting are mainly performed manually at the industrial site. Conventionally, industrial sites such as factories have a relatively stable communication environment compared to the outside, and the risk that communication between nodes is disrupted by noise or the like was low. However, due to the improvement of the communication function of each industrial device itself, the communication devices such as IoT devices installed together with them, and the increase in communication traffic of portable devices used by workers or the like at the industrial site, the communication environment at the industrial site may become unstable.

[0005] This disclosure is made in light of these circumstances and aims to provide industrial equipment systems that can achieve stable communication in industrial settings. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] To solve the above problems, an industrial equipment system in one aspect of the present disclosure is an industrial equipment system comprising a plurality of communicable nodes, wherein at least one transmitting node among the plurality of nodes that transmits information comprises a code addition unit that adds an error correction code based on the data to be transmitted to the data to be transmitted, and a transmitting unit that transmits the data to be transmitted and the error correction code. At least one receiving node among the plurality of nodes that receives information comprises a receiving unit that receives the data to be transmitted and the error correction code transmitted by the transmitting unit, and an error correction unit that corrects errors in the data to be transmitted based on the error correction code.

[0007] According to this embodiment, the receiving node can correct errors in the data to be transmitted based on the error correction code added by the transmitting node, thereby enabling stable communication in industrial settings.

[0008] Another aspect of the present disclosure is a transmitting node. This transmitting node transmits information within an industrial equipment system and comprises a coding unit that adds an error correction code based on the data to be transmitted to the data to be transmitted, and a transmitting unit that transmits the data to be transmitted and the error correction code to a receiving node that, together with the transmitting node, constitutes the industrial equipment system.

[0009] Another aspect of the present disclosure is a receiving node. This receiving node is a receiving node that receives information within an industrial equipment system and comprises a receiving unit that receives data to be transmitted and error correction codes based on said data to be transmitted, and an error correction unit that corrects errors in the data to be transmitted based on the error correction codes.

[0010] Another aspect of the present disclosure is a communication method. In a system for industrial equipment comprising a plurality of communicationable nodes, the method includes: at least one transmitting node among the plurality of nodes that transmits information affixing an error correction code based on the data to be transmitted to the data to be transmitted, and transmitting the data to be transmitted and the error correction code; and at least one receiving node among the plurality of nodes that receives information that receives the transmitted data to be transmitted and the error correction code, and correcting an error in the data to be transmitted based on the error correction code.

[0011] Furthermore, any combination of the above components, as well as any representations thereof converted into methods, apparatus, systems, recording media, computer programs, etc., are also included in this disclosure. [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] According to this disclosure, stable communication can be achieved in industrial settings. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0013] [Figure 1] This diagram schematically shows the overall configuration of an industrial equipment system. [Figure 2] This is a schematic functional block diagram of an industrial equipment system. [Figure 3] This diagram schematically shows the transmission information, which is a combination of the data to be transmitted and the error correction code. [Figure 4] This is a perspective view showing the overall structure of a linear transport system, which is an example of a system used in industrial equipment. [Figure 5] This shows the configuration of a printing device, which is an example of an industrial equipment system. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0014] The following describes in detail the forms (hereinafter also referred to as embodiments) for carrying out this disclosure, with reference to the drawings. In the description and / or drawings, identical or equivalent components, members, processes, etc., are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant descriptions are omitted. The scale and shape of the illustrated parts are set for convenience in order to simplify the description and are not to be interpreted restrictively unless otherwise specified. The embodiments are illustrative and do not limit the scope of this disclosure in any way. Not all features or combinations thereof presented in the embodiments are necessarily essential to this disclosure. For convenience, embodiments are presented by breaking them down into components for each function and / or group of functions that realize them. However, one component in an embodiment may actually be realized by a combination of multiple components as separate entities, and multiple components in an embodiment may actually be realized by a single component as a whole. Furthermore, multiple embodiments and modifications may be disclosed in parallel, and any components of each embodiment and / or modification may be combined in any manner as long as they do not interfere with each other's functions.

[0015] Figure 1 schematically shows the overall configuration of an industrial equipment system 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Specific application examples will be described later, but the industrial equipment system 1 comprises multiple communicable nodes. Specifically, the industrial equipment system 1 comprises a master node M and one or more slave nodes S connected in series and / or parallel and linearly by wire or wireless connection, with the master node M as the starting node. The master node M preferably functions as at least a transmitting node, and the slave nodes S preferably function as at least a receiving node, but it is even more preferable that both the master node M and the slave nodes S function as both transmitting and receiving nodes.

[0016] In the illustrated example, a single master node M acts as the starting node, and up to K slave node sequences are connected in parallel to its K (where K is any natural number) communication ports CP (for simplicity, the designation CP is applied only to the first communication port). Some of the K communication ports CP of the master node M do not need to be connected to slave nodes S or slave node sequences.

[0017] Each slave node row that can be connected to each communication port CP of the master node M comprises one or more slave nodes S. In the illustrated example, L (where L is any natural number) slave nodes S11, S12, ..., S1L are connected in series to the first communication port CP of the master node M, M (where M is any natural number) slave nodes S21, S22, ..., S2M are connected in series to the second communication port CP of the master node M, and N (where N is any natural number) slave nodes SK1, SK2, ..., SKN are connected in series to the Kth communication port CP of the master node M. In this way, multiple slave nodes S (or multiple slave node rows) may be connected in parallel to a single master node M.

[0018] Each slave node S has two communication ports: a starting communication port SP on the master node M side (left side in Figure 1) as the starting node (for simplicity, the code SP is only applied to slave node S11), and a ending communication port EP on the ending node side (slave nodes S1L, S2M, ..., SKN in each slave node row shown in the figure) (right side in Figure 1) (for simplicity, the code EP is only applied to slave node S11).

[0019] Here, the terminal nodes S1L, S2M, ..., SKN in each slave node row do not necessarily have to have a terminal communication port EP. However, from the viewpoint of standardization and flexibility in the placement of communication ports of the industrial equipment constituting each slave node S, it is preferable that substantially all industrial equipment (i.e., slave nodes S) incorporated into the industrial equipment system 1 are equipped with both a start-side communication port SP and a terminal-side communication port EP as standard.

[0020] In two adjacent (or directly connected) nodes in each slave node column, the terminal-side communication port EP of the node on the master node M side (when the node is the master node M itself, it is the communication port CM), and the start-side communication port SP of the node on the terminal node side are directly communicably connected by wire or wirelessly. Thus, a communication path is formed between two adjacent nodes. Then, by connecting such interconnected node pairs in series, a series communication path passing through a plurality of slave nodes S as illustrated in FIG. 1 is formed.

[0021] In such a series communication path, the direction in which information is transmitted is arbitrary and may be bidirectional or unidirectional. For example, in the first slave node column S11 to S1L, information may be transmitted in a unidirectional manner (right direction in FIG. 1) from the master node M to the terminal node S1L, or in a unidirectional manner (left direction in FIG. 1) from the terminal node S1L to the master node M, but it is preferably possible to transmit information in both directions. That is, it is preferable to form a bidirectional information transmission path or communication path between the master node M and the terminal node S1L.

[0022] The information transmitted on such a series communication path passes through all the nodes on the series communication path. For example, the information transmitted by the master node M to the terminal node S1L passes through all the slave nodes S11, S12, ···, S1(L - 1) (not shown) in the middle in order. Conversely, the information transmitted by the terminal node S1L to the master node M passes through all the slave nodes S1(L - 1) (not shown), ···, S12, S11 in the middle in order.

[0023] Each slave node S through which the information passes is an intermediate node located between the master node M, which acts as the starting node, and the ending node. Preferably, each intermediate node decodes the information passing through it, reads and writes the necessary information, then re-encodes it and transmits it to the next node. Here, encoding may include adding an error correction code, as described later, to the data to be transmitted, and decoding may include correcting errors in the data to be transmitted using the error correction code.

[0024] At least one of these intermediate nodes may function as a receiving node that receives information transmitted from the master node M and corrects errors using the error correction unit 42 described later, and may also function as a transmitting node that adds error correction codes to the data to be transmitted using the code addition unit 44 described later and transmits it to the terminal node. At least one of the terminal node and intermediate nodes may also function as a transmitting node that adds error correction codes to the data to be transmitted using the code addition unit 44 described later and transmits it to the master node M.

[0025] Furthermore, if a slave node S does not need to read or write the information passing through it, it may transmit or transfer the information to the next node without decoding or encoding it. In this case, the slave node S does not need to add error correction codes (encode) or correct errors in the data to be transmitted (decode).

[0026] In a serial communication path as described above, the main senders and receivers of information are the master node M as the starting node and the slave nodes S1L, S2M, ..., SKN, etc. as the ending nodes. However, any slave node S located in the middle of the serial communication path (i.e., not at the end) may also be the sender and / or receiver of information.

[0027] In the industrial equipment system 1 described above, typically one master node M and typically multiple slave nodes S are each installed in the same or different industrial equipment, and together constitute the industrial equipment system 1. The master node M may constitute the controller of the entire industrial equipment system 1, and each slave node S may be controlled at least partially by the master node M.

[0028] Control of each slave node S by such a master node M is performed based on various data communicated over series and / or parallel communication paths, as shown in Figure 1, which directly or indirectly connect the master node M and each slave node S. For example, the master node M may acquire status data indicating the state of each slave node S through the communication path, or it may provide appropriate control data to each slave node S through the communication path. In this way, the intended operation of the industrial equipment system 1 is realized by one or more slave nodes S cooperating while communicating with the master node M, which acts as the control entity.

[0029] Industrial equipment that includes a master node M and slave nodes S is equipment used for specific purposes in industrial sites that produce or provide various products and services. Specific examples of industrial equipment will be described later, but examples include boilers and prime movers, mining machinery, chemical machinery, environmental equipment, tanks, plastic machinery, hydraulic machinery, transport machinery, power transmission equipment, steelmaking machinery, commercial washing machines, and other industrial machinery, equipment, etc., used in industrial sites such as company factories, as well as semiconductor manufacturing equipment, machine tools, printing presses, and industrial robots.

[0030] The master node M and / or slave node S may correspond to the entirety of an industrial apparatus, or to individual parts (e.g., individual components) of an industrial apparatus. As an example of the latter, the master node M may be composed of a controller for an industrial apparatus, and the slave node S may be composed of drivers that drive motors inside and outside the industrial apparatus based on commands from the controller, or sensors that measure various parameters inside and outside the industrial apparatus and provide them to the controller.

[0031] A driver that can constitute a slave node S may drive the movable parts of the industrial equipment itself (for example, the joints of an industrial robot, the machining parts of a machine tool, or the table on which the workpiece is placed), or motors for driving the movable parts of control components such as relays and solenoid valves that control the operation of various parts of the industrial equipment. If the industrial equipment is a motor driver, the motor to be driven may be provided outside the motor driver as a slave node S (industrial equipment).

[0032] Sensors that can constitute a slave node S may include, for example, sensors that measure the position, speed, acceleration, etc., of an object driven by a driver that can constitute another slave node S (e.g., a table in a machine tool, a roll of paper unwound in a rotary printing press), sensors that measure other parameters of the object driven (e.g., the tension of the roll of paper or the pressure applied by the rollers), or sensors that measure parameters related to the environment in which the industrial equipment is operating (e.g., temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, brightness).

[0033] As described above, each of the various and / or numerous slave nodes S can be placed at any position in the series-parallel arrangement with respect to the master node M as shown in Figure 1. For example, if multiple identical industrial devices (here, inverters) are provided in the industrial equipment system 1, these multiple inverters may be aggregated on the same series communication path or distributed on different series communication paths.

[0034] In the latter case, different types of industrial equipment may be mixed on a single series communication path. However, as mentioned above, each node on the series communication path performs only the minimum necessary decoding or encoding of communication data unrelated to itself before forwarding it to the next stage, thus not hindering the intended operation of the industrial equipment system 1. Furthermore, as will be described later, each node may perform encoding and / or decoding of error correction codes. However, since the time required for this processing can be reduced to, for example, 1 μs or less by hardware implementation such as an FPGA, the time delay associated with relaying or transiting communication data at each node can be kept within a range that is practically negligible for the industrial equipment system 1.

[0035] Furthermore, some or all of the master node M and each slave node S may be located in different industrial sites, or in offices or data centers located away from industrial sites.

[0036] Figure 2 is a schematic functional block diagram of the industrial equipment system 1 according to this embodiment. In the example in Figure 2, each slave node S (in the example in Figure 2, the first slave node S1 and the second slave node S2, which are directly and in series connected) comprises a receiving unit 41, an error correction unit 42, a data processing unit 43, a code addition unit 44, and a transmission unit 45. The master node M comprises a setting information sharing unit 31 and a communication environment monitoring unit 32. Some of these functional blocks may be omitted as long as the industrial equipment system 1 can realize at least some of the operations and / or effects described exemplified below. These functional blocks may be realized by the cooperation of hardware resources such as the central processing unit, memory, input devices, output devices, and peripheral devices connected to the computer, and software executed using them (however, as will be described later, it is preferable that the functions of the error correction unit 42 and / or code addition unit 44 be implemented substantially by hardware alone). Regardless of the type or location of the computer, each of the above functional blocks may be implemented using the hardware resources of a single computer, or it may be implemented by combining hardware resources distributed across multiple computers.

[0037] Figure 2 shows a simplified arrangement example of each functional block 31-32 and 41-45, and this disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, at least a part of the configuration information sharing unit 31 and / or the communication environment monitoring unit 32 may be provided on the slave node S, or on a higher-level controller (not shown) outside the master node M and the slave node S.

[0038] Furthermore, in the example shown in Figure 2, information is transmitted from the left slave node S1 to the right slave node S2, but as mentioned above, information may also be transmitted from the right slave node S2 to the left slave node S1. In this case, in each slave node S, the receiving unit 41, error correction unit 42, data processing unit 43, code addition unit 44, and transmitting unit 45 are configured in order from the lower right terminal communication port EP to the lower left starting end communication port SP (not shown).

[0039] In other words, when each slave node S is configured to enable bidirectional communication, the functional groups of the receiving unit 41, error correction unit 42, data processing unit 43, code addition unit 44, and transmission unit 45 are provided in substantially two sets, corresponding to the respective communication directions. However, at least a portion of the hardware and / or software of the functional unit for one-way communication (e.g., code addition unit 44) and the similar functional unit for other-way communication (e.g., code addition unit 44 and error correction unit 42) may be shared.

[0040] Furthermore, although the example in Figure 2 shows that the master node M is not involved in the transmission and reception of information, as mentioned above, in reality the master node M is the main entity responsible for transmitting and receiving information. Therefore, although not shown in the diagram, the master node M can naturally also be equipped with the functions of the receiving unit 41, error correction unit 42, data processing unit 43, code addition unit 44, and transmission unit 45.

[0041] In each slave node S, the receiving unit 41 receives information (including the data to be transmitted and error correction codes, as described later) transmitted by the transmitting unit 45 (and the termination-side communication port EP) of the preceding node (master node M or slave node S) through the starting-side communication port SP. In this way, a node that receives information from the preceding node via the receiving unit 41 functions as a receiving node.

[0042] The error correction unit 42 demodulates or decodes the information received by the receiving unit 41 as necessary, and then corrects errors in the transmission data, which is the main body of the information, based on the error correction code described later.

[0043] The data processing unit 43 performs any processing, such as reading or writing, on the data to be transmitted whose errors have been corrected by the error correction unit 42. The data processing unit 43 may write a message indicating that the slave node S to which it belongs has confirmed the data to be transmitted, write status data of the slave node S, or write any notification data that the slave node S wishes to inform other nodes (especially the master node M). If the data processing unit 43 does not need to perform any processing on the data to be transmitted, not only the processing in the data processing unit 43 but also the processing by the error correction unit 42 and the code addition unit 44 described later (in particular, error correction decoding by the error correction unit 42 and error correction coding by the code addition unit 44) may be omitted.

[0044] The coding unit 44 adds an error correction code to the data to be transmitted, based on the data to be transmitted after processing by the data processing unit 43, as needed. As schematically shown in Figure 3, the coding unit 44 generates (or encodes) an error correction code 52 based on the data to be transmitted 51 to be sent to a subsequent node (slave node S or master node M), and adds it to the end of the data to be transmitted 51. This information 5, which is a combination of the data to be transmitted 51 and the error correction code 52, is transmitted to the subsequent node.

[0045] The transmitting unit 45 transmits, as needed, the data to be transmitted 51, which has been processed by the data processing unit 43, and the error correction code 52, which has been generated and added by the code addition unit 44, as a set, to the receiving unit 41 (and the starting communication port SP) of the subsequent node via the terminal communication port EP. In this way, a node that transmits information to a subsequent node via the transmitting unit 45 functions as a transmitting node.

[0046] As described above, any known error correction code can be used as the error correction code 52 that is encoded by the code addition unit 44 and decoded by the error correction unit 42, as long as it satisfies the requirements such as the processing delay allowed at each node. For example, the error correction code 52 may be a block code such as a Hamming code, a longitudinal and transverse parity code, a BCH code, a Reed-Solomon code, or a low-density parity check code, or it may be a convolutional code.

[0047] As described later, the error correction unit 42 and / or the code addition unit 44 are preferably implemented by hardware such as FPGAs or ASICs. However, in order to reduce the logic capacity of this hardware, it is preferable to use a functionally compressed convolutional code as the error correction code 52 as needed. By reducing the logic capacity (i.e., hardware size) in this way, the processing speed of the error correction unit 42 and / or the code addition unit 44 can be increased.

[0048] Generally, the encoding and decoding of error correction codes are often implemented primarily by software. However, as previously mentioned with respect to Figure 1, in industrial equipment system 1, where transmitted information passes through all intermediate nodes in the serial communication path, implementing the encoding and decoding of error correction codes at each intermediate node by software may fail to satisfy the temporal requirements for information transmission.

[0049] Therefore, in this embodiment, in order to reduce the time required for encoding and decoding the error correction code at each node, it is preferable that at least one (preferably both) of the code addition unit 44 and the error correction unit 42 is implemented substantially solely by hardware. Specifically, it is preferable that the code addition unit 44 and / or the error correction unit 42 be implemented by programmed or designed specific functional hardware such as an FPGA (field-programmable gate array) or an ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit).

[0050] The processing time of at least one of the code addition unit 44 and / or error correction unit 42 implemented by such specific functional hardware is, for example, 1 μs or less, preferably the total processing time of the code addition unit 44 and error correction unit 42 is 1 μs or less, and more preferably the total processing time at each node is 1 μs or less. In contrast, if the code addition unit 44 and / or error correction unit 42 are implemented by software, a processing time (significantly larger than 1 μs) that is practically unacceptable for the industrial equipment system 1 occurs at each node along the serial communication path.

[0051] Although the above hardware functions can be updated in software by the configuration information sharing unit 31, etc., as described later, when the encoding and / or decoding of the error correction code is actually performed, the hardware functions are (at least temporarily) fixed, so the encoding and / or decoding functions by the code addition unit 44 and / or error correction unit 42 are interpreted as being realized substantially by hardware alone.

[0052] The configuration information sharing unit 31, which is preferably provided on the master node M, shares configuration information regarding the error correction code 52 handled by the code addition unit 44 and the error correction unit 42 with the master node M (itself) and all of the multiple slave nodes S (Figure 1) connected to it in series and / or in parallel. Examples of configuration information regarding the error correction code 52 include the type of error correction code 52 as described above (e.g., convolutional code) and any parameters necessary for its encoding and / or decoding (e.g., code length, coding rate, constraint length, free distance, information count, parity check matrix).

[0053] The configuration information sharing unit 31 preferably shares configuration information regarding the error correction code 52 through one or more serial communication paths that directly or indirectly connect the master node M and each slave node S, as illustrated in Figure 1.

[0054] Furthermore, it is preferable that the configuration information sharing unit 31 shares or sets substantially the same configuration information (e.g., the type of error correction code 52 and various configuration parameters) for all of the master node M and the multiple slave nodes S connected to it in series and / or parallel. In this case, all nodes in the industrial equipment system 1 can operate smoothly according to a common error correction code scheme. However, theoretically, since encoding / decoding is possible if the error correction code scheme is shared between two adjacent nodes, the configuration information sharing unit 31 may share or set different configuration information for different pairs of adjacent nodes.

[0055] The code addition unit 44 at each node modifies the circuit configuration of an FPGA or the like as necessary based on the configuration information shared by the configuration information sharing unit 31, and adds an error correction code 52 based on the configuration information to the data to be transmitted 51. Similarly, the error correction unit 42 at each node modifies the circuit configuration of an FPGA or the like as necessary based on the configuration information shared by the configuration information sharing unit 31, and corrects errors in the data to be transmitted 51 based on the error correction code 52 based on the configuration information.

[0056] A communication environment monitoring unit 32, which may be provided on the master node M (or on the slave node S), monitors the communication environment between at least two nodes (preferably between all adjacent nodes). Examples of the communication environment to be monitored include environmental data such as noise, temperature, humidity, and brightness that may affect information transmission between adjacent nodes being monitored.

[0057] Such monitoring of the communication environment may be performed by the receiving unit 41 and / or transmitting unit 45 at the node to be monitored, or by sensors (not shown) that may be attached to the node, functioning as a communication environment monitoring unit 32. Preferably, the communication environment monitoring data that can be collected at each node in this way is shared with other nodes (in particular, a master node M where the main body of the communication environment monitoring unit 32 may be provided) through one or more serial communication paths that connect each node directly or indirectly, as illustrated in Figure 1.

[0058] The configuration information sharing unit 31 updates the configuration information according to the communication environment between each adjacent node monitored by the communication environment monitoring unit 32, and shares it with all nodes. For example, if noise becomes significantly large between at least one adjacent node, it is preferable for the configuration information sharing unit 31 to uniformly update the type of error correction code 52 and various configuration parameters to those with high noise immunity (for example, those with a longer code length) for all nodes.

[0059] The above embodiments are applicable to any industrial equipment system 1.

[0060] Figure 4 is a perspective view showing the overall structure of a linear transport system 100, which is an example of industrial equipment system 1. The linear transport system 100 comprises a stator 200 that constitutes an annular rail or track, and a plurality of movable elements 300A, 300B, 300C, and 300D (hereinafter collectively referred to as movable elements 300) that are driven by the stator 200 and can move along the rail. An electromagnet or coil provided on the stator 200 and a permanent magnet provided on the movable elements 300 face each other, thereby forming a linear motor along the annular rail. For example, this linear motor and the driver that drives it constitute a slave node S in Figure 1, etc. In addition, sensors that measure the position, speed, acceleration of the movable elements 300 as the target of the driver, and the temperature, humidity, and atmospheric pressure around the linear transport system 100 may be provided as slave nodes S in Figure 1, etc. A master node M capable of communicating with these slave nodes S is provided in a controller (not shown) of the linear transport system 100. Furthermore, the stator 200 may be equipped with a permanent magnet, and the movable element 300 may be equipped with an electromagnet or coil.

[0061] The rail formed by the stator 200 is not limited to annular shapes and can be any shape. For example, the rail may be straight, curved, one rail may branch into multiple rails, or multiple rails may merge into one rail. The installation direction of the rail formed by the stator 200 is also arbitrary. In the example in Figure 4, the rail is arranged in a horizontal plane, but the rail may be arranged in a vertical plane, or in a plane or curved surface at any angle of inclination.

[0062] The stator 200 has a rail surface 210 whose normal direction is horizontal. The rail surface 210 extends in a strip shape along the direction in which the rail is formed, and when forming an annular rail as in the example in Figure 4, it becomes an endless strip with (virtual) ends connected. Multiple electromagnets (not shown) are embedded continuously or periodically in the rail surface 210, which can form rails of any shape. Under the control of a controller (master node M) (not shown), when a driver (slave node S) flows a drive current such as three-phase AC through the numerous electromagnets of the linear motor, a moving magnetic field is generated that linearly drives the movable element 300, which is equipped with permanent magnets, in a desired tangential direction along the rail. In the example in Figure 4, the normal direction of the rail surface 210 that forms an annular rail in the horizontal plane was horizontal, but the normal direction of the rail surface 210 may be vertical or any other direction.

[0063] In the stator 200, a positioning unit 220 provided on the upper or lower surface perpendicular to the rail surface 210 has a plurality of magnetic positioning devices (not shown) continuously or periodically embedded in it, which are capable of measuring the position of a magnetic scale (not shown) attached to the movable element 300 as a positioning target. A magnetic positioning device that positions a magnetic scale formed by a striped magnetic pattern at a constant pitch generally comprises a plurality of magnetic detection heads. By shifting the spacing between the plurality of magnetic detection heads relative to the pitch or period of the magnetic pattern of the magnetic scale, the magnetic positioning device can measure the position of the magnetic scale with high accuracy. In a typical magnetic positioning device provided with two magnetic detection heads, for example, the spacing between the two magnetic detection heads is shifted by 1 / 4 pitch (the phase is shifted by 90 degrees) relative to the magnetic pattern of the magnetic scale.

[0064] The positioning device installed on the stator 200 and the positioning target attached to the movable element 300 are not limited to the magnetic type described above, but may also be optical or other types. In the case of the optical type, an optical scale formed by a striped pattern at a constant pitch is attached to the movable element 300, and an optical positioning device capable of optically reading the striped pattern of the optical scale is provided on the stator 200. In the magnetic and optical types, the positioning device measures the positioning target (magnetic scale or optical scale) non-contact, thus reducing the risk of malfunction of the positioning device if the object being transported by the movable element 300 scatters and enters the positioning location (upper surface of the stator 200). However, in the optical type, if the optical scale is covered by the transported object such as liquid or powder that enters the positioning location, the positioning accuracy will deteriorate. Therefore, it is preferable to use the magnetic type, which does not deteriorate the positioning accuracy even if the transported object, whose magnetism is negligible, enters the positioning location.

[0065] The movable element 300 comprises a movable element body 310 facing the rail surface 210 of the stator 200, a positioned section 320 extending horizontally from the top of the movable element body 310 and facing the positioning section 220 of the stator 200, and a transport section 330 extending horizontally from the movable element body 310 on the opposite side of the positioned section 320 (the side farther from the stator 200) on which the transported object is placed or fixed. The movable element body 310 comprises one or more permanent magnets (not shown) facing a plurality of electromagnets embedded in the rail surface 210 of the stator 200 along the rail. The moving magnetic field generated by the electromagnets of the stator 200 applies linear power in the tangential direction of the rail to the permanent magnets of the movable element 300, so the movable element 300 is linearly driven along the rail surface 210 relative to the stator 200.

[0066] On the positioning section 320 of the movable element 300, a magnetic scale or optical scale, which is the object of positioning, is provided so as to face the positioning device provided on the positioning section 220 of the stator 200. In the example shown in Figure 4, where the positioning device is provided on the upper surface of the stator 200, the object of positioning, such as a magnetic scale, is attached to the lower surface of the positioning section 320 of the movable element 300. When the positioning section 220 and the positioning section 320 are magnetic, it is preferable that the rail surface 210 and the positioning section 220 of the stator 200 are formed on different surfaces or at separate locations, and that the movable element body 310 and the positioning section 320 of the movable element 300 are formed on different surfaces or at separate locations, so that the magnetic field between the electromagnet on the rail surface 210 and the permanent magnet on the movable element body 310 does not affect the magnetic positioning of the positioning section 220 and the positioning section 320.

[0067] Figure 5 shows the configuration of a printing device 10, which is an example of an industrial equipment system. The printing device 10 includes a first printing unit 11A that prints in black (K), a second printing unit 11B that prints in cyan (C), a third printing unit 11C that prints in magenta (M), a fourth printing unit 11D that prints in yellow (Y), and a (registration) control device 30 on which the master node M shown in Figure 1 etc. is provided. Hereafter, the first printing unit 11A to the fourth printing unit 11D will be collectively referred to as the printing unit 11. Note that the printing colors of each printing unit 11 are not limited to those listed above, and any printing colors can be assigned to each printing unit 11 in any order. Furthermore, five or more printing units may be provided in order to print more colors.

[0068] The first printing unit 11A comprises a first plate cylinder 13A, a first impression cylinder 17A, a first drive motor 19A, a first encoder 21A, and a first mark sensor 23A. The second printing unit 11B comprises a second plate cylinder 13B, a second impression cylinder 17B, a second drive motor 19B, a second encoder 21B, and a second mark sensor 23B. The third printing unit 11C comprises a third plate cylinder 13C, a third impression cylinder 17C, a third drive motor 19C, a third encoder 21C, and a third mark sensor 23C. The fourth printing unit 11D comprises a fourth plate cylinder 13D, a fourth impression cylinder 17D, a fourth drive motor 19D, a fourth encoder 21D, and a fourth mark sensor 23D. Hereafter, the first plate cylinder 13A to the fourth plate cylinder 13D will be collectively referred to as plate cylinder 13, the first impression cylinder 17A to the fourth impression cylinder 17D will be collectively referred to as impression cylinder 17, the first drive motor 19A to the fourth drive motor 19D will be collectively referred to as drive motor 19, the first encoder 21A to the fourth encoder 21D will be collectively referred to as encoder 21, and the first mark sensor 23A to the fourth mark sensor 23D will be collectively referred to as mark sensor 23.

[0069] The printing apparatus 10 prints on a web 50, which is a roll of paper, as the substrate. Each printing unit 11 is installed along the direction of movement of the web 50. The web 50 is guided by guide rollers 25 arranged along its movement path, and the plate cylinder 13 and impression cylinder 17 of each printing unit 11 sequentially print the image of each color corresponding to the printing plate wrapped around the plate cylinder 13.

[0070] The printing cylinder 13 has a mark printing unit 15 that prints register marks measured by a mark sensor 23 for registration control. The mark printing unit 15 of the first printing unit 11A also prints a reference mark when overprinting on the same web 50. The reference mark may also indicate the cutting position of the web 50 after printing is complete, and is also called a cut mark. The first register mark is printed at a predetermined first position in the mark printing unit 15 of the first printing cylinder 13A, the second register mark is printed at a predetermined second position in the mark printing unit 15 of the second printing cylinder 13B, the third register mark is printed at a predetermined third position in the mark printing unit 15 of the third printing cylinder 13C, and the fourth register mark is printed at a predetermined fourth position in the mark printing unit 15 of the fourth printing cylinder 13D. Hereinafter, the first to fourth register marks will be collectively referred to as register marks.

[0071] Each plate cylinder 13 has the same circumference, and each printing unit 11 prints one pattern of each color by rotating each plate cylinder 13 once, and printing is performed continuously by repeating this process. Each plate cylinder 13 is rotationally driven by an individual drive motor 19 controlled by a motor driver that constitutes a slave node S in Figure 1, etc. During the printing operation of the printing device 10, each drive motor 19 is electrically synchronized in rotation through the motor driver (slave node S) under the control of the control device 30 (master node M), and each plate cylinder 13 rotates at the same rotational speed. In other words, the printing device 10 is configured in a sectional drive system. Each drive motor 19 is equipped with an encoder 21 that constitutes a slave node S in Figure 1, etc. on its mechanical shaft.

[0072] The encoder 21 is an incremental encoder. For each rotation of the plate cylinder 13, the encoder 21 outputs a predetermined number of A-phase and B-phase pulse signals, and one Z-phase pulse signal. The A-phase and B-phase pulse signals are counted by a counter, and the count value is reset by the Z-phase pulse signal. The phase (rotational position) of the plate cylinder 13 is detected by the count value of the pulse signals. Note that the encoder 21 can be of any type as long as it can detect the phase of the plate cylinder 13, and may also be an absolute serial encoder. In addition to the encoder 21 and mark sensor 23 that constitute the slave node S in Figure 1, etc., sensors that measure the position, speed, acceleration of the plate cylinder 13 and web 50, the pressure applied by the impression cylinder 17 to the web 50, the tension of the web 50, the temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, brightness, etc. around the printing device 10 may also be provided as slave nodes S.

[0073] The present disclosure has been described above based on embodiments. Various modifications are possible for each component and each combination of processes in the exemplary embodiments, and it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that such modifications are included in the scope of the present disclosure.

[0074] The configuration, operation, and function of each device and method described in the embodiments can be realized by hardware resources or software resources, or by the cooperation of hardware resources and software resources. Hardware resources include, for example, processors, ROMs, RAMs, and various integrated circuits. Software resources include, for example, operating systems and application programs. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0075] 1 Industrial equipment system, 31 Configuration information sharing unit, 32 Communication environment monitoring unit, 41 Receiving unit, 42 Error correction unit, 43 Data processing unit, 44 Code addition unit, 45 Transmission unit, 51 Data to be transmitted, 52 Error correction code, M Master node, S Slave node.

Claims

1. A system for industrial equipment comprising multiple communication-enabled nodes, At least one of the multiple nodes that transmits information comprises a code addition unit that adds an error correction code based on the data to be transmitted to the data to be transmitted, and a transmission unit that transmits the data to be transmitted and the error correction code. At least one receiving node among the plurality of nodes that receives the information comprises a receiving unit that receives the data to be transmitted and the error correction code transmitted by the transmitting unit, and an error correction unit that corrects errors in the data to be transmitted based on the error correction code. Industrial equipment systems.

2. The plurality of nodes comprises at least a master node that functions as a transmitting node and at least a slave node that functions as a receiving node, The slave node is at least partially controlled by the master node. The industrial equipment system according to claim 1.

3. Multiple slave nodes are connected in series to the master node. The multiple slave nodes include a terminal node furthest from the master node and intermediate nodes located between the master node and the terminal node. At least one of the intermediate nodes functions as a receiving node that receives information transmitted from the master node and corrects errors, and functions as a transmitting node that adds an error correction code to the data to be transmitted and transmits it to the terminal node. The industrial equipment system according to claim 2.

4. The industrial equipment system according to claim 3, wherein at least one of the terminal node and the intermediate node functions as a transmitting node that adds an error correction code to the data to be transmitted and transmits it to the master node.

5. The industrial equipment system according to claim 2, wherein a plurality of slave nodes are connected in parallel to the master node.

6. The master node and all of the slave nodes connected to it in series and / or in parallel are provided with a configuration information sharing unit that shares configuration information regarding the error correction code, The code addition unit adds the error correction code to the data to be transmitted based on the setting information. The error correction unit corrects errors in the data to be transmitted based on the setting information. The industrial equipment system according to any one of claims 2 to 5.

7. The industrial equipment system according to claim 6, wherein the setting information sharing unit is provided on the master node.

8. The system includes a communication environment monitoring unit that monitors the communication environment between at least two of the aforementioned nodes, The configuration information sharing unit updates the configuration information according to the communication environment and shares it with all of the nodes. The industrial equipment system according to claim 6.

9. The industrial equipment system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein at least one of the code addition unit and the error correction unit is implemented by an FPGA.

10. The industrial equipment system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the error correction code is a convolution code.

11. A transmitting node that transmits information within an industrial equipment system, A code addition unit that adds an error correction code based on the data to be transmitted to the data to be transmitted, A transmitting unit that transmits the data to be transmitted and the error correction code to a receiving node that, together with the transmitting node, constitutes the industrial equipment system, A transmitting node equipped with this feature.

12. A receiving node that receives information within an industrial equipment system, A receiving unit that receives the data to be transmitted and an error correction code based on the data to be transmitted, An error correction unit that corrects errors in the data to be transmitted based on the error correction code, A receiving node equipped with the following features.

13. In an industrial equipment system with multiple communication-enabled nodes, At least one transmitting node among the multiple nodes that transmits information adds an error correction code based on the data to be transmitted to the data to be transmitted, and transmits the data to be transmitted and the error correction code. At least one receiving node among the multiple nodes that receives the information receives the transmitted data to be transmitted and the error correction code, and corrects the error in the data to be transmitted based on the error correction code. A communication method for performing [this action].

Images