Mesh network device -to -device information sharing system, mesh agent, mesh controller, device -to -device information sharing method, and program

Abstract

To increase the possibility of estimating and / or identifying a failure cause irrespective of a failure state of a component device that constitutes a mesh network.SOLUTION: A mesh network inter-device information sharing system includes a mesh controller, a first mesh agent, and a second mesh agent each of which is arranged in a mesh network. The first mesh agent collects first device information at each predetermined collection timing, stores it, and transmits it together with first identification information for identifying the first mesh agent to the mesh controller. The mesh controller stores the first device information and the first identification information in the mesh controller and transmits it to the second mesh agent. The second mesh agent stores the received first device information and first identification information in association with each other.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a technology for sharing information between devices in a mesh network system.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, a mesh network has been proposed as one of communication networks. In a mesh network, each constituent device constituting the mesh network can not only communicate directly with each other, but also communicate with each other even if the constituent devices are not directly connected.

[0003] The mesh network has, for example, the Wi-Fi Easy Mesh (registered trademark) standard established by the Wi-Fi Alliance. Such a mesh network is composed of constituent devices such as, for example, one controller and a plurality of agents. The controller controls other agents and controls the entire mesh network. The agent notifies the controller of network information under the management of the controller (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] The following analysis is given by the present invention.

[0006] Each constituent device may malfunction due to sudden external factors such as lightning or environmental factors such as not being placed in an appropriate environment. Generally, the cause of a malfunction is inferred and / or identified by analyzing the logs (device status information) accumulated in the constituent device. Since the device status information is accumulated in the constituent device, it cannot be obtained unless the power supply of the constituent device is turned on. Therefore, when a malfunction occurs such that the device's power supply does not turn on, the device status information essential for malfunction cause analysis cannot be obtained, and the cause of the malfunction cannot be inferred and / or identified.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a technology that increases the possibility of inferring and / or identifying the cause of a malfunction regardless of the malfunction mode of a constituent device that constitutes a mesh network.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0008] According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a mesh network device - to - device information sharing system including a mesh controller, a first mesh agent, and a second mesh agent, each disposed in a mesh network. The first mesh agent collects first device information, which is predetermined device information of the first mesh agent, at each predetermined collection timing, stores it in the first mesh agent, and transmits it to the mesh controller together with first identification information for identifying the first mesh agent. The mesh controller stores the received first device information and the first identification information in the mesh controller and transmits them to the second mesh agent. The second mesh agent stores the first device information and the first identification information received from the mesh controller in an associated manner.

[0009] According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information collection unit that collects first device information, which is predetermined device information of its own device, at each predetermined collection timing. An information transmission unit that transmits the collected first device information, together with first identification information for identifying the own device, to a mesh controller within a mesh network to which the own device belongs. An information reception unit that receives second device information, which is device information of other constituent devices belonging to the mesh network, and second identification information for identifying the constituent devices, transmitted from the mesh controller. An information management unit that stores the collected first device information and stores the received second device information in association with the second identification information. A mesh agent is provided, which includes the above.

[0010] According to a third aspect of the present invention, an information reception unit that receives device information of a constituent device and identification information for identifying the constituent device, transmitted from a constituent device belonging to a mesh network managed by the own device; An information transmission unit that transmits the received device information and the identification information to constituent devices other than the transmitting source constituent device among the constituent devices belonging to the mesh network; An information management unit that stores the received device information in association with the identification information. A mesh controller is provided, which includes the above.

[0011] According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a method for sharing information between devices in a mesh network including a mesh controller, a first mesh agent, and a second mesh agent, the method comprising: The first mesh agent collects, at each predetermined collection timing, first device information, which is predetermined device information of the first mesh agent, stores the first device information in the first mesh agent, and transmits the first device information, together with first identification information for identifying the first mesh agent, to the mesh controller. The mesh controller stores the received first device information and the first identification information in the mesh controller and transmits the information to the second mesh agent. The second mesh agent provides a device - to - device information sharing method for associating and storing the first device information and the first identification information received from the mesh controller.

[0012] According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, a computer is configured to: an information collection means for collecting first device information, which is predetermined device information of a device on which a program is installed, every time a predetermined collection timing is reached; an information transmission means for transmitting the collected first device information, together with first identification information for identifying the device, to a mesh controller within a mesh network to which the device belongs; an information reception means for receiving second device information, which is device information of another constituent device belonging to the mesh network, and second identification information for identifying the constituent device, transmitted from the mesh controller; an information management means for storing the collected first device information and storing the received second device information in association with the second identification information; A program for causing it to function as such is provided.

[0013] According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, a computer is configured to: an information reception means for receiving device information of a constituent device and identification information for identifying the constituent device, transmitted from a constituent device belonging to a mesh network managed by a device on which a program is installed; an information transmission means for transmitting the received device information and the identification information to constituent devices other than the transmitting - source constituent device among the constituent devices belonging to the mesh network; an information management means for storing the received device information in association with the identification information; A program for causing it to function as such is provided.

[0014] Incidentally, these programs can be recorded on a computer-readable storage medium. The storage medium can be a non-transient one such as a semiconductor memory, a hard disk, a magnetic recording medium, an optical recording medium, etc. The present invention can also be embodied as a computer program product.

Advantages of the Invention

[0015] According to the present invention, regardless of the failure mode of the constituent devices constituting the mesh network, the possibility of inferring and / or specifying the cause of the failure is increased.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0016]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Figure 10

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0017] Hereinafter, an overview of an embodiment of the present invention (hereinafter referred to as this embodiment) will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the appended reference numerals in the drawings are for convenience of each element as an example to assist understanding, and are not intended to limit the present invention to the illustrated embodiments. Also, the connection lines between blocks in the drawings and the like referred to in the following description include both bidirectional and unidirectional ones. The one-way arrow schematically shows the flow of the main signal (data) and does not exclude bidirectionality.

[0018] The program is executed via a computer device, and the computer device includes, for example, a processor, a storage device, an input device, a communication interface, and a display device as required. Also, this computer device is configured to be communicable with devices inside or outside the device (including computers) via the communication interface, regardless of wired or wireless. Also, ports or interfaces are provided at the input / output connection points of each block in the figure, but illustration thereof is omitted. Also, in the following description, "A and / or B" is used to mean A or B, or A and B.

[0019] Hereinafter, a case where the constituent device is a device using a communication method compliant with the Wi-Fi EasyMesh (registered trademark) standard that allows a multi-AP (access point) network will be described as an example. However, this embodiment is not limited thereto. For example, the constituent device may use another communication method capable of wireless communication in a multi-AP network.

[0020] In this embodiment, each constituent device constituting the mesh network transmits, every time it collects log information (hereinafter referred to as device information), which is the state information of the device used for failure analysis, to other constituent devices. As a result, each constituent device shares the device information of all the constituent devices constituting the mesh network almost in real time.

[0021] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an example of the network configuration of the mesh network of this embodiment.

[0022] As shown in this figure, the mesh network 100 of this embodiment includes a mesh controller 200, a mesh agent 301, and a mesh agent 302 as its constituent devices. Note that being a constituent device that constitutes the mesh network 100 itself is also referred to as belonging to the mesh network 100. Also, when there is no particular need to distinguish between the mesh agents 301 and 302, they are represented by the mesh agent 300. Also, the number of mesh agents 300 is not limited.

[0023] The mesh controller 200 manages the mesh agent 300 and controls the entire mesh network 100 by controlling the mesh agent 300. Each mesh agent 300 is wirelessly connected to the mesh controller 200. Also, the mesh controller 200 is connected to a WAN (Wide Area Network) 500.

[0024] Each mesh agent 300 operates under the management of the mesh controller 200 and transmits various types of information to the mesh controller 200. Also, in this embodiment, the mesh agent 300 holds the information received from the mesh controller 200. For example, a first information processing terminal 510 is wirelessly connected to the mesh agent 300, and a second information processing terminal 520 is wired-connected to the mesh agent 300.

[0025] Note that the first information processing terminal 510 is an information terminal having a wireless communication function, such as a smartphone or the like. Further, the second information processing terminal 520 is an information terminal having a wired communication function, such as a notebook personal computer or the like.

[0026] Hereinafter, the details of each constituent device will be described.

[0027] [Mesh Controller] First, the mesh controller 200 will be described. FIG. 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of the mesh controller 200. As shown in this figure, the mesh controller 200 of the present embodiment includes an arithmetic unit 211, a storage unit 212, a wireless control unit 213, a wired control unit 214, a wireless transceiver unit 215, and a wired transceiver unit 216.

[0028] The arithmetic unit 211 comprehensively controls the entire mesh controller 200 by executing a program stored in the storage unit 212. The arithmetic unit 211 is constituted by, for example, one or more processors such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or an MPU (Micro Processing Unit).

[0029] The storage unit 212 is constituted by a memory such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) or a RAM (Random Access Memory). It stores programs for executing various functions described later and information such as communication parameters for wireless communication. Also, in the present embodiment, device information is accumulated.

[0030] Note that, as the storage unit 212, in addition to a memory such as a ROM or a RAM, for example, a storage medium such as an SSD (Solid State Drive), a flexible disk, a hard disk, an optical disk, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a magnetic tape, a non-volatile memory card, a DVD, etc. may be used. Also, the storage unit 212 may include a plurality of memories.

[0031] The wireless control unit 213 controls a wireless LAN compliant with wireless LAN related standards. It also controls IP (Internet Protocol) communication, etc. For example, it controls the wireless transmission / reception unit 215 which is an antenna to execute transmission and reception of wireless signals for wireless communication. However, the communication methods available to the wireless control unit 213 are not limited to the above. For example, communication methods compliant with other wireless communication methods such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) and NFC (Near Field Communication) may be used.

[0032] The wired control unit 214 executes control of wired communication such as a wired LAN compliant with wired LAN related standards. In this embodiment, it controls the wired transmission / reception unit 216 to execute transmission and reception of wired signals for wired communication. In this embodiment, the mesh controller 200 is connected to a WAN (Wide Area Network) etc. via the wired transmission / reception unit 216.

[0033] Next, the functional configuration of the mesh controller 200 of this embodiment will be described. FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram of the functions related to this embodiment of the mesh controller 200 of this embodiment.

[0034] When the mesh controller 200 of this embodiment receives device information from one mesh agent 300, it transmits the received device information to a mesh agent 300 under management, which is a mesh agent 300 other than the source mesh agent 300. Specifically, when it receives device information from the mesh agent 301, it transmits it to the mesh agent 302, and when it receives device information from the mesh agent 302, it transmits it to the mesh agent 301.

[0035] To achieve this, the mesh controller 200 of this embodiment includes, as shown in FIG. 3, an information reception unit 221, an information transmission unit 222, an information collection unit 223, and an information management unit 224.

[0036] The information collection unit 223 collects the device information of its own device (mesh controller 200). In the present embodiment, for example, predetermined information is collected at predetermined time intervals. When the information collection unit 223 collects the device information, it transmits the collected device information to the information management unit 224 together with the date and time information indicating the collected date and time. The device information to be collected will be described later.

[0037] The information reception unit 221 receives shared information including device information, date and time information, and the identification number of the transmitting source mesh agent 300 (described later) from other constituent devices within the mesh network 100, that is, the mesh agent 300. When the information reception unit 221 receives the shared information, it transmits it to the information management unit 224.

[0038] The information management unit 224 controls the transfer of the received or collected device information and stores (stores, accumulates) these device information in the data storage unit 230. Further, in the present embodiment, the identification information of the constituent devices of the mesh network 100 is managed.

[0039] The identification information is information assigned to uniquely identify each of the mesh controller 200 and the managed mesh agents 300, and includes, for example, an identification number and a transmission address. The identification information is referred to when transmitting device information and the like. As the identification information, information on all the managed mesh agents 300 is stored. Note that the identification number of its own device (mesh controller 200) may also be stored.

[0040] The device information to be accumulated is the device information of all the constituent devices of the mesh network 100. That is, the device information of the mesh controller 200 (its own device) and the device information of all the managed mesh agents 300 are accumulated in the data storage unit 230. Details of the information managed by the information management unit 224 will be described later.

[0041] In addition, when the information management unit 224 newly receives shared information, it also transmits the shared information to the information transmission unit 222. Then, the information transmission unit 222 is instructed to transmit the shared information to the mesh agents 300 other than the source among the mesh agents 300 to be managed. The destination is determined by referring to the identification information to be managed, for example.

[0042] In the case of this embodiment, when the information management unit 224 receives shared information from the mesh agent 301, it transmits it to the mesh agent 302, and when it receives shared information from the mesh agent 302, it instructs to transmit it to the mesh agent 301.

[0043] Note that even when new device information is collected, the information management unit 224 creates shared information by attaching the identification number of its own device and transmits the shared information to the information transmission unit 222. Then, the information transmission unit 222 is instructed to transmit the shared information to all of the mesh agents 300 to be managed.

[0044] The information transmission unit 222 transmits the received shared information and the shared information including the collected device information to the instructed mesh agent 300 according to the instruction of the information management unit 224.

[0045] Each function is realized by the arithmetic unit 211 executing a program stored in the storage unit 212. Further, the data storage unit 230 is constructed in a rewritable non-volatile memory of the storage unit 212.

[0046] [Mesh Agent] Next, the mesh agent 300 will be described. FIG. 4 is a hardware configuration diagram of the mesh agent 300. As shown in this figure, the mesh agent 300 of this embodiment includes an arithmetic unit 311, a storage unit 312, a wireless control unit 313, a wired control unit 314, a wireless transceiver 315, and a wired transceiver 316. Since the components with the same name as the mesh controller 200 have the same functions, the description thereof is omitted here.

[0047] Next, the functional configuration of the mesh agent 300 of the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram of the functions related to the present embodiment of the mesh agent 300 of the present embodiment.

[0048] The mesh agent 300 of the present embodiment collects device information described later at predetermined time intervals. And every time it collects, it adds date and time information indicating the collected date and time and the identification number of its own device as shared information, and transmits it to the mesh controller 200. Further, when receiving the shared information of other mesh agents 300 from the mesh controller 200, it stores it in the storage unit 312.

[0049] To achieve this, as shown in FIG. 5, the mesh agent 300 of the present embodiment includes an information receiving unit 321, an information transmitting unit 322, an information management unit 324, and an information collecting unit 323.

[0050] The information receiving unit 321 receives shared information from the mesh controller 200. When the information receiving unit 321 receives the shared information, it transmits it to the information management unit 324.

[0051] The information collecting unit 323 collects the device information of its own device (mesh agent 300). In the present embodiment, for example, predetermined device information is collected at predetermined time intervals. When the information collecting unit 323 collects the device information, it transmits it to the information management unit 324 together with the collected date and time information.

[0052] The information management unit 324 manages the data stored in the data storage unit 330. In the present embodiment, it stores (stores, accumulates) the device information collected by its own device and the information received as shared information.

[0053] The device information to be accumulated is the shared information of all the constituent devices of the mesh network 100.

[0054] In addition, when new shared information is collected, the information management unit 324 assigns the identification number of its own device to create shared information, and transmits the shared information to the information transmission unit 322. Then, the information transmission unit 322 is instructed to transmit the shared information to the mesh controller 200.

[0055] The information transmission unit 322 transmits the shared information to the instructed mesh controller 200 according to the instruction of the information management unit 324.

[0056] Each function is realized by the arithmetic unit 311 executing the program stored in the storage unit 312. In addition, the data storage unit 330 is constructed in the rewritable non-volatile memory of the storage unit 312.

[0057] [Device Information] Next, the device information collected in this embodiment will be described. As described above, the device information is the log information of the device required for failure cause analysis. In this embodiment, for example, it is temperature, communication speed, etc. FIG. 6(a) shows an example of data items of the device information 410.

[0058] The communication speed information 411 indicating the communication speed includes, for example, a wired communication speed 411a and a wireless communication speed 411b. These communication speeds are obtained by, for example, the wireless control units 213, 313 and the wired control units 214, 314. For example, each of these units obtains the communication speed by measuring the connection speed between the corresponding transceiver and the connected device.

[0059] The temperature information 412 is the temperature of each part within the constituent device. In this embodiment, for example, it includes an arithmetic unit temperature 412a, a wired control unit temperature 412b, and a wireless control unit temperature 412c. The temperature of each part is obtained in the corresponding part according to the instruction of the information collection unit 223. For example, a temperature sensor or the like is attached to each part, and its measured value is obtained.

[0060] That is, every time a predetermined time elapses, the information collection unit 223 reads the temperature of the arithmetic unit 211 and instructs the wireless control unit 213 and the wired control unit 214 to read the wireless and wired communication speeds and temperature information respectively, thereby collecting the device information 410.

[0061] Note that in the mesh controller 200 and the mesh agent 300, as shown in FIG. 6(b), the collected date and time information 420 and the identification number 430 of the device are added to the collected device information 410 to generate the shared information 450.

[0062] [Identification Information Table / Device Information Database] Next, the information managed by the information management unit 224 will be described. As described above, the information management unit 224 manages identification information and device information. The identification information is stored in the data storage unit 230 as an identification information table 250, and the device information is stored as a device information database 260.

[0063] An example of the identification information table 250 for storing identification information is shown in FIG. 7(a). An example of the device information database 260 for storing the shared information 450 is shown in FIG. 7(b). Note that these may hold data other than the items shown in FIGS. 7(a) and 7(b).

[0064] The identification information table 250 is a table for managing the mesh agents 300 managed by the mesh controller 200. For each mesh agent 300, the identification number 251, which is the identification information for uniquely identifying it, and the address 252 are associated and stored as one record.

[0065] The device information database 260 is a database for storing the device information 410 of all the constituent devices constituting the mesh network 100. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7(b), the device information 262 including the date and time information is accumulated for each identification number 261 of the mesh agent 300 or the mesh controller 200.

[0066] The device information database 360 stored in the mesh agent 300 basically has the same configuration as the device information database 260. That is, device information including date and time information is accumulated for each identification number of each constituent device.

[0067] [Flow of information sharing process between devices] Next, the flow of the information sharing process between devices in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 8(a). Here, a case will be described where the mesh network 100 includes a mesh controller 200, a mesh agent 301, and a mesh agent 302, and the device information 410 collected by the mesh agent 301 is shared with other devices.

[0068] The information collection unit 323 of the mesh agent 301 collects the device information 410 (step S1101). The device information 410 to be collected is as described above.

[0069] The information transmission unit 322 transmits the device information 410 and the date and time information 420 collected by the information collection unit 323, together with the identification number 430 of its own device, as the shared information 450 to the mesh controller 200 (step S1102).

[0070] The information management unit 324 stores the device information 410, the date and time information 420, and the identification number 430 collected by the information collection unit 323 in the device information database 360 of the data storage unit 330 (step S1103). Note that the processes of step S1102 and step S1103, that is, the transmission process and the storage process of the device information 410, may be performed in any order. The same applies to each constituent device hereinafter.

[0071] In the mesh controller 200, when the information reception unit 221 receives the shared information 450 from the mesh agent 301 (step S1201), the information management unit 224 stores the information in the device information database 260 (step S1202).

[0072] Then, based on the identification number 430 included in the received shared information 450, the information management unit 224 determines the destination of the shared information 450 (step S1203). Here, among the mesh agents 300 under management stored in the identification information table 250, all mesh agents 300 other than the source are determined as the destinations. Here, the information management unit 224 determines the mesh agent 302 as the destination.

[0073] The information transmission unit 222 transmits the received shared information 450 to the determined destination (step S1204).

[0074] In the mesh agent 302, when the information reception unit 321 receives the shared information 450 from the mesh controller 200 (step S1301), the information management unit 324 stores the information in the device information database 360 (step S1302).

[0075] In this embodiment, the mesh controller 200 also collects the device information 410. In this case, as shown in FIG. 8(b), when the information collection unit 223 collects the device information 410 (step S1211), the information transmission unit 222 transmits the device information 410 to each mesh agent 300 as the shared information 450 together with the date and time information 420 and the identification number 430 of its own device (step S1212). Further, it is stored in the device information database 260 (step S1213).

[0076] Also, in each mesh agent 300, when the information reception unit 321 receives the shared information 450 from the mesh controller 200 (steps S1111, S1311), the information management unit 324 stores the information in the device information database 360 (steps S1112, S1312).

[0077] The above process is repeated every time the mesh agent 300 or the mesh controller 200 collects the device information 410, and the device information 410 of the constituent devices is shared among the constituent devices.

[0078] Here, the process flow of the information sharing process between devices within the mesh agent 300 will be described. FIG. 9 is the process flow of the information sharing process between devices that is executed after startup within the mesh agent 300 of the present embodiment.

[0079] Every time a predetermined time elapses (step S1401), the information collection unit 323 collects device information 410 (step S1402). The collected device information 410 is transmitted to the information management unit 324 together with the collected date and time information 420.

[0080] When the information management unit 324 receives the device information 410 with the date and time information 420 from the information collection unit 323, it assigns its own device identification number 430 and generates shared information 450. Then, the generated shared information 450 is transmitted to the mesh controller 200 via the information transmission unit 322 (step S1403). Also, the date and time information 420 and the device information 410 are added to and stored in the device information database (DB) 360 of the data storage unit 330 (step S1404).

[0081] On the other hand, in step S1401, if the predetermined time has not elapsed, the information reception unit 321 determines whether or not it has received the shared information 450 from the mesh controller 200 (step S1405). If not received, it returns to step S1401. On the other hand, if received, it proceeds to step S1404, and adds the received shared information 450 to the device information DB 360 and stores it.

[0082] After storing the shared information 450 in the device information DB 360, the mesh agent 300 determines whether or not it has received an end instruction (step S1406). If not received, it returns to step S1401, and if received, the process ends.

[0083] Next, the process flow of the information sharing process between devices within the mesh controller 200 will be described. FIG. 10 is the process flow of the information sharing process between devices that is executed after startup within the mesh controller 200 of the present embodiment.

[0084] Every time a predetermined time elapses (step S1501), the information collection unit 223 collects device information 410 (step S1502). The collected device information 410 is transmitted to the information management unit 224 together with the collected date and time information 420.

[0085] When the information management unit 224 receives the device information 410 with the date and time information 420 from the information collection unit 223, it assigns the identification number 430 of its own device and generates shared information 450. Then, the generated shared information 450 is transmitted to all the mesh agents 300 managed via the information transmission unit 222 (step S1503). Also, the date and time information 420 and the device information 410 are added to and stored in the device information database (DB) 260 of the data storage unit 230 (step S1504).

[0086] On the other hand, in step S1501, if the predetermined time has not elapsed, the information reception unit 221 determines whether or not it has received the shared information 450 from the mesh agent 300 (step S1505). If not received, it returns to step S1501.

[0087] On the other hand, if received, the information management unit 224 transmits the received shared information 450 to all the mesh agents 300 other than the mesh agent 300 that is the transmission source of the shared information 450 via the information transmission unit 222 (step S1507). Then, it proceeds to step S1504, adds the received shared information 450 to the device information DB 260, and stores it.

[0088] After storing the shared information 450 in the device information DB 260, the mesh controller 200 determines whether or not it has received an end instruction (step S1506). If not received, it returns to step S1501. If received, the process ends.

[0089] As described above, according to the present embodiment, the mesh network 100 includes a mesh controller 200, a first mesh agent 301, and a second mesh agent 302, each of which is disposed within the mesh network 100. The first mesh agent 301 collects first device information, which is predetermined device information 410 of the first mesh agent 301, every time a predetermined collection timing is reached, stores it in the first mesh agent 301, and transmits it to the mesh controller 200 together with first identification information for identifying the first mesh agent 301. The mesh controller 200 stores the received first device information and first identification information in the mesh controller 200 and transmits them to the second mesh agent 302. The second mesh agent 302 stores the first device information and first identification information received from the mesh controller 200 in an associated manner.

[0090] As a result, each constituent device of the mesh network 100 of the present embodiment always shares the latest device information of other constituent devices. Therefore, even if one of the constituent devices of the mesh network 100 does not have power input, as long as one of the other constituent devices has power input, the device information 410 of the failed constituent device can be obtained from the device information management table within the constituent device.

[0091] Then, by analyzing the device information 410 of the failed constituent device, the cause of the failure can be inferred, and measures can be taken to prevent the recurrence of the failure.

[0092] In this embodiment, communication speed information 411 and temperature information 412 are collected as device information. As a result, for example, the cause of a failure can be inferred as follows. Assume that the guaranteed temperature of each device is determined as follows: arithmetic unit 211 / 311, A°C; wired control unit 214 / 314, B°C; wireless control unit 213 / 313, C°C. When the temperature of the arithmetic unit 211 / 311 included in the device information 410 exceeds A°C, it is inferred that the cause of the failure is that the processor in the arithmetic unit 211 / 311 has broken due to high temperature. Also, when each temperature information uniformly exceeds its respective guaranteed temperature, it can be inferred that the failure was caused by the configured device being placed in an inappropriate environment. Inappropriate environments include the presence of obstacles within a certain range from the configured device, high ambient temperature around the configured device, and the like.

[0093] As the number of configured devices constituting the mesh network 100 increases, the number of configured devices sharing device information increases. For this reason, even if the number of failed configured devices increases, the possibility of obtaining the device information 410 of the failed configured devices increases. Accordingly, the possibility of performing failure analysis also increases, and the possibility of inferring / specifying the cause of the failure increases.

[0094] <Modification Example> In the above embodiment, the case where newly acquired device information 410 is respectively appended to the device information databases 260 / 360 has been described as an example. However, it is not limited to this. The device information databases 260 / 360 may each be configured to determine the number of records to be stored in advance, and overwrite the old records in order each time new device information is obtained.

[0095] Also, the timing of collecting the device information 410 only needs to be such that the device information can be collected so as to enable analysis of the cause of the failure. For example, it may be at a plurality of predetermined specific times or for each predetermined event. For example, when a new device is connected to the configured device, when the connection of an already connected device is disconnected, etc., it may be collected at different timings for each configured device. Furthermore, these collection timings may be combined.

[0096] When transmitting device information 410 from each constituent device, date and time information may not be added. In this case, the date and time information is given at the time of storage in the receiving constituent device.

[0097] Also, for the device information 410 and the date and time information 420 collected by the information collection units 223 and 323 of the own device, an identification number 430 may not be given and they may be managed separately.

[0098] Also, in the above embodiment, all the device information 410 of the mesh agents 300 managed by one mesh controller 200 is shared by all the constituent devices, but it is not limited to this. For example, the mesh agents 300 may be grouped for each of a plurality of devices, and the device information 410 may be shared for each group.

[0099] For example, assume that the mesh controller 200 manages mesh agents 301, 302, 303, and 304. In this case, the mesh controller 200 sets the mesh agents 301 and 302 as the first group, and the mesh agents 303 and 304 as the second group.

[0100] The mesh controller 200 holds the device information 410 of the mesh agent 301 in its own device and transmits it only to the mesh agent 302. Also, the mesh controller 200 holds the device information 410 of the mesh agent 302 in its own device and transmits it only to the mesh agent 301. Similarly, the mesh controller 200 holds the device information 410 of the mesh agent 303 in its own device and transmits it only to the mesh agent 304. Also, the mesh controller 200 holds the device information 410 of the mesh agent 304 in its own device and transmits it only to the mesh agent 303.

[0101] The mesh controller 200 stores all the device information 410. The mesh agent 300 stores, for each group, the device information 410 of all the mesh agents 300 in the group and the device information 410 of the mesh controller 200. Thereby, the amount of data to be transmitted and received and the amount of information to be stored can be suppressed.

[0102] Note that the information on the group to which each constituent device belongs may be held by all the constituent devices, or may be held only within the group.

[0103] As described above, each embodiment of the present invention has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and further modifications, substitutions, and adjustments can be made without departing from the basic technical idea of the present invention. For example, the network configurations and the configurations of the respective elements shown in the respective drawings are examples for facilitating the understanding of the present invention, and are not limited to the configurations shown in these drawings.

[0104] Finally, the preferred forms of the present invention will be summarized. [First form] (Refer to the mesh network device - to - device information sharing system from the above - mentioned first perspective) [Second form] In the above - mentioned mesh network device - to - device information sharing system, each time a predetermined collection timing is reached, the second mesh agent collects second device information, which is the device information of the second mesh agent, stores it in the second mesh agent, and transmits it to the mesh controller together with second identification information for identifying the second mesh agent. The mesh controller stores the received second device information and the second identification information in the mesh controller and transmits them to the first mesh agent. It is preferable that the first mesh agent stores the second device information and the second identification information received from the mesh controller in an associated manner. [Third form] In the above - mentioned mesh network device - to - device information sharing system, The mesh controller collects the third device information, which is the device information of the mesh controller, every time a predetermined collection timing is reached, stores it in the mesh controller, and transmits it to the first mesh agent and the second mesh agent together with third identification information for identifying the mesh controller. It is desirable that the first mesh agent and the second mesh agent respectively store the third device information and the third identification information received from the mesh controller in association with each other. [Fourth Embodiment] In the above mesh network device - to - device information sharing system, It is desirable that the device information includes at least one of temperature information and communication speed information. [Fifth Embodiment] In the above mesh network device - to - device information sharing system, It is desirable that the device information is collected at at least one of the collection timings of a predetermined time interval, the occurrence of a predetermined event, and a predetermined specific time. [Sixth Embodiment] (Refer to the mesh agent from the above second perspective) [Seventh Embodiment] (Refer to the mesh controller from the above third perspective) [Eighth Embodiment] (Refer to the device - to - device information sharing method from the above fourth perspective) [Ninth Embodiment] (Refer to the program from the above fifth perspective) [Tenth Embodiment] (Refer to the program from the above sixth perspective) Note that the above sixth to tenth embodiments can be developed into the second to fifth embodiments in the same manner as the first embodiment.

[0105] In addition, each disclosure of the above-mentioned patent documents and the like shall be incorporated herein by reference. Within the scope of the entire disclosure of the present invention (including the claims), modifications and adjustments of the embodiments or examples can be made based on the basic technical idea thereof. Also, within the scope of the disclosure of the present invention, various combinations or selections of various disclosure elements (including each element of each claim, each element of each embodiment or example, each element of each drawing, etc.) are possible. That is to say, the present invention naturally includes all the disclosures including the claims, as well as various modifications and corrections that could be made by those skilled in the art according to the technical idea. In particular, regarding the numerical ranges described in this document, any numerical value or small range included within the range should be construed as being specifically described even in the absence of separate description.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0106] 100: Mesh Network 200: Mesh Controller 211: Arithmetic Unit 212: Memory Unit 213: Wireless Control Unit 214: Wired Control Unit 215: Wireless Transceiver 216: Wired Transceiver 221: Information Receiver 222: Information Transmitter 223: Information Collection Unit 224: Information Management Unit 230: Data Storage Unit 250: Identification Information Table 251: Identification Number 252: Address 260: Device Information Database 261: Identification Number 262: Device Information 300: Mesh Agent 301: Mesh Agent 302: Mesh Agent 303: Mesh Agent 304: Mesh Agent 311: Arithmetic Unit 312: Memory Unit 313: Wireless control unit 314: Wired control unit 315: Wireless transceiver 316: Wired transceiver 321: Information receiving unit 322: Information transmitting unit 323: Information collection unit 324: Information management unit 330: Data storage unit 360: Device information database 410: Device information 411: Communication speed information 411a: Wired communication speed 411b: Wireless communication speed 412: Temperature information 412a: Temperature of arithmetic unit 412b: Temperature of wired control unit 412c: Temperature of wireless control unit 420: Date and time information 430: Identification number 450: Shared information 500: WAN (Wide Area Network) 510: First information processing terminal 520: Second information processing terminal

Claims

1. A mesh network device - to - device information sharing system comprising at least a mesh controller, a first mesh agent, and a second mesh agent, which are constituent devices respectively arranged within a mesh network. The first mesh agent collects first device information, which is predetermined device information of the first mesh agent, every time a predetermined first collection timing is reached, stores it in the first mesh agent, and transmits it to the mesh controller together with first identification information for identifying the first mesh agent. The mesh controller stores the received first device information and the first identification information in the mesh controller and transmits them to the second mesh agent. The second mesh agent stores the first device information and the first identification information received from the mesh controller in an associated manner. The first collection timing is the timing when a new constituent device is connected to the first mesh agent or the timing when the connection of an already - connected constituent device to the first mesh agent is broken.

2. The mesh network device - to - device information sharing system according to Claim 1, The second mesh agent collects second device information, which is the device information of the second mesh agent, every time a predetermined second collection timing is reached, stores it in the second mesh agent, and transmits it to the mesh controller together with second identification information for identifying the second mesh agent. The mesh controller stores the received second device information and the second identification information in the mesh controller and transmits them to the first mesh agent. The first mesh agent stores the second device information and the second identification information received from the mesh controller in an associated manner. The second collection timing is the timing when a new said configuration device is connected to the second mesh agent, or the timing when the connection of the said configuration device already connected to the second mesh agent is disconnected. A system for sharing information between mesh network devices.

3. The system for sharing information between mesh network devices according to claim 1 or 2, Every time a predetermined third collection timing is reached, the mesh controller collects third device information, which is the device information of the mesh controller, stores it in the mesh controller, and transmits it to the first mesh agent and the second mesh agent together with third identification information for identifying the mesh controller. The first mesh agent and the second mesh agent respectively store the third device information and the third identification information received from the mesh controller in association with each other. The third collection timing is the timing when a new said configuration device is connected to the mesh controller, or the timing when the connection of the said configuration device already connected to the mesh controller is disconnected. A system for sharing information between mesh network devices.

4. The system for sharing information between mesh network devices according to claim 3, The device information includes at least one of temperature information and communication speed information. A system for sharing information between mesh network devices.

5. An information collection unit that collects first device information, which is predetermined device information of the own device, every time a predetermined collection timing is reached; An information transmission unit that transmits the collected first device information together with first identification information for identifying the own device to a mesh controller within a mesh network to which the own device belongs; An information receiving unit that receives second device information, which is device information of other mesh agents belonging to the mesh network and transmitted from the mesh controller, and second identification information for identifying the other mesh agents; An information management unit that stores the collected first device information and stores the received second device information in association with the second identification information; comprising; The predetermined collection timing is a timing at which a new constituent device belonging to the mesh network is connected to the own device or a timing at which the connection of the already connected constituent device is disconnected from the own device, a mesh agent.

6. An information receiving unit that receives device information of the first mesh agent and identification information for identifying the constituent device, which are collected and transmitted at a predetermined collection timing from the first mesh agent, which is a constituent device belonging to the mesh network managed by the own device; An information transmitting unit that transmits the received device information and the identification information to a second mesh agent different from the first mesh agent belonging to the mesh network; An information management unit that stores the received device information in association with the identification information; comprising; The predetermined collection timing is a timing at which a new constituent device belonging to the mesh network is connected to the own device or a timing at which the connection of the already connected constituent device is disconnected from the own device, a mesh controller.

7. A method for sharing information between devices in a mesh network including at least a mesh controller, a first mesh agent, and a second mesh agent as constituent devices, comprising: Every time a predetermined collection timing is reached, the first mesh agent collects first device information, which is predetermined device information of the first mesh agent, stores it in the first mesh agent, and transmits it to the mesh controller together with first identification information for identifying the first mesh agent. The mesh controller stores the received first device information and the first identification information in the mesh controller and transmits them to the second mesh agent. The second mesh agent stores the first device information and the first identification information received from the mesh controller in association with each other. The collection timing is the timing when a new configuration device is connected to the first mesh agent or the timing when the connection of an already connected configuration device to the first mesh agent is disconnected. A method for sharing information between devices.

8. The computer of the first mesh agent Information collection means for collecting first device information, which is predetermined device information of the first mesh agent, every time a predetermined collection timing is reached. Information transmission means for transmitting the collected first device information to a mesh controller in a mesh network to which the first mesh agent belongs, together with first identification information for identifying the first mesh agent. Information reception means for receiving second device information, which is device information of a second mesh agent different from the first mesh agent belonging to the mesh network, and second identification information for identifying the second mesh agent, transmitted from the mesh controller. Information management means for storing the collected first device information and storing the received second device information in association with the second identification information. A program for causing it to function as The collection timing is a program that is the timing at which a new constituent device belonging to the mesh network is connected to the first mesh agent or the timing at which the connection of the constituent device already connected to the first mesh agent is disconnected.

9. Cause the computer of the mesh controller to Information receiving means for receiving device information of the first mesh agent and identification information for identifying the first mesh agent, which are collected and transmitted at a predetermined timing from the first mesh agent belonging to the mesh network managed by the mesh controller; Information transmitting means for transmitting the received device information and the identification information to a second mesh agent different from the first mesh agent belonging to the mesh network; Information management means for storing the received device information in association with the identification information; A program for causing the computer to function as The predetermined collection timing is a program that is the timing at which a new constituent device belonging to the mesh network is connected to the first mesh agent or the timing at which the connection of the constituent device already connected to the first mesh agent is disconnected.

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