Binary Gateway Protocol for Legacy Industrial Communications
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Solution Overview
Problem
Legacy equipment in industrial applications often faces issues with simultaneous access requests using outdated communications protocols, making it costly to replace them with new equipment supporting updated protocols.
Innovation Solution
A system and method implementable with software or hardware to establish a simple binary priority for incoming TCP/IP communications through a binary gateway protocol, utilizing two incoming ports where routine communications flow through one port and emergency communications take priority through the other, with data flow management between them.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If legacy equipment with dated communications protocols is replaced with new equipment using updated protocols, then communication reliability and security are improved, but cost increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
A gateway device is introduced as an intermediary between legacy equipment and the modern network. The gateway translates and protocols between legacy communication protocols and updated TCP/IP protocols, enabling legacy equipment to access modern networks without replacement. This resolves the contradiction by maintaining communication reliability through protocol translation while avoiding the high cost of replacing legacy equipment.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the communication parameter by implementing priority-based traffic classification and routing. By assigning different priority levels to different communication streams, the system enables differentiated service quality without requiring protocol replacement. This allows critical communications to receive preferential treatment while maintaining compatibility with legacy equipment.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple computers simultaneously access legacy equipment using dated protocols, then connectivity coverage is improved, but data transfer efficiency deteriorates due to protocol limitations
Solution Approach 1:
The communication traffic is segmented into different priority classes (e.g., real-time critical communications versus non-critical data transfer). The gateway device segments incoming traffic streams based on priority markers and routes them through different processing paths. This segmentation enables multiple computers to simultaneously access legacy equipment while maintaining data transfer efficiency for critical communications through prioritized routing.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements dynamic priority assignment and adaptive routing based on real-time traffic conditions. The gateway dynamically adjusts which traffic streams receive priority treatment based on current network load and criticality assessments. This dynamic approach maintains connectivity coverage for multiple devices while optimizing data transfer efficiency according to actual operational needs.
3Adaptability or versatility
If a complex traffic management system is implemented to handle multiple communication streams, then adaptability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The gateway device performs preliminary action by pre-configuring priority levels and routing rules for different communication streams before traffic management is needed. Priority markers are assigned in advance based on communication type and criticality. This preliminary configuration enables complex traffic management capabilities while keeping the active system simple, as the heavy lifting is done during device initialization rather than during runtime processing.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and system for implementing a gateway protocol to prioritize incoming communications. It is implementable with software or hardware, and enables a simple, binary priority to be established for incoming communications. The method and system can provide a low-cost alternative to replacing legacy equipment currently in use, while allowing for updated and modernized functionality.