COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, COMMUNICATION CONTROL CIRCUIT AND COMMUNICATION METHOD

Abstract

This communication system 1 comprises: a wireless communication system 2 for performing wireless communication by repeating a time-division duplex pattern in which a plurality of communication slots 510 are arranged by being separated in time; an application 3 for performing cyclic communication utilizing the wireless communication system 2; and communication control units 112, 312 for controlling cyclic communication so that at least some of each of the two or more successive communication cycles of cyclic communication are performed in one time-division duplex pattern of wireless communication.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a communication system, a communication control circuit, and a communication method. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent document 1 discloses a system including a robot, a processing device, a robot controller that controls the robot, a processing device controller that controls the processing device, and a programmable logic controller that generates commands for the robot controller and the processing device controller. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2019-209454 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The present disclosure provides a communication system that is useful for applying wireless communication to a variety of applications. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] A communication system according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a wireless communication system that performs wireless communication by repeating a time division duplex pattern in which a plurality of communication slots are arranged in a time division manner, an application that performs cyclic communication using the wireless communication system, and a communication control unit that controls the cyclic communication so that at least a portion of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication.

[0006] A communication control circuit relating to another aspect of the present disclosure is a circuit that controls cyclic communication performed by an application using a wireless communication system that performs wireless communication by repeating a time division duplex pattern in which a number of communication slots are arranged in a time division manner, and controls the cyclic communication so that at least a portion of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication.

[0007] A communication method according to yet another aspect of the present disclosure includes performing cyclic communication using a wireless communication system that performs wireless communication by repeating a time division duplex pattern in which a plurality of communication slots are arranged in a time division manner, and controlling the cyclic communication such that at least a portion of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a communication system that is effective in applying wireless communication to various applications. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of a device system. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of a robot. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of a control server and a base station. [Figure 4] 4 is a table illustrating the contents stored in a pattern storage unit; [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating a time division duplex pattern. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating a relationship between a time division duplex pattern and a communication cycle. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating a relationship between a time division duplex pattern and a communication cycle. [Figure 8]10 is a schematic diagram illustrating a relationship between a target array and an array of communication slots in each communication cycle. FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of a local controller and a mobile station. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of a control server and a base station. [Figure 11] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a local controller and a mobile station. [Figure 12] 11 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure for setting a time division duplex pattern and a cycle start slot. [Figure 13] 1 is a flow chart illustrating a wireless communication procedure. [Figure 14] 1 is a flow chart illustrating a wireless communication procedure. [Figure 15] 11 is a flowchart illustrating a communication control procedure. [Figure 16] 10 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure for switching communication modes. [Figure 17] 1 is a flow chart illustrating a wireless communication procedure. [Figure 18] 1 is a flow chart illustrating a wireless communication procedure. [Figure 19] 11 is a flowchart illustrating a communication control procedure. [Figure 20] 10 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure for switching communication modes. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, the embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the description, the same elements or elements having the same functions are denoted by the same reference numerals, and duplicated description will be omitted.

[0011] [Communication Systems] A communication system 1 shown in Fig. 1 is a system that performs wireless communication by time division duplex. The communication system 1 includes a wireless communication system 2 and an application 3. The wireless communication system 2 performs wireless communication by repeating a time division duplex pattern in which a plurality of communication slots are arranged in a time division manner. Arranging in time division means arranging the slots so that they are lined up along a time axis that indicates the passage of time.

[0012] Time division duplex is a wireless communication method that enables transmission and reception in the same frequency band by switching between transmission and reception at regular intervals. The wireless communication system 2 performs wireless communication through a 5G network as an example of wireless communication using time division duplex. For example, the wireless communication system 2 performs wireless communication using local 5G. Local 5G is a 5G network that is built for a limited area, compared to public 5G, in which telecommunications carriers provide communication services over a wide area.

[0013] The wireless communication system 2 includes a base station 200 and one or more mobile stations 400. For example, the wireless communication system 2 includes a plurality of mobile stations 400. The base station 200 is installed in a target area of ​​a local 5G and performs wireless communication with the plurality of mobile stations 400. Each of the plurality of mobile stations 400 can move within the target area and performs wireless communication with the base station 200.

[0014] The multiple communication slots in the wireless communication include uplink slots of time division duplex. The multiple communication slots may further include downlink slots of time division duplex. The uplink slots are slots in which the mobile station 400 transmits data to the base station 200 (the base station 200 receives data from the mobile station 400). The downlink slots are slots in which the base station 200 transmits data to the mobile station 400 (the mobile station 400 receives data from the base station 200).

[0015] The application 3 performs cyclic communication using the wireless communication system 2. Cyclic communication is communication in which the same data is repeatedly transmitted and received. The application 3 may perform cyclic communication at a fixed communication cycle (communication period) using the wireless communication system 2. The application 3 may repeat a communication cycle including generation of transmission data based on reception data received by the base station 200 from the mobile station 400, and transmission of the transmission data from the base station 200 to the mobile station 400. The application 3 may repeat a communication cycle including generation of transmission data based on reception data received by the mobile station 400 from the base station 200, and transmission of the transmission data from the mobile station 400 to the base station 200.

[0016] An "application" refers to an application of wireless communication by the wireless communication system 2. A specific example of the application 3 is a device system 10 including multiple devices. When the application 3 is the device system 10, the communication system 1 performs wireless communication in the device system 10. Each of the multiple devices may be a hardware device configured by a single piece of hardware, or may be a software device implemented in a computer by software.

[0017] As an example, the device system 10 includes a plurality of machines 20, a control server 100, and a time server 101. The machines 20 are an example of a hardware device. For example, the machines 20 are industrial machines. Specific examples of industrial machines include machine tools, conveying devices, and robots. A servo system including a servo motor and a servo drive circuit is also an example of an industrial machine.

[0018] The machine 20 includes a machine body 30 and a local controller 300. The machine body 30 is a machine that realizes an operation. The local controller 300 controls the machine body 30 so as to realize the operation.

[0019] There is no particular limitation on the type of the machine body 30, but Fig. 1 shows two types of machine bodies 30A and 30B as examples. The machine body 30A is a mobile robot that performs work on a workpiece while moving. For example, the machine body 30A has an unmanned guided vehicle 31 and a robot 40. The unmanned guided vehicle 31 is driven by a local controller 300 to move.

[0020] The robot 40 is installed on the automatic guided vehicle 31. The robot 40 is driven by a local controller 300 and performs tasks such as transportation, processing, and assembly on a workpiece.

[0021] The robot 40 is, for example, a vertical articulated industrial robot. As shown in FIG. 2, the robot 40 has a base 41, a swivel 42, a first arm 43, a second arm 44, a wrist 45, and a tip 46. The base 41 is installed on the automated guided vehicle 31. The swivel 42 is attached to the base 41 so as to be rotatable around a vertical axis 51. For example, the robot 40 has a joint 61 that attaches the swivel 42 to the base 41 so as to be rotatable around the axis 51. The first arm 43 is connected to the swivel 42 so as to be rotatable around an axis 52 that intersects (for example, perpendicular to) the axis 51. For example, the robot 40 has a joint 62 that connects the first arm 43 to the swivel 42 so as to be rotatable around the axis 52. The intersection includes a twisted relationship, such as a so-called three-dimensional intersection. The same applies hereinafter. The first arm 43 extends from the rotating portion 42 in a direction intersecting (for example, perpendicular to) the axis 52.

[0022] The second arm 44 is connected to an end of the first arm 43 so as to be rotatable about an axis 53 parallel to the axis 52. For example, the robot 40 has a joint 63 that connects the second arm 44 to the first arm 43 so as to be rotatable about the axis 53. The second arm 44 has an arm base 47 that extends from an end of the first arm 43 along a direction that intersects (for example, perpendicular to) the axis 53, and an arm end 48 that further extends from the end of the arm base 47 along the same direction. The arm end 48 is rotatable about an axis 54 relative to the arm base 47. The axis 54 intersects (for example, perpendicular to) the axis 53. For example, the robot 40 has a joint 64 that connects the arm end 48 to the arm base 47 so as to be rotatable about the axis 54.

[0023] The wrist 45 is connected to the end of the arm end 48 so as to be rotatable about an axis 55 that intersects (for example, perpendicular to) the axis 54. For example, the robot 40 has a joint 65 that connects the wrist 45 to the arm end 48 so as to be rotatable about the axis 55. The wrist 45 is connected to the arm end 48 so as to be rotatable about an axis 55 that intersects (for example, perpendicular to) the axis 54. Orthogonal ) from the end of arm end 48. Tip 46 is connected to the end of wrist 45 so as to be rotatable about axis 56 intersecting (for example, perpendicular to) axis 55. For example, robot 40 has a joint 66 that connects tip 46 to wrist 45 so as to be rotatable about axis 56. An end effector is provided on tip 46. Specific examples of the end effector include a hand that grasps a workpiece, a robot that processes and assembles the workpiece, and a robotic arm that supports the workpiece. etc. Examples of tools include work tools for performing tasks such as:

[0024] The actuators 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, and 76 drive the joints 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, and 66. Each of the actuators 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, and 76 has, for example, an electric motor and a transmission unit (for example, a reducer) that transmits the power of the electric motor to the joints 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, and 66. For example, the actuator 71 drives the joint 61 to rotate the rotating unit 42 around the axis 51. The actuator 72 drives the joint 62 to rotate the first arm 43 around the axis 52. The actuator 73 drives the joint 63 to rotate the second arm 44 around the axis 53. The actuator 74 drives the joint 64 to rotate the arm end 48 around the axis 54. The actuator 75 drives the joint 65 to rotate the wrist unit 45 around the axis 55. The actuator 76 drives the joint 66 to rotate the tip 46 about the axis 56 .

[0025] Returning to Fig. 1, the machine body 30B is an automated guided vehicle that transports an object to be transported, such as a workpiece. The machine body 30B has an automated guided vehicle 33 and a loading platform 34. The automated guided vehicle 33 is driven to move by a local controller 300. The loading platform 34 is provided on the automated guided vehicle 33 and supports the object to be transported.

[0026] The control server 100 includes a plurality of controllers 111 that respectively control the plurality of machines 20. Each of the plurality of controllers 111 is an example of a software device, and is implemented in the control server 100 by software. The plurality of controllers 111 may be hardware devices independent of each other in terms of hardware.

[0027] The communication system 1 performs communication from the controller 111 to the machine 20 by using a downlink slot, and performs communication from the machine 20 to the controller 111 by using an uplink slot. 。For example, a base station 200 of the wireless communication system 2 is connected to a control server 100 via a wired communication network. A plurality of mobile stations 400 of the wireless communication system 2 are provided in a plurality of machines 20, respectively, and are connected to a plurality of local controllers 300, respectively. The control server 100 transmits data to each of the plurality of machines 20 via the base station 200 and the mobile station 400, and receives data from each of the plurality of machines 20 via the mobile station 400 and the base station 200. Each of the plurality of local controllers 300 transmits data to the control server 100 via the mobile station 400 and the base station 200, and receives data from the control server 100 via the base station 200 and the mobile station 400.

[0028] The application 3 uses the wireless communication system 2 to transmit and receive control data for controlling the machine 20. Specific examples of the control data include command data for controlling the machine 20 and response data of the industrial machine in response to the command data.

[0029] The command data is, for example, data representing an operation command for the machine 20. A specific example of the data representing an operation command is target operation data representing a target operation of the machine 20. The target data includes a target position or a target speed for the machine 20. The data representing the operation command may be target output data representing a target output (e.g., a target torque or a target current) for causing the operation of the machine 20 to follow the target operation. The response data is, for example, data representing an operation achieved by the machine 20 in response to the command data. A specific example of the data representing an operation is the operation speed of the machine 20, the position of the machine 20, etc.

[0030] For example, the application 3 repeatedly executes a communication cycle including transmission of command data from the controller 111 to the machine 20 and transmission of response data from the machine 20 to the controller 111 through cyclic communication. As a result, the controller 111 repeatedly executes a communication cycle including transmission of command data and reception of response data through cyclic communication. The machine 20 repeatedly executes a communication cycle including reception of command data and transmission of response data through cyclic communication.

[0031] The time server 101 is a computer connected to the control server 100 via a wired communication network, and generates a global time. The time server 101 may be incorporated in the control server 100 or in the base station 200. The global time is used to synchronize at least the internal time of the control server 100 and the internal time of the base station 200 with the global time.

[0032] The communication control units 112 and 312 control cyclic communication. For example, the communication control unit 112 controls communication in a downlink slot among the cyclic communications. The communication control unit 112 and the base station 200 constitute a wireless communication device 5 that performs communication from the controller 111 to the machine 20 in the downlink slot. The communication control unit 312 controls the following among the cyclic communications: Uplink The communication control unit 312 and the mobile station 400 constitute a wireless communication device 6 that performs communication from the machine 20 to the controller 111 using the uplink slots.

[0033] As an example, the communication control unit 112 is incorporated in the control server 100, and the communication control unit 312 is incorporated in the local controller 300. As described above, when the multiple controllers 111 are hardware devices independent of each other, the communication control unit 112 may be incorporated in each of the multiple controllers 111. The communication control unit 112 may be incorporated in the base station 200, and the communication control unit 312 may be incorporated in the mobile station 400.

[0034] In wireless communication performed in the device system 10, the timing at which information should be transmitted by the downlink slot and the timing at which information should be transmitted by the uplink slot may change depending on the configuration of the device system 10. Therefore, the communication system 1 may be configured to acquire configuration information indicating the configuration of the device system 10, set a time division duplex pattern that determines an arrangement of the downlink slots of time division duplex and the uplink slots of time division duplex according to the configuration of the device system 10, and perform wireless communication by repeating the set time division duplex pattern. According to this configuration, the time division duplex pattern is set according to the configuration of the device system, and wireless communication is performed by repeating the set time division duplex pattern. This is effective for performing wireless communication in a more timely manner.

[0035] When the time division duplex pattern is repeated, the reliability of communication of a plurality of communication slots may differ from each other depending on the position in the time division duplex pattern. For example, the other wireless communication system 900 may perform another wireless communication through a space that at least partially overlaps with the space in which the wireless communication system 2 performs wireless communication. The other wireless communication system 900 performs the other wireless communication by repeating another time division duplex pattern in which a plurality of other communication slots are arranged in a time division manner. A specific example of such another wireless communication system 900 is a system that performs wireless communication by the public 5G described above.

[0036] For example, another wireless communication system 900 includes a base station 910 and a terminal 920. The terminal 920 is a mobile communication terminal such as a smartphone, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, etc. The base station 910 is installed at the end of a communication network of a communication carrier, performs wireless communication with the terminal 920, and relays communication between the communication network and the terminal 920.

[0037] When the other wireless communication system 900 repeats another time division duplex pattern to perform another wireless communication, the multiple communication slots of the time division duplex pattern repeated by the wireless communication system 2 may include synchronous slots and asynchronous slots. A synchronous slot is a communication slot which is a downlink slot or an uplink slot that matches with a communication slot of another wireless communication performed at the same timing. An asynchronous slot is a communication slot which is a downlink slot or an uplink slot that does not match with a communication slot of another wireless communication performed at the same timing. Compared to communication using a synchronous slot, communication using an asynchronous slot is more likely to cause a decrease in communication quality due to interference with communication using a communication slot of another wireless communication.

[0038] In this way, the multiple communication slots may include a first type of communication slot (e.g., a synchronous slot) and a second type of communication slot (e.g., an asynchronous slot) having mutually different communication reliability. Thus, the wireless communication device 5 may be configured to transmit the transmission data generated by the controller 111 from the base station 200 (wireless communication unit) to the mobile station 400 (partner wireless communication unit) using the first type of communication slot when the transmission data has a first attribute, and to transmit the transmission data from the base station 200 (wireless communication unit) to the mobile station 400 (partner wireless communication unit) using the second type of communication slot when the transmission data has a second attribute.

[0039] Similarly, the wireless communication device 6 may be configured to transmit the transmission data generated by the machine 20 from the mobile station 400 (wireless communication unit) to the base station 200 (partner wireless communication unit) using a first type of communication slot when the transmission data has a first attribute, and to transmit the transmission data from the mobile station 400 (wireless communication unit) to the base station 200 (partner wireless communication unit) using a second type of communication slot when the transmission data has a second attribute.

[0040] A time division duplex pattern is not necessarily suitable for cyclic communication of an application. Therefore, the communication system 1 may be configured to perform cyclic communication using the wireless communication system 2, and to control the cyclic communication so that at least a part of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication. With this configuration, it is possible to adjust the arrangement of communication slots in each communication cycle of the cyclic communication (hereinafter, referred to as "slot arrangement") without changing the time division duplex pattern. Therefore, it is effective in applying wireless communication to various applications.

[0041] The configurations of the control server 100, the base station 200, the local controller 300, and the mobile station 400 will be illustrated in more detail below.

[0042] [Control server and base station configuration] Fig. 3 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the control server 100 and the base station 200. As shown in Fig. 3, the control server 100 has, as functional components (hereinafter referred to as "functional blocks"), a plurality of controllers 111 and a communication control unit 112. Each of the plurality of controllers 111 (hereinafter simply referred to as "controller 111") controls a corresponding machine 20.

[0043] The controller 111 controls the machine 20 by repeating a control cycle including one or more communications from the controller 111 to the machine 20 and one or more communications from the machine 20 to the controller 111. For example, the controller 111 repeats a control cycle including receiving the response data from the machine 20, generating the command data based on the response data, and transmitting the command data to the machine 20. For example, the controller 111 calculates the target output data as command data for making the operation of the machine 20 represented by the response data follow the target operation. For example, the controller 111 calculates the target output data by performing a proportional operation, a proportional-integral operation, or a proportional-integral-differential operation on the deviation between the target operation and the operation of the machine 20.

[0044] The controller 111 repeats a certain control cycle (control period). For example, the controller 111 executes a control cycle every time a control clock signal is generated to notify the passage of a certain control cycle. In this case, the process executed by the controller 111 from the generation of a control clock signal to the generation of the next control clock signal is one control cycle.

[0045] In each control cycle, the controller 111 may receive the response data after generating and transmitting the command data, in which case the controller 111 generates the command data based on the response data received in the previous control cycle.

[0046] In each control cycle, the controller 111 may receive response data and generate command data after transmitting the command data, in which case the controller 111 transmits the command data generated in the previous control cycle.

[0047] The control cycle includes a communication cycle. The communication cycle includes sending command data and receiving response data. When the controller 111 executes a control cycle every time a control clock signal is generated, the process executed by the controller 111 from the generation of a control clock signal to the generation of the next control clock signal is one communication cycle.

[0048] The controller 111 causes the communication control unit 112 to receive reception data such as response data and transmit transmission data such as command data. For example, the controller 111 causes the communication control unit 112 to receive reception data and acquires the reception data received by the communication control unit 112. The controller 111 also outputs transmission data to the communication control unit 112 and causes the communication control unit 112 to transmit the transmission data.

[0049] The communication control unit 112 receives reception data and transmits transmission data via the base station 200. The base station 200 has a transmission buffer 211, a reception buffer 212, a wireless communication unit 213, and a clock 214. The wireless communication unit 213 repeats the above-mentioned time division duplex pattern to perform wireless communication with the mobile station 400 (partner wireless communication unit). For example, the wireless communication unit 213 reads transmission data from the transmission buffer 211 and transmits the transmission data to the mobile station 400 by a downlink slot of the time division duplex pattern. In addition, the wireless communication unit 213 receives reception data from the mobile station 400 by an uplink slot of the time division duplex pattern, and stores the reception data in the reception buffer 212.

[0050] The communication control unit 112 stores the transmission data acquired from the controller 111 in the transmission buffer 211. As described above, the transmission data stored in the transmission buffer 211 is read by the wireless communication unit 213. Therefore, storing the transmission data in the transmission buffer 211 is an example of transferring the transmission data to the wireless communication unit 213. The data stored in the transmission buffer 211 is transmitted to the machine 20 via the base station 200 and the mobile station 400.

[0051] The communication control unit 112 reads out the reception data that the wireless communication unit 213 has received from the mobile station 400 from the reception buffer 212. Reading the reception data from the reception buffer 212 is an example of acquiring the reception data from the wireless communication unit 213. By reading the reception data from the reception buffer 212, the reception data is received from the machine 20 via the mobile station 400 and the base station 200.

[0052] Clock 214 repeatedly generates the time required to repeat the time division duplex pattern. Hereinafter, the time generated by clock 214 is referred to as "base station time." Wireless communication unit 213 repeats the time division duplex pattern based on the base station time.

[0053] For example, the wireless communication unit 213 executes a time division duplex pattern every time a communication clock signal is generated, which indicates the passage of a certain repetition cycle. In this case, communication performed from the generation of a communication clock signal to the generation of the next communication clock signal is one time division duplex pattern. The wireless communication unit 213 may execute a time division duplex pattern every time a repetition cycle elapses from a predetermined start time in base station time. In this case, communication performed from the time obtained by adding an integer multiple of the repetition cycle to the start time until one repetition cycle elapses is one time division duplex pattern.

[0054] The wireless communication unit 213 may repeat the time division duplex pattern in synchronization with another time division duplex pattern repeated by another wireless communication system 900. In this case, the clock 214 may be configured to generate a base station time synchronized with the global time. For example, the clock 214 receives the global time from the time server 101 by communication that ensures time synchronism, such as TSN (Time Sensitive Networking) communication via a wired communication network, and generates the base station time in synchronization with the received global time. For example, the clock 214 synchronizes the base station time with the global time, and then repeatedly updates the base station time by counting clock pulses at a fixed cycle. The clock 214 may repeatedly execute the synchronization of the base station time with the global time at a predetermined time interval.

[0055] In the other wireless communication system 900, the other time division duplex pattern is repeated based on the time synchronized with the global time. The wireless communication unit 213 repeats the time division duplex pattern in synchronization with the other time division duplex pattern based on the base station time synchronized with the global time. For example, the wireless communication system 900 executes the other time division duplex pattern every time a repetition cycle has elapsed from a predetermined start time at the time synchronized with the global time. The wireless communication unit 213 also repeats the time division duplex pattern every time the repetition cycle has elapsed from the start time at the base station time synchronized with the global time. As a result, the wireless communication unit 213 starts the time division duplex pattern at the same time as the other wireless communication system 900 starts the other time division duplex pattern.

[0056] As described above, the communication system 1 may be configured to acquire configuration information indicating the configuration of the device system 10, set a time division duplex pattern that determines an arrangement of a time division duplex downlink slot and a time division duplex uplink slot according to the configuration of the device system 10, and perform wireless communication by repeating the set time division duplex pattern. In this case, the control server 100 further includes a configuration information acquisition unit 113 and a communication pattern setting unit 114.

[0057] The configuration information acquisition unit 113 acquires configuration information indicating the configuration of the device system 10. For example, the configuration information acquisition unit 113 acquires configuration information from a plurality of controllers 111.

[0058] The communication pattern setting unit 114 sets a time division duplex pattern that determines an arrangement of time division duplex downlink slots and time division duplex uplink slots according to the configuration of the device system 10. The communication pattern setting unit 114 notifies the wireless communication unit 213 of the set time division duplex pattern. The wireless communication unit 213 repeats the time division duplex pattern notified by the communication pattern setting unit 114 to perform the above wireless communication.

[0059] For example, when the device system 10 is in a first configuration, the communication pattern setting unit 114 sets the time division duplex pattern to a first pattern, and when the device system 10 is in a second configuration different from the first configuration, the communication pattern setting unit 114 sets the time division duplex pattern to a second pattern in which the arrangement of downlink slots and uplink slots is different from the first pattern.

[0060] The second configuration may be a configuration in which the amount of communication information from the multiple machines 20 to the multiple controllers 111 is larger than that of the first configuration. In this case, when the device system 10 is in the second configuration, the communication pattern setting unit 114 may set the time division duplex pattern to the second pattern in which the number of uplink slots is larger than that of the first pattern. When the device system 10 is in the second configuration, the communication pattern setting unit 114 may set the time division duplex pattern to the second pattern in which the number of uplink slots is larger than the number of downlink slots.

[0061] The configuration information may include communication configuration information indicating the relationship between the communication volume from the multiple controllers 111 to the multiple machines 20 and the communication volume from the multiple machines 20 to the multiple controllers 111. In this case, the communication pattern setting unit 114 may set a time division duplex pattern based on the communication configuration information.

[0062] The configuration may include a hardware configuration of the device system 10. For example, the first configuration may include a first hardware configuration, and the second configuration may include a second hardware configuration different from the first hardware configuration. A specific example of the difference in hardware configuration is a difference in the type and number of machines 20 included in the device system 10.

[0063] The configuration may include the content of the work to be executed by the device system 10. For example, the first configuration may include making the machine 20 execute a first task, and the second configuration may include making the machine 20 execute a second task different from the first task. A specific example of the difference in the tasks is the difference in the type and number of times of work to be realized by the operation of the machine 20.

[0064] The configuration information acquisition unit 113 acquires configuration information when the multiple machines 20 are controlled by the multiple controllers 111, and the communication pattern setting unit 114 may change the time division duplex pattern when the configuration information changes. A specific example of a case where the configuration information changes is when the relationship between the amount of communication per unit time from the multiple controllers 111 to the multiple machines 20 and the amount of communication per unit time from the multiple machines 20 to the multiple controllers 111 changes due to a change in tasks that the multiple controllers 111 cause the multiple machines 20 to execute.

[0065] The communication pattern setting unit 114 may select a time division duplex pattern corresponding to the configuration of the device system 10 based on a reference table that defines a time division duplex pattern for each of a plurality of configurations. In this case, the selected time division duplex pattern becomes the setting result of the time division duplex pattern by the communication pattern setting unit 114. For example, the control server 100 may further include a pattern storage unit 115 that stores a reference table. The communication pattern setting unit 114 selects a time division duplex pattern corresponding to the configuration of the device system 10 in the reference table stored in the pattern storage unit 115.

[0066] Fig. 4 illustrates a reference table stored in the pattern storage unit 115. The reference table illustrated in Fig. 4 associates identification information of a plurality of configurations with identification information of a plurality of time division duplex patterns. When the configuration of the device system 10 is "configuration E" in Fig. 4, the communication pattern setting unit 114 selects "pattern 2" associated with "configuration E".

[0067] The first pattern may match another time division duplex pattern repeated in another wireless communication executed by the other wireless communication system 900. The second pattern may include synchronous slots, the downlink slots or uplink slots of which match the communication slots of another time division duplex pattern, synchronous slots, the downlink slots or uplink slots of which do not match the communication slots of another time division duplex pattern, and asynchronous slots.

[0068] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating a time division duplex pattern. The time division duplex pattern 500R represents a time division duplex pattern in the above-mentioned public 5G. In the time division duplex pattern 500R, first, the 3rd downlink slot 511 is arranged along the time axis, then the 2nd uplink slot 512 is arranged along the time axis, and then the 4th downlink slot 511 is arranged along the time axis. A special slot 513 is arranged between the 3rd downlink slot 511 and the 2nd uplink slot 512. The special slot 513 is a slot that includes, in order, a transmission section from the base station 200 to the mobile station 400, a non-transmission section, and a transmission section from the mobile station 400 to the base station 200. The special slot 513 can be used as the downlink slot 511 and can also be used as the uplink slot 512.

[0069] Time division duplex pattern 500A illustrates a first pattern that matches time division duplex pattern 500R. Time division duplex pattern 500B illustrates a second pattern. In time division duplex pattern 500B, first, three downlink slots 511 are arranged along the time axis, followed by two uplink slots 512 along the time axis, followed by one uplink slot 513 along the time axis, followed by one downlink slot 514 along the time axis, followed by one uplink slot 515 along the time axis, followed by one downlink slot 516 along the time axis, followed by one uplink slot 517 along the time axis, followed by one uplink slot 518 along the time axis, followed by one downlink slot 519 along the time axis, followed by one uplink slot 511 along the time axis, followed by one uplink slot 512 along the time axis, followed by one downlink slot 513 along the time axis, followed by one uplink slot 514 along the time axis, followed by one uplink slot 515 along the time axis, followed by one uplink slot 516 along the time axis, followed by one uplink slot 517 along the time axis, followed by one uplink slot 518 along the time axis, followed by one uplink slot 519 ... Downlink slot 511is arranged along the time axis, followed by uplink slot 2 512. A special slot 513 is arranged between downlink slot 3 511 and the following uplink slot 2 512. A special slot 513 is also arranged between downlink slot 1 511 and the following uplink slot 2 512.

[0070] In the time division duplex pattern 500B, the first communication slot 510, which is a downlink slot 511, through the seventh communication slot 510, which is a downlink slot 511, correspond to synchronous slots 521. The eighth communication slot 510, which is a special slot 513, can also be used as a synchronous slot 521. The ninth and tenth communication slots 510, which are uplink slots 512, correspond to asynchronous slots 522.

[0071] Therefore, in time division duplex pattern 500B, period T11 in which the first to eighth communication slots 510 are arranged is a synchronous period, and period T12 in which the ninth and tenth communication slots 510 are arranged is an asynchronous period.

[0072] The time division duplex pattern 500C shows another example of the second pattern. In the time division duplex pattern 500C, first, two downlink slots 511 are arranged along the time axis, followed by seven uplink slots 512 arranged along the time axis. A special slot 513 is arranged between the two downlink slots 511 and the seven following uplink slots 512. In the time division duplex pattern 500C, the first and second communication slots 510, which are the downlink slots 511, and the uplink slot 512, which is the 5 and 6 The 3rd communication slot 510 corresponds to the synchronous slot 521. The 3rd special slot 513 corresponds to the synchronous slot 521. Communication Slot 510 Also available as a sync slot 521. In addition, an uplink slot 512 4The 7th to 10th communication slots 510, which are uplink slots 512, correspond to asynchronous slots 522. Since the 7th to 10th communication slots 510 transmitted at the same timing by another wireless communication system 900 are special slots 513, the 7th to 10th communication slots 510 can also be used as asynchronous slots 521.

[0073] Therefore, in time division duplex pattern 500C, period T21 in which the first to sixth communication slots 510 are arranged is a synchronous period, and period T22 in which the seventh to tenth communication slots 510 are arranged is an asynchronous period.

[0074] In the asynchronous slots 522, the communication quality is more likely to deteriorate due to interference with the communication slots 510 of the time division duplex pattern 500R than in the synchronous slots 521. Thus, the synchronous slots 521 are an example of the above-mentioned first type communication slots 510, and the asynchronous slots 522 are an example of the above-mentioned second type communication slots 510.

[0075] Note that the terms "first type" and "second type" are used for convenience in distinguishing between the communication slots 510, and therefore it is not necessary that the synchronous slots 521 are first type communication slots 510 and the asynchronous slots 522 are second type communication slots 510; the synchronous slots 521 may be second type communication slots 510 and the asynchronous slots 522 may be first type communication slots 510.

[0076] As exemplified by time division duplex pattern 500B or time division duplex pattern 500C, when the time division duplex pattern includes a first type of communication slot and a second type of communication slot, the communication control unit 112 may transmit the transmission data generated by the controller 111 to the mobile station 400 through the first type of communication slot 510 when the transmission data has a first attribute, and may transmit the transmission data from the wireless communication unit 213 to the mobile station 400 through the second type of communication slot 510 when the transmission data generated by the controller 111 has a second attribute.

[0077] An "attribute" refers to a property of data that does not change regardless of the value of the data. A specific example of an attribute is the type of data. The type of data is the type of event that the value of the data represents. As an example of an event, data representing a "current location" remains data representing a "current location" even if the value representing the "current location" changes. When the priority of data is determined according to the type of data, the priority is also an example of an attribute.

[0078] The first attribute may be a first priority, and the second attribute may be a second priority lower than the first priority. The communication control unit 112 may control the wireless communication unit 213 so that the transmission data having the first priority is transmitted to the mobile station 400 in the synchronous slot 521, and the transmission data having the second priority is transmitted to the mobile station 400 in the asynchronous slot 522.

[0079] The first attribute may be "being the above-mentioned control data", and when the transmission data is control data, the communication control unit 112 may control the wireless communication unit 213 so that the transmission data is transmitted in the synchronous slot 521. The second attribute may be "being a predetermined type of data different from the above-mentioned control data", and the communication control unit 112 may control the wireless communication unit 213 so that the transmission data is transmitted in the asynchronous slot 522, when the transmission data is the above-mentioned predetermined type of data.

[0080] As exemplified above, the communication control unit 112 controls which communication slot 510 to use to transmit the transmission data based on the attribute of the transmission data. To perform such control, the communication control unit 112 acquires attribute information indicating the attribute of the transmission data from the controller 111 together with the transmission data. The communication control unit 112 attaches a tag indicating the attribute of the transmission data to the transmission data based on the acquired attribute information, and stores the tagged transmission data in the transmission buffer 211. The wireless communication unit 213 controls which communication slot 510 to use to transmit the transmission data based on the tag attached to the transmission data.

[0081] For example, when the transmission data has a first attribute, the communication control unit 112 attaches a first tag to the transmission data and stores the transmission data in the transmission buffer 211, and when the transmission data has a second attribute, the communication control unit 112 attaches a second tag to the transmission data and stores the transmission data in the transmission buffer 211. When the transmission data has the first tag attached, the wireless communication unit 213 transmits the transmission data to the mobile station 400 through the first type of communication slot 510, and when the transmission data has the second tag attached, the wireless communication unit 213 transmits the transmission data to the mobile station 400 through the second type of communication slot 510.

[0082] The method of controlling which communication slot 510 to use for transmitting transmission data based on the attribute of the transmission data is not limited to the method of attaching a tag to the transmission data. For example, the communication control unit 112 may determine which communication slot 510 to use for transmitting the transmission data based on the attribute of the transmission data, and control the timing of storing the transmission data in the transmission buffer 211 so that the transmission data is transmitted in the determined communication slot 510.

[0083] In this case, the base station 200 further includes a timing notification unit 221. The timing notification unit 221 notifies the communication control unit 112 of the start timing of the time division duplex pattern. The communication control unit 112 recognizes the execution timing of each communication slot 510 based on the start timing of the time division duplex pattern, and controls the timing of storing the transmission data in the transmission buffer 211 so that the transmission data is transmitted in the above-mentioned determined communication slot 510.

[0084] As described above, the time division duplex pattern is not necessarily suitable for the cyclic communication of the application 3. Therefore, the communication system 1 may be configured to perform cyclic communication by using the wireless communication system 2, and to control the cyclic communication such that at least a part of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication.

[0085] In this case, the communication control unit 112 controls the cyclic communication so that at least a part of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication. For example, the communication control unit 112 controls the timing of writing the transmission data to the transmission buffer 211 and the timing of reading the reception data from the reception buffer 212 in each communication cycle so that at least a part of each of the two or more communication cycles is performed within one time division duplex pattern. For example, the communication control unit 112 controls the timing of storing the transmission data in the transmission buffer 211 in each communication cycle so that one communication cycle of two or more communication cycles is started in a predetermined communication slot 510 among the communication slots 510 arranged between the first communication slot 510 and the last communication slot 510 in the time division duplex pattern. Hereinafter, the predetermined communication slot 510 is referred to as a "cycle start slot."

[0086] For example, the communication control unit 112 recognizes the execution timing of the cycle start slot based on the start timing of the time division duplex pattern acquired from the timing notification unit 221. Based on the execution timing of the cycle start slot, the communication control unit 112 controls the timing of storing transmission data in the transmission buffer 211 in each communication cycle so that the above-mentioned one communication cycle is started in the above-mentioned cycle start slot.

[0087] As described above, the application 3 may perform cyclic communication in a fixed communication cycle. In this case, the application 3 may perform cyclic communication in the same communication cycle as the repetition cycle of the time division duplex pattern. The "repetition cycle" is the time from the start timing of a time division duplex pattern to the start timing of the next time division duplex pattern. The "communication cycle" is the time from the start timing of a communication cycle to the start timing of the next communication cycle.

[0088] When the repetition cycle is equal to the communication cycle, the communication control unit 112 controls the cyclic communication so that all communication cycles start in the cycle start slot. When the repetition cycle is equal to the communication cycle, each communication cycle that starts in the cycle start slot is performed over two or more consecutive time division duplex patterns of wireless communication.

[0089] 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating the relationship between a time division duplex pattern and a communication cycle when the repetition cycle is equal to the communication cycle. The time division duplex pattern in FIG. 6 is the above-mentioned time division duplex pattern 500A.

[0090] In (a) of Fig. 6, the cycle start slot is the seventh communication slot 510, which is the downlink slot 511. In this case, the communication control unit 112 controls the cyclic communication to repeat a communication cycle 611 that starts at the seventh communication slot 510 of the time division duplex pattern 500A and ends at the sixth communication slot 510 of the next time division duplex pattern 500A. In the communication cycle 611, seven downlink slots 511, one special slot 513, and two uplink slots 512 are arranged in order. Therefore, according to the example of (a) of Fig. 6, the time division duplex pattern 500A can be used for cyclic communication that repeats a communication cycle in which the downlink slot 511 is followed by the uplink slot 512.

[0091] In FIG. 6B, the cycle start slot is the fourth communication slot 510, which is the special slot 513. In this case, the communication control unit 112 controls the cyclic communication to repeat a communication cycle 612 that starts at the fourth communication slot 510 of the time division duplex pattern 500A and ends at the third communication slot 510 of the next time division duplex pattern 500A. In the communication cycle 612, the first special slot 513, the second uplink slot 512, and the seventh downlink slot 511 are arranged in order. As described above, the special slot 513 can also be used as the uplink slot 512. Therefore, according to the example of FIG. 6B, the time division duplex pattern 500A can be used for cyclic communication that repeats a communication cycle in which the uplink slot 512 is followed by the downlink slot 511.

[0092] In (c) of FIG. 6, the cycle start slot is the sixth communication slot 510, which is the uplink slot 512. In this case, the communication control unit 112 controls the cyclic communication to repeat a communication cycle 613 that starts at the sixth communication slot 510 of the time division duplex pattern 500A and ends at the fifth communication slot 510 of the next time division duplex pattern 500A. In the communication cycle 613, one uplink slot 512, seven downlink slots 511, one special slot 513, and one uplink slot 512 are arranged in order. Therefore, according to the example of (c) of FIG. 6, the time division duplex pattern 500A can be used for cyclic communication that repeats a communication cycle in which the uplink slot 512 is followed by the downlink slot 511, and further the downlink slot 511 is followed by the uplink slot 512.

[0093] The application 3 may perform cyclic communication in a communication cycle that is one multiple of the repeat cycle (an integer greater than or equal to 2). Hereinafter, the integer is referred to as a "multiple number." When the communication cycle is one multiple of the repeat cycle, the communication control unit 112 controls the cyclic communication so that one communication cycle starts in the cycle start slot for each successive communication cycle of the multiple number.

[0094] Furthermore, the communication control unit 112 may control the timing of storing transmission data in the transmission buffer 211 in each communication cycle such that one communication cycle is performed across two consecutive time division duplex patterns for each communication cycle of the multiple. In the communication cycle of the multiple, one communication cycle started in a cycle start slot may be different from one communication cycle performed across two time division duplex patterns. For example, the communication control unit 112 may control the cyclic communication such that a first communication cycle performed across two or more time division duplex patterns and a second communication cycle performed within one time division duplex pattern are included in the communication cycle of the multiple.

[0095] The communication control unit 112 may control the cyclic communication so that the number of communication slots 510 used in each of the communication cycles of the multiplication factor is equal to each other. The communication control unit 112 may control the cyclic communication so that the number of uplink slots 512 used in each of the communication cycles of the multiplication factor is equal to each other. The communication control unit 112 may control the cyclic communication so that the uplink slot 512 is arranged after the downlink slot 511 in each of the communication cycles of the multiplication factor. The communication control unit 112 may control the cyclic communication so that the communication cycles of the multiplication factor include a synchronous communication cycle in which the arrangement of the uplink slot 512 and the downlink slot 511 matches with other wireless communication performed in parallel with the wireless communication, and an asynchronous communication cycle in which the arrangement of the uplink slot 512 and the downlink slot 511 does not match with other wireless communication.

[0096] 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a relationship between a time division duplex pattern and a communication cycle when the communication cycle is a multiple of the repetition cycle. is 2 7, and the time division duplex pattern in FIG. 7 is the above-mentioned time division duplex pattern 500B.

[0097] In (a) of FIG. 7, the cycle start slot is the seventh communication slot 510, which is the downlink slot 511. In this case, the communication control unit 112 controls the cyclic communication so as to alternately repeat a communication cycle 621 (first communication cycle) that starts at the seventh communication slot 510 of the time division duplex pattern 500B and ends at the first communication slot 510 of the next time division duplex pattern 500B, and a communication cycle 631 (second communication cycle) that starts at the second communication slot 510 of the time division duplex pattern 500B and ends at the sixth communication slot 510 of the same time division duplex pattern 500B. The number of communication slots 510 included in the communication cycle 621 is equal to the number of communication slots 510 included in the communication cycle 631. Therefore, according to the example of (a) of FIG. 7, the same number of communication slots 510 can be used in each of the communication cycles of the multiplication factor.

[0098] The number of uplink slots 512 included in communication cycle 621 is equal to the number of uplink slots 512 included in communication cycle 631. Therefore, according to the example of FIG. 7(a), the same number of uplink slots 512 can be used in each of the multiple communication cycles.

[0099] In a communication cycle 621, one downlink slot 511, one special slot 513, two uplink slots 512, and one downlink slot 511 are arranged in that order. In a communication cycle 631, two downlink slots 511, one special slot 513, and two uplink slots 512 are arranged in that order. Therefore, according to the example of Fig. 7(a), the time division duplex pattern 500B can be used for cyclic communication in which a communication cycle in which a downlink slot 511 is followed by an uplink slot 512 is repeated at a frequency twice that of the wireless communication system of the time division duplex pattern.

[0100] 7A, the communication cycle 621 includes a period T12 that is an asynchronous period, and the communication cycle 631 does not include an asynchronous period. For this reason, the communication cycle 621 corresponds to the asynchronous communication cycle, and the communication cycle 631 corresponds to the synchronous communication cycle.

[0101] In FIG. 7B, the cycle start slot is the ninth communication slot 510, which is the uplink slot 512. In this case, the communication control unit 112 controls the cyclic communication so as to alternately repeat a communication cycle 622 (first communication cycle) that starts at the ninth communication slot 510 of the time division duplex pattern 500B and ends at the third communication slot 510 of the next time division duplex pattern 500B, and a communication cycle 632 (second communication cycle) that starts at the fourth communication slot 510 of the time division duplex pattern 500B and ends at the eighth communication slot 510 of the same time division duplex pattern 500B. The number of communication slots 510 included in the communication cycle 622 is equal to the number of communication slots 510 included in the communication cycle 632. Therefore, according to the example of FIG. 7B, the same number of communication slots 510 can be used in each of the communication cycles of the multiplication factor.

[0102] The number of uplink slots 512 included in communication cycle 622 is equal to the number of uplink slots 512 included in communication cycle 632. Therefore, according to the example of FIG. 7B, the same number of uplink slots 512 can be used in each of the multiple communication cycles.

[0103] In a communication cycle 622, two uplink slots 512 and three downlink slots 511 are arranged in this order. In a communication cycle 632, one special slot 513, two uplink slots 512, one downlink slot 511, and one special slot 513 are arranged in this order. For this reason, according to the example of FIG. 7B, a time division duplex pattern 500B is a communication cycle in which an uplink slot 512 is followed by a downlink slot 511, and the communication cycle in which a downlink slot 511 is arranged is a time division duplex pattern 500C. 2 It can be used for cyclic communication that repeats at multiples.

[0104] 7B, the communication cycle 622 includes a period T12 that is an asynchronous period, and the communication cycle 632 does not include an asynchronous period. For this reason, the communication cycle 622 corresponds to the asynchronous communication cycle, and the communication cycle 632 corresponds to the synchronous communication cycle.

[0105] In FIG. 7(c), the cycle start slot is the tenth communication slot 510, which is the uplink slot 512. In this case, the communication control unit 112 controls the cyclic communication so as to alternately repeat a communication cycle 623 (first communication cycle) that starts at the tenth communication slot 510 of the time division duplex pattern 500B and ends at the fourth communication slot 510 of the next time division duplex pattern 500B, and a communication cycle 633 (second communication cycle) that starts at the fifth communication slot 510 of the time division duplex pattern 500B and ends at the ninth communication slot 510 of the same time division duplex pattern 500B. The number of communication slots 510 included in the communication cycle 623 is equal to the number of communication slots 510 included in the communication cycle 633. Therefore, according to the example of FIG. 7(c), the same number of communication slots 510 can be used in each of the communication cycles of the multiplication factor.

[0106] In a communication cycle 623, one uplink slot 512, three downlink slots 511, and one special slot 513 are arranged in this order. In a communication cycle 633, two uplink slots 512, one downlink slot 511, one special slot 513, and one uplink slot 512 are arranged in this order. As described above, the special slot 513 can also be used as an uplink slot 512. For this reason, according to the example of FIG. 7(c), the time division duplex pattern 500B is a communication cycle in which the uplink slot 512 is followed by the downlink slot 511, and further the downlink slot 511 is followed by the uplink slot 512, and this communication cycle is called a time division duplex pattern 500B. 2 It can be used for cyclic communication that repeats at multiples.

[0107] In Figure 7 ( d In the example of FIG. 1, both communication cycle 623 and communication cycle 633 include period T12, which is an asynchronous period. Therefore, both communication cycle 623 and communication cycle 623 correspond to the asynchronous communication cycle.

[0108] The method of controlling cyclic communication so that at least a part of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles is performed within one time division duplex pattern of wireless communication is not limited to the method of controlling the timing of storing transmission data in the transmission buffer 211. For example, the communication control unit 112 may attach a tag that designates a communication slot 510 corresponding to a communication cycle to the transmission data, store the tagged transmission data in the transmission buffer 211, and the wireless communication unit 213 may transmit the transmission data in the communication slot 510 corresponding to the communication cycle based on the tag attached to the transmission data.

[0109] The communication system 1 may be further configured to set a target arrangement of the downlink slots 511 and the uplink slots 512 in a communication cycle based on configuration information indicating the configuration of the device system 10, and to control cyclic communication so as to approximate the arrangement of the downlink slots 511 and the uplink slots 512 in each communication cycle to the target arrangement.

[0110] For example, the control server 100 further includes a target setting unit 122. The target setting unit 122 sets a target arrangement of the downlink slots 511 and the uplink slots 512 in a communication cycle based on the configuration information acquired by the configuration information acquisition unit 113. The target setting unit 122 may select a target arrangement corresponding to the configuration of the device system 10 based on a reference table that defines a target arrangement for each of a plurality of configurations. In this case, the selected target arrangement becomes the setting result of the target arrangement. The communication control unit 112 controls the cyclic communication so that the arrangement of the downlink slots 511 and the uplink slots 512 in each communication cycle is approximated to the target arrangement.

[0111] FIG. 8 shows the target sequence and the downlink slots 511 in each communication cycle. Uplink slot 5128 is a schematic diagram illustrating the relationship between the arrangement of and . FIG. 8 illustrates a case where a target arrangement 620 is set in which two downlink slots 511 are followed by two uplink slots 512. In response to this, the communication control unit 112 controls the cyclic communication so that the above-mentioned communication cycle 621 and communication cycle 631 are alternately repeated. The special slot 513 can be used as either the downlink slot 511 or the uplink slot 512. Therefore, both the communication cycle 621 and the communication cycle 631 can be used as a communication cycle in which two downlink slots 511 are followed by two uplink slots 512, similar to the target arrangement 620.

[0112] The communication system 1 may be further configured to evaluate communication quality in the second type communication slot 510. For example, the communication system 1 may be further configured to evaluate communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522. For example, the control server 100 further includes a communication monitor 131. The communication monitor 131 evaluates communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522.

[0113] When the communication cycle of the multiplication factor includes a synchronous communication cycle and an asynchronous communication cycle, evaluating the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522 is an example of evaluating the communication quality in the asynchronous communication cycle.

[0114] For example, the communication monitor 131 may evaluate the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522 based on a packet loss rate of the communication in the asynchronous slot 522. For example, the communication monitor 131 may evaluate whether or not the packet loss rate exceeds a predetermined degradation detection threshold, and detect degradation of the communication quality when the packet loss rate exceeds the degradation detection threshold.

[0115] The communication monitor 131 may evaluate the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522 based on the magnitude of jitter in the communication in the asynchronous slot 522. For example, the communication monitor 131 may evaluate whether the magnitude of the jitter exceeds a predetermined degradation detection threshold, and detect degradation of the communication quality when the magnitude of the jitter exceeds the degradation detection threshold.

[0116] The communication system 1 may be configured to switch the normal mode wireless communication to an irregular mode wireless communication for dealing with the deterioration of the communication quality when a deterioration of the communication quality is detected in the second type communication slot 510. The normal mode wireless communication is, for example, the cyclic communication exemplified above.

[0117] Switching the normal mode to the irregular mode may include changing the second pattern to the first pattern, and lengthening the control cycle to increase the number of time division duplex patterns corresponding to the control cycle to compensate for the reduction in the number of uplink slots 512 that accompanies the change from the second pattern to the first pattern.

[0118] For example, when the communication monitor 131 detects a decrease in communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522, the communication control unit 112 changes the second pattern to the first pattern. Also, the communication control unit 112 lengthens the control cycle to increase the number of time division duplex patterns corresponding to the control cycle, so as to compensate for the decrease in the number of uplink slots 512 that accompanies the change from the second pattern to the first pattern.

[0119] Switching from the normal mode to the irregular mode may include lengthening the communication cycle to increase the number of time division duplex patterns corresponding to one communication cycle, and transmitting both the transmission data of the first attribute and the transmission data of the second attribute to the mobile station 400 through the first type communication slot 510.

[0120] For example, when the communication monitor 131 detects a deterioration in communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522, the communication control unit 112 controls the wireless communication unit 213 to lengthen the communication cycle of the cyclic communication, increase the number of time division duplex patterns corresponding to one communication cycle, and transmit both the transmission data of the first attribute and the transmission data of the second attribute to the mobile station 400 in the synchronous slot 521. When the communication monitor 131 detects a deterioration in communication quality, the communication control unit 112 may lengthen the control cycle, increase the number of time division duplex patterns corresponding to the control cycle, increase the communication data transmitted in the synchronous slot 521, and decrease the communication data transmitted in the asynchronous slot 522. When the communication monitor 131 detects a deterioration in communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522 of the asynchronous communication cycle, the communication control unit 112 may lengthen the communication cycle of the cyclic communication, and control the cyclic communication so that each communication cycle becomes a synchronous communication cycle.

[0121] Switching from the normal mode to the irregular mode may include increasing the transmission data transmitted in the first type communication slot 510 by compressing the transmission data.

[0122] For example, when the communication monitor 131 detects a decrease in communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522, the communication control unit 112 compresses the transmission data of the first attribute and the transmission data of the second attribute, and controls the wireless communication unit 213 so that both the transmission data of the first attribute and the transmission data of the second attribute are transmitted in the synchronous slot 521.

[0123] Switching the normal mode to the irregular mode may include at least partially interrupting the transmission of the transmission data of the second attribute through the second type of communication slot 510. For example, when the communication monitor 131 detects a decrease in communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522, the communication control unit 112 controls the wireless communication unit 213 such that the transmission of the transmission data of the second attribute through the asynchronous slot 522 is at least partially interrupted.

[0124] Switching from the normal mode to the irregular mode may include increasing the signal strength of the wireless communication. For example, when the communication monitor 131 detects a decrease in the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522, the communication control unit 112 requests the wireless communication unit 213 to increase the signal strength of the wireless communication.

[0125] The communication system 1 may be configured to return the irregular mode to the normal mode when recovery of the deteriorated communication quality is detected. In the irregular mode, when the transmission data of the second attribute is not transmitted by the asynchronous slot 522, the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522 cannot be evaluated based on the transmission of the transmission data of the second attribute. Therefore, the communication system 1 may be configured to evaluate the communication quality of the transmission data of the third attribute by the asynchronous slot 522 when the transmission data of the second attribute is not transmitted by the asynchronous slot 522 in the irregular mode.

[0126] For example, the communication control unit 112 controls the wireless communication unit 213 so that the transmission data of the third attribute is transmitted to the mobile station 400 by the asynchronous slot 522. When the transmission data of the second attribute is not transmitted by the asynchronous slot 522 in the irregular mode, the communication control unit 112 may control the wireless communication unit 213 so that the transmission data of the third attribute is transmitted to the mobile station 400 by the asynchronous slot 522. The transmission data of the third attribute may be dummy data that is not used for anything other than evaluating the communication quality.

[0127] When the transmission data of the second attribute is not transmitted by the asynchronous slot 522, the communication monitor 131 may evaluate the communication quality of the transmission data of the third attribute by the asynchronous slot 522. When the communication monitor 131 detects recovery of the deteriorated communication quality, the communication control unit 112 may control the wireless communication unit 213 to return the irregular mode to the normal mode.

[0128] The communication system 1 may be configured to, when the communication monitor 131 detects a decrease in communication quality in the second type communication slot 510, retransmit the transmission data of the second attribute transmitted in the second type communication slot 510 in the second type communication slot 510 of the next time division duplex pattern. For example, when the communication monitor 131 detects a decrease in communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522, the communication control unit 112 controls the wireless communication unit 213 so that the transmission data of the second attribute transmitted in the asynchronous slot 522 is retransmitted in the asynchronous slot 522 of the next time division duplex pattern. For example, when the communication monitor 131 detects a decrease in communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522, the communication control unit 112 leaves the transmission data of the second attribute transmitted in the asynchronous slot 522 in the transmission buffer 211 as a transmission target by the wireless communication unit 213. The transmission data left in the transmission buffer 211 is retransmitted from the wireless communication unit 213 to the mobile station 400 in the asynchronous slot 522 of the next time division duplex pattern.

[0129] The communication system 1 may be further configured to evaluate communication quality in the first type communication slot 510. For example, the communication system 1 may be further configured to evaluate communication quality in the synchronous slot 521. The communication system 1 may be configured to stop the application 3 and reset wireless communication when the communication monitor 131 detects a decrease in communication quality in the first type communication slot 510.

[0130] For example, the communication monitor 131 further evaluates the communication quality in the synchronous slot 521. The method of evaluating the communication quality is the same as the method of evaluating the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522. When the communication monitor 131 detects a decrease in the communication quality in the synchronous slot 521, the communication control unit 112 stops the application 3. For example, when the communication monitor 131 detects a decrease in the communication quality in the synchronous slot 521, the communication control unit 112 interrupts the control of the multiple machines 20 by the multiple controllers 111, and stops the operation of the multiple machines 20.

[0131] The control server 100 further includes a reset unit 132. After the communication control unit 112 stops the application 3, the reset unit 132 requests the wireless communication unit 213 to reset wireless communication. In response to the request from the reset unit 132, the wireless communication unit 213 resets wireless communication with the mobile station 400. For example, the wireless communication unit 213 executes pairing (described later) with the mobile station 400 again.

[0132] [Configuration of local controller and mobile station] Fig. 9 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of local controller 300 and mobile station 400. As shown in Fig. 9, local controller 300 has a machine driving unit 311 and a communication control unit 312 as functional blocks.

[0133] The machine driving unit 311 drives the machine body 30 by repeating a driving cycle including one or more communications from the controller 111 to the machine driving unit 311 and one or more communications from the machine driving unit 311 to the controller 111. For example, the machine driving unit 311 repeats a driving cycle including receiving the above-mentioned command data from the controller 111, outputting driving power to the machine body 30 according to the command data, acquiring response data representing the operation of the machine body 30 according to the driving power, and transmitting the command data to the controller 111. For example, the machine driving unit 311 outputs driving power to the machine body 30 for causing the machine body 30 to generate a target output according to the above-mentioned target output data. The operation of the machine body 30 according to the driving power is an example of an operation realized by the machine 20 according to the above-mentioned command data.

[0134] The drive cycle is synchronized with the control cycle and includes the communication cycle. The machine drive unit 311 causes the communication control unit 312 to receive reception data such as command data and transmit transmission data such as response data. For example, the machine drive unit 311 causes the communication control unit 312 to receive the reception data, and acquires the reception data received by the communication control unit 312. In addition, the machine drive unit 311 outputs transmission data to the communication control unit 312, and causes the communication control unit 312 to transmit the transmission data.

[0135] The communication control unit 312 receives reception data and transmits transmission data via the mobile station 400. The mobile station 400 has a transmission buffer 411, a reception buffer 412, a wireless communication unit 413, and a clock 414. The wireless communication unit 413 repeats the above-mentioned time division duplex pattern to perform wireless communication with the base station 200 (partner wireless communication unit). For example, the wireless communication unit 413 reads transmission data from the transmission buffer 411 and transmits the transmission data to the base station 200 by an uplink slot of the time division duplex pattern. In addition, the wireless communication unit 413 receives reception data from the base station 200 by a downlink slot of the time division duplex pattern, and stores the reception data in the reception buffer 412.

[0136] The communication control unit 312 stores the transmission data acquired from the machine driving unit 311 in the transmission buffer 411. As described above, the transmission data stored in the transmission buffer 411 is read by the wireless communication unit 413. Therefore, storing the transmission data in the transmission buffer 411 is an example of transferring the transmission data to the wireless communication unit 413. The data stored in the transmission buffer 411 is transmitted to the controller 111 via the mobile station 400 and the base station 200.

[0137] The communication control unit 312 reads out the reception data that the wireless communication unit 413 has received from the base station 200 from the reception buffer 412. Reading the reception data from the reception buffer 412 is an example of acquiring the reception data from the wireless communication unit 413. By reading the reception data from the reception buffer 412, the reception data is received from the controller 111 via the base station 200 and the mobile station 400.

[0138] Clock 414 repeatedly generates the time required to repeat the time division duplex pattern. Hereinafter, the time generated by clock 414 is referred to as "mobile station time." Wireless communication unit 413 repeats the time division duplex pattern based on the mobile station time.

[0139] For example, the wireless communication unit 413 executes a time division duplex pattern every time a communication clock signal is generated, which indicates the passage of a certain repeating cycle. In this case, the communication performed from the generation of a communication clock signal to the generation of the next communication clock signal is one time division duplex pattern.

[0140] The wireless communication unit 213 of the base station 200 performs pairing when starting wireless communication with the wireless communication unit 413. The pairing includes synchronization of the start timing of the time division duplex pattern. The wireless communication unit 213 repeats the time division duplex pattern based on the base station time from the start timing synchronized by the pairing. The wireless communication unit 413 repeats the time division duplex pattern based on the mobile station time from the start timing synchronized by the pairing.

[0141] The pairing includes notification of the time division duplex pattern set by the communication pattern setting unit 114. The wireless communication unit 213 repeats the time division duplex pattern notified during the pairing.

[0142] Similar to the communication control unit 112, the communication control unit 312 may cause the transmission data generated by the machine driving unit 311 to be transmitted from the wireless communication unit 413 to the base station 200 via a first type of communication slot 510 when the transmission data generated by the machine driving unit 311 has a first attribute, and may cause the transmission data generated by the machine driving unit 311 to be transmitted from the wireless communication unit 413 to the base station 200 via a second type of communication slot 510 when the transmission data generated by the machine driving unit 311 has a second attribute.

[0143] The first attribute may be a first priority, and the second attribute may be a second priority lower than the first priority. The communication control unit 312 may control the wireless communication unit 413 so that the transmission data having the first priority is transmitted to the base station 200 in the synchronous slot 521, and the transmission data having the second priority is transmitted to the base station 200 in the asynchronous slot 522.

[0144] The first attribute may be "the above-mentioned control data", and when the transmission data is control data, the communication control unit 312 may control the wireless communication unit 413 so that the transmission data is transmitted in the synchronous slot 521. The second attribute may be "the transmission data is a predetermined type of data different from the above-mentioned control data", and the communication control unit 312 may control the wireless communication unit 413 so that the transmission data is transmitted in the asynchronous slot 522, when the transmission data is the above-mentioned predetermined type of data.

[0145] The first attribute may be "abnormality notification data notifying an abnormality of the machine 20", and the communication control unit 312 may control the wireless communication unit 413 so that, when the transmission data is the abnormality notification data, the transmission data is transmitted in the synchronous slot 521. The second attribute may be "a predetermined type of notification data having a lower urgency compared to the abnormality notification data", and in this case, the communication control unit 312 may control the wireless communication unit 413 so that the transmission data is transmitted in the asynchronous slot 522, when the transmission data is the predetermined type of notification data.

[0146] As exemplified above, the communication control unit 312 controls which communication slot 510 to use to transmit the transmission data based on the attribute of the transmission data. To perform such control, the communication control unit 312 acquires attribute information indicating the attribute of the transmission data from the machine driving unit 311 together with the transmission data. The communication control unit 312 attaches a tag indicating the attribute of the transmission data to the transmission data based on the acquired attribute information, and stores the tagged transmission data in the transmission buffer 411. The wireless communication unit 413 controls which communication slot 510 to use to transmit the transmission data based on the tag attached to the transmission data.

[0147] For example, when the transmission data has a first attribute, the communication control unit 312 attaches a first tag to the transmission data and stores the transmission data in the transmission buffer 411, and when the transmission data has a second attribute, the communication control unit 312 attaches a second tag to the transmission data and stores the transmission data in the transmission buffer 411. When the transmission data has the first tag attached, the wireless communication unit 413 transmits the transmission data to the base station 200 using the first type of communication slot 510, and when the transmission data has the second tag attached, the wireless communication unit 413 transmits the transmission data to the base station 200 using the second type of communication slot 510.

[0148] The method of controlling which communication slot 510 to use for transmitting transmission data based on the attribute of the transmission data is not limited to the method of attaching a tag to the transmission data. For example, the communication control unit 312 may determine which communication slot 510 to use for transmitting the transmission data based on the attribute of the transmission data, and control the timing of storing the transmission data in the transmission buffer 411 so that the transmission data is transmitted in the determined communication slot 510.

[0149] In this case, the mobile station 400 further includes a timing notification unit 421. The timing notification unit 421 notifies the communication control unit 312 of the start timing of the time division duplex pattern. The communication control unit 312 recognizes the execution timing of each communication slot 510 based on the start timing of the time division duplex pattern, and controls the timing of storing the transmission data in the transmission buffer 411 so that the transmission data is transmitted in the above-mentioned determined communication slot 510.

[0150] The communication control unit 312 may control the cyclic communication such that at least a part of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication, similar to the communication control unit 112. For example, the communication control unit 312 performs the cyclic communication in cooperation with the communication control unit 112. A specific example of the cyclic communication realized by the communication control unit 312 in cooperation with the communication control unit 112 is as described in detail in the description of the communication control unit 112.

[0151] The communication control unit 112 of the control server 100 performs pairing when starting cyclic communication with the communication control unit 312. The pairing includes notification of the relationship between a time division duplex pattern and a communication cycle. The communication control unit 312 repeats the communication cycle in cooperation with the communication control unit 112 so as to maintain the relationship between the notified time division duplex pattern and the communication cycle.

[0152] For example, when the repetition cycle is equal to the communication cycle, the pairing includes notification of the cycle start slot. The communication control unit 312 recognizes the execution timing of the cycle start slot based on the start timing of the time division duplex pattern acquired from the timing notification unit 421. Based on the execution timing of the cycle start slot, the communication control unit 312 controls the timing of storing transmission data in the transmission buffer 411 in each communication cycle equal to the repetition cycle so that the one communication cycle is started in the cycle start slot.

[0153] For example, when the communication cycle is one of the multiples of the repetition cycle, the pairing includes notification of the cycle start slot and the multiple. The communication control unit 312 recognizes the execution timing of the cycle start slot based on the start timing of the time division duplex pattern acquired from the timing notification unit 421. The communication control unit 312 controls the timing of storing the transmission data in the transmission buffer 411 in each communication cycle, which is one of the multiples of the repetition cycle, based on the execution timing of the cycle start slot, so that the one communication cycle is started in the cycle start slot.

[0154] The local controller 300 may further include a communication monitor 331, similar to the communication monitor 131 of the control server 100. The communication monitor 331 evaluates the communication quality in the asynchronous slots 522.

[0155] When the communication cycle of the multiplication factor includes a synchronous communication cycle and an asynchronous communication cycle, evaluating the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522 is an example of evaluating the communication quality in the asynchronous communication cycle.

[0156] For example, the communication monitor 331 may evaluate the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522 based on a packet loss rate of the communication in the asynchronous slot 522. For example, the communication monitor 331 may evaluate whether or not the packet loss rate exceeds a predetermined degradation detection threshold, and detect degradation of the communication quality when the packet loss rate exceeds the degradation detection threshold.

[0157] The communication monitor 331 may evaluate the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522 based on the magnitude of jitter in the communication in the asynchronous slot 522. For example, the communication monitor 331 may evaluate whether the magnitude of the jitter exceeds a predetermined degradation detection threshold, and detect degradation of the communication quality when the magnitude of the jitter exceeds the degradation detection threshold.

[0158] When the communication monitor 331 detects a decrease in communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522, the communication control unit 312 may transmit a request to switch from the normal mode to the irregular mode to the communication control unit 112. When the communication control unit 112 receives the switch request, the communication control unit 112 may execute switching from the normal mode to the irregular mode in the same manner as when the communication monitor 131 detects a decrease in communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522.

[0159] When the communication control unit 112 lengthens the communication cycle of the cyclic communication to increase the number of time division duplex patterns corresponding to one communication cycle, the communication control unit 312 may control the wireless communication unit 413 so that both the transmission data of the first attribute and the transmission data of the second attribute are transmitted to the base station 200 by the synchronous slot 521. The communication control unit 312 may increase the communication data transmitted by the synchronous slot 521 and decrease the communication data transmitted by the asynchronous slot 522.

[0160] When the communication monitor 331 detects a decrease in communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522, the communication control unit 312 may control the wireless communication unit 413 to compress the transmission data of the first attribute and the transmission data of the second attribute and transmit both the transmission data of the first attribute and the transmission data of the second attribute in the synchronous slot 521. When the communication monitor 331 detects a decrease in communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522, the communication control unit 312 may control the wireless communication unit 413 to at least partially interrupt the transmission of the transmission data of the second attribute in the asynchronous slot 522. When the communication monitor 331 detects a decrease in communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522, the communication control unit 312 may request the wireless communication unit 413 to increase the signal strength of the wireless communication.

[0161] The communication control unit 312 may control the wireless communication unit 413 so that the transmission data of the third attribute is transmitted to the base station 200 by the asynchronous slot 522. When the transmission data of the second attribute is not transmitted by the asynchronous slot 522 in the irregular mode, the communication control unit 312 may control the wireless communication unit 413 so that the transmission data of the third attribute is transmitted to the base station 200 by the asynchronous slot 522. The transmission data of the third attribute may be dummy data that is not used for anything other than evaluating the communication quality.

[0162] When the transmission data of the second attribute is not transmitted by the asynchronous slot 522, the communication monitor 331 may evaluate the communication quality of the transmission data of the third attribute by the asynchronous slot 522. When the communication monitor 331 detects recovery of the deteriorated communication quality, the communication control unit 312 may transmit a recovery request from the irregular mode to the normal mode to the communication control unit 112. When the communication control unit 112 receives the recovery request, it may execute switching from the normal mode to the irregular mode in the same manner as when the communication monitor 131 detects recovery of the communication quality.

[0163] When the communication monitor 331 detects recovery of the deteriorated communication quality, the communication control unit 312 may control the wireless communication unit 413 to return the irregular mode to the normal mode.

[0164] The communication system 1 may be configured to, when the communication monitor 331 detects a deterioration in communication quality in the second type communication slot 510, retransmit the transmission data of the second attribute transmitted in the second type communication slot 510 in the second type communication slot 510 of the next time division duplex pattern. For example, when the communication monitor 331 detects a deterioration in communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522, the communication control unit 312 controls the wireless communication unit 413 so that the transmission data of the second attribute transmitted in the asynchronous slot 522 is retransmitted in the asynchronous slot 522 of the next time division duplex pattern. For example, when the communication monitor 331 detects a deterioration in communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522, the communication control unit 312 leaves the transmission data of the second attribute transmitted in the asynchronous slot 522 in the transmission buffer 411 as a transmission target by the wireless communication unit 413. The transmission data left in the transmission buffer 411 is retransmitted from the wireless communication unit 413 to the mobile station 400 in the asynchronous slot 522 of the next time division duplex pattern.

[0165] The communication monitor 331 may further evaluate the communication quality in the synchronous slot 521. The method of evaluating the communication quality is the same as the method of evaluating the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522. When the communication monitor 331 detects a decrease in the communication quality in the synchronous slot 521, the communication control unit 312 stops the application 3. For example, when the communication monitor 331 detects a decrease in the communication quality in the synchronous slot 521, the communication control unit 312 transmits a stop request for the multiple machines 20 to the communication control unit 112. The communication control unit 112 that has received the stop request interrupts the control of the multiple machines 20 by the multiple controllers 111, and stops the multiple machines 20.

[0166] The local controller 300 further includes a reset unit 332. After the communication control unit 312 stops the application 3, the reset unit 332 requests the wireless communication unit 413 to reset wireless communication. In response to the request from the reset unit 332, the wireless communication unit 413 resets wireless communication with the base station 200. For example, the wireless communication unit 413 requests the wireless communication unit 213 to perform the pairing again.

[0167] [Hardware configuration] Fig. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the control server 100 and the base station 200. As shown in Fig. 10, the control server 100 has a circuit 190. The circuit 190 includes a communication control circuit that controls the cyclic communication. The circuit 190 has a processor 191, a memory 192, a storage 193, and a communication port 194.

[0168] The storage 193 is a non-volatile storage medium. Specific examples of the storage 193 include a hard disk and a flash memory. The storage 193 may be a portable storage medium such as an optical disk. The storage 193 may store a program for causing the control server 100 to acquire configuration information indicating the configuration of the device system 10, set a time division duplex pattern that determines an arrangement of a downlink slot of time division duplex and an uplink slot of the time division duplex according to the configuration of the device system 10, and perform wireless communication by repeating the set time division duplex pattern.

[0169] The storage 193 may store a program for causing the control server 100 to transmit the transmission data from the base station 200 (wireless communication unit) to the mobile station 400 (partner wireless communication unit) using a first type of communication slot when the transmission data has a first attribute, and to transmit the transmission data from the base station 200 (wireless communication unit) to the mobile station 400 (partner wireless communication unit) using a second type of communication slot when the transmission data has a second attribute.

[0170] The storage 193 may store a program that causes the control server 100 to perform cyclic communication using the wireless communication system 2, and to control the cyclic communication so that at least a portion of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of wireless communication.

[0171] For example, the storage 193 stores a program for causing the control server 100 to configure each of the above-mentioned functional blocks.

[0172] The memory 192 is a temporary storage medium such as a random access memory, and temporarily stores a program loaded from the storage 193. The processor 191 is composed of one or more arithmetic elements, and causes the control server 100 to configure each of the above-mentioned functional blocks by executing the program loaded into the memory 192. The communication port 194 communicates with the time server 101 and the base station 200 in response to a request from the processor 191.

[0173] The base station 200 includes a circuit 290. The circuit 290 includes a processor 291, a memory 292, a storage 293, and a communication port 294.

[0174] The storage 293 is a non-volatile storage medium. Specific examples of the storage 193 include a hard disk and a flash memory. The storage 193 may be a portable storage medium such as an optical disk. The storage 293 stores a program for configuring each of the above-mentioned functional blocks in the base station 200.

[0175] The memory 292 is a temporary storage medium such as a random access memory, and temporarily stores a program loaded from the storage 293. The processor 291 is configured with one or more arithmetic elements, and configures the above-mentioned functional blocks in the base station 200 by executing the program loaded in the memory 292. The communication port 294 communicates with the communication port 194 in response to a request from the processor 291. The antenna 295 transmits and receives signals for wireless communication in response to a request from the processor 291.

[0176] Fig. 11 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the local controller 300 and the mobile station 400. As shown in Fig. 11, the local controller 300 has a circuit 390. The circuit 390 includes a communication control circuit that controls the cyclic communication. The circuit 390 has a processor 391, a memory 392, a storage 393, a communication port 394, and a drive circuit 395.

[0177] The storage 393 is a non-volatile storage medium. Specific examples of the storage 393 include a hard disk and a flash memory. The storage 393 may be a portable storage medium such as an optical disk. The storage 393 may store a program for causing the local controller 300 to transmit the transmission data from the mobile station 400 (wireless communication unit) to the base station 200 (partner wireless communication unit) through a first type of communication slot when the transmission data has a first attribute, and to transmit the transmission data from the mobile station 400 (wireless communication unit) to the base station 200 (partner wireless communication unit) through a second type of communication slot when the transmission data has a second attribute.

[0178] The storage 393 may store a program that causes the local controller 300 to perform cyclic communication using the wireless communication system 2, and to control the cyclic communication so that at least a portion of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication.

[0179] For example, the storage 393 stores a program for causing the local controller 300 to configure each of the above-mentioned functional blocks.

[0180] The memory 392 is a temporary storage medium such as a random access memory, and temporarily stores a program loaded from the storage 393. The processor 391 is configured with one or more arithmetic elements, and causes the local controller 300 to configure each of the above-mentioned functional blocks by executing the program loaded in the memory 392. The communication port 394 communicates with the mobile station 400 in response to a request from the processor 391.

[0181] The drive circuit 395 outputs drive power to the machine body 30 in response to a request from the processor 391 and acquires response data from the machine body 30 .

[0182] The mobile station 400 includes a circuit 490. The circuit 490 includes a processor 491, a memory 492, a storage 493, and a communication port 494.

[0183] The storage 493 is a non-volatile storage medium. Specific examples of the storage 493 include a hard disk and a flash memory. 493 The storage 493 may be a portable storage medium such as an optical disk. The storage 493 stores a program for configuring the mobile station 400 with each of the above-mentioned functional blocks.

[0184] The memory 492 is a temporary storage medium such as a random access memory, and temporarily stores a program loaded from the storage 493. The processor 491 is configured with one or more arithmetic elements, and causes the mobile station 400 to configure each of the above-mentioned functional blocks by executing a program loaded into the memory 492. The communication port 494 communicates with the communication port 494 in response to a request from the processor 491. The antenna 495 transmits and receives signals for wireless communication in response to a request from the processor 491.

[0185] [Communication procedures between control server and base station] As an example of a communication method, a communication procedure by the control server 100 and the base station 200 is illustrated. This procedure includes obtaining configuration information indicating the configuration of the device system 10, setting a time division duplex pattern according to the configuration of the device system 10, and performing wireless communication by repeating the set time division duplex pattern.

[0186] This procedure also includes transmitting the transmission data from the wireless communication unit 213 to the mobile station 400 through a first type of communication slot 510 when the transmission data has a first attribute, and transmitting the transmission data from the wireless communication unit 213 to the mobile station 400 through a second type of communication slot 510 when the transmission data has a second attribute.

[0187] This procedure also includes performing cyclic communication using the wireless communication system 2, and controlling the cyclic communication such that at least a portion of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication.

[0188] This procedure will be described in detail below, being divided into a procedure for setting a time division duplex pattern and a cycle start slot, a wireless communication procedure, a communication control procedure, and a procedure for changing a communication mode. ( Procedure for setting time division duplex pattern and cycle start slot) figure As shown in FIG. 12, the control server 100 first executes steps S01 and S02 in order. In step S01, the configuration information acquisition unit 113 acquires configuration information indicating the configuration of the device system 10 from the multiple controllers 111. In step S02, the communication pattern setting unit 114 sets a time division duplex pattern according to the configuration of the device system 10.

[0189] Next, the control server 100 executes steps S03, S04, and S05. In step S03, the target setting unit 122 sets a target arrangement of the downlink slot 511 and the uplink slot 512 in the communication cycle. In step S04, the communication control unit 112 sets the cycle start slot so that the arrangement of the downlink slot 511 and the uplink slot 512 in each communication cycle is approximated to the target arrangement. In step S05, the configuration information acquisition unit 113 waits for the configuration of the device system 10 to change. After that, the control server 100 returns the process to step S01. Through the above procedure, the control server 100 sets a time division duplex pattern and a cycle slot every time the configuration of the device system 10 changes.

[0190] (Radio communication procedures) 13, the base station 200 executes steps S11 and S12 in order. In step S11, the wireless communication unit 213 executes pairing with the wireless communication unit 413 and starts wireless communication using the set time division duplex pattern. In step S12, the wireless communication unit 213 checks whether the current communication slot 510 is the downlink slot 511.

[0191] If it is determined in step S12 that the current communication slot 510 is the downlink slot 511, the base station 200 executes step S13. In step S13, the wireless communication unit 213 checks whether the current communication slot 510 is the synchronization slot 521 or not.

[0192] If it is determined in step S13 that the current communication slot 510 is the synchronous slot 521, the base station 200 executes step S14. In step S14, the wireless communication unit 213 reads out transmission data for the synchronous slot 521 from the transmission buffer 211 based on the tag attached to the transmission data. For example, the wireless communication unit 213 reads out from the transmission buffer 211 the transmission data of the first attribute to which the first tag is attached.

[0193] If it is determined in step S13 that the current communication slot is an asynchronous slot, the base station 200 executes step S15. In step S15, the wireless communication unit 213 reads out the transmission data for the asynchronous slot 522 from the transmission buffer 211 based on the tag attached to the transmission data. For example, the wireless communication unit 213 reads out the transmission data of the second attribute attached with the second tag from the transmission buffer 211.

[0194] Next, the base station 200 executes steps S16 and S17. In step S16, the wireless communication unit 213 transmits the transmission data read from the transmission buffer 211 to the wireless communication unit 413. In step S17, the wireless communication unit 213 checks whether there is an acknowledgement from the wireless communication unit 413.

[0195] If it is determined in step S17 that there is an acknowledgement, the base station 200 executes steps S21 and S22. In step S21, the wireless communication unit 213 deletes the transmitted transmission data from the transmission buffer 211. In step S22, the wireless communication unit 213 notifies the communication monitor 131 of the magnitude of the jitter based on the reception timing of the acknowledgement.

[0196] If it is determined in step S17 that there is no acknowledgement, the base station 200 executes step S23. In step S23, the wireless communication unit 213 notifies the communication monitor 131 of the occurrence of a packet loss. After that, the base station 200 returns the process to step S12.

[0197] If it is determined in step S12 that the current communication slot 510 is the uplink slot 512, the base station 200 executes steps S31 and S32 as shown in Fig. 14. In step S31, the wireless communication unit 213 receives reception data from the wireless communication unit 413. In step S32, the wireless communication unit 213 checks whether the reception data has been normally received.

[0198] If it is determined in step S32 that the reception data has been normally received, the base station 200 executes steps S33 and S34. In step S33, the wireless communication unit 213 transmits an acknowledgement to the wireless communication unit 413. In step S34, the wireless communication unit 213 stores the reception data in the reception buffer 212. After that, the base station 200 returns the process to step S12.

[0199] If it is determined in step S32 that the reception data has not been received normally, the base station 200 returns the process to step S12 without executing steps S33 and S34. The base station 200 repeats the above procedure to perform communication for each communication slot in a time-division manner.

[0200] (Communication Control Procedures) 15, the control server 100 first executes steps S41, S42, S43, and S44. In step S41, the communication control unit 112 waits for the wireless communication unit 213 to start wireless communication. In step S42, the communication control unit 112 waits for acquisition of transmission data from the controller 111. In step S43, the communication control unit 112 acquires attribute information of the transmission data from the controller 111. In step S44, the communication control unit 112 adds a tag representing the attribute of the transmission data to the transmission data based on the attribute information.

[0201] Next, the control server 100 executes step S45. In step S45, the communication control unit 112 checks whether the transmission data is the first transmission data of the communication cycle.

[0202] If it is determined in step S45 that the transmission data is the first transmission data of the communication cycle, the control server 100 executes step S46, in which the communication control unit 112 waits for the start timing of the next communication cycle.

[0203] Next, the control server 100 executes step S47. If it is determined in step S45 that the transmission data is not the first transmission data of the communication cycle, the control server 100 executes step S47 without executing step S46. In step S47, the communication control unit 112 stores the transmission data in the transmission buffer 211. After that, the control server 100 returns the process to step S42.

[0204] Thereafter, the process repeats obtaining the transmission data, adding a tag to the transmission data, adjusting the storage timing of the transmission data, and storing the transmission data in the transmission buffer 211. Based on the attribute represented by the tag, the transmission data is transmitted from the wireless communication unit 213 to the wireless communication unit 413 by a communication slot 510 suitable for the attribute. By adjusting the storage timing of the transmission data, the relationship between the time division duplex pattern and the communication cycle is appropriately maintained.

[0205] (Communication mode switching procedure) 16, the control server 100 first executes steps S51 and S52. In step S51, the communication monitor 131 evaluates the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522. In step S52, the communication monitor 131 checks whether the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522 has deteriorated.

[0206] In step S52, if the control server 100 does not detect a deterioration in communication quality, the control server 100 returns the process to step S51. In step S52, if the control server 100 detects a deterioration in communication quality, the control server 100 executes step S53. In step S53, the communication control unit 112 switches the normal mode to the irregular mode.

[0207] Next, the control server 100 executes steps S54 and S55. In step S54, the communication monitor 131 evaluates the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522 and the communication quality in the synchronous slot 521. In step S55, the communication monitor 131 checks whether the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522 has recovered.

[0208] If recovery of communication quality is not detected in step S55, the control server 100 executes step S56. In step S56, the communication monitor 131 checks whether or not the communication quality in the synchronous slot 521 has deteriorated. If deterioration of communication quality is not detected in step S56, the control server 100 returns the process to step S54.

[0209] If recovery of communication quality is detected in step S55, the control server 100 executes step S57. In step S57, the communication control unit 112 switches the irregular mode to the normal mode.

[0210] In step S56, when a deterioration in communication quality is detected, the control server 100 executes steps S58 and S59. In step S58, when the communication monitor 131 detects a deterioration in communication quality in the synchronization slot 521, the communication control unit 112 interrupts the control of the multiple machines 20 by the multiple controllers 111 and stops the operation of the multiple machines 20. In step S59, after the communication control unit 112 stops the multiple machines 20, the reset unit 132 requests the wireless communication unit 213 to reset wireless communication. In response to the request from the reset unit 132, the wireless communication unit 213 resets wireless communication with the mobile station 400.

[0211] After executing step S57 or step S59, the control server 100 returns the process to step S51. The control server 100 repeats the above procedure.

[0212] [Communication procedures between local controller and mobile station] As an example of a communication method, a communication procedure by the local controller 300 and the mobile station 400 is further illustrated. This procedure includes transmitting the transmission data from the wireless communication unit 413 to the base station 200 through a first type of communication slot 510 when the transmission data has a first attribute, and transmitting the transmission data from the wireless communication unit 413 to the base station 200 through a second type of communication slot 510 when the transmission data has a second attribute.

[0213] This procedure also includes performing cyclic communication using the wireless communication system 2, and controlling the cyclic communication such that at least a portion of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication.

[0214] This procedure will be described below in detail, divided into a wireless communication procedure, a communication control procedure, and a communication mode change procedure. (Wireless Communication Procedure) As shown in Fig. 17, the mobile station 400 executes steps S111 and S112 in order. In step S111, the wireless communication unit 413 responds to pairing by the wireless communication unit 213 and starts wireless communication by the time division duplex pattern notified by the wireless communication unit 213. In step S112, the wireless communication unit 413 checks whether the current communication slot 510 is the uplink slot 512.

[0215] If it is determined in step S112 that the current communication slot 510 is the uplink slot 512, the mobile station 400 executes step S113. In step S113, the wireless communication unit 413 checks whether the current communication slot 510 is the synchronization slot 521 or not.

[0216] If it is determined in step S113 that the current communication slot 510 is the synchronous slot 521, the mobile station 400 executes step S114. In step S114, the wireless communication unit 413 reads out transmission data for the synchronous slot 521 from the transmission buffer 411 based on the tag attached to the transmission data. For example, the wireless communication unit 413 reads out the transmission data of the first attribute to which the first tag is attached from the transmission buffer 411.

[0217] If it is determined in step S113 that the current communication slot is an asynchronous slot, the mobile station 400 executes step S115. In step S115, the wireless communication unit 413 reads out transmission data for the asynchronous slot 522 from the transmission buffer 411 based on the tag attached to the transmission data. For example, the wireless communication unit 413 reads out the transmission data of the second attribute to which the second tag is attached from the transmission buffer 411.

[0218] Next, the mobile station 400 executes steps S116 and S117. In step S116, the wireless communication unit 413 transmits the transmission data read from the transmission buffer 411 to the wireless communication unit 213. In step S117, the wireless communication unit 413 checks whether an acknowledgement has been received from the wireless communication unit 213.

[0219] If it is determined in step S117 that there is an acknowledgement, the mobile station 400 executes steps S121 and S122. In step S121, the wireless communication unit 413 deletes the transmitted transmission data from the transmission buffer 411. In step S122, the wireless communication unit 413 notifies the communication monitor 331 of the magnitude of the jitter based on the reception timing of the acknowledgement.

[0220] If it is determined in step S117 that there is no acknowledgement, the mobile station 400 executes step S123. In step S123, the wireless communication unit 413 notifies the communication monitor 331 of the occurrence of a packet loss. After that, the mobile station 400 returns the process to step S112.

[0221] If it is determined in step S112 that the current communication slot 510 is the uplink slot 512, the mobile station 400 executes steps S131 and S132 as shown in Fig. 18. In step S131, the wireless communication unit 413 receives reception data from the wireless communication unit 213. In step S132, the wireless communication unit 413 checks whether the reception data has been normally received.

[0222] If it is determined in step S132 that the reception data has been normally received, the mobile station 400 executes steps S133 and S134. In step S133, the wireless communication unit 413 transmits an acknowledgement to the wireless communication unit 213. In step S134, the wireless communication unit 413 stores the reception data in the reception buffer 412. After that, the mobile station 400 returns the process to step S112.

[0223] If it is determined in step S132 that the reception data has not been received normally, the mobile station 400 returns the process to step S112 without executing steps S133 and S134. The mobile station 400 repeats the above procedure to perform communication for each communication slot in a time-division manner.

[0224] (Communication Control Procedures) 19, the local controller 300 first executes steps S141, S142, S143, and S144. In step S141, the communication control unit 312 waits for the wireless communication unit 413 to start wireless communication. In step S142, the communication control unit 312 waits for acquisition of transmission data from the machine driving unit 311. In step S143, the communication control unit 312 acquires attribute information of the transmission data from the machine driving unit 311. In step S144, the communication control unit 312 adds a tag representing the attribute of the transmission data to the transmission data based on the attribute information.

[0225] Next, the local controller 300 executes step S145. In step S145, the communication control section 312 checks whether the transmission data is the first transmission data of the communication cycle.

[0226] If it is determined in step S145 that the transmission data is the first transmission data of the communication cycle, the local controller 300 executes step S146. In step S146, the communication control unit 312 waits for the start timing of the next communication cycle.

[0227] Next, the local controller 300 executes step S147. If it is determined in step S145 that the transmission data is not the first transmission data in the communication cycle, the local controller 300 executes step S147 without executing step S146. In step S147, the communication control unit 312 stores the transmission data in the transmission buffer 411. After that, the local controller 300 returns the process to step S142.

[0228] Thereafter, the process repeats obtaining the transmission data, adding a tag to the transmission data, adjusting the storage timing of the transmission data, and storing the transmission data in the transmission buffer 411. Based on the attribute represented by the tag, the transmission data is transmitted from the wireless communication unit 413 to the wireless communication unit 213 by a communication slot 510 suitable for the attribute. By adjusting the storage timing of the transmission data, the relationship between the time division duplex pattern and the communication cycle is appropriately maintained.

[0229] (Communication mode switching procedure) 20, the control server 100 first executes steps S151 and S152. In step S151, the communication monitor 331 evaluates the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522. In step S152, the communication monitor 331 checks whether the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522 has deteriorated.

[0230] In step S152, if the local controller 300 does not detect a decrease in communication quality, the process returns to step S151. In step S152, if the local controller 300 detects a decrease in communication quality, the local controller 300 executes step S153. In step S153, the communication control unit 312 switches the normal mode to the irregular mode. The communication control unit 312 may request the communication control unit 112 to switch the normal mode to the irregular mode.

[0231] Next, the local controller 300 executes steps S154 and S155. In step S154, the communication monitor 331 evaluates the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522 and the communication quality in the synchronous slot 521. In step S155, the communication monitor 331 checks whether the communication quality in the asynchronous slot 522 has recovered.

[0232] If recovery of communication quality is not detected in step S155, the local controller 300 executes step S156. In step S156, the communication monitor 331 checks whether or not the communication quality in the synchronization slot 521 has deteriorated. If deterioration of communication quality is not detected in step S156, the local controller 300 returns the process to step S154.

[0233] When recovery of communication quality is detected in step S155, the local controller 300 executes step S157. In step S157, the communication control unit 312 switches the irregular mode to the normal mode. The communication control unit 312 may request the communication control unit 112 to switch the irregular mode to the normal mode.

[0234] In step S156, when the communication quality is detected to be degraded, the control server 100 executes steps S158 and S159. In step S158, when the communication monitor 131 detects a degradation in communication quality in the synchronous slot 521, the communication control unit 312 interrupts the control of the multiple machines 20 by the multiple controllers 111, and stops the operation of the multiple machines 20. For example, when the communication monitor 331 detects a degradation in communication quality in the synchronous slot 521, the communication control unit 312 transmits a stop request for the multiple machines 20 to the communication control unit 112. The communication control unit 112 that receives the stop request interrupts the control of the multiple machines 20 by the multiple controllers 111, and stops the multiple machines 20. In step S159, the reset unit 332 requests the wireless communication unit 413 to reset the wireless communication after the communication control unit 312 stops the multiple machines 20. The wireless communication unit 413 resets the wireless communication with the base station 200 in response to the request from the reset unit 332. For example, the wireless communication unit 413 requests the wireless communication unit 213 to perform the pairing again.

[0235] After executing step S157 or step S159, the local controller 300 returns the process to step S151. The local controller 300 repeats the above procedure.

[0236] [Effects of the embodiment] A communication system 1 according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a wireless communication system 2 that performs wireless communication by repeating a time division duplex pattern in which a plurality of communication slots 510 are arranged in a time division manner, an application 3 that performs cyclic communication using the wireless communication system 2, and a communication control unit 112, 312 that controls the cyclic communication so that at least a portion of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication.

[0237] A time division duplex pattern is not necessarily suitable for the cyclic communication of the application 3. In contrast, according to a configuration in which the wireless communication system 2 is controlled so that at least a part of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication, it is possible to adjust the arrangement of the communication slots 510 in each communication cycle of the cyclic communication (hereinafter, referred to as "slot arrangement") without changing the time division duplex pattern. Therefore, it is effective in applying wireless communication to various applications 3.

[0238] The application 3 may perform cyclic communication at a communication cycle that is an integer fraction of the repetition cycle of the time division duplex pattern. Wireless communication can be applied to the application 3 that requires cyclic communication at a communication cycle that is shorter than the repetition cycle of the time division duplex pattern.

[0239] The communication control units 112 and 312 may control the cyclic communication so that the number of communication slots 510 used in each of the two or more communication cycles is equal to each other, thereby making it possible to more appropriately adjust the slot arrangement in each of the two or more communication cycles.

[0240] The multiple communication slots 510 include uplink slots 512 for time division duplexing, and the communication control unit 112, 312 may control the cyclic communication so that the number of uplink slots 512 used in each of the two or more communication cycles is equal to each other. This makes it possible to more appropriately adjust the slot arrangement in each of the two or more communication cycles.

[0241] The plurality of communication slots 510 may further include a downlink slot 511 of time division duplex, and the communication control unit 112, 312 may control the cyclic communication so that the uplink slot 512 is arranged after the downlink slot 511 in each of two or more communication cycles. Uplink slot 512Wireless communication can be applied to an application 3 that should precede communication by wireless communication.

[0242] The application 3 may repeatedly execute a communication cycle including receiving command data for controlling an industrial machine and transmitting response data from the industrial machine according to the command data by cyclic communication. In controlling an industrial machine, cyclic communication with a slot arrangement suitable for control is required. Therefore, it is more useful to be able to adjust the slot arrangement without changing the time division duplex pattern.

[0243] The communication control unit 112, 312 may control the cyclic communication so that at least one of the two or more communication cycles is performed over two or more consecutive time division duplex patterns of wireless communication. By combining two or more time division duplex patterns, the slot arrangement can be adjusted with a higher degree of freedom.

[0244] The communication control units 112 and 312 may control the cyclic communication so that a first communication cycle performed across two or more time division duplex patterns and a second communication cycle performed within one time division duplex pattern are included in two or more communication cycles. This makes it easy to achieve both shortening the communication cycle and adjusting the slot arrangement in the communication cycle.

[0245] The multiple communication slots 510 include uplink slots 512 and downlink slots 511 of time division duplex, and the communication control units 112, 312 may control the cyclic communication so that two or more communication cycles include a synchronous communication cycle in which the arrangement of the uplink slots 512 and the downlink slots 511 matches that of other wireless communication performed in parallel with the wireless communication, and an asynchronous communication cycle in which the arrangement of the uplink slots 512 and the downlink slots 511 does not match that of other wireless communication. Even if the communication quality in the asynchronous communication cycle decreases due to interference, the communication quality in the synchronous communication cycle can be maintained, and continuous deterioration of the communication quality can be suppressed.

[0246] The system may further include a communication monitor 131, 331 for evaluating communication quality in an asynchronous communication cycle. By evaluating the communication quality in an asynchronous communication cycle, occurrence of a degradation in communication quality can be promptly detected.

[0247] When the communication monitor 131, 331 detects a deterioration in communication quality in an asynchronous communication cycle, the communication control unit 112, 312 may request the wireless communication system 2 to increase the signal strength of wireless communication. This makes it possible to easily resolve the deterioration in communication quality.

[0248] When the communication monitor 131, 331 detects a deterioration in communication quality in an asynchronous communication cycle, the communication control unit 112, 312 may control the cyclic communication so that the communication cycle of the cyclic communication is lengthened and each of the two or more communication cycles becomes a synchronous communication cycle. This makes it possible to easily resolve the deterioration in communication quality.

[0249] The communication monitor 131, 331 may evaluate the communication quality in the asynchronous communication cycle based on the packet loss rate, which makes it possible to easily evaluate the communication quality.

[0250] The communication monitor 131, 331 may evaluate the communication quality in the asynchronous communication cycle based on the magnitude of the jitter, thereby making it possible to easily evaluate the communication quality.

[0251] The system may further include a target setting unit 122 that sets a target arrangement of the downlink slots 511 and the uplink slots 512 based on configuration information of the application 3, and the communication control units 112, 312 may control the cyclic communication so that the arrangement of the downlink slots 511 and the uplink slots 512 in each of two or more communication cycles is made to approximate the target arrangement. The slot arrangement can be flexibly adjusted according to the configuration of the application 3.

[0252] Although the embodiment has been described above, the present invention is not necessarily limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible without departing from the gist of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0253] 1...communication system, 2...wireless communication system, 3...application, 10...device system, 20...machine, 112,312...communication control unit, 5,6...wireless communication device, 900...other wireless communication system, 111...controller, 213,413...wireless communication unit, 113...configuration information acquisition unit, 114...communication pattern setting unit, 511...downlink slot, 512...uplink slot, 510...communication slot, 521...synchronous slot, 522...asynchronous slot, 122...target setting unit, 131,331...communication monitor, 132,332...reset unit.

Claims

1. a wireless communication system that performs wireless communication by repeating a time division duplex pattern in which a plurality of communication slots are arranged in a time division manner; an application that performs cyclic communication by utilizing the wireless communication system; a communication control unit that controls the cyclic communication such that at least a portion of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication, and one or at least two of the two or more communication cycles are performed across two or more consecutive time division duplex patterns of the wireless communication.

2. The communication system according to claim 1 , wherein the application performs the cyclic communication in a communication cycle that is an integer fraction of a repetition cycle of the time division duplex pattern.

3. 3. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the communication control unit controls the cyclic communication so that the number of communication slots used in each of the two or more communication cycles is equal to each other.

4. the plurality of communication slots include time division duplex uplink slots; The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the communication control unit controls the cyclic communication so that the number of uplink slots used in each of the two or more communication cycles is equal to each other.

5. the plurality of communication slots further includes a time division duplex downlink slot; The communication system according to claim 4 , wherein the communication control unit controls the cyclic communication such that the uplink slot is arranged after the downlink slot in each of the two or more communication cycles.

6. The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the application repeatedly executes a communication cycle including receiving command data for controlling an industrial machine and transmitting response data of the industrial machine in response to the command data through the cyclic communication.

7. The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the communication control unit controls the cyclic communication so that a first communication cycle performed across the two or more time division duplex patterns and a second communication cycle performed within the one time division duplex pattern are included in the two or more communication cycles.

8. the plurality of communication slots include time division duplex uplink slots and downlink slots, The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the communication control unit controls the cyclic communication so that the two or more communication cycles include a synchronous communication cycle in which an arrangement of the uplink slots and the downlink slots matches that of other wireless communication performed in parallel with the wireless communication, and an asynchronous communication cycle in which an arrangement of the uplink slots and the downlink slots does not match that of the other wireless communication.

9. 9. The communication system according to claim 8, further comprising a communication monitor for evaluating communication quality in said asynchronous communication cycle.

10. 10. The communication system according to claim 9, wherein the communication control unit requests the wireless communication system to increase a signal strength of the wireless communication when the communication monitor detects a deterioration in the communication quality in the asynchronous communication cycle.

11. 11. The communication system according to claim 9, wherein when the communication monitor detects a deterioration in communication quality in the asynchronous communication cycle, the communication control unit controls the cyclic communication by lengthening a communication cycle of the cyclic communication so that each of the two or more communication cycles becomes a synchronous communication cycle.

12. 12. The communication system according to claim 9, wherein the communication monitor evaluates the communication quality in the asynchronous communication cycle based on a packet loss rate.

13. 13. The communication system according to claim 9, wherein the communication monitor evaluates the communication quality in the asynchronous communication cycle based on a magnitude of jitter.

14. A target setting unit that sets a target arrangement of the downlink slots and the uplink slots based on configuration information of the application, The communication system according to claim 8 , wherein the communication control unit controls the cyclic communication so that an arrangement of the downlink slots and the uplink slots in each of the two or more communication cycles approximates the target arrangement.

15. A wireless communication system for performing wireless communication between a base station and a mobile station by repeating a time division duplex pattern in which a plurality of types of communication slots are arranged in a fixed order by time division, an application that performs cyclic communication using the wireless communication system, the application repeating a communication cycle at a constant period, the communication cycle including: receiving data from the other of the base station and the mobile station by one of the base station and the mobile station; and transmitting data generated based on the received data from the one of the base station and the mobile station to the other of the base station and the mobile station; a communication control unit that controls the cyclic communication such that at least a portion of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication.

16. A circuit for controlling cyclic communication performed by an application using a wireless communication system that performs wireless communication by repeating a time division duplex pattern in which a plurality of communication slots are arranged in a time division manner, A communication control circuit that controls the cyclic communication such that at least a portion of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication, and one communication cycle or at least two communication cycles of the two or more communication cycles are performed across two or more consecutive time division duplex patterns of the wireless communication.

17. A circuit for controlling cyclic communication performed by an application using a wireless communication system for wireless communication between a base station and a mobile station by repeating a time division duplex pattern in which multiple types of communication slots are arranged in a fixed order by time division, comprising: the application performs the cyclic communication by repeating a communication cycle at a constant period, the communication cycle including: receiving data from the other of the base station and the mobile station by one of the base station and the mobile station; and transmitting data generated based on the received data from the one of the base station and the mobile station to the other of the base station and the mobile station; The circuit is a communication control circuit that controls the cyclic communication such that at least a portion of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is performed within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication.

18. An application performs cyclic communication using a wireless communication system that performs wireless communication by repeating a time division duplex pattern in which a plurality of communication slots are arranged in a time division manner; and controlling the cyclic communication such that at least a portion of each of two or more consecutive communication cycles of the cyclic communication is conducted within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication, and one or at least two of the two or more communication cycles are conducted across two or more consecutive time division duplex patterns of the wireless communication.

19. Utilizing a wireless communication system in which wireless communication is performed between a base station and a mobile station by repeating a time division duplex pattern in which multiple types of communication slots are arranged in a fixed order in a time division manner, an application performs cyclic communication in which a communication cycle including receiving data from one of the base station and the mobile station by the other of the base station and the mobile station, and transmitting data generated based on the received data from the one of the base station and the mobile station to the other is repeated at a fixed periodicity. and controlling the cyclic communication such that at least a portion of each of two or more successive communication cycles of the cyclic communication occurs within one time division duplex pattern of the wireless communication.

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