Communication Bus Global Labeling for Scalable Slave Integration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing communication bus solutions for unmanned aircraft, such as those based on RS485 and CAN standards, lack the ability to connect slave devices without modifying the master device software, limiting scalability and flexibility in device configuration.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a communication bus system where a master device assigns global labels to slave devices during initialization, allowing them to communicate via a shared memory space without requiring changes to the master device software, and incorporates a priority structure for data handling based on label values.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If existing communication bus solutions (RS485, CAN) are used with fixed slave device configurations, then the system provides stable communication protocols, but the system lacks flexibility and scalability when adding new slave devices without modifying master device software
Solution Approach 1:
The master device performs preliminary actions during initialization by automatically querying the address pool, detecting connected slave devices, and assigning global labels before normal operation begins. This preliminary device registration and labeling eliminates the need for software modification when adding new devices, as the system proactively configures itself upon startup.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-service through automatic slave device detection and global label assignment during initialization. The master device autonomously queries the address pool, identifies connected slaves, and assigns labels without external intervention or software changes, allowing the system to adapt to new devices automatically.
2Adaptability or versatility
If slave devices are connected using predetermined address schemes, then the communication protocol remains simple, but the system cannot accommodate dynamic addition of slave devices
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from static predetermined address schemes to dynamic address assignment. During initialization, the master device dynamically queries the address pool, detects which addresses are currently occupied by connected slave devices, and assigns global labels based on real-time system state. This dynamic approach enables scalable device addition while maintaining operational simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the address allocation parameter from fixed predetermined values to dynamically assigned global labels. The master device modifies the address assignment process during initialization by querying the address pool and assigning labels based on detected slave devices, enabling scalability without complicating operation.
3Adaptability or versatility
If global labels are assigned to slave devices during initialization, then device configurability improves, but the initialization process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The initialization process is segmented into distinct phases: querying the address pool, detecting connected slave devices, assigning global labels, and storing device information in a database. This segmentation organizes the complexity into manageable steps, making the configurability enhancement systematic rather than chaotic.
Solution Approach 2:
The global label acts as an intermediary between the slave device's physical address and the master device's software configuration. By introducing this intermediate labeling layer during initialization, the system achieves high device configurability while the complexity is encapsulated in the label assignment mechanism rather than propagating through the entire system.
4Extent of automation
If the master device queries addresses from a predefined pool during initialization, then automatic device detection is enabled, but communication overhead increases during setup
Solution Approach 1:
The master device performs periodic address queries from the predefined pool during initialization to detect slave devices. This periodic action systematically checks each address in the pool, enabling automatic detection while keeping the initialization time predictable and manageable through structured, repeating query cycles.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a method of operation of a communication bus system, in which to the communication bus, via connection nodes, at least one master device MASTER managing data exchange in the bus is connected and one or more slave devices SLAVE are connectable, wherein the method is characterized in that it comprises an initialization phase, in which using the master device MASTER addresses belonging to a previously defined address pool are successively queried, slave devices SLAVE with addresses from the mentioned address pool and connected to the communication bus are registered, and information about the registered slave devices SLAVE is stored in a slave device database (24) of the master device MASTER; wherein each registered slave device SLAVE is individually assigned at least one global label, which is an address to a specific shared memory space of the master device MASTER. The method furthermore comprises a normal operation phase, in which the slave devices SLAVE connected to the bus and registered in the initialization phase communicate via the communication bus under the control of the master device MASTER based on the information about registered slave devices SLAVE in the slave device database (24) obtained in the initialization phase, using the global labels assigned to variables.