Method for arbitrating communication between heterogeneous virtual models

Abstract

Disclosed is a method for arbitrating communication between heterogeneous virtual models. The method for arbitrating communication between heterogeneous virtual models according to one disclosed embodiment includes the steps of: starting communication with a first virtual model; transferring communication data received from the first virtual model to a second virtual model which is a destination of the communication data; measuring a communication speed between the first virtual model and the second virtual model; calculating a correction value through the difference between the measured communication speed and a preset reference time; and transferring the calculated correction value to at least one of the first virtual model or the second virtual model to adjust an execution speed.

Description

METHOD FOR MEDIATING COMMUNICATION BETWEEN HETEROGENEOUS VIRTUAL MODELS

[0001] An embodiment of the present invention relates to a communication mediation technique between heterogeneous virtual models.

[0002] Existing co-simulation environments, which facilitate communication between heterogeneous virtual models, involve connecting the communication modules of individual virtual models via a communication interface. One virtual model is configured as emulation, while the other is configured as simulation. These heterogeneous virtual models exhibit varying execution speeds, hindering smooth communication. Furthermore, emulation-based systems exhibit irregular execution speeds relative to real-time, making smooth communication difficult without speed compensation.

[0003] That is, virtual models exhibit various execution performances depending on the implementation method and operating environment, and have various speeds depending on the performance of the host PC (Personal Computer) on which the virtual model is operated and the performance of the virtual model itself, so there is a problem that communication between heterogeneous virtual models is not smooth.

[0004] An embodiment of the present invention provides a method for mediating communication between heterogeneous virtual models to enable smooth communication between heterogeneous virtual models.

[0005] A method for mediating communication between heterogeneous virtual models according to one embodiment of the present disclosure is a method performed in a network coordinator having one or more processors and a memory storing one or more programs executed by the one or more processors, the method comprising: initiating communication with a first virtual model; transmitting communication data received from the first virtual model to a second virtual model that is a destination of the communication data; measuring a communication speed between the first virtual model and the second virtual model; calculating a correction value based on a difference between the measured communication speed and a preset reference time; and controlling an execution speed by transmitting the calculated correction value to one or more of the first virtual model and the second virtual model.

[0006] According to the disclosed embodiment, in a co-simulation environment where communication occurs between various heterogeneous virtual models, smooth communication between heterogeneous virtual models can be achieved by correcting the communication speed and execution speed of individual virtual models through a network coordinator.

[0007] That is, by synchronizing communication between virtual models used to simulate electronic devices equipped with communication modules on a host PC through a network coordinator, the influence of implementation methods and operating environments can be minimized, enabling smooth simulation when heterogeneous virtual models perform co-simulation.

[0008] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a communication mediation system between heterogeneous virtual models according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0009] Figure 2 is a flowchart illustrating a method for mediating communication between heterogeneous models according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0010] FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a computing environment including a computing device suitable for use in exemplary embodiments.

[0011] Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The following detailed description is provided to facilitate a comprehensive understanding of the methods, devices, and / or systems described herein. However, these are merely examples and the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0012] In describing embodiments of the present invention, if a detailed description of a known technology related to the present invention is judged to unnecessarily obscure the gist of the present invention, the detailed description will be omitted. In addition, the terms described below are terms defined in consideration of their functions in the present invention, and this may vary depending on the intention or custom of the user or operator. Therefore, the definitions should be made based on the contents throughout this specification. The terminology used in the detailed description is only for the purpose of describing embodiments of the present invention and should not be limited in any way. Unless clearly used otherwise, the singular form includes the plural form. In this description, expressions such as "comprises" or "having" are intended to indicate certain features, numbers, steps, operations, elements, parts or combinations thereof, and should not be construed to exclude the presence or possibility of one or more other features, numbers, steps, operations, elements, parts or combinations thereof other than those described.

[0013] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a communication mediation system between heterogeneous virtual models according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0014] Referring to FIG. 1, a heterogeneous virtual model communication mediation system (100) includes a virtual model A (102), a network coordinator (104), and a virtual model B (106). The virtual models A (102) and B (106) are communicatively connected to the network coordinator (104) via a communication network (not shown).

[0015] Here, the communication network may include the Internet, one or more local area networks, wide area networks, a cellular network, a mobile network, other types of networks, or a combination of these networks.

[0016] The network coordinator (104) may include a communication module, a reference time generation unit, an arbitration time calculation unit, and an arbitration time transmission unit.

[0017] The communication module is a module that performs communication with each virtual model, acts as an intermediary for communication between virtual models, and can measure communication speed.

[0018] The reference time generation unit can generate a reference time based on the speed obtained through communication with each virtual model.

[0019] The arbitration time calculation unit can calculate a correction value to adjust the execution speed of each virtual model based on the reference time.

[0020] The adjustment time transmission unit can transmit the correction value calculated by the arbitration time calculation unit to each virtual model.

[0021] Each virtual model (102, 106) can perform preset simulation logic. In one embodiment, each virtual model (102, 106) can be installed on a host computing device. Virtual model A and virtual model B can be heterogeneous virtual models. Each virtual model (102, 106) can include a communication module, a scheduler, and a time adjustment receiver.

[0022] The communication module can communicate with the network coordinator.

[0023] The adjustment time receiving unit can receive the correction value transmitted through the adjustment time transmitting unit of the network coordinator and transmit it to the scheduler.

[0024] The scheduler can adjust the execution speed using the correction value received through the adjustment time receiver.

[0025] In the disclosed embodiment, a network coordinator is added to the process of transmitting and receiving communication data through a communication interface between heterogeneous virtual models to mediate communication data between heterogeneous virtual models and measure communication speed for communication speed correction.

[0026] Figure 2 is a flowchart illustrating a method for mediating communication between heterogeneous models according to one embodiment of the present invention. While the illustrated flowchart depicts the method as divided into multiple steps, at least some of the steps may be performed in a different order, combined with other steps and performed together, omitted, divided into substeps, or performed with one or more additional steps not illustrated.

[0027] Referring to FIG. 2, communication can be initiated between the communication module of the virtual model and the communication module of the network coordinator (S 101).

[0028] The communication module of the network coordinator can transmit communication data received from the communication module of the virtual model to another virtual model that is the destination of the communication data (S 103).

[0029] The communication speed between two virtual models can be measured in the communication module of the network coordinator (S 105).

[0030] The reference time generation unit of the network coordinator can generate a reference time (e.g., current real-time time) (S 107).

[0031] The network coordinator's arbitration time calculation unit can calculate the error between the communication speed measured by the communication module and the reference time generated by the reference time generation unit to produce a correction value (i.e., adjustment time) (S 109).

[0032] In the adjustment time transmission unit of the network coordinator, the correction value of the arbitration time calculation unit can be transmitted to the adjustment time reception unit of each virtual model (S 111).

[0033] The execution speed can be adjusted based on the correction value received from the network coordinator in the scheduler of each virtual model (S 113).

[0034] FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a computing environment (10) including a computing device suitable for use in exemplary embodiments. In the illustrated embodiment, each component may have different functions and capabilities other than those described below, and may include additional components other than those described below.

[0035] The illustrated computing environment (10) includes a computing device (12). In one embodiment, the computing device (12) may be a virtual model. Additionally, the computing device (12) may be a network coordinator.

[0036] A computing device (12) includes at least one processor (14), a computer-readable storage medium (16), and a communication bus (18). The processor (14) may cause the computing device (12) to operate according to the exemplary embodiments mentioned above. For example, the processor (14) may execute one or more programs stored in the computer-readable storage medium (16). The one or more programs may include one or more computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by the processor (14), may be configured to cause the computing device (12) to perform operations according to the exemplary embodiments.

[0037] A computer-readable storage medium (16) is configured to store computer-executable instructions or program code, program data, and / or other suitable forms of information. A program (20) stored in the computer-readable storage medium (16) includes a set of instructions executable by the processor (14). In one embodiment, the computer-readable storage medium (16) may be a memory (volatile memory such as random access memory, non-volatile memory, or a suitable combination thereof), one or more magnetic disk storage devices, optical disk storage devices, flash memory devices, any other form of storage medium that can be accessed by the computing device (12) and store desired information, or a suitable combination thereof.

[0038] A communication bus (18) interconnects various other components of the computing device (12), including the processor (14) and computer-readable storage media (16).

[0039] The computing device (12) may also include one or more input / output interfaces (22) that provide interfaces for one or more input / output devices (24) and one or more network communication interfaces (26). The input / output interfaces (22) and the network communication interfaces (26) are connected to the communication bus (18). The input / output devices (24) may be connected to other components of the computing device (12) via the input / output interfaces (22). Exemplary input / output devices (24) may include input devices such as pointing devices (such as a mouse or a trackpad), a keyboard, a touch input device (such as a touchpad or a touchscreen), a voice or sound input device, various types of sensor devices and / or photographing devices, and / or output devices such as display devices, printers, speakers and / or network cards. The exemplary input / output devices (24) may be included within the computing device (12) as a component constituting the computing device (12), or may be connected to the computing device (12) as a separate device distinct from the computing device (12).

[0040] While representative embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications to the above-described embodiments are possible without departing from the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of the present invention should not be limited to the described embodiments, but should be defined not only by the claims set forth below but also by equivalents thereof.

Claims

1. One or more processors, and A method performed in a network coordinator having a memory storing one or more programs executed by one or more processors, Step of initiating communication with the first virtual model; A step of transmitting communication data received from the first virtual model to a second virtual model, which is the destination of the communication data; A step of measuring a communication speed between the first virtual model and the second virtual model; A step of calculating a correction value through the difference between the measured communication speed and the preset reference time; and A method for mediating communication between heterogeneous virtual models, comprising a step of transmitting the calculated correction value to at least one of the first virtual model and the second virtual model to adjust the execution speed.

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